dagblog - Comments for "God Didn't Bless America"

Thanks for taking time to

Danny Cardwell — Tue, 12 Jul 2016 13:23:53 +0000

In reply to Hi Danny

Thanks for taking time to share your story. Unfortunately for the vast majority of people the Bill O'Reilly's of the world have such a large platform to spew their elementary pseudo-science. We are in a tough spot for sure. Thanks for engaging in this dialogue.

Hi Danny

Richard Day — Tue, 12 Jul 2016 06:09:13 +0000

In reply to God Didn't Bless America

Hi Danny

My son has this buddy that he has not had a lot of contact with since he provided me with three grandkids and between his job and his kids and....

Sean had this joke. But it was not a joke as such. He was at this buddy's home and he received a call from his friend in the military.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

OH, I AM WITH MY BLACK FRIENDS.

The audience responded:

SAY WHAT?

Everybody laughed.

Anyway, Sean told me all about this friend who makes more money in a year than he sees in ten years.

But, his friend ends up being stopped twenty more times in a few years than Sean is ever stopped, on the highway.

I recall the old WWII movies where we are informed that the NAZI's were are all interested in papers.

MAY I SEE YOUR LICENSE AND REGISTRATION?

The reason this friend is stopped all the time is because he has reached the American Dream and lives in the suburbs where most folks are white. And there are reasons for this that I have written about in several blogs over the years.

Has Sean ever been stopped?

Yeah, but 'they' usually let him go.

EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS.

I suppose this is caricature in the worst context.

But when we read O'Reilly....?

Billo has this thing about single mothers and... and Billow has been divorced and cannot see his kids or sends his attorneys to fight the fight and....

Billo is an absentee father?

Filafels....

I am just a white old man who cannot understand what some folks cannot understand is really happening

here.

I do not wish to sound cheap here but damn, in 1963 here was the only answer I could find:

(No subject)

Ramona — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 21:53:01 +0000

In reply to Thanks for your kindness.

Thanks for your kindness.

Danny Cardwell — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 19:56:04 +0000

In reply to A brilliant piece, Danny. I

Thanks for your kindness. That means more to me than anything. Being a good, caring, and decent person is more than enough. All of us have hurdles to overcome. There's male machismo that needs to be tamed in the soul of every man. None of us are responsible for society conditioning us to see women as trophies to collected, but we are responsible for not acting on those base feelings. We owe it to ourselves to admit our weaknesses and shortcomings. I value the dialogue we've had over the last year or so. Thanks for just being you!

Thanks Danny. I never liked

HSG — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 19:41:53 +0000

In reply to God Didn't Bless America

Thanks Danny. I never liked Lee Greenwood's hollow patriotism and you have illuminated why his is a false paradigm. We must work together to end the violence.

Amen! I hope you are well.

Danny Cardwell — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 19:09:58 +0000

In reply to Keep it 100%: which pictures

Amen! I hope you are well. Thanks for engaging!

Keep it 100%: which pictures

Michael Maiello — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 18:43:38 +0000

In reply to God Didn't Bless America

Keep it 100%: which pictures of me do you think the media would use if I got hashtagged?

"But he was no angel..."

The sad thing is that it is

rmrd0000 — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 18:12:08 +0000

In reply to God Didn't Bless America

The sad thing is that it is unlikely that any of the officers involved in the shootings will be convicted of any crime.

Excellent post.

rmrd0000 — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 12:26:01 +0000

In reply to God Didn't Bless America

Excellent post.

Best patriotic song, Ray Charles' version of "America the Beautiful"

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x11i95t_ray-charles-america-the-beautif...

Runner up Whitney Houston "Star-Spangled Banner"

Best alternative patriotic song Marvin Gaye's soulful "Star-Spangled Banner"

It is interesting that the NRA is silent when a black man legally carrying a gun is murdered by police.

A brilliant piece, Danny. I

Ramona — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 12:19:00 +0000

In reply to God Didn't Bless America

A brilliant piece, Danny. I'm so grateful you've agreed to join our community here, for so many reasons. You've put this issue into perspective in a way that is real and heartbreaking, because we all know which picture would be used for the world to see.

In a FB thread just this morning someone asked about our own experiences with the police and I had to think back a long way to remember my own. I haven't had that many, but I realized that every single encounter I've ever had with the police has been positive. Every traffic stop ended with smiles and fair warnings. I've only had one ticket in all my years of driving and the officer practically apologized for having to give it to me. (I was going 40 in a 25 MPH zone.)

Once, when I was a young mother living in Ventura, California, I was driving home from the laundromat at night and ran a red light. The cop stopped me and instead of giving me a ticket, insisted on following me home so I would get there safely. When I got out of the car he saw that I was pregnan andt he carried my laundry basket up the flight of stairs to my door.

I'm white, I'm a small woman, I can sweet-talk and appear as meek as a kitten when I need to. Men don't have that advantage, and black men least of all.

I admit when it comes to violence of any kind, I've led an extremely sheltered life. My silence is often sheer horror. I can't begin to comprehend what's been happening to black men and women, I can't put myself in their place, I can't pretend to know what they're feeling---to understand their frustrations, their rage, their feelings of hopelessness, of being alone in a country that promises but has never delivered protection and equality for all.

I can empathize and sympathize but I can't know. I'm on your side, I'm at your side, but I can't be you. Still, keep these pieces flowing, Danny. This is how we join forces and win.