Just 2 things

I haven't been inspired to write much lately but I have 2 things I'd like to get at today.

One popped in my head as I was watching Rachel Maddow today from last night's episode. They were discussing Afghanistan and I couldn't completely follow the conversation because I have no concept of the real conflict because I do not know it's history. So much, if not all of what's going on in the middle east stems from a millennial ago, straight biblical times and to understand how it's manifested itself into the current war you have to understand their history. I'm not saying you have to be a middle eastern history scholar to get it but you need to know shiite vs. sunni and why they're beefing; Who originated in what area; and how how much religion plays into it. And I know practically none of it! I feel so cheated! Like high school completely failed in teaching me anything about the world.

If I was to grade Oak Park High School on their ability to educate they would get a big F and a 5 for bad behavior! I've had to teach myself a lot about even our own country because my school system neglected to teach it. That's a whole nother story but just know they failed LOL.

With so much of our foreign policy having to do with the middle east you would think there would be more of an in emphasis on that area. I can't recall ever learning anything but the countries that inhabit the area and its maybe its demographics and that its the desert. Any and everything else was completely left out. This area is too important to be glossed over. sad.

I'm going to make it a point to teach myself about that area and what foreign policy it effects. I want to know more about the war and any previous wars in Afghanistan and the area as a whole.

Can you really honestly participate in the political dialogue in this country without some knowledge of the middle east??

Afghanistan/Pakistan is on my get to know more about them list!

The second thing I want to talk about is this awesome guy from Malawi. His name is William Kamkwamba who at the age of 14 built a homemade windmill for his house. The thing is his parents couldn't afford to pay for him to go to school and he was going to the library to teach himself. He saw a book and looked at the pictures and built the windmill from that. What kind of awesome awe inspiring stuff is that?! This boy could not read the words in the book And built a working windmill!

He couldn't go to school and what did he do?? He went to the library.

Here in Detroit, here in most of urban U.S. we have to beg our kids to just show up to school and its FREE! What has happened to our people?! Where are our awe inspiring stories? Sure we have them, but they are few and far between and with all we have to offer the people in our country we should be producing more!

I'm going to take my butt to the library and build me a windmill. I'm inspired to do more, to be better!

Mad at Obama

So, I'm one of Obama's biggest cheerleader ever.

But, I'm a little upset with him in his reaction to the Auto Industry woes.

He treats the auto industry as if it could just disappear and it wouldn't have any impact on the US.

The auto industry has already personally effected my state, my family, heck even me and we're not even an auto worker on any level. I just so happen to live in Michigan and work for a company that relies on a lot from the Auto Industry. Before it even got to where it is now; before it was a big national deal my company was effected. And now my salary is cut 10% and I make less than I did 2 years ago, no more bonuses (though I wasn't get much anyway), and no more raises. Did I mention I just moved?? Yeah so this auto thing is lot more personal and painful for me and mine than it would be someone whose livelihood wasn't effected and I think the President needs to re-evaluate what his action or inaction would do for those of us involved.

We have one of the highest unemployment rate and one of those people recently unemployed is a close relative. It would quadruple if one, not even 2, just one of the big three were allowed to fail.

Do they need to restructure? Yep

Are they responsible for their issues? Partially

But while we're shaking our collective heads at the big three and opening our collective wallets for the banks who have brought the whole world down, my salary and the salary of my co-workers are cut by 10%. I'm one of those check to check people, barely making enough to get by and that 10% is a big deal.

So Obama I'm a little upset with you.

Sure we need a secure banking system but we also need our auto industry and if you're going to scrutinize and criticize and demonize the big three you should be doing that 10 times as hard and as long to the banks.

And bank of america I'm mad at you too for this bogus $2 extra you put on top of the atm fee I already paid while the ceo is making millions. Cut his salary and get rid of this new $2 fee that I don't even think I was told about. Forget mad, I hate boa!

Advertising and the black dollar

I was inspired to write this blog after reading Marissa Miley’s article, “Don't Bypass African-Americans,” in the February 2nd issue of Advertising Age. The article is basically about how marketers have continued to ignore the black market. It states that black people have a $913 billion buying power and will hit the trillion dollar mark by 2013, (2011 according to www.emarketer.com) and we’re being bypassed/overlooked/ignored in the advertising field. It goes on about the Hispanic marketing and how much is spent there and the theory behind it and all that (you can read the article for more details).

What I believe is wrong with black advertising, and nothing I have to say about it is based on anything factual, is that those that do venture into that field they target one-two categories and don’t treat us overall as a whole (which adds a whole different argument). The two categories I believe they spend too much time on are hip hop (which ruined hip hop) and church in some instances. Now, the “hip hop” generation will spend the big bucks on whatever is deemed cool at the time but I do think if they treated us as they treat white America, make it a broader appeal (and not just throw black actors in a white ad, please we know the difference) then they would successfully reach the black audience.

We are not all apart of the hip hop generation, especially the one you see on tv all commercialized, and we do not all congregate around the bible (I guess that is more black on black marketing than non black companies marketing their products for black folks so we’ll leave that one out). We eat McDonald's just like the average white person, and we're not bobbing our heads to a wack/fake hip hop beat in the process.

What I’d like to see, is regular products (and not products made for black people like the relaxed and natural line of Pantene Pro-V) marketed towards brown people. We buy some of the same stuff white people buy and we’d like to know our money is wanted.

There has to be some way that they can market to us without turning us into a caricature. They market to the average joe white person 99% of the time, take that, flip it towards how your product can address our needs and there you go! An ad for a black person who doesn't feel like they need to listen to commercialized rap to enjoy your product! :)


Is that really how we look???

It does seem weird to me in commercials where there is a group of people and it is 4-5 white people, one black or Hispanic/latino, and one asian. We know what that’s saying lol.

Anywho, I can’t think of anything else to say.

Maybe I’ll add more

Maybe not lol

President Obama

So now that I have my president of choice I feel so lackluster toward politics now lol

I'll be back to give my big long (hopefully) view of things that have happened since 11/04/2008

Awesomeness

Colin Powell Endorses:

Barack Obama!

Sarah Palin SNL Hilfreakingarious!

Pres Debate, John McCain and that damn plumber

So McCain decided to use this Joe the plumber dude as an example of an average American and how Obama's tax plan will effect people like him.

That damn plumber makes $250k a year????!?!?!?!?! He probably pays in taxes my yearly salary and he wants to base his critique of Obama's plan that most small business owners I know and have read their opinions like. I'm not going to pretend to know anything about taxes (I just know that I pay them and get small return back). BUT I cannot look to McCain to make the situation better if he can't even pay the taxes on his own property and then to base his opinion on someone who makes waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more than most a year.

The average american household makes about $50,233.00, I don't even make that much, however, I'd prefer to see what their tax plans would do for someone who falls under that amount more than I would someone who makes $200,000 thousand more than the average "Joe".

Give me a freaking break, the dude makes $250,000 and he catered the whole debate around this cat.

Maine and Nebraska Electoral College

Soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Nebraska and Maine are the only two states who spilt up their electoral votes, so Obama could get pieces of Nebraska's 5 electoral votes if he wins one of the districts, not a whole lot of points but...............

We're getting Maine so there is no need to discuss them but they have 4 electoral votes.

Update Electoral Map

So the site I use for my polling information, FiveThirtyEight, has updated their electoral map and have North Carolina, Indiana, Ohio, and Nevada going blue.

hmmmm......

I sure do hope so!

They are giving Louisana to McCain though....I'm holding out hope but it is the south.

Register to vote

Updated Electoral Map total

According to the Huffington Post, Obama has pulled ahead in Ohio, Florida, and Pennsylvania. I've already given him Pa, so if we add Ohio and Florida to his count that would bring the totals to:

333!

If he gets just Ohio then its 306

If he gets just Florida then its 313

I don't know if he'd get both, I'd say he'd get either or but I highly doubt both

Electoral Map 09/25/08

I think we'll get Ohio, Indiana and New Mexico, but they're polling a little close to say for sure.

Palin and McCain...Match Made In Heaven???

I was just reading George Will's article in the Washington Post titled 'McCain Loses His Head' and it got me to thinking that Palin and McCain are really a match made in heaven.

Peep game

Palin said, and I'm paraphrasing, that the private companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac where a tax burden on the people, though they weren't funded through the taxes we pay. That clearly showed she was talking about something she had no idea about. Kinda like the Bush Doctrine she has no clue about "In what regard Chaaaaaaarlie"

Then we have McCain who recently called for the firing of the SEC chairman, Chris Cox, which showed that he has no idea what a president can do, cause he sure in hell can't fire the SEC chairman.

I think that makes them a match made in heaven....neither one of them know anything, but you would think they would be able to make up for whatever the other lacks but they're clearly both clueless.

(sorry my work computer doesn't have photoshop so I had to use paint)

lmao Penis and Football

So I'm late in finding out Chris Cooley of the Redskins mistakenly posted a picture of his penis in his blog when posting a picture of his playbook.

The book was in his lap and he was ummmm naked

Check it out

(Completely not political but darn funny)

Mccain and the Blackberry

So, we have him to thank for the blackberry?? Or is the Canadian company Research in Motion who created the blackberry????

Or was he partially responsible for facilitating the technology much like Gore was for bringing about the internet??? Hmmmmmmmm

government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

I think David Brooks sums up Sarah Palin quite well:

"Sarah Palin has many virtues. If you wanted someone to destroy a corrupt establishment, she’d be your woman. But the constructive act of governance is another matter. She has not been engaged in national issues, does not have a repertoire of historic patterns and, like President Bush, she seems to compensate for her lack of experience with brashness and excessive decisiveness. "

I think she should stay in Alaska, she's very pro-Alaska, almost to a fault. She's the have a beer with you while eating your mooseburger type person, which is why she should not be the next VP or President. We have a beer drinking friend in the white house and you see where that got us.

I used Abraham Lincoln's words in the title to tie in with the notion of the people's president, a president who is like us and works for us. Bush, well he isn't like most but he's like a lot of us, and he's a terrible president. I believe Palin to be very similar in that regard, she's like a lot of "us," working mom, soccer hockey mom, wife, etc, but like Mr. Brooks said "she has not been engaged in national issues." Everything was about what the position can do for Alaska, not what she can do for the country. I guess living in Alaska is like living in your own country....wait wasn't she or her husband a member of that Alaskan Independent Party which believes in secession from the US????

Waaaaait a minute!

Thats my opinion, and I'm sticking to it!

IT'S THE ECONOMY STUPID

“The issue of economics is not something I’ve understood as well as I should” Sen John Mccain

After the dow drops 504 points, the worse day on the market since 9/11 and Mccain says

"Our economy, I think, still the fundamentals of our economy are strong."

Dow drops 500 points

Fundamentals of the economy are strong

Lehman Brothers declares bankruptcy

Fundamentals of the economy are strong

National unemployment rate is 6.1, Michigan unemployment rate 8.5....the worse in the US and the state I live in yet....

Fundamentals of the economy are strong

I think he really meant what he said that he doesn't know about the economy like he should

Questions for Palin

Excellent article By Katha Pollitt

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20080929/pollitt

If I had 5 questions to ask Sara Palin, they would be:

1) How would you prepare for a possible war with Russia? Would you try diplomacy first or go in with your guns a blazing from the helicopter like you do with the wolves?

2) Looking at the images of the north pole from over the years, you can see how the ice is melting. The melting directly correlates with the increase of green house gases. How do you explain the melting? Also, what effects, whether they're human made or not, do you believe this melting will have on the environment?

3) With your daughter deciding to keep her baby and you praised that decision, wouldn't that make you pro-choice? Since it was a decision that was made, instead of her not thinking about any other choice, that seems to me to be pro-choice.

4)What do you attribute to the debt you left in Wasilla when you left office? There was a balance budget before you got there and a reported $22 million debt when you left.

5) What would you consider to be your economic philosophy?

Karl Rove Thinks McCain has gone too far!

Courtesy of the Huffington Post:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/14/karl-rove-mccains-ads-hav_n_126280.html

You know you've crossed the line when Rove says it