Good Morning. I hope you’re enjoying this weekend with family and friends.
Some Gospel with Whitney Houston.
-
-
Black Girls Rock!
Flickr Photos
-
Potus Takes Oath of Office
Flotus & Daughters at Great Wall of China
My Brothers Keeper
-
-
-
-
-
AFRO PUFFS
Most Adorable Shoe Stealer
Six Little Babies
Fatherhood
-
-
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.
-
3Chics Action Alert
Lets Make It Happen
3 Chics Trio
-
REALITY Blog Award
Recent Comments
Top Posts
Guard The Change
Vote 4 Democrats
-
-
-
Go to the polls
President Barack Obama
First Lady Michelle Obama
Obama Love
Your Vote Matters
President Obama & Bo
The Obama Family
-
-
-
-
Presidential hug
-
https://twitter.com/EW/status/536707168524046336/photo/1
can’t believe this isn’t a photograph
…………………….
18-year-old artist draws amazing hyperrealistic portrait of Morgan Freeman
Jack Ede spent 137 hours over two weeks sketching actor’s face
Dylan Stableford
By Dylan Stableford November 21, 2014 11:43 AM Yahoo News
http://news.yahoo.com/morgan-freeman-hyperrealistic-sketch-drawing-164346869.html
https://twitter.com/TheObamaDiary/status/536312697441488896/photo/1
Cupich apologizes to West Side church for sex abuse
Making his first of three pastoral visits to ethnic parishes across Chicago, Archbishop Blase Cupich on Sunday apologized to parishioners at a West Side church who have been grappling with a sex abuse scandal involving a former church pastor.
Cupich, 65, who became Chicago’s ninth archbishop Tuesday, said he chose St. Agatha Catholic Church in the Lawndale neighborhood for his first pastoral visit because he wanted to highlight the good work within the predominantly African-American parish in spite of the scandal involving defrocked priest Daniel McCormack, who has been convicted of abusing five boys and was charged earlier this year with molesting more.
“My heartbreak of the terrible things that one of your pastors did is first of all to those who were injured,” he said. “And I apologize. I’m sorry. That’s not the way it should have — that’s not the way we should treat each other. That’s not the way a leader should act.”
But, he added, “also, my heart breaks for the many good priests who seem to be suffering too. So pray for these good men who serve you. Pray that the lord heal all of us.”
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-cupich-apologizes-for-sex-abuse-met-1124-20141123-story.html
Words of warning from man serving life
By MARY MITCHELL
November 22, 2014 1:46AM
Jesse Webster has had a lot of time to think.
In 1996, the South Side man was sentenced to life in prison for a non-violent drug offense. Webster has already served nearly two decades behind bars. During his absence, his parents aged and his daughter grew up and had a child of her own.
Although Webster has petitioned for a presidential clemency, he knows there are others in this same situation and President Barack Obama has granted fewer clemency petitions than any other modern president.
What follows are excerpts from an 8-page “Open Letter to the Young Generation,” he wrote warning vulnerable youngsters to not make the same mistakes he made.
…………………………………………….
About good work and bad influences:
“I decided to get a job after school carrying people’s grocery bags to their cars at the local grocery store for change. After about two months, I also started working at a neighborhood car wash on 81st and Racine. The car wash had all kind[s] of customers, some honest hard working individuals and some not so honest… One day a regular customer offered me a job as his personal driver…[H]e was a well-known drug dealer. He offered me two hundred dollars a week just to drive him around. I did not have a driver’s license at that time…”
About taking the wrong path:
“My life changed profoundly after I accepted this job. I was only in ninth grade but I dropped out of school so I could be available for the individual I was driving around….I was only 15 years old when I was introduced to the hustling (drug selling) world. On the South Side of Chicago, drug dealing was prevalent and was seen as a way to put food on the table. Selling drugs was a way of survival.”
A message for today’s youth:
“Dropping out of school was the poorest choice I made as a young and naïve teenager. This choice left me without a lot of options in life. Believing I could be something in a world where education is an essential tool to success was just foolish pride.”
http://www.suntimes.com/news/mitchell/31195924-452/words-of-warning-from-man-serving-life.html#.VHJoi8m2Ono
Entire letter:
http://www.suntimes.com/csp/cms/sites/STM/dt.common.streams.StreamServer.cls?STREAMOID=DBWUV_LVxJHiCJOdHFhBLLpNjT6pDot3VOnFO9pnmgyKcVh4H0JkZhu08e9jOAEvjMpqdV2Mso4mH6beQ6T6p6cn$IfHvVpaPD23r0DuAcZaTfjnUETyN4ze2Kxdkdy8&CONTENTTYPE=application/pdf&CONTENTDISPOSITION=mitch-CST-112314a.pdf
This is something, considering that his predecessor tried to get rid of Father Mike.
………………..
Sneed: Rev. Pfleger gets kudos from Archbishop Cupich for anti-violence work
The Pfleger file . . .
Praise the Lord . . . and pass the crozier!
Sneed hears new Chicago Archbishop Blase Cupich,
the anti-violence prelate who wants his shepherds to smell like their
flock, may be handing off his symbolic shepherd’s crook to pastors like
the Rev. Michael Pfleger — an anti-gun peace priest — who has been
thwacked in the past by two cardinals for being a pastoral pain in the
neck.
◆ Translation: Not only did Cupich single out
Pfleger, who heads the city’s largest Catholic African-American parish,
for praise when he visited Chicago in September — but Sneed is told he
praised Pfleger on Monday for the work his parish is doing to bring gang
members into their sports program and wanted to hear more.
“My mouth dropped open,” said Pfleger, who is pastor of St. Sabina Church at 1210 W. 78th Place.
Cupich “said he’s heard about what we
were doing and was interested in knowing all about it,” Pfleger added.
Last year, Cardinal Francis George gave him the title of archdiocesan
representative for anti-violence initiatives.
“Since he got the job, he is
consistently addressing the issue of nonviolence and inclusion and said
he wants everybody at the table in dealing with this,” Pfleger said,
referring to Cupich. “It really blows my mind.”
http://www.suntimes.com/news/sneed/31187613-452/sneed-rev-pfleger-gets-kudos-from-archbishop-cupich-for-anti-violence-work.html#.VHJiTMm2Ono
Coalition pushing advisory vote for elected CPS board
Sun, 11/23/2014 – 12:42pm
Brian Slodysko
@brianslodysko | Email
Voters could soon get to say if they think Chicago Public Schools should have an elected school board — a potential rebuke to nearly 20 years of mayoral control of the city’s school system.
A coalition of progressive groups and organized labor said Sunday that they have gathered enough petition signatures to place an advisory referendum on the ballot, asking voters what they think.
The advisory referendum, which would appear on February’s mayoral ballot, would be non-binding. The state Legislature would ultimately need to approve any change to the way CPS board members are selected — which they did in 1995, giving then-Mayor Richard M. Daley control of the schools.
The coalition says the referendum would allow voters to express displeasure with Mayor Rahm Emanuel, whose hand-selected school board and CEO presided over the record closing of 50 public schools in predominantly black South and West Side neighborhoods.
“He has the power to appoint the CEO of Chicago Public Schools. He has the power to appoint the board members for the Chicago Board of Education. That’s too much power to give to one person,” Jawanza Malone, of the Kenwood Oakland Community Organization, said Sunday while rallying signature collectors at Service Employees International Union headquarters near Cermak and Halsted.
http://politics.suntimes.com/article/chicago/coalition-pushing-advisory-vote-elected-cps-board/sun-11232014-1242pm
https://twitter.com/WEWS/status/536639590522970112
?????????????????? Whenis this MADNESS going to end?
It feels like another sword through the chest. Such a beautiful child, but I guess they all are. Indeed, this is madness.
November 23, 2014 10:48 AM The Electoral College Is Not Set in Amber
By Martin Longman
Everyone knows, or should know, that the electorate that turns out in federal midterm elections is distinct enough from the electorate that turns out in presidential elections that it is hard to draw lessons from one that reliably apply to the other. It’s treacherous enough to try to apply lessons from the last presidential election to the next one.
So, it’s important to remember that just because Scott Walker won reelection in Wisconsin, for example, this does not necessarily mean that Wisconsin in going to be in play for the Republicans in the 2016 election. It should be remembered that the last time Wisconsin voters opted for a Republican presidential candidate was in Ronald Reagan’s 1984 reelection campaign, a campaign that carried every state but Minnesota.
On the other hand, the 2000 (48%-48%) and 2004 (50%-49%) results in Wisconsin were very close. It’s one of the reliably blue states that could conceivably flip in a competitive election. That’s why I am not comfortable putting Wisconsin behind a Blue Wall, as moderate conservative columnist Chris Ladd did in his post-midterm analysis.
For Mr. Ladd, the midterms were mostly bad news for Republicans, mainly because they did nothing to improve the party’s prospects in the Electoral College:
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/political-animal-a/2014_11/the_electoral_college_is_not_s053053.php
What Will Happen to the Immigrants Left Out of Obama’s Executive Actions?
November 22, 2014
by Michelle Chen
In his speech on Thursday night announcing his latest executive action on immigration policy, President Obama took great pains to tell the country what his new immigration policy is not: it is not “amnesty,” just a way for people to avoid deportation; it is not citizenship, just work authorization; it won’t provide social welfare benefits, it will just allow employers to keep exploiting immigrant labor.
Here’s what it is: Obama’s initiative will build on the existing Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which has since 2012 offered some undocumented youth temporary, renewable reprieve from deportation. A similar protection will be extended to several million undocumented adults, who have children with citizen or green card status, and have at least five years of residency and clean records. More would also gain relief through an expansion of the original Deferred Action to include more childhood arrivals, with no age limit, along with easing the migration of skilled tech-sector workers.
But the president can’t bring about a complete overhaul of the immigration system himself, and millions will be left out of these new measures. Despite the battle cries of Republicans threatening to thwart the plan through procedural countermeasures or lawsuits, opponents can rest assured that the majority of undocumented people will remain without papers, and with nowhere to go.
http://billmoyers.com/2014/11/22/will-happen-immigrants-left-obamas-executive-actions/
https://twitter.com/voxdotcom/status/535883228461412352/photo/1
And isn’t that the AMERICAN WAY?! LOL
https://twitter.com/CNNMoney/status/535942035358760961/photo/1
Why Mike Kelly ‘got distracted’
03/29/13 10:34 AM—Updated 10/07/13 06:18 PM
If you’ve ever had the impression that congressional Republicans just don’t take public policy seriously enough, it’s not your imagination.
Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) was assigned to write legislation that would cut $380 million in loan guarantees to clean-energy companies. But nothing happened with that idea, because Kelly never wrote a bill. He got distracted.
“It was a priority, and it remains an issue of interest. But Mike’s efforts shifted when he chose to focus more on holding the administration accountable with regards to [Operation] Fast and Furious. And then when the Benghazi tragedy occurred, that took the cake,” said Kelly’s spokesman, Tom Qualtere.
It’s worth noting that cutting $380 million in loan guarantees to clean-energy companies is a truly awful idea. The United States should be expanding these investments, which are not only good for the economy, but also improve innovation and international competition, while positioning the country well for a changing energy-policy landscape.
But even if we put that aside, the anecdote is amazing. A Republican congressman intended to work on a public policy he and his party take seriously, but ended up getting nothing done – failing to even write a bill – because some far-right conspiracy theories popped up, which necessarily meant actual policymaking was pushed to the backburner.
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/why-mike-kelly-got-distracted?lite=
Just got back from Beyond the Lights. Absolutely loved the movie. The two leads had so much chemistry; loved the story. Loved the commentary about our entertainment industry – it was on point. I hope folks go see it while it’s in the theaters.
Thanks for the hat tip and mini review. I’m looking forward to seeing this during Thanksgiving holiday with friends.
I heard Gugu Mbatha-Raw, and Nate Parker’s lights really shone in this movie.
Republicans seek new lines of attack after Obama immigration action and Benghazi report
November 23, 2014
Moderate Republicans urged the party to “move on” from its fixations on immigration reform and Benghazi on Sunday, as Barack Obama continued to defend his decision to circumvent Congress by use of executive action.
The president’s controversial decision on Thursday to grant legal status to 5 million undocumented immigrants has provoked a storm of protest from opponents who claim he overstepped his executive authority.
But Sunday’s political talk shows brought relatively few suggestions for overturning the decision from Republicans, who are also reeling from a report slipped out by the House intelligence committee on Friday that largely exonerated the administration’s handling of the 2012 Benghazi terrorist attack – another once-reliable target for criticising Democrats.
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/nov/23/republicans-attack-obama-immigration-benghazi
https://twitter.com/srjones66/status/536573685852033024/photo/1
https://twitter.com/deray/status/536514267428560896/photo/1
I’m sure MHP wass just THRILLED to do almost a half hours’ worth of COSBY SMEARING this morning on her show!
There was a time when I really liked MHP. But lately, not so much.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpEZZl9_1KM
FYI: PBO, Blacks in America are your proxy for RACISM too.
Some racists try to get to you by jumping the WH fences, placing effigies and billboards in their towns, and posting ugly comments on social media.
Other black folks are getting unjustly imprisoned, gunned down by racist cops, but make no mistake about it. RACISM is and always has been alive in America.
Why do I have a better understanding of the hateful racism going on in our country than PBO’s understanding?
Good Morning, Everyone!
https://twitter.com/nycjim/status/536528687525810177/photo/1
this mofo here!
………………….
Thu Nov 20, 2014 at 06:04 AM PST
Cuomo: New Yorkers have all the health care they need
by Joan McCarter
Remote Area Medical was founded in 1985 to provide medical care in
developing nations. But now, the need here at home has grown so great that more than 80 percent of their work is in the U.S. They’ve held more than 700 three-to-five day clinics offering medical, dental, and vision services at no cost to hundreds of thousands of patients. They were ready to bring their clinic to serve more than 7,000 people in New York City on November 28, an event that would have been RAM’s large clinic ever held. But just two weeks before it was scheduled to open, the clinic had to be cancelled. Why? Because Gov. Andrew Cuomo says it’s unnecessary.
[T]o provide all the free care they had hoped to in New York
would have required a special waiver from the governor’s office of
provisions contained in Article 28 of the health code, which pertain to
the operation of stationary health facilities. RAM is mobile, but builds
into spaces, and so falls between the cracks of the law.
Waiving this provision was entirely at the governor’s discretion. The
offices of Senators Harry Reid, Tim Kaine (both of whom who have seen RAM clinics firsthand), and Chuck Schumer called Cuomo and the NY Public Health Department directly to petition for the clinic to go forward. The reason provided to RAM for the clinic being scuttled: New Yorkers have all the health care they need.
New Yorkers have all the health care they need. More likely
New Yorkers have a governor with presidential aspirations that are, of
late, more than a little bruised, and who is willing to make this
ludicrous statement in order avoid publicly presenting the image of
several thousand uninsured standing in a parking lot in the Big Apple.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/11/20/1346155/-Cuomo-New-Yorkers-have-all-the-health-care-they-nbsp-need
Cuomo has always been a rat.
Breaking News ✔ @BreakingNews
Lewis Hamilton is the 2014 F1 world champion after winning the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – @BBCSport http://bbc.in/157ZbvO
Before Barry DC local politics was truly a plantation system.He changed that. OF COURSE they hated him for it
Yes, those “BITCHES” literally and figuratively bitches set him up.
Thank you for all your service to the District of Columbia, Mr. Barry.
RIP Marion Barry
Good Morning Everyone
Good Morning, rikyrah and Everyone!
Many good Tweets by Deray here:
deray mckesson @deray· 6m
“Protest is about confronting a system that depends on terrorizing blackness to say that this will stop. #Ferguson
“Protest is about refusing to allow America to weaponize blackness in order to justify the spilling of black blood. #Ferguson
“Protest is about loving a people so deeply that you use your body and voice to demand a different day. #Ferguson
“Protest is about Mike, Kajieme, VonDerrit and countless others who died because of white “terror.” #Ferguson
“Protest is a refusal to drown in a pool of our tears, a refusal to choke on the blood of our children.” #Ferguson
We are angry, yes. But anger alone would not lead to 107 days. We are smart, and organized, and in love with blackness. 107 days. #Ferguson”
Last 2 lines should also be in italics.
So many of his tweets read like poetry.
Thanks for these tweets, Yahtzee.