Fareed Zakaria ~ Reporting You can understand!!

Fareed Zakaria


PHOTO: SIGRID ESTRADA

I have been reading his essays and columns over the years when I had enough money in my bank account to afford NEWSWEEK! I have been immensely enjoying his new CNN show GPS.

Just as I recovered from my CNN addiction, they throw out another show that I just can't resist! I LOVE his international perspective. His seemliness in reporting and his skills at direct, unwavering in depth questioning are such a welcoming and fresh approach.

Last week as he maneuvered against U.N. Ambassador to Sudan Issa Abdullah Al Basha Al Nuaimi, it was informative and masterful. I could just see Fareed Zakaria as Secretary of State! You may have to be U.S. born for that, but he is SO on target and a strong presence.

Again when he interviewed Manouchehr Motaaki, he took my breath away with his direct, specific questioning.

Manouchehr Mottaki

At such a young age, Fareed Zakaria, will hopefully be enriching our minds for many years to come! Be sure to catch his show Sundays on CNN ~ Check your listings for times.

I wish I may, I wish I might!

Funny how the Universe works in tandem with your heart. In a response to my rant the universe sent me unsolicited information about this new venture, so if time permits...check it out!

Seriously, it just popped up in my email!


HILLPAC


I should really join the Journalists of Color ~ This Unity Conference has really been shining bright. My cousin (SupeShooter) Mario attended the conference, so stay tuned for what he has to share with us. I have no press pass or membership...yet...so I will not be listening to the Illinois Junior Senator at noon, but hopefully C-Span or CNN will broadcast it live. Be sure to check your local listings, I am eager for the exchange.

The forum is supposed to be open to questioning. I am concerned about women's issues first and foremost, so I am eager to hear heartfelt questioning and response.

Chicago is SO beautiful this time of year. I am sure Senator Obama is glad to be
home.


(Chicago pic by Getty)



A local farmers market opened in my neighborhood today, I AM SO GEEKED!

I continue to support FRESHPICKS, but this is great if you just have a taste for fresh produce that has not been shipped in from some far away locale.

This should be a great week! Take a deep breath and take the plunge!

How You Doin ~

I have not ventured into the blogosphere yet today. I wanted to keep my opinions on last night's CNN documentary "Black In America" unbiased as I wrote today's post.

The first half hour, a steady stream of a tear kept flowing out of my left eye. It was bothersome. I wanted to watch uninterrupted. But it kept flowing, even as I repeatedly wiped it away, mashing it into my skin. It did not blur my vision, or distract me really, but in the back of my mind I kept wondering: "Is there something in my eye?", "Am I still PMSing?", "Is this series affecting me?".

Maybe it was a combination of all three things. I did find the piece very engrossing. The Rand Family, who was a focal of the concentration, like many black families, was intricate and inspriring on many levels.

Soledad O'Brien was perky and journalistic as always. Hitting the hard questions and tapping into harsh realities.

Dr. Michael Eric Dyson featured with his jailed brother Everett Dyson, hit me the hardest. The racial disparities, even within one family, are all too typical. Favoring the lighter child over the darker, or when a new born enters the family, checking his/her ears to quickly determine the eventual shade, is a shaming but real aspect of our community ~ sad to say, it often predetermines the success that child will have...and sadly whether this American society will accept him or her.

Tonight I will be prepared with my kleenex. My Love for my black brothers has ALWAYS been a soft spot. Just the other day, I was at UPS mailing a package. When you enter you are head on with two registers, one on the left and one on the right. You have to choose quickly which way to go as it is a small store. In three to five steps you are there. On this particular day, there was a white man on my left and a brother on my right. They both immediately caught my eye to service me immediately. I had to choose. In that quick glimpse, I could feel the glaze of my brother to the right. His eyes quickly cast down, I guess after all day of everyone going to the left, he anticipated I would do so as well, so I didn't. I smiled brightly and exchanged our "black" hello..."HOWyoudoin?!" He smiled warmly, tall, straightening his back, almost blushing "howYoudoin?!" he replied. "GOOD good...", Obviously a college kid, he immediately began to get this and that and ring me up. He was animated and funny and I so wanted to give him a hug, but of course that is crazy...So I just smiled warmly, assuring him of my "love", and as I left he said "Have a great day now," and I turned and said, "Now, YOU do the same."

Be sure to catch CNN tonight ~ Black In America - The Black Man should be quite the experience.

CNN TONIGHT 9 ET, 8 CST

Be sure to check out CNN ~ BLACK IN AMERICA! Tonight Soledad O'Brien will be focusing on women, their families and the issues they confront.

I happened to catch Soledad O'Brien as she was moderating the Essence forum that kicked off BLACK IN AMERICA on CNN. As I watched I experienced a hopefullness. As we endure these labor pains as a country, we will push forth harmony and progress.

This country is "apologizing" in its own way for its mistreatment of masses of ethnicities in its desire to dominate and conquer. And now that we are all here, it is increasingly becoming a nurturing climate. It has really become possible for us to listen, learn from each other and embrace each other.

Growing up there were so many portions of Black History that were omitted, villainized or overlooked in the education process. Now that we have the Internet, I can learn about all of the magnificent accomplishments we have made. I love reading about the contributions we have given and I am proud of the fact that we can learn together as a nation and as a world family!

Enjoy this day and be sure to catch this important series on CNN ~ TONIGHT!

Good Info ~ Black Coffee

By: PK- Photos
Copyright ©2005

Very interesting site that came from a good friend ~ CHECK IT OUT! BLACK COFFEE

RANT RANT RANT RANT ***

WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE!

I'm mad, so please excuse me, BUT one reason I really wanted Hillary Clinton as President is that I am SO sick and tired of men, old farty men at that, worrying about what I do with MY vagina!!!

Seriously, IT'S MINE! What I do with it is MY business! I can take it off, birth through it or have anyone I want do whatever I want with it! It belongs to me.


No one has EVER told men what to do with their penises. WHY? Because it belongs to men. They do whatever they want with them. WHATEVER! They even rape us with them. Is it a crime? SOMETIMES.

In my line of work, I recently witnessed a case where a man "PUNCHED" a woman's vagina. YES, "PUNCHED" it. It is being tried as a MISDEMEANOR!

I am so overwhelmed with our legislators. YES that includes my SENATOR, state and OTHERWISE.


How can a room full of men sit and legislate that it is okay for a man to be tried for "PUNCHING" someone in their reproductive area and then turn around and state it is also okay that she not be able to decide what to do with her reproductive area is WAY beyond me. I am not a lawyer, but cases like this make me want to be. And I am too emotional to be political, but I respect our women who are.

Now, I know there were circumstances in this case, and that the State had to work with whatever is on the books in order to get any sort of conviction, and also the extenuating circumstances have to weigh in, but I really implore male and female alike, to really pay attention to your local and federal laws. Keep your elected officials at your finger tips.

My rant today was a compilation of witnessing that case in court last week and the email I received about our current administration's plans to assault reproductive health on their way out the door...sorry.

I thank you guys in advance for giving me this forum to SHOUT about my feelings when necessary ~ That's what friends are for right? And it is "HEALTHY" to vent sometimes.

Okay, now go out there and have a great day!

Bright Lights, Big City, Hot Night!

On this hot, bright, night, in downtown Chicago, there were cute little kids of every ethnicity and racial make-up just flittering and scurrying about. British, Asian, Black...a mixture of all three...each game is such a wonderful sight in this traditionally segregated town.

Another soccer game...another secret service blitz, but each game brings a newfound respect for the Democratic Presidential candidate. Senator Obama has made nearly every game. Now, I don't know if it is because the media is watching and subjecting his every move to scrutiny ~ so he attends, or if it is because of his attack on fathers, therefore making it campaign strategy - it is a welcomed effort, whatever the case ~ all possible reasoning aside. I think his daughter played in the Hyde Park league last year, so I do not know if he attended regularly during that time, nonetheless, I honestly feel this is such a nice statement for him to make. Many dads are out there saying, "Well, I'm pretty busy, honey, so I can't make your game" yet this dad really is busy. It speaks volumes ~ staged or not.

There are many single moms out there too. They bake for hours in that blazing steamy Chicago summer sun and I don't see him paying notice, but just the fact that he is there speaks to his dedication to family. I kinda like that.

What do you think??

Something Wicked This Way Comes ~

As the banks begin to crumble, my mind is wondering. I do not have a lot of money but what I do have...I would like to keep! Is this reminiscent of the Great Depression?

Will everything we worked so hard for just go away? Things that we had in place to prevent this did not.

Thankfully, these questions, for some reason, do not keep me up at night. I am sharing this with you because I hope they are not keeping you up either.

Remain healthy and steadfast that good things will come. From the storm the rainbow does shine and I can cliche you all day!!! But remember, we must stay healthy in our minds and in our souls...for our families and our bodies!

I may have quoted the "Horse Whisperer" here before, but it is so true when Robert Redford's character "Tom" looks at Kristin Scott Thomas' character "Annie" and they have this exchange:

"And the more I try and fix things,

the more everything falls apart."



"Maybe you should let 'em fall."



"- No, I can't."
"- Why?"


Why can't we let go sometimes and let things be as they may?

In this case, with the financial and economical woes that we may all be confronted with...there may not be much of a choice, so the best thing to do is to come through to the other side in tact...healthy and strong and better from the journey ~

TYRESE

As we gear up for the CNN Documentary "BLACK IN AMERICA" July 23-24, I've been really enjoying myself with all the things I love about being black...Tyrese is definately a part of that! I've been listening to him ALL week so decided to share this one with you! Enjoy!

My Summer Infatuation!!!!

RHUBARB!!!!

It's crazy! It's a tart little stalk with poisonous leaves. I received a batch in my farm order a few months ago, as I did last year...BUT this year I am absolutely HOOKED!





With my first batch of this summer, I followed the enclosed instructions directly, as I did last year. I measured and pinched and added and stirred. The second time around, I was SO eager, I could hardly contain myself!




Boiling the strawberry and cut-up rhubarb seemed to edge on forever. I added the unbleached cane sugar, water, organic cooking flour, boiled and then baked. Though I added a few crumbled organic chocolate chip cookies, a little organic pancake mix sprinkled on top and a smudge of brown sugar..Oh lalalee!

WOW! It was fantabulous. REALLY and good for me too. SO sorry to say, it has never lasted long enough for me to share with my family(I think my son had a spoonful when it came out of the oven)!!

Oh well, c'est la vie...buy some bake it and enjoy today for a "Healthier, Happier, YOU!!!!" (it will be our secret!)

HEY! Now is NOT the time!!!!!

Reading all over the blogosphere today WOMEN are angry! The LOVE affair is over, or the "Rock Concert" has ended! Dammit!!! I just can't seem to keep up!

Women are finally getting mad BUT it is TOO LATE! The women of ILLINOIS tried to give a bit of a preview, especially the LGBT community. Really, he stood for just about, well, what I'm not too sure...but those of you who read here know that I have gone around that bend quite a bit but now I am on board.

TO ALL THE NAYSAYERS: IT IS TOO LATE...we MUST back OBAMA. As the PUNDITMOM so eloquently and accurately stated...yes, he "shape-shifts" but he has always been this way. UH, remember he voted present on how many issues during sessions as senator???

My own personal experience as a campaigner a few years back is where he, instead of discussing an issue in depth that I presented to him, put me off onto an adviser. Well, that let me know that he is good at what he does. Senator Obama is eloquent and an orator like no one has seen this decade. BUT where he stands, well, that depends. And what will he fight for? Well, that depends. And after the mess we have just endured (THE INFAMOUS BUSH YEARS) we need to bloom about (to put it nicely), up and over some things and only a democratic president in the White House can cultivate this (Okay, now I'm shape-shifting, but whatever!). Having said that, NOW is NOT the time to fall off, or turn away in shame and diss-appointment. WE MUST HAVE A DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENT. PERIOD.

Jesse (Reverend Jackson), you picked a REALLY bad time to say something. The time for all of the intrascrutinzing has gone. Let us straighten our backs, hold up our heads and PROCEED.

I received an email from a trusted and wise confidant who reinforced that Obama's heart IS in the right place. He loves this country and will listen as we formulate our coalition to keep him accountable.

LADIES, stand firm. He has daughters. If Michelle Obama is nothing else, she is a strong woman. FEAR NOT, and this is coming from a Chicagoan, we can win and make a difference.

Just yesterday I received an email from Cecile Richards of Planned Parenthood. As a subscriber, I receive general updates. However, inside this email was a full endorsement of Senator Obama for president. NO WAY will our voices be silenced. We must elect him! He rightfully garnered the delegates and the masses of the popular vote. PERIOD. All of this talk I'm reading today scares me!!

Folks have become recently disenchanted (LIKE AS OF TODAY!!!) listening to Obama's abortion stance in sound bites today because, well, he is the only voice now. Hello, he is not a feminist. You guys knew that when you voted for him in the primary! YOU, the very same people who propelled him into the stratosphere! Now you are listening to him (or trying to)but it is too late!

He is who everyone picked, so we must see it through. SO WHAT the after glow has revealed a reality. The wedding is over, and he is not who you thought you married, but in this scenario there is no option for divorce...SORRY! This is a marriage that must last! Four years at least. Elect him ~ but hold him to every challenge, every issue and hold him accountable for his daughters, for our daughters and the daughters of this world. PERIOD.

Where is Tavis Smiley when we need him! NO MORE talk of "not voting" people. We are with him ~ thick and thin. I expect all of us to join his campaign today. Matter of fact, I will step up and do it myself...whose with me???

WE can start here OR here

Healing Fourth

I know I have some issues. Pretty serious ones; yet I am open and have the gumption to deal with them. This primary election brought about a lot of inner turmoil and feelings that may have been lurking and forging themselves since I was in high school. But I am A) Happy to be alive to deal with them and B) Happy to be alive to deal with them.




After watching my first choice and my second choice unite in Unity...After I wrote Tavis Smiley and thanked him for caring about black health...for caring about black education and for not always sticking with race clusters just because it's what everyone wants or expects, and for genuinely looking out for the conglomerate issues and how we all fit together as one, I began to deal with some of these issues I have. These are the ones I can't really verbalize because I don't know how to yet, even to myself.

Friday night, as Senator Obama and his entourage left our kids' soccer game, and as the secret service and Chicago Police scattered, everyone was all a buzz. "The President just left." Whispers and humms of quiet subtle excitement quivered like clouds overhead as the Suburbans pulled across the grass onto the street and out of sight. Everyone had been holding it in for hours because no one wanted the kids to feel different, or I guess The Obamas, BUT things were different AND I FINALLY GOT IT! I sat in my chair, in the middle of this downtown soccer field, as the air hung low, the sky grew dark and with kids running all around: I realized that I FELT GOOD.


This IS SO much bigger than issues, or what can he do for the country, or even the movement. It is what we, as Americans, can charge onto this country's account and have it really be cashed in. He may or may not be effective, or right, or he may just fall into this role and rock us into a new hemisphere. Who can really tell, but WE are ready. We have all morphed into this electric force ~ ready to be accountable and hold everyone else accountable ~ AND be on fire!

It's weird because Senator Obama doesn't even look the same. It is as if the very "same" of us who have always been here in this city, raising our kids and doing our thing...WE are no longer the same either. We have evolved. It is as when the rainbow begins to fade. That moment or gasp when the rainbow, at its most brilliant before the dark sky lightens again, has its colors shimmer from sight. We are all becoming brilliant, its an energy of hush before the crack of the fireworks. It is the healing that comes forth here in July. One Nation...now truly indivisible...with Liberty and Justice For ALL...WE are all charged! So with that vision that we have, and our hopes and prayers for our ever changing beckoning world, I wish you a Happy Fourth!