The One Big Beautiful Bill or You Asked for It

 I started reading the One Big Beautiful Bill while I didn't finish I did get as far as noticing the following:

• Pell Grants are being cut making it higher learning less affordable
• EV and Hybrid vehicles will be taxed so you lose all the saving you thought you got by going electric
• Cuts to Medicaid with semiannually reassessments so less people have health coverage
• Cuts to the ACA (Affordable Care Act) so even more people lose health coverage
• Huge cuts for corporations so they have more money and we the people have less
• A 125% freight fee meaning goods will cost more
• They want to remove the Consumer Protection Bureau this protect you against Credit Card fraud, housing fraud and other was corporations can take advantage of you

I didn't finish there is a lot to the bill, this is not a good bill but regardless we have Representatives in Congress on both sides.  Notice the use of the word Representatives because that's exactly what congress is, a representation of the people in their district.  Now whether they vote yea or nay I don't care, but if they are voting yea or nay to keep their seat in Congress then I submit to you they do not represent the people in their district.  While it's a clear no brainer that this bill should not pass.

All year there have been several protest about the action of the current POTUS then I look at the numbers and found about 90 million people didn't vote.  90 million people said my one vote doesn't count so we are here now.  

If they had voted would Trump still have won?  I don't know the answer to that question, but I will say if you didn't vote you have no right to protest, when you had a chance to make your protest count you did nothing.

Voter Turnout by Election Cycle

Table with 4 columns and 4 rows.

2024	64% 64% 64%	244,666,890	89,278,948
2020	66% 66% 66%	240,628,443	80,899,282
2016	60% 60% 60%	230,780,798	92,035,382
2012	59% 59% 59%	222,437,494	92,206,198

*Americans 18 years or older, minus ineligible noncitizens and felons.\

Table: Seth Cline | U.S. News & World Report  Source: University of Florida Election Lab

The people we elected as our representatives asked us to go out and make our voices heard, well that's exactly what we did when we elected them and if they are not capable of doing their job we should replace them.

The MAGA movement has a vision of us being back in the 1950s where White Men had all the power and got all the breaks regardless of their ability to perform.  So today they look back and say, DEI because they are being judged on their ability to actually compete equally across the board for everything.  Life is unfair because they are no longer able to eke out a living being mediocre, the actually have to prove they are capable to serve a function.

The Democratic Party is too busy being reactionary to get anything done, they only do enough to make sure they can get elected again.  They don't really care about the people or they would have taken a proactive approach to things.  They say they are trying to get Republicans to make a common sense vote yet Trump has been in office for 5 months and this bill is not a new thing so why did they wait for the last moment?

As long as they can stay in office by saying, "I took care of your when.." they are happy we turn our elected officials into multimillionaires while 37 million of us live below the poverty line.

But hey, you didn't vote and your vote doesn't count, so we are where we are and when you start losing people you love because you decided not to exercise our most basic right, don't protest or complain, you got exactly what you asked for.. Nothing.

For those that did vote if your elected official is only worried about getting reelected give them a reason to worry about you.  Like in business if someone not doing their job they get replaced.

You say, "No Kings", I say "No Kings and No Lords!!!"

The first words of the Constitution are "We the People" and if your current elected officials are not looking out for you or doing the job you elected them to do they should be treated like any other employee.

Happy Father's Day?

 I put this image up here for reasons that will become clear later.

So, now that Juneteenth has passed I would like to make things clear.  You cannot give someone something that's not yours to take.  Slaves were not denied freedom, they were forced to live in a state of fear.  Those that did not live in that state of fear left or tried to leave, and for many that failed there were consequences for that action.  Freedom is not something you can give or take from another human, or as John Stark would say, "Live Free or Die!"  So to be absolutely clear Freedom is not something you can take away from a free thinking being.

Slavery was not about Freedom, it was about fear.  The concept of Slavery is unsustainable as history has shown us.  The Emancipation Proclamation had no authority to do anything.  First because it was nothing more then an executive action which could be overturned.  Secondly Freedom is not something you can grant someone with the will not to be in that situation.  Finally and most importantly, Freedom is yours to give!

Throughout Slavery there have been Blacks/Slaves that have stood up and fought against it.  So if you have a group of people educated or not that willing fight for the very thing you wish to impose, how can you impose such an action.  You cannot, you can only try to keep them in Fear for as long as you can, that fear is what gives you your strength and power.

I've said it several times, "You cannot legislate racism!"

Now the good part. 

The Emancipation Proclamation was an executive action and not a Law.  It was the beginning of what is now know as the 13th Amendment, which was passed the following year, 2 years later we have Juneteenth.  So what are we celebrating it was already Constitutionally illegal to own slaves and technically ownership implies lack of freedom.  And that Freedom is only in jeopardy as long as the fear exist.

Did most of you know that even though the 13th Amendment was passed in 1865 the last state to ratify the amendment was Mississippi, which did so in 1995.  The biggest issue with the 13th Amendment is that it's considered criminal, so you can have slaves if you are willing to deal with the consequences.  How is that freedom?

As Black Americans have we struggles, Hell Yes!  We struggle because as a group we are playing a different game.  Traditionally we are a group of followers and only find a voice when we have someone to spearhead a cause.  Human Rights is not something that's granted, it's something you claim.  By definition it is yours to have, and the infringement is yours to give.  It's often said we don't have a seat at the table or we are not invited to the party, well why not do what everyone else did, create your own table have your own party and do it within their rules.

Worried about restrictive Voter ID Laws?  Well get an ID end of problem.  That's playing by their rules.  Technically in America there is almost nothing you can do as an adult that doesn't require ID.

Worried about your life?  Get a gun card.  That's playing by their rules, and there is enough laws on the book already, use them.  We have the right to "Stand Our Ground", just as anyone else has.  We have the same protection under the 2nd Amendment.  Have you seen the video of the Black man who taught his children to shoot to kill?  It's labeled as radical, but the millions of videos out there with little white girls shoots will get high praise.

https://youtu.be/QEFkHr9MkXg

Worried about a job?  Create your own business that caters to and employee people of your community.  That's playing by their rules.

Worried about the education of your children?  Well part of being a parent is educating your child.  Anything you believe your child should know or learn it is your job to make that material available.  Maybe less money on the XBox, Playstation and GameCube and more money on books to teach them the things you think are missing from their education.  Don't blame the system for not teaching your children about their history and don't put the responsibility on them, if you are a parent be a parent and raise YOUR child.

Being Black in America is hard enough, stop your bitching and moaning and do something about it.  Teach  your children it's more important to have knowledge and understanding then SWAG.

On a separate note...Where the hell did all this "ion" and broken English come form?  Just an FYI, ion is already a word with a definition.  It's not speaking in code if everyone understands, it only sounds illiterate.  Don't say it's the language of Blacks, because I'm black and it's not my language.  If you want to have something of your own start with building a community first, industry in that community and a value system for that community, then you can say whatever the hell you like.

It's not your culture, because we don't have communities to have culture.  We have children out there having babies because they can, but there are few men trying to be fathers.

On this Father's Day I understand why fathers are so often overlooked.  There are way too many single mothers out there, which means men are accepting the responsibility.  Mother's Day is an all out occasion with weeks of planning and nothing is spared to make her happy.  Father's Day is the day we get to cook.

So, next time you wish to create a completely pointless holiday don't infringe upon the one meaningless day I have.

And now in a fashion only I can do.  Yes all you grit eating jubilant gypsies, "Keep Your Grubby Hands Off My Day!"

Well I feel better.  Happy Juneteenth Weekend Everyone!!!

The Beginning of the End

Welcome to my nonsense blog...Or is it?

So a few days ago I said, "Trump will Ruin the Earth." and implied we will be living in a Mad Max dystopian type society.  Of course people ask, "Why?" or said "HUH?"; as always I believe I can justify any things I say, so here we go.

In the words of the immortal Fredo - from "The Godfather" and not "The Lord of the Rings": "I'm smart! Not like everybody says...Like dumb...I'm smart and I want respect."

Ok, queue the Twilight Zone theme music in your head, you can stop now only need the first 5 seconds, it pretty much repeats.

Point 1:

The Kardashev Scale define societies by their level of technology when it comes to producing and using energy.  There are 3 basic types, oddly enough called Type I, Type II and Type III.

• Type I Society can harness and use planetary resources
• Type II Society can harness and use stellar resources
• Type III Society can harness and use galactic resources

It has been argued that we are a Type 0 Society, while we do use planetary resources we do not in a sustainable way.  The ideology is being able to generate, and use energy in a way that does not damage the system in which it uses.  

We are basically on the verge of being a Type 1 Society, and we will either make it or become extinct.  In the bigger picture this is not a huge deal as millions of species on this planet alone have went extinct and we are no more deserving than any of them.  Mainly because we created the vehicle in which our demise may come.  We are literally destroying the environment in which we live.

Point 2:

We are in a state of economic upheaval in which we may never recover.  Part of being and advanced society is things are resources based and not for profit.  Our current barter and trade system does not lend itself to us being an advanced society.  This barter and trade system in which we live has a built flaw, that being that there is automatically a have and have not structure inherent to the way it works.  

As long as there are people with less and in some cases dramatically less then others the goal will be to have more, to be a part of the so called elite crowd of the haves.  This in itself is the main driver of anti-social behavior, the desire to have more at any cost.

In a resource based economy no one has anymore than anyone else and everyone has the same access to all systems like healthcare, education and careers.  People choose careers that they show interest in and don't have to compete for a position due to status or pay. 

There was a study done by Harvard University that showed the main motivator in the workplace was mastery of a skill and money was not an incentive.  This is something that every IT Person knows.  Our montra, "If you don't know Google it!"  

The internet is an amazing thing with a wealth of information about anything you wish to learn, discover or are just curious about.  Most of the content on the internet is free, so basically millions of people are out there sharing information for free.  In the IT community we have been using this resource for decades.  There are several sites or internet communities out there designed for people to share knowledge and ideas.

Point 3:

Globalization is not a bad thing, it's a process of joining all the disconnected communities on this planet and while concepts of "Make America Great Again" and "BREXIT" work in direct opposition of this concept, it creates opposing forces in the way society works.  You CANNOT allow corporation to expand beyond your boarders and close your boarders to everyone at the same time.

Corporations have always been the biggest proponent of Globalization and it's out of necessity.  It has allowed lesser developed nations to become global players on the Worlds Economy.  This in itself fosters creativity and innovation and allows for direct competition of Large Corporate Empires.

The opposite like BREXIT and MAGA do nothing but inforces the invisible dividing lines that keep us apart as a species.

Point 4:

We need to change our thinking in a way that's conducive to us (Humans) being more of a collective so we can harness the best ideas from the best minds.  In the last few decades we have had more new Multi-Billionaires then in any other time since, and while technology is the biggest driver, it the new ideas of those that have been able to take advantage of technology.  So maybe like business's we need to take advantage of these young thinkers and stop electing people that do not know how to take advantage of fresh ideas.

Conclusion:

Where are we now?

Movements like MAGA and BREXIT as done nothing but further divided already fragmented countries.

We allow large corporations dictate policy to benefit their bottom lines at the cost of our livelihood and deters innovation.  Ideas of saving jobs for coal miners, coal is a dying industry that damages our very planet.

Leaders that do not look to the future and shy away for sustainable energy, that's not only good for the environment, but has the ability to create millions of new jobs.

A Health and Education system in disrepair because they are run for profit.

So the question is can we make it past these hurdles or not?

There are so many factors indicating that we do not and we probably won't unless there are some major changes.  Now in America unless you are part of the 3% you should feel as I do, or maybe getting a good education for your child, living in a safe area, retiring comfortably, putting food on the table or hoping that unforeseen medical expenses won't bankrupt you.

No I'm not a Bernie guy and will never be, I'm more a realist and while I do agree with Bernie's vision, I understand it's not something that can be accomplished overnight.  I think it's good that we are having those conversations now, but to believe Globalization can be stopped is monumentally naive.

So why is Trump the enemy?

Simply because everything he says and does is to mislead and deceive.  His only interest is his interest.  Every movie made about how we end up in a Dystopian Society can all be identified with actions this president has taken.

Gattaca - The movie where only the super elite were able to excel

Planet of the Apes - We destroyed our planet and another species took over

Mad Max - We used up all our resources so that the most common resource (Water) was premium

Day After Tomorrow - Global warming signs we ignored

Equilibrium - The future where emotions and expression was outlawed

The Wizard of Oz - A little white girl tripping on LSD so hard she see a talking lion and a robot

Any Tromaville Movie - Corporate waste creates monsters with a sense of humor

Just a general idea.

I hate to say it but I really do feel sorry for any Trump supporter.  They have literally denied everything they believe in to allow someone to abuse and take advantage of them in the worst ways even they could imagine.  The worst part is they try to justify him and his behavior or deflect his behavior.

Introducing Tux - Not for the Meek of Heart

So I'm sitting in my living room watching the news as always and I found a new drink I like Captain Morgan and Lemonade.  While the conversation on the news is about Trump and the Democratic Primary, the only thing I could think of is Windows...not windows to look out of but, Windows the Operating System.

I've never liked Windows, not because it's a proprietary OS (Operating System), but for a whole list of other reasons, MacOS I hate because it's proprietary.  Unfortunately Windows is a large part of the Computer Industry, mainly due to incredible marketing, because the OS sucks.  But hey, I'm a computer geek anyway...not as much as most, but a geek nonetheless.

Well we are facing the end of Windows most popular Desktop OS, Windows 7.  While a lot of computers have been switched over to Windows 10 and some people find the experience enamouring, I am and will always be filled with grief.  Over the years Microsoft has managed to take all the things I love about Computing and wrap them in a GUI (Graphical User Interface), not completely a bad thing, but horrible for other reasons.

Windows 7 was a vast improvement over Windows XP, but it took time for users to adapt to, like going from Windows 98 to Windows ME or from Windows 3.11 to Windows 95, but it's still Windows a crap OS.

So Windows 10 is the last Desktop OS Version to be released...or so they say.  I'm not mad at Microsoft and I'm happy Bill Gates is where he is, he has done more with his fortune than any other billionaire that has been recorded.

Anyway there a new guy on the OS scene that some have heard of and may nothing about, and I'm excited about the new release due out soon, yes it's a Tux distro (Linux Distribution).  Linux is an Open-Source OS of UNIX, this means that the source code for the OS is freely available for anyone to modify it however they like if they wish to.

Welcome Ubuntu 20.04 LTS, it has the ability to replace Windows all together.  Ubuntu is the most popular Linux Distro, and while some say they don't like it and have various reasons not to like it, it's still the most popular Distro, with the largest online community.

Just a little background on Operating Systems.  Back in the days there were 3 main Desktop OS vendors Microsoft, IBM and Apple.  Apple was Apple, Microsoft was MSDOS (Microsoft Disk Operating System) and Windows, IBM was IBM PC DOS (IBM Disk Operating System) and OS2 (Operating System/2). 

There were several NOS's (Network Operating Systems), the most popular were Microsoft NT LAN Manager, Novell Netware, IBM LAN Server, Banyan VINES, UNIX (the most poplar versions were Solaris and HP-UX) and AppleShare.  In my mind having worked with all of them, I found Novell Netware to the better of them all, but they were all better than Microsoft.

Now we are all caught up on Operating Systems or Geeked Out on Operating System, lets discuss Ubuntu.  Ubuntu is a free OS and Linux based as explained earlier.  Microsoft has had a fear of Linux for years, because it's Open-Source.  Linux has been taking over in all areas.  If you have an Android Cell Phone, Android is a Linux OS.  Most of your Smart TV or anything else you use that's programable is most likely based on some Linux Distro. 

The most popular Linux Distro is Debian, which is what Ubuntu uses.  In second would be Fedora, known for Red Hat and I think third would be SuSE Linux.

SuSE Linux become popular when Novell moved from the dying Netware platform in the early 2000's.  Netware while it was great and the most functional and easy to use NOS basically failed due to the .com explostion we know as the internet.  NetWare was not designed to be Internet or Database friendly.  So it was replaced with SuSE, but the damage was already done.

Fedora in terms of Red Hat was very Internet and Database friendly and is still driving the majority of the internet, internal Open-Source Databases and eCommerce.

Debian is used by Ubuntu.  Ubuntu made a very user friendly Distro of Linux that was easy to install, this is probably the primary reason it is so popular.  People that want to develop applications don't want to spend the time to tweak the OS, they want something that just works.  The majority of Linux Distros are based on the Ubuntu distro, mainly because the community is so large.  Having a large community means that there is plenty of support for almost any problem and plenty of users out there willing to assist with their expertise about problems.

So as Windows 7 comes EOL (End Of Life) it might be something worth checking out.  You can install it side by side with Windows so you can start/boot your computer to either.  If you don't want to spend the money on upgrading to Windows 10 or want to try something other than Windows give it a try.  My understanding is that Ubuntu 20.04 LTS (Long Term Support) nhas Microsoft rethinking things.  They have already extended support for Windows 7, on a pay as you go basis.

Protest By Any Other Name

Scene:  The Award Ceremony for the 200 Meter dash in the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City.

A shot heard around the world. While this moment will never be forgotten it's often misinterpreted. A protest should be unifying whether it's a solitary act or not.  

US athlete Tommie Smith set a World Record. Australia's Peter Norman finished, and the US's John Carlos took third.  Often mistaken for a Black Power Salute, Tommie Smith said it was a Human Right's Salute.  The less common know fact is that Peter Norman agreed to wear the "Olympic Project for Human Rights" patch in support of the protest.  The three athletes actually discussed this before the demonstration, so there was a kind of Ad Hoc organization to it.

Call me crazy, but I think sometimes getting the right image is important to the point I want to make.  I've spent hours or days looking for the image that will express my thoughts or help me get my message across.

I think this is just one of those images.

Now days I'm really confused, but I understand.  So, Colin Kaepernick took a knee to protest the treatment of Afro-Americans.  I don't think it was the right thing to do, but it was done.  I'm not saying he doesn't have the right protest, that's what this country was built on from it's very beginning.  I just think he could have done it a better way.

So for all the idiots that are about to chime in, please reread the last paragraph.  I think there are appropriate ways to protest.  IE like in the 1968 Olympics, they wore a patch, held their heads low to show disapproval and raised their fist high to show pride, among other things in protest.  Yes they were barred from the rest of the Olympics, but we all know unpopular speech or actions i often disapproved of. 

Why was this appropriate?

Well they competed on the world theater and proved to be the best in that event, the collaborated with each other before taking action and because of their accomplishments they earned the right to make an acceptance speech of a sort.  Yes they pissed people off and took a lot of flack for their display, but winning had put them front stage and given them the opportunity to give their message and it was done in unison.

So Colin took a knee during the National Anthem, first I don't agree with that, it belittles everyone that every fought or served this country.  Does he have the right to do that, yes.  So he was blacklisted from the NFL.  He made a statement and he paid the price and actually I'm glad to see that his statement didn't go unnoticed.

With that said I do understand or new POTUS Trump's point of view in the sense that the venue used for the protest was inappropriate.  If you have never fought in a war or served be very careful how you protest and what your protest means to others.  As I have said does he have the right to protest in such a fashion, yes, but it's a slap in the face to all service members current or ex.  And what gives that statement so much weight is the first thing people did was find Ex-Service Members to validate his actions. 

Yes people have fought and died for our rights to express our freedoms in a variety of ways.  So there should have been some thought into his form of protest.  Now before you start going crazy about things, ask yourself; What would you do if the KKK decided to have a rally at an all black school?

Inappropriate!!!

So we went from his protest to boycotting the NFL until a team picked him up as a player.  Yes I was very upset at this also, it childish beyond belief, he acted and there was a reaction.  Just as they were barred from competing in the rest of the 1968 Olympics he was barred from the NFL.  His protest upset people and just as he has the right to protest the owners have the right not to hire him.

I'm glad to see that some are keeping things in prospective, that would be the rest of the players taking up the mantle of Colin and actually protesting a cause. 

Colin what you did was great, but stop your bitching and deal with the consequences of your actions.

The Police: To Serve and Protect....Who?

I can never understand the horrors and terrors that the police face everyday and I will not pretend that I do.  What I do know and it's painfully obvious is that an alarming number of Blacks are killed every year by the police and this is not a new statistic.

In almost any city in America you see "Serve and Protect" under the word Police on their cars, but whom are they here to Serve or Protect?

A Police Officer should be a hero in the communities they service.  The people that solve crimes and save the day.  The people you can count on when you are in harms way.  We should feel safe in their presence.  They should be the Good Guys, and we should believe that Good triumphs over Evil.

Now the argument is that Police Officers have a reasonable fear of threat or danger when stopping people.  Well when you have incidents like the Dallas Sniper I can see why they feel threatened.  But keep in mind that the Dallas Sniper incident was reactionary.  While I in no way agree with his actions as a Black Male in America I do understand.

I've always said it was a double-edge sword.  If there wasn't so much violence, mistrust and mistreatment of people by the police, there would be fewer incidents that the police have to fear.  So in essence the police produced this insane fear that they have, by means of their treatment of people. A self inflected wound one might say.

Once again I must state I have no idea of the fears and horrors the police face everyday.  What I do know as a member of the Regular Army we are trained to face danger everyday.  Our job description says if we are called upon to preform our duties that not all of us are coming home and the ones that do may be physically or mentally damaged beyond help.  Now I have was never part of any conflict that we may have had, but I have several friends that have seen combat.

I say this to bring to attention that we do have people out there that face life and death with every decision they make on a daily basis.  Yet somehow they are able to exercise restraint when it comes to hostile situations.  By definition the job of our Armed Forces is to kill or be killed.

I would never try to compare any Police Department with the Armed Forces, so in essence I can never understand the imagined fear that these Officers claim to have.  Too often someone is being beaten when trying to comply with a request while hails of "Stop Resisting" are offered from the offices.  Too often they take their badge to mean that they can violate your HUMAN RIGHTS.

At the end of the day the Police are servants of the people and should act accordingly.  Just as the Military are responsible for their actions and held accountable so should our Police Officers.  I will never condone any actions of harm against Police Officers, but I will not let them treat me as less than human either.

So once again I can never understand the horrors that Police Officers face everyday, but a badge is not a license to do whatever one feels.  Your oath is to serve and protect the people in your community, not harm, harass, intimidate, abuse or kill them.

This is why we are a free nation:

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

Maybe if more time, money and effort was put into teaching the Officers their job and less on military style gear and equipment we wouldn't have this problem.  We have graduated from a point where Dirty Harry the rogue officer was a one off to now being a common face on the police force.

On a more personal note, how long do you think we will allow these injustices to happen?

I'm a peace loving man, so if you fear me or what I may do it's your perceived perception of me.  If that fear is warranted, ask yourself what have you done to make someone like me angry enough to express violent outrage.  If the fear is not, ask yourself not just what were you taught, but how could you foster such an unreasonable ideology within you.

I am not a sheep headed to slaughter, I cannot go gently into that good night.  I will resist with every fiber of my body and soul.  Long gone are the days of peaceful compliance.

Architecting Rage

In Texas they lynch Negroes. My teammates and I saw a man strung up by his neck and set on fire. We drove through a lynch mob, pressed our faces against the floorboard. I looked at my teammates. I saw the fear in their eyes and, worse, the shame. What was this Negro's crime that he should be hung without trial in a dark forest filled with fog. Was he a thief? Was he a killer? Or just a Negro? Was he a sharecropper? A preacher? Were his children waiting up for him? And who are we to just lie there and do nothing. No matter what he did, the mob was the criminal. But the law did nothing. Just left us wondering, "Why?" My opponent says nothing that erodes the rule of law can be moral. But there is no rule of law in the Jim Crow south. Not when Negroes are denied housing. Turned away from schools, hospitals. And not when we are lynched. St Augustine said, "An unjust law is no law at all." Which means I have a right, even a duty to resist. With violence or civil disobedience. You should pray I choose the latter!

 -- The Great Debaters

Once again we are faced with a young Unarmed Black Male shot and no charges are brought.  This has become a common theme in many communities, while the incident was/is terrible the handling of the situation is what in my mind escalates the offense to a monumental injustice.  

It true that the police should be held to a higher standard of the Law, just as a computer geek I am expected to be held to a higher standard with it comes to technology.  I remember a time when an officer of the law had to fire a warning shot and wait for compliance, but those days are long gone especially when we are talking about young black men in America.  I remember a time when officers were accountable for unnecessary force and they could only use as much force as required to defuse an incident, but long gone are those days.  Officers of the law are quick to shoot anyone regardless of race.....well almost.

Maybe this is a situation of cause and effect, Officer are quick to shoot people now due to the impending threat that they may face.  Maybe the reason they face these threats is because they are so quick to shoot.  As a young black male in America when confronted by the police you come to grips quickly with the fact that there is a high percentage chance that you will be shot for no reason.  This is funny since our Declaration of Independence guarantees us inalienable rights.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with inherent and inalienable rights; that among these, are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.
--The Declaration of Independence

About a week after the shooting in Ferguson MO. there was a similar situation in Salt Lake City UT., but for all the similarities the two incidents were vastly different.  I won't go into the details of either incident, but I would like to focus on the handling of the 2 incidents, this is the part I find most offensive.

In Salt Lake City you saw a handful armed police in their police uniforms, guns holstered, calmly reacting to the protester of the shooting in a professional manner.  There were no mention of calling in the National Guard for people practicing their right to assemble.  Were as Ferguson was completely different.  The almost the entire police department deployed in BDU's (Battle Dress Uniforms usually associated with the military), they had urban combat tanks on the streets, full riot gear, semi-automatic rifles loaded and pointed at the crowd, tear gas and much more in order to prevent rioting.

It seems that Ferguson encouraged the outcome they got.  This is more than the power of suggestion, it the declaration of a riot.  The offense unarmed young man shot by the police, and the solution was to arm all the police and put them in front of the protesters with loaded weapons pointed at the protesters this is not how you defuse a situation, it's how you escalate a situation.  Military training taught me never to point a loaded weapon unless you well the weapons were loaded and pointed. This can only amount to the extermination or elimination of a problem by force.

The handling of the Ferguson situation did not need to escalated to that level, and no matter what I believe we will never know.  The police were talking about riots and petitioning to have the National Guard brought as soon as it became news.  Reporters were collateral damage of not only an ineffective but obviously untrained police department.  A clear message that if you are a gun totting, happy to shoot at will c'mon and join the Ferguson Police Department.

And they wonder why there are songs like "Fuck Da Police!"

For all that we have accomplished as a race we have gotten no further then our ancestors in chains. We are thought of less then a person, treated like animals to be tamed or herded and denied our basic rights.   While this is not the case all over America, it is the case often enough.  

Each incident makes me feel less and less like an American.  Each incident makes me wonder what was I trying to defend during my time in service.  Each incident makes me wonder if this country can last.

We didn't ask to be here, but if the best solution you have to get rid of the Black presence in America is extermination, maybe you should rethink that plan.  Or maybe it's time for another racial explosion in this country.  If it's not going to be a civil movement don't complain when you get exactly what you asked for, an all out war of race?  How long do you expect us be your silent targets without resistance?  How long do you expect to treat like a pack of raving wolves without expecting to get bit?  How long?

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night

by Dylan Thomas

Do not go gentle into that good night,

Old age should burn and rave at close of day;

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,

Because their words had forked no lightning they

Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright

Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,

And learn, too late, they grieve it on its way,

Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight

Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,

Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.

Do not go gentle into that good night.

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.