Claude203's Comments (31)

“Wow! Very good. Also, we need not pay so much attention to the screaming tantrums of a dying social order, as loud as it may be. But the media loves it.”

“Bravo.”

“Very funny. :-)”

“@ Robbie O'Brien:

I appreciate your POV, and it sure is easy to pick on Vick, isn't it?

But yet I didn't see you leave any righteously indignant comments on this post:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/24/150-dogs-found-dead-in-fr_n_244614.html

Did you even notice that story? It stayed in the news for about one or two seconds.

The hypocrisy is that the news media loves drama. There's "better selling" drama in reporting on Vick, even though much more heinous, psychotic, deranged behavior goes on everyday all around us, unreported or under-reported.

As for your sarcasm, Eve, you seem to be giving a mixed message. Should we hire ex-offenders who have served their time, or not?

Having said that, I very much like your use of this story to shine a light on a bigger issue that needs to be addressed.”

“Your suggestion will only perpetuate the historic "pain body" (an Eckhart Tolle term), that is a burden to both blacks and whites, rather than alleviate it.”

“This may be an over-reaction by the media, who love to "prove" the lack of this or that because it feeds into their own needs, and satisfies the strong hunger for negativity from those who are unconscious. There are always two sides to a story. Let's wait to hear the whole story.”

“Very well said.

Not to mention that part of the reason for the "distance" is the perception among some African Americans that African nations all-too-often seem plagued by corruption, greed, civil war, atrocities, political instability, self-hatred, and a poverty-mentality, with few examples of leadership and governance worth emulating or modeling. Yet, historically, the Africans who immigrate to America are often perceived as "looking down upon" their "brothers" in America, certainly because of perceptions they've accumulated on the flip side. The media helps expand this divide by only reporting the worst or most extreme examples on either side.

The visit of the Obamas certainly helps.

One last point. You really could (and ought to) replace the word "blacks" with the phrase "all people" in your sentence that ends with ".. he believes that success in Africa is an essential part of ensuring the success of blacks around the world."”

“You lost me on the first sentence. Try spelling the guy's name right. :-)”

“A lot of people have a vested interest in having the conflicts in the Middle East continue, so much so that these conflicts have become an "institution" just like racism and other manipulated constructs that most people bought into for decades or centuries. But judging from articles and viewpoints like this one by Dr. Bromwich, that seems to be changing. The institution of "racism" took a crushing blow and will never be the same again. Is the institutionalized israeli-Palestine conflict next? Let's hope so.”

“Very well said. This goes along with being "present" and in the "now" as Eckhart Tolle and others would say. Thank you.”

“isn't forgiveness the only way to redeem evil and gain true freedom?”

“Dear Earl,

Please read or listen to the chapter in Eckhart Tolle's "A New Earth" about entertainment, the media, and what he calls the "pain body," for a rundown of the most clear and compelling logic you've ever heard for why to avoid this kind of entertainment, let alone the details of who exactly is getting killed. In the audio version, that section is near the end of Disc 4.

Claude”

“I thought Matthews' "Oh God" was revealing in a good way. It wasn't a lapse in judgment as much as that it offered a voice to what a large number of viewers were already thinking. In that sense, Matthews revealed the unvarnished truth with no illusions. Isn't that what good journalism is supposed to be?”

“Kimberly, the end of "mystery" as you put it is the beginning of the realization that all of the things any of us can ever possibly write about ourselves on Facebook is still not really who we are at the level of our "being." This is a good thing. There will also be the realization, to which you have only hinted, that we are all already connected -- not just virtually in the online sense but also in the quantum physics sense and in the spiritual sense. This alone scares people, because most folks don't have a clue about their own "being" that is separate from their ego's attachment to written descriptions about themselves. The mystery remains because it is our own inner selves. It is also this: How will someone "feel" when they are near us, and vice versa. How will our "beings" interact, whether nearby or far away? How will we team up to help change the world? How will we inspire one another? How will we go deeper together into "this moment"? There are plenty of mysteries left! A really great article!”

“Wow! I mean, WOW! Very good write up. So obvious.”

“I never thought that poem by Robert Frost would bring tears to my eyes. But it did.”

“Here's my 4-year-old's reaction to Obama's infomercial, in a short video clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxMu6clC8Sw

If he gets it, then anyone can too!”

“It's funny but if this said "Just How Dumb Are Black Males" then it would likely be considered racist. Why is that? Is it the "race" of the author that determines? Just asking.

I think this is a very cleverly written and appropriate article.”

“By taking previously obscure events of the past and linking them to thoughtful concepts that are relevant and meaningful today, you have enabled your readers to "make history now!"

Thanks!
Claude Johnson
http:/www.blackfivesblog.com”

“Excellent article. For once, a breakdown of fear, and the relevant necessary roll it plays, and the way people use it to serve them or misuse it to manipulate others. And yet, how fear can also get in the way of our own wishes and desires.

If you'll allow me to share, I have these Rules of Life and Tightrope Walking:

1) Take one more step;
2) Repeat Rule #1.

Simple, I know, but it works. Helps one think bigger too.

Thanks!

Claude
www.blackfivesblog.com”

“Dear Deepak,

Many Americans do not recognize the power of their own minds in creating the world they wish to have. These "calamities" are not the work of God, they are the direct result of too many people focusing on what they fear the most and thereby creating the very thing. It's a crisis in confidence. For now. Our social, political, and cultural thrust of late has focused us toward our lowest desires rather than our highest ideals ... in spite of our own human nature to make progress. But that pent up demand is now manifesting in the form of apparent victory for Obama. But it's not so much about Obama as it is about the wave of humanity that wants to go where he's going. Obama is -- as you have put it -- quite literally "being the change that he wants to see." People who support him like that approach to life. Finally, this momentum may not have been possible had it not been for the contrast provided by the Bush Administration, against which it is now easy to see that change is not only necessary but inevitable. Proving once again that even the most terrible circumstances yield wonderful outcomes -- if we are wise enough and alert enough and "ready" enough to identify and receive them. There's never any such thing as a "crisis." These are learning opportunities on the path of progress.

Thank you!

Claude Johnson
www.blackfivesblog.com”

“PS - Social networking is the way of the future so you can either "McCain" it or you can "Obama" it (new verbs I just made up). But it won't go away.”

“Social networking is limited to a bunch of celebrities and elites and Georgetown cocktail drinkers telling each other how cool they are. Right?”

“Best quotes in a great article:

"Whenever you hear the word "bi-partisan," even during the waning hours of the Bush years, it usually means something very bad is about to happen."

"I don't believe in a government welfare program for Wall Street swindlers who had the audacity to pump up the paper value of one of their hidden, unregulated derivatives, "credit default swaps," from $631 billion in 2001 to $62 trillion in 2008!"

This is exactly what I've been wanting to hear. Thank you.”

“Merrill, you're so not alone. From the first handshake, McCain wasn't "there" enough to make eye contact or understand the dynamics of the moment. The first thing I thought about was, how is he going to be perceived by foreign dignitaries? Not to mention that we teach our kids to have a firm handshake when they meet someone, and then what? Look them in the eyes!”