Mexicans are training Somali & Middle Eastern terrorists on how to look Mexican

This has to be the strangest justification ever for the need for border security along the southern border. In my opinion, it amounts to nothing but more of the same old politics of fear. A tactic that Republicans have advanced with much success under the previous administration:


I don't know, and I could be wrong, but ain't no way a Somali is going to pass him/herself off as no damn Mexican. Yeah, sure there are dark skinned Latinos; I'm not stupid, and I know that. Hell, I came up in Brooklyn, New York. But, er, um, some cat trying to sneak into the country sounding like Manute Bol trying to pass himself off as a Lucha Libre wrestler? Yeah, that one just ain't happening.

You just don't slap a Sombrero on a black dudes head and he automatically becomes a bull fighter. Now of course this throws that whole racial profiling thing in a quandary; and yes, I could understand how frustrating and embarrassing it could be for border patrol personnel, should they allow some Somaili-Mexican terrorist to sneak into the country. But trust me, this is bullshit, and it's not gonna happen. But just for the sake of argument, how do you "train" someone to look Mexican? Wait a minute, forget that question. I mean if Brad Pitt can get away with playing The Mexican, then anything is possible.


There goes those 9/11 fear tactics again...

WE DON'T BELIEVE YOU, YOU NEED MORE PEOPLE!

White House is concerned about inner city violent crime

So apparently Newark, NJ. mayor, Corey Booker, has been doing great job of transforming the once crime riddled city. So much of a good job that not only did he secure a second term in office. He was also invited to the White House along with a couple other mayors, to attend a security briefing on violence in inner cities. When I read that, I thought, "Cool, my man Barry-O is lookin' out for the hood; way to go remembering where you came from O-Beezy!"

I mean, Obama being a former representative of the city with the largest black population per capita in the country; a city that has already seen one hundred homicides to date. Certainly as president he's concerned about violent crime in the inner-city, right? Surely he's not out of touch and unconcerned, right? But then I read this story on NJ.com:

The meeting, conducted in the White House situation room, was focused on terrorist groups recruiting people on American soil. Officials briefed on the discussion said it was not centered on Islamic extremism but the larger context of violence, its root causes, and means of prevention.

"The Administration routinely meets with state and local officials to obtain their perspectives and better understand the issues they are facing. One issue is the threat of domestic radicalization," said one Obama Administration official familiar with the meeting but was not authorized to discuss the issue publicly. "During the meeting, mayors provided invaluable insights into this issue and discussed the ways in which the Federal government can help them address the threat."

According to other officials briefed on the discussions, Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak and Columbus, Ohio Mayor Michael Coleman were also present at the meeting. Because of high Somali populations in their cities, Rybak and Coleman discussed radicalization among that group in particular, but it was not the focus of the discussion,

FBI investigations in both cities made headlines last year with both cities suggested as jumping off points for domestic attacks perpetrated by Somalis elsewhere in the U.S. Coleman’s spokesman, Dan Williamson, said he didn’t know the extent to which the radicalization of Somalis was discussed.

Somali pirate terrorists? No seriously, they had a discussion on violence in "the hood", and the issue was that of "radicalization" of citizens by Somali natives? OK, maybe I don't get out much, but when did Somali pirates hijack the hood? Call me stupid, but I sincerely doubt whether "Captain Black Gums" running around singing, "Yo ho ho, and a bottle of Hennessy," has ever became a problem throughout the urban landscape.

I mean when I think of crime in the inner city, I don't exactly connect it to Somali nationals. Nor do I worry about them radicalizing citizens by them being Muslim. OK, so there used to be Jamaican gangs runnin' mad dope back in the day. But Somali pirates in the hood? Hell, as long as brothers been on the corners selling bean pies and ain't one of them ever flew a plane into a tall building(?). Why the hell are Somali nationals a concern?

The Tragic and Untold Story of The Somali Pirates

Last April, I wrote about my thoughts on the Somali pirates and the media hype surrounding their situation. I'd read that piracy was pumping some serious life blood into the coast of Somalia before, but in that very post, I linked to an article by Time that was eye-opening for me.

And the beat goes on...

I was hoping that more people would jump in, but it seems not a lot of people care. I'm not giving up on this because I always find media hype as it relates to minorities to be disingenious and misleading in many ways.

I'm not taking the bait on these guys, and I wasn't from day one. It takes some serious balls to go up against a tanker, and I don't think it's anyone's idea of a real good time, when they could be doing other things. But then I got to thinking... What else is there for them to do? It's not like we left them any fish or anything:

As soon as the government was gone, mysterious European ships started appearing off the coast of Somalia, dumping vast barrels into the ocean. The coastal population began to sicken. At first they suffered strange rashes, nausea and malformed babies. Then, after the 2005 tsunami, hundreds of the dumped and leaking barrels washed up on shore. People began to suffer from radiation sickness, and more than 300 died.
...
At the same time, other European ships have been looting Somalia's seas of their greatest resource: seafood.

I'm riding for the pirates because they've been robbed of a decent life, not just by their corrupt government, but by so-called First World countries insistent on pillaging the Somalian coast regardless of the well-being of the people of Somalia.

Of course, the media--and the world--gobbles it up and chucks it up to a case of "thieving negroes" who don't want to work for their own. How can they work for it, when they've been robbed of everything they could work for?

This is a perfect example of how ignorance among the masses can be the greatest tool a sinister operation, country or corporation used to continue the subhuman treatment of people of color.

Here's Mr. Hari's GREAT piece on the Somali pirates and the sad, yet untold, reality: Click here.

This is America Buddy; Black Folks Don’t Smile When in Handcuffs

I woke up this morning turned on CNN as always and the first thing I see is the Somali brother coming to America in chains, and smiling. My wife was the one who pointed out that he was smiling. I told her that clearly he was happy as were all African slaves who were drug to this country in chains. OK, so I was joking when I said that, but in reality, that brother could have been nervous as hell for all we know. I mean, the last boat-ride Africans took to get to America didn't turn out so well. I suspect his story wouldn't have a happy ending either.

So why is this brother smiling unlike Americans of African descent who are often subjected to the now infamous perp-walk? I mean some people as I've seen all over the Internet are suggesting that his smile was one of arrogance. You know, as if he didn't give a fuck about what he "allegedly" did. Some people even have jokes about it and likened him to Eddie Murphy in the movie Coming to America. I am not going to lie, that shit was going around Twitter and made me laugh this morning. One person said he was smiling because he knew he was going to move to Queens New York, get a job at McDonald's and meet a fine sister and live happily ever after. Him being 16yrs old, hopefully James Earl Jones shows up only to rescue him from the terrible evil empire that is America. Yes, and lets hope he shows up dressed like the King of Zamunda and not Darth Vader. Either that or he gets proper representation at his trial.

Yup, even I laughed at the thought. After which, I couldn't help but to think of the enjoyment so many are getting from seeing the image of this guy coming to this country in shackles. I mean, all he did was hang out with the wrong crowd, right? Just like any impressionable 16yr old teenager who is easily influenced in this "get money" society, he went along with some guys intent on getting paid, right? So why should he be any different? Of course you know me, all I saw was just another Black man chains who in this case was a victim of circumstances. Let’s be honest, Somalia isn't quite the vacation spot like San Trope, now is it?

That said, yeah, maybe time in jail for now, though separated from his family may be almost like a night at the Ritz Carlton considering the current state of Somalia. Maybe that's why it is easy for his smile to be questioned, and maybe that's the tragicomedy of it all. However, maybe things would be different, or we may view him and his smile differently, had he swindled, oh say a few folks out of $50 billion and allowed to stay in a Manhattan penthouse pending trial. I can't help but to think that we're so used to this perp-walk that it makes it so easy for us to pass judgment just based on a smile. Oh well, in the end, I guess we've gotten used to seeing Black men go to prison, or paraded on television as criminals that it really doesn't matter where he lived, what or why he did what he did.

Welcome to America my brother.

Reporting Live From The Crack House

My wife and I were just talking not too long ago about how we've cut back on viewing cable news channels. I swear, I can only take so much of the shit every damn day. Whatever happened to news stories like "Man bites dog". Some shit like that, instead of what the hell is going on with the economy, Wall Street, Obama, and Republicans, would be a welcome for me. I'm also sick of all the racially slanted pieces. Ok, so Obama won, I get it Don Lemon, its history. Damn, do I need to see you do a story every weekend about some unnoticed Black first?

Here's a story for you Don, do a story or expose on all the Black men like me who are tired of this shit. CNN canceled D.L. Hughley, isn't it time that they follow suit? No. Instead, they're coming out with Black in America II in a couple months. What are they going to do different than last time? Probably nothing but show us the edits from the last episode. Hell, they never offered any solutions the last go around. The way I feel right this very moment as I type this, I don't know if I'm going to even watch it. Now, unless they show me a clip of Soledad O'Brien reporting live from inside a crack house, which just might change things for me. That's right Soledad, do a story from inside a crack house, and be sure that the dealers and patrons are White.

I mean shit! Make the news interesting for a change. Hell, tell me how the economy has benefited the hood. You know, show me a piece on "Big Shirley" and how she's making a killing boosting the latest gear from the mall. Or maybe how hard it has been for drug dealers; you know, with everybody out of work, as a feel good piece? Yeah CNN, shit like that. Fuck it, if you really wanna reel me back in, g'head and convince Dave Chappelle to be an anchor. Shit, at least make a brotha laugh every once in a while during this madness. Hell, tell Brittney Spears to drop a kid again or wear no panties or sumthin’?!

I tell you one thing, I’m so glad this pirate shit is over. Yes, I'm happy that they rescued Captain James T. Kirk of the Starship enterprise; thank you lord Jesus! For the last month it seemed like all they would ever talk about on the news were pirates. Do you want to know why? It's because they're Black; what else? Black men get a bad rap in the news, and it would appear that being a pirate is another illustration of how this happens. The funny thing about this is that I just read a report which said that watching the news pretty much reinforces stereotypes and negative perceptions of Black people. And here we are now, after this latest pirate escapade, a brother can’t even walk into a Red Lobster or Long John’s Silver without looking more suspect than before.

I think its bullshit that these pirates have gotten a bad rap. Hell, Johnny Depp made millions being a pirate, and nobody said anything. But when Somali's do the same thing? Pirates are all of a sudden bad. What’s worse about the coverage is that now they have every American hating pirates. Not just that, but they never showed any news pieces which would explain what’s happening in Somalia. Nope, they won’t tell the American people that the U.S. gov’t used the C.I.A. with the blessings of the UN, to overthrow the Islamic gov’t they had about a decade ago in the whole bullshit war on terror. They never tell the American public that European companies have been dumping toxic waste in Somali seas, and pillaging the shores for $300 million worth of seafood every year.

But as soon as this shit jumped off, they conveniently threw in a possible Al Queda link to scare the shit out of people. All of this while there is no gov’t in Somalia to protect its seas and people from the theft of one of its natural resources and way of life; which is fishing. Instead of those facts being provided to the public, the story of their terrorist activities are being exploited, only because they hijacked an American ship. You know what? Now that I think of it, Don Lemon should continue showing those positive Black firsts. Maybe if he continues to do so, White America would forget that we do more than corner the market on crime. Yeah, and maybe a brotha can eat a piece of fish in public without getting the side eye from folks who the media has left an impression on.

Now you tell me…

Who are the real pirates?