The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age
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    JUSTICE ANTONIN SCALIA - IDIOT IN A ROBE

    By Wattree on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 9:52am |

    Beneath the Spin * Eric L. Wattree  

    JUSTICE ANTONIN SCALIA - IDIOT IN A ROBE
    .
    Symbols play a very important role in our society, because uniforms, badges, robes and such help us to identify the various roles that people play to hold our society together. That's why it is so important that people who are given symbols of authority represent those symbols well, and it's also important for the public to always remain aware of the psychological impact that symbols have on our psyche. 
    .
    We've become so accustomed to responding to symbolism that we tend to often respond to the symbol alone, and that's not always a good thing, because when a flawed individual lacks the character, demeanor, or intellect to live up to what he or she is suppose to represent, we often fail to recognize those flaws. So far too often we have severely flawed people hiding behind respected symbols of authority. That doesn't serve society well, and that seems to be exactly the case with respect to United States Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.  
    .
    During oral arguments in the Fisher v. University of Texas case before the United States Supreme Court, Justice Antonin Scalia said, "There are those who contend that it does not benefit African Americans to get into the University of Texas where they do not do well, as opposed to having them go to a less-advanced school, a slower-track school, where they do well." Scalia went on to say, "Most of the black scientists in this country don't come from schools like the University of Texas. They come from lesser schools where they do not feel they're being pushed in classes that are too fast for them."  
    .
    In response to that thoughtless, unwarranted, and presumptuous comment, it should be pointed out to the "Honorable" Justice Scalia that Barack Obama went to Harvard and he didn't seem to have any problem keeping up at all, and he doesn't seem to have any problem keeping up with the White establishment today - in fact, just the reverse seems to be the case. 
    .
    It should also be pointed out to Scalia that life itself is an affirmative action program for White people, so why shouldn't colleges, universities and other institutions be allowed to level the playing field? And as for being able to keep up, African Americans are forced to compete against White folks after spotting them 50 yards and having to run in lead boots all of their lives, so what makes Scalia assume that these Black students may not be able to keep up?  With all of the advantages that White people are given in this country, just the fact that the relatively dimwitted (by Black standards) Clarence Thomas is sitting next to him strongly suggests that Thomas is, at the very least, as smart as Scalia, and quite probably, much smarter. One indicator of that is at least Thomas has the good sense to keep his mouth shut on the bench. 
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    Scalia's heinous propensity to continually self-promote, grandstand, and play to his conservative audience from the bench is absolutely outrageous in what is suppose to be an august, contemplative, and deliberate body. It betrays an underlying ignorance and immature need to give himself priority over the solemn deliberations in which the court is suppose to be engaged. Justice Scalia has single-handedly made the United States Supreme Court a joke.  Instead of wearing a black robe Scalia should be wearing a court jester's costume ( "Wait a minute, folks. If you liked that one, here's one you'll really like!"). He's, literally, a conservative clown (Low IQ And Conservative Beliefs Linked to Prejudice).
    .
    Here's a fact reported by ThinkProgress.com that obviously slipped passed Scalia's presumptuous radar:

    Black Women Are Breaking Barriers But Still Not Getting Compensated For It

    "After they leave high school, black women have begun to dominate college. 'Though all women lead their male counterparts in college enrollment and degree attainment,' the report says, “Black women do so at higher rates than any other group of women in America.' In 2010, they were 66 percent of all blacks who finished a Bachelor’s Degree, 71 percent with a Master’s, and 65 percent with a Doctorate.

    .

    "And they keep excelling after they graduate. 'As they have from the beginning of their experience in America, Black women lead all women in labor force participation rates,' according to the report. Their labor force participation rate is higher than all other women, and that continues to be true even after they become mothers. They are also very entrepreneurial, starting businesses at six times the national average and representing the fastest growing segment of women-owned businesses. Black women own more than 1 million firms, employ 272,000 people other than themselves, and generate an estimated $44.9 billion in revenue." (http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2014/04/03/3422550/black-women-educatio...).

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    What presumptuous White conservatives fail to recognize is that Black people are generally much smarter than they reveal.  Hiding our intelligence has become a cultural trait that the Black community is going to have to address, but there are several factors that contribute to that cultural inclination. One, is survival - there's no faster way to lose a job than letting your White boss find out that you're smarter than he is. 
    .
    When I was a kid, one of the first things my grandfather taught me was to "Never let others know what you know, because then they know everything you know, plus what they already knew, and that will make them more knowledgeable than you."  What he was actually trying to relate to me in his own fashion was, in order to survive in a racist environment you have to let the White man think he's smarter than you are.  He needs that, so give it to him, and then use it to manipulate him in order to get by.  That explains the demeanor of many Black people like Clarence Thomas. 
    .
    Jack Benny and Rochester once did a skit where Rochester is carrying a long plank on his shoulder and Jack Benny is behind him and on his right. Then Jack said, "Turn left," but Rochester turned right instead. Jack then said, "I said left, you idiot!" With that, Rochester did a hard left and knocked Jack out with the back of the plank. That's how Black people routinely deal with White racists - by playing dumb and out-thinking them. 
    .

    NOBEL PRIZE WINNER AND FORMER 
    OBAMA CRITIC

    And consider this - if  all of America had followed the good sense of the Black community in refusing to vote for Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush in droves, this nation wouldn't be in the dire shape that it's in today. And in spite of how horribly Black people have been treated in this country, isn't it completely ironic that it took a Black man, Barack Hussein Obama, to save this nation from the disastrous consequences of their misguided, and yes, idiotic policies?  In addition, if the White conservative establishment hadn't been childishly obstructing President Obama at every turn, this nation would be thriving like it never has before at this very moment.
    .
    So what about Black men?  Why aren't they moving forward like Black women?  The answer is simple. Many of us (but far from all) are being crippled by our macho mentality and our tendency to hide our intellect due to the experiences of slavery and the very same kind of anti-intellectualism that's sweeping the the entire nation.
    .
    Another reason that Black men tend to hide their intelligence is because during slavery the only Blacks that field slaves knew who spoke anything close to proper English were the house slaves, and house slaves were often looked upon with disdain, because domestic slaves tended to look down their noses at the slaves who worked the fields. As a result, even though many Blacks fail to realize it on a conscious level, a negative attitude has been passed down through the years towards anything that reminds us of the house slave–and that includes articulate speech, any outward display of exceptional intelligence, or an obvious desire for academic excellence.  It's considered "Trying to act White."  That's why you will often hear young Black men saying things like "What it is?" or "What it be like?"  They know that's improper English, but that's what makes it cool - they're being as un-White as they can possibly be.

    The above also explains one of the reasons you hear so many Black PhDs on national television quoting Tupac Shakur instead of Frederick Douglass or Langston Hughes. Essentially, it's a public apology for being a seeker of knowledge. The message is, "Yeah, I've got an education, but don't worry about it - I'm still one of you." The anti-intellectual attitude of some Blacks also explains why some Blacks, like Cornel West, was questioning whether Barack Obama was "Black enough," and why there was so much pressure on Obama to attend functions like Tavis Smiley's "State Of The Black Union" and Jesse Jackson's "Operation Push" - they wanted him to prove that he hadn't been "tainted" by his pursuit of excellence.

    .
    But partially due to the pride the Black community has taken in the excellence of President Obama, those attitudes are rapidly changing.  Obama has made it "cool" to be an intellectual, but obviously, Scalia has seen fit to miss that memo:
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    Harvard Has the Highest Black Student Graduation Rate in the Ivy League

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    "The eight Ivy League colleges are generally considered to be among the most prestigious institutions of higher education in the nation. All of these institutions have graduation rates for African Americans of 85 percent or better. Nationwide the college graduation for African Americans is 44 percent.
     
    "At Harvard, 96 percent of all African-American students earn their degree within six years. The graduation for African Americans at Princeton and Yale is 94 percent. Columbia University trails the Ivy League with a still very respectable 85 percent graduation rate for African Americans."
    .
    So with regard to Scalia's supposed concern that if they leveled the playing field Blacks might not be able to keep up, that's an a suggestion that's literally drenched in mindless presumption and racist condescension.  Black people have benefited from having to maneuver their way around both overt and covert racists like himself every day of their lives.  That has served to give many of them an intellectual muscularity that Scalia could never match. 
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    Christopher Hitchens vs Playthell Benjamin - 2006 Debate on Iraq

        
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    WOULD SCALIA BE ABLE TO KEEP UP?  I DON'T THINK SO.
    .
     Eric L. Wattree 
    wattree.blogspot.com
    [email protected]
    .
    Religious bigotry: It's not that I hate everyone who doesn't look, think, and act like me - it's just that God does.

    Comments

    This is really a fine show!

    I am still listening to it as I write this.

    When I am really bored, I will go to Youtube and listen to old Hitchen debates.

    Many of these debates are fascinating, fact full and just plain fun

    But I never saw this debate with Mr. Benjamin (or is it Dr. Benjamin?)

    I wikied him and only found a footnote on the Du Bois article.

     Eric you are such a skilled writer.

    You should go to Wiki and tell us something about this erudite speaker. 

    As far as Scalia? Doterage will find us all toward the end.

    I recall when Hugo Black went crazy.

    Philosopher Kings as Plato might put it, are anathema to a republic (pun intended, ha!)

    Anyway, Scalia could have written the Dred Scott decision, as far as I am concerned.

     


    by Richard Day on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 1:57pm

    Richard,

    While my good friend, Playthell, has taught at universities here and abroad, he's an excellent example of how the the White elitist establishment keeps us dumbed-down. He's currently a radio commentator in New York, and he used to write for New York's Daily News, but from what I understand, when he went against one of their editorial positions they fired him, and considering what he represents, he's been in what can only be called journalistic obscurity every since.  But this man's voice is not going to be silenced. He may be blocked today, but posterity is going to hear every word he has to say, and that's what writers should do - speak to posterity.
    .
    And finally, I want to thank you for your kind words, and let you know that you've placed something on my mind.  You're absolutely right. I should write something on Playthell.  He's approached me about collaborating on a book together, so I might start that process in the foreword, because he is indeed a brilliant and totally unique individual, and I'd love to become a footnote in his legacy as being one of the first to bring what he represents to the public's attention.   


    by Wattree on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 2:33am

    Richard,

    I sent your comments to Playthell, and I'm sure he will appreciate them greatly.


    by Wattree on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 5:17pm

    The entire Fisher lawsuit was bogus. Fisher was a less than mediocre student. Ninety-percent of the seats at UT-Austin were filled by students in the upper 10% of their high school class. The remains 10% of students gained admission based grades from two essays, community activities, socioeconomic status, and race. Forty-seven students with lower grades than Fisher were admitted to UT-Austin. 42/47 were white only 5/47 were black or Latino. It should be noted that 168 black and Latino students with better grades than Fisher were not admitted to UT-Austin. How this case revolved around race is stupefying.

    http://www.dallasobserver.com/news/it-seems-mediocre-grades-not-ethnicit...


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 3:41pm

    Hmmmm.  I'm slippin'. How did I miss that?  Those facts are one of the first things I should have researched. But that's the story of my life - every time my head starts swelling, I either have a discussion with my woman, meet somebody like Playthell (Man, I really wanted to find a reason to hate that guy when I first met him), or something comes along to slap me down.  Thank you for this information, RM.  


    by Wattree on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 4:01pm

    Fisher graduated from LSU. She wanted to attend UT-Austin because of family tradition, but she did not do the work to get there. Fisher could could still have entered UT in her sophomore year, if she scored a 3.2 GPA at other university in her freshman year. She refused that option.

    http://www.propublica.org/article/a-colorblind-constitution-what-abigail...


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 4:00pm

    You are welcome for the info.

    MSM wants to continue the meme of dumb black students rather than an unqualified white girl.


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 4:34pm

    Well, thanks to you, RM, I have the ammunition to counter that attempt.  While I don't have a lot of clout, I have a lot of time, and as Tavis Smiley and Cornel West found out, I use that time quite effectively.


    by Wattree on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 5:13pm

    LOL

    Go for it. You should also be aware that blacks are rapidly closing the high school graduation rate gap with white students

    http://www.theroot.com/articles/news/2015/12/high_school_graduation_rate...


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 6:51pm

    RM,

    Again, thanks to you I've done the necessary research to find all of that information, and I've been seriously considering why I didn't do that initially. I've come to the conclusion that the reason I didn't is because I've been infected by bad habits that I've developed right here on this site.  When I read back over this article it became clear to me that instead of carefully and dispassionately dissecting Scalia's position in the way that any good writer is suppose to do, I engaged in what was essentially a rant. It's already all over the internet, so I can't redo it, but I'm never going to let that happen again. So I've decided that I'm going to have to either ignore all stupidity on Dagblog, or just leave the site all together.  I'm going to try the former first.


    by Wattree on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 9:22pm

    I don't think the problem is dagblog. The assumption is tha the case cold not have reached the Supreme court without detailed scrutiny by the media and the Supreme Court itself. This was a failure to grasp the facts at several levels.For me, Melissa Harris-Perry often provides the best analysis on TV. The Root is another good source of info with a different take than most of MSM.


    by rmrd0000 on Tue, 12/15/2015 - 10:52pm

    Yes, Melissa is a very competent professor, and she's turned out to be an excellent journalist.  She's one of the few people I miss since I turned my propaganda machine off about a year and a half ago.  I was only listening to NPR on the radio, but I even turned them off about a month ago because they've gotten to the point where they do more begging than they do quality broadcasting.  Some of their people sound like used car salesmen, and they'll use any fool to get a dollar as long as he's not a conservative, including Tavis Smiley, Cornel West, Chris Hedges, and Ralph Nader. If they can't see what kind of fools they are - with their philosophies of becoming so frustrated with the Bogey Man that they leave the backdoor open for the Devil -  I figured that NPR doesn't have enough sense to be relied upon.  The people mentioned above do more to help the Republican Party than the Republican National Committee. Nader and West were directly responsible for Bush being elected in the 2000 election.  I don't see how people with even average intelligence can't see that third parties only serve to divide the vote of like-minded people.


    by Wattree on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 12:56am

    But that's the story of my life -every time my head starts swelling, I either have a discussion with my woman, meet somebody like Playthell (Man, I really wanted to find a reason to hate that guy when I first met him), or something comes along to slap me down.

    Yet after deliberation, you decide that it's the "stupidity" of Dagblog that has infected you. Interesting analysis there, Wattree.


    by barefooted on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 12:55am

    Man, leave me alone.  You're one of the infections, so this is the last communication you'll get from me. I have absolutely no time for your silliness. I've found that stupidity is contagious. 


    by Wattree on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 1:11am

    "Stupid is as stupid does" - Forrest Gump (you can look it up)

    "Teh Stupid - it burns" - internet meme

    "The dog  (Dag) ate my (internet) homework" - gradeschool excuse since like forever, updated


    by PeraclesPlease on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 6:05am

    That goes for you too, Peracles.

    Look at that silly ass comment.  It looks like it was written by a 12 year-old.  Don't bother me in the future, because I'm not going to waste my time responding to children with whiskers. If you don't like what I have to say, tough shit.  Listen to me!  You see what people like you bring out in my character?  Yeah, I know - "What character?"  Let me save you the keyboard strokes, because you're childishly predictable as well. Why should I respond to characters who don't have nothing better to do than sit up in their draws (sic) and talk shit?


    by Wattree on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 8:46am

    Eric

    The video of Benjamin, Hitchens, and moderator Wolff was hilarious.You could tell that the moderator thought that Hitchen's arguments were bogus, but he wanted to preserve classic debate format. Form was more important than fact. Most of the media follows the same format. Donald Trump is a bigot and a racist, yet MSM cannot present that as unalterable fact. If Louis Farrakhan puts on an event, he is introduced factually as the a anti-Semite. Scalia will not be labeled ill informed or bigoted.Obama had to apologize for the words of Reverend Wright, Trump  essentially gets a pass when his supporters beat down black protesters at his rallies. Think about the way Obama would have been treated if similar beat downs of Tea Party protesters happened at Obama rallies. Obama would have been marked as a terrorist. Black Lives matter gets labeled a terrorist group by Fox News while Trump's Fascist supporters beat down unarmed members of BLM.

    The public is confused about climate change because MSM keeps bringing on bogus science to counter science fact. The MSM calls this balance.The Middle East is a mess with Sunni fighting Shiites, Turks fighting Kurds, and all sides shooting US troops when the troops turn their backs. There is no military solution that the US can provide. MSM ignores this fact and will work to scare the country into believing that not taking direct military action is the sign of a weak President.

    The bottom line is that because MSM is weak and lazy, we all walk around with things we think are "facts" but are not true. We view them as facts because we hear the memes so often we incorporate falsehoods as truth.

    Heck the is a television ad with a game show host promoting a product that lights up telling people with painful osteoarthritis that they can use this placebo device to prevent the need for knee surgery! People in the 1800s were wise enough to chase charlatans with elixirs out of town, yet in 2015 we have the same channels supposed giving as facts as news promoting garbage.

    It is a constant battle to seek " truth"


    by rmrd0000 on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 8:45am

    RM,

    That is absolutely true, and that's where people like ourselves come in.  We have to dedicate ourselves to spreading truth - or at least, the truth as we see it.  The very people who are calling the president weak is the CAUSE of the rampant terrorism throughout the world.  The Scalia conservative Supreme Court violating the Constitution and criminally appointing George W. Bush, and he was dimwitted enough to allow Dick Cheney to talk him into invading Iraq and destabilizing the entire Middle East and much of Africa for no other reason than to enrich Halliburton, and thereby, Cheney himself.
    .
    And check this out, man.  Can you believe that Halliburton had the nerve to write me a letter trying to intimidate me for discussing it!!!?  I published it and dragged them through the mud (http://wattree.blogspot.com/2009/06/open-response-to-halliburton_25.html). I never heard from them again. In addition, the United States military contacted me (but politely) in an email appealing to my patriotism as a former Marine (which let me know they investigated me), asking me not to demoralize the troops.

    I could understand their request, because the troops have to be deluded into believing in what they're fighting for in order to have a better chance of survival. I was a staff writer for Veterans Today at the time. When I first started writing about the war, the troops were so brainwashed that they were flaming me, but by I was done laying out the facts, and they experienced what was going on in Iraq, some of those very same troops were writing to apologize and suggesting that I run for office.
    .
    I've been on top of this since day one. When I first started writing on the subject, people were calling me crazy, and I couldn't get anybody but underground publications to publish my articles.  So I know for a fact that these neo-cons are full of shit.
    .

    WOULD BUSH'S SABER RATTLE AS LOUDLY AGAINST CHINA?

    September 21, 2002

    author: Eric L. Wattree, Sr.       

    "Only two questions must be asked to get past the Bush Administration's nonsense. First, would Bush's saber rattle as loudly against China as opposed to Iraq? And secondly, do you think invading Iraq will make America more, or less safe from terrorist attacks?

    "Now that we've reached the anniversary of 9-11, I am consumed by one thought--in light of what I've seen over the past year I find myself much more afraid of Bush, Cheney, and Ashcroft than I am the Al Qaeda. While I understand that terrorists strike without warning to destroy life and property to promote their own agenda, it has become increasingly clear that Bush and his cohorts threaten to be even more destructive by attacking life, liberty, and the very foundation of this nation in the promotion of theirs. 

    "Over the past year these conservative war mongers have been playing the American people like a fiddle. Now they want to sacrifice American lives for nothing more than their own political advantage. Just ask yourself, what does Saddam Hussein have to do with 9-11? Absolutely nothing. Evidence of that can be found in the fact that if Saddam had been involved in 9-11 the administration would have gone after him initially. So why is it suddenly so imperative that we invade Iraq now? I'll tell you why. Since Bush was unable to produce the head of Osama Bin Laden, he now needs another villain to take Bin Laden's place in order to keep his numbers up in the polls-- and if that means having to sacrifice a few American lives and ignite even more terrorist activity on American soil in the process, so be it."  . . . MORE
    (http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2002/09/21292.shtml)


    by Wattree on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 10:11am

    You received a quasi-form letter from Halliburton Public Relations designed to announce the KBR split/spinoff. No surprise they didn't respond further.

    by PeraclesPlease on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 12:06pm

    The next election will determine if we put large numbers of troops in the Middle East. In addition, Scalia, Kennedy, and Ginsburg will all be over 80. The next President could dramatically change the Supreme Court. We can get more Scalias or more Ginsburgs, that alone is a reason to encourage people to vote.


    by rmrd0000 on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 12:17pm

    I agree, RM.
    .
    I think that we should vote out the fascists and the next president should nominate Barack Obama to the Supreme Court. That way the country won't lose him as an influence on the nation - and I would love to see an Elizabeth Warren/Michelle Obama ticket in the future. I think that would be an unbeatable combination, and that could protect the nation from the fascists for 16 years - and let us not forget that when Barack came out of law school, Michelle was HIS boss and mentor, so she's definitely qualified.


    by Wattree on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 1:10pm

    I think younger voters have abandoned MSM to a large degree so there is hope. Conservatives tend to get a pass for their comments because we have all down-regulated to accept Conservative crap as the norm.

    As an example, both Huckabee and Rubio on issues of race that we don't have a skin problem, we have a sin problem. Given their criticism of Black Lives Matter, are they saying that black people are in distress because  have sinned? MSM did not press them for an answer. Neither man would willingly go to a black media show like Roland Martin where they would face true questioning of their political positions and words. 

    Huckabee, Jindal, and Cruz spoke at a convention hosted by a pastor who advocates Gays be put to death. No outrage from MSM.

    http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/cruz-huckabee-and-jindal-will-join...

    Huckabee shed crocodile tears after the massacre at Planned Parenthood. Huckabee said the terrorist act was not the message of the anti-abortion activist he knew. Huckabee lied. Both he and Carly Fiorina used faked video tape to suggest that Planned Parenthood was killing babies to harvest brain tissue. Those faked tapes came from a group with ties to domestic terrorists who object to abortion. When Huckabee appeared on MSM after yesterday's debate, he was not pressed about his terrorist ties. Obama, Clinton, and Sanders would not get a pass on domestic terrorist ties. Remember Obama and Ayers?

    Link to Huckabee and domestic terrorists article.

    http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/11/29/1455159/-Despite-Huckabee-s-den...

    We are dumbed down because MSM does not deal with the fascist reactionaries.


    by rmrd0000 on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 2:48pm

    RM,

    That sounds like a very good article to me.  Why don't you write and disseminate it?  That's the way we get the message out.


    by Wattree on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 4:22pm

    Thanks, I may work on something during the holidays. Enjoy the season.


    by rmrd0000 on Thu, 12/17/2015 - 8:07am

    Thanks Wattree.  Outstanding as usual.  I have been taking a break from blogging for a bit so it took me some time to go over this.  Happy holidays to all!


    by HSG on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 7:16pm

    HAPPY HOLIDAYS to you Hal.

    For me it is xmas!

    Trees AND kids and Santa and.....

    Happy Holidays to you!

    I try to send this message to everyone, every year.

    God bless America and God bless the season.

    WHY NOT!

    LET US PRAY AND NOT PREY SO MUCH!


    by Richard Day on Wed, 12/16/2015 - 7:43pm

    Happy holidays, Richard.

    Man, you always make me think of days past when I used to sit up with my grandfather watching a little round-screen television.  He used to love Gunsmoke and Have Gun Will Travel, and would always make fun of Chester's Southern accent  - "Mr. Deillion, Mr. Deillion." Those were the days. I can't seem to get them off my mind - and you're not helping. I remember those days fondly, because as must be apparent today, I was their first grandchild, and they spoiled the hell out of me. Every time I turn on a heater I think about how warm and safe I felt cuddled up next to my grandfather while we were watching television together.  I had no idea that we weren't rich - we had our own home, and my paternal grandmother owned a home directly across the street.  It was perfect - a little spoiled brat in paradise. I don't know how they did it, because from what I understand now, Black people were catching absolute hell back then (in the 50's).  

    But the video below shows my life as a child. They must have really sacrificed to see to it that I lived the life of a White kid (that's probably why I don't know "my place" today). And they succeeded, because  the funny thing was, I didn't even notice that everybody on the video below was White. I felt like Sheriff John was doing his show just for me. My grandparents got me a complete cowboy outfit (hat and all) with fur-like chaps, a double holster gun belt with imitation bullets going all the way around, and two cap guns with imitation pearl handles - and if that wasn't enough, they had a guy come by with a horse to take my picture.  I think my daughter still has it. I was the baddest hombre in the neighborhood, and wore that outfit until if fell off. They were wonderful and loving people who loved me to death, and they went out of their way to make me feel special until the day they died. 

    Rest in peace, momma, daddy.  I'll always love you.    

     

     


    by Wattree on Thu, 12/17/2015 - 9:09am

    Thank you, Hal. and happy holidays to you and yours. 


    by Wattree on Thu, 12/17/2015 - 8:59am