Of course voting is useful. But then again, I don't put a big glow to it. Voting is about as essential as washing yourself. It's something you're supposed to do. Now, you can't go around bragging, expecting to get props because you voted. That's stupid.
Chuck D.

not to deter anyone from voting, but are you kidding me!! alot of people are having a plethora of different feelings in the last hours prior to this "historic" election but the feeling i am having now is a tinge of bitterness and disgust. did it really take 8 years of the George Bush administration and a bi-racial candidate for people to get involved en mass in the electoral process?? my parents have long instilled in me a sense of the true history of why it was important for me to vote. and not just in national elections, but specifically in local elections as my dad always said this is where the true change (since this has been a buzz word this year) happens. it is in the local elections where you can see a real difference in your communities. and now all this talk of the history of the bi-racial candidate becoming president or the female vice-president...what about the history that even allowed these two persons to be in this position now?? was that not enough to compel these people en masse again to be engaged in the political process prior to now?? and what if all these new found "voters" are not happy with the outcome of the election? what if their candidate doesnt win?? will they become cynical and not participate anymore?? will they hold the winning candidate accountable to addressing issues and concerns that matter to them?? and what if their candidate does win. will they hold that person accountable or give that person a pass?? i am a little bitter and disgusted because with all of the historical talk of this election we have failed to recognize that it shouldnt have taken all of this to get you involved and it better not take all of this to have you stay involved or we will be worse off than when you decided to take an active part in this process....but oh yeah, go vote!

the election season of my discontent

this election season has brought to light many overt and often subtle allusions to sexism, ageism, and yes racism on both sides. MSNBC's Keith Olbermann in this short video clip issues a plea to the Republican Presidential nominee. i am not so naive as to think that the election of either candidate will deter people from doing idiotic things or from the evils of hate and bigotry and chauvinism, but we must learn to have more open discussions about race and gender, and sexual orientation if we are to truly be One Nation....

is my support on blast

i have been having some recurring thoughts lately and i wanted to put it in the atmosphere and get a response from you guys...it is not a secret to most of my friends that i am an Obama supporter, but i must admit that i have been hesitant to broadcast my Obama support at work or at home....and i have a yard sign that remains in my living room and a magnet on my fridge...i do engage in some political conversations and i think even the people that i dont talk to presume i am voting for Obama, correction have voted for Obama. i did post the sample ballot for my state in the break room at work and my co-workers know that was my doing along with a sign for the dates of early voting! but i think some people can chalk that up to, well this is the first time he has voted here being new to the area?? but my recurring thoughts have been, how many other people are "secret" supporters of either Obama or McCain?? And why do some people have no shame or are unabashedly screaming their support while others silently cheer at the latest polls or cringe when a candidate or surrogate does something or says something we disagree with?? why are some people so open to discuss politics in "mixed" company and others in that same crowd even in the same conversation give glancing looks of now why did you have to go and say that, or can we please change the conversation; their uneasiness to engage in political discourse in no way hidden. why cant you openly discuss politics and/or religion? why? is it fear of some retribution? some retaliation? or simply being labeled and placed in some categorical box?? may be that is why its much easier to not declare or broadcast an affiliation at all and don the cloak of "independence" rather than the robe of "hey i am a supporter"...its much easier just to cheer silently i guess......

Genographic Update....

Each day I check my "genographic" updates so far still no uploaded results. As a reminder, see my post "Nosce te Ipsum" from September 23rd. Thus far my DNA sample has been processed for at least a month now, going through several processes (here's the bio-nerd in me coming through); a quick rundown (you can track your sample at the Genographic website):

1. Arrival and Batch Creation: The kits are received at the Houston office of Family Tree DNA and checked in.
   
   
2. DNA Isolation: The cells are broken open by incubation with a protein-cutting enzyme overnight. Chemicals and the samples are transferred into deep well blocks for robotic DNA isolation.
   
   
3. DNA Analysis and Quality Control: The samples are transferred into PCR amplification plates for testing using a robotic liquid handling station. The appropriate chemicals are added to the samples to amplify the targeted regions of the DNA for testing.

Here you'll find few interesting links from the Genographic Project:

1. Atlas of the Human Journey: a cool, in-depth interactive map showing how the first people migrated from Africa across the Globe. The map also shows the relative genetic markers to geographic regions.
   
   
2. Globe of Human History: this map lets you select a date range to trace the earliest humans and their migration patterns with STORIES! The range is between 5,000 B.C. - current.
   
   
3. Genetics Overview: a brief introduction to modern genetics and how gene markers work.

Discover your ancestry today, buy the kit!

quote of the week

"No pressure, no diamonds." -Thomas Carlyle

quote of the week...

"The Revolution will not be televised..."
Gil Scott-Heron

Nosce te ipsum...

It has been a while. Entirely too long. Almost 90-days to the date. Within those 90-days much has transpired globally and locally. About 90-days ago I just read "As a Man Thinketh." Ninety days later all I can say is that reading that one piece has changed the direction of my life.

All that aside tonight I discuss "nosce te ipsum," or "know thy self." As a black man I think this phrase can be a paradox. The deeper I explore myself the more I realize I don't know who I am. Not just me per se but I don't know my ancestors and since I don't--how can I know me?? For example, just last weekend, I went to my first Iftar to celebrate Ramadan with a friend and her social circle. It was so interesting for me to meet people that could say, "my family is from Syria," or "My family is from Northern Africa," or "My family is from Vietnam..." As a black American I always find myself stuck in these situations. I know my family is not from North Carolina, or Washington, DC or Virginia--but where are we from--and how do I get there? How can I really know myself if I don't know my Roots? And of course this is why Alex Haley wrote Roots because he didn't know--no one told him, Haley's story was "erased" from history (HIS-Story).

Just today, randomly, on my iPod I heard a speech by Randall Robinson, "The Debt and the Reckoning." In this speech he brings valuable insights, through humor and indirect confrontation:

• "On the memory side, we even do this thing every year, in February. [laughter] Dick Gregory said 'They even gave us a month with some of the days missing.' [laughter]"
  
• "The notion of black history month is ludicrous on its face, but its so telling. You can't segregate history. The story of America is the story of America. It begins with the story of the first American--left untold."
• "Jews have been able to survive all the hardships because they can remember 4,000 years back. That gives them the strength and so they can go to Abraham and come forward to Moses. But what about Zipporah the wife of Moses, who was Ethiopian and black. Nobody told me anything about that--and I needed to know that."
  
• "Herodotus, the great Greek historian, wrote 500 years before the birth of Christ, that everything that ancient Greece was--its calendar, its division of the year into 12 parts, its language, its math, its science, its gods, its mythology, its practice of carving figures in stone, all of it, according to Herodotus, 500 years before the birth of Christ--had been derived from older civilizations to the south, the civilizations of Egypt and Ethiopia. But I didn't know anything about it, and I needed to know."

I site elements of this speech because at the age of twenty-eight--I NEED TO KNOW. I need to know "my" culture. My culture outside of what America has given me. I need to know my native tongue, I need to know where it is on a map, I need to know what my contribution to humanity has been--not what my constantly overlooked contribution to America has been.

Maybe I am feeling this way because for the first time in my life I feel as if I can know. For my twenty eighth birthday I received a "Genographic Kit." This kit allows one to trace their ancestry via their DNA after just a few cheek cell scrapes. Ever since I have mailed in that package I find myself constantly checking the website to see if my results have been received. It is that anxious feeling that can only be described as "the night before Christmas..."

For now I wait patiently...after twenty-eight years I supposse it is only right. Stay tuned for the results.

I need to know.

Quote of the Week

"All that a man acheives and all that he fails to achieve is the
direct result of his own thoughts"

- James Allen, As a Man Thinketh

A bit late this week, but nonetheless it is still the week. I've been meditating over this quote ever since Monday. This quote comes from James Allen, author of As a Man Thinketh. This thinking man provides some insights into the minds of "men," and how to become more than an average man.

C is for cookie...

C is for cookie, or controversy as Republican presidential nominee John McCain's wife, Cindy, and former US President Bill Clinton, husband of former Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton have cooked up a controversy in Family Circle magazine's 5th Presidential Bake-Off as reported by the Huffington Post (HP) and other sources.

Although Bill attributes his oatmeal cookie recipe to a longtime Clinton family cook, the recipe is identical to a Betty Crocker recipe according to one HP article; and Cindy McCain's oatmeal-butterscotch cookies attributed to a good friend came from Hershey's as reported in another HP article. This is not the first time Cindy McCain has been accused of recipe plagiarism. Michelle Obama, wife of the Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, submitted a recipe for short bread cookies courtesy of the Obama daughter's godmother.

In this case, I guess it's not the economy stupid, but which spouse has the best parfaits...and an 'original' recipe! Well, if that is where we are headed, then I suggest we get all the spouses in kitchen stadium for one IRON CHEF America Battle Royale! I will leave it to you guys to suggest the secret ingredient and potential dishes we might expect!! Then again, may be we will reheat this discussion in a future post with our own suggestions! I am getting hungry!!

Juneteenth on the Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread
www.rbc.org/odb/odb.shtml

June 19, 2008

Juneteenth

ODB RADIO: Listen Now | Download
READ: Romans 6:15-23

Having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. —Romans 6:18

On June 19, 1865, over 2 years after President Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation, General Gordon Granger rode into Galveston, Texas, and read General Order Number 3: “The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.” For the first time, slaves in Texas learned that they were already free. Some were shocked; many others celebrated. June 19 soon became known as “Juneteenth.”

Nearly 25 years after the “Emancipation Proclamation” of the cross of Jesus, Paul wrote to the Roman believers. Some of them still did not understand what it meant to be free from sin’s bondage. They thought they could go on sinning because they were under grace (Rom. 6:15). So Paul reminded them of their status in Jesus by appealing to a familiar fact: Whatever we submit to becomes our master (John 8:34). To commit sin puts us in bondage to sin.

The other option is to be a slave of righteousness. Salvation actually means a change of bondage. As we once served sin, we are now committed to lives of righteousness because of the freedom Jesus provides.

My brothers and sisters, let us become in practice what we already are in status—free!
— Marvin Williams

The Savior can break sin’s dominion,
The victory He won long ago;
In Him there is freedom from bondage,
He’s able to conquer the foe. —Smith

True freedom is found in bondage to Christ.

on the EVE of Junteenth

What is Juneteenth and why is tomorrow, June 19th, the day of celebration and commemoration?

From the Juneteenth website:

Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States.

From its Galveston, Texas origin in 1865, the observance of June 19^th as the African American Emancipation Day has spread across the United States and beyond.

Today Juneteenth commemorates African American freedom and emphasizes education and achievement. It is a day, a week, and in some areas a month marked with celebrations, guest speakers, picnics and family gatherings. It is a time for reflection and rejoicing. It is a time for assessment, self-improvement and for planning the future. Its growing popularity signifies a level of maturity and dignity in America long over due. In cities across the country, people of all races, nationalities and religions are joining hands to truthfully acknowledge a period in our history that shaped and continues to influence our society today. Sensitized to the conditions and experiences of others, only then can we make significant and lasting improvements in our society.

Celtics win NBA Championship

Mike Wilbon's take on the Celtic's Return to Glory....



staying with our WEST COAST theme....

the WEST was defeated

In basketball - as in life - true joy comes from being fully present in each and every moment...the Lakers were not present, but the Celtics were DOMINANT!

Quote of the Week

The quote of the week comes a day late as yesterday we paid tribute to Tupac Shakur.

Today we stay with our west coast theme, this week's quote comes from Phil Jackson:

"In basketball - as in life - true joy comes from being fully present in each and every moment, not just when things are going your way. Of course, it's no accident that things are more likely to go your way when you stop worrying about whether you're going to win or lose and focus your full attention on what's happening right this moment."

Phil Jackson

GO LAKERS!

Remembering Tupac Shakur

Today June 16th, 1971 Tupac Shakur was born.

In honor of Tupac, his memory and legacy, one of his own poems.

In The Depths of Solitude

i exist in the depths of solitude
pondering my true goal
trying 2 find peace of mind
and still preserve my soul
constantly yearning 2 be accepted
and from all receive respect
never comprising but sometimes risky
and that is my only regret
a young heart with an old soul
how can there be peace
how can i be in the depths of solitude
when there r 2 inside of me
this duo within me causes
the perfect oppurtunity
2 learn and live twice as fast
as those who accept simplicity

Friday Father's Day Video

Happy Father's Day! Here are some unique Father's Day videos! please feel free to post links to some of your favorites!

The Allure of Obama...

In today's Huffington Post, Joseph Nye talks about Obama's "soft power" and his need for "hard power." The premise for the article is based upon Nye's reaction from traveling abroad--apparently Europeans are enchanted by Senator Obama.

Nye says "soft power is the ability to obtain the outcomes one wants through attraction rather than using the carrots and sticks of payment or coercion." In this case, soft power is the way the rest of the world feels about America/Obama--basically he has great people skills, highly emotionally intelligent and can get his point across like only a few great communicators.

Truth be told--Obama has the soft power game on lock. But hard power--let's take a look. Nye doesn't actually define "hard power," but instead provides examples on when its necessary: "Unfortunately, a President Obama will inherit a number of policy problems such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran and North Korea where hard power plays a large role." Sounds to me as if hard power is simply negotiating-hard-ball--that is knowing what your "enemy" and how to counter.

I think America has a lot of 'splainin to do to the rest of the world, soft power creates the relationships necessary to renew faith in America. Let's see what happens next.

Thou Shalt Not Covet...or is it Natural to Want...

this question was posed by a friend...

Are Jealousy and Coveting natural traits that we are born with or do you learn them? Are they necessary or detrimental to your survival?

Friends thoughts:

I think that you are born with these traits. The reason I say that is that you can see it in little kids when one has something that the other doesn't. I think you have to have it in your life to drive you to want more and to do better. I think that when you go about it maliciously is when it becomes a problem. I do think that it can be healthy for you in small doses. Tell me what you all think.

On perspective...

Each koan is a window that show the whole truth but just from a single vantage. It is limited in perspective. One hundred koans give one hundred vantages. When they are enriched with insightful comments and poems, then you have ten thousand vantages. There is no end to this process of enrichment.

Aitken

Source: a Zen teaching, 1990

are you a Planeteer or an Eco-Villain?

it is Saturday morning. you have a bowl of your favorite cereal and are sitting quietly in front of the television watching intently as Looten Plunder, Dr. Blight, Verminous Skumm and Hoggish Greedly join forces in a plot to pollute a city's water supply so they could sell their bottled water to thirsty citizens at outrageous prices. Fortunately, Captain Planet and the Planeteers set out on a mission to find pure water and break up the "Pollution Syndicate."

However, it is not Saturday morning and the Environmental News Network (ENN) has posted a story from Reuters today reporting that the Climate Bill is dead. Even if it had passed, President Geroge W. Bush had vowed to veto it.

While the President gets low marks on the environment from a majority of Americans, the White House has released 7 pages of Key Bush Environmental Accomplishments. Several other sources, most notably the Natural Resources Defense Council have been more critical of the administration stating that it [Bush Administration] has shown again and again that it will cater to industries that put America's health and natural heritage at risk; there is little doubt that more attempts to undermine environmental enforcement and weaken key programs will be made.

in light of these comments and events i thought it prudent to ask, are you a Planeteer or an Eco-Villain? do you recycle? do you buy green? i recycle plastics (water bottles mainly) and i have all compact fluorescent bulbs in my home, but i realize i can do more. Check out these Green Living Tips, and see if you can incorporate them into your daily life. Living Green is about living consciously, with awareness of your actions and the impact they have on your body, the health of life around you and the sustainability of our planet.

Our world is in peril, Gaia, the spirit of the earth, can no longer stand the terrible destruction plaguing our planet, she sends five magic rings to five special young people:

Kwame: From Africa, with the power of Earth..

From North America, Wheeler, with the power of Fire

From the Soviet Union, Linka, with the Power of the Wind

From Asia, Gi, with the power of the Water

And from South America, Ma-Ti, with the power of Heart

When the five powers combine, they summon earth's greatest champion, CAPTAIN PLANET!

GO PLANET!!!!

THE POWER IS YOURS!

Earth!

Fire!

Wind!

Water!

Heart!

GO PLANET

By your powers combined, I am Captain Planet

Captain Planet, He's A Hero

Gonna Take Pollution Down To Zero

He's Our Powers Magnified

And He's Fighting On The Planet's Side

Captain Planet

He's a Hero

Gonna Take Pollution Down To Zero

Gonna Help Him Pull Asunder

Bad Guys Who Like to Loot and Plunder

(Lotton Plunder: YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS CAPTAIN PLANET)

We're the Planeteers

You Can Be One Too

'Cause Saving Our Planet Is The Thing To Do

Looting And Polluting Is Not The Way!

Here's what Captain Planet Has To Say:

THE POWER IS YOURS!

ever just have one of those days at work???

hopefully it wasnt like this guys!!


Office Worker Goes Absolutely Insane

GenuineQ

I would like to introduce myself as one of the contributors for the 3rd Perspective blog. I look forward to awakening the minds of everyone that visits our blog. Please visit us often.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

the day after yesterday...

yesterday was June 3, 2008 and Senator Barack Obama secured his place in history as America's first black presidential nominee...well to be more accurate he is biracial and he will be the Democratic parties presidential nominee, but who is splitting hairs? well, i am.

i will not, nor can i deny this accomplishment or this historical moment, but in the words of Public Enemy, Dont Believe the Hype! The hype i am referring to is not that Sen. Obama is incapable to be not only a credible nominee, because in truth i think he will be an excellent President....if elected. the hype is that if elected, suddenly America will become a truly color blind society and the stains of slavery will be washed from the fabric of American history.

this is the day after yesterday. this is the day where we allow ourselves to hope and dream openly because of yesterday. but if we want those dreams to become a reality, we won't wait for it to happen tomorrow, we will wake up and start living that dream TODAY....

If we are willing to work for it, and fight for it, and believe in it, then I am absolutely certain that generations from now, we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment when we began to provide care for the sick and good jobs to the jobless; this was the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal; this was the moment when we ended a war and secured our nation and restored our image as the last, best hope on Earth. This was the moment – this was the time – when we came together to remake this great nation so that it may always reflect our very best selves, and our highest ideals.

-Remarks of Senator Barack Obama

Final Primary Night

Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008

St. Paul, Minnesota

Public Service Announcement (PSA)

this is a PSA to introduce the world to the one and only *drum roll*
EaZy Clinton!


Hello world!! I am one of the core authors of this blog. I fall into that male, 25 to 35 age demographic. I am a high school graduate, and I am currently in Grad School at a major Research I institution and blessed to be so...I also completed undergraduate studies at a Historically Black College. I enjoy meeting people, hanging out with friends, reading, occasional writing, travelling, conversing about varying topics from politics to cartoons to religion to anything and everything in between....I am open to others opinions but steadfast in my own personal beliefs...basically I enjoy life to the fullest because another day above ground is something to be thankful for!!!