Friday, January 28, 2011

Egpyt Shuts Turns Off Internet



Internet connections across Egypt have been cut, as authorities geared up for a day of mass protest.

Net analysis firms and web watchers have reported that the vast majority of the country's internet has become unreachable.

The unprecedented crack down has left millions of Egyptians without internet access...Read More

Jim Moran: Racism fueled Democrats' midterm losses


A Democratic congressman is attributing his party’s losses in the 2010 election cycle to the fact that President Barack Obama is black.

Speaking to Arab television network Alhurra, Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.) said Republicans made big gains in November in part because “a lot of people in this country … don’t want to be governed by an African-American.” read more

Thursday, January 27, 2011

The Billionaire Brothers Who Are Waging War Against Obama



Who are the Billionaire Koch brothers? What is their political or economic agenda? Why have they been waging a covert war against President Obama?

If you have any questions regarding the surmountable (yes, not insurmountable) odds President Obama and the Democrats face in enacting a Green Energy or Climate Control policy; or, if you want to discover the true puppet masters behind Rush Limbaugh, Glen Beck and the Tea Party, this article is a must read. read more

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Flava Flav Chicken and Bubble Gum Vodka



"The Colonel better watch his back, G! The Colonel might end up in my fryer.”


"Yo, check this out. I want you all to keep on the lookout – it should be on the shelves by January – I'm launching a thing called 'Le Flav Spirits. I'm comin' out with a cherry vodka, a berry vodka, an olive vodka, a sweet tea vodka, a bubblegum vodka and grape vodka. Also, I'm comin' out with 'Le Flav Cognac' and 'Chateaux Le Flav' which'll be some bubbly. Champagne, that's right folks – Poppin'n'drinkin!”
Flava Flav




Urban Dictionary Definition of Don't Hate the Playa, Hate the Game


Do not fault the successful participant in a flawed system; try instead to discern and rebuke that aspect of its organization which allows or encourages the behavior that has provoked your displeasure.

Reality:

Don't hate the Playa, hate the game (DHTPHTG) is the frequently used refrain to squash any criticism aimed at individuals who profit from outlaw, destructive and cooning behavior in the black community.

DHTPHTG means that since the system is rigged and corrupt, a brotha/sista gotta do what they gotta do to get paid. As legendary rapper Biggie Smalls once rapped:


Yeah, this album is dedicated to all the teachers that told me
I'd never amount to nothin', to all the people that lived above the
buildings that I was hustlin' in front of that called the police on
me when I was just tryin' to make some money to feed my daughters,
and all the niggaz in the struggle, you know what I'm sayin'?


The obvious sentiment: Since Big had to feed his family, shame on us for reporting drug dealing in front of our building. The fact that his drug dealing is destroying our neighborhood and making it harder for us to properly raise our kids - well don't hate me, hate the game.

Granted, the song Juicy Fruit is over 15 years old and like Jay-Z, Big was maturing from a teenager to an adult perspective, yet in still, DHTPHTG is still the pervasive mentality of Urban, USA.

Mr. Flava Flav, at age 51, is still cooning for the masses to earn a check and he wants us to don't hate the playa, hate the game.

Naw playa, you and the game gotta step up your game. And that's all I have to say about that.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

The Key To Success: 10,000 Hour Rule

We all, in our own way, strive or aspire to be successful; and there are many different definitions of success as well. Whether success can be quantified as money, fame or fortune can be argued. However, achievement of excellence is more easy to identify. The excellent teacher, doctor, business person, engineer, scientist, athlete, lawyer, entertainer, leader and yes even writer unequivocally stand head and shoulders above the pack.

Their emergence leads us all to breathtakingly ask, how did they do it?

Malcolm Gladwell, famed author of Outliers, apparently has the answer, and the answer is the 10,000 Hour Rule - discovered by neurologist Daniel Levitin. Yes, ability and talent are prerequisites but without adherence to the 10,000 Hour Rule the striver probably will fall short of excellence in their chosen field.

10,000 Hour Rule:

Gladwell quotes neurologist Daniel Levitin as follows:

“In study after study, of composers, basketball players, fiction writers, ice-skaters, concert pianists, chess players, master criminals, this number comes up again and again. Ten thousand hours is equivalent to roughly three hours a day, or 20 hours a week, of practice over 10 years… No one has yet found a case in which true world-class expertise was accomplished in less time. It seems that it takes the brain this long to assimilate all that it needs to know to achieve true mastery.“


The secret is finding a passion that study and practice becomes second nature and not a chore. As the proverbial adage says: Your passion is what you are willing to do even if nobody pays you for it.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Ronald Reagan: 30 Year Legacy



This month marked the 30th anniversary of conservative and cultural icon Ronald Reagan's inauguration as our 40th president. Reagan, revered and idolized by conservatives and Tea Party members, is credited for ushering in Reaganomics:
The four pillars of Reagan's economic policy were to:
1.Reduce government spending,
2.Reduce income and capital gains marginal tax rates,
3.Reduce government regulation,
4.Control the money supply to reduce inflation.


The Republican party, in a perpetual state of looking for the next Ronald Reagan, cite Reaganomics as their economic bible. Whether times are hard, prosperous or middle of the rode, cutting taxes and shrinking government is the GOP's mantra. Just read what the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation says about Reagan:

No matter how advocates of big government try to rewrite history, Ronald Reagan's record of fiscal responsibility continues to stand as the most successful economic policy of the 20th century. His tax reforms triggered an economic expansion that continues to this day. His investments in national security ended the Cold War and made possible the subsequent defense spending reductions that are largely responsible for the current federal surpluses. His efforts to restrain the expansion of federal government helped to limit the growth of domestic spending.

Funny thing, stubborn facts stand in the way of blissful and selective amnesia regarding Reagan's tenure.

Reagan the myth vs. Reagan reality


Fact one: Reagan never submitted a balance budget. President Clinton was the first president since JFK to accomplish this feat.

Fact two: Government did not shrink under Reagan's two terms; quite the converse, government dramatically grew.

Fact three: Budget deficits, what Tea Party folks blame on Democratic big government spending, ballooned under the stewardship of Ronald Reagan. In fact, Mr. Conservative himself, former vice-president, Dick Cheney famously stated: Reagan proved deficits don't matter

In summary, Reaganomics was best described by fellow Republican George Bush Sr., as voodoo economics...it robs the poor and middle-class to further reward the most rich.

Excuse me if you don't hear me popping champagne and toasting Ronald Reagan.