What we have witnessed in Milwaukee over the last week is symptomatic of larger problems that people face in so many of America’s inner cities. The events have a familiar ring, but the answer to the problems requires the application of a different remedy. In order to find possible solutions though, we must honestly address the root causes of the endless turmoil that takes place in so many cities around America. Much of the anger that we see on display, and directed against the police in particular is the direct result of black people being fed the narrative that every negative occurrence in their lives is because of the white man who hates them, and wants to systematically subjugate them. This lie has been fed to black people through constant repetition by one political party over decades. Many black people have believed the lie, and what we are observing today are the fruits of the discontent that has led to the perception created by the lie. This shameful, irresponsible act of perpetually stirring discontent in black communities has been used by one political party in order to secure the black vote. Black people in return faithfully continues to reward these politicians who champion themselves as the saviors who will rescue black people from whatever ails them and the supposed injustices they face daily.

This insidious strategy has worked so well that many black people now find themselves in a situation where they believe that they must continue to elect these politicians who promise them the world. These self-appointed saviors never deliver on their promises, but they give black people enough handouts to keep them coming back for more, but what they give is never enough to elevate the black communities they serve out of their desperate circumstances. Black people as a result become stuck in the same situation decade after decade, never making it past the revolving door of their existence. Black people stubbornly refuse to try something different, they elect the same people from the same political party, getting the same results over, and over, and over in again, and under whose leadership they have experienced nothing but misery. They see this as an act of self-preservation because they have been led to believe that everyone else has sinister intentions toward them, and in trying something different their situation will be much worse.

Anyone who takes a dispassionate look at the data, and carefully examines it will see a common thread that runs through it. The poorest cities Across America that have been plagued by the problems of high crime, failing schools, chronic unemployment or underemployment, public corruption and other social problems have almost exclusively been run by leftist politicians who pander to the people, are beholden to teachers unions and implement economic policies that do not work. They attribute all of these problems to nebulous outside forces. They blame the rich for the problems of the poor, they hardly ever take the side of law and order, they constantly malign the police, they portray white people as villains, they blame their failing schools on lack of funding, tthey make promises they cannot keep, and they never look inwardly to solve any of their problems. In the process, the problems in these cities become worse, negatively affecting the people they claim to represent. In all of this, blacks and other minorities are the ones mostly affected, suffering the consequences of all these actions.

The party that runs these cities have pulled off one of the simplest yet ingenious schemes in political history. It is the equivalent of the wolves watching the sheep barn. Black people find themselves trapped in a vicious cycle of under privilege in the cities run by leftist Democrats who have free reign to implement the policies they see fit. When their policies fail, they then claim that “the system” is at fault though they run the system.

Black people in these communities in the meanwhile continue to buy in to the conspiracy and blame others for all of their problems. They then vote the same people back into power, and the pattern continues. In this environment, black people can always blame others for their problems. They get to avoid taking responsibility for their actions (including their voting) and their lives. They can then continue to “justifiably” direct their anger at the rich, white people, the police and anyone they have been told is the cause of their problems. They see no contradiction in attacking and opposing the police in their crime ridden neighborhoods, burning down businesses, and attacking innocent people because in their minds, nothing is ever their own fault. It is the system that is to blame.

To be clear, no political party has any magic formula to rid the areas plagued by these problems, and the many challenges that they face. No policy, no matter how effective in theory will work if people are not willing to make the hard choices and the sacrifices that are sometimes necessary to bring about change. In addition, if people are not willing to play a bigger role in their own lives and take responsibility for their actions, things will remain the same. Black people should seriously reconsider their political alliance. Those who truly want to see black people elevate themselves should work harder to reach black communities in helping them to see that there is indeed a better way, that their fellow Americans want them to succeed, and help them acknowledge where they need to make changes in their own lives.

America has a very strong tradition of gun ownership . It is unlike any other society in that regard. So strongly did the founders believe in the right to bear arms that it is firmly enshrined in America’s constitution in the Second Amendment. One of the drivers behind the second Amendment was the need to keep Government at bay from abusing its citizens. Up until that time, the world primarily had a brutal history of tyranny, where people were at the mercy of despots, kings, other monarchs and leaders. There were no solid checks on the power of Governments, and they were virtually free to do to the people what they pleased. People were blinded, tortured, maimed, enslaved and subject to all types of inhumane treatment at the hands of governments without much recourse for the people or consequences to the government. Governments reigned supreme over the people. America’s founding fathers were very aware of this, and wanted to ensure that the new system of government they were attempting to establish never fell to the wine, and temptations of unfettered power, so they put a system in place, designed to impose solid checks and balances on the power of Government. This was not only accomplished by establishing the three co-equal branches of Government intended to maintain balance, but also through giving the people the right to bear arms. This is what many of the people who are passionate second amendment supporters believe is fundamental to their right to keep and bear arms. “Come and take it” is a favorite slogan of theirs, meaning that they will never go along with any attempt by the government to take away their arms.

It is against this backdrop that Donald Trump made his statement yesterday about “the second amendment people”. It is no secret that liberals have been on a mission to strip Americans of this (what many consider a fundamental right).  Hillary Clinton has openly said that the Australia, Canada and English model of gun bans is worth looking at and considering. Mr. Trump simply alluded to the possibility that Americans could lose their second amendment rights if the balance of the Supreme Court tilted over to the left. Then he said that if that happens there is nothing that we can do. He then joked (based on a scenario that could very well be a reality) “but with the second amendment people, I don’t know. In other words based on the history of this sensitive issue, the passion surrounding it, the resoluteness of second amendment defenders and the political power wielded by gun advocates they will not simply allow the right to be taken away. There was no threat to Mrs. Clinton or advocating of violence in that statement. There is no doubt that Mr. Trump has no filter, he has said some outlandish, foolish and downright crazy things. He seems to relish undermining his Presidential bid at every turn, but he did not suggest that anyone assassinate Mrs. Clinton. It is amazing that the media is focused on everything that Mr. Trump says or does while his opponent who is so blatantly corrupt, with such an absolutely horrible record is given a pass on everything. She is never held to the same standard of accountability.

These are the words or Hillary Clinton when she was running against Candidate Barrack Obama in 2008: “My husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right? We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California.”  Joe Biden said the following “I guarantee you Barack Obama ain’t taking my shotguns, so don’t buy that malarkey,” “Don’t buy that malarkey. They’re going to start peddling that to you. I got two, if he tries to fool with my Beretta, he’s got a problem. Candidate Barrack Obama said in the 2008 election campaign when addressing a crowd of his supporters, “if they bring a knife to the fight, you bring a gun. Neither of these statements evoked the kind of response that we are seeing from the media in response to Mr. Trumps remarks which were clearly no threat or meant to incite violence.

If it was not for Fox News, talk radio and a few other outlets, you would never know or be reminded of these incidents. It is no wonder that supporters of liberal policies have major conniptions, and experience maddening paroxysms of hysteria over Fox news. It is not enough that NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN, The New York Times, The Washington Post, the LA Times and every other major news outlet, in addition to Universities, Hollywood and  the culture at large are all bastions of and espouse leftist Democratic policies. The fact that Fox News came out of nowhere to challenge and break the media monopoly in helping to shape public opinion, and give a voice to the other side that was previously portrayed in the worst light for decades in the media infuriates the people and especially the powers on the left. They want all of the news and opinion to say the same thing, championing the same leftist causes, and anyone who does not is a wretched scoundrel. At the end of the day, vote for who you want, but get and be informed, know the truth.

After the shootings of two black men by the police a few weeks ago, President Obama inserted himself into the matter, not to bring calm to the nation, but to sow the seeds of discord. The President (without knowing all of the facts) accused the police and the justice system at large of targeting black men. He then proceeded to cite statistics that gave no context, as proof of his accusation.  He pointed out that black men are more likely to be arrested or put in prison than white people. He made this statement without pointing out that despite only making up twelve percent of the population, black people (mostly black men) account for a very high disproportionate number of crime, especially violent crime. With tensions already high, the President’s behavior exacerbated the situation and what followed was the unspeakable, brutal killings of five police officers of the Dallas Police Department. The President was then invited to speak at the funeral of these officers, and not to be deterred; he continued his rhetoric at the funeral service. While the department was still coming to terms with what happened and the grief of these families was still raw, the President once again (at the funeral of these men, think about that) injected himself into the issue and continued to accuse police and the country of racial bias against black men. Again, this was during the funeral service for the slain officers! As people pointed out the inappropriateness of the President’s action, he doubled down insisting that there is a disparity in the justice system for black men. President Obama’s conduct in this time of crisis raised tension even more, and a few days later more police officers were targeted and killed in another vicious attack on the police.

During the Baltimore riots over the death of Freddie Gray who died while in police custody, Mayor Stephanie Blake Rawlings expressed her desire to “give those who wished to destroy space to do that as well”. In addition, according to the Washington post “a prisoner sharing a police transport van with Freddie Gray told investigators that he could hear Gray “banging against the walls,” of the vehicle and believed that he “was intentionally trying to injure himself,” but to the charlatans and the race pimps, anything that contradicted the narrative of white policemen targeting black men was anathema. In the end, all six of the officers charged in the case were acquitted (or had charges dropped) by a black judge who was at times visibly angry at the behavior of the prosecution, and at other times incredulous over the merit of their case.

Today the black lives matter movement continues to promulgate the lie that Mike Brown said “hands up don’t shoot” and he is portrayed as a victim, though it came out in the ensuing investigation of the Ferguson Police Department that the 6 foot four inch, three hundred pound brown attacked the officer. During all of these incidents (and others) the President never once used his powerful position to bring calm, on the contrary; each time he stoked the fires of division.

These incidents happened over a period of thirty years and they are not incidental. They are part of a consistent effort by liberal Democrats to keep the pot of racial divide boiling, and they do it shamelessly. There are many more of these examples, like the Duke Lacrosse players case. Debbie Wasserman Schulz has said that Republicans want to drag people back to Jim Crow (note: Jim Crow laws were the brain child of, and brutally enforced by the Democratic Party). Joe Biden has said that those who oppose the President’s policies “want to put y’all back in chains,” Donna Brazile has accused Republicans of having a “white-boy attitude,” while Gloria Allred called President Bush’s black appointees “Uncle Tom types.” We are always, constantly reminded of the “White patriarchy” and the evils of “old white men”. In this environment Black Lives matter advocates, while addressing the press could demand that “white reporters go to the back, black reporters to the front,” a black professor could call to exterminate white people, or callers can call in to a popular black podcast one day after the execution of a police deputy in Texas and call for “lynching white people and taking pictures of them hanging in trees,” another caller talked about “turning the tides on the cops”. This stuff happens over and over again without any concern from the press. There is a constant drumbeat of racial politics pitting people against each other by leftist politicians and their ilk, but they never have to account for their behavior.

Liberals often do not wish to engage in the arena of ideas. Their modus operandi is to appeal to the emotions of the people because they know that it is a winning formula. There is no need to debate the issues if you can convince people based purely on emotions that a political party only has evil intentions toward them. It works every time. In a classic, breathtaking twist of irony, and a colossal display that shows a complete lack of self-awareness, liberals are accusing Donald Trump of racial politics because he has brought attention to the problem of illegal immigration and the porous borders. People in this country need to open their eyes. Elections are not just about voting for the people who promise the most free stuff.  They must take off their rose colored glasses and recognize this destructive ideology for the cancer that it is. Leftism is dangerous! Black people in particular seriously need to get educated about the issues and rethink their political allegiance.

So there you have it ladies and gentlemen. No one will ever have to worry again. Everything will be free! The government’s got you covered. From now on everything thing will be provided for the citizens of the country. There will be no more poor people, no more homeless, no more unemployed, or disadvantaged. The inventiveness that is usually born out of necessity and/or hardship will no longer be needed because big daddy will take care of your every need. Difficulty will be a thing of the past because no one ever deserves to struggle in life. The rich will pay for everything and they will not pass these costs back to the people. In addition, with a stellar record of stewardship by the government, there will be no increase in the twenty trillion dollar debt. No matter ones skill, education, dedication or effort, everyone deserves a living wage and by gosh; they will get it. The sweeper or dishwasher making fifteen dollars an hour will not evoke thoughts and a response by higher skilled workers like plumbers, electricians and builders, or professionals like engineers, lawyers and doctors to demand more for their services. Entrepreneurs will not be affected by increased costs, businesses will not automate more, and no jobs will be lost as a result. There will be no unintended consequence to all of this government intervention in the economy, like a few years ago when the government forced banks to lend money to people who could not afford it, and the banks in turn came up with flimsy schemes to recover their money, which eventually resulted in the housing collapse. Life will be one big paradise, every thing will be honky dory, and no one will ever want for anything ever again. The natural negative consequences of living will be a thing of the past. Woohoo! Now let’s go out there and make sure that Santa Clause gets elected!

The anti-police sentiment that now exists amongst black people in the country has been cultivated over a period of decades by politicians wanting to win the black vote. After being on the wrong side of every civil rights movement in the country’s history, these politicians embarked on an insidious plan to sway the black vote to their side. After the civil rights act of 1964 was finally passed, politicians who opposed the legislation began to tell black people that nothing had changed and they should now look to said politicians for salvation.

Despite all of the progress that blacks have made in so many different fields, and the many obstacles that they have overcome, these politicians have advanced a narrative that black people are victims of white America. Today we have a black President, and other black leaders have held some of the most powerful positions in government, black people are well represented in the public sector, black General Officers have climbed to the highest positions of power in the Military, black people all across academia are in positions of influence, there are many successful black businessmen, and people fill arenas all across America to see black people who dominate the major sports leagues. In America, black people have access to numerous programs meant to help them advance their station in life, there are government agencies like the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that ensures employers do not discriminate against black people in the workforce. The Government aggressively goes after businesses that engage in discriminatory practices. Big businesses like Denny’s, Texaco, and Abercrombie and Fitch know firsthand the consequences of allowing discrimination in the workplace. Businesses all across America have strict codes that serve to prevent discrimination in the workplace, and workers receive ongoing training to ensure that those they employ follow these codes. Interracial marriages are not uncommon and lynching is a thing of the past.

In the face of so much evidence, many now claim that the discrimination is more subtle, it is disguised they say. They offer no proof of racism, and all of their claims seem to be based on some innate ability they possess that allows them to read what is in people’s minds, and to determine motivation. They are unable to point to concrete evidence of racism so they now talk about dog whistles and racist undertones. Every bad experience that a black person has is now deemed to be racist, every misfortune is reflexively blamed on racism, every attempt to wean people off the government teat to a life of independence is said to be racist. 

People must no longer be silent. The political party that has pursued this strategy of division for the last five decades must now be called out because their race baiting has crossed a line, and their demagoguery is now literally costing lives. Since the victories of the civil rights movement, and the advances that have been made in race relations, it is the same political party that has continued to insist that things have not changed. The time has come for black people to seriously reassess and reconsider their political alignment. As black people continue to be told that the system is against them, these same politicians continue to be in charge of the major cities where chronic problems like crime, unemployment, failing schools, and poverty are highest. Cities like Baltimore, Ferguson, Chicago, Detroit and other inner cities with these chronic problems have not seen changes in the political structure for decades. These cities are all run by the same political party that continues to blame the nebulous system for the problems that many of their constituents face. It is no wonder that today, despite all of the progress that has taken place; the country is experiencing the worst race relations in decades. The pandering of these politicians has led to a tragic turn of events which have led to the targeting of police officers. What is particularly disturbing is that a lot of the divisive rhetoric is coming from the highest levels of power. These people continue to push the false narrative and refuse to allow the nation to heal because it serves their purpose to pit people against each other.

It is time for people (especially black people) to rebuff these politicians, and the political party that have continued to thrive for so many years off of the division they have created. The incessant drumbeat and constant appeal to race has become a cancer on the nation, and if we fail to recognize the cause of it we will continue to be captives to its sinister grip. Black people, it is time to break free of these taskmasters! We can do better. Look around and take a good look at who has been running your cities, it is not the people that you continue to blame. Like parasites, these politicians are sucking away the life force of so many black communities, but for some reason black people continue to look to them for respite. No political party has all of the answers to the problems that ail us. It is by the grace of God and putting our trust in him that we will know true success, however; It is our solemn duty to ensure that those we give stewardship over our affairs are the people who truly have our best interest at heart.   

Today Queen Latifah declared that “racism is alive and kicking”, well…actually it’s not! It is alive alright, but it is alive and grasping at straws. It is desperately flailing in the wind. Some people are emotionally invested in the idea of a racist country. They long to channel their inner activist. They nostalgically look at the sixties, and they yearn for an opportunity to be a part of something like that. It helps give meaning to their lives. All of the evidence that black people are persecuted is contrary to what they claim, so they dance and do a jig when these high profile cases get in the news. They rejoice at the opportunity to say “see I told you so, there is the proof”. They are quite willing to use these unfortunate situations as their “moment to shine”.

These people should change their slogan to “Black Lives Matter Sometimes” or better yet, “Black Lives Matter When Shot by White Cops-or Any Cop,” because they are quite willing to ignore the carnage that happens in the black community on a daily basis. Many of these folks are guided purely by emotion. No matter how the data contradicts there dogma, they continue to feed into the narrative that black people are under siege. No one ever questions what role the victims played in their own demise. Without the facts being known, everyone automatically defaults to the position that the police are at fault. It is sad, because as long as black people continue to be told that someone else is to blame for their problems, that the system is against them, that they are victims; the problems will persist. It may sound cynical to say that some people do not wish to see the problems solved because many of them profit from the race grievance industry. It is their “bread and butter”. Some get votes, some get money for their action committees, others get to make appearances on TV, while others get to shake down businesses to help “bring awareness to the issues”.

At the risk of being redundant, it must be said again that we do black people no favors when we refuse to hold them to the same high standards of accountability that we expect of others. Police work is dangerous by nature. The sphere in which the police must operate is precarious, and a very large number of the people with whom they interact are from the dregs of society. Many of them present a clear risk to the lives of the police, and very often; the police simply cannot afford to be warm and fuzzy with them, and need to always be alert and in response mode. One way to lessen the prospect of these unfortunate situations happening is for the police to pull back on patrols in these communities where they are likely to happen, but this will negatively affect the people in these communities whom they are supposed to protect.

It must be said again that the police are not perfect and there will be instances when the bad ones do terrible things, but the idea that the police are decisively targeting black men is nonsense. Someone needs say these things. There is no panacea where racism does not exist, there will be more negative exchanges with the police, there will be instances when the police are at fault, and the way that black people respond to adversity will help to determine how we move forward as a country. Look at the way that men like Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, and Mahatma Gandhi conducted themselves in the face of far greater challenges than these. It is time to get off the victim train, embark on a movement of reconciliation and join the community of Americans citizens.

It is a very sad day when even one innocent person is killed at the hands of the police. That is one too many. People do have a right to be angry, to voice their displeasure and to petition the government for justice. The grief that the families of these victims feel must be inconsolable and it is impossible to know their anguish without being in their shoes. When it is determined that the police have acted in a way that betrays the trust of the communities that they are called to serve, they must pay for their actions through the justice system. The truth is that the police are not perfect and like every segment of our society, there are bad apples amongst them, but the majority of these citizens are noble people who do yeoman’s work to keep communities safe. They have chosen a profession that is fraught with danger. These are the people who protect us while we sleep comfortably in our beds. They willingly volunteer to be the shield between society and the murderers, the kidnappers, the rapists, the child molesters, the muggers, the robbers, the burglars and every other deviant in society. They are often called upon to make split second life or death decisions that could forever negatively affect them and those with whom they interact. The level of stress under which they are called to work is inconceivable to the average citizen. Please put in perspective all of the circumstances surrounding these unfortunate incidents that are bound to happen from time to time in a country of over 300 million people. This is a plea to Americans to say no to the race baiters, to those who trade in discord. Defy the race hustlers and the race pimps, disappoint them with an unparalleled display of unity as they attempt to tear the country apart for their own gain.

After two Islamic extremists went on a rampage and killed over a dozen people back in November 2015, Attorney General Loretta lynch promised to prosecute anyone who engaged in anti-Muslim rhetoric” that “edges toward violence”.  This was the day after the attack, she called it her “greatest fear” that people would engage in this kind of behavior. A few days after another Islamic terrorist killed fifty people and injured dozens more, Ms. Lynch declared that “the best response to terror is compassion unity and love”. Likewise President Obama and other politicians of his ilk have gone through great pains to call on the American people to resist labeling all Moslems as extremists in the face of numerous attacks by Islamic extremists at home and abroad. Contrast this with the way that the police are treated and portrayed whenever a black man is killed by the police under dubious circumstances around the country. The President and others like him seldom seem willing to extend the same kind of sentiment toward the police.

President Obama had an amazing opportunity to give comfort, and be like a soothing balm to the nation during a very tense time when emotions were once again high after the shooting of another black man by a white police officer. Mr. Obama could have used his position as the leader that everyone looks to in times of crisis to be the voice of reason, but sadly he did not. Instead of being the voice of reason, Mr. Obama fed the mob with rhetoric that can very easily be disproven, about black men being targeted by the police. This is shameful! Unfortunately this is par for the course with Mr. Obama. In March of 2015 President Obama praised the Baltimore Police Department for “implementing national best practices for policies and training”. Two months later after the death of Freddie Gray while being in police custody, President Obama and his Justice Department changed their tune and launched a scathing attack against the same Police Department for whom, only two months earlier; they had such high praise. What happened in those two months? Remember once again the words of Rahm Emanuel (President Obama’s former chief of staff): “you never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that, it’s an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before”. The leftist agenda always reigns supreme.

Black people really have to rethink who they support politically in this country. The politicians who continue to take every unfortunate situation between black men and the police to feed in to racial hysteria should be rejected by all people, of all races. It is the same politicians and “leaders” who continue to do it year after year, decade after decade. They never offer words that heal, to bring people together in the time of tragedy. They do not call on black people to examine their role in the many conflicts that take place between them and the police. Instead they continue to tell them that every bad thing that ever happens to them is someone else’s fault. This has to stop. These people who push this narrative have to know that the things they are saying about the police is not true. The data is widely available to anyone willing to examine it. Black people are not under siege, they are not being targeted by the police, and there is no epidemic of racism against black people (that does not mean that racism is dead-that will never happen in a society made up of imperfect people). It is time for black people to free themselves of these mental chains that have enslaved them for far too long. Cast off the shackles laid by those who wish to keep them psychologically and spiritually bound. Say no to these self-appointed masters and experience true freedom! It may be unpopular to say these things, but it is the truth. The police is not the enemy of the black man! Black babies are not dying in drive by shootings committed by the police, young black men who are murdered do not have a shorter life expectancy because of the police. Please take a dispassionate look at the data (examine it from all sources and analyze it). If black people are having a disproportionate amount of interactions with the police, it may be a direct result of the behavior of black people. Those who continue to tell black people differently are not friends of the black community. These attacks on the police make everyone less safe, and sadly those who will be most significantly affected by them are black people.

Happy 4th of July to everyone!

People often point to the indiscretions of the United States as examples of America’s malevolence. What they fail to realize, is that in a world where tyranny was the norm, and people all over the world were subjected to the oppressive whims of monarchs; the founders introduced a new system of governance to the world. It was based on the principle that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights. The idea was that the rights we enjoy as human beings are not due to the benevolence of any government or ruler, but we are endowed by our creator with these inalienable rights, as a result; these rights cannot be arbitrarily revoked without any kind of due process, and only under mitigating circumstances. This idea was a revolutionary concept, and the constitution that was based on it placed many limitations on government. It stressed what the government is not allowed to do to its citizens. Freedom of the individual and the pursuit of happiness was a fundamental belief that guided this new system. Though imperfect, this new form of government allowed the country to confront and rectify many of the difficult problems that it faced. It allowed people to openly oppose injustice, resist oppression and defy attempts to subjugate them. It is because of this unprecedented idea of government by the people and for the people that caused the country to agonize over issues like slavery (how many countries have fought a civil war over slavery?), women’s suffrage and other ignoble policies that were inconsistent with founding values. The country has fought many battles and has overcome seemingly insurmountable odds to become the greatest force for good in the world that has ever been known. By no means is this a perfect country, but perfection is an impossible standard. This country however constantly works on making itself better.  Some have taken to highlighting the imperfections of America to ironically call for more government control and involvement in the lives of citizens. They forget the history of tyranny by governments until this great experiment in governance by the United States.  Today, many people are now willing to cede control of certain areas of their lives to the government for so called security. They forget that the beneficiary is always at the mercy of the benefactor, as a direct result; freedom is always under threat (observe current attacks on the first amendment), and even more vigilance is needed in order to ensure that we maintain it for posterity.  If we ever lose our freedoms it will not happen overnight, but through a slow creep that then overtakes us before anyone can react. it was James Madison who said “since the general civilization of mankind, I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpation”. Remember also this quote by Ronald Reagan “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.” We must never forget the sacrifices of those who fought the intellectual, philosophical, spiritual, and physical battles in the name of freedom and most importantly; the values they lived that helped to shape and produce what has been, and continues to be the greatest force for good in the world: the United States of America.

Enjoy independence day and always remember what it took to achieve it.

The sheer, mean spirited, and hateful rhetoric of the actor Jesse Williams that he gave at the BET awards while accepting his award must be rejected by all decent citizens. The speech was vile, it was divisive, and promoted the false narrative that black people are set up and targeted by a system whose only purpose is to trample them under feet. This speech was anything but courageous. This successful black man spewed his bile from the podium of the BET award stage to other successful, rich black people who did not have to overcome even a millifraction  of what black people prior to the civil rights movement had to overcome. This preacher and his choir was made up primarily of a bunch of privileged black people whose privilege perhaps extends beyond the norm, because of the victim card they carry and has proven to be successful over a long period of time. His behavior was the typical example of how easy it is for a dead fish to float downstream with the current. He could would have swum against the torrent of race baiting, and playing the ever popular victim shtick. Mr. Williams could have shown true courage by going against the grain and speaking truth to race hustling power.

He could have defied the race hustling bullies and pimps who have built a whole industry by stirring discontent, and telling black people that white people are out to get them. Mr. Williams would have been a true profile in courage had he challenged the narrative that black people are under siege in this country. He could have pointed out that no other country in the entire history of the world has been more successful sewing so many different races and ethnicities into the fabric of the society. This was a wasted opportunity to inspire in a positive way. True courage is to risk being called an “Uncle Tom” or a “sell out” by telling young black men to pursue education as a means to climb out of poverty, to not have children out of wedlock because of all the social and economic ramifications that come with that, to be present and be role models in the lives of their children. If Mr. Williams felt the need to spur people to action, he could have called on the black community to take an introspective look and ask if it is even remotely possible that the reason we have such a disproportionate number of young black men in jail is perhaps because they commit a disproportionate number of crime.

Mr. Williams said that “a system built to divide and impoverish and destroy us cannot stop us.” What!? This man is saying that the system that constantly produces men and women like President Barrack Obama, Eric Holder, Colin Powell, Condoleeza Rice, Michael Jordan, Lebron James, Serena Williams, Ben Carson, Oprah Winfrey, Quincy Jones, Denzel Washington and many others, is designed, its purpose is to impoverish and destroy black people. Does this theory not sound ridiculous to anyone?  He used the opportunity to continue pushing the false narrative that police are mowing down black people in the streets, and this is simply not true. Black people are more prolific at killing members of their own community than any other group. The unfortunate police incidents that have been sensationalized over the last few years are aberrations, they do not indicate any pattern of slaughter of black men by the police, and in most of the situations there is some nuance to each story.  There is so much more that could be said about this vitriolic speech. In referencing so called cultural appropriation, Mr. Williams needs to be reminded that black people do not own or have exclusive rights to any aspect of popular American culture, not even that which started in the black community. He talked about, but did not say exactly how white people are “ghettotizing our creations” or exactly what that meant. Was he talking about the many references to gang life, bi….ches, and n…..gers that black artists regularly sing and rap about in their music videos? Then there was this gem: we’re done watching and waiting while this invention called whiteness uses and abuses us. This invention called whiteness! Is that anything like the invention called blackness? What is this man talking about, and why would people cheer this hateful, bigoted grandiloquence?

If black people are to be truly treated with equality, then they must also be held to the same standards of decency and accountability that we demand of white Americans and everyone else.  No one is doing the black community any favors by constantly telling them that all of the negative experiences and failures in their lives are because of an oppressive system that is meant to keep them down, and always someone else’s fault. There is no merit in telling black people and there is a whole race of people who happen to be their countrymen, systematically working to bring about their down fall. The cause of unity is further damaged when racist motivations are ascribed to every action that a white person does.

It would have been refreshing to hear this man talk about how blessed he is to live in this amazing country where everyone, regardless of skin color has a real opportunity to be successful if they work hard and make the necessary sacrifices. He could have further inspired people by letting them know that obstacles (including experiences of racism) are not an indication of the norm, and can be overcome. Instead he decided to pander to the black lives matter movement (a movement that was built on the lie of “hands up don’t shoot-an incident that never even happened). Jesse Williams and his ilk complain incessantly that they are not judged by the content of their character, but they have no problem castigating whole groups of people with their blanket repulsive statements. They have the right to say and believe what they want, but they must be challenged.