Friday's Foolywang: So now we are Peanut’n folks to death??

Most gangster murder attempt ever.

Police say it’s a case of assault with a deadly peanut.

Robyn Lee, 23, of Corryville, was charged with aggravated assault after being accused of trying to cram a peanut in the mouth of her allergic neighbor Saturday evening. Lee appeared in court Monday on the peanut charge and a related criminal damaging charge.

According to police and court records, Lee was riding in a car with a neighbor, Shenna Ferguson, just after 6 p.m., when she allegedly tried to put the peanut in Ferguson’s mouth.

“I told her to stop because I was very (allergic) to peanuts,” Ferguson wrote in an affidavit. “She laughed.”

The women headed to the Tri-County Mall in Springdale, where Lee continued to taunt her, Ferguson said.

“She told me don’t forget about the peanuts,” Ferguson wrote. “Once she said that I shut up.”

Lee allegedly threw peanuts at Ferguson when the women reached the mall. Ferguson went inside, then returned to her car to fetch an ATM card. She noticed Lee was stooped near Ferguson’s gold Chrysler, “messing with my tires.”

The windshield wipers were torn off, the car was keyed and the tires were deflated, Ferguson wrote.

A judge set Lee’s bond at $5,000 and ordered her to stay away from Ferguson. There were no indications that Ferguson had suffered an allergic reaction after the alleged peanut attack.

I’m trying not to laugh… but im failing fo real.

Music 360: Easy Come, Easy Go

Not only is Scott Storch having “cash flow” issues, he’s now getting his home in Miami foreclosed on. Suntrust bank is forclosing on his ish and is putting him out extra soon. According to The Palm Beach Post:
In his blinged-out heyday, Storch signed for two SunTrust mortgages worth a combined $7.75 million so he could buy a 10-bed, 16-bath mansion on Miami’s Palm Island. He hasn’t made monthly payments for most of this year, even after borrowing another $170,000 from friends, according to court papers.
Storch’s sprawling home also has been liened by an electric company for $11,215 and a security system installer. Storch still owes $17,151 for his state-of-the-art camera network — a system that couldn’t keep out repo men.
Over the past month, Storch saw his Ferrari Scaglietti and his prized motorcycle, a Bones Bike, repossessed.

Rally Planned As Police Investigate Possible NYPD Racism In Harlem

Harlem community leaders are planning a rally this afternoon as the NYPD investigates charges of misconduct involving two white police officers.

Witnesses say two white police officers drove through the neighborhood with the head of a black doll on the antenna of their unmarked car.

Police are probing the incident, which some local leaders are calling an act of racism.

State Senator Bill Perkins reported the incident to police Tuesday, after he says outraged residents complained to him after seeing the car driving through the neighborhood. Perkins says a witness tried to take a picture of the doll, but a plainclothes officer took it off the antenna and put it in the trunk.

"They approached the car and asked why they had a black baby doll head on the top of their car. The guys laughed it off and disposed it inside they trunk," said witness Desiree Murray. "Then after that, that's when all the commotion came about. You know, the community was very upset, because we do have to live here."

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, however, said the policemen did not put the doll head on the car.

"They didn't know it was. They had no knowledge of it,” said Kelly. "The car pulls up in front of a restaurant, in which there was some type of opening celebration. Someone points out to this officer – and he had been at the club before, no one saw any doll head on the car – pointed out to him that this doll head is on the antenna. He sees it, takes it and throws it away."

Kelly says there could be grounds for an Internal Affairs probe of the incident. He says police are looking at surveillance video to see if it can be determined who put the doll head on the antenna.

An afternoon rally is planned at Marcus Garvey Park to call attention to the incident.

MCCAIN MOCKS MEDIA’S LOVE FOR OBAMA

In a new video, Republican presidential candidate John McCain makes fun of the media’s adoration of his Democratic counterpart, Barack Obama.
The coverage seems to be too much for McCain who seems a bit jealous of all the attention he isn’t receiving and accused the media of being “in love” with Obama. In an email unveiling the video, the campaign said, “It’s pretty obvious that the media has a bizarre fascination with Barack Obama. Some may even say it’s a love affair. The media is in love with Barack Obama. If it wasn’t so serious, it would be funny.”

POLITICAL ROUNDUP: OBAMA AROUND THE WORLD

US Senator and Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is currently touring the Middle East & Europe on a fact-finding and relationship-building mission.
He is pictured at the top during an aerial tour of Baghdad on Tuesday afternoon. He also met with Israeli President Shimon Peres (left) at the president’s office in Jerusalem on Wednesday; and was also welcomed by Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
After various stops in the Middle East, Obama will continue the tour by visiting Germany, Britain and France.

Today's Word: Coming To A Church Sign Near You...

Amen.

BLACK HISTORY SPOTLIGHT: MARIA FEARING

Maria Fearing (1838-1937) was a teacher, missionary and former slave.
Born to Mary and Jesse on William O. Winston’s Oak Hill Plantation, near Gainesville, Alabama, on July 26, 1838, she spent much of her time with her mistress and the other children. Amanda Winston taught her children and Maria the Presbyterian catechism, told them Bible stories and tales about missionaries in Africa.
After emancipation, Jesse and his family took the surname of a previous owner, Fearing, and Maria learned how to read and write at the age of thirty-tree. She worked her way through the Freedman’s Bureau School in Talladega to become a teacher and taught for a number of years in the rural schools of Calhoun County.
In 1891, Maria heard William Henry Sheppard speak at Talladega College. As a Presbyterian missionary, Sheppard appealed to the audience for volunteers to return with him to the Congo. Maria applied to work with the Presbyterian missionaries in Africa at the age of fifty-six.
She was denied at first, but was eventually approved as a self-supporting missionary. In May 1894, after selling her house and receiving a pledge for $100.00 from the women of the Congregational Church in Talladega, Maria paid her own expenses and sailed from New York to the Congo (Zaire). Once reaching shore, Sheppard, three other blacks and Maria traveled another 1200 miles inland to a mission station at Luebo. The journey lasted almost two months. After two years of service, Fearing was recognized as a full missionary and began receiving a salary.
While in Luebo, Maria learned the Baluba-Lulua language and assisted in the translation of the Bible. She promoted Christianity throughout neighboring villages. One of her lasting contributions was the creation of the Pantops Home for Girls, which helped girls who were orphans and those who had been kidnapped and sold into slavery. Maria used trinkets, tools and even salt to barter for their freedom. She taught reading, writing, arithmetic, homemaking skills, gardening and the tenets of the Christian faith. She hoped that when and if the girls married, they would spread these principles of good conduct and Christianity to their husbands and children. Her students nicknamed her, “mama wa Mputu,” (mother from far away) as a symbol of their love and appreciation.
Maria worked tirelessly for more than twenty years among the children of the Congo. She returned to Alabama in 1905 for a speaking tour to raise financial support for the missions. Ten years later, she was urged to take a leave of absence due to health reasons. In 1918, she received the Loving Cup, an honor bestowed upon her by the Southern Presbyterian Church. After retirement and returning to Alabama at the age of 78, Fearing taught at a church school in Selma and later returned to Sumter County where she died at the age of 99. Maria Fearing was inducted into the Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame in 2000.

Beijing Bars Told To Ban Black People During Olympics????

The 2008 Summer Olympics will be hitting China in a couple of weeks and some disturbing reports are coming out of Beijing.

According to the South China Morning Post, bar owners in the Beijing area were asked to refuse service to black patrons for the upcoming games. The article reports:

Bar owners near the Workers’ Stadium in central Beijing say they have been forced by Public Security Bureau officials to sign pledges agreeing not to let black people enter their premises.

“Uniformed Public Security Bureau officers came into the bar recently and told me not to serve black people or Mongolians,” said the co-owner of a western-style bar, who asked not to be named. [SOURCE]

WOW! The Olympics theme this year is “One World, One Dream” hopefully China will try to uphold it.

Tonight On TV: Soledad O'Brien on CNN's 'Black In America'

Another reminder about tonight's program:

NN anchor and special correspondent Soledad O'Brien spent more than a year tracking the stories of black men and women from all walks of life in America for the groundbreaking documentary series 'Black In America.'

This week premieres 'Black in America: The Black Woman & Family' (Wednesday, July 23 at 9 p.m. and 12 a.m.) and 'Black in America: The Black Man' (Thursday, July 24 at 9 p.m. and 12 a.m.)

O'Brien speaks candidly with BlackVoices.com about the series.


I know this was probably envisioned and put together some time ago, but why now?

About 18 months ago I was brought in because [CNN] had been exploring stories on Black Americans and how to do them and it became clear that it needed to be more of a documentary, it wasn't a number of 2 or 3 minute stories, you just couldn't do it justice. And then we were looking at Martin Luther King's assassination and so when people ask, why now? Well, literally it's the 40th anniversary of the assassination. And so the real answer to why now is because our three parts were: part one, King's assassination and this is the 40th anniversary year. [Parts two and three look at being black in America since that time.]

We had no idea 18 months ago when we began, we had no idea that Barack Obama would have the prominence that he has, we had no idea that so many race issues would be capturing the nation's attention.

I think that there's an interest in conversation about race in this country that has spurred people to speak more straightforward about these issues -- in good ways and some in bad ways. You know some of the dialogue and debate over Jena 6 has been people shouting at each other but there's certainly a lot of discussion about race out of Jena 6. The Sean Bell shooting, again, the same thing. That has led a lot of people to talk about race, and police brutality and justice and incarceration in ways that we never predicted two years out.

What was the most surprising, heartening, happy, sad, encouraging thing you found -- was there something or an interview that really struck an emotional chord with you?

I think what was surprising was some of the consistency of the stories that people told, two things, one was the conversation they had with their 11-year old or 12 year old sons about what happens when they got pulled over by the police. Literally no matter if you were a Hollywood millionaire or you were in dire poverty in Detroit. 'Here's how you survive if a cop pulls you over.' That was pretty shocking because you would do one interview and then you'd do another and by the fourth or fifth you realized that even if you weren't talking to people about that issue, you'd realize wow, there's this redundancy this verbatim conversation that's happening in the black community across all socioeconomic levels that white people do not have.

You [also] asked about what was encouraging....What was very interesting to me was to see the sheer number of people who could be doing so many other things.

One of the people we profiled, a surgeon Dr. Cooper, Carnell Cooper in Baltimore, he's a trauma surgeon so basically all he does is remove bullets from young black men. And after he works his 15 hour shift, he then goes and counsels these young men, sits down by their bedside and tells them, 'You know I can get you out of the game. What do you want? Your GED, a job, what do you need?' And he started a foundation in '99 called Violence Intervention Project and he helps these kids, because they're all kids, mostly 18 year old boys, 19 and 20. There are so many people who are doing things like that that really don't have to and so I find that incredibly encouraging because it's recognition that there's a huge problem and the only really way to fix it is us. The only way to fix your own community is to fix your own community. That has been very encouraging.
Those two stories have a common thread which goes across class. I haven't seen the documentary yet but I kind of assumed that a lot of things would be kind of past race and moving towards class division in the black community. It sounds like what you found was that there are still many commonalities around race.

I don't think that's true. You know some people say to me 'Are we post-racial?' And I'm like, 'No and I don't think we want to be -- I mean at least I don't want to be.' People have said to me, "Wouldn't it be great the day when no one sees color?" No, I mean why? What's wrong with seeing color? I think what people don't want is all of the negative repercussions with being colorblind. I mean I never thought seeing color was a bad thing. I always considered a back handed faux compliment was "I don't even think of you as black." That's like the worst compliment. "Oh you speak so well I don't think of you as black" I mean what does that even mean? I like the color I am and I'm proud of my color, and I'm proud of my parents' colors so I'm good with it, why are you not good with it? I don't think things need to be post-racial I think what we need is equality and a sense of understanding.

Do you think there is a disconnect between Barack Obama and black America?

I don't. I don't think so at all. I mean if you're asking my opinion I don't think so at all. I think Barack Obama is the fruition of a lot of people's work and a lot of people's dreams over the last 40 years. I mean we heard that consistently when we were doing our reporting so I think Barack Obama is part of black America and there is no disconnect. I'm sure he's disconnected from some parts of black America and I'm sure some parts of black America are disconnected from other parts of black America. But Barack Obama is as much a part of black America as me with my light skin; my dad's white and my mom's black, as my cousin who grew up in Guyana and her children are here. We're black America and it's a very wide picture that includes a lot of people. Not in our documentary necessarily where we tried to keep sort of a narrow focus but black America is a lot of things. I always hesitate when people like to try and figure who's in and who's out because it's not helpful and it's not realistic. Black America includes a lot of people.


Would you say that 'Black in America' was made for black people or for white people?

As a journalist, I never see stories that way. I would go to New Orleans all the time and people would say, "Oh this is great you're telling our story for us." I really wasn't, I was really just reporting on what I saw. So you hope if you're a good storyteller you can capture it for everybody. My goal was just to make sure that the interviews cut to the core, they got to the point that we didn't dance around things that everybody would want to talk about that. I truly never thought, "Let me ask this question because I really need white people to know this," and that's not how I approach any story, ever. I just think if you have good people and you do good interviews and you have those moments in the interview that draw everybody in because you're grabbing them by their throats and their hearts then you've succeeded. I hope everybody watches it.

Today's Word: Believers Behaving Badly

I may get some flak for posting this, but I must sat that sometimes we Believers think we've got it going on and our stuff is sooo raggedy. We claim superiority, yet spiritually our life is in shambles. We still have a lot to learn. I found this story and it really is thought provoking. Check it out:

Heard of "Christian's" blowing up abortion clinics, or protesting at people's funerals who die of aids???

Stories such as these embarrass me. They make me want to disassociate—Well, I’m not like “those Christians.” But I’ve started to wonder: Do any of my actions make me seem like them? Do others ever perceive me as one of “them”?

“Those Christians” make me uncomfortable because their actions cause me to consider my own. To analyze my actions, I listed bad behaviors often associated with Christians:

Mistake #1: Thinking non-Christians are morally or ethically inferior to believers. I’ve made this mistake by not recognizing God can teach me through unbelieving friends. Some time ago, I offered to make photocopies of a booklet for one such friend. He replied, “No, I’ll buy my own booklet. It’s copyrighted, and I want the author to get his royalties.” My friend’s integrity amazed me, and my own lack of regard for the writer’s livelihood shocked me. This conversation was a poignant reminder: Everyone I encounter has a lesson to teach.

Mistake #2: Believing some sins are worse than others. Probably no one would admit to this attitude. But again, I’m guilty of this mistake due to my dismissive attitude toward sinful thoughts. When someone cuts me off in traffic, I feel entitled to anger. Bitterness, jealousy, and envy seem like “no big deal” because I haven’t done anything wrong. But then I remember coveting—forbidden in the Ten Commandments—is usually a thought, and many of the other nine can take the form of thoughts, too. Suddenly, those sinful thoughts don’t seem so little anymore.

Mistake #3: Thinking Christians earn a “spiritual rank” through works—or lack thereof. Everyone’s heard the terms: the ungodly, baby Christians, backsliders, legalists, heretics, those who talk the talk but don’t walk the walk, and, of course, the spiritually mature. Since I’ve used only one or two of those terms in my entire life, surely I’m not guilty of this mistake. Yet, in some ways, I am. I gravitate toward the spiritually mature, believing only they can teach me. And I often overlook God’s power evidenced in new Christians. Because they see God’s Word with fresh eyes, new Christians astound me with their scriptural insights. Much like the remedy for Mistake #1, I need to remember God teaches me through many people, and he can definitely use a new Christian to reinvigorate my faith.

Mistake #4: Believing I’ve arrived spiritually. I sometimes zone out for the reading of familiar Scripture during my pastor’s sermon, thinking, Yeah, yeah, I’ve heard this one before. I became aware of this when I asked my church’s youth group to recite John 3:16 together. The teens rolled their eyes and practically yawned out the words. I wonder if I sometimes wear that bored facial expression in church. My poor pastor!

I’d previously pretty much dismissed a lot of my own unfortunate behavior. I wonder how many people have noticed my bad attitudes, bad facial expressions, and maybe even bad actions, and said, “That’s how Christians behave? I don’t want to be like them.” I’m actually grateful to have read about the latest antics of the Phelps family; their bad behavior helped me recognize behavior I need to change. “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23–24).

The next time I read a story or hear a conversation about “those Christian jerks,” I’ll try not to smugly nod in agreement. Instead, I’ll listen carefully. After all, they just might be talking about me.


How do you respond when other Christians behave badly? Is recognizing bad behaviors in yourself difficult? What’s helped you recognize and change these thoughts or behaviors?

Justin Timberlake: Racism or Ignorance?

Never really cared for Justin, and (pre Music 360) he tore my pants the way he handled the Janet Jackson Superbowl situation.  Anyway....

Recently he performed on the ESPYs… and apparently did this:

JT was reportedly teasing Boston Celtics basketball playerPaul Pierce about his injured knee in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. In describing how Pierce quickly came back, Justin joked that Pierce was back on the court, “shucking and jiving.”

The comment, which was cut out of the broadcast that aired Sunday night, was met with silence from the crowd when the show taped on Wednesday.

For those not in the know, “shuckin’ and jivin’” is a slang term primarily used by African Americans referring to the speech and behavioural mechanisms adopted in the presence of authority figures. The term usually involves clever lies and impromptu storytelling, used to one-up an opponent or avoid punishment and originated in the era of slavery.

Yikes.  I don’t know if this is “racist” or not (What IS racist anymore, anyway?)… I think he probably made a poor choice of words..typical southern white guy (He’s from Memphis) who isn’t really aware of racial sensitivity.

What do ya’ll think?

Sports: Melee/Scuffle Mars Sparks Game

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP)—Candace Parker wanted to focus on all of the good parts of the Los Angeles Sparks’ win over the Detroit Shock.

Unfortunately, it will be the final 5 seconds that everyone else is going to remember.

Parker was one of three players ejected along with Detroit assistant coach Rick Mahorn after an ugly scuffle with 4.6 seconds left in Los Angeles’ 84-81 victory.

“To be honest, I don’t recall exactly what happened,” said Parker, who led Los Angeles with 21 points. “I’ll have to watch the tape.”

The skirmish started moments after Parker and Detroit’s Cheryl Ford had to be separated after Ford fouled Parker.

On the next possession, Parker got tangled up with Detroit’s Plenette Pierson and fell to the ground. As she was getting up, Pierson intentionally ran into her, setting off the melee.

Parker threw a punch at Pierson before being tackled by Detroit’s Deanna Nolan. Players and coaches from both teams joined in, and Mahorn knocked Lisa Leslie to the court at one point.

“I was trying to protect the whole game, the integrity of the game,” he said. “The WNBA is very special to me because I have four daughters. I don’t even raise my hand to them, and I would never push a woman. This game, I love this game too much.”

Mahorn was also involved in the 2004 Pistons-Pacers brawl while working as a Detroit broadcaster, going into the crowd to try to pull Ron Artest away from fans.

“Rick Mahorn is known as a peacemaker, from even the brawl we had here with Indiana,” Detroit coach Bill Laimbeer said. “He went out there to get people off the pile, and to get people to stop the confrontation. That’s who he is, that’s what he does.”

Leslie did not talk to the media, but Los Angeles coach Michael Cooper also said he felt Mahorn was trying to stop the fight.

“I think Rick was trying to play peacemaker, but he’s just too big,” Sparks coach Michael Cooper said. “I was only trying to grab my players, and I didn’t see exactly what happened, but he apparently gently tried to push Lisa away.”

DeLisha Milton-Jones shoved and punched Mahorn after the incident with Leslie, and was ejected, along with Mahorn, Parker and Pierson. Nolan and Shannon Bobbitt received technicals.

“That was unfortunate, but things like that happen in basketball sometimes,” Milton-Jones said. “The league is going to have to decide what kind of action to take.”

MANDELA’S 8 LESSONS OF LEADERSHIP

Nelson Mandela, who celebrated his 90th birthday on Friday, recently sat down with TIME managing editor Richard Stengel, who collaborated with Mandela on his 1993 book Long Walk to Freedom to discuss what it means to be a leader.
According to the article:
Mandela is the closest thing the world has to a secular saint, but he would be the first to admit that he is something far more pedestrian: a politician. He overthrew apartheid and created a nonracial democratic South Africa by knowing precisely when and how to transition between his roles as warrior, martyr, diplomat and statesman.
Stengel says the lessons “are calibrated to cause the best kind of trouble: the trouble that forces us to ask how we can make the world a better place.”
Also, in honor of the world’s great hero, Stengel narrated a photo essay offering a look at the life and leadership of Madiba, Mandela’s clan name and what everyone close to him calls him.

Tragic: Music 360: DJ K-SWIFT

The body of 29-year-old Khia Edgerton, also known as “K-Swift” was found Monday morning at her northeast Baltimore home.
They say K-Swift was giving a pool party at her home earlier in the day. She had been drinking extensively before getting into the pool. Witnesses told police there were several people in the pool when Edgerton jumped in, but none of the swimmers were alarmed when she didn’t immediately resurface. There were also lifeguards present.
After time had passed and she still didn’t surface, they got alarmed and jumped in. They were able to pull her out to the side of the pool. Medics were called but no one at the party attempted CPR while they were waiting. When medics got there, they attempted CPR to no avail. She was transported to Good Samaritan Hospital where she was pronounced dead.
She broke ground as a female DJ on 92 Q Jams and rose to female mix show coordinator. She is one of the only women in the country to hold the title. Her death is being investigated by Baltimore City police as a suspicious death. [SOURCE]

Sports: JONES ASK FOR COMMUTED SENTENCE

Disgraced Olympic track star Marion Jones has asked President Bush to commute her six-month prison sentence for lying to federal agents about her use of performance-enhancing drugs and a check-fraud scam.
Jones, a former Olympic gold medalist, was convicted in January of lying to federal agents investigating the use of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs in track and field. She was sentenced to six months in prison and 400 hours of community service and began serving the sentence in Texas on March 7.
The Justice Department reviews all requests for pardons and commutations and makes recommendations to the president. A pardon removes a conviction from someone’s record, while a commutation only reduces or eliminates the person’s sentence, according to the Associated Press. It was not clear when Jones made the request, AP reported.
Jones, 32, has been stripped of her medals won at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Coming To A City Near You!! CITIES CRACK DOWN ON SAGGING

Flint Police Chief David Dicks stops two boys for wearing saggy pants this month.

Various cities across the United States have been cracking down on youngsters who like to wear saggy pants.
Eugene Williams is the mayor of Lynwood (in South Chicago), says young men walk around town half-dressed, keeping major retailers and economic development away. He calls the new law a hot topic. The American Civil Liberties Union says the ordinance targets young men of color.
Young adults in the village, like 21-year-old Joe Klomes, say the new law infringes on their personal style. He says leaders should instead spend money on making the area look nicer.
In Flint, Michigan, Flint Police Chief David Dicks (pictured above) has said he will not back down from his policy of filing disorderly conduct or indecent exposure charges against those whose saggy pants allow too much underwear or their bottoms to show on city streets (view video).

In response, the American Civil Liberties Union’s Michigan chapter told the Free Press on Monday that it is now looking for targets of the policy to talk with the organization. The ACLU has called the city ordinance unconstitutional.
“We are confident that young men in Flint will contact us now that the chief has announced that he won’t budge,” Michael J. Steinberg, legal director of the state ACLU, said Monday. “If they do, we’ll sue. We may have the dubious distinction of being the first saggy pants lawsuit in the country.” [ READ MORE ]
Detroit and various cities in South Carolina are also jumping on the ‘no saggy pants’ bandwagon.

POLITICAL ROUNDUP: OBAMA IN AFGHANISTAN

Sen. Barack Obama greets Command Sgt. Maj. Arthur Coleman, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sunday.

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday as part of his week-long foreign tour.
Following their meeting, Obama told CBS News, “There’s starting to be a growing consensus that it’s time for us to withdraw some of our combat troops out of Iraq, deploy them here in Afghanistan, and I think we have to seize that opportunity. Now is the time for us to do it. I think the situation is getting urgent enough that we have got to start doing something now.”
Earlier Sunday, Obama also met and praised U.S. troops over breakfast at a heavily fortified base in the capital, Kabul.

CNN’S ‘BLACK IN AMERICA’ AIRING ON JULY 23RD & 24TH

I already posted the trailer for “CNN Presents: Black in America” early last month, but since it’s about to premiere in a few days, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to post it again.

The special is a four-hour television event that examines the complex issues, successes and struggles of black men, women and families in America. Airing July 23rd & 24th at 9pmET/PT. Make sure to check out the OFFICIAL SITE for more info.

McCain Leeks details of Obama's Trip...Breeches Security!!

Reuters reports that McCain shared details of Obama's trip to Iraq at a fundraiser:

Republican presidential candidate John McCain said on Friday that his Democratic opponent, Barack Obama, is likely to be in Iraq over the weekend.

The Obama campaign has tried to cloak the Illinois senator's trip in some measure of secrecy for security reasons. The White House, State Department and Pentagon do not announce senior officials' visits to Iraq in advance.

"I believe that either today or tomorrow -- and I'm not privy to his schedule -- Sen. Obama will be landing in Iraq with some other senators" who make up a congressional delegation, McCain told a campaign fund-raising luncheon.

Josh Marshall points out that there's something very wrong with this:

The Reuters piece hints at it. But if Obama is going to be in Iraq this weekend, this is a major breach on McCain's part. As a knowledgeable insider notes ...

"If it is true that Obama is going to Iraq this weekend, it is a very serious mistake for McCain to have disclosed it publicly. Even for run-of-the-mill CODELs the military gives guidance like, "Please strongly discourage Congressional offices from issuing press releases prior to their trips which mention their intent to travel to the AOR and/or the dates of that travel or their scheduled meetings. Such releases are a serious compromise to OPSEC." If Obama is going to Iraq this weekend, I can not begin to imagine how much this is complicating the security planning for the trip."

It's known that Obama is leaving on his foreign trip this weekend and the Journal OpEd page this morning said that Obama could arrive in Iraq "as early as this weekend." And with a slew of reporters in tow, it's not exactly highly classified information. But there is a reason definite information about these sorts of trips aren't released in advance.

Hypothetically, maybe McCain was just guessing. But even so it would still be a serious lapse of judgment on his part.

In fact, McCain was furious when the press reported on his son serving in Iraq -- he feared the coverage would make him a target.

Now Disney Is Being CRITICIZED For Their First Black Princess??

When Disney announced it was casting its first black princess for its latest animation film, the African-American heroine was hailed as a positive role model for little girls and an ambitious marketing ploy, not to mention an attempt to ward off the allegations of racism that have lurked since the heyday of Walt Disney Productions in the 1940s and 1950s.

But now the film studio finds itself fending off a chorus of accusations of racial stereotyping in its forthcoming big-budget cartoon, The Princess and The Frog: An American Fairy Tale, which marks a return to hand-drawn animation.

A musical set in 1920s New Orleans, the film was supposed to feature Maddy, a black chambermaid working for a spoilt, white Southern debutante. Maddy was to be helped by a voodoo priestess fairy godmother to win the heart of a white prince, after he rescued her from the clutches of a voodoo magician.

Disney's original storyboard is believed to have been torn up after criticism that the lead character was a clichéd subservient role with echoes of slavery, and whose name sounded too much like "Mammy" – a unwelcome reminder of America's Deep South before the civil rights movement swept away segregation.

The heroine has been recast as Tiana, a 19-year-old in a country that has never had a monarchy. She is now slated to live "happily ever after" with a handsome fellow who is not black – with leaks suggesting that he will be of Middle Eastern heritage and called Naveen. The race of the villain in the cartoon is reported to have also been revised.

The film studio began making changes a year ago, first to its title, The Frog Princess, which some had interpreted as a slur. Amendments to the plot followed.

Rodney Hinds, features editor of The Voice newspaper, said: "We are talking about a big company who has had to go back to the drawing board. It's disappointing... Some of the stereotyping of people from our community is still rigid in people's minds. We have our own dreams and stories like everyone else, and we want them to be portrayed positively. This is about how people are perceived and a princess is normally a positive character who most people aspire to."

Disney commented: "The story takes place in the charming elegance and grandeur of New Orleans' fabled French Quarter during the Jazz Age... Princess Tiana will be a heroine in the great tradition of Disney's rich animated fairy tale legacy, and all other characters and aspects of the story will be treated with the greatest respect and sensitivity."

Disney's efforts to be multicultural have not always gone according to plan. In 1993, there were protests from Muslims who said the animated film Aladdin depicted the Middle East as barbaric. One lyric included with the line: "I come from a land, from a faraway place, where the caravan camels roam, where they cut off your ear if they don't like your face; it's barbaric, but hey, it's home."

Music 360: Method Man Takes A Dive

In a packed and ultra crowded club, nobody caught Method Man as he stage dived and he indeed hit the floor. But then he was picked up after the fact and carried on like nothing happened. Hilarious.

Whites May Exaggerate Black-Hispanic Tensions

PRINCETON, NJ -- Fewer than half of white adults in the United States -- contrasted with 60% of Hispanics and two-thirds of blacks -- believe good relations exist between U.S. blacks and Hispanics.



Blacks are clearly the most upbeat of the three groups about the state of black-Hispanic relations, as only 29% of blacks, compared with 36% of Hispanics and 43% of whites, say relations are bad. But Hispanics are significantly more positive than whites.

These findings are from the 2008 installment of Gallup's Minority Rights and Relations survey, conducted each June since 2001. This year's survey, fielded June 5 to July 6, includes interviews with 608 blacks and 502 Hispanics, and includes Spanish-language interviewing with nearly a quarter of the Hispanic sample. The black and Hispanic samples are weighted so they are correctly represented in the national totals.

The 2008 Gallup results are not new. For each of the past eight years, whites have had a substantially worse opinion than have blacks of black-Hispanic relations. And for most of this period, whites have had a more negative view than Hispanics.


Gallup's race-relations question asks all Americans to rate relations between blacks and Hispanics as either "very good," "somewhat good," "somewhat bad," or "very bad." Because of the relatively less positive perspective of whites, just 49% of Americans as a whole believe these relations are good, while 40% perceive them to be bad. This makes black-Hispanic relations the worst rated of the four racial/ethnic pairings measured in the survey.

Eighty-one percent of Americans see whites and Asians as getting along well, while about two-thirds of Americans consider both white-black and white-Hispanic relations positive.

The issue has obvious importance this election year, with Barack Obama soon to become the nation's first black on the ballot as a major-party candidate for president. Obama had difficulty carrying the Hispanic vote in the Democratic primaries earlier this year -- something that led to considerable media speculation about black-Hispanic animosity as the cause -- but Gallup polling has shown him solidly beating Republican John McCain among Hispanics throughout the campaign.

Just focusing on Hispanic Democrats (who favored Hillary Clinton over Obama, 52% to 44% for the nomination in Gallup Poll Daily tracking throughout May), 84% in May said they would vote for Clinton in a Clinton vs. McCain matchup in November, compared with 80% who said they would vote for Obama if the choice were Obama vs. McCain.

Hispanics preferred Clinton over Obama for the Democratic nomination, but they were not so opposed to Obama (or the idea of electing a black president) that they were willing to vote for McCain in the general election.

Bottom Line

The generally positive review of black-Hispanic relations in Gallup polling among members of the two leading U.S. minority groups contrasts with considerable media speculation about the impact of Hispanic animosity toward blacks in this year's primary elections.

Some of that commentary has speculated that the trend is getting worse as the Hispanic population grows and starts to outnumber blacks in some neighborhoods and entire cities. Others posit that older Hispanics are more likely than the younger generation to harbor biases and resentments against blacks.

In a January 2008 New York Times article titled, "In Obama's Pursuit of Latinos, Race Plays Role," the authors write, "Mr. Obama confronts a history of often uneasy and competitive relations between blacks and Hispanics, particularly as they have jockeyed for influence in cities like Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York. 'Many Latinos are not ready for a person of color,' Natasha Carrillo, 20, of East Los Angeles, said. 'I don't think many Latinos will vote for Obama. There's always been tension in the black and Latino communities. There's still that strong ethnic division. I helped organize citizenship drives, and those who I've talked to support Clinton.'"

While black-Hispanic animosity may exist and could even have been a factor in some state caucuses or primaries, the Gallup data indicates it is not overwhelmingly obvious to members of either group. Whites are much more likely to believe the two are in conflict.

Friday's Foolywang:Dad Trades Baby's Name for $100 Gas Card

Memba, that commercial, "What Would You Do For A Klondike Bar"??  Well, in this day and age, let's change that to, "What Would You Do For A $100 Gas Card"!!  Check this foolywang out:

When three Florida radio hosts set out to learn what their listeners would be willing to do in exchange for a $100 gas card, they never dreamed they'd get anyone as eager as father-to-be David Partin.

Floridians Samantha Bailey and David Partin's will name their baby Dixon Willoughby in exchange for a $100 gas card offered to them by the co-hosts of a morning radio show by the same name.

Partin, who called into the Orlando, Fla.-based Dixon & Willoughby morning show early Monday morning, will enjoy the spoils of a couple tanks of free gas in exchange for welcoming son Dixon Willoughby Partin into the world this December.

He won the radio gas card contest by offering the hosts the chance to name his first-born child. The co-hosts generously agreed to drop the "&" from the name.

"If nothing else, he's going to have a d--- good story behind his name and it will give him something to talk about," Partin, 26, said of his future son, due Dec. 28.

And while many expecting parents debate baby names for months, Partin and his girlfriend, 20-year-old Samantha Bailey, told ABCNews.com that the radio contest actually helped narrow down an already contentious issue.

Finance: Now We Ain't Tellin' Ya'll What To Do With Your Money, But Keep A SIDE EYE on Washington Mutual!!!

Take a good look at your bank!  After that IndyMac mess, don't take any chances.  I am NOT A FAN of WAMU and dropped that Foolywang a long time ago, and now I see why...

July 14 (Bloomberg) -- Washington Mutual Inc., after dropping the most since its initial public offering in 1983, said it is ``well capitalized'' with more than $40 billion in liquidity and $150 billion in retail deposits.

The company's tangible equity to tangible assets ratio is 7.8 percent as of June 30, Seattle-based Washington Mutual said in a Business Wire statement after the close of regular trading. Details will be provided on its July 22 earnings call, the company said.

Washington Mutual led a slide in home lenders after IndyMac Bancorp Inc. was taken over last week in the second-biggest seizure of a financial company by U.S. regulators. Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. predicted today that Washington Mutual's cumulative losses this year will reach $26 billion as the mortgage crisis worsens.

Washington Mutual rose 10 percent to $3.54 in extended trading after tumbling 35 percent at 4 p.m. on the New York Stock Exchange. The shares have lost 76 percent of their value this year, the second-biggest decline in the 24-member KBW Bank Index. National City Corp. has dropped 77 percent.

POLITICAL ROUNDUP: MICHELLE IS STAYING HOME

According to published reports, Michelle Obama will not be accompanying herhusband, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, on his upcoming trips to Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel and Europe.

Additionally, she does not plan to deliver policy speeches during the presidential campaign nor will she have a policy role in the Obama administration. Instead, she’ll be raising their daughters, and three media stars will travel with her husband.

Katie Couric of CBS, Charles Gibson of ABC and Brian Williams of NBC will accompany Obama overseas. Obama’s first visit overseas since becoming the party’s presumptive nominee would be an opportunity for voters to see how he handles two of their major concerns: national security and foreign affairs.

Why all the attention? Paul Friedman, senior vice president of CBS News, said “This is Senator Obama’s first trip — his positions and the public’s perception of him on national security issues are important.”

Why all the attention? Paul Friedman, senior vice president of CBS News, said “This is Senator Obama’s first trip — his positions and the public’s perception of him on national security issues are important.”

The View on Jesse's "N" word

The girls of The View talk about Jesse's use of the "N" word resulting in Elizabeth crying after a heated debate. What do you think?

WHAT ELSE JESSE SAID...

Earlier this week on the Open Line show, which airs in the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut markets, James Mtume announced that not only did Jesse Jackson say he wanted to cut off the testicles of Sen. Barack Obama, he also called the presidential hopeful a “ni**er and a half breed” and “f*ckin half breed ni**er”.

Mtume announced:

“Hey family, I got it on high authority, and the most respected source, that Jesse said a whole lot more than just the N (nuts) word. You know when Fox says that have more on them tapes. Well my sources say, that Jesse went off, and called Obama a Ni**er, he called Obama a no good half breed Nigger, and showed total discontent and animus toward Obama, amongst other things. Yeah it’s deep yall!”

JACKSON HAS APOLOGIZED and mentioned that “I said something I felt regret for — it was crude.”