Montel Williams Blasts Obama Administration on VA Scandal - Video

Williams is a former Marine, so this is personal to him.  From what I understand he is taking a great deal of heat going after the Obama administration.  After all, it isn't politically correct for a black man to speak out about the anointed one.

From the "You Can't Handle the Truth" Files - Mark Cuban Edition

"In this day and age, this country has really come a long way putting any type of bigotry behind us, regardless of who it's toward. We've come a long way, and with that progress comes a price. We're a lot more vigilant and we're a lot less tolerant of different views, and it's not necessarily easy for everybody to adapt or evolve.

I mean, we're all prejudiced in one way or another. If I see a black kid in a hoodie and it's late at night, I'm walking to the other side of the street. And if on that side of the street, there's a guy that has tattoos all over his face -- white guy, bald head, tattoos everywhere -- I'm walking back to the other side of the street. And the list goes on of stereotypes that we all live up to and are fearful of. So in my businesses, I try not to be hypocritical. I know that I'm not perfect. I know that I live in a glass house, and it's not appropriate for me to throw stones."

So says Mark Cuban to Inc. Magazine in an answer to question about his upcoming vote in the NBA and the Sterling saga.  

Of course yet another firestorm has emerged from these statements.  Somehow this is becoming about Trayvon Martin. I suppose the Martin family have some sort trademark on the word Hoodie now.   To the point that Cuban has issued an apology to the Martin Family:

“In hindsight, I should have used different examples.  I didn’t consider the Trayvon Martin family and I apologize to them for that. Beyond apologizing to the Martin family, I stand by the words and the substance of the interview.”

There is nothing that Cuban said that is untrue.  The problem is that in today's society the truth is no longer valued.  What a sad state of affairs that is.  

We are human beings.  As such we all have frailties.  We all make judgements every single day about people we see out in public.  We do that for safety purposes.  If you are on a first date and that person rubs you the wrong way due to any number of reasons, you are making a judgement not to have a second date.  How you dress for a job interview can, and likely will, make a difference in if you are going to get a job offer or not.  Do you honestly believe that a law firm is going to hire someone who shows up in flip-flops and cut off jeans shorts?  Not likely.  Fair or not fair, it is the way it is.  

I will be the first to admit that if I was walking down the street in the dark and I saw someone with a hoodie on, I would think twice.  It has nothing to do with the color of their skin, but the fact that they are trying to hide their face from view.  I would wonder why.  If I saw some big burly man that had wild tattoos all over I would also feel a little fearful.  The same way a black person would feel fearful if they saw a person walking down the road in a KKK hood.  Heck, in fact I would be fearful if I saw someone in a KKK garb and I am not black.  In my mind someone wearing that is someone worth being fearful of.  It is going to set off red flags in my mind.  A swastika is another fearful sign to me.  Does that make me a racist?  

Another thing that I am fearful of is neighborhoods with high crime rates.  I lived just outside of DC for almost two decades.  I didn't go to certain neighborhoods unless it was absolutely necessary.  To me that is common sense and has nothing to do with skin color.   I would feel the same way regardless of skin color of the majority of people living in that neighborhood.  

We must talk about these issues instead of labeling someone a racist.  Which of course is exactly what happened to Mark Cuban once this interview went viral:

From twitter:

“Mark Cuban is racist. If I see him walking down the street I’m walking on the other side [because] I’m scared of him.”

This from Michelle Obama:

No matter what you do, the point is to never be afraid to talk about these issues, particularly the issue of race, because even today, we still struggle to do that. This issue is so sensitive, so complicated, so bound up with a painful history.

 And we need your generation to help us break through – we need all of you to ask the hard questions and have the honest conversations because that is the only way we will heal the wounds of the past and move forward to a better future.

She may have said it a little differently, but ultimately the context is the same.  We must talk about these issues.  We must face our own biases and prejudices in order to deal with them and overcome them.  We all have them.  Even if it is as simple as our political views.  Many in this country put the democrat in a certain box, put the republican in certain box.  Very few people fit neatly in the boxes that they get stuffed in.  

Telling the truth shouldn't be as controversial as it has become these days.  At this point in history we should be able to handle the truth that people carry stereotypes with them in life.  That virtually all people see certain things in their life and respond in ways that can be conceived as negative.  We make judgements based on how one is dressed.  We make judgements based on the neighborhoods that one lives in.  We make judgements on what type of work someone does.  It is only when we acknowledge these judgements and yes talk about them openly that we can finally break through the barriers of our preconceived notions that we all carry.   

In 2014 we should be able to handle the truth.  

Welcome to Conservatism Whoopi Goldberg

Not that she realizes she did this, but Ms. Goldberg made the conservative talking point about the welfare system during a discussion with Dr. Ben Carson on The View yesterday.  

"As a former welfare mother, very few people want to be on welfare. Very few want to walk with their kids and take food stamps. Most people would rather work. I don't feel bad about being a welfare mother because I contribute as an American - that's what we do. And because the welfare system is so bizarre, you can't work, they don't allow you to work because they take the money from you. So if we fix the system so that it doesn't hurt the people, maybe it'll get better."

How long have conservatives been saying this?  For decades that is how long.  Now I will concede the point that some on the right disparage people who take from entitlement programs.  I am not among them.  I go after the system, not the people themselves.  The system is broken.  It isn't designed to help people.  It entraps them therefore keeping them in poverty.  

As long as the system stays the way it is currently set up we will continue to have the same problems plaguing it.  For instance the food stamps program is currently set up so that if you make even one dollar above the max amount you lose everything.  That tells people that taking a better job that pays $100 more per month is actually going to cost you everything you get in food stamps.  If your food bill is over that amount, which the prices of groceries today being what they are, you can't afford to buy food.  

The only true answer to help people find their way off entitlement programs is to pro-rate the benefits.  This way a person who can slowly move their way up the ladder in the workforce isn't afraid of taking that better paying position. Today they are.  

On this Whoppi and I agree.  The problem is most liberals say you are dissing the poor when you talk about these things.  You are trying to starve poor children.  You hate minorities.  Or whatever other insult they will hurl at you that particular day.  I am not against all entitlement programs.  I think safety nets are necessary when people hit hard times.  What I don't like is a system that doesn't give you a way out once you hit those hard times.  

I believe that people should be able to find better jobs without the fear of homelessness or lack of food.  But the current system isn't designed to do that.  

I doubt that Ms. Goldberg realizes that she has a conservative view point on the welfare system, but she does.  Welcome to the right Whoopi.   I know you don't think you belong here, but your view point is more conservative than you think.  

Some Need To Turn In Their Limited Government Card - Laws to Prevent "Saggy Pants" Popping Up

I have been reading about different localities passing ordinances that will fine people for wearing "saggy" pants.  One such locality in Tennessee has gone as far as saying they present a health threat, therefore must be stopped.  Now, what health threat that would be hasn't been made clear and I have this feeling it never will.

I can't stand the look.  I can't even really put into words how much I hate seeing people's boxer shorts when I am out and about living my life.  But, that doesn't mean that I want to see people ticketed and fined for their lack of fashion sense.

What I find so fascinating about it is how many people on the right are cheering this notion.  Really?  You want the government to tell people what they can and cannot wear out in public?  You think that is limited government?

If we are going to start telling people what they can and cannot wear when they leave their homes, we no longer live in a free society.  Now, if a business wants to put up a sign saying that they have a certain dress code in order to enter their establishment, that is another story.  They are free to do so and the free market will decide if that hurts their business or not.  But to say that the simple act of walking your dog on a public street requires a dress code is a bridge too far in my view.

What is next?  I mean I think the science is pretty clear that high heels can and do cause damage to women's feet.  Will they be outlawed?  Do you really want the government to tell you that you are not allowed to wear that four inch spiked heal that makes your little black dress look complete?  I don't think so.  I personally can't wear high heals anymore, but back in my younger days I wore them all the time.  I could even run in them back in the day.  My feet, my choice.  Another look that I can't stand is how bra straps are now somehow fashion.  If we are going to outlaw saggy pants I think want bra straps showing to be illegal too.  It is just as ugly.

People should have the right to dress like an idiot if they want to.  As I said I hate this look, but in reality they aren't showing anything that shouldn't be seen in public.  They are covered.  It really is no different than some women wearing a sheer shirt with a tank underneath, and plenty of women do wear that look out in public.

In a free society people are going to do and wear things that you don't like.  It isn't the place of the government to tell us how to dress.  For those on the right that think these laws are a good thing, please turn in your limited government card on your way out.  You don't really believe it, you just use it to further your own agenda of the government telling us how to live our lives.

Collectivism Rears Its Ugly Head - Honors Night Cancelled in Rhode Island School

A middle school in East Greenwich, Rhode Island has cancelled the time honored tradition of "Honors Night".  It might hurt the feelings of some:

“members of the school community have long expressed concerns related to the exclusive nature of Honors Night,” 

Isn't that the point?  I mean really.  The honor roll is for students that worked hard and achieved a certain grade point average.  At least that is what I always led to believe.  I guess it has changed since I left school. Oh, but have no fear the students will indeed get their moment in the sun with "team based" recognition during graduation ceremonies.   

“This will afford us the opportunity to celebrate the individual and collective successes of all students and their effort, progress, and excellence,”

What I would like to know is did the collective do the homework and studying for the students that were able to make the honor roll this year?  If not, aren't they get recognized for something that they didn't actually do?  

This collective nonsense is killing this country.  We are not preparing students for the real world.  When you out looking for a job, it isn't a team.  It is you.  When you are out working that job, it is your work ethic that will make a difference in your pay scales, your job titles, and all else that goes with working in the real world.  Even if you are in a "team" environment, you still have to pull your own weight or you will get kicked to the curb.  Do you think if you are working in job that has this collective work environment that your "teammates" are going to be happy if they are working overtime to get the job done and you are walking out at five minutes to five?  Not likely.  

This school is teaching these children that their hard work doesn't really matter.  That is what we are teaching children in schools these days?  No wonder our education system is failing.   

The Shepard/Sally Divorce and Feminism

Social media is all a flutter over the impending divorce and custody case of The View's Sheri Shepard and Lamar Sally.  Sally filed for legal separation and shortly thereafter filed for not only divorce, but custody of the child that is currently unborn and being carried by a surrogate mother.  By getting custody he will likely receive (and rightly so, I might add) child support.  Many women are calling foul.  He is just some gold digger after her money.

Apparently they did sign a prenup and in case of divorce in the first five years of marriage (they have only been married about three years) he gets very little of her income or assets.  But this is something that happens all the time with women who marry successful men who have assets and money that are larger than their own.   Women file for divorce and expect large sums of money in spousal support.  I know a man who is divorced and his former wife wanted monthly spousal support, the house, the kids, as well as child support.  They made virtually the same income so why would he have to pay spousal support?  In the end she didn't get spousal support, but she did get everything else she asked for and then went off to start a new life with the man she cheated with.

If women are looking for equal treatment, than this should actually be celebrated not mocked.  She knew he made less money than her when she married him.  She knew she had assets that greatly exceeded his.  This was a choice that she made.  No one forced her down the aisle.

I get really tired of hearing from women that all they want is be treated equally to men then have the nerve to call foul when that is exactly what happens.  Women marry for money all the time.  We have seen it over and over again.  When the marriage ends, they expect large amounts of cash from the guy to continue the "lifestyle they have become accustomed" to.  Look at some of these celebrity/sports divorces and the very large settlements that women get.  Yet, that isn't what we are hearing in this case:

“In Sally’s case he is pathetic and not what I would classify as a MAN! Where is his damn money? She made her money now he wants hers. Spousal support, he is a punk!”

I didn't hear women saying things like that when Elin Woods left Tiger and received a large settlement.  Granted he was cheating on her (and yes that is an understatement for his behavior), but in most states divorce is no fault, so that doesn't matter.  When Jerry Hall divorced Mick Jagger she is estimated at getting $25 million, this is a woman who had a very successful modeling career and made her own money.  She was far from a pauper.

This is equality folks.  Divorce is ugly and money almost always becomes an issue.  Whomever the main breadwinner is the other spouse is going to be looking to get their hands on it.  If women want true equality stop complaining that men who marry, then divorce women, who are more well off than them are doing the same thing that women have been doing for generations.  This is exactly what feminism has called for.

Donald Sterling Full Interview with Anderson Cooper - Video

There really isn't more to say than oh my.  

Kevin Durant Talking About His Mom During MVP Award Speech - Happy Mother's Day - Video

I am a huge basketball fan and Durant being named the MVP was well deserved.  In his speech he thanked all the people who helped him along the way.  He is smart enough to know that others around him allow his talents to shine.  This is an amazing thank you to his first teacher and his biggest fan; his mom.  

The entire speech is amazing, but very long.  The most impressive thing about it is that he spoke from the heart, he had no prepared notes.  

Happy Mother's Day and enjoy this very heartfelt thanks to one mom, who like most other moms, made many sacrifices along the way to help their child be the best they can be.  

The Dumbing Down of The Black Community Continues

I came across an article today on our very sad public education system in our country.  What is the most bothersome about the article is how little respect for the black community this administration seems to have.  I think I have made it quite clear that I am no fan of Bush's No Child Left Behind initiative.  Well it seems that we have left it behind.  But the one thing that I will say in favor of it is the fact that it did not discriminate based on color.  The present day expectations, not so much.

Here are the very sad numbers:

In D.C. the expectations for white students is that 94% will be proficient in math, while the expectation for the black community is expected to be only 71%.

In Tennessee the black students are only expected to be at 64% in English 2.

In Minnesota we are hoping for a whopping 62% in math.

The list continues.  Why aren't we expecting all students, regardless of color to be proficient in both math and English?  We spend a fortune on public education in this country and yet we are saying it is perfectly acceptable that blacks can lag behind.  In some cases we are saying that one-third of black students can not be able to complete a high school math problem and not be able to read and/or write a paragraph in proper English.

Oh Al Sharpton, paging Al Sharpton.  Why aren't you outraged at this?  What this administration is saying is that blacks are not able to be held to the same standards as everyone else in the country.  That they just can't do the work.  I am sorry, but I refuse to accept that.  This is about low expectations.

One parent in Alabama:

"I think having a low bar means they can just pass them on. I think it's dumbing our race down and preparing our boys for prison."

While that may seem like an exaggeration,  it really isn't.  When you take a look at the demographics of people who are in the prison system, the numbers of people who don't graduate high school is very high.  From the Bureau of Justice Statistics:

• 68% of State prison inmates did not receive a high school diploma
• About 26% of State prison inmates said they had completed the GED while serving time in a correctional facility.

We are giving up on members of our society, especially those of color.  We are expecting less and less, all the while the calls for income inequality, more welfare, more food stamps, and other entitlement programs grow louder and louder from the left.  Hey, I have an idea, lets stop saying that blacks aren't capable of learning math and English, lets set the bar high and see what happens.

Sadly, the black community will be still thinking that President Obama has the back the black community.  He is their messiah, here to right the wrongs that have been done to them by a racist society.  Never mind that this mindset is part and parcel of the democrat party, that blacks can't do as well as whites or Asians.  We can expect less of them.

After all, it certainly helps the party if blacks are kept in the same position that many find themselves in today.  We wouldn't want them to do better now do we?  They might just start to figure out that government is perfectly happy in keeping them dumb-downed.  It allows the size and scope of government to grow and grow.  It is good for business.  Who cares if it is bad for people?  They are besides the point.

Of Course President Obama is Disappointed by the World - He Doesn't See Reality

A biographer has told the world that he feels that President Obama is disappointed in the world.  Really?  Well my most obvious response is that many in the world are very disappointed in him as well.  But there is more to this.  He is disappointed in the world because he views with rose-colored glasses on how the world should be instead of what it actually is.  

He truly believes that if we just make the minimum wage a little higher people will get lifted out poverty.  Although we have raised the minimum wage throughout the years and we still have poverty.  So the latest is a "living wage".  Which is just another myth that will never work on a national level.  

If the government just gets involved we can make the world more "fair".  He doesn't seem to understand that life isn't fair, nor will it ever be.  

If the rich just give more of their money, the poor will get more.  Again, this is just another myth.  President Obama is a perfect example of that.  He has made less money in 2013 than he did in 2014, I didn't get more because he has less.  Nor has anyone else.  

He never seems to understand that many of the people who are stuck in cycles of poverty are so because they make bad choices.  Now, I have this crappy part-time job.  Many of the people I work with are on some type of public assistance.  Yet they have smart phones.  I don't have a smart phone.  I can't spend over a hundred month on the bill.  I don't live in the projects because I spend my money differently than they do.  I make different choices.  I am not trying to disparage the poor, but studies have shown over and over again that they very successful people makes choices in their lives that allow them to become that way, while the poor make very different choices that also allow them to stay in their circumstances.  It may not be the way it should work, but it how it works.  This is reality.  You want to change the cycle of poverty, teach them how to make better choices.  Giving them enough money to survive does nothing except allow that cycle to continue.  

Obama thinks if the U.S. is just nicer the problem of radical Islam will magically disappear.  No it won't Mr. President.  These are people who are true believers in the ideology.  Most of them are willing, no eager, to die for what they believe in.  They look at becoming a martyr as the very best thing that Allah has to offer.  Until that is marginalized within the Islamic community it won't change.  You cannot "Co-exist" with someone who wants you dead.  This is reality.  

President Obama doesn't seem to think that real evil exists in the world.  Putin may not be evil, but he certainly does believe that Mother Russia should rise again.  He and buddies on the left scoffed at Gov. Romney when this came up at the debate.  The running joke was the 80's wants their foreign policy back.  It was Romney who saw the reality and those on the left that see the world as they think it should be instead of how it is.  

Yes the world disappoints President Obama.  Maybe, just maybe, if he stopped seeing those rosy hues, he can begin to understand that life isn't fair.  Evil does exist and those evils have to be confronted with strong leadership, not the moving red lines that those in Syria are laughing about all the while killing their own people completely unabated.  

Apparently Virginity is A High-Priced Commodity - 28-Year-Old Auctioning Off Her "First Time"

Isn't it romantic?  Placing and ad online to find someone to pay you for the privilege of taking your virginity.  I mean isn't that what romance novels are made of?  I wish I thought of it.

A 28-year-old medical student has done just that.  She says she is an "experienced" virgin and if you would like to be the first one all you have to do is pay her for it.  So far the high bid is at $550,000.  So that is what it is worth these days.  Good to know.

Her real name has not been released, but she says she is Virgin Whore and the man who eventually takes her virginity doesn't need to worry about her not having experience.  But she will submit to a medical exam to prove her virginity.  I suppose that means she engages in other sex acts but just has not had vaginal intercourse.

Does the "winner" of the auction get to ask if her rectal area has been untouched as well?  Maybe that is the type of virgin he is looking for.  Many heterosexuals enjoy anal sex.

She doesn't see a problem with this as she believes that prostitution should be decriminalized and should not have the stigma most people associate with it.  Her moral code is as follows:

“founded on a world of education and human emotion.”

Another words, if it feels good do it.  To heck with the consequences.  I would like to know if she plans on having this man submit to medical testing for STD's?  If she is an "experienced" virgin, she could very well already have some form of a STD.  You don't have to have intercourse to get many of them.  I am not even sure that HIV transmission requires intercourse, although I am no expert on these matters.

Seriously, what if everyone in the world used this as the guide to morality?  Sometimes human emotions get the better of us; we kill, we commit adultery, and all kinds of other acts in the name of emotion.  I have always thought part of morality was to overcome your all to human emotions at times and still do what is right for yourselves, others, and society as a whole?  Am I wrong about that?  I guess so.  Just do it if your being guided by your emotions.

I suppose if the emotions struck, I could walk up to this woman and slap her silly for giving away her virginity for money, and it would be perfectly acceptable and moral.  Well alrighty then.

Another thing I find fascinating is how men from all over the world are placing really high bids for the opportunity to be with a virgin.  Doesn't that tell you something ladies?

We have lost our moral compass as a society.  We become more depraved as each day passes.

Your body is not a commodity that can be bought and sold on the open market, well at least it should not be.  This comes down to how you value yourself.  I think she really needs to have a physician heal thy self moment.

Hey, What About All The Others Who Were Wrong in the Sterling Scandal?

I will say at the offset that I don't have a problem with what the NBA owners did.  Not because I think private speech should be punished or that racist speech is worse than other type of "hate" speech, but because I believe in the rule of law.  Part of that rule of law is contract law.  The NBA franchise agreement gives the owners the right to fine and suspend others with a simple majority vote.  When you sign that, you agree to the terms and conditions.  Mr. Sterling doesn't have a legal leg to stand on to stop the suspension or the fine.  

But there is a great number of people who are being left out of this conversation.  We can start with former commissioner David Stern.  It isn't like Mr. Sterling's comments should come as any surprise.  He was fined one of the largest fines in the history of the country for discriminating against minorities in housing.  His racists views were well-known long before that phone call became public.  David Stern did nothing about it.  Neither did any of the other owners, well at least as far as we know.  There may have been talk behind closed doors, but publicly no one did anything.  

We then can move onto the Los Angeles Chapter of the NAACP.  To me they come out looking far worse in this than Sterling ever will.  It shouldn't be overly surprising that a 80-year-old white man has racist tendencies.  It was a perfectly acceptable way to be and to think when he was growing up.  Yes, he should have "evolved" by now, but he is far from the only one from that generation that has not.  What I can't possibly fathom is the fact that organization  was about to give him a "Lifetime Achievement" award knowing full well he has history of discriminating against minorities.  Apparently to the NAACP it matters none if you actually are racist if you write some big ol checks along the way.  Did the NAACP not know about his housing discrimination issues?  Or did they just want the money more?   Sterling is just a racist.  The NAACP Los Angeles chapter are a bunch of money-grubbing opportunists that will allow the people they are said to be protecting to be violated against as long as they get theirs.  They will close their eyes to the very serious offense of housing discrimination as long as they are getting paid to.  Which just further proves that the organization has long since outlived their usefulness and should disband.  How can they possibly be taken seriously after this?  Not that I took them seriously about this beforehand, but I hope that some people will open their eyes.  Especially when you consider they are still saying today, they are "willing to work with him" as long as he finances some things.  Another words, write them another check.  

Now we can move onto the Congressional Black Caucus.  They seriously want the government to get involved with the NBA and how they set up their franchising?  Really?  They pounced on this to keep themselves in the news and to prove to the few people in the country who think that they actually accomplish anything are doing something.   C'mon the very last thing any professional sports franchise needs is the government getting involved.  They are actually profitable.  That will turn around quickly if the feds get their grubby mitts involved.  

We then have dear ol' Rev. Al who couldn't wait to get his five minutes in front of the camera.  He is now calling for more diversity in the game of basketball.  I suppose close to three-quarters of the players being black isn't good enough.  The NBA has more minority coaches and front office personnel than any other major sports in the country.  They have done the job of letting the free market decide who does and who does not have ownership as well as management positions all their own.  They don't need any interference from others.  

I now that many people are upset that Sterling is being punished for a private conversation.  I agree that shouldn't happen.  The problem is that we just can't ignore the conversation now that it is out there.  That conversation shined a light on his other transgressions that were wildly well-known within basketball circles that no one bothered to do anything about.  Yes there is a great deal of faux outrage involved.  But the NBA is far better off without this man in their ranks.  They real shame of the whole thing is that they waited so long to do it.    

But I have to say the most ironic part of the entire story is this:

Sterling was investigated, tried and convicted for housing violations by none other than that "racist" George W. Bush administration.  His AG office tried and fined him.  The NAACP of Los Angeles was going to give him a lifetime achievement award. You really can't make this stuff up folks.