OVERCOMING PERCEPTIONS: African immigrants seek ties, harmony with American blacks: "Onwuka Uchendu hears the questions over and over, from people of all skin tones, but it especially perplexes him when the people asking are black:
'Did you have shoes? Did you have a car? Do you have buildings?' they pester him about his life in Africa, as if he had just emerged from the bush."
Just when I think the world is getting smaller... - Barry
Robert Smalls: "On the morning of May 13, 1862, long before the sun was up and while the ship's white officers still slept in Charleston, Smalls smuggled his wife and three children aboard the Planter and took command. With his crew of 12 slaves, Smalls hoisted the Confederate flag and with great daring sailed the Planter past the other Confederate ships and out to sea. Once beyond the range of the Confederate guns, he hoisted a flag of truce and delivered the Planter to the commanding officer of the Union fleet. Smalls explained that he intended the Planter as a contribution by black Americans to the cause of freedom. The ship was received as contraband, and Smalls and his black crew were welcomed as heroes. Later, President Lincoln received Smalls in Washington and rewarded him and his crew for their valor. He was given official command of the Planter and made a captain in the U.S. Navy; in this position he served throughout the war"
The eye-opening cost of an economy car: " could pay my yearly commuting costs plus those of several relatives -- if Detroit had reliable mass transit. I could make a few extra mortgage payments. I could pay for a year of college tuition. I could help Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick get Detroit out of debt."
Ex-Aide Questions Bush Vow to Back Faith-Based Efforts (washingtonpost.com): "A former White House official said yesterday that President Bush has failed to deliver on his promise to help religious groups serve the poor, the homeless and drug addicts because the administration lacks a genuine commitment to its 'compassionate conservative' agenda. "
New York Daily News - Home - Bush press pal quits over gay prostie link: "Gannon began covering the White House two years ago for an obscure Republican Web site (Talon-News.com). He was known for his friendly questions, including asking Bush at last month's news conference how he could work with Democrats 'who seem to have divorced themselves from reality.'
Gannon was also given a classified CIA memo that named agent Valerie Plame, leading to his grilling by the grand jury investigating her outing.
He came under lefty scrutiny after revelations that the administration was paying conservative pundits to talk up Bush's proposals. By examining Internet records, online sleuths at DailyKos.com figured out that his real name was Jim Guckert and he owned various Web sites, including HotMilitaryStud.com, MilitaryEscorts.com and MilitaryEscortsM4M.com."
LEONARD PITTS JR.: GOP courts blacks when it's favorable: "One wonders whether it is possible for that many black ministers to be, simultaneously and in one place, out of their minds."
Boy, 4, drives mom's car to video store and back: "Unable to reach the accelerator, the boy managed to put the car in gear and make his way to the store about 1:30 a.m. EST Friday, Sand Lake police said. Finding the store closed, the youngster began a slow trip home"
Kung Fu Monkey: I Miss Republicans.: "$100 billion dollars against an attack mode which is literally the most inconvenient, least likely way for bad guys to kill Yanks. Terrorists don't have missiles. Terrorists have VANS. A white-panel-truck defense shield, THAT would be worth our money. Tie the INS database into the Ryder rental computer. Now we're talking science."
WebCams: "Random live webcams from the Net"
iPodder.org :: "iPodder.org : The resource for the iPod platform."
CNN.com - Freedom of what? - Jan 31, 2005: "It turns out the First Amendment is a second-rate issue to many of those nearing their own adult independence, according to a study of high school attitudes released Monday."
Somebody hold me. - Barry
Free Credit Reports Available Soon - Update - Law Store - Nolo: "If you'd like to see a copy of your credit report, it's about to get much easier and cheaper. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has approved a rule that will allow consumers to receive a free copy of their credit report from each of the major credit reporting agencies every twelve months. (While some states already mandate that credit reports be provided free of charge, consumers in most states have, up to now, had to pay a nominal fee, usually $8 - $9, for the report.) If you stagger your requests to the different agencies, you can actually get three credit reports over the course of a year."
Tennis News Article | Reuters.co.uk
Former world number one Martina Hingis slumped to defeat on her comeback after two years out with an ankle injury on Tuesday and said she had "no plans" to play in any other tournaments.
DESIREE COOPER: Gentler? Kinder? It's still the Klan: "The Mystic Knights, according to Lawson, was formally organized in 1999 with chapters in Michigan, Ohio, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia. Lawson would not say how many members there are nationally or locally. But because the men and women come from all walks of life, he assured me that 'you've probably spoken to other Klansmen and didn't know it.'"
"The old ways of the Klan don't work anymore," he said, adding that the Mystic Knights do not condone violence -- including lynchings or burning crosses on other people's property. All members are subject to police background checks, he said. "We are in some ways a more politically correct Klan," he said. "The problems we face in this country are a lot bigger than race. We are more concerned with morality."
But the Mystic Knights' Web site reveals a more traditional Klan mindset. It dubs Martin Luther King Day as a day of protest. White Christians were exhorted to fly Confederate flags rather than honor the "womanizing, promoter of race mixing," who was "100-percent Communist."
It also urges a boycott of McDonald's for its commitment to black history and for not having a scholarship or career program for whites despite the fact that "whites are currently the minority in 48 major cities."
It's these people that vex me more than the "old style" Klan. It's all about parsing, spin. Couple it with our culture's collective attention span/historical memory of a Jack Russel Terrier on Crank and, well... it's.... troubling... - Barry