Good Morning. Enjoy this weekend with family and friends.
A few clips from the colorism show on OWN last night.
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Black Girls Rock!
Flickr Photos
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Potus Takes Oath of Office
Flotus & Daughters at Great Wall of China
My Brothers Keeper
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AFRO PUFFS
Most Adorable Shoe Stealer
Six Little Babies
Fatherhood
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Even though 3Chics Politico is written and curated by three women: Ametia, Rikyrah, and SouthernGirl2, I must nominate this as one of the most engaging blogs I've found. Devoted to politics and culture, these three shine a light on contemporary life with humor and spirit.
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3Chics Action Alert
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3 Chics Trio
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President Barack Obama
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President Obama & Bo
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Presidential hug
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Tom Brady is killing the Colts. Tired of Tom Brady!
https://twitter.com/Chickypoo333/status/422151826557792256/photo/1
Aww…..so precious!
http://youtu.be/7doXr3x81HE
Christie Showed His Stripes
by BooMan
Sat Jan 11th, 2014 at 08:28:51 AM EST
The dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy of 2007 has been largely forgotten, but it was a very big deal at the time. It resulted in the resignations of the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General, the Acting Associate Attorney General, the chief of staff for the Attorney General, the chief of staff for the Deputy Attorney General, the Director of the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, the former acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, and the Department of Justice’s White House Liaison. It was a total disaster for the Bush administration that was the natural result of a conspiracy to deliberately politicize the Justice Department. The U.S. Attorneys who were fired were fired for insufficient partisan zeal. In some cases, they refused to open meritless voter fraud cases. In other cases, they wouldn’t open meritless investigations on Democratic politicians. In still other cases, they were actually investigating lawbreaking by Republicans.
So, one of the takeaways from the scandal was that the U.S. Attorneys who weren’t dismissed were incredibly suspect. The attorneys who were found acceptable to the Bush administration were the ones who would launch phony investigations against innocent people and who would cover up criminal activity if is was carried out by Bush’s allies. Chris Christie was a U.S. Attorney who passed that test. He was considered sufficiently corrupt (or corruptible) to remain a U.S. Attorney in Alberto Gonzales’s (and Karl Rove’s) Justice Department.
How did he pass that test? Let’s go into the Wayback Machine:
Why wasn’t Christie dismissed in the great purge of 2006? Because he did what he was told, and harassed Bob Menendez during election season.
After Christie became the governor of New Jersey he had the power to make dozens of appointments to the Port Authority, and it is now clear that he continued his practice of using his office to politicize non-political organizations.
This should surprise exactly no one.
http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2014/1/11/82250/5972
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/01/10/watch-out-driving-while-black-is-still-a-problem.html
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/01/10/black-college-football-coaches-don-t-get-second-chances.html
http://kosu.org/2014/01/the-church-bathroom-that-stood-as-a-monument-to-a-segregated-past/
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/culture/2014/01/postscript-roy-campbell-jr.html
January 11, 2014 2:35 PM Christie’s Allies Abandon Him
By Martin Longman
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With news that the incoming speaker of the New Jersey Assembly, Vincent Prieto, will renew the Transportation Committee’s subpoena power, there is no hope of the BridgeGate controversy going away. But, more importantly, Governor Christie has lost some erstwhile allies in the Democratic Party. It’s not just Prieto who supports allowing Christie to get chipped to pieces.
Prior to the recent revelations, Gov. Christie was in strong position to move his agenda with a strong mandate and significant Democratic support. That’s gone now.
After all, John Sweeney was known as a Christie-crat and Prieto was widely believed to be opposed to extending the subpoena power. MSNBC reporter Steve Kornacki has been like a broken record on this issue, with his belief that the Christie administration thought they could rely on Prieto to let the clock run out.
Well, he won’t.
Christie’s allies now have the long-knives out, and he can’t afford to continue using the same bullying tactics he employed to win the support of Democratic mayors.
He hasn’t even been sworn in for his second term, and he’s a lame duck.
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/political-animal-a/2014_01/christies_allies_abandon_him048585.php
http://theconversation.com/a-life-more-terrible-the-women-of-12-years-a-slave-21936
http://www.bayoubuzz.com/top-stories/item/576941-franklin-mccain-one-of-greensboro-four-dies
http://www.news-record.com/news/local_news/article_0621b3cb-dffe-5fda-a91a-2439b6a8c21f.html
Holder: Feds recognize Utah’s same-sex marriages
01/10/14 02:29 PM
By Steve Benen
Holder: Feds recognize Utah’s same-sex marriages
01/10/14 02:29 PM
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By Steve Benen
The legal status of same-sex married couples in Utah has become a little murky in recent days. Attorney General Eric Holder tried to bring some clarity to the issue this afternoon.
Last month, a federal court struck down Utah’s ban on marriage equality, immediately opening the door to equal-marriage rights statewide. Roughly 1,300 couples took advantage of the opportunity and tied the legally recognized knot.
The U.S. Supreme Court, however, issued a stay this week, reinstating Utah’s ban while the appeals process unfolds. And as Adam Serwer explained, state officials “took the additional step of telling the couples who were married in the meantime that, in the eyes of the state of Utah, while the litigation is ongoing, those marriages don’t count.”
AG Holder offered a response today, letting those same couples know that as far as the federal government is concerned, their marriages do count. For those who can’t watch clips online, he said in a new video:
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/holder-us-recognizes-utah-same-sex-marriages
How not to respond to scandal
01/10/14 04:25 PM—Updated 01/10/14 04:45 PM
By Steve Benen
As New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s (R) bridge scandal continues to unfold, his allies and defenders have a serious challenge. Under the most generous of scenarios, the governor was clueless about his own team’s corruption, kept in the dark while his top aides abused their power in his name, deliberately crippling a community over petty politics.
Many Republicans and Christie admirers aren’t sure how best to respond, but they’ve taken a long look at the available evidence, and have decided to ask the question that matters most to them: “Isn’t President Obama awful?”
It’s tempting to just laugh this off as a silly argument from knee-jerk partisan, but Giuliani isn’t the only one seriously pushing this nonsense. As Matt Gertz explained:
It’s hard to know where to start with such a ridiculous response to a controversy, but consider a few pertinent details.
It took about four months for Christie to publicly acknowledge that his administration was responsible for serious wrongdoing in the bridge fiasco. In contrast, after the IRS story broke on the afternoon of Friday, May 10, 2013, President Obama addressed the controversy in a press conference on May 13, then again in remarks on May 15 in which he announced the ouster of the IRS commissioner, and then again in another press conference on May 16. When Giuliani says, “We have a president who runs away from press conferences,” he has absolutely no idea what he’s talking about.
Second, the bridge scandal directly implicates the governor’s office. In contrast, no one in the White House has been accused of wrongdoing in the various manufactured controversies. It’s not exactly apples-to-apples.
Finally – and this is the important one – the Christie controversial is real. There’s actual wrongdoing that’s been extensively documented. Even Christie himself, after mocking the story for months, has finally acknowledged officials within his administration engaged is serious misconduct.
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/how-not-respond-scandal
West Virginia Declares State Of Emergency After Coal Chemical Contaminates Drinking Water
By Kiley Kroh on January 10, 2014 at 9:31 am
Residents of nine counties in West Virginia have been told not to use or drink their water after a chemical used by the coal industry spilled into the Elk River on Thursday. Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin declared a state of emergency as more than 100,000 customers, or 300,000 people, are without safe drinking water.
“Don’t make baby formula,” said West Virginia American Water Company president Jeff McIntyre. “Don’t brush your teeth. Don’t shower. Toilet flushing only.”
The chemical, 4-Methylcyclohexane Methanol (MCHM), is used to wash coal of impurities and spilled from a tank at Freedom Industries into the river. While the amount of MCHM that spilled wasn’t immediately known, West Virginia American Water has been conducting water quality testing every hour. According to Laura Jordan, a spokesperson with the water company, they believe the chemical is leaking at ground level and “there is a possibility this leak has been going on for sometime before it was discovered Thursday,” WSAZ reported.
Local officials described MCHM as smelling like licorice and looking like “cooking oil floating on top of the water.” The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources said symptoms of MCHM exposure include “severe burning in throat, severe eye irritation, non-stop vomiting, trouble breathing or severe skin irritation such as skin blistering.”
Though the spill occurred Thursday morning, West Virginia American Water didn’t provide its customers with a warning until evening and, as Al Jazeera reported, several were angered by the lack of information, particularly regarding what should be done if they had already used or ingested the water.
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/01/10/3145221/west-virginia-emergency-coal-chemical-spill/
Jeff Gauvin @JeffersonObama
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West Virginia chemical spill leaves 300,000 without tap water to drink or shower…..now that’s GOVT FREEDOM
11:07 AM – 11 Jan 2014
Stormy @StormyVNV
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So, #Republicans & #TeaParty don’t regulations. W V chemical spill triggers widespread tap water ban http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/01/10/us-usa-westvirginia-spill-idUSBREA0902T20140110 … #Environment
10:48 AM – 10 Jan 2014
RT America ✔ @RT_America
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US House passed bill ravaging toxic-waste law – on same day as #WestVirginia chemical spill http://on.rt.com/bpw1vt
9:48 AM – 11 Jan 2014
Chad Sarno @Wanderer19
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West Virginia chemical spill another black eye for ‘clean coal’ | The Raw Story http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/01/11/west-virginia-chemical-spill-another-black-eye-for-clean-coal/ … #p2 #uniteblue
12:43 PM – 11 Jan 2014
AATTP @AgainstTeaParty
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#WestVirginia Chemical Spill Leaves 200K With Poisoned Water, While #TeaParty Pushes for MORE #Deregulation – at: http://ow.ly/sul9R
12:20 PM – 11 Jan 2014
Judd Legum @JuddLegum
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Freedom Industries didn’t report spilling 5K gallons of a dangerous chemical into WV water supply. http://goo.gl/TUfBQN #stayclassy
8:19 AM – 11 Jan 2014
CNN Breaking News ✔ @cnnbrk
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U.S. attorney’s office to investigate chemical spill that’s affecting water supply for 300K in West Virginia. http://cnn.it/1edDXgF
11:41 AM – 10 Jan 2014
Liberal Librarian @Lib_Librarian
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WV in 2010: We don’t need stinking EPA regulations! WV in 2014: Please Feds, come help!!!
12:42 PM – 11 Jan 2014
Incoming NJ Assembly speaker to renew the subpoena power of panel in GWB scandal
Saturday January 11, 2014, 12:46 PM
BY MICHAEL LINHORST STATE HOUSE BUREAU
The chairman of the committee leading that investigation said this morning that he can not issue any new subpoenas until his authority is renewed. It officially expires on Monday, the final day of the legislative
session.
Hours later, Vincent Prieto, the Democratic assemblyman who takes over as speaker on Tuesday, issued a statement promising to renew the subpoena power in a special session on Thursday.
“The documents released this week related to the George Washington Bridge situation clearly show the need for a continued thorough investigation by the New Jersey General Assembly. Many questions remain unanswered about this threat to public safety and abuse of power,” Prieto said.
http://www.northjersey.com/news/NJ_Assembly_speaker_to_renew_the_subpoena_power_of_panel_in_GWB_scandal.html#sthash.8rao3O7C.5scJBxJC.dpuf
Does anyone watch Grimm?
I was just thinking before last night’s episode..
” How come there aren’t any Black Vescen?”
And there they were, some Black Vescen.
I felt so bad for Hank…..first, he gets poisoned and nearly killed by Adalind Schade, and now, he’s got a crush on a Vescen…but, I have hope for him and the Vescen.
https://twitter.com/nycjim/status/422009966988242944/photo/1
https://twitter.com/num1_fan/status/422017738391814144/photo/1
https://twitter.com/thekarami/status/422026715355832321/photo/1
https://twitter.com/amk4obama/status/422039966781161472/photo/1
https://twitter.com/amk4obama/status/422040928379875329/photo/1
https://twitter.com/wholden42/status/422053028665905152/photo/1
https://twitter.com/FEMAregion3/status/422052773061206016/photo/1
http://youtu.be/ZJn96n-DOTc
LOL She’s too cute. The one thing she does know is that she can trust the familiar face and love of her uncle. Love this video.
Love this! So dear!
But but..Big Mo doesn’t want Obama water. Obama is a ‘Socialist’.
KARMA is a big FAT, MOFO.
I just finished watching the Oprah show videos Ametia posted in her article today.
At the risk of being told that I, as a White individual, need to realize that the colorism conversation needs to be a “private” conversation among Blacks and that my “piping in” to comment is not appreciated, I am going to share some of my thoughts.
Also, when I listened to the preview video posted by rikyrah announcing that Oprah would be having the colorism discussion, I heard the documentary “Dark Girls” mentioned. I looked it up on Youtube and have now watched the complete documentary.
I hurt for what women of darker complexions have experienced within the Black community. I hurt for the Black community that has suffered because of both personal racism and embedded institutional racism in America’s White-powered, White-structured society.
Were it not for the White heinous deeds of oppression toward Blacks and discrimination against Blacks, the issue of being a lighter color for safety and SURVIVAL never would have entered the psyche of the Black community.
It was very important for me to hear the intimate stories and conversations about colorism, for me to understand, REALLY understand, the depth of the evil and the CONTINUING effects of that evil action committed by my White community against Blacks.
I AM SO SORRY.
The sincerity of my apology is going to rest upon what I choose to do during the rest of my life in order to effect a change and help to make my country a better society.
1. I choose to continue to discover all of my unearned benefits and advantages that I did not earn but that simply were bestowed on me because I am White.
I know that I was accepted into college without the full competition that should have been present. I did not have to compete against Blacks who were far more qualified that I was. I also did not have to compete against a huge population of Blacks who deserved to be more qualified but were not because of the unequal education given them due to institutional racism that kept them in impoverished residential areas ignored by local governments which did not provide the high standard of education and funding that it did to White areas.
I also know the history of highly educated Blacks who were qualified for excellent professional jobs from the time after the Civil War to and through the 1900’s but who were only offered menial work.
I, being White, have never had to suffer the agony of constantly worrying that some day my children, grandchildren, nieces or nephews might come to harm because of being profiled or stereotyped by LE or some White citizen.
There are dozens and dozens of instances where I don’t experience stress and where I don’t have to be worried due to my being White and possessing unfair benefits, advantages and privileges.
2. It is my responsibility to teach my fellow Whites about the existence and unfairness of White
Privilege so that we Whites can denounce and renounce it in order to undo it and its damaging effects upon the Black community.
3. I will teach my fellow Whites to LISTEN and ACCEPT as authentic (validate) the personal experiences that Black individuals share.
4. I will teach my fellow Whites to understand why saying they are “colorblind” is wrong because it allows them to not see a Black individual for whom she/he is with the history that has discriminated against her/him and her/his ancestors and the damage that history has caused and that is still present.
5. I will speak out and defend a Black person whenever I witness a wrong inflicted on that individual whether it is unfair treatment at a grocery store or other forms of racism or discrimination.
6. I will continue to stand up and speak out against such things as LE “stop and frisk”, injustice, inequality or a crime involving the violation of a victim’s civil rights. There is so much more I could list.
7. I will speak out against any effort by racists or White Supremacists who attempt to turn the clock back.
I so want to make it possible for the sun to return and shine bright hope for a new tomorrow.
I want to “weave sunshine” and dispel the overbearing and damaging storms that Whites have caused against my fellow Black citizens, past and present. I am going to do all I can to help to “weave a better tomorrow”
Wow, Yahtc!
That’s Deep!
Yes, well said and heartfelt, Yahtc.
Indeed it is.
Yahtc, you truly are ONE IN A MILLION. Thank you! <3
SG2, Liza and Ametia :)
Bless you!
*Hugs*
You rock, lady!
Liza, Ametia, and SG2,
Do you think Oprah’s discussion program has already had an impact?
Would you please take a look at this January 15, 2014 article:
http://www.eurweb.com/2014/01/julian-bond-regrets-his-1977-snl-skit-on-light-skin-vs-dark-skin-video/
VP Joe Biden will represent the U.S. in the funeral of former Israeli PM Ariel Sharon.
And he will represent very well!
Beautiful.
It’s like God painted a picture and said, “Try to top this one, ya’ll.” That’s what I always say about the sunsets here in the desert.
**like**
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon dies.
http://news.msn.com/obits/ariel-sharon-former-israeli-prime-minister-dies
JERUSALEM — Ariel Sharon, the trailblazing former Israeli general and prime minister who was in a coma for eight years after he had a stroke at the height of his power, died Saturday aged 85, his family and the government said.
Sharon’s son Gilad announced the death at the hospital where his father had been treated. Doctors there had predicted his imminent death after his health declined sharply last week.
A maverick in war and politics, Sharon reshaped the Middle East in a career marked by adventurism and disgrace, dramatic reversals and stunning rebounds.
Loathed by many Arabs and a divisive figure within Israel, Sharon left his mark on the region as perhaps no other through military invasion, Jewish settlement building on captured land and a shock decision to pull out of Gaza.
A commander in the army from the birth of Israel in 1948, he went on to hold many of the top offices of state, surviving fierce debate over his role in refugee camp massacres in the 1982 Lebanon war to be elected prime minister in 2001.
RIP Mr. Sharon
Good Morning, Everyone :)
Morning, everyone!
Happy Saturday!
Good Afternoon, Ladies. Check your emails, please. Thanks!