Little reported in reference to the brouhaha over Dick Cheney giving the commencement speech at BYU this year is the fact that it wasn't BYU's idea. The VP's office asked BYU to invite him to give the speech, figuring that Cheney'd have a compliant audience for all his "last throes" bullsh*t.
Not so, but hardly suprising. Seems the VP's personal planning is on a par with his war planning.
Just for fun, and because it reminded me of a line Dave Chappelle repeated at his birthday show in DC, here's a snip from a piece on the BYU dust-up...
/snip/
But there are also some noteworthy distinctions between the visits of Dick Cheney and Michael Moore. The major issues people seemed to have with Moore (based on the hundreds of messages I received) were, in order: 1) he was too fat and unkempt, 2) he wasn't objective in his films, and 3) he was too harsh a critic of the Bush Administration and the war. In contrast, the concerns with Cheney are 1) his role in sending hundreds of thousands of young people into a tragically unnecessary war, 2) his advocation of torture as a "no-brainer," and 3) his suspect involvement in the Scooter Libby/Valerie Plame affair. Shooting someone in the face is a close fourth.
4.18.2007
4.12.2007
2.13.2007
Get Your Money Right
I came across this honestly; web searching for my consulting gig.
I'm intrigued. My client's got money to put on financial literacy workshops, geared toward the same demographic, planned for the same time the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network's tour stops in DC. If we can pull off a partnership or tag-on to their stuff, cool.
I'm intrigued. My client's got money to put on financial literacy workshops, geared toward the same demographic, planned for the same time the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network's tour stops in DC. If we can pull off a partnership or tag-on to their stuff, cool.
1.25.2007
Barack's balancing act
And so the, ahem, race begins in earnest.
/snip/
Already, that balancing act is causing some strains. Some of Obama's longtime black supporters in Illinois are grumbling about the largely white crowd of advisers who now surround Obama as he gears up his national campaign. "Who does he represent? That is what people are worried about," said Lorenzo Martin, publisher of the Chicago Standard newspapers, a chain of black-oriented weeklies that circulate in the southern suburbs. "When you look and see who is surrounding him, you are not going to see too many brothers. What you see is the liberal left."
What it comes down to in the end is less race than money. Barack Obama can play to any audience he wants, can promise all kinds of "new politics" for a new age - but he's gonna have to raise a boatload of cash to win the Democratic nomination, to say nothing of moving through the general election. At that level, the party affiliation matters less than cash affiliation.
Black, white, whatever... the green is gonna call the shots.
/snip/
Already, that balancing act is causing some strains. Some of Obama's longtime black supporters in Illinois are grumbling about the largely white crowd of advisers who now surround Obama as he gears up his national campaign. "Who does he represent? That is what people are worried about," said Lorenzo Martin, publisher of the Chicago Standard newspapers, a chain of black-oriented weeklies that circulate in the southern suburbs. "When you look and see who is surrounding him, you are not going to see too many brothers. What you see is the liberal left."
What it comes down to in the end is less race than money. Barack Obama can play to any audience he wants, can promise all kinds of "new politics" for a new age - but he's gonna have to raise a boatload of cash to win the Democratic nomination, to say nothing of moving through the general election. At that level, the party affiliation matters less than cash affiliation.
Black, white, whatever... the green is gonna call the shots.
1.18.2007
I like Dan Froomkin
It irks me to no end to hear talk about failure and success absent the reality that we failed from the git-go.
At a book-signing/reading years ago at the now-defunct SisterSpace Books, Nikki Giovanni said, "You have to know what a fool looks like." Here are a few.
At a book-signing/reading years ago at the now-defunct SisterSpace Books, Nikki Giovanni said, "You have to know what a fool looks like." Here are a few.
1.04.2007
via MLK, Jr.
Just heard on the iPod Shuffle... an excerpt from a speech by MLK, Jr. where he quoted William Jennings Bryan
"The truth, crushed to the earth, will rise again."
I, too, shall rise. From being self-crushed.
"The truth, crushed to the earth, will rise again."
I, too, shall rise. From being self-crushed.
12.10.2006
Jingle All the Way 10K
UPDATE: The race folks sent me pics.
I finished my first 10K this morning!
Acumen Solutions Jingle All The Way 10K
Washington, DC December 10, 2006
Official Men's Results
Place Div/Tot Num Name Age Hometown Gun T Net T Pace
317 61/138 851 Jomo Graham 33 WASHINGTON DC 51:20 51:07 8:14
12.06.2006
Talking Truth to Power
On the day the Iraq Study Group report came out, I feel like there's a new strain in the national dialogue.
1. Al Gore(from Think Progress)
2. Barbara Boxer (from AP)
I could go on. The point is, I feel less insane to hear something akin to reason and accountability returning to the discussion of the mess we're all in.
1. Al Gore(from Think Progress)
2. Barbara Boxer (from AP)
I could go on. The point is, I feel less insane to hear something akin to reason and accountability returning to the discussion of the mess we're all in.
A poet I heard about and want to read
Two weeks ago, my poetry workshop at All Souls Church ended. Chris Nealon, a professor at UC Berkeley, introduced us to a number of poets during the five-week course.
Here's one: Nathaniel Mackey.
Mackey recently won the National Book Award for Splay Anthem.
Here's one: Nathaniel Mackey.
Mackey recently won the National Book Award for Splay Anthem.
12.05.2006
Tuesday Morning: Brookland, USA
I started today with a bagel and a muffin. A bit much, but the belly's full. Now it's time for lists and tasks and measurables. Phone calls and e-mails. W-o-r-k.
Where's the poetry in that?
Just for fun, I browsed my Bookmarks for inspiration; procrastination, whatever...
Eureka! Now I'm ready for the mundane. Work, here I come :)
Where's the poetry in that?
Just for fun, I browsed my Bookmarks for inspiration; procrastination, whatever...
Eureka! Now I'm ready for the mundane. Work, here I come :)
12.01.2006
No Joke
Now, I could be snarky about this... but why bother?
The story speaks for itself.
(h/t to Crooks and Liars)
The story speaks for itself.
(h/t to Crooks and Liars)
11.27.2006
Flavor Flav wasn't always on VH1, clownin'
I only have a sec, but I want to get this off my chest.
Flavor Flav wasn't always on VH1, clownin'. As a charter member of Public Enemy, Flav's role was to give the masses someone to identify with while Chuck D was droppin' knowledge.
Before there was Ol' Dirty, there was Flav. Good, bad, ugly, and magnetic.
Check his style and flow on "Too Much Posse" and "Cold Lampin with Flavor" and you'll see what I mean.
Flavor Flav wasn't always on VH1, clownin'. As a charter member of Public Enemy, Flav's role was to give the masses someone to identify with while Chuck D was droppin' knowledge.
Before there was Ol' Dirty, there was Flav. Good, bad, ugly, and magnetic.
Check his style and flow on "Too Much Posse" and "Cold Lampin with Flavor" and you'll see what I mean.
10.14.2006
Back in Cali
It's nice to be back in the Bay Area. My wife and I came out to attend a gala for her organization - which, coincidentally, doubled as her last day working for those folks.
As the Gap Band says, "Celebrate".
We're here for a few more days, then back to DC. Lots of chill time, reading a nice serial novel in Harper's Magazine, digging the in-laws.
Life is good.
My mother-in-law's nice with the digital photos. Tonight she made us some bookmarks with a Thoreau quote ("Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you've imagined") laid over a cropped, enlarged flower petal she shot.
Say word.
As the Gap Band says, "Celebrate".
We're here for a few more days, then back to DC. Lots of chill time, reading a nice serial novel in Harper's Magazine, digging the in-laws.
Life is good.
My mother-in-law's nice with the digital photos. Tonight she made us some bookmarks with a Thoreau quote ("Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you've imagined") laid over a cropped, enlarged flower petal she shot.
Say word.
9.21.2006
7.06.2006
6.12.2006
5.30.2006
Soy sano
UPDATE: I'm been informed that Babel Fish misinformed me about translating "I'm healthy" into Spanish. Here's what I should have called this post from the start:
Estoy sano
Aah, blessed knowledge. I learned from an invasive, and admittedly not too painful, procedure this morning that I'm in good health. The recent bout with hematuria was likely the result of passing a kidney stone. Dr. Engel performed a cystourethroscopy and assured me that it's okay to get back to life as usual.
Most pressing for me was getting the Diet Coke ban lifted. I was told by the folks at Sibley to stop drinking carbonated drinks until the cause of the hematuria was determined* . I've got 32 12oz. cans of decaffeinated ambrosia from Costco sitting in my Florida den. Say, "Word!" Word, I'm sayin'...
Since I'm happy about my health, I'll try to let go of the irk-edness of missing my first 10K.
*I had a list of no-no's from the Sibley ER experience. Dr. Engel pooh-poohed them as ridiculous and unnecessary. My man! "You need to [go jogging] for your mental health, right?" he asked. Claro que si. "I'm addicted to Diet Coke," he said. Yo, tambien.
UPDATE: I'm been informed that Babel Fish misinformed me about translating "I'm healthy" into Spanish. Here's what I should have called this post from the start:
Estoy sano
Aah, blessed knowledge. I learned from an invasive, and admittedly not too painful, procedure this morning that I'm in good health. The recent bout with hematuria was likely the result of passing a kidney stone. Dr. Engel performed a cystourethroscopy and assured me that it's okay to get back to life as usual.
Most pressing for me was getting the Diet Coke ban lifted. I was told by the folks at Sibley to stop drinking carbonated drinks until the cause of the hematuria was determined* . I've got 32 12oz. cans of decaffeinated ambrosia from Costco sitting in my Florida den. Say, "Word!" Word, I'm sayin'...
Since I'm happy about my health, I'll try to let go of the irk-edness of missing my first 10K.
*I had a list of no-no's from the Sibley ER experience. Dr. Engel pooh-poohed them as ridiculous and unnecessary. My man! "You need to [go jogging] for your mental health, right?" he asked. Claro que si. "I'm addicted to Diet Coke," he said. Yo, tambien.
5.29.2006
My Inner Twenty Year-old
I read Matt Bai's article in yesterday's Sunday Times magazine about the YearlyKos conference. While I read a number of lefty blogs daily, I haven't really contemplated taking my online interest offline.
It's an interesting phenomenon to have a daily "interaction" without ever actually meeting folks. What's the equivalent of "all politics is local" for the blogosphere? How do I make more of my thoughts than comments left anonymously on someone's blog? I spent years doing front-line community work driven by all my political notions, and now that I don't do that work, where do I put my notions into practice?
I want to be an engaged citizen in the enterprise of making society more just and equitable, locally and globally. I'm starting to take an active role in neighborhood dialogues, which feels pretty good. At the same time, I want to look at the broader city (DC's a beautiful, complicated mess) and world (likewise beautiful, complicated, messy) and get in the game.
One of my personal barriers to break through is an overriding cynicism. It's a way to justify apathy and keep disappointment at bay when my utopian sentiments don't win out. Maybe if I start connecting my ideals and action, from the neighborhood to city-wide to global spheres, I'll meet like-minded people and in the process let myself be vulnerable and naive enough to resuscitate my inner twenty year-old.
Updated 05.30.06
I read Matt Bai's article in yesterday's Sunday Times magazine about the YearlyKos conference. While I read a number of lefty blogs daily, I haven't really contemplated taking my online interest offline.
It's an interesting phenomenon to have a daily "interaction" without ever actually meeting folks. What's the equivalent of "all politics is local" for the blogosphere? How do I make more of my thoughts than comments left anonymously on someone's blog? I spent years doing front-line community work driven by all my political notions, and now that I don't do that work, where do I put my notions into practice?
I want to be an engaged citizen in the enterprise of making society more just and equitable, locally and globally. I'm starting to take an active role in neighborhood dialogues, which feels pretty good. At the same time, I want to look at the broader city (DC's a beautiful, complicated mess) and world (likewise beautiful, complicated, messy) and get in the game.
One of my personal barriers to break through is an overriding cynicism. It's a way to justify apathy and keep disappointment at bay when my utopian sentiments don't win out. Maybe if I start connecting my ideals and action, from the neighborhood to city-wide to global spheres, I'll meet like-minded people and in the process let myself be vulnerable and naive enough to resuscitate my inner twenty year-old.
Updated 05.30.06
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