MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE
by Michael Wolraich
Order today at Barnes & Noble / Amazon / Books-A-Million / Bookshop
|
|
|
From the Readers
- barefooted 9 months ago
- PeraclesPlease 11 months ago
- PeraclesPlease 1 year ago
- PeraclesPlease 1 year ago
- PeraclesPlease 1 year ago
- PeraclesPlease 1 year ago
- artappraiser 1 year ago
- PeraclesPlease 1 year ago
- PeraclesPlease 1 year ago
- artappraiser 1 year ago
Creative corner
- PeraclesPlease 1 year ago
- PeraclesPlease 1 year ago
- PeraclesPlease 1 year ago
- artappraiser 1 year ago
- artappraiser 1 year ago
From the Dagbloggers
- Michael Wolraich 1 year 1 week ago
- Danny Cardwell 3 years 3 months ago
- Doctor Cleveland 4 years 1 week ago
- PeraclesPlease 4 years 2 months ago
- PeraclesPlease 4 years 2 months ago
- William K. Wolfrum 4 years 2 months ago
- William K. Wolfrum 4 years 2 months ago
- Doctor Cleveland 4 years 3 months ago
- Doctor Cleveland 4 years 3 months ago
- William K. Wolfrum 4 years 3 months ago
Hits of the Day
Cornel Wests Talks Black Prophetic Fire In Seattle
By Orion on Sun, 10/12/2014 - 3:02am |
URL:
http://youtu.be/5LhmQ-DwLTU
- Add new comment
- 10648 reads
Comments
A good lecture, or sermon, maybe
I like the way he called for remembrance of the past while also stressing it is the up and coming generation that will have to make their own way.
I also liked the emphasis upon music as a shared experience.
by moat on Sun, 10/12/2014 - 8:08pm
I always feel like I have left a dinner with an empty stomach The musical connections are cute. West offers no real solutions. The Dream Defenders are at work in Florida. Moral Mondays is active in North Carolina. People are at work in Saint Louis and Ferguson, Missouri. Cases fighting onerous voter ID restrictions have brought in many states. Cornel West is not a major factor in any of these issues.he does make use of lyrics though
by rmrd0000 on Sun, 10/12/2014 - 9:32pm
Rm,
I completely agree. We need to get this guy off center stage. He's a clown, and he's embarrassing.
The "Black Prophetic" Mouth of Cornel West is At It Again - And As Usual, Just In Time To Sabotage Democrats In The Upcoming Election
Think about it. First, Cornel helped Bush get elected, which led to your misery, and then he scurried back into his ivory tower to command $30,000 a speech to discuss your misery. Then, later, he rode all across the country on a bus professing to love poor minorities, while sitting next to a man (Tavis Smiley) who was involved in a scam that caused 30,000 poor minorities to lose their homes and life savings and that the Justice Department says was the second largest housing discrimination case in the history of this country. Now, he’s telling you that your misery is Obama's fault.
One of two things have to be at work here - either West knows exactly what he’s doing and is scamming the people, or he’s the dumbest so-called intellectual that the Black community has ever produced. But either way, he’s not a person that anyone with sense would want to listen to.
Here’s what one of his former students had to say about him in a letter to the Daily Princetonian:
May 12, 2003
"I know you've gotten lots of response on this, but, as a student who's taken Prof. West's class, I thought I might chime in. Here is a letter I sent to the Daily Princetonian.
.
"I took Prof. West's large lecture course, Philosophic, Religious, and Literary Dimensions of DuBois, Baldwin and Morrison, this semester hoping to experience first-hand the teaching of the man behind the hype. While I found the class entertaining, I did not find Prof. West to be particularly informative or critical in his approach whatsoever. Most lectures boiled down to animated though repetitive paeans to the authors, rather than a critical appraisal or contextualization of the material.
.
"Despite students' obvious appreciation of Prof. West's charismatic personality and gesticulating style, his acclaim stems from the histrionics he provides "on stage" in lecture, rather than the depth of scholarship displayed therein. If Princeton was looking to garner the publicity born of employing a fascinating personality, the "steal" of Prof. West was truly a coup. If it was hoping to improve the quality of the teaching faculty, I believe Harvard [that got rid of him] was the real winner in the exchange."
.
Jessica Manley '03
Princeton University
.
I'd say, that just about says it all.
.
http://wattree.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-black-prophetic-mouth-of-cornel....
by Wattree on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 4:28am
We can hate on him for pointing out that a president that has intervened in seven countries in less time than the Bush administration did five, kept Guantanamo Bay up for business, refused to see drone victims and went to see drone manufacturers instead the same day, bragged about being "really good at killing people" regarding the subject of drones and said in front of the United Nations that American foreign policy should mean that "We will ensure the free flow of energy from the region to the world" might not quite be the man he advertised himself as in 2008 or we can praise Cornel West for being right out there where injustice is occurring.
You say that West led to Bush's election, which led to our misery. What exactly about Bush's policies were miserable while Obama hasn't? We're going back to Iraq with the extra add on of interventions and military actions in Syria, Libya, Somalia, Yemen, etc. I hope you realize that Martin Luther King Jr. spoke out about Vietnam even after all the goodies Lyndon Johnson threw at him with Medicare and Civil Rights. He didn't care about who got elected or that speaking out about Vietnam might help Richard Nixon or Barry Goldwater or whoever. He stuck up for what's right, even when he got booed by black audiences and even when it got him killed.
Partisan politics is a very strange thing and a bit nihilistic. This is real life, people, not a football game. I've had this argument before at Dagblog so I know it can get ugly. I got name called for thinking it was a bunch of crud when Obama was trying to get us to knock off Bashir Assad and was giving money and weapons to the people who have now become ISIS. Must have struck a chord. Just my thoughts - take them or leave them.
by Orion on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 3:15pm
TPM reported on West's presence and arrest in Ferguson. Many comments agree with Wattree's skeptical view
TrumpDog
I had no respect for West before and if it's possible I have even less than that now. Apparently he was there and encouraged protesters not to vote.
This guy has an agenda and I strongly suspect he is being paid for his efforts.
On another note; it is good people are standing up and protesting against the brutality of the police. I don't know if the cop was justified in firing over 15 times at the dead guy but I do know there is serious distrust of the police and that is a serious problem that needs to be addressed.
by rmrd0000 on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 3:14pm
I watched the above video and he praised Kshama Sawant and her push for the 15 dollar minimum wage, which occurred through voting. I also am disconcerted by the comment here that disparages him for making a "sermon," like that's some sort of negative. Real progressive accomplishments largely came through very religious people Ceasar Chavez and MLK - not just election victories for Democrats. Churches are on every single block even in the most liberal cities and they mobilize for most serious political action. This is not a winning strategy, people.
by Orion on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 3:22pm
I applaud Christian activists and believe that there will not be much to replace the work that corner churches do with the poor when there are fewer people of faith in the community. Im not sure if you can read the comments at TPM that I noted. There is distrust of Cornel West the man.
by rmrd0000 on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 3:41pm
West is not a new phenomenon for many of us. We have followed him for years.
by rmrd0000 on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 3:44pm
As there is of Obama.
by Orion on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 4:44pm
You like Cornel West. I do not. I like Reverend Al Sharpton. You might view Sharpton as a charlatan. At the end of the day it makes no real difference. We both agree that Ferguson is important because it has focused on the issue of police as and occupying military force in Minority communities, we now see out of control police tasting and shooting unarmed Black citizens for seat belt violations. People are gradually understanding why there is great distrust of police in Minority communities
West openly stated that he came to Ferguson to get arrested. West did not come with a program to go from point A to point B.When Trayvon Martin's parents called Sharpton, we at least ended up with a trial. When Sharpton got involved in Stop and Frisk, we got a change in the program.Sharpton built an alliance with the LGBT community and Blacks, Latinos and Gays marched together.
Moral Mondays inspired voter suppression programs in multiple states to be challenged. The Dream Defenders are working on immigration reform and Stand Your Ground laws. I see ongoing programs with others. I see Cornel West in photo- ops of him marching, getting arrested and then leaving.
We will disagree about Dr West. We will both support the Ferguson protests.
by rmrd0000 on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 5:14pm
You bring up an interesting comparison of West vs. Sharpton, it made me think about certain things.
For me, I see them as both purposely choosing and continue to choose to play the role of celebu-activist. (Is what it is, not meant as good or bad.) There are plenty of preacher activists and Afro-American intellectual professor activists that don't seek to be celebs.
With that in the equation, I don't judge them alone on their activism, I also judge them on how much I like the celebrity character they choose to play for the public and the ego factor involved in that. In a way I wouldn't judge,say, Ghandi or MLK.
So here's how they compare for me in that vein: Back in the 80's/90's, Sharpton used to have a large quotient of pomposity. I didn't like him much then. I feel he's toned himself down a great deal in the last decade, and comes across as a much more humble, normal human being and a caring preacher man. And I find myself liking him a lot and wanting to listen to what he has to say. Even if I know he is pushing Obama admin talking points, which I feel is often, I like to hear how he says them! I can visualize him really connecting one on one with people he is advocating for.
West, on the other hand, with admittedly greater intellect and elite book learnin', just continues to continually grow his pomposity. In the utmost irony, he sounds the most elitist and pompous while advocating socialist solutions. He strikes me as a disagreeable man who doesn't really want to mix with regular folks, but seeks to curry favor with people of power who rub off some of that power to him. Most points he make sound almost personal, about him, about some ego hurt he experienced. And the socialism thing is the supposedly brilliant workings of his mind that we should admire.It's all very self-centered,;he doesn't strike me as a caring person, not a "people person," therefore not a good leader.
Personality and people skills do matter if you want to be a celebu-activist or even political leader. It really doesn't have to do with whether I agree with the political causes they are advocating. That's not what turns me off. I might agree or disagree with a political cause or p.o.v., but first I have to not dislike them even to care! Just mho.
In the end, the comparison also made me think of this Barack v. Bill comparison by Frank Bruni that I read a couple days ago. How one can do passion without pomposity, arrogance.or self-righteousness (put emphasis on the "self" for the latter.)
by artappraiser on Tue, 10/14/2014 - 4:24am
A good lecture, or sermon, maybe.
If that is the comment to which you refer, how is it disparaging?
by barefooted on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 4:17pm
Yes - I may have overread the negativity in that comment. Nevertheless I think his critique of Obama is spot on. It's not that Obama is the worst person to ever be POTUS but he promised more and hasn't explained to us why so many of his promises went in the garbage can.
by Orion on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 5:11pm
Google "Congress"
by rmrd0000 on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 5:15pm
Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman: Obama among the most ‘successful presidents in American history’
Initially an Obama critic, Nobel laureate Paul Krugman now says,
"For much of the country, consequential presidencies are defined by a handful of landmark events. Years from now, when someone utters the name "Barack Obama," the thumb-nail sketch may very well be a president who rescued the nation from the Great Recession, overhauled a broken health care system and brought coverage to tens of millions of people, brought some accountability to Wall Street, and started the country on a path towards climate sanity, among other accomplishments.
It may seem odd to think about Obama now as a historical giant, but Krugman probably won’t be the last to see him as among the most "successful presidents in American history."
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/krugman-obama-among-the-most-suc...
by Wattree on Tue, 10/14/2014 - 3:20am
Forbes Magazine
It’s Official: President Obama Is The Best Economic President In Modern Times
[AND THIS IS IN SPITE OF A RACIST AND OBSTRUCTIONIST CONGRESS!!!]
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/09/06/its-official-president-obama-is-...
by Wattree on Tue, 10/14/2014 - 3:17am
by Wattree on Tue, 10/14/2014 - 3:27am
by Wattree on Tue, 10/14/2014 - 3:42am
Elizabeth Warren stated that the Consumer Protection Bureau would not exist if Barack Obama was not President. The media hones in on her criticism of bankers not going to jail. Let's compare bankers going to jail under FDR and Obama. Virtually no bankers went to jail for the failings that led to the Great Depression. If Obama sucks, then so does FDR. THE PROBLEM IS THAT WHAT THE BANKERS DID WAS LEGAL. There have been some bankers who did go to jail under Obama.
http://www.thepeoplesview.net/main/2014/10/13/leftist-poutrage-artists-a...
by rmrd0000 on Tue, 10/14/2014 - 12:07pm
Regarding Cornel West and Drones
When Tavis Smiley and Cornel West began to lose the confidence of the Black community, they tried to broaden their constituency by refocusing their criticism of President Obama from poverty to the war in Afghanistan. Time.com reported West as saying in 2012 that he didn’t vote. "I couldn’t vote for a war criminal," he said, calling Obama’s administration a "drone presidency."
.
While I don't like killing machines either, I've had to take into account the fact that Obama is charged with the responsibility of seeing to it that Al Qaeda, or any other terrorist group, don’t manage to get their hands on Pakistan's nuclear arsenal. And let us not forget that they located Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan living comfortably, and casually, within the shadow of that arsenal. So while West would have us believe that Obama is in Afghanistan just killing people for the hell of it, or for the oil companies, that’s a myth. He’s trying to make sure that YOUR family is not blown up by angry religious fanatics who think that God will bless them if they blow up the United States.
.
So while war, and killing, is an ugly business, it is very much a reality in the world we live in. So as I see it, if we have to lob missiles into an area filled with innocent people - since hiding behind human shields seems to be the terrorists' preferred mode of defense - the drone is a far better alternative than simply firing missiles and such blindly.
Consider this. If you were an Afghan and lived next door to a terrorist, would want to have someone blindly firing missiles in your direction, possibly taking out your home and family, or maybe even the entire town just to get one man, or would you rather they sent in drones with television cameras where they can specifically target the person they’re after? One drone pilot said that they even wait for the target’s family to leave the house before they fire a missile to take out the target. So the fact is, if you have to go to war, drones often SAVE lives.
.
So what is West jumping up and down about? This is one of the reasons that I often question the popular belief that West has such a powerful intellect. It’s one thing to have the ability to remember and regurgitate the words of dead White men, and yet another to be able to think for yourself and connect the dots. So on this issue, West is either grossly uninformed, has an inability to connect the dots, or he’s purposely trying to mislead the people (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/30/us/drone-pilots-waiting-for-a-kill-shot-7000-miles-away.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&).
by Wattree on Tue, 10/14/2014 - 2:11am
One of the more remarkable things is that some critics on the Left are praising Rand Paul as a possible Presidential choice. In s condescending manner they note that Paul would loosen restrictions on use of drugs. Some point to the bill proposed by Rand Paul and Corey Booker as evidence of his progressive stance on drugs. When you realize that the DOJ under Holder has done more to decrease penalties for drug use and you see the inaction of Congress you realize that Paul has actually done nothing to convince members of his own party to take any action. In addition, Paul would block women's rights and do nothing to halt his party's program of gerrymandéring and voter suppression.
BTW, those who harped on the Black unemployment rate should realize that the rate has from from a peak of 16.8 in 2010 to about 10.8 now. Those who note that the White unemployment rate is 5.3 should remember that Black unemployment has been twice as high as Whites since unemployment data has been collected.
http://aprildryan.com/2014/07/10/black-employment-numbers-on-the-decline/
by rmrd0000 on Tue, 10/14/2014 - 8:28am
Whatever the merits or demerits of West as a political animal, the central point of the talk in the video didn't concern condemning Obama. I am well aware of the ways he does just that in many proclamations. I have no interest in deflecting the conversation that looks at everything he says in that context. But he does insist upon something in this talk that is bigger than all that:
How does a society that places so much emphasis upon the good of the individual find ways to work toward ends beyond the individual? The last question of the Q&A brought this point up squarely to West to justify the "theological" element of his message. I thought West did a graceful job of saying he didn't have a complete answer to the question but then asked in return how do we get beyond the ego if we don't struggle against the place complacency would place us?
It is a damn good question.
by moat on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 8:17pm
West may have stumbled but King saw a direct connection between the Gospel and the need to be an activist. King interpreted the message as saying we are all brothers. The core message was gat we are our brothers keeper. King took guidance from women like Ella Baker and Dorothy Height. King could have a homosexual,Bayard in his inner circle. King could understand Malcolm X
http://blackandchristian.com/articles/academy/trussell-01-02.shtml
King and others have provided a clear path for Christians to follow. Theology is a direct link to activism. There are many churches following this path today. Churches have history and hierarchy that makes organizing marches like those in Ferguson easier. At a certain level, you can guilt some Christians to take action. Churches get out the vote and provide participants for marches. Even, the Nation of Islam was able to get Christian churches to participate in the Million Man March. Churches can provide a small, but active critical mass of activists.
How do you get a critical mass of others to participate? An interesting article appeared in the Daily Banter arguing that atheists don't owe social justice movements anything. The author probably represents a small subset of atheists. Atheists have been seeking social justice for others. The question is will there be organizations to replace the work that churches are doing with the poor in their local communities as the country becomes more secular. It seems that the organization task is easier in religious communities.
by rmrd0000 on Mon, 10/13/2014 - 9:54pm