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My latest book, "Smoke: poems of love, longing and ecstasy" is available for purchase on Amazon in e-book and paperback. Click book for link.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Sen. Biden, Obama Pick for VP



I'm going to give myself some dap because I called it. Did you? Senator Joe Biden of Delaware is Obama's running mate. The campaigned formally announced very early Saturday morning. I think his lengthy interim in the senate, his foreign policy experience and his Scranton, PA working class roots make him an asset to the Obama platform. He has the qualities that Obama's opponents argue that the presidential hopeful lacks, and then some. Biden is an excellent orator, candid and quite charming (though clearly Obama is not hurting in that department) .


Many will be dissapointed that Hillary is not the running mate, but that prospect was a charade. I doubt she was ever taken into serious consideration. It was ideal, not practical. It would have made him appear weak(er), disengenous, and really, who wants to lead with Bill in the house??? (All that saxaphone playing in the wee hours of the night) The argument is that her 18 million votes will defect if he does not choose her as VP, but let us not assume that this is a solid voting block. Some of those 18 million will choose Obama in the absence of Hillary because they are party loyalists (or they're tired of biking to work). Some of those 18 million will defect. Some will sit at home and pout, and some of those 18 million were probably Republicans to begin with. As far as exact figures go, who knows, but I think Dems can be optimistic. If there is one thing playing directly into their hands, it's the economy. I do consider an excellent choice for Cabinet and if he shall lose... count on seeing Sen. Clinton in 2012. Let's be real.


But for now, I'm ready to sit back and see how the networks spin this. With the DNC coming up it should be an eventful week.


PS: McCain's choice, if he was smart, would be a woman and if he was really smart... would be Condi Rice.


-Ike

Condi gets Fly in the Final Hour



Perhaps it is because she is on a European tour extending an olive branch that dried up several years ago and the camera's are rolling. Perhaps it is because as secretary of defense she was part responsible for what many regard as one of the biggest international military blunders in modern history and she'd like to redeem herself on some level. Or that her term is almost up. Or maybe, just maybe, it is because beneath that hardened exterior is...'a woman'.


Whatever the reason, Condi has been looking, dare I say it, fly over the past few weeks. Has anyone else noticed? I was watching the news coverage of her Warsaw visit where she traveled to sign a deal on the deployment of elements of a U.S. missile shield in Poland. I mean, I gagged. Her trademark darth vader meets Mary Tyler Moore flip was replaced with a soft bob. At last, she replaced that harsh, cherry lipstick that Lancome or whoever makes it did not create with her in mind with a more Black people friendly raspberry. Absent were the chocolate chip cookie moles (kudos to her derm) and the cream suit with chic upturned collar and exposed darting was remarkable.


No stranger to St. John's Knits, Condi has always been well suited, but stuffy, in an "I live in Connecticut" sort of way. Not fly. However lately, she's giving me Clair Huxtable rather than neurotic Black Stepford 'Wife' (umm, she did call Mr. President her husband). And this softer look is smart considering that she isn't getting any younger.... And that she lied in front of the international community... But who's counting past transgressions.


I think that real reason that she has decided to "floss" and "shine" a bit before her White House Departure is because she's solidyfing her legacy. Say what you want about her, she is one of the most powerful women in the world and not just according to Forbes. And from the African-American perspective she has reached a level in D.C. unsurpassed by any other. Three biographies about her were released in 2007 alone; “The Confidante: Condoleezza Rice and the Creation of the Bush Legacy,” by The Washington Post’s Glenn Kessler, “Condoleezza Rice: An American Life,” by The New York Times’s Elisabeth Bumiller and “Twice as Good: Condoleezza Rice and Her Path to Power,” by Marcus Mabry, now an editor at The Times. Her foot print has been made in history but at a high price. Unfortunately there are many Americans and human beings that await her departure from office like a toddler awaiting an ice cream cone. Many regard her with vitriol, and well, many do not. But nevertheless, I think she's well aware of her precarious position of deep power and shallow esteem. And I think she is trying to project a confident, polished image in her final hour. And you know what? I ain't mad at her. Do it girl. (oooh, awkward)
-Ike

America's Watching... Don't Drop the Baton




Dag nabbit! I think as I the final runner on the USA drops the baton and sufficiently leaves me and the other folks crowded around the screen at our vineyard condo sufficiently gagging. For the first time in Olympics history both the men and women’s relay team dropped the baton, disqualifying themselves from the finals. They basically gave Jamaica an all access pass to the gold, which is great considering that the Jamaican track team and it’s star Usain Bolt are phenomenal. Of course, the Black woman in me applauds any person of color that seizes gold.


Nevertheless, I can’t help but consider the political implications as we are in the heat of political season, and everything seems to carry a political implication. But let’s consider this scenario. The USA track team (like basketball) historically has been dominated by African American athletes. In the unspoken, but earnestly implied, competition for gold metals between Chinese and the USA, the track team was a dependable deliverer. Track… it’s just our sport. So considering that Chinese athletes have showed up to show out at their Olympics, there was a conspicuous pressure on the track team to perform. Their success meant national glory. And this shouldn’t have been an unrealistic expectation as commentators have remarked that the team assembled in Oregon this year is one of the strongest yet. Nevertheless star after star incredibly underperformed. Tyson Gaye injured himself upon arrival, ruining his chances at Gold. Shayna showed up ‘flossing’ with her new 5 caret engagement ring, the un-aerodynamic Flo-Jo weave, and flashy gear and in the final second, was completely swept out of her lead. (I have to wonder where her mind was) Lolo fell to her knees when in less than a second a misled hurdle carried her from 1st to 7th position. Ouch. And then back to back, both relay teams dropped the baton in the final stretch.


The word in every commentators mouth was “leadership”. How had the coaches failed the athletes? But I think the subliminal message that national audiences may have unintentionally (I think) received was leadership of the presidential kind, and how it might fail the nation. The Blacks dropped the ball. Literally. They underperformed when it mattered most, failing to seize the gold for the country… Would another brown person in a position of power do the same? I couldn’t help but wonder if there were some American viewing audiences drawing their own political interpretations from the track madness. Or not. It’s just at thought.



My analysis is that the relay goof up reflects a lack of solidarity. Pride we have. We are proud to be a part of this great country despite its shortcomings. But Americans don’t have the same solidarity as other nations. We don’t grow up feeling a natural affinity, or kinship even to our fellow country men. It is the “melting pot’s” double edged sword. And as running in an innately individual sport, to me, what was lacking on that team was true solidarity and the focused cooperation that accompanies it. But I can’t help but think back to 1968 Olympics when runners Tommie Smith and John Carlos performed the Black Power Salute during the medal ceremony. It demonstrated a solidarity with those Black Americans at home struggling for their civil rights. Smith later said "If I win, I am American, not a black American. But if I did something bad, then they would say I am a Negro. We are black and we are proud of being black. Black America will understand what we did tonight." I wonder, was this sort of solidarity present on that field last night, forty years later? Perhaps not. And perhaps some will argue that it doesn’t have to be.
In the grand scheme of things, when the pressure is on and America is watching, please don’t drop the ba(ll)ton.
-Ike

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

FFD Honors Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones


Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones of Ohio's 11th District was the first African American congress woman from Ohio. Popular amongst her constituents, Jones was easily elected for four consecutive terms and also served as co-chairwoman to the Democratic National Committee. Her achievements are an inspiration and source of pride for Black women, Black people, and Americans. She will be dearly missed.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Patent 5676977: The HIV/AIDS CURE???


AIDS, a disease that since its 1979 appearance has lethally exposed the socioeconomic inequalities of society, has had a patented cure for over decade. Patent number 5676977 describes a method for disabling the retrovirus with the use of inected tetrasilver tetroxide. This is the formal patent:


Title:
Method of curing AIDS with tetrasilver tetroxide
molecular crystal devices
Document Type and Number:
United States
Patent 5676977
Abstract:
The diamagnetic
semiconducting molecular crystal tetrasilver tetroxide (Ag4 O4) is utilized for
destroying the AIDS virus, destroying AIDS synergistic pathogens and immunity
suppressing moieties (ISM) in humans.
A single intravenous injection of the
devices is all that is required for efficacy at levels of about 40 PPM of human
blood. The device molecular crystal contains two mono and two trivalent silver
ions capable of "firing" electrons capable of electrocuting the AIDS virus,
pathogens and ISM. When administered into the bloodstream, the device electrons
will be triggered by pathogens, a proliferating virus and ISM, and when fired
will simultaneously trigger a redox chelation mechanism resulting in divalent
silver moieties which chelate and bind active sites of the entities destroying
them. The devices are completely non-toxic. However, they put stress on the
liver causing hepatomegaly, but there is no loss of liver function.




I will venture to say that not only is the HIV/AIDS Virus engineered to disproportionately affect people of color, but I believe the cure is being suppressed. This treatment has been ignored by government, the CDC, and all other global health organizations. It has never garnared attention from media outlets. Even if it doesn't work, why were we never even informed about the idea and perhaps subsequent tests? Why were never informed about the successful treatments that the creators of the patent performed on 5 Honduran AIDS patients who were in terminal condition? We are always kept abreast about success encountered in the treatment of cancer. Why was this so discretely swept under the rug?


Instead we are presented with a money generating, FDA approved cocktail and are told to be grateful. Millions of people in the poorest inner cities and countries of the world are living with death sentences. Many people will not have the money for treatment. Millions of men will enter the criminal justice system and contract it there. Women in chauvinistic societies will be raped or forced to have unprotected sex. Women will unknowingly contract it from their partners. Babies will be born to AIDS mothers. And let us please not forget that the fastest growing demographic to contract the virus are AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN of all socioeconomic backgrounds.


We have a responsibility to take care of ourselves by using protection, good judgement and education. We have that responsibility to protect our bodies, our temples. But we also have a responsibility to educate our sisters in this country and in the diaspora. We are their keepers too. And now that we know that there could be a cure, this responsibility really should be taken one mighty step forward. We need to demand the implementation of medical trials that may ultimately lead to the release of this treatment as a viable cure. People point to drugs as the number one menace to the black community. They look at the criminal justice system, the school system inequalities, and the media. And while our problems certainly can't be examined in isolation, at the end of the day we can keep young brothers educated and off the streets with community effort. We can take back our sons. We can boycott channels that don't serve us. We can pool money and biuld our own charter schools. But AIDS... is almost inescapable. Where as psychological war fare has been wielded against Blacks since the beginning of chattle slavery, this pandemic is killing our bodies, not just our minds. It is time to organize politically and perhaps economically, and demand that the course for a cure be treked because it is primarily our sisters and brothers who suffer.


-Ike



This a tape of Dr. Boyd Graves discussing the origins and cure for the disease. I can't believe that as I write this, only 800 have viewed this. Let's change that.

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