InkogNegro 1.5

When Keeping it Real Goes Right.

The problem with Unity

Pardon me while I sway wistfully about the complete absence of such sentiment in modern HipHop.

OK, I am back now.

So, after tonight’s woodshedding in Wild, Wonderful, West Virginia, Hillary will be emboldened and her supporters will ramp up their talking points.  At the very least, there will be calls for a unity ticket.  For many though, there will be calls that the presumptive Nominee is deeply Flawed and that something must be done to preserve victory.

Bottom line: He cannot win without her, He can only win WITH her (preferably with him and that loud-talking wife of his in the background keeping the black folk happy)

Flawed Numbers will be floated and Polls will be quoted and all this foolishness will drag on.

But now we have this unity ticket stuff to deal with.

She has half the party, HE has half the party…so put both halves together and we got the WHOLE party…right?

Um…no.  If ONLY it was that simple.

It ain’t.

It COULD have been…but THAT ship has long since sailed. (and mind you, they stopped adding on to this in FEBRUARY)

Unity…TRUE unity implies that you all have to be on the same page.  Its not enough to have the same goal.

Agreeing on going to Vegas from Dallas means nothing if one of you wants to hire a limo and one of you wants to take the bus.

Lawrence Lessig de-constructed this very well in his video

So um….yeah…Iono about all this unity talk.

May 13, 2008 Posted by inkognegro | Campaign 2008, Clinton, Music Videos, Obama, Politics, Queen Latifah, Women | | 1 Comment

Show ya Luh…for Barack Obama

Thank you, God Bless, and Good night.

May 10, 2008 Posted by inkognegro | Barely Political, Campaign 2008, Clinton, Obama, Politics, Race | | 1 Comment

Ladies, Gentlemen, fellow Texans…Texas is in PLAY

IF Obama is the nominee.

Check it out

In Texas, John McCain leads Hillary Clinton by six percentage points and Barack Obama by five.

The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey found McCain leading Clinton 49% to 43%. Against Obama, McCain attracts 48% of the vote while the Democrat earns 43%.

While the topline results are the same, the dynamics of the race is different depending upon the Democratic candidate. Clinton attracts 82% of the vote from Democrats in the state while Obama gets just 69%. However, Obama and McCain are essentially even among unaffiliated voters while Clinton trails by seventeen among those voters.

Just 67% of those who vote for Clinton against McCain would also vote for Obama. Sixty-eight percent (68%) of Obama voters would also vote for Clinton.

McCain is viewed favorably by 58% of Texas voters, Obama by 51%, and Clinton by 45%. Sixty-five percent (65%) of Obama voters have a favorable opinion of Clinton. Seventy-three percent (73%) of Clinton voters have a favorable opinion of Obama.

Rasmussen Markets data shows that Republicans are overwhelmingly favored to win the 32 Electoral College Votes from Texas this November—current prices give the GOP a 92.0contract_type = “rasmussen”;contract_id = 68410;node_id = 8383 + “_” + 8746;new Ajax(”/extension/ajax/intrade_lastprice.php”, {data: ‘contractID=’ + contract_id + ‘&contract_type=’ + contract_type,method: ‘get’,update: $(’intrade_’ + node_id)}).request(); % chance of winning. These figures are updated on a 24/7 basis by market participants (it costs nothing to join). Texas has voted for the Republican candidate in every election for the past twenty-eight years. At the time this poll was released, Texas was rated as a “Safely Republican” in the Rasmussen Reports Balance of Power Calculator

Clinton?  Notsomuch.

You think Clinton can close on McCain?  Riiiiiiight.

May 5, 2008 Posted by inkognegro | Campaign 2008, Clinton, Obama, Politics | | 3 Comments

Scoreboard.

Like a recovering crack addict, I cannot seem to shake the draw of cable news.  But every time I go there, I realize they aren’t really telling me anything I do not know, and what they are telling me isn’t adding up.

I should know better than to listen to what THEY say, since their priorities are not my priorities.

The reality is…she cannot catch him.

Mathematically, the numbers just do not work for her.

But, alas, the horserace continues.

Scoreboard.

Hillary says the tide is turning and the media parrots it because they wish to drag this story out as long as possible.

Scoreboard.

As a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, I can personally attest to the wisdom of trusting such a town with your future.

Yet and still….scoreboard.

Barack Obama is STILL winning…and it’s not all that close.  Not nearly close enough to warrant this blinding and myopic coverage.

So….we press snooze on the doomsday clock and wait for May 6.

Indiana, it is all on you.

April 23, 2008 Posted by inkognegro | Campaign 2008, Clinton, Obama, Politics | | 3 Comments

The Count and the Amount

Well, since I AM a native, It would only be right that I weigh in on tonight’s shenanigans.

Final Score

Clinton 51

Obama 49

A squeaker that proves basically that Pennsylvania is tired of BOTH of them…but most of the undecideds really bailed on Hillary hoping the whole thing would just end.

Ill be back tonight to talk about how wrong I was.

April 22, 2008 Posted by inkognegro | Campaign 2008, Clinton, Obama, Politics | | No Comments

All that was missing was a heel turn and a steel chair.

I will NEVER watch an ABC News anything ever again.  I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO done.

Has anyone seen the price of FOOD?  ANYONE?

The price of Gas?

We are at war….on TWO fronts.

Flag Pins….SERIOUSLY?

This is a buncha Bullshit.

I am Irritated.

April 16, 2008 Posted by inkognegro | ABC, Campaign 2008, Clinton, Obama, Politics | | 1 Comment

We interrupt this hiatus to do the bidding of a friend

Just cause you’ve been down for me since Before I lost my mind, don’t think you gonna just be able to make me do your bidding.

By Request from my favorite Cleveland Browns fan 

She asks me to address this particular issue regarding Rocky Balboa vs. Apollo Creed   Barack Obama vs. Bill Clinton.

The following was posted in Newsweek 

Summary
A misleading e-mail has been making the rounds, alleging that Clinton has fewer legislative accomplishments than Obama, and that they are less substantive. We’ve had questions about it from a number of readers, and blogs have jumped into the fray. So what’s the real story on the Senate careers of the Democratic presidential candidates?

We find that the e-mail is false in almost every particular:

It sets up a face-off between apples and, well, broccoli, comparing only the Clinton-sponsored bills that became law with all bills sponsored or cosponsored by Obama, whether they were signed into law or not.

It includes legislation Obama sponsored in the Illinois state Senate, a very different legislative body.

It tells us that Obama has sponsored more legislation than Clinton, when in fact he has sponsored less.

It implies that Obama has passed more bills into law than Clinton, when the opposite is true.
Contrary to the e-mail’s assertions, Clinton’s and Obama’s contributions are not qualitatively different, and quantitatively, Clinton has the edge.

 

The email in question???

You judge for yourself!

Quite impressive!! It?s unfortunate that this information is not being communicated effectively.

Let’s take a closer look at who’s really qualified and or who’s really working for the good of all of us in the Senate. Obama or Clinton.

Records of these two candidates should be scrutinized in order to make an informed decision.

Senator Clinton, who has served only one full term - 6yrs. - and another year campaigning, has managed to author and pass into law - 20 - twenty pieces of legislation in her first six years.

These bills can be found on the website of the Library of Congress www.thomas.loc.gov , but to save you trouble, I’ll post them here for you.

1. Establish the Kate Mullany National Historic Site.
2. Support the goals and ideals of Better Hearing and Speech Month.
3. Recognize the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.
4. Name courthouse after Thurgood Marshall.
5. Name courthouse after James L. Watson.
6. Name post office after Jonn A. O’Shea.
7. Designate Aug. 7, 2003, as National Purple Heart Recognition Day.
8. Support the goals and ideals of National Purple Heart Recognition Day.
9. Honor the life and legacy of Alexander Hamilton on the bicentennial of his death.
10. Congratulate the Syracuse Univ. Orange Men’s Lacrosse Team on winning the championship.
11. Congratulate the Le Moyne College Dolphins Men’s Lacrosse Team on winning the championship.
12. Establish the 225th Anniversary of the American Revolution Commemorative Program.
13. Name post office after Sergeant Riayan A. Tejeda.
14. Honor Shirley Chisholm for her service to the nation and express condolences on her death.
15. Honor John J. Downing, Brian Fahey, and Harry Ford, firefighters who lost their lives on duty.

Only five of Clinton’s bills are, more substantive.
16. Extend period of unemployment assistance to victims of 9/11.
17. Pay for city projects in response to 9/11
18. Assist landmine victims in other countries.
19. Assist family caregivers in accessing affordable respite care.
20. Designate part of the National Forest System in Puerto Rico as protected in the wilderness preservation system.

There you have it, the fact’s straight from the Senate Record.

Now, I would post those of Obama’s, but the list is too substantive, so I’ll mainly categorize.
During the first - 8 - eight years of his elected service he sponsored over 820 bills. He introduced
233 regarding healthcare reform,
125 on poverty and public assistance,
112 crime fighting bills,
97 economic bills,
60 human rights and anti-discrimination bills,
21 ethics reform bills,
15 gun control,
6 veterans affairs and many others.

His first year in the U.S. Senate, he authored 152 bills and co-sponsored another 427. These inculded **the Coburn-Obama Government Transparency Act of 2006 - became law, **The Lugar-Obama Nuclear Non-proliferation and Conventional Weapons Threat Reduction Act, - became law, **The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act, passed the Senate, **The 2007 Government Ethics Bill, - became law, **The Protection Against Excessive Executive Compensation Bill, In committee, and many more.

In all, since entering the U.S. Senate, Senator Obama has written 890 bills and co-sponsored another 1096.

An impressive record, for someone who supposedly has no record according to some who would prefer that this comparison not be made public.

He’s not just a talker.

He’s a doer.

Pass it on….It’s impressive!

My response:  Tsk, Tsk, Tsk…First things first.   As a dedicated and insistent supporter and dare I say, FAN of Barack Obama, let me state categorically that anyone with the audacity to send me this wack pile of zeroes and ones would be berated as though they sent me an e-mail suggesting that Bill Gates will send me a bunch of money for sending an email.  It is obviously misleading, and frankly, it’s beneath the Obama campaign.   It might be beneath the Clinton campaign, as well.  Rather than rely on anonymous emails, they choose to trot out party leaders.

evil_monkey_301.gif

The monkey is pointing in the direction of one Pastor/Congressman Emanuel Cleaver (D-Hateropolis)

Richard Pryor  Pastor Manny trotted out this beauty a few days back.

“If I had to make a prediction right now, I’d say Barack Obama is going to be the next president…,” he said. “I will be stunned if he is not the next president of the United States. Now, when he is sworn in, 99.9 percent of Americans won’t know who he is or what he stands for. But it doesn’t matter at this point.”

That’s because, Cleaver says, many white Americans are supporting Obama because “they are looking at Barack Obama and saying this is our chance to demonstrate that we have been able to get this boogeyman called race behind us and so they are going to vote for him.”

He says this is causing many African-Americans to “tremble” because they believe white Americans won’t want to address issue of race then, saying it’s been addressed by Obama’s election.

Still, he’s not behind a Obama candidacy. Cleaver says he has been personal friends with the Clintons for 20 years, he doesn’t know Sen. Barack Obama and he believes Clinton would make the best president.

“I don’t abandon my friends,” Cleaver said. He said if he abandoned Clinton now then he couldn’t look himself in the mirror.

He likens Clinton to the Chiefs and Obama to the Colts, saying he knows the Colts will win but he’s always cheering for his Chiefs.

The far-ranging interview went national this afternoon. (AP and CNN have picked it up among others). That occurred after it caught the attention of the Obama friendly Politico.com because of Cleaver’s prediction that Obama will win the presidency.

But Politico.com didn’t note Cleaver offered two ways that Obama’s candidacy could doom itself.

He said if Obama’s handlers insist he continue to talk about race, then “He has just eliminated any possibility of winning the presidency.” Cleaver said now isn’t the right time to have a true discussion about race in America and during a presidential campaign it would only be a superficial one.

Also, Cleaver said Obama could lose the presidency if the Democratic Party disenfranchises Michigan and Florida voters. He said if those voters lose their voice then “we are going to do what Democrats have done many times and that is deliberately run off the cliff.”

Obama also faces some gentle chiding from Cleaver over his lack of credentials and experience.
So…um…yeah.
Before I get back to the request at hand…let me dwell on Pastor Manny before his 15 minutes of fame expires.
But of course, after that, he stopped speaking with his mouth and began talking out of his ass.
A. He criticizes Obama for daring to start a conversation on race.  He says now isn’t the right time.  He says Starting a conversation about race will guarantee that he won’t win.  He immediately goes on to say that he never expected a Black man not named Colin Powell to win the presidency in his lifetime. (so, what you are saying is that you are WRONG already.)
B.  He basically admits that he doesn’t know Obama asserts that the country doesn’t know him either.  (!) He acknowledges his long friendship with the Clinton Family and suggests that Obama can actually do worse than Eight years of Bush.
C. He says that Obama is a Mediocre speaker as far as Black folk go, and that white folk are just blown away by how articulate he is.   THEN he says that if you put up a number of African-American  speakers up against him that he might not measure up.  I am still waiting for him to name names.
Hell, I will take JUST ONE.  *GO HEAD, I’LL WAIT!(Williams, Katt)*
In summary, A cursory listen to this man will reveal what he has already asserted, and that is that he is a Black congressman who represents a fairly small number of Black People in congress.  This would be him getting his Uncle Ruckus on:

“sang along if you know tha words.”

We now return to the Bidding in progress

If we are going to start talking about Senatorial accomplishments then why don’t we discuss how helpful Senator KerryGlennBradleyGoreStevensonBidenDoleDoddTsongasHartHarkin.. *inhales*

EdwardsLiebermanMcGovernHumphreyBrownbackGravel’s long list of accomplishments in the US Senate was for them.  Discussing and comparing  legislative acheivements between Clinton and  Obama is like having Cleveland Browns fans and Chicago Cubs fans discussing  post-season exploits in the modern era.

and NOW…we return to our Hiatus…still in progress.

April 2, 2008 Posted by inkognegro | Boondocks, Campaign 2008, Clinton, Emanuel Cleaver, Obama, Uncle Ruckus | | 1 Comment

Real Talk in the Middle of the Night #2: White is not a default setting

I try to be an easy going pragmatic brother, but dammit if I am not going to have to start the revolution all by myself.

If you have a white friend, kindly explain to them that white is not the default setting.

*pauses*

I am left handed, and I live in a right handed world.  I accept that things are going to be uncomfortable (screwing things in, writing on a chalk board or using magic markers). Ultimately, I adjust to it.

I am a Black man, and I live in a nation in which many white folk operate as though white (White, Protestant, Heterosexual, English-speaking and Patriarchal, for those keeping full track) is the default setting and  everyone else must adjust.

Nope.

Not gonna be able to swallow that.

Geraldine Ferraro, (and the Clinton Campaign by extension)  is clinging to the default setting, a setting she admits was waved temporarily in order to provide a certain noteworthy stature to a futile campaign being waged against a popular incumbent.

The MSM has allowed perpetrated a deeply flawed meme regarding 35 years of Clinton experience versus the a speech given by Barack Obama in 2002.

AYFKM?

There should be a laugh track everytime she says 35 years of experience.

On its face, Senator Clinton has a unique resume that represents an intelligent and accomplished professional woman with one foot in corporate law and one foot in public policy.

THIRTY-FIVE YEARS?

Meanwhile people sniff at Obama’s career as a community activist and Illinois State Senator.

Just awful.

But THIS, boys and girls, is what Black folk deal with.  THIS is why we are so “hostile” and “sensitive”.

See, now I am too irritated to even finish.

March 14, 2008 Posted by inkognegro | Barack Obama, Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Obama, Race, Real Talk | | 2 Comments

Yep, a ticket with Clinton and Obama on it is a dream, because THEN you will wake up.

The quickest way to undo this movement is to hitch it to the very forces that it is fighting against.

While it seems true that ideologically Obama and Clinton are similar, structurally they are QUITE different.

Allow me to draw an analogy:

Saying that there is no difference between Clinton and Obama is like saying there is no difference between catching a cab from New York to Philadelphia and hiring a limousine to drive you from New York to Camden, NJ and hitchhiking the rest of the way.

I will let y’all chew on that one for a while.

March 7, 2008 Posted by inkognegro | Campaign 2008, Clinton, Obama, Politics | | 4 Comments

I did my Two-Step, now I need a drink. And a Minute.

If I wasn’t a certified lifetime political junkie, I would just walk away and go and watch fantasy baseball previews.

It isn’t so much that I am angry at the Clinton Campaign since the game is the game (Mouzone, Brother)

my issue primarily revolves around the fact that folk seem to act like a WHOLE lot really changed last night.

The rules are the rules. By the rules, Obama is still almost prohibitively ahead by virtue of the delegate count, lawsuits, legal wrangling, bitching.

According to RealClearPolitics (which still ain’t all that Clear) AFTER last night:

Obama leads Clinton by 134 with pledged delegates (95 overall)

Based on the road ahead. She can’t catch him.

Unless.

Nah, Too painful to even contemplate.

I am going to work.

I ain’t ready to discuss this.

March 5, 2008 Posted by inkognegro | Campaign 2008, Clinton, Obama | | 8 Comments