Living (and dying) in America!

Living in America!

Michael Kinsley says it is time to scrap the Star-Spangled Banner. I'm on board with this. Doesn't sound bad, great historical references and all that, but it is even tough to lip-synch it...

Kinsley makes a couple of tepid recommendations. My choice?

Living in America by James Brown!

Can you get more American than James Brown? Drugs. Women. Jail time. Illegitimate children. Car chases. Mixed race. More women. Battle over his estate.

Not only should the song be the National Anthem, but the video should also be the National Video...

Whistling Past the Graveyard

Last night I picked up the June 6-12, 2009 issue of the Washington Afro-American. A page one article in the paper as well as an opinion piece by George Curry document the recent case of the white woman who claimed she was kidnapped by two black men.

As I recently asked: Why in the world would anyone believe that such a thing could happen? Why didn't she blame Native American Indians?

Looking through the news section, that's the only "crime" story in the news section.

Thankfully, the Washington Post is always on the case to report about crime! There's a story, B4, with the headline, "Despite More Policing, Another Man is Slain."

In this case, the man was shot and killed "just steps away" from a new post where an officer is stationed. There's also a security camera nearby.

Jean Bland, a resident who lives nearby and has "several old bullet holes" in her home from people shooting, says the obvious: "Something has to be done."

Something is right! I'd suggest we spend more time tracking down more white women who make up stories about black men...

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Will he hear this by 2029?

Sherrilyn A. Ifill ties the recent shooting at the Holocaust museum to right-wingers. When I have trouble quickly distinguishing between Jew-hating leftists and Jew-hating rightists then I check with Ifill.

Eugene Robinson of the Washington Post joins in today with the type of hackneyed thinking he should be remembered (then, quickly forgotten) one day.

In unrelated news, noted Republican Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. says "Them Jews" won't allow Pres. Obama to meet with him.

Pres. Obama sat in Rev. Wright's church for 20 years without hearing the things he said...perhaps he'll catch up with this story by 2029...

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Eugene Robinson is still a clown

When he first replaced William Raspberry a few years I tried to read his writing. I had read Raspberry's columns on a regular basis for about 15 years. While I often disagreed with Raspberry's conclusions when he reached them, I could appreciate that he seemed to be thinking out loud and didn't mind changing his mind or admitting he had been wrong.

But Raspberry being followed by Robinson is like going from Martin Luther King Jr to Al Sharpton. Whereas Raspberry was thoughtful, Robinson is a hack. There were some days that Raspberry couldn't decide which shoes to put on; Robinson prefers clown shoes.

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How much more Magical could he be in person?

According to Ray Friedman of Vanderbilt University, the scores of black students increased after Obama's nomination and election victory.

If true, then just think what the Obama effect would have been if he had given the commencement address at a black college or university?

According to DeWayne Wickham, the White House refuses to answer his question: "I wanted to know how many black higher education institutions have asked Barack Obama to be their commencement speaker this spring."

CJL
linked by Booker Rising and I stole the great graphic from her...

Rich talking back

The rich are talked about very often in negative terms, but how often do the rich respond in kind? Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart, who inherited most of her money but apparently has also done very well with it, recently railed against class warfare and had some advice for the non-rich : "There is no monopoly on becoming a millionaire," she writes. "If you're jealous of those with more money, don't just sit there and complain. Do something to make more money yourself - spend less time drinking, or smoking and socializing and more time working." She complained about politicians raising taxes, regulations that slow investment, and other anti-business policies that harm the poor. "If you want to help the poor and our next generation, make investment, reinvenstment and businesses welcome."

Common Sense on North Korea (Korea Times, April 2, 2012)

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. As interesting as Kookmin University professor Andrei Lankov’s writings are, there is nothing quite like attending one of his lectures. He can barely restrain himself behind the podium, often pointing and waving his arms. I also enjoy his unscripted speeches, but his answers in Q&A sessions are like the difference between watching Michael Jordan shoot baskets in warm-ups and an actual game. I have finally discovered the secret behind Lankov’s consistently solid analysis about North Korea: Use common sense. At an Asan Institute conference last summer, he argued that North Korea watchers should try to understand North Korea from its perspective. Don’t most people know that you must understand the mindset of others you are dealing with? Yet, common sense in theory gets ignored politically. From the North Korean perspective, nuclear weapons are the best thing they’ve got going. They will NOT give them up easily, even if President Obama ...

Random photos from today

I went walking around today. Whereas some people like to go walking in the mountains, I enjoy walking around in the city. Well, not D.C. or other cities with many homeless, crazy and/or armed people walking around... * * * Here's where I had lunch today. About $1.90 for a hamburger hamberger. * * * Ha-ha! Bet you never would have guessed that Batman is a drinking place in Korea! * * * Man Clinic? The Koreans walking by seemed to be very curious about why I was taking a photo of a "Man Clinic." They may know something I don't know...Actually, I wasn't curious enough to go in and find out what it was... * * * Right down the street from the Man Clinic...there's a Love Shop! I love the euphemism. "Love Shop" sounds much better than Sex Shop. I'm guessing that if you don't go to the "Love Shop" to buy condoms that you may need to visit the Man Clinic a short time later? * * * Nobo...

To be a good volunteer, use your brain (Korea Times, December 5, 2012)

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. There is probably an unwritten rule that a celebrity offering to do volunteer work for a good cause should immediately be embraced. Well, that’s not what happened to Jeong So-dam, the glamorous Korean cable TV announcer when our paths crossed on Nov. 29. Ms. Jeong was the MC of an event about American political philosophy hosted by the Association for Economic Evolution. During my speech about American libertarianism since 1940, I discussed my volunteer work for North Korean refugees. After the speech, Jeong approached me, asking how she could help. I gave her the same tough love I give to potential volunteers by asking: “Who are you?” After all, if you are Bill Gates, then open your wallet. If you speak four languages, then help with translation work. So I first stress to potential volunteers: Use your brain. Tell us about your skills and interests so together we can figure out your initial role. Jeong was good-natured about it, rather than c...

Why I won't go to North Korea (Korea Times, December 27, 2012)

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. “Have you ever been to North Korea?” This is the question I am almost always asked here in South Korea when people learn that I have become an activist for North Korean escapees. My response is curt: “No.” “Do you plan on going?” they ask next. My answer remains the same: “No.” When they start to ask a follow-up question, I cut them off: "No." People are often just trying to make conversation, I know, but I am blunt for a reason: I am not interested in going to North Korea as long as North Koreans are held captive. I could go one day, but for now, I can do without a government-guided tour by " men-stealers and women-whippers ," to borrow a phrase from American abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison. I don’t mean to criticize people who have gone to North Korea for political, educational, business, religious reasons or just plain curiosity. However, some people push me on the issue, ― and I push back. A good friend wh...

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