Solomon Burke Passes On at Age 70

Solomon Burke
(1940-2010)  
I Have A Dream (Now Is The Time)

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Page

Reports & Remembrances

Rolling Stone

The Guardian

NPR Report

Funky 16 Corners

Chile Mine Rescue - Good News For a Change

Rare bit of good news in post- George W. Bush world. Nice reprieve from typical news coverage.

Three for One: Quincy Jones and Crusaders

Joe Sample/Crusaders - Covert Action

Excellent Commentary on state of American Politics

A must read, courtesy of John Cole at Balloon Juice -- You Are Blind as a Bat, And I Have Sight

How a Couple of Citizen Investigators Brought Foreclosure Fiasco to Nations Attention

PALM BEACH, Fla. — More than a year before lenders, law firms and document companies began owning up to widespread paperwork problems with their foreclosure filings, Lisa Epstein and Michael Redman already knew that something was wrong — very wrong.

Redman, a former online automobile consultant, got his first taste of the problem in early 2008, when he tried to help a relative who was facing foreclosure.

As he tried to determine which of three or four supposed lenders held the note, Redman, 35, realized that not only did he not know the answer, neither did any of the companies that were asking for payment.

Epstein, a nurse who cares for cancer patients, also is going through foreclosure. She got her baptism in the world of shoddy foreclosure paperwork in the summer of 2009, however, when she tried to help a brain tumor patient keep her home.

Epstein helped draft a letter challenging the foreclosure because, as in Redman's case, it was unclear from court papers who owned the home's mortgage.

After arriving at the summary judgment hearing in her nurse's uniform, an emotional Epstein, 45, watched as the ill woman read their letter aloud in court. When the opposing attorneys never showed, the judge refused to finalize the foreclosure. The woman remains in her home as the legal wrangling continues.

For Epstein, who often helped her patients navigate disputes with their health insurance companies, the role of advocate wasn't new — but the thrill of a courtroom victory was.

"It was like something struck inside me, like this is what I'm compelled to do.

Read more from McClatchy


See Rikyrah's Previous Post on Foreclosures

Tea Party Terrorist Byron Williams: Glenn Beck 'Blew My Mind'

It is now confirmed that Tea Party terrorist Byron Williams was inspired by the misinformation, propaganda and misguided vitriol of Glenn Beck. Williams is the Right wing nut who went on a rampage in California a few months ago - armed for battle and hunting for Liberals. In audio recorded statements, Williams reveals how he was influenced by Beck's message. In fact, he was whipped into such a frenzy that he became a "Progressive hunter".

Take a look at the Media Matters piece "Jailhouse Confession: How the right-wing media and Glenn Beck's chalkboard drove Byron Williams to plot assassination".

He considers Beck to be a "school teacher on TV". Wow!

Related Link
From TPM

See my Right-wing media page - to see wider picture of impact of Conservative propaganda.

The Christine O'Donnell Campaign is Full of Hilarity

SNL Couldn't resist.

The Witch Ad


SNL

Birthers Won't Go Away - Now They Want DNA

There seems to be no end to the crazy.

Attack Mercilessly and 3 other lessons for Democrats

The Democratic Party is on the verge of potentially historic losses because once again it has excelled at doing what it does best – alienating core, passionate voters while simultaneously confusing middle-of-the-road independent types. Just last week Obama traveled the country calling out his own supporters. No doubt he’s well intentioned, but as I’ve learned in the classroom, guilt and shame aren’t always great motivating tactics. What is worse for Democrats is that this repeatedly happens despite their best intentions.

Read the rest at The Loop.

Illinois Senatorial Candidate Kirk Sends ' Monitors'---Maybe It's Time to Dust Off the Voter Suppression Wiki

hat tip-Talking Points Memo

Mark Kirk Sends Poll Monitors To 'Vulnerable,' Largely African-American Neighborhoods
Ryan J. Reilly | October 12, 2010, 2:45PM

In a private phone conversation that was secretly recorded, Mark Kirk, the Republican U.S. Senate candidate in Illinois, told state Republican leaders last week about his plan to send "voter integrity" squads to four predominately African American neighborhoods of Chicago "where the other side might be tempted to jigger the numbers somewhat."

Kirk's campaign confirmed the candidate was secretly taped last week as he was talking about his anti-voter fraud effort.

"These are lawyers and other people that will be deployed in key, vulnerable precincts, for example, South and West sides of Chicago, Rockford, Metro East, where the other side might be tempted to jigger the numbers somewhat," he said in the audio posted on YouTube.

As TPMMuckraker has reported, accusations from conservatives that ineligible voters are fraudulently stealing elections for Democrats have continued to fly in the 2010 campaign cycle, despite the lack of evidence of widespread voter fraud. "Voter fraud" has been the rally cry for conservative groups seeking to make it more difficult to cast ballots and suppress minority voter turnout. In particular this election cycle, Tea Party groups have taken up the issue, and Democratic groups have called for assurances that poll watchers trained by such groups are clear on polling station rules.

Talking Points Memo tried to reach the Kirk campaign when the audio emerged last week on the blog ArchPundit to confirm its authenticity, but we did not hear back. Blogger Larry Handlin told TPM he promised not to give away information about the source, but said it was recorded on Monday or Tuesday of last week.

This is all about VOTER SUPPRESSION and nothing else.

But......we've all been told that Black folk weren't going to vote.... so, what's with the need to Voter Suppress?

The Dems Should POUND POUND POUND on the "Secret Donors" Issue

This angle by the White House about going after the Chamber of Commerce and their donor list, must be hitting a nerve. Nothing like putting FOREIGN CORPORATION and FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS in your commercials to make folks, who don't exactly know what the Chamber is up to - to take notice. And now, that the Dems have a good meaty issue, folks don't understand why Dems are ' picking on the Chamber'. Picking on the Chamber?

W-T-F?

They are spending 100 MILLION DOLLARS, this campaign cycle - ALL AGAINST DEMOCRATS

and, WE DON'T KNOW WHERE THE MONEY IS COMING FROM.

Rachel Maddow nails the issue again about Big Money Hiding Donors.

The Foreclosure Scam Is Exploding Before Our Eyes

hat tips - a number of JJP Posters over the past few months.

Do you remember when the mortgage crisis first began, you had the pundits on CNBC and other places had the nerve to try and blame the crisis on loans to minorities and poor people, due to governmental pressures caused by the Community Reinvestment Act. You remember that garbage. Just trying to hide that the 'Masters of the Universe' on Wall Street were gambling, amoral conscienceless thieves.

I'm not an expert. I only know what I read from various sources and what I see on tv. I remember watching Congresswoman Nancy Kaptur on Bill Moyers telling folks in her district undergoing foreclosure to just stay in their homes. It was the first time that I had heard someone say this in all seriousness. That if you were being foreclosed upon, don't give up.

The next big thing that I heard from folks that had their finger on the pulse of this crisis, was to force the banks to PRODUCE THE PAPERS.

Simple concept, isn't it?

Sort of obvious.

To decent people like you and me, and plenty of the people who were getting foreclosed upon across the country. They just knew..

KNEW...

that nobody could be harassing them like the banks were..

or ignoring the letters and calls and please to sit down and renegotiate the terms of the mortgage..

NOBODY could be causing them the ulcer that they were getting..

WITHOUT HAVING THE ABSOLUTE PROOF that they controlled the mortgage..

because to do so would be absolute FRAUD.

...and the banks wouldn't do that. They wouldn't step into court, ready to destroy your financial reputation on lies.....

THE HELL THEY WOULDN'T.

Read more »

Gospel legend Albertina Walker dies at age 81

from the Chicago Tribune

Gospel legend Albertina Walker dies at age 81
The legendary gospel singer Albertina Walker died today at the age of 81.

Born in Chicago in 1929, Walker began singing in the choir of West Point Baptist church at the age of 4. Walker was urged to pursue a gospel singing career by the woman who became her mentor, iconic gospel great Mahalia Jackson. Walker launched her official career at age 22, when, urged by Jackson, she formed her group the Caravans. She was a fixture in body and spirit at Chicago's Gospel Festival since the event's inception, both solo and with the Caravans.

Walker had been battling emphysema, and died Friday morning in a Chicago hospital, where she had been since late August.

from a 2004 profile of Walker:

Along with stacks of awards and presidential citations, what is most striking about Albertina Walker's apartment is the abundance of white. The furniture and piano in the gospel legend's Hyde Park condominium are as pristine as the choir robes she wore when she sang with The Caravans 50 years ago.

Looking down from her high-rise window, she can see Lake Michigan and the South Side neighborhood where she was born. Looking straight out on a bright afternoon, she's close to the heavenly clouds that she sings about so convincingly."This is harvest time," Walker says when asked if she is receiving her earthly rewards for leading one of gospel's classic ensembles. "We didn't make the money we were supposed to make, but the Lord has blessed us in our latter years. And look at us -- everybody's fat and fine!"

Nowadays, Walker has reason to be happy. Her 75th birthday is at the end of August, and a celebration at the Apostolic Church of God will include some of the other successful former Caravans, including Inez Andrews and Dorothy Norwood. This event is also promoting The Albertina Walker Scholarship Foundation that assists needy music students.

"Somebody always helps you do whatever you do," Walker says. "We're always standing on somebody's shoulders. So that's my joy -- giving back."

Growing up on 41st Street, Walker had plenty of shoulders to stand on as the youngest of nine children. While she enjoyed the movie theaters that were flourishing on the South Side, she loved singing at the West Point Baptist Church at East 36th Street and South Cottage Grove Avenue. One big draw was that many legendary voices appeared there, including Roberta Martin and Mahalia Jackson.

"They were very nice to us," Walker says. "Mahalia used to have us over to her house. She'd always cook for us, and we'd eat and sing and just have a glorious time."

.......................


Some Videos:

No Wedding No Womb - Well Intentioned, But Misguided

Black bloggers recently started a campaign dubbed “No Wedding, No Womb“, with the aim of promoting marriage in the so-called “Black Community”. I think the effort is well intentioned. But like many causes in today’s Black culture, this appears to be misguided. I don’t think it will have much of an impact beyond twitter and the blogosphere with its current focus. The effort is only touching the surface of the problem. It is already facing resistance from Black women, especially from those who don’t want to accept the reality, reject the data and want to continue moving through the world, like zombies, maintaining the status quo. But then there are a few others who rightfully question the efficacy of the campaign.

Here are my thoughts - from the perspective of a Black man

I think the effort misses the core issues by a mile. While promoting the idea of marriage is a positive thing in general terms, it is not the main solution for the phenomenon of out-of-wedlock births & other problems facing so-called “Black America”. I have written before about Black women (and women more generally) falling in love with the idea of the marriage itself, rather than with their partners; and women being motivated for the wrong reasons to marry men who are not a good match. This problem seems to have come back again in this debate. The focus of the Black women who support this effort seems to be fixated on the idea that if they get married, all of their problems and the problems for the community will go away. They seem to be more concerned with flaunting the ring and the fact that they are married. Little attention seems to be placed on the quality of the man giving them the ring.

One of the main problems that young black women have is that many are terrible when it comes to picking good men or even knowing what qualities they should be looking for. To be frank, many (and this may be a byproduct of not having fathers around) have no idea how to choose a man…. And have no point of reference for even recognizing what a good family man looks like. This is the core of the matter ladies and gentleman. If you are getting a ring from a sleazeball… I don’t think being married on paper is going to help you much. If you are marrying a playboy, a deadbeat, a womanizer, a bum, a man who can’t hold down a job, a man with little education, a man with multiple children from several different women, a man in & out of the criminal justice system, a man involved in risky behavior, a man who isn’t responsible, a man who doesn’t really want to commit to you and who doesn’t have a sense of family values… then all of the rings and weddings in the world are not going to save you or the wider “Black community”. That’s like gift wrapping a soiled diaper…. It’s still crap. The same goes for the kinds of relationships that many are suggesting should be bonded by marriage. The ring and marriage only serve as exquisite wrapping paper for garbage. It’s like the images of folks carrying looted TV’s in New Orleans during Katrina when there was no electricity and they needed food and water. It just does not make sense and fails to get to the heart of the problem. There are a set of fundamental priorities in Black culture that will have to change.

Black women have to take responsibility for their own choices. The Blacksnob, an extraordinary black woman and blogger pointed this out quite nicely, although indirectly - one of the few Black women online to do so. Many of the blogs run by Black women are sanctuaries for those who somehow clump all Black men together…and trash them all. But luckily there are a few who take the time to differentiate men from boys, educated men from the uneducated/less educated, the wayward player from the committed or family man, the thug from the Thomas DuBois or cleancut, and the deadbeats from the hardworking and responsible (although these men may not be in abundance).

Black women have to look at deeper issues concerning their values, the choices they are making (especially choosing bad men), etc if they want to really deal with this problem. Too many Black women see people like Beyonce (and others in Black urban circles- particularly in Hip Hop- and yes I hate them all), as their role models. They don’t understand the core underlying problem - that if Beyonce (or any other figure in that world) is your role model then you are already on the wrong track and you have some work to do. They don’t seem to understand that if they don’t fundamentally change their underlying value system and learn what to look for in a mate, then the problems are not going to go away… they will only be masked for some. If a man is a deadbeat, a cheater, doesn’t want to be a father, doesn’t have the attributes or isn’t responsible enough to be a father, then being married to you isn’t going to change those things. If you continue to choose bad men, the problems of fatherless homes will not go away. The rate of out of wedlock births might be slowed artificially (even if this NWNW effort were wildly successful), but the underlying problems of fatherlessness and Black cultural rot won’t change, because those men, who really aren’t men and really aren’t fathers, are going to leave the home situation anyway not far down the road.

Some might say… well, there aren’t enough marriageable Black men. I agree. I say, don’t be afraid to date out. I support the idea of interracial dating for Black men and women. There should be no racial barriers when it comes to dating and relationships. But even when you date out, there is still the issue of knowing how to choose a good mate. It still applies. I am annoyed by the suggestion that some Black bloggers have made that dating white men automatically equates to dating better men. I know plenty of white men who are ____heads. But will the pool be better? In all likelihood yes. The trick is…. finding those men of other racial groups who will actually want you. Look up the OKCupid survey that was done recently. This report looked at dating behavior online and broke down response rates by race. It wasn’t pretty for Black women. I will just say to that… it should be another red flag for Black women telling them that they may want to figure out why things are the way they are…why they get this kind of reaction.

Solution:

1). The solution for Black women is not that complicated. Learn how to identify a good partner to begin with. If you want a guy that you find at a nightclub or you want someone to screw around with, fine. Do that. But don’t look for the same kind of guy when you want a man who will be a good father and husband. You need a different criteria for that. You have to first understand how to identify him, and then you have to know how to get him. If you don’t know how to do it…ask your 75 year old aunt, ask your grandmother or great grandmother, spend more time around those good uncles, grandfathers…those who are more socially conservative and who are family men. No, not all are saints. But you will find more family men there to help you establish a blueprint. You won’t find him @ the nightclubs where the playboys gather.

2). Stop using Beyonce & hip hop culture as your model for anything, let alone as your model for family.

3). Take advantage of contraception and don’t take a risk with a man who isn’t your husband or soon to be.

4). Don’t flirt with pregnancy unless you know you are willing and able to be a good parent, and until you have completed college and are in a position to raise a child.

5). Women (and this is especially the case for Black women in general) are money driven, status driven creatures. The measures they often use for determining the quality of a mate are completely warped. Just because he has a nice car or plays for an NFL team….doesn’t make him a good man, let alone a good father. Stop emulating The Real Housewives & The Bachelorette (because that image isn’t a very good reflection of actual life in America).

6). Marry a man who wants to be married.

This isn’t rocket science.

Will this effort be successful? It depends on what the yardstick is for measuring success. Will it literally solve the problem of out-of-wedlock births? No. But the aim of those women who started the effort is to get a conversation going on how to deal with the problem. From The Grio:

The goal of this project or should I say movement is to force a dialogue in the black community about why this is happening and how we turn the corner on solutions that create a positive, loving and nurturing home for black children.

Regardless of the measure, I hope the effort is successful, because the intent seems to be positive. Based on the goal of getting a conversation started...it may already be a success. And I am all for efforts that are positive. Unfortunately, the young women who need to hear it/ read it, may not be reading the blogs taking part in the campaign. (If the problems pointed out were addressed and if the campaign was modified to reflect changes) It would be great if this effort could move into the schools , churches, and youth groups.... perhaps create an app for it... take the effort to where the young women are. I had been calling for something similar to this years ago... but no Black bloggers wanted to go anywhere with it at the time. And of course, my focus would have been noticeably different, as I have mentioned in this post. But I am glad someone (Black women in particular) is at least talking about doing something.

Esther Williams, Dave Grusin, Laura Nyro, & Gene Harris

Lou Dobbs - Another Conservative Hypocrite on Immigration

The Nation has discovered that Lou Dobbs used undocumented workers. This was at a time when Dobbs was railing against illegal immigration on his CNN program.

Cracks Already Forming in Healthcare Reform Law

I didn't think this would be happening so soon.

Tavis Smiley & Dr. Cornel West Talk Politics on New Show

Tavis Smiley & Dr. Cornel West launched a new radio program this weekend branded as "Smiley & West". I actually enjoyed the commentary. It was interesting to hear Dr. West on the other side of the microphone.

Tavis Smiley fell out of favor with me over the past couple of years. His rantings and attacks against President Obama regarding a "Black agenda" represented the last straw. I thought then, and still believe, that his position was somewhat misguided, especially considering the existing political realities. I think we need a class discussion rather than a discussion that is framed in terms of race. If you always make race the issue....you lose the nations attention. Five decades ago MLK understood that the next battle would be economic justice and that it had to be framed in the context of class. This was why he pushed his poor peoples campaign.... it was not just a "Black peoples campaign" (although Blacks were a main focus)...but a poor peoples campaign. MLK's vision was so great that it allowed him to be far ahead of his time when it came to issues like poverty and economic justice. How Tavis Smiley and Cornel West so easily miss this point is a mystery to me.

But in the radio program, it sounded as if Smiley was reluctantly beginning to recognize his mistake. I still don't care much for his style or his political approach... but he is still an excellent interviewer. I see the new show being useful.... as long as he doesn't allow his personal views to pollute the program.

Listen to the first show: (5 minute interlude...program picks up again @ 6 min. mark).

A Glimpse of a Republican Tea Party America

Wondering what a Republican Tea Party America will look like? Look no further than Obion County Tennessee. A utopia of low taxes and Tea Party Republicanism.... life is just great down there. To Hell with collectivism... it's every man for himself. They have taken life back to the old traditions of self reliance and they want the same for the rest of the Country.

When I heard about this on NPR on Tuesday I couldn't believe it. But when they mentioned that this occurred in Tennessee... bells went off in my head. I remembered that there was something about Tennessee...and I had posted about Republican craziness in that State recently...but I couldn't pinpoint it. I was at work, so it was stuck in the back of my head most of the day. So when I got home, I did a quick search...and there it was. It should be no surprise that this kind of craziness is going on there. This is also where American Muslims are currently being ostracized and antagonized. What is it about Tennessee?

Related

I have mentioned before that the whole anti-tax nonsense is largely a myth driven by right wing media. Actual data doesn't jive with their rhetoric. See my post "Tea Parties & Make Believe".

Rick Sanchez Fiasco in Context

Michel Martin offers the most balanced discussion and analysis that I have heard so far on the firing of Rick Sanchez.

Not a fan of Sanchez so the story of his departure really didn't grab my attention. He was never all that impressive to me as a journalist....not the brightest star in the sky. I am not particularly impressed with CNN either... they have become lazy as a news organization...and are morphing into more of a Fox-light in some ways. But Sanchez was stupid to call Stewart a bigot without backing it up very well. And he screwed up big time for bringing his CNN bosses into the discussion, and for going anywhere near the term "Jews".

Glenn Beck - The Biggest Con Artist in America

Hear an NPR discussion about the Glenn Beck phenomenon & what it says about the Country. For me, Beck is just a huge con artist who happens to be good at what he does. His popularity is a reflection of our increasingly partisan politics, the intellectual deterioration taking root in the U.S. and "the facts be damned" attitude of the public, an extremely uninformed/misinformed populace, and a deteriorating media that lacks balance and takes part in the misinformation. Beck is also benefiting from anxiety stirred up by the economy... (but that is not the main issue in my opinion). The main reasons for Beck's success are public misinformation from right wing media...and the fact that there is a President in the White House who isn't white.

The rise of Beck isn't surprising in a Country where the citizens don't know basic civics, don't know much about the world, and don't know much about religion. Easy prey for con artists and manipulators.

Vote Republican By Roy Zimmerman

Great skit... hat tip to: Freakoutnation



Sadly... I think many Americans are asleep.... under the spell of the Tea Party, Glenn Beck & much of the other Republican media nonsense.

Much of that is the fault of Progressives/Democrats because they have failed to build a PR/media infrastructure that they can use to present their arguments and to fight back.

Deval Patrick, the Good Democrat

It seems like a century ago, but it was just earlier this year that Massachusetts elected Republican Scott Brown to the U.S. Senate to replace the dearly departed Ted Kennedy. Critics claimed it heralded the end of Obama’s health care reform efforts, the end of Democratic control of Congress, and even the end of Democratic dominance in Massachusetts.

But what actually happened?

Read the rest at The Loop.

The President speaks to Gen 44.

The President speaks to Gen 44.

Reagan Budget Director Basically Says Republican Pledge is a Joke - Trashes Idea of Permanent Tax Cuts for the Rich

Former Reagan Budget Director David Stockman tells the truth about the Republican Pledge to America in interview with NPR this past week. Although he also criticized Democrats (naturally). I think his suggestion that TARP was a complete waste/failure isn't quite correct.... especially since we now know that the final bill is far less than the hundreds of billions that had been anticipated.

But I love how he exposes the phony act that Republicans have been putting on regarding taxes and their economic proposals.

Related

Jon Stewart's segment on the Republican's non-plan for the Country is classic! Same Republican BS.

A Conversation With Noam Chomsky

Hear a discussion with Dr. Noam Chomsky from this past week. He gives his insight on the current state of the Country... politics in particular. Being an independent Progressive, i'm not as far to the left as Chomsky, but I have always liked/appreciated his insight.

Direct Audio Link

Related Post

See My Thoughts/Ideas on Creating Jobs... originally posted almost 2 years ago, and updated this past Summer.