By CHRIS PACKHAM
• The pollen count is expected to be extremely low today. So it's a great day for allergy sufferers to get out there and attempt to maintain their core temperatures in the icy arctic weather front while contemplating their mortality.
• Dude in Independence says he came up with the idea for the WNBA. And he's saying it in the articulate poetry of a federal lawsuit.
OK, first of all, "Lightning Mitchell"? That's just awesome. For everyone who ever failed to give me a cool-sounding nickname — I'm looking at you, everyone I've ever met in my entire life — you can pretty much forget about getting me to help you move your couch. I didn't want to be called "Hurricane," anyway. Second, people are always stealing MY ideas, too. Like, the heliocentric model of the solar system? MY IDEA.
• Gloria Squitiro, Funkhouser campaign treasurer and administrative embarrassment of Cloverfield-ian proportions, is laying her credibility on the line, saying that the $80,000 discrepancy in campaign spending reports will be reconciled.
• Michigan Republican Mark Siljander has been indicted in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Missouri, on charges of money laundering, conspiracy and obstruction of justice. He's accused of working for an alleged terrorist fundraising ring that sent more than $130,000 to an al-Qaida supporter.
• My brain is generally pretty good at filtering out all of my catastrophically stupid ideas before they get to the "coming out of my mouth" stage. Clay Chastain's catastrophically stupid light-rail plan has voyaged so far from the part of his brain that originally came up with it that he is now suing the city for overturning it. Which is a good illustration of the need to remind yourself at least once a day that there is no such thing as a plains state that needs an elevated gondola system.
• Bankrupt Twinkies maker Interstate Bakeries is reorganizing. I'd reorganize, too, if I somehow managed to go bankrupt selling Twinkies.
• Between 1964 and 1970, Sheriff Buford Pusser waged a one-man war against the Dixie mafia in McNairy County, Tennessee. His story inspired the Joe Don Baker-starring film Walking Tall. In one of the film's most pivotal scenes, Pusser beats up everyone in a roadhouse with nothing but a stick. In the course of Pusser's campaign against organized crime in Tennessee, he was shot eight times and stabbed seven times, and his wife, Pauline, was murdered by a hired gunman.
By contrast, Police Detective Jim Murray of Diamond, Missouri, goes on the Internet and pretends to be a 14-year-old girl. Just sayin'.
In light of the arrest of Collins, Missouri, Mayor Allen Kauffman on four counts of enticement of a child and his subsequent attempt to suppress the evidence, I am irresistibly compelled to point out that there is almost certainly a chat transcript on a prosecutor's desk somewhere that features virtual sex between this man:
And this man:
Am I alone in thinking that a virtual lemon party is a victimless crime? Also, when Kauffman phoned Murray to plead for mercy, was the conversation weighed down with sublimated postcoital awkwardness? Because, y'know, when you've given your whole self to another person, you can feel really vulnerable...
• Finally, the observation that just as commercial interests have taken the "Christ" out of "Christmas," they're now taking the "Christ" out of "Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day." Heritage Foods USA is observing next week's holiday with the Martin Luther King Jr. Pork Pack — it includes one country rib pack (two four-rib racks that weigh 2.5 pounds), one St. Louis rib pack (two 3-pound slabs), one boneless picnic shoulder roast (5 pounds), riblettes (2-pound pack), two packs sliced bacon (1 pound each) and 2 pounds of ground pork. SWEAR. TO. GOD. According to the press release I found in my in box, all pork comes from Mark Newman's Certified Humane farm in Myrtle, Missouri, vaguely justifying its inclusion here today.
Showing 1-9 of 9
I was actually just out looking for some Public Enemy Videos when I saw this post...
Bias Busters of Kansas Action Statement
Setting the Record Straight
Oct. 23, 2008, Noon
"Molly Brown, the Teacher"
Williams Science and Fine Arts Magnet School, 1301 S.E. Monroe
Topeka, Kansas......Due to some misleading statements in today�s media, and over the blogs and talk shows: For the record, Bias Busters of Kansas agrees with Blake West, President of the Kansas National Education Association, who said "Many policies don't ban political buttons or clothing for teachers unless the items are disruptive."
Bias Busters of Kansas is protesting to encourage USD 501 School District to revisit its policies, and make sure Americans rights are not overly restrictive. Our next Noon protest will at Lowan Hill Elementary School, 1101 E. 11th Street on 10-27-08
Per a conversation with "Molly the Teacher" and others who wore an Obama T-shirt, explained that the wearing of the shirt was an expression of pride, a celebration of Black History and not a political statement.
Bias Busters of Kansas asked someone who was heavily involved in the evolution of the National/International Black History Month Founder's Observance Commission for his opinion on whether this is a 1st Amendment violation issue?
Bias Busters has received information from other teachers over the past several months of similar disapproving behavior displayed by schools in the District. Molly the Teacher and others need some civil rights relief and uniform T-shirt/dress code regulations to handle situations such as this when they arise.
The group will target other schools in the district in the coming weeks (the home of Brown) until a workable solution has been developed for people who wear likenesses of Barack Obama, Sarah Palin, yet does not make a political statement or influence people in the school system to vote one way or another. More protest at schools across the district are being planned!
For more information contact Sonny Scroggins, 785.232.3761, 845.6148, biasbustersofkansas@yahoo.com
I Challenge my Generation to Inspire Future Generations.
Yours in Christ, Sonny Scroggins
January 22, 2008
Condemnation of Gangsta Rap
James 3:5: Power in the tongue
WHAT ABOUT THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT'S CONDEMNATION OF GANGSTA RAP??? The Connecticut Resolution condemning gangsta rap has been in existence for nearly a year
and the Chicken Little Complex was hastily presupposed. So the sky won't fall when the state of Kansas passes the resolution.
As far as the Pitch Newspaper & Wichita Eagle Editorial Blog,just like Representative Mast and myself, your newspapers do not speak for the state of Kansas. If you checked your records, I have a hisotry of defending the 1st Amendment rights of blacks, whites or anyone who felt they were wronged.
I am interested in seeing the development of a training tool for adults to learn the meaning of gangsta rap and its ill-effects on society. Two books written on gangsta rap are �Snatched from the Fire� by Jessica James and Raymond Christian�s �Women Tell What Men Should Know".
The goal is to persuade the other forty-eight states to pass a resolution condemning gangsta rap because of its offensive lyrics and the harm it does to the psyche of our young people.
Personally, I enjoy listening to this type of rap, but I do not enjoy hearing young women, mothers etc. being referred to in a negative way. As a matter of fact, I enjoy listening to the �clean version� of T�Pain and Flo-Rider�s song �Get Low�.
While visiting my grandson in Ypsilanti, Michigan, the idea to protest the words contained in gangsta rap began.
The original idea was to challenge anyone who had ever used the "N" word to come out and demonstrate against its use.
Eventually, the challenge developed into something more when Don Imus made his disrespectful remarks about the Rutgers women�s basketball team.
One day I heard Rev. Al Sharpton calling for the firing of Don Imus because he used racist and misogynistic comments about the women's basketball team. I believe the civil rights struggle has been on hold since the 9/11 tragedy.
Thanks to Mr. Imus, the opportunity to bring the struggle of gender, race, and color, the use of the "N" word and unflattering depictions of women in rap and videos back to the forefront where such inequalities are in the forefront of everyone�s mind.
The situation confuses many people because whites and other non-blacks are not supposed to use certain words when referring to black women and men because they are not black. But a black person can refer to their women as ho's, sluts, the "B" word and use the "N" word unchallenged, which is ridiculous and a double standard.
There needs to be an overall standard when it comes to the use of those words by whites, blacks, etc. The music needs to be cleaned up and made safe for listening by my grandchildren, yours and others. One requirement of a universal standard is that this musical genre should not disrespect anyone and not cause shame on an entire generation.
A desired outcome is for rappers to clean up their music by removing misogynistic lyrics while maintaining artistic freedom with said songs. The challenge is an International one, but with input from the public, the reduction in demand of this type of music and political input from our legislators we can succeed.
There are several purposes of the campaign:
1. To bring awareness to the misogynistic, sexist and racist lyrics of gangsta rap.
2. For women to take a stand against the negative depictions of them in rap, movies, stand-up comedy, etc. To challenge others and their organizations to get involved.
3. To have women speak with their children and other impressionable relatives on the dangers of perpetuating such stereotypes in song.
4. To require our politicians to take a stand on the issue without infringing on the first Amendment rights of those in the entertainment industry.
Sonny Scroggins
P. S. I will release, the 2nd page of the Honorable Professor Rev. Ronald V. Myers, Sr. Email's Gangsta Rap Response, next week! (see Below)
There is a great documentary out there that documents a lot of what went on. It is called "Hip-hop-Beyond Beats and Rhymes". To me, the images have changed little since I was a kid. I grew up watching black males process their hair and adopt the Ike Turner/James Brown look. That was a negative image. You were a "pimp" and you drove a Cadillac. The motivations were the same as gangsta rap is today.
No movie is more sacred to young teens than "Scarface", a bad remake of the story about Al Capone. The message was to "get rich quick or die trying". But it was only valid in the black community. Outside the black community, none of it mattered.
To justify slavery , white males separated the slaves into two parts, the mind and the body. The mind belonged to the white male. Black males were brute force, not supposed to think. They were given hypersexuality to insure they created more slaves. Black women were degraded as a means to an end.
Children without fathers is nothing new. It goes back to slavery. Single households and broken homes are not new, they also go back to slavery. Slaveowners could rip a family apart. Black males could be separated from their children. Black women were sex objects for the pleasure of white males.
So, when you look at a gangsta rap video on BET, you are seeing something that is rooted in slavery. Black males are super-sexed, black females exist as sex objects who ae there to seduce them and give them "jewels". The materialism there is valid only in the ghetto. They don't dress that way in the Hamptons or on Wall Street.
My generation rebelled against the Pimp mentality. We decided not to hang on the streets and drink alcohol, but to go to college. Rather than burn our hair with lye to straighten it to look white, we adopted afros and afro-centric thinking. When we started showing up on campus, the mainstream got nervous. Now we would be competing for the same jobs as their kids.
Their first line of defense was drugs. They flooded the community with drugs. Gangs sprouted up to control the drugs. Still , they could not stop the momemtum. Going back to Africa, meant we concentrated on the beat. Rap and hip-hop are based on the beat and improvisation. The first rap recordings were protests against the conditions or making fun of the teen lifestyle. The competitions between DJ's and MC were friendly and of no consequence. Then the drug dealers and the gangbangers got into the act. They could only go so far. The gatekeepers for all black music still remains to be white males in suits in corporate offices.
They decided to resurrect the old slavery based images. They took away the "mind" and focused again on the "body". I saw middle class kids come into the studio and told their raps were not "hard-core" enough. They wanted more violence, cursing and sex talk. They knew that sex sells. That pornography is the largest industry in America. They also saw how to market it to white teens who were fascinated by a lifestyle of living with death and defying it. Seventy to eighty percent of gangsta rap is sold to white teens.
The black kids only imitate the images because they have no alternatives that get them "stain". Going to college will only get you laughed at.
The music of black folks has always been the most important thing to us since Africa. As our music goes, so do we. With control of the music outside our community, there is no reason for chains on us anymore.
Even the churches have become materialistic. We used to make fun of Reverend Ike and his prayer cloths. Not you have even white evangelical preachers talking about "prosperity gospels". All the mega-churches are based on prosperity preachers. The kids hear the same message as they do in gangsta rap. That is, if you drive an Escalade with $10K rims, you have made it. They hear negative messages about schools that teach evolution and don't allow school prayer. The drug addict, at least gets drugs. The churches take your money in tithes and give you nothing but promises. Instead of gold chains and grilles, the preachers have $500 suits and pimp the old ladies out of the SS money.
In the meantime, white males look at it all and smile. They have returned us to the only state of mind they are comfortable with. With slogans like "snitches get stitches" they insure that their despots will stay in control just like they do in the foreign countries they have pimped for resources like oil.
They will not let the positive messages be heard. They do not want us to be afro-centric and proud of our African heritage. Instead of the Pimp model , we now have the "50 cent" model. Yet they are one and the same.
I watch the local charlatans. posing as record producers, pimp the dreams of kids who dream of being rappers. They sell them same false hopes the pimps of the 50's did . They are the leeches that rival the Christian preachers for stealing our dreams, hope and energy. Islam did offer an alternative until it was hijacked by Wahaabi nutcases. But the real salvation does not lie in any of Man's religions. It is still in the music. But now even jazz and blues have been taken from the community and co-opted to control us.
Black folks are in the worst condition since slavery. As the economy worsens, that will become more evident. We have the most to lose.
We have still not made the break-throughs we need to make. We have the money, but not the wealth. We have no media outlets like other ethnic groups have. We have no major multi-national corporations. We are not organized and recognizing our common goals.
What does gangsta rap say to all this. Nothing. It says " I got mine , you get yours" . All the images are negative and slave based. It is hyper-sexed and based on brute force. The competition has become violent but only upon each other. No more, "kill the police" like the old school rappers said. Now, it is pay the police off to keep the drugs flowing. You can spend $10K on some rims, but not put it in a mutual fund or start a business.
And that sad part is that at some point, almost everyone you know is for sale. Some for so cheap , that it is embarrasing. Even the threat of losing a job you hate is the cost. The difference is that there is no auctioneer selling us off on Wall Street. We accept our enslavement. We believe we have no choice. Either we become the pseudo outlaws of gangsta rap or we have no shot at anything but a meager existence.
Tell your kids, they have been bamboozled. Don't preach to them about the church and Jesus because that too has become a lie. You must take them back to Egypt and to Timbuktu. Talk about Barack Obama and his family in Kenya. Teach them that they were the first to believe in one God. That they are the descendants of Abraham and Moses. That Jesus looked like them.
I guarantee most of them will say they aspire to be rappers or in the NBA or NFL. Teach them that those figures are greater slaves than they are. as the book says "60 Million Dollar Slaves". Tell them that out of all the rappers , not one of them has a record company.... only record labels that are at the mercy of the five record companies left. That there are no black movie studios, not black TV network or satellite network. That there is no black radio corporation in all the major black markets. Tell them that most of the rappers they hear come from middle class homes not the streets. And that the streets are a dead end for anyone who thinks they are anything but a way to insure the prisons stay full.
Tell them the only way drug dealers get health care or a pension is if they have a job at Wal-Marts. That when they are shot , we pay for their care. When they are in jail, we pay for their upkeep. So they are still invisible in the system. Still somebody's "lady" in lockup.
Tell them to make their parents accountable for raising them. Getting an iPod or a cell phone is not the same as spending quality time with them. That if their parents do not stress an education, they want them to fail and be ignorant.
And the preachers. Tell them to stop talking about someone, Jesus, that they do not know.
Jesus never took up a collection or had a building where he had to pay rent or a mortgage. Tell them to stop saying rap is wrong unless they offer an alternative like after-school programs or tutoring. Unless they sponsor and support businesses in the community. Or nursing homes or have their conventions in hotel they own.
50 cent sold his meager share in his vitamin water. Rappers have sold off their clothing lines. They can't hang with the Big Boys. They are no Warren Buffet or Bill Gates.
How many NBA or NFL franchises do we own? How many sneaker and boot manufacturers do we own? How many white T-shirt and doo-rap companies do we own? How many stores that sell all that garbage do we own? Do we own North Face or Timberland? How many jewelries do we own that sell us all the gold we display?
And where does the money come from? How many black folks have jobs in the private sector , not the public sector? Where does the drug money comes from? Who brings the drugs into our community?
How many "thongs" do we manufacture? How much Blistex and mouth sprays? How many Black and Mild companies do we own, how many tobacco companies? How many Chinese food outlets do we own? How many of them do we supply with rice?
The parallels to slavery in 1860 and 2008 are striking. We need to understand why. We have allowed our culture to be used as a tool against us. Others are getting rich off our misery. And it is misery. How many of us are at peace with our condition in life at this point? How many feel we are better off than we were in 1965?
Look at the media . Where are the voices of sanity? We know about Britney and Tom Cruise , but not about the black folks that are trying to make a difference. They have a stake at selling us the okey-doke. Who consumes the drugs and the malt liquor? Who is without health care? Who needed the sub-prime mortgages? Who is dying in the war in Iraq? Who is in the prisons at a cost of $60K a year to taxpayers?
Who has to sell their homes and move South when they retire? Who has to live with the gangs and the violence? Whose grandparents have to care for the kids while the Mom is in rehab or dead and the father is in prison? Who has the most kids in Special Ed because of their environment and abuses of their parents?
You only see the worst of us in the media, never the kids who go to college and are successful like Baraka Obama was. They want us to buy into the "body" mentality... the slave in the field , working till they drop always under control and docile. Let them hear Lil Wayne and they are content .. they will flip those burgers, stay in the house with Mom and hit that party on the weekend.
The Professor
Mr. Josh,
u b as f*cked up as "sonny", ya know? we ARE putting it out there that hos b biatches an we b rollin' all in your face as a 'lifestyle' 'cause we b bad n' shit.
Keepin' Your White Ass Indoors After Dark,
I. B. Trimble
Mr. Scroggins - I appreciate your position, but in my humble estimation your defense of said position is, in a word, stupid. "Music" is entertainment - nothing more, nothing less. If you do not enjoy the musical stylings of Triple 6 Mafia, NWA, or Brotha Lynch Hung, you are free to avoid those artists, and buy the latest Hannah Montana or Celine Dion release. But to compare the Imus situation to rap music is disingenuous at best. A more reasonable comparison would be to compare music to other forms of entertainment - movies and literature. Would you like to see the Kansas legislature "condemn" Bret Eston Ellis, or the director and studio behind the "Saw" franchise? Why or why not?
The greater point is that this legislation is useless. It accomplishes not a thing, and will probably give a greater soapbox to the very artists you hope to encourage others to avoid. Certainly there are actual issues in the state Kansas that are more deserving of Rep. Mast's attention?
January 17, 2008
Condemnation of Gangsta Rap
Mr. Trimble, I appreciate the fact that you were willing to share your opinions concerning the condemnation of gangsta rap. My question to you is, do you understand the concept behind the condemnation of gangsta rap? It is not as bad as you make it out to be. The resolution in no way shape or form infringes on anyone's First Amendment Rights.
Evidently, those groups you mentioned have not garnered as much attention as the Legislature condemning gangsta rap, so I would suggest that they should get better agents so they too can get national exposure.
Since we are talking about time served, I have spent over 30 years of my life in Kansas and through out America dedicated to a cause of helping the underrepresented, underserved members of society. Most times I receive no recognition, appreciation and definitely no money for my hard work.
Before the advent of gangsta rap, I was spinning records along with the best of them. So, I know the music industry as well as or more than you do. Its true that record companies produce what the public wants to hear if a certain type of music will earn the record execs the big bucks. So rather than criticize me for voicing my opinion on something I feel very strongly about, perhaps a better cause for you and other like-minded individuals would be to discover why only a handful of rappers earn millions, when most of you earn pennies while some anonymous record company rake in the millions on the intellectual property of unknown rapper(s).
I wonder if you have daughters, sisters, aunts, mother(s). If so, I guess it is ok to refer to them as the "B" word, Ho's or whatever derogatory terms used to belittle and denigrate women.
As far as Representative Mast and I having the audacity to define and or condemn gangsta rap, we have every right to do so and we did. The same rights you had when you dared to speak up for gangsta rap. I admire and respect Rep. Mast for having the courage of her convictions to take a stand against something she perceives as a negative, the same as Susan B. Anthony. If you don't like what's being done concerning this music genre, speak to your legislator and get him or her to speak out against the condemnation of gangsta rap. I have sent letters to Presidential Candidates including :Clinton, Romney , McCain to weigh in on the ill effects to society of gangsta rap.
I am sure you remember the situation with Don Imus, I was in Ypsilanti, Michigan during a protest against Sudan and visiting my Grandson Trace when he referred to the players on the Rutger's basketball team as "nappy headed ho's? Did you speak out against what was said, or was it ok with you for those women to be called names? Everyone could see that the women were educating themselves to create a better life for themselves and their environment. If its ok for rappers to use the terms they use to refer to women, then it should be ok for Imus to use them too, right?
I enjoy rap except when it serves to denigrate a certain class of people. Surely, the words used to speak evil can be rewritten to allow respect for women in song. Remember, if one has to resort to stereotypical words to get a point across, it speaks to that individual(s) mindset as being limited. Enlightened and or educated people always keep an open mind when it comes to trying new things. You may not agree with my position, but at least try to see the other side of the situation. For further information on those against some of the words used in rap, please read "Snatched from the Fire" by Jessica James and Raymond Christian's most recent book titled "Women Tell What Men Should Know". A few of the hot topics discussed in this book are: Why women feel rap music is degrading to them; Why are young girls being allowed to dress so provocative and Do video vixens represent real women?
As far as debating you, there is no need. You have your views you feel strongly about and so do I. If this �debate� was to take place, what is the prize? A free ticket to hear DVS Mindz perform? No thanks.
THE TONGUE CAN BE YOUR WORST ENEMY!
Your words, your dreams, and your thoughts have power to create
conditions in your life.
What you speak about, you can bring about.
If you keep saying you can't stand your job, you might lose your job.
If you keep saying you can't stand your body, your body can become
sick.
If you keep saying you can't stand your car, your car could be stolen
or just stop operating.
If you keep saying you're broke, guess what? You'll always be broke.
If you keep saying you can't trust a man or trust a woman, you will
always find someone in your life to hurt and betray you.
If you keep saying you can't find a job, you will remain unemployed.
If you keep saying you can't find someone to love you or believe in
you,your very thought will attract more experiences to confirm your
beliefs.
If you keep talking about a divorce or break up in a relationship,
then you might end up with it.
Turn your thoughts and conversations around to be more positive and
power packed with faith, hope, love and action.
Don't be afraid to believe that you can have what you want and
deserve.
Watch your Thoughts, they become words.
Watch your Words, they become actions.
Watch your Actions, they become habits.
Watch your Habits, they become character.
Watch your Character, for it becomes your Destiny.
The minute you settle for less than you deserve , you get even less
than you settle for.
In the search for Me, I discovered Truth.
In the search for Truth, I discovered Love.
In the search for Love, I discovered GOD.
And in God, I have found Everything.
Watch how your circumstances and situations begin to change when you
change the way you speak.
Countdown to the King Holiday!
What Would Jesus Do, What Would Bill Cosby Say?
Much love,
Sonny Scroggins
Hey!
What jackhole doesn't want to eat a twinkie high above a smoggy roadway aboard a scenic gondala while contemplating which of those two middle aged law enforcement 'men' was 'top' during their looooooooove chats?
(As well as, not incidentally, how that worked out - mousewise - for the left handed 'man')
What say you, Sparky?
Hey - THAT'S a good nickname for you: Sparky. Make sure you use it for all of your brief posts, okay?
See ya, Sparky. Want to grab a beer, Sparky? Sparks, let's do lunch!
Man, that is so totally you, Sparky.
p.s. - heh heh hehe - you said Pusser! heh heh heh
like
dislike
