The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age
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    Cornel West Teams With Boyce Watkins

    BENEATH THE SPIN * ERIC L. WATTREE

     

    Cornel West Teams With Boyce Watkins

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    Here’s what makes these poverty pimps like Tavis Smiley, Cornel West, Boyce Watkins so insidious. They network and travel in packs like jackals. Now we see West teaming up with Boyce Watkins. He’s a little slicker than Tavis Smiley. He's well practiced in trying to appear objective and even handed, but he's a Tavis Smiley wannabe. I don’t know what party he’s registered in, but Boyce Watkins is a conservative. He owns several online sites where he hides his identity and spews conservative-leaning propaganda against President Obama.
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    One site that he seems to be particularly fond of is "Black Blue Dog.com." A Blue Dog Democrat is a person who’s registered as a Democrat, but votes Republican. The logo on Black Blue Dog.com says it all - "The Black People that Liberals Don’t Want to Talk About."
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    While there's nothing wrong with his being a conservative, nor criticizing President Obama, Boyce Watkins should, at the very least, let people know where he's coming from so they'll have the necessary information to place his comments into perspective. Watkins is also like Tavis Smiley in that he generates his own controversy, and then cover it like it's a news story. Check out the following:
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    Is this a news story or an undercover commercial?
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    Dr Cornel West: America has become Morally Obscene
    http://blacklikemoi.com/2014/05/dr-cornel-west-america-become-morally-obscene/
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    Pay particular attention to the last paragraph:
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    "We hope you’ll spend the few dollars it takes to give your family a wealth of knowledge that will last them for generations. You can make a purchase here.
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    The link leads directly to Boyce Watkins’ bank account. It's the identical method of operation as Tavis Smiley and Cornel West. There's an election coming up, so they put out this book, and then generate controversy and cover it like a news story during the election season.  In the case of Tavis and West, did you notice that after the election and the initial interest in the book cooled, the "Poverty Tour" also came to an abrupt end as well?
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    Washington, D.C. trial attorney, former prosecutor, and member of the Supreme Court bar Debbie Hines points out the following:
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    "Apparently, Tavis Smiley fails to see the hypocrisy in taking money from Walmart as a sponsor of the Tavis Smiley show while allegedly supporting and crusading for poor people. According to the Nation, ‘Walmart is one of the biggest recipients of government subsidies, receiving tax breaks, free land, cash grants and other forms of public assistance, in addition to paying some of its workers so little that they also turn to the federal government for programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).’
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    "Meanwhile Walmart’s response to the Thanksgiving protest was not to meet and discuss the workers’ concerns. Instead, acting like the corporate giant ruling over its workers, in response, Walmart has filed a National Labor Relations Board charge alleging that the pickets are illegal and asking for a judge to shut them down, while simultaneously claiming the strike involves only a ‘handful of associates, at a handful of stores scattered across the country that are participating in these…made for-TV events."’
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    Also of note is it seems the Cornel West has jilted Tavis Smiley for Boyce Watkins. West has left the radio show that he and Tavis co-hosted, and he didn’t even show up or extend a public congratulations after Tavis bought himself that $30,000 star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame - and that’s not like West, who’s renown for being willing to sell a kidney for a sound byte. Now he shows up here with Boyce Watkins, another hustler.
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    I’m very curious about that Did. Tavis and West used to be attached at the hip like they were one body with two heads, but now it seems like West has seriously distanced himself from him. Did Cornel finally see the light, or did he just abandon ship because he didn’t want to go down with the Titavis? If the former is true, and West has finally found out what Tavis is about, if he really love his people like he claims, doesn’t he have a responsibility to tell us what he’s learned? After all, he bad-mouths everybody else.
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    And finally, here’s something we should keep in mind, and I’ve repeatedly shown in several articles with respect to these poverty pimps:
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    In his article, "My Republican Party has Abandoned Me," Black Republican activist, Raynard Jackson, says the following:
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    "For many years, I have approached the party and its supporters about underwriting programs to bring together Blacks who are Republican or lean Republican so we can weave them into every facet of the party structure. The answer is always, no! But, twice this year some of these same people have approached me about funding for some election year tricks that they (White Republicans) have conjured up and simply need a Black face to execute the plan. On these two separate occasions, these funders were willing to spend upwards of $20 million to have me organize a national campaign to identify Blacks who would be critical of President Obama."
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    Enough said? When we hear Black people who weren't saying a word under the gross corruption of Bush and Cheney, but now, all of a sudden under Obama, they just can't hold back their disgust, we need to keep Raynard Jackson's statement in mind. Twenty million dollars is a lot of money, but it's a drop in the bucket to the Koch Brothers, or Wal-Mart.
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    http://blacklikemoi.com/2014/05/dr-cornel-west-america-become-morally-ob...

     

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    Eric L. Wattree
    Http://wattree.blogspot.com
    [email protected]
    Citizens Against Reckless Middle-Class Abuse (CARMA)
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    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

    Thanks for the info on Watkins.

    My dream GOP Presidential ticket is Rand Paul and Ben Carson. If it happens I'm going invest heavily in popcorn because it would be better entertainment than the movies.


    RM, we must really think alike, because I made that very same comment about a month ago. Oh, and you're very welcome.


    He might have some conservative views now, but your comment "When we hear Black people who weren't saying a word under the gross corruption of Bush and Cheney, but now, all of a sudden under Obama, they just can't hold back their disgust, we need to keep Raynard Jackson's statement in mind." seems a bit off the mark.

    Aside from rising to the spotlight with his book What if George Bush was Born a Black Man in 2004, here is one comment he made:

    One of the proudest moments in my life as a political observer was when Kanye West did something that almost no other artist or entertainer would be astute or courageous enough to do. In 2005, as people were dying in the streets of New Orleans, West used the powerful platform provided to him during a Hurricane Katrina telethon to make the statement heard around the world: “George Bush does not care about black people.”

    I applauded Kanye’s remarks, for not since the great Muhammad Ali have we seen any athlete or entertainer willing to look beyond the temptation of a little more bling to actually fight for a meaningful cause. Yes, Kanye could have been more diplomatic, but diplomacy is not the order of the day when dead bodies are floating on every other street.

    You can probably imagine my dismay after finding out that Kanye has now backed off of his powerful statement. This week on “The Today Show”, West expressed remorse for his remarks in an apology to former President George W. Bush. Rather than being consistent and firm in his disposition, he’s now part of the establishment, where waffling on your principles is usually the order of the day. Bush deserved no apology, for you don’t apologize to a criminal after repudiating him for an egregious crime.

    Kanye missed an opportunity with his public apology. He missed the same opportunity that Muhammad Ali had when he chose between going to jail or signing on for a cushy role in the U.S. military. He missed the same opportunity that Nelson Mandela had when he was offered a chance to get out of prison early by renouncing his political beliefs. Overall, Kanye missed the chance to transcend hip hop and grow into the kind of legendary figure he could have become. Nelson and Muhammad did not fail when faced with even more intimidating moments of truth, which is why the world will remember their contributions forever. Of course, the pressure exerted on West pales in comparison to what Muhammad Ali and Nelson Mandela were facing, but the point remains the same.

    By apologizing for his statement that“George Bush doesn’t care about black people”, West is effectively arguing that “George Bush does care about black people.” For some reason, that which we deem to be diplomatic is often a direct exchange of the uncomfortable truth for a cozy, graceful lie. Bush led the charge on mass incarceration of black men in the state of Texas and executed more black men than any gang banger in America. He flew over the city of New Orleans in a helicopter while thousands of black men, women and children were left abandoned by a government that considered these “refugees” as nothing more than a nuisance. With all the deaths of black men that George W. Bush has caused during his political career, it is sad and tragic that Kanye West feels the need to validate a tyrant with a public apology.

    Since Kanye isn’t strong enough to carry the torch on this issue, perhaps we should carry it for him. So, let’s say it to ourselves right now: “George Bush does not care about black people.” Some may choose to pretend like Katrina never happened. You can try to forget about those dead bodies, lost livelihoods and tortured souls that endured this astonishing tragedy. You can try to act like Bush and his cronies cared for the people of New Orleans the way they would have taken care of the people of Beverly Hills. But you and I know that by letting Bush and his friends off the hook, we’d be showing disrespect to the people who lost their lives. It may be five years later, but we cannot let go of this experience. Katrina must be remembered always.

     


    The cynic in me notes that there is more money to be made being a Black Republican.


    Elusive,

    Boyce Watkins picks his targets very carefully, and Bush made the perfect target. Since Bush has been universally demonized, targeting him - especially in concert with supporting a hip hop artist - gave Watkins the opportunity to firm up his "street creds." But if you’ll notice, even while doing so, he did it with a "beg your pardon" to the GOP - "Yes, Kanye could have been more diplomatic, but diplomacy is not the order of the day when dead bodies are floating on every other street." I don’t recall him ever saying that Cornel West should be more diplomatic in his remarks toward President Obama.


    I was just focusing on your statement: "When we hear Black people who weren't saying a word under the gross corruption of Bush and Cheney..." Calling Bush a "criminal" is a pretty harsh word. I was in a pretty foul mood when I wrote that post, so maybe I was just be nitpicky. 


    Thanks for the information. I hadn't followed Watkins closely enough to realize that he had written about GW.


    Eric, I don't know, so I'm asking...

    It seems from reading you that West, Smiley, and now Boykins are the whole shooting match when it comes to political debate within the black community.

    Either that, or they have an outsized impact on people's thinking and the political scene. But is that really true?

    Aren't there any other standpoints to bring into the conversation, or do the first two stand so high they block out all the light.


     

    Peter,

    Yes, there are other issues in the Black community, very important issues. But what makes people like Smiley, West, Watkins such a high priority is the Black community has suffered at the hands of such turncoats for over 400 years, so it’s time to bring it to an end. This crabs-in-a-barrel mentality must cease among Black people.

    President Obama is the most high-profile Black person in the world. So to slander him, and to imply that he’s underhanded and incompetent is a slap in the face to all Black people, because it reinforces and empowers the message that bigots are trying their to promote. Now that isn’t to say that Obama is above criticism, because ALL politicians’ feet should be held to the fire. That’s part of our responsibility as citizens. But it should be done respectfully, and with good reason. But these idiots are out there playing the dozens, and conjuring up issues as a pretext to criticize the president. And their reason for that is jealousy, vindictiveness, and personal gain.   
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    "the Black community has suffered at the hands of such turncoats for over 400 years" - who are these turncoats you speak of? there must be lots of names

    "President Obama is the most high-profile Black person in the world. So to slander him, and to imply that he’s underhanded and incompetent is a slap in the face to all Black people" - uh, he's just a politician who happens to be black. criticism comes with the territory, and aside from juju about Obama being a Kenyan Islamic Manchurian candidate, criticism of him doesn't reflect on black people at all - it reflects on Obama as president. Likewise, nothing I say about Oprah, Mandela, or Kanye West has much of anything to do with any other black person - they're just personalities that are well known, same as a Clinton, Brad Pitt or David Letterman.

    "But it should be done respectfully, and with good reason." - uh, but you criticize them with pictures of them looking doglike with bones in their teeth, or linking them to the KKK with images of black people hanging - is lobbying for more attention on poverty really equivalent to lynchings? especially with Black unemployment still at 12.4% in March?

    "and their reason for that is jealousy, vindictiveness, and personal gain." - I'm sure if Cornell West was out for personal gain, he could do much better sitting next to Melissa Harris-Perry and Al Sharpton on mainstream network TV rather than doing poverty speeches on-campus or talking on public TV or teaching at a small religious school on the edge of Harlem. Obviously pushing back on Obama is not a well-paying career move unless you're a white Fox talkshow host or as RMRD notes, a black GOP agent - neither of which Cornell West is.