Change

I was watching some of the festivities yesterday associated with obama's inauguration and landed on a talking head show on msnbc. Chris Mathews was talking to spike lee and a group of black pundits... Somehow the conversation got around to predominantly black colleges. There seemed to be an agreement among the panelists as to why people would choose to attend a school that enrolls mainly one race.

The first person to speak up on the subject said, "They enjoy and want to spend time with people that are like them. People that think and look the way they do." Everyone on the panel agreed, and then they launched into a bit of Bush bashing to round out the discussion.

My question is a simple one... Why is that ok? I asked myself the same question a few months ago when I was watching a local newscast doing a story about a neighborhood in Atlanta that was being slowly transformed by the gay community. They had been buying up older houses and renovating them, it seemed to be a popular spot for such activity. A local Pastor from a black church in the area was interviewed for the piece and was upset about the developments in his community. I wasn't surprised when he was introduced as having an opposing view of the situation, and expected him, being a baptist minister, to begin wailing and gnashing his teeth because of the growing gay population. Yet, I was a bit surprised when he looked right into the camera and said, "We don't want all these crackers coming into our community." I waited for some sort of comment from the news ferrets about his quote causing a racially tense situation, but nothing came.... Why is that?

Is the fear of even speaking about such things and being labeled a racist that strong? Is this true equality? Equality means just that... A level playing field. Everyone is treated the same, without looking at the physical appearance of said individual. You want a job, or a spot at a college? Then meet the qualifications for that position, if you make it, then you're in, if not, go to the next one. If you meet the qualifications and there is room, yet you get turned down, fight to the death for that spot if you desire it, bring attention to it, write about the unfair treatment, scream from every available soapbox, but make sure you meet the qualifications first. There should be no differing sets of qualifiers depending on race, gender, or sexual appetite... In other words.. completely level.. open to all and everyone...

I didn't vote for obama, not because he's black, but because I don't want taxes to be raised... I fail to see how the economy is going to be better by making sure the federal government is taking in more money in the form of taxes... His plan is just backward... it's woefully simple economics, nothing to do with race, political ideology, or religious theology. You want the economy to be stronger? Then let people that earn money keep more of it to invest and spend, that simple. It has been shown time and again that when you cut income tax rates, the government takes in more money, because people have more to spend... It's not about the money, it's about keeping the power.... How about having a plan in place to grant funds to people who want to build solar panels for private housing? So that the average joe can add them to their home for a few hundred dollars instead of several thousand? How about letting the individual states handle these sorts of things?

He has spent the entire campaign speaking of change. He has done a one eighty on most of his proposals since winning the election. This isn't new, it's politics as usual. He's talking of keeping the income tax cuts a bit longer and raising taxes in other areas, he is talking now of "looking again" at the iraq withdrawals instead of pulling everybody out, he has taken the small business tax hikes "off the table"... Nothing new... just politics... get elected and start working on your reelection...

I watched the concert at the lincoln memorial on hbo last night and was struck by the fervor of the crowd. I've said before that you won't hear me complaining about the man's experience level regarding being president, as I am a firm believer in getting rid of career politicians and having a true citizen government. I just couldn't get caught up in the excitement. He is a good public speaker, but what else can he do? He certainly has a tough road ahead of him... Whether the mess he's stepping into was created by Bush or not doesn't matter at this point. Obama is about to own it and he knows it. We Americans are a fickle group and can and will turn on a dime... I have said that we should look for a real change of appearance in the man after he gets his first real intel briefing the morning after he takes office.. I'm sure he is going to begin the "rapid aging" process that afflicts all presidents... It's a nasty world that we live in and there is a multitude of people that want us all dead for no other reason than our physical location at time of birth, they care little for race, religious affiliation, or what we do with our reproductive organs... they just want us dead.

So far I've seen just business as usual.. and little actual change... I can only hope he enjoys the high approval ratings he has now...