The New Great Depression

Let us shine a light on the economy! You will hear politicians say that the workers of the United States are suffering an economic recession. The news media simple mindedly reports what ever the government officials tell them to report. Let us all be clear about this fact, workers are suffering under a depression. This depression is as bad, if not worse, than the last Great Depression. Right now only 50% of the working public is engaged in full time employment. Since part time employment really does not allow one to buy much at all, half of the workers in the U. S. are unemployed. Many thousands of people are living in homes that are worth less than they paid for them. We do not know how many thousands of people are squatting in homes that have leans on them or have been foreclosed upon. We also have not faced the retail real estate market’s crash, coming soon. We have not come to grips with the fact that many of the jobs that have been lost over the last few years are never coming back. We know this because production is up and rehiring has not occurred. Put another way, employers are doing fine with workers that they have. So when you hear the phrase “the worst recession since the depression,” please understand that it means the new Great Depression.

August Wilson’s Fences

Many women showed up at the Cort theatre to see August Wilson’s Fences dressed in the more sensuous outfits from their closets. I suspect that the ladies were encouraged by their admiration for the leading man, Denzel Washington. Yes Denzel did a wonderful job as always but Viola Davis captured the hearts of the neutral observers and stole the hearts of those Washingtonettes. Davis played Rose, the mother, mom, and momma. She was the wife, sister-in-law, etc. Rose fills up the theatre with responsibility. Davis reminded us that the descendents of slaves in the U. S. had obligations for everyone. Viola Davis is an actress of mass artistry. She received the most applause as we stood as well as the loudest cheers – deservedly so. Do not miss this production of Fences.

King Kong

King Kong is a visual metaphor for the perceived rage of African people, which in those days resided in the male. The movie makers were trying to show that the African was as wild as the animals that they live with. King Kong warned the world that if you bring the African to the city, civilization, they will destroy everything violently. Not only that, the African male is obsessed with the white female. The movie explains that the brutal African male will overwhelm the weak white female. The Peter Jackson remake of King Kong added a little to the story. The people of the mysterious island where King Kong lives in Jackson’s version are not as dark and have blue eyes. This says that Europeans have been here. This King Kong is a little colonized and a lot more scarred. Jackson’s King Kong gives the African male a few more feelings, but in the end the African male is just as obsessed with the white female and just as violent as ever. King Kong is one of the greatest metaphors in cinematic history because it is clear and wildly entertaining.

George G. M. James’ Stolen Legacy

Who are you? Where are you from? These are simple questions to answer for most. The African that helped to build the United States often has difficulty answering the two fundamental questions of life. The way we work, worship, relate to each other, and even play began some place. These functions were also influenced and manipulated along the way. The problem is not so much the fact that who we are has changed, but that many of us have no idea of the origins of the behavior that would best suit our natures. This is why the African kidnapped to the United States is so confused. Stolen Legacy can put an end to the confusion. This book tells us how the African peoples of Kemet functioned in terms of education, which is the most important part of anyone’s life. Stolen Legacy should be read by any person interested in the ancient empire that casted its shadow over the most crucial continent of all time. Read Stolen Legacy at least once to clarify some blind spots in your intellectual rear view mirror.

George Orwell’s 1984

George Orwell’s 1984 is a novel set in a dystopian society. That is to say a society ruled by the few for the benefit of only themselves. The overwhelming majority of people in Orwell’s Oceania work for the ruling caste in every sense. The masses of the citizens in this dystopia also live their lives under the control of the rulers. Even the reproduction of human beings is done in a controlled environment in a scientific manner.


Orwell’s Oceania is made up of the inner party (rulers), outer party (workers), and the Prols (isolated poor). Winston, the main character, is a member of the outer party in Orwell’s dystopia. He works to maintain the society in which he lives while he despises it. Winston secretly wages a revolution in his mind until it can no longer be contained there. The problem is that in Oceania there is no place to rebel from or rebel to. Winston ends up falling into the hands of the state which attempts to fix him or cure him. Orwell leaves it up to the reader to decide whether the officials of Oceania have won and Winston has changed.

Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart

Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart should be studied by everyone who works any place in the world in the 21st century. The novel should definitely be studied by every foreign agency of every established government. The reason why Things Fall Apart is so important today is that we are all competing and united like never before in this world. Almost all corners of the earth are known about and infiltrated. Achebe gives us a great novel that allows us to see the interaction of cultures. Things Fall Apart forces one to think about what should be adopted from another culture. Achebe warms that the all my culture – none of yours approach will destroy us all.”

A Gift for Obama

So far President Obama has not completed any agenda items and is almost half way through his first term. He has not done anything to stimulate the economy. Obama has not given us real health care. He has done nothing to improve the environment and has no immigration policy. Obama is extremely fortunate because the Tea Party Movement and the Militia Movement are against Obama for who he is and not what his policies are. When left with the option of voting for Obama or his opposition, many unsatisfied citizens will be forced to select Obama. President Obama’s enemies are his greatest gifts.


The Tea Party Movement claims that they are being taxed without representation. They often say that they want their country back. They do not want the country back from the way that the government is behaving because nothing has changed ideologically. They want the country back from Obama, a black man. Obama has forgotten that he is black, (according to the 1 drop rule) but those who believe in white male rule have not forgotten. Tea Party members call him a socialist and a fascist and a liberal. He cannot possibly be all of those things. Ron Paul recently had to correct the racist by informing them that Obama is not a socialist, he is a corporatist. Paul received few applause for this fact. Hate does not care about facts or truth.

The Militia Movement has always been here. They believe that the wealthy elite are working together to create a one world government. Militia members think that Obama is the enemy because he is charming everyone into volunteering to live under this one world government. Their solution is to train and stockpile weapons in order to wage war on the U. S. government. The Militia Movement also focuses on Obama’s personality.

President Obama is sitting pretty because he has been given the gift of a hateful opposition. Most voters know that if they choose hate, the empire will die a painful death. The worst part of it all is that Obama is not that good of a president thus far and his policies are unsound.

Toni Morrison's Beloved

Toni Morrison’s Beloved is one of the great American novels. Beloved looks beneath the surface of the plantation life. Morrison lets everyone see the horrors of life for African-American people as chattel slaves. She also exposes the horrors for African-American people living in reconstruction. Beloved could easily extend out to Jim Crow living or 21st century living of African-American people in the United States. Beyond the social statements that beloved makes, there is the quality of the literature. Morrison is a world class literary figure that takes the reader on an exhilarating ride through the characters and time in the Nobel Prize winning Beloved.”

NYC Crime Reports

Let us shine a light on crime! Recently in New York City crime has been on the rise. At least this is the claim. After years of drops in crime across the board, we seem to be headed in the wrong direction. The news is troubling. What is really happening? Well, crime is probably not much different than it has been for the last few years. The difference is that it is now being reported. In the old days, before gentrification, the members of such neighborhoods as Bedford Stuyvesant and Brownsville did not like dealing with the police, so they did not always report crimes. Police do not like to deal with this population, so even if crimes were reported, they were not taken seriously. The new population that has moved into these neighborhoods report crimes and expects the police to act. Mayor Michael Bloomberg is a paper man, if it is on paper it is real to him, anything else does not exist. We have all gone along with this foolish notion. Now the realities are closing in around us. Add to that the economic depression put upon the working class and you receive a spike in crime rates. By the way, this is only the beginning of a rise in crime that will probably last for a number of years.



Personal Statement

When I see 3 black women who are pregnant I think that one of their children will end up in the criminal correction industry. When I see 5 black women who are pregnant I think that 2 of their children will never learn to read.

Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf

     We are living in a cycle of extremism. People have lost their faith in governments as well as institutions. This is nothing new. People have also lost their faith in any great intangible being(s). It is times like these that the masses turn to certain kinds of leaders. They embrace leaders who give them simple solutions to problems without explaining the details. These leaders never tell the truth when they list the facts of the cause for the despair of the masses. They divide the masses into a them and an us. After that these leaders turn the them against the us, the us against the them. Prosperity comes immediately. However, leaders like this always lose control and end up destroying the very people they swore to empower.
     We would do well to read Mein Kampf because it was written by such a leader at the beginning of his march to ruler ship. The United States does not have to follow in Germany’s footsteps. We can read Mein Kampf so that we will be able to recognize who not to follow. It took Germany fifty years to get over the damage left behind by Hitler. The U. S. is too fragile of an empire to withstand an Adolph Hitler at this point in time.

Tales From Tim by Timothy Conerson

“This books is special to me because I actually know the author. The book has 11 short stories of varied interest. In the first story, which can be read for free on amazon.com, called "Our nana" is about a matriarch of a community that draws a young woman into the sisterhood of the community. The book has stories that are as short as one page and as long as eleven pages. The thing that I love is that the stories are simple on the surface, but become richer as you dig deeper. If there is one thing that does tie the stories together, it is that they are urban. From "Our Nana" to "The People's Republic" which shows a population creating a nation after America falls to China.”

Man is Not Alone by Abraham J. Heschel

Man is Not Alone explores what may be the largest question of a believer's life, What is God like? Heschel says that there is a God and presents an idea of what God may be like. More importantly Heschel discusses what kind of attitude people must develop in order to have a relationship with God. Even an atheist will find this book beneficial because Heschel lays out a standard for how people should treat each other. He also makes it clear how we must view and treat ourselves. God is a force that is always here for humanity in this book. Heschel proposes that the task for us is to reach the highest level of humanity.

Facing Reality

The medical industry is going to change in major ways. Local governments will be making deep cuts in funding schools, programs, and agencies. New York State alone faces an $18 billion deficit. This means that we will all have to face reality.


With limited resources every person cannot have quality treatment. We will be forced to spend what resources we have on the most deserving among us. The brightest children will receive an education. The dim thinkers will receive some training or apprenticeships. People with terminal, irreversible illnesses will not receive the most care that hospitals can give. Large churches may have to combine. Small churches will disappear altogether.

Programs that we all take for granted will now vaporize. We will all be wise to create survival kits equipped with: batteries, candles, matches, small radios, canned goods, first aid kits, tents, etc. Emergency services will not show up. Learn all you can about home remedies because neighborhood clinics will be dead to us.

Reality is standing above us like a wave of a tsunami. We are on our own now. We have to regain that communal spirit if we are to survive this national down turn.