Marion Barry a Sobering Indicator!

Let’s hear from Zo on Marion Barry being “a sobering indicator that Pres. Obama could get reelected.” Zo is right on the mark!

Responding to an Al Sharpton Post and Where He is Now at MSNBC

I continue to get views and comments on my July 27th blog post,  MSNBC’s Higher Ratings with Al Sharpton every few weeks or so. This was a wait and see post, but a few folks went off the deep end, because I did not bash Mr. Sharpton’s racial politicking and social angst. Then there were responses in support of Mr. Sharpton. I am not one of his supporters and take issues with most of his dispositions, but I am not a hater on anyone and that includes Mr. Sharpton. I do listen often (Currently listening to some segments of Neil Boortz in Atlanta through the computer) to conservative/libertarian and liberal leftist talk radio to hear the arguments from differing political view points. Since the liberal leftist side is far less represented in talk radio, the local urban talk radio station is where I go to hear the liberal leftist arguments.

Philly’s urban talk radio has Al Sharpton on from 1:00-4:00 p. m. weekdays. I do not listen to his radio program in its entirety, but I do catch segments. That also goes for his weekday 6:00 p. m. TV program. Folks in my household who feel where he is coming from is not represented enough on TV are happy with the fact that he has TV program, but they never turn it on. I think they are representative in part of many out there on the liberal/left side. I say in part, because one family member is just too use to watching local news and the national nightly news during the 6 p. m. hour. But many on the liberal/left side just are not into watching news programming.

Al Sharpton started out getting decent ratings as a substitute host. The viewer ratings starved MSNBC jumped on the ratings boost right away by putting Mr. Sharpton on and dumping Cenk Uygur who had only been in the early evening time slot for only 6 months. Mr. Sharpton’s viewer ratings went down,  but he stills pulls in higher ratings than CNN’s John King every other day or so. Now if someone subbing gets better ratings than Mr. Sharpton, he will be gone too! But then, maybe his situation would get a different handling. See the ratings for Thursday and Friday cable news programming here and here.

I think MSNBC also gave Al Sharpton a program, because of the criticism of the cable news station being pro liberal and pro minority, but did not have any people of color hosting in the evening line up. The cable news station would see some damaging publicity and reactions if they dumped Mr. Sharpton and replace him with a non black: thus,  Professors, Dr. Michael Eric Dyson and Dr. Melissa Harris-Perry are probably the possibilities if Al Sharpton ever gets the heave-ho.

Encountering Stereotypical Views on the Right

I  blogged about my comments to reactions and erroneous statements made about black conservatives and their views (including my own) by Democrat Party bound, liberal and leftist in the black community. This post is about reactions and a couple of erroneous statements from some whites on the conservative right I have encountered on Facebook and other online venues of shared opinions.

I have already gave my 2 cents on black people always voting black misconception. If you have not read that post, it is in the sidebar next to the blog posts under the link heading, Did You Read This One.  I continue to encounter blacks voting black equation belief on the conservative side. I just do not understand how the Democratic Party is left out of that equation. After all if it is true that black people always vote black candidates, black Republican candidates would get the black vote in great numbers. That does not happen.

All statements about black people on the conservative side are not uninformed, but some! Thanks to Facebook shared links, I come across some blogs and columns that tend to be frequented by mostly white conservatives and maybe a few black and white liberals. I see more stereotypical comments about black people than I should, like comments dealing with fried chicken and watermelon. On one blog, a commenter said that blacks should stop playing  ”Grand Theft Auto” and learn some history. You know I had to respond to that ignorant comment. I love the silent treatment I get when I put my 2 cents to that kind of ignorance. Comments continue while no one responds to mine, but there are no more ignorant comments like the aforementioned on the specific blog thread after my response.

 One thing that some conservative my not like that I do is to respond with a defense that is specific to untrue or unfair knocks at someone who is a Democrat, liberal, leftist and or deemed a racist. Responded to a snide knock at Bill Cosby’s negative comments on Donald Trump, when the commenter called  him “Mr. Pudding Pops”. The implication being that was all he was famous and good for. I responded with ‘He is also Mr. Creator of one of the most popular family shows on TV, funder of college scholarships and college program funder/contributor.’

Most Blacks on the Democratic liberal side see the negative stereotypical comments coming from some conservative whites and question why any black person would be on the same political side with that kind of thinking. For me, it has nothing to do with the racial stereotypical thinking that is found on the conservative side  and the liberal side (especially about conservative blacks).  It is about the core conservative values which have nothing to do with race.

What Goes Around Comes Around

Remember Juan Williams being fired from National Public Radio (NPR) for stating  his reaction to being on the same plane with Muslims dressed in their cultural garb? Some on the liberal left were okay with the firing, because they felt Mr. Williams was extremely out of line and was in hate speech territory. Some on the conservative right were glad to see him fired by fellow liberals.

Juan Williams identifies himself as a liberal.  There are a lot liberals that do not see him that way. Some liberals view him as a self-hating black conservative. That misconception is because he is not a far leftist liberal and he continually appears on Fox News, which most on the left loathe. Therefore, even some liberals where happy to see Juan Williams terminated.

Initially, NPR bosses patted themselves on the back for what they did to him before the public backlash came and strengthened. Mr. Williams did not suffer much from being terminated, because Fox augmented his presence on the cable news channel. He also received a lucrative book deal. Now the firing that he received has gone around to two that took part in his firing. First it was the Vice President in charge of news, Ellen Weiss.

Now, CEO, Vivian Schiller who said and later apologized for saying that Mr. Williams needed to be in therapy suffered quick termination today in relation to another controversy.  She was to leave NPR for a new position, but her resignation was not until May 2nd.  How often does anyone terminated go on to something better and get to see (but have no part in) anyone involved in their termination suffer termination less than 6 months later? In relation to Ellen Weiss and Vivian Schiller, what goes around, comes around.

 

More Labeling of Conservatives as Haters

In changing political perspectives, I continue to examine people and organizations that I held in high esteem while still on the liberal side. In the case of the Southern Law Poverty Center – SLPC, I did not follow everything that the organization did, but I became a fan when they assisted  the black mother of a young man lynched (the last lynching) by the  KKK in Mobile, Alabama back in the 80s win a $7 million verdict against them.

Currently, the SLPC considered a leftist organization is after conservative groups and has listed some in their hate group category along with the KKK. You receive a hater of gays label, if you are in disagreement with the lifestyle  especially on biblical grounds (which I am). The SLPC has included the Family Research Council – FRC along with other conservative organizations and Churches on their hate list due to these organizations being against what gays are demanding. I agree with FRC head Tony Perkins. Gee, these days if you disagree and take a stand against something on moral and Christian grounds you get the hater label!

I will never forget what the SPLC did for  the mother of the lynched son, against the KKK, but today, the SPLC is greatly diminished in my eyes. The organization is definitely gone way down the wrong road when it equates the FRC which stands firm on traditional family values and has never done violence to anyone with the hateful KKK which has a proven history of unrestrained vigilante violence to racial minorities and other types of minorities.

 

 

Arguing Panelists

Panelists, Bob Beckel and Pamela Geller go at it Eric Bolling’s Fox Business News program. Off course, I side with Ms. Geller.  Mr. Beckel’s response to her factual statements is outrageous. He results to  personal attacks. That is what you do when you can’t refute with facts.  Mr.  Beckel told another panelist, David Webb that we should not forget  the 9/11 date,  but [at the same time] we should get over it. I guess next year he will go into hiding or maybe leave the country on the 10th anniversary of that horrific day. Well, you can see the tempers fly in the video.

..Note: Youtube removed the original video posted on this page; therefore, as of 10/6/2010 this another video covering the same argument.