Tuesday Toast

....ahh...Almost summer in Dallas. Heck, the heat index 101 degrees today. Gotta love it! As I walked to my car, when I got off of work--the heat pretty much melted me into a pool of chocolate. I knew once I got to the bungalow, wasn't going anywhere--except to feed my backyard birds. Put fresh water out there too. I've decided all the animals I feed--inside and outside--need to get jobs!

And I suppose the Tennessee heat fried the brain of Sherri Goforth, an aide to Sen. Diane Black (R-TN),. Ms. Goforth is now famous for an e-mail sent, as Ms. Goforth, said 'accidentally' to the wrong list of people. An "historical keepsake photo”e-mail, of all 44 US Presidents. The problem was, Ms. Goforth decided to send an e-mail to showcase her own ignorance aka: racism.

In this time of change, some things have not changed at all. What makes me sad, is some folks I know will laugh and say what's the big deal....

Alot.

Jury Deliberates

Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court nominee, is termed a racist by some. TODAY's Matt Lauer and crew told me this morning as I readied for work. My mouth dropped. What on earth had happened for this woman said to be crowned a racist?

Granted, I'm not much into life as a Perry Mason, yet with everything President Barack says or does is scrutinized--I had to find out what Ms. Sotomayor did.

Did she call somebody she shouldn't? Help burn crosses on lawns? Wear a white sheet over her suit? I had to know. Could President Barack Obama make such a horrid choice? A racist? bigot?

Then Matt Lauer and crew gave us Sonia Sotomayor's quote from a speech she gave in front of University of California Berkley law school: “I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experience would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life.”

Need some matches, Sonia?

Racism? Biogtry? Really?

OK. Some folks might be upset.

Not sure how, yet evidently alot are.

Ms. Sotomayor spoke truth. If you have not lived that life of a wise woman, whether she be Latina, Black woman, Chinese, Native American, even a White woman-how can a better conclusion of a White man (or any man) be as sound? Has the man had that woman's life experience?

An article in the NY Times says Ms. Sotomayor's temperament and sharp tongue just may be a little too darn much.

Really?

My question: if a man used his sharp tongue, in the same situation, would it have been a bad thing? Or would the man be considered "sharp, quick on his feet and breath of confidence?" After all, he is a judge. It's his job to speak matter of factly.

I don't know if Sonia Sotomayor is the right candidate. I don't play much in the law's sandbox at recess. I admire those that do. However, I do believe Ms. Sotomayor is yet another strong woman that a bunch of folks don't know how to handle.

Can you say: Hillary?

Stay tuned.

Chimp Cartoon Comment

Blatant racism or not? I'd like to think not.

However, the cartoon of police looking at a chimp they've shot and say someone else has to now write the stimulus bill rubs me wrong way. Irks me. To me,. it is a stereotypical reference to my race. Chimps and monkeys. My first view of the cartoon had me do a second take. I wondered out loud: "Is the cartoonist saying President Obama is a monkey? Should the monkey be shot?"

I'm aware of the person being mauled by a chimp. I'm well aware of the stimulus bill--where's my bailout?--nonetheless--if a shot at sly stereotypical slip was intended, it worked. If it wasn't to be a shot at stereotypical junk--it didn't work.

The cartoonist had a right to be creative and editorial edgy.

I have the right to ask the cartoonist: Just what were you thinking?

Up there...

The media tells me some folks believe Barack Obama is ‘uppity’ because he’s a graduate of Ivy League schools: Columbia and Harvard Law. Due to those achievements, it’s said he just can’t seem to connect with some voters.

Really?

Let’s see, The First President Bush and the current Bush, who vacates the White House in January 2009, both attended Yale. Then President John F. Kennedy and little brother Bobby both attended Harvard. Then there’s Bill Clinton, our first supposed ‘Black President,’ attended Yale for his law degree, only after completion of studies at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar.

All that ivy sure blocks my view. Both Bushes are successful business men in their own right. JFK was Catholic, which scared some folks. His little brother Bobby, contributed to the Civil Rights Movement—which became a building block for Barack Obama’s position today. Then Bill Clinton was considered ‘inexperienced’—but he did have that Rhodes Scholar thing on his side. Was ‘uppity’ an adjective to describe any of these other Ivy League men? I doubt not. Just amazed the at the degree of scrutiny Barack Obama recieves for not looking like the ‘other’ guys.

I’ve been called uppity all her life. When it was uttered by people I knew—both Black (which includes family) and White-it hurt, I admit. Accusations of I did not sound or act Black enough—my goodness, what DOES that mean anyway? Or that I had too many White friends. Plus the closest I ever got to anything Ivy League was the purchase of a $1.98 ivy plant at Wal-mart.

Even in the 21st Century, a little stereotype goes a long way.

Come November 4, 2008, whether it’s an Obama win or loss, I will continue to bask in pride. My ancestors who built this country—literally-had families broken apart by being sold like livestock, yet treated lower than. My ancestors were denied any rights of any kind. For a time, slave logs did not list their names, just male, female or child. Because of what my ancestors endured then, there is success now.

Call it ‘uppity’ if you want. Call it a celebration for a moment in time that was and no longer is.