LOS ANGELES, California (Hollywood Reporter) -- Naked tennis, anyone? A Florida nudist colony is planning what it's calling the first-ever webcast of a nude tennis tournament.

For a fee of $10-$13, Internet surfers can go to http://www.TennisInTheBuff.com and watch on demand the two-hour tournament after it's played Sunday.

Twenty naked tennis players are competing for a $2,000 prize in front of 100 naked spectators. A tape of the event will be edited to make sure that all who appear nude have given their consent, then the event will be quickly posted to the Web site.

WASHINGTON (NNPA)-As the Bush administration concentrates on rebuilding a post-Saddam Hussein Iraq, some social policy experts are urging the president to give equal attention to rebuilding America's social fabric.
"President Bush has been a champion for democracy over there. But he has been silent on democracy over here," says Rev. Wendell Anthony, pastor of Fellowship Chapel United Church of Christ and president of the Detroit Branch of the NAACP. "If America has enough resources to build Iraq in the Middle East, then we have the resources to rebuild Detroit in the Midwest."

WASHINGTON (AP) - Tests mandated for the nation's students will cost $1.9 billion to $5.3 billion over the next seven years, according to the investigative arm of Congress.

Whether the burden falls on the federal government or the states - taxpayer money, either way - depends on what kinds of tests schools use, the General Accounting Office report says.

By 2005-06, all states must test students in grades three though eight in math and reading annually, and at least once during high school grades. The No Child Left Behind law also requires a science test at least once in elementary, middle and high school by 2007-08.

The report says if all states use multiple-choice tests only, the cost would be the low estimate of $1.9 billion. That's less than the $2.34 billion Congress must provide for testing under existing law.

"If a state elects to go with the Ferrari version of testing instead of the Chevrolet version required under No Child Left Behind Act, that cannot be blamed on the act," David Schnittger, spokesman for the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, said Thursday. "The bottom line is, every testing requirement is paid for."

ROANOKE, Va. (AP) - The wife of a Thomas Jefferson family association official said Friday that she masqueraded as a 67-year-old black woman on an Internet chat room in a bid to keep descendants of a reputed Jefferson mistress out of this weekend's family reunion.

"It might have been somewhat unethical," said Paulie Abeles of Washington, D.C., who participated for eight months in the Yahoo! message board created for relatives of Jefferson slave Sally Hemings.

"It might have been childish, but I really think I was working in the best interest of the majority of the family members to make the reunion a calm and civilized gathering," she said.

… David Works, a sixth-generation grandson of Jefferson who sympathizes with the Hemings heirs, said he has asked federal authorities to investigate.

… Paulie Abeles said she was curious last August when she found out the Hemings family was communicating through an Internet group, but she thought her name would have made it difficult to be included.

So Cassandra Mays-Lewis was born. In her Yahoo! profile, Abeles made Cassandra a descendant of Jefferson slave Joe Fossett, describing herself as having an interest in black genealogy. In her messages, she played the part of an elderly woman, stricken with emphysema, thanking Works at one point for his "kind attentions to an old woman."

… Lucian Truscott IV, a Jefferson descendant who believes the Hemings family should be recognized, said he believes the Internet impostor was Nat Abeles, not his wife.

IDA B. WELLS was selected as African American News & Issues? inaugural Fiesta?s Black History 24-7-365 ?Mother of The Year,? due to the fact she was, indeed, the matriarch of Black Newspapers. In fact, one of the Texas Black United Fund?s most prestigious acknowledgments is the Ida B. Wells: ?Tell It Like It Is? Award, which recognizes uncompromised African-American newspapers (AAN&I received the award in 2001 and 2002) that objectively report all news, without fear or favor.

Just who was this courageous and outspoken little snip of Black woman who dared speak out against lynching in the Deep South during the antebellum era? Wells, born in May of 1862, in Holly Springs, Mississippi, always noted that she came into the world (18 months before the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation) and was the oldest of eight children. Although enslaved prior to the Civil War, her parents were able to support their seven children because her mother was a ?famous cook? and her father was a skilled carpenter. When Ida was only 14, a tragic epidemic of Yellow Fever swept through Holly Springs and killed her parents and youngest sibling. Emblematic of the righteousness, responsibility and fortitude that characterized her life, she kept the family together by securing a teaching job.

As popular and, perhaps, prophetic as the Mother?s Day tribute: ?The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world,? has become since it was penned by the great 19th-century American writer/poet William Ross Wallace (1819-1881), it no longer adequately addresses the myriad of roles that ?Super Sisters? play in the 21st century. Thus, let?s borrow the following lines from author Edith Wharton?s 1897 The House of Mirth: ?Ah, lucky girls who grow up in the shelter of a mother?s love - a mother who knows how to contrive opportunities without conceding favors, how to take advantage of propinquity without allowing appetite to be dulled by habit.?

Somehow it seems a more apropos tribute to Spec. Shoshana Johnson, a single mom who spent 22 horrific days as a prisoner in an Iraqi hellhole, insofar as she certainly validates a preponderance of evidence that a mother?s hands do a lot more than rock cradles today. Fact is, mother?s hands are likely to put a woman?s touch on every endeavor pursued by her male counterpart.

… For sure, you?ll learn all about Shoshana when she appears on the Oprah Winfrey show, and there has even been talk of a book, and, perhaps, a movie of her life. Nevertheless, there are many naysayers who have already concluded there is nothing super about Johnson, who just got lucky.

African American News&Issues, Texas? widest-circulated newspaper with a Black perspective, might even be considered to be a wee bit out of order to laud a sister who got knocked up and had to choose between the Army and welfare as being a ?Super Sister.? But on Mother?s Day 2003, we would be remiss not to set the record straight when it comes to the all-too-often misconception that young Black women -- having babies out of wedlock -- are responsible for most of America?s problems. Ergo, we would like to share the following national study (funded by a grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development), for your edification, and at the same time, salute our Super Sister on Mother?s Day 2003.

• Female born 18-27 (18 by August 1, 2003 and not exceeding 27 by August 1, 20003
• Single (unmarried)
• USA Citizen

NEW HAVEN
It's bad enough to be locked up for years for a crime you didn't commit. What's worse is to get out and find that you're on your own.

Yet when the wrongfully convicted gain their freedom, they're usually not entitled to the social services, like help with housing and jobs, that other released convicts receive. (They're not on probation or eligible for other ex-offender programs.) Just as troubling, they rarely get any money from state governments to make up for the years of lost freedom, livelihood and time with loved ones.

For what they've suffered, these victims deserve better. Since the state fractured their lives, it should help them put the pieces back together.

The best thing to be said for the tax-cut legislation being concocted in the Republican-led Congress is that the Senate version finally accepts the idea of providing emergency fiscal aid to the deficit-battered states. Even so, the $20 billion proposed is short of actual needs and is likely to be undercut by fresh state revenue losses resulting from other negative factors in the G.O.P. proposals.

The worst thing to be said for the differing bills now moving through the two houses is that they continue to emphasize upper-bracket boons while totally ignoring the plight of the nation's unemployed workers. Most regrettably, the fight to kill off President Bush's favored dividend tax cut - thought to have been rejected earlier in the Senate - appears far from over. True, the latest Senate compromise won by Olympia Snowe of Maine trims this deficit-stoking measure to a quarter of the president's plan. But it introduces a sliding scale that would eventually let wealthier Americans shelter 20 percent of dividends.

One result of this compromise is to give dividend relief a foot in the door in the negotiations between House and Senate conferees later this month, when both chambers have completed work on their bills. Dividend cuts would have been unlikely if they had been struck from the Senate agenda. As it is now, the White House will have another chance to seek even larger dividend relief.

Meanwhile, the House bill heading for a vote today includes not only dividend relief but also a capital gains cut favored by persistent conservatives. They failed to win this windfall for the affluent two years ago, when there was a budget surplus. Now, despite record deficits and spiraling debt, they are determined to resurrect this bad idea for the final poker-game negotiations.

In another nod to the White House, both houses would accelerate the tax cuts enacted two years ago. The upper brackets are doing best here, too, with the top rate dropping to 35 percent, although speeding up child care and marriage credits will aid those further down the scale. Most unconscionably, neither house is repairing the damaging fine print in the president's plan that effectively denies these credits to children in the very poorest families.

Lower-income families, of course, would be the quickest to spend the money to help provide some of the stimulus the Republicans claim is their first priority. Instead, the G.O.P. remains fixated on high-income concerns, framing the reconciliation talks as little more than an exercise in dueling sugarplums.

Chutzpah, according to the classic definition, is when you murder your parents, then ask for sympathy because you're an orphan. But what do we call it if after you are placed with foster parents, you try the same thing all over again?

I ask this question in light of the tax-cut package the House is expected to pass today - a package that relies on exactly the same bait-and-switch tactics used to sell the 2001 tax cut. Since the scam involved in the 2001 tax cut remains one of the wonders of modern political economy, it is a measure of our leaders' contempt for the intelligence of the public - or maybe for the press - [p6: or maybe both] that they think they can use the same tricks a second time.

Here's the story: in 2001, as now, some swing senators insisted on a budget resolution limiting the size of any tax cut. No problem. House-Senate negotiators pushed through a huge tax cut anyway, "saving" several hundred billion dollars by making the whole thing expire in the 10th year. Among other things, this "sunset clause" implied that heirs to large estates would pay no tax if their parents died in 2010, but would face significant taxes if their parents made it into 2011. At the time I suggested that it be renamed the Throw Momma from the Train Act of 2001. [p6: plus he has quite a way with words]

Needless to say, the bill was silly by design. The administration didn't intend to compromise: it fully expected to get the sunset clause repealed in a future Congress. And President Bush was soon out there ridiculing the way the tax cut was programmed to expire, implying that the expiration date was imposed by scheming liberals, when in fact it was a trick perpetrated by his own Congressional allies.[p6: emphasis added]

WASHINGTON, May 8 - Senate Republicans backed down today from an effort to make permanent the sweeping antiterrorism powers in a 2001 act, clearing the way for passage of a less divisive measure that would still expand the government's ability to spy on foreign terrorist suspects in the United States.

In an agreement finalized over the last week, Senator Orrin G. Hatch, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, dropped his effort to extend provisions of the 2001 legislation, the Patriot Act, whose broad powers to investigate and track terrorist suspects are scheduled to expire in 2005.

As a result, the Senate voted 90 to 4 to approve a measure expanding the government's ability to use secret surveillance tools against terrorist suspects who are not thought to be members of known terrorist groups.

UNITED NATIONS, May 8 - A draft resolution to be introduced by the United States, Britain and Spain on Friday morning lifting economic sanctions against Iraq calls for the Security Council to endorse American and British control of Iraq's political development and financial resources for at least 12 months.
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Under the resolution, new Iraqi oil revenues and at least $3 billion in the current United Nations-controlled escrow fund would be transferred to a new Iraqi Assistance Fund to be "disbursed at the direction of" the United States and Britain ? referred to as the "provisional authority" ? in consultation with the interim government to be formed in Iraq.

I'd link to Rush's site where this is posted, except that: A. As it's been a few days, to access it you have to sign up to be a Rush 24/7 member, and B. The mere thought of doing so makes my flesh crawl.

Niewert also speaks of Limbaugh's recent castigation of Tim Robbins, "who thinks he can say any thing at any time . . . I have a question: How is it that Tim Robbins is still walking free? How in the world is this guy still able to go to the National Press Club and say whatever he wants to say?"

How is it that Tim Robbins still walking free.

The insination, of course, being that good, loyal Americans ought to do something about it so that he is not able to walk free.

Make no mistake - this is what the far right wants. Perhaps it has what the far right has always wanted, but the call for it has become far more brazen.

Of course, the far right does not always get what it wants. But it could get an America where Tim Robbins and the like are not permitted to "walk free." In order for that to happen, though, they need a pretext, a rationale which is accepted, passively if need be, by a majority of Americans.

The following post comes from LGF; this, I think, could be the pretext:

(The discussion was about Saudi funding of terrorism):

"To most people, 15 million smackers is a LOT of money, but this token funding pales in comparison to the billions in funding by the Saudis of the cause of Wahhabism in another country. That country would be the United States of America.

Whether or not the street knows it - and they don't - we are now in the early phases of the fight for our existence as a nation, and as the standard-bearers of the idea of democracy.

We have most of the EU and a good portion of NATO aligned against us - the old school appeasers of Europe - and most of the Arabic nations, and third-world oppressor nations as well. They are starting to sense a common ground of opposition to our position, which is one of self-determination of man.

That is very dangerous to all these folks, as they represent the dictator and dictator-enabler; the rapists and the voyeurs who profit from the rapes of mankind.

This war won't be quick, or easy. We will undoubtedly end up being forced to kill off some of our own citizens in order to protect the ideas set down by our framers over 200 hundred years ago.

It's happening now, and suddenly, and we are right in the midst of it. It is going to get bloody and scary and desperate before all is finished and a victor emerges.

I hope and believe that the victor will be the one that represents rightness and honor, because otherwise it means the end of democracy on earth, another untold dozens or hundreds or thousands of years of terror.

IndyMedia is part of the problem. We can't just go up and shoot these people for their hatred and ignorance, just like Israel cannot just wipe out the people in the PA controlled lands. Militant Islam KNOWS these things, and will be using them to coalesce the forces of their believers and sympathizers to undermine the efforts for equality and peace until, and if, they are defeated.

Is everyone ready? The time is here, and now.

Prepare yourselves."

Once you're done digesting this - I recommend a healthy dose of Tums - consider its salient points:

* Everyone is against us.
* They are using our own system against us.
* Thus, there will need to be a purge - "We will undoubtedly end up being forced to kill off some of our own citizens in order to protect the ideas set down by our framers over 200 hundred years ago."
* That purge will be justified.
* Because we represent the forces of "rightness and honor"

Frightened yet?

Students of history will recognize all of this. I don't know whether it's inevitable that something like this might happen in our country, but it could happen, and as such I think the left damned well ought to know that this is what the far right wants - though "transmitters" like Limbaugh may not say so in such crude and direct terms.

Maybe it's my inner pessimist - or, hell, my outer pessimist - but I think this will happen. Not in my lifetime, perhaps; hopefully not in my kid's lifetime.

But what I think is going to happen is that at some point, perhaps spurred by another terrorist attack, perhaps spurred by external events, the Patriot Act will be expanded, or superseded by even tougher legislation. Under the guise of the war on terrorism, we will jettison our traditional reluctance to "shoot these people for their hatred and ignorance." Motivated by fear, we will deem it permissable to eliminate enemies of patriotism, and we will do so, on whatever scale.

And ultimately, this as much as terrorism itself will be a factor in the downfall and destruction of the nation.

Because I think the average American is willing to sell out the nation's philosophical birthright on account of fear. I think the far right is poised to take advantage of that fear; some, maybe all may sincerely believe theirs is the way to make America stronger. Others will be motivated by a sheer lust to "get" their enemies.

If Republicans are capable of selling out September 11, the far right is capable of selling out the Founding Fathers and our collective history. They will use it to justify their actions. Limbaugh, Savage, Ann Coulter and the rest will be the apologists, as they already are.

As it goes on, there will be some questions - but probably not from the traditional, consolidated, looking-to-the-administration-for-regulatory-favors media, which will by that time know - which already knows - on which side the bread is buttered.

But though the right will continue to insist that these measures will strengthen the nation, the reality is that they will weaken it. All the while, the hubris of which Sullivan spoke will be running at a fever pitch. Internationally, we will continue to seek to remake the world; our conviction that this is the "right and honorable" thing to do will continue to alienate much of the rest of the world. Which, at some point, may well unite against us not just philosophically, but economically. Militarily.

And it will play out as so many other fascist regimes have played out.

This is my worst-case scenario, to be sure. My problem is that in some on the right, I sense the same sort of viciousness and vituperouness that drove 19-year-old SS members in Berlin to string up 60-year-old Volkssturm members who refused to take potshots at Soviet tanks with an antique Italian rifle. I sense the same sort of outrage that made it all right to usurp, suspend and destroy individual rights - and individuals - on behalf of the state.

I hear a train around the bend, and though I don't know exactly what it looks like, I have a pretty good idea that it will be big, and I can feel it getting closer.

I just hope we get off the tracks in time.

1. Much of official U.S. history is a lie.

2. Many of the American ideals have been cynically exploited for private profit, both political and commercial, at the governmental level for a very long time.

3. One shouldn't take patriotic propaganda about how U.S. soldiers fight honorably, sparing women, children, non-combatants, and abiding by rules of war seriously, as these concepts fly in the face of historical reality.

4. Being conquered by the U.S. is not necessarily a good thing, contrary to current propaganda. But then, any Native American, Cuban, or Filipino could have told you that ages ago.

5. The U.S. is the undisputed world leader in ethnic cleansing and hypocrisy.

As history proves, the States and People lost the war.

Myth#1 - The war was a civil war
Unimportant. I could care less what name it's given

Myth #2 - The war was necessary and legal in order to "preserve the Union".
Relativity. True from the Union's perspective, false from the Confederacy's

Myth #3 - The war was fought to end the practice of slavery.
I've known this was bullshit since high school, just as I've known the "Emancipation Proclaimation" excluded the slave states that sided with the Union.

The war, like all wars, was the shooting phase of an economic dispute, in this case over the transition from a primarily agrarian economy to an industrial one where slavery was no longer the most productive basis to grow on. Unfortunately, the CULTURE of the Confederacy was built on slavery. The claim that it was about slavery is a misapprehension of these combined facts.

Myth #4 - Yankee States ended slavery because it was cruel and barbaric.
This is merely a restatement of Myth #3, hence an empty expansion of reference

Myth #5 - Blacks were treated better in the North than in the South.
Blacks were treated fine in the Confederacy as long as they stayed uneducated, didn't resist when the women were raped, gave up their children to be raised in pens, didn't try to run away...

Myth #6: Southern slaves lived in squalor and violence. While it is true that there occasionally existed a cruel slavemaster, this was true in both North and South. To say this was commonplace is like saying that because some parents abuse their children, the USA is a nation of child abusers.

Tripe. Bad logic. Not to mention an absolute abuse of the word "occasionally." EVERY day is an occasion...

Myth #7 - Southern slaves welcomed Union forces.
Like the Iraqis welcomed the US and British forces, right?

Would require too much documentation to support on the fly. For now, I'll just say that you shouldn't judge a group by its exceptions.

Myth #8 - Confederate troops commited atrocities; Union troops did not.
Both committed atrocities. Seems to be the nature of war.

Myth #9 - The CSA was governed by a wealthy elite, despite the will of the People.
No one said it was "despite the will of the people." The people were perfectly happy being ruled by a wealthy elite. Sadly not much has changed in this regard. But this:
Quote:

Myth #10 - Blacks had no rights in the South.
The few "rights" they had were subordinate to the rights of white folks.

Myth #11 - the Confederates were fighting to preserve the practice of slavery.
This is merely a restatement of Myth #3, hence an empty expansion of reference

Myth #12 - Confederate States and people were poor and destitute, and fought out of desperation.
This is not something I was ever taught.

Myth #13 - The Confederacy fought to preserve the importation of African slaves.
This one is special

Quote:

Quote:

MY CONCLUSION: This is a bunch of self-serving neo-Confederate bullshit. It doesn't mean the USofA hasn't misrepresented itself as noble and all that, it means the neo-Confederates behind this book and list of nonsense are doing so as well.

By Susan Milligan, Globe Staff, 5/8/2003

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration has quietly altered regulations for the nation's leading job training program to allow faith-based organizations to use ''sacred literature,'' such as Bibles, in their federally funded programs. Civil liberties activists say the new rules blur the line between religion and government.

The change, made by the US Labor Department last month, could allow faith-based groups to use religious books as historical texts or as inspirational stories for job seekers, as long as organizations do not proselytize or conduct prayer sessions.

… In a separate action, the House is expected today to approve a change allowing private groups that run job training programs to discriminate on the basis of religion when they hire people to run them. That change, part of legislation to renew the overall program, would lift a ban that has existed in federal law for two decades.

… But critics say the moves are a violation of civil rights laws.

''The notion that you need to allow religious groups to discriminate to receive federal funds is a lie,'' said Representative Barney Frank, Democrat of Newton. ''If you dip your fingers in the federal till, you can't complain if a little democracy rubs off on you.''

X2: X-Men United is not just any action-packed summer blockbuster--far from it. It represents a cultural moment, a brief opportunity to address crucial questions of difference and democracy, questions that have been with us since the founding, with new eyes. In this case, red glowing eyes.

… What we've seen in recent years is nothing less than the Sharptonization of the X-Men.

… By contrast, Xavier's adversaries, led by the brilliant and charismatic Magneto, master of magnetism, call for utter mutant supremacy or, failing that, mutant separation and sovereignty, a worldview best described as Black Power on steroids.

Senate Finance Committee Republicans agreed yesterday to support limited tax relief for stock dividends as part of a revised $430 billion tax cut package that the panel will take up today.

Under the 10-year plan roughed out during 90 minutes of closed-door negotiations involving the 11 badly divided GOP senators, all taxpayers could exclude $500 in dividends from taxes. In the first four or five years, 10 percent of dividends above that amount would also qualify for the exemption, and the exclusion would rise to 20 percent in later years. The cost of the relief would be $81 billion over the next decade -- much less than the amount sought by President Bush in his original $726 billion tax cut package, and less than that in a major House tax measure that goes to the floor there Friday.

… Many of the details were, however, still being worked out, including the question of what trade-offs will have to be made to keep the $430 billion measure from costing more than the $350 billion that a recently passed Senate resolution allowed. To bring the price tag down to that number, Republicans were seeking at least $80 billion in offsetting tax increases or spending cuts -- a process that left tax lobbyists nervous yesterday.

"There are about $20 billion that they can find pretty easily," said one lobbyist, but beyond that Congress would be going after corporate tax shelters and other tax provisions that have strong backing among GOP supporters in the business community.

… Canada's plan isn't that unusual: 12 U.S. states and most of the 15 nations in the European Union have eased penalties on first-time offenders in recent years. That's a reflection of how many governments have grown weary of pursuing individual marijuana users.

But U.S. officials, while stressing that they aren't trying to interfere in Canada's affairs, are urging Canadians to resist decriminalizing marijuana.

Evidently, Bush will run as a one-man reunion of the Village People, the dreadful disco act. Having previously costumed himself as a businessman (his ventures mostly failed) and owner of the Texas Rangers (he had an 11.3 percent share when the team was sold), he's added cowboy and fighter pilot to his repertoire. In reality, his Texas ranch was acquired in 1999; Bush's time in the saddle is limited to golf carts.

Introduction

This page is a compendium of every idea generation method we have encountered during the past 15 years. Our sources include books, articles, websites, academics, consultants and colleagues.

The methods have been drawn not just from the world of creative problem solving and innovation, but also from other worlds such as organisational change, strategic planning, psychotherapy and the creative arts.

Each method is included in the following taxonomy (Dictionary.com definition: Division into ordered groups or categories), with a link to the alphabetical list and explanation that appears lower down the page.

During the coming weeks we will link the alphabetically-listed methods back to the taxonomy.

By DAVID KRAVETS
AP LEGAL AFFAIRS WRITER

SAN FRANCISCO -- A divided federal appeals court on Tuesday declined to reconsider its December ruling that the Second Amendment affords Americans no personal right to own firearms.

The December decision by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld California's law banning certain assault weapons and revived the national gun ownership debate. With Tuesday's action, the nation's largest federal appeals court cleared the way for an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which has never squarely ruled on the issue.

"I'll have this filed by the end of the week, it's already drafted," said attorney Gary Gorski, the attorney who challenged California's ban on 75 high-powered, rapid-fire weapons.

HOLLYWOOD -- Is it a rush to judgment or a long-overdue overhaul of archaic rules?

Increasingly vocal pundits are arguing both sides of this question as June 2 approaches: That's the deadline set by the FCC to decide what to do about decades-old regs that limit broadcast reach and ownership.

What's at issue?

How many media outlets one company can own in the same market and a national cap barring one broadcaster from owning TV stations that reach more than 35% of the national audience. Another rule up for review bars a broadcaster from owning a newspaper in the same major market.

The most impassioned voices have been coming down on the Bush administration against a relaxation of these rules. But then again, an equally impassioned set of voices was raised in protest against a war in Iraq, and they fell on deaf ears. The Bushies ignored those protestations, and they show every sign of doing the same on media deregulation.

… In some of the more provocative anti-dereg remarks -- which are not likely to win the speaker many friends at the studios and even fewer in D.C. -- Jonathan Taplin, a vet producer and currently CEO of video on demand provider Intertainer, suggests there has been a long-standing, politically conservative effort to move the media toward consolidation.

"I believe it was a very brilliant strategy planned by Newt Gingrich and the Republican right in the early '80s with two major allies in the media business: Lowry Mays at Clear Channel and Rupert Murdoch at News Corp.," he told the L.A. gathering.

Step one was to get rid of the Fairness Doctrine, which was instituted in 1949 and was for 30 years the sine qua non test for renewing broadcast licenses.

With Gingrich and company pushing hard and a Republican FCC, the fairness doctrine was phased out in 1987.

Step two was to remove media ownership caps.

Gingrich shepherded through his newly controlled congress the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which essentially eliminated the public service obligations of local stations -- and benefited, among others, May's Clear Channel and Murdoch's Fox netlet.

These two actions, killing the fairness doctrine and deregulating ownership rules, have led us to what Taplin argues is "media oligopoly."

"If the FCC and Congress continue to roll over for the media cartel, our democracy is in peril. Two companies will own 80% of the nation's radio stations. Five companies will own 80% of the nation's TV stations. Four companies will own 70% of the nation's cable systems."

THERE is little official evidence to go by, but the anecdotes are pouring in: across the country, more young black professionals are stepping off the corporate ladder to become entrepreneurs. Joining a big company used to be perceived as the surest route to material success by many black professionals, but lately, owning a business has become as attractive, or more so.

… The new entrepreneurs are "willing to take risks that 10 years ago, 20 years ago, African-Americans were not willing to take," she said. "It's an absolute change in attitude, and not having to feel that the corporate structure is the only way - or the safe way."

While our "What, me worry?" president is having a great time with his high approval ratings and his "Top Gun" fantasies, the economy remains in the tank. And the finances of state and local governments are sinking tragically into ever deeper and ever more unforgiving waters.

You want shock and awe? Come to New York City, where jobs are hard to find and the budget (as residents are suddenly realizing) is a backbreaking regimen of service cuts, tax increases and that perennial painkiller, wishful thinking.

Zimbabwe, once a shining star in southern Africa, is collapsing under the disastrous rule of Robert Mugabe. This week, a powerful troika of African presidents from South Africa, Nigeria and Malawi traveled to Harare, raising hopes that they were finally prepared to do something about the political and economic crisis in Zimbabwe. Unhappily, their visit failed to persuade Mr. Mugabe to open unconditional talks with the opposition.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - This city has joined a small but growing movement to use income, not race, as a primary factor in assigning students to schools.

… Noah's assignment to Fletcher-Maynard was primarily driven by his family's income, but it also helped the district meet another goal for the school: greater racial balance. Noah is white. Fletcher-Maynard's 264 students are predominantly black or Hispanic.

… Proponents of economic integration say there is ample evidence that all children learn better at schools where middle-class students are in the majority.

"While there are a handful of exceptions, in general high-poverty schools don't work," said Richard D. Kahlenberg, an educational researcher at the Century Foundation who is a leading advocate for economic integration as the way to raise achievement among poor children.

… But critics say that the way to help low-income students make educational gains has to be more effective teaching - not moving children around. "There's something wrong with the assumption that if you've got too many low-income kids in a classroom, you can't teach them," said Abigail Thernstrom, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute who has extensively researched race and education. "My response to that is: No excuses. Start to educate the kids."

Dr. Thernstrom and others also say that economic integration has no relevance for large, predominantly poor urban school districts like Detroit, Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington. "What are you going to do - helicopter the kids in?" Dr. Thernstrom said. Supporters of economic integration counter that children in poor urban areas should have the opportunity to cross district lines and attend middle-class schools.

Just as racial integration of schools was resisted by many whites, middle- and upper-income families may object to economic integration. Moreover, some civil rights advocates say that economic integration does not go far enough in achieving racial integration.

On May 5, 2003, the United States announced that it had captured Huda Salih Mahdi Ammash. News reports heralded the capture as a major victory for Anglo-American forces, noting that the woman "dubbed Mrs. Anthrax" was in charge of Saddam Hussein's biological weapons program. They also noted that Ammash was the five of hearts in the military's deck of Iraqi fugitive playing cards.

What I want to know is when Ammash was dubbed "Mrs. Anthrax", and by who. A Reuters story from May 6 says "The moniker 'Mrs. Anthrax' was given to Ammash by Western journalists." It offers no further explanation.

There's just one problem. The earliest mention I can find of "Huda Ammash" and "anthrax" in the same Web page via Google is from May 5.

… I'm thinking the worst: that the Administration or some neoconservative or generic hawk planted the term "Mrs Anthrax" as a way of linking Iraq to the anthrax attacks on the United States that occurred after September 11.

Everyone is afraid. White people in particular are afraid of every kind of ethnicity, particular black, Hispanic and, these days, Middle Eastern. And the fear is baseless. Despite what you might see on television, black people are just like you. I can walk down Normandie Avenue just like Michael Moore did, and not hear a single gunshot or see a single angry "gang member." Oh, by the way, I'm a white male. Hell, when I make even a small effort to just fit in, to see those around me as people and not as black, Hispanic, Asian or whatever, those people seem to appreciate it. I suspect sometimes that it is because I'm a white man that they do so, that such behavior is relatively rare.

Remember: The next time you see a person with a skin color different from yours, from a different country or with a different accent, bear in mind that they are just like you are. There is nothing to fear, no matter what Rupert Murdoch might want you to believe! Murdoch wants to make money and that is all he cares about. You and I and the guy on the street corner are just trying to live our lives. If we put our fear away and just remember that there is no reason at all to be afraid, we'll be happier and the Murdochs of the world will be furious.

A fearful populace is a compliant populace. I think the events of the last eighteen months has proven that well enough. It is time we stopped being afraid of our own shadows. A person who is too afraid to take a risk is a person who has no life.

Michael Moore is right. It is our fear that makes us a violent people, it is our fear that has robbed us of many rights we are accustomed to taking for granted and it is our fear that has caused the horror in Iraq right now. Tell me, tell me, why should we be afraid? Because the television tells us to be afraid? Are you an idiot, who can't think for himself, or do you have a mind of your own? Do you believe what anyone tells you, or do you decide for yourself? So why do you allow someone else to tell you that you should be afraid?

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED:
That the Broward County Commission affirms the rights of all people, including United States citizens and citizens of other nations, within the County in accordance with the Bill of Rights and the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution; and,
That the Broward County Commission calls upon all County officials and employees to respect the civil rights and liberties of all members of this community, including those who are citizens of other nations; and,
That the Broward County Commission calls upon all private citizens-including residents, employers, educators, and business owners-to demonstrate similar respect for civil rights and civil liberties; and,
That the Broward County Commission calls upon the United States Attorney's Office, the Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and local law enforcement authorities to publicly disclose the names of any federal detainees suspected of terrorism held in Broward County; and,
That the Broward County Commission supports the rights of County officials and employees to conduct their duties pursuant to Constitutions of the United States and the State of Florida and further supports actions taken in opposition to unconstitutional directives and orders that violate the rights of people in Broward County; and,
That the Broward County Commission affirms its strong opposition to terrorism, but also affirms that any efforts to end terrorism should not be waged at the expense of essential civil rights and liberties of the people of Broward County and the United States; and,
That the County Administrator is directed to provide copies of this resolution to the County's U.S. Congressional Representatives, the United States Attorney General, and the President of the United States; and,
The Broward County Commission calls upon our United States Congressional Representatives and Senators to monitor the implementation of the USA PATRIOT Act the Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003 and Florida's Emergency Health Powers Act and Executive Orders issued pursuant to the Act. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon its adoption.

THE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon. Today, I'm real proud to be welcoming Australian Prime Minister John Howard and his frumpazoid wife whatsherface here to the Western White House. This is a special place for me and Laura - a place where we can get away from all that stress and hard work in the other White House - usually for month-long stretches when we feel like a break from our weekly three-day weekends at Camp David. Why, did you know that since I've been President, we've spent almost nine whole months kickin' it vacation-style here on the ranch? Well it's true. And I'm mighty pleased that Prime Minister Howard was amenable to having our little ho-down here instead of Washington DC. As if he really had a choice in the matter.

You see my life is every eight-year-old boy's (and some suspiciously dykey girls') dream. I pretended to be an jet fighter pilot last week and I'm having a blast pretending to be a cowboy this week. Who knows what fun costume I'll show up in next. I'm thinking about addressing them folks in Congress as a lion tamer! Or maybe an astronaut. Well, the kind that make it back, that is. Wouldn't that be cool?

The Rehnquist Court unanimously overturns a ruling and thinks your decision was so obviously bad that they issue an unsigned opinion making fun of you for being too rightwing.

The top Texas Court endorsed this theory on the idea that the teenager should have realized he was free to go at any time, because "a reasonable person" in his position "would not believe that being put in handcuffs was a significant restriction on his freedom of movement" and since the teen did not struggle with the police, he obviously thought being in jail was fine with him.

As the unanimous US Supreme Court stated in ridiculing the Texas court:

Contrary to the the state court's view, the opinion said, "a group of police officers rousing an adolescent out of bed in the middle of the night with the words 'we need to go and talk' presents no option but 'to go.' "

"As for the lack of resistance," the court added, "failure to struggle with a cohort of deputy sheriffs is not a waiver of Fourth Amendment protection, which does not require the perversity of resisting arrest or assaulting a police officer."

Now remember, this Texas group is the Court where most of the members think Priscilla Owens, Bush's newest crazy nominee, is too rightwing for them. So Owens is the wackjob rightwing of a wackjob rightwing court, many of whose members were appointed by Dubya when he was governor.

… Some background: the Constitution declares the president commander in chief of the armed forces to make it clear that civilians, not the military, hold ultimate authority. That's why American presidents traditionally make a point of avoiding military affectations. Dwight Eisenhower was a victorious general and John Kennedy a genuine war hero, but while in office neither wore anything that resembled military garb.

Given that history, George Bush's "Top Gun" act aboard the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln - c'mon, guys, it wasn't about honoring the troops, it was about showing the president in a flight suit - was as scary as it was funny.

… the White House claimed the dramatic tail-hook landing was necessary because the carrier was too far out to use a helicopter. In fact, the ship was so close to shore that, according to The Associated Press, administration officials "acknowledged positioning the massive ship to provide the best TV angle for Bush's speech, with the sea as his background instead of the San Diego coastline."

… But U.S. television coverage ranged from respectful to gushing. Nobody pointed out that Mr. Bush was breaking an important tradition. And nobody seemed bothered that Mr. Bush, who appears to have skipped more than a year of the National Guard service that kept him out of Vietnam, is now emphasizing his flying experience. (Spare me the hate mail. An exhaustive study by The Boston Globe found no evidence that Mr. Bush fulfilled any of his duties during that missing year. And since Mr. Bush has chosen to play up his National Guard career, this can't be shrugged off as old news.) [p6: emphasis added, of course]

… Let me be frank. Why is the failure to find any evidence of an active Iraqi nuclear weapons program, or vast quantities of chemical and biological weapons (a few drums don't qualify - though we haven't found even that) a big deal? Mainly because it feeds suspicions that the war wasn't waged to eliminate real threats. This suspicion is further fed by the administration's lackadaisical attitude toward those supposed threats once Baghdad fell. For example, Iraq's main nuclear waste dump wasn't secured until a few days ago, by which time it had been thoroughly looted. So was it all about the photo ops?

Well, Mr. Bush got to pose in his flight suit. And given the absence of awkward questions, his handlers surely feel empowered to make even more brazen use of the national security issue in future.

Next year - in early September - the Republican Party will hold its nominating convention in New York. The party will exploit the time and location to the fullest. How many people will dare question the propriety of the proceedings?

And who will ask why, if the administration is so proud of its response to Sept. 11, it has gone to such lengths to prevent a thorough, independent inquiry into what actually happened? (An independent study commission wasn't created until after the 2002 election, and it has been given little time and a ludicrously tiny budget.)

There was a time when patriotic Americans from both parties would have denounced any president who tried to take political advantage of his role as commander in chief. But that, it seems, was another country.

The racist fool known as Macaronies once more weighs in on the injustice of Winnie Mandela being convicted and sentenced for fraud:

"A fellow liberal blogger sent me material from several newspapers she believes establishes Ms. Mandela is a common criminal or worse. As is often the case, people of color perceive the situation differently.
Winnie held the movement down while Nelson was being a symbol. She's mad radical, and felt she earned a seat at the table for all her work . . .
What do I think about the allegations of torture and murder of numerous people by Winnie Mandela? The same thing I think of the allegations of rape and murder against Bill Clinton. People's enemies make up lies to discredit them. And, if the enemies are much more powerful than they are, those allegations are likely to stay around, though unsubstantiated, for a long time. The Truth and Reconciliation Council found Ms. Mandela responsible for only one kidnapping and murder by her thuggish bodyguards. The multifarious other claims of brutality on her part occurred during apartheid and likely involved people paid by the South African security forces to denounce Ms. Mandela. In is interesting that no claims of torture and murder have arisen since the end of apartheid."

Oh well then, if you're going to make such a fuss over just one kidnapping and murder, then you're just being completely unreasonable.

In the final analysis, politically proper posturing may get us accolades from devoted readers - but we need to spur them to action, rather than merely angling for their concurrence of thought.

It won't be much of a defense in comparison to the vicious attacks, but someone has to do it. Frankly, it's the American way: When a minority group gets slandered, we offer praise and right the record. This minority group has been getting slaughtered lately. White guys, I'm talking about.

If I sound touchy, well, I've been a White guy for 38 years. For the record, we represent 36.9 percent of the American population, but it sometimes feels like we take 99.9 percent of the grief.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., May 4 (AP) - Descendants of Sally Hemings, a slave who may have borne Thomas Jefferson's children, attended the annual Jefferson family reunion Saturday and today but only after being told that they would need to be escorted to the event by a Jefferson family member.

"Every year, I feel so uncomfortable because you know people don't want us to be here," said Michele Cooley as she waited for a sponsor. "But I still feel victorious because my family has developed so many friendships with some of them."

The reunion was attended by about 80 of the Jefferson family's Monticello Association's 800 members and about 20 of the 2,500 people who claim Hemings as an ancestor.

Five years after DNA tests found a genetic link between the Hemings family and the Jeffersons - either Thomas Jefferson or his brother - the two groups have grown far apart.

The association has excluded the Hemingses from membership and prohibited its members from taking more than two Hemings guests each to the reunion.

Many Hemings family members say they are planning their own reunion at Monticello in July.

… Of all portions of the slave region to which the Commission have had access, the valley of the lower Mississippi affords the most interesting field for the observation and study of the slave system, as well as of the great changes which, at the present moment, slave society is everywhere undergoing. Unlike most other sections visited by the Commission, here are found all the elements of that society still in existence; but in a state of revolution and transformation. Here, facing the board river on either side, still stands the great white mansion of the planter; by its side, just without its shadow, the long rows of cabins called the negro quarters, and, a little in the rear, the great quadrangular structure, usually of brick, known as the sugarhouse. In many instances the old master still occupies the mansion, and the negroes their old quarters; but under circumstances and in relations quite new, strange, and full of anxiety to both.

… Before entering further into the considerations especially suggested by the state of things here presented, it is important to advert to some of the peculiar features of the slave system, as it existed in this part of the country.

In the first place, the origin and character of the first settlers of Louisiana and the Lower Mississippi had an important bearing in modifying many of its features. These settlers were for the most part, of French, Spanish, and Portuguese origin, or of what has been called the Latin Race, and it is said that the people of this race do by no means entertain the same rooted antipathies, and low consideration of the black race, as are generally ascribed to the races with a shade whiter skin.

However this may be, it is undoubtedly true that there is found here a much more general admixture of the black and white races than prevails elsewhere, even in the slave-breeding States. And all the evidence goes to show that there existed in this region, especially in the earlier days of its settlement, a much greater social equality between the two races. No such utter repudiation of the manhood of the negro race, existed here as constituted the basis of the slave system in the islands and coasts of South Carolina and Georgia. Hence, although the amount of labor imposed upon the slave was often greater, and the system of punishments as cruel, yet their ordinary and habitual condition was better, and their daily life on a higher scale. They were not so rigorously forbidden the use of a family name. Their habitations were much more like those of other human beings. Usually their cabins contained not less than two rooms, and often four. They were furnished with some sort of beds and bedding, and in their lodging those who considered themselves man and wife were separated from the single; the young, also, of different sexes slept in separate apartments; they did not usually eat at a family table, but they had dealt out to them, generally sufficiently cooked rations, which they might eat as they chose--the cooking being done for the whole force by regular details. On the other hand, "the hours of labor on the sugar plantations were from fifteen to eighteen per day, and at certain seasons of the year a greater part of the night was also occupied with labor. The hour of beginning work in the morning was from 3 to 4 o'clock. The overseer was expected to produce a certain crop with a given number of hands, and all were obliged to obey him in preference to the master. He was generally much more cruel than the master. Kind-hearted masters sometimes select cruel overseers."

AIKEN, S.C. (AP) - James Brown, the Godfather of Soul, is celebrating 70 - and feels good.

"It's been seven decades alive and over five decades onstage, and I still feel good," James Brown said from his Beech Island home.

Brown, who celebrated his birthday Saturday, says he recently lost 13 pounds and is focused on good health.

By Mark Morford, SF Gate Columnist

So you look straight out into that winking sunset or up at that star-gashed sky or over at that frolicking goofy mutt in the park or at that funky yellow Mini Cooper or deep into the rich burgundy flesh of that goblet of wine or over at the soft gorgeous rhythmic rise and fall of your lover's chest as s/he sleeps and you think, this is proof, isn't it?

This is proof that there's something more, something richer and more divine and far, far more profound and enthralling and cosmic and worthy and wet and delicious about this damnable existence, right? You can just feel it, that divine kick, that lick, that juice? Of course you can.

… Because it's just so easy to forget. It's so easy to let the crush and rush and chain-saw babble of the world, of the major media's prepackaged hysteria, overwhelm your senses and numb your id and pile-drive your innate ability to look, really look at the world around you, and ultimately let them effectively asphyxiate what you deeply sense to be true.

… Here is the basic formula: The more They get you to ignore and detach from and hurl sticks of dismissive ignorance at that divine interconnectedness, the more you feed the common tyranny of fear, the collective cultural moan, and the easier it is for corporations and the government and the masters of televised dread to convince you to buy into, say, a noxious war. Or toxic fast food. Or ultraviolent entertainment. Or Celine Dion.

Conversely, the more you work to feel nature, imbibe it, soak up that juicy interconnectedness like wine into a mattress, suck up that vibrational hum and awe and kiss, the more you realize the value of protecting and preserving and treading lightly, actually taking the time to taste your food, integrate with those objects, feel that breath of your lover. Simple, really.

And, hence, the less you require of the material world. This is what scares them the most. This is why They don't want you to notice, to feel, to remember, or to question their motives.

Because the less you believe that everything around you is just a tedious lifeless resource to be consumed and shrugged off, the less you feel the need to share in the massive force-fed belief that we are here to devour as much as possible, as quickly as possible, and blow the living crap out of everything that gets in our way.

HARTFORD, May 2 - To the outside world, Hartford still conjures images of bankers and brokers, hairdressers and haberdashers, a white-collar legacy of a calmly efficient insurance empire. Indeed, that was Hartford. In 1950.

Nowadays, this is far more a struggling city with a diverse population that frequents soul food restaurants and supermercados, poultry markets and panaderias. And, more than ever, Hartford is becoming a city that looks and sounds less like Katharine Hepburn and Gregory Peck and more like Carlos Lopez and Freddy Ortiz

… "We've become a Latin city, so to speak," Eddie A. Perez, who last year became the first Hispanic mayor in Hartford's 367-year history, said in a recent interview. "It's a sign of things to come."

Hispanics now account for more than 40 percent of the city's population ? the largest concentration among major cities outside California, Texas, Colorado and Florida, 2000 Census Bureau figures show. More than half of Hartford's schoolchildren are Hispanic, and city and state officials expect Hartford's demographic trend to continue

&hellip Black support is also considered essential at City Hall ? 38 percent of Hartford's residents are African-American. But if population trends continue as predicted, Hartford will be the first state capital with a Hispanic majority.

"Those numbers translate into economic and political power," said Julio Morales, a professor at the University of Connecticut's Graduate School of Social Work. "The pace is moving at a faster rate than in the past."

The rapid growth has been accompanied by problems like poverty and school overcrowding

BAGHDAD, Iraq, May 4 ? Jay Garner, the former lieutenant general who has been in Iraq for nearly a month with a mandate to get the country running again, blamed United Nations sanctions today for the gasoline shortages that have prompted Iraqi anger at the American occupation forces here.

… Doctors have prescribed a long list of medications to ward off the worst manifestations of Ms. Asbell's illness. But she can't afford them. She has been dumped from a state program that paid for the medication and for sessions of much-needed psychotherapy. Now she gets some medication in the form of samples from doctor's offices. The rest she does without.

… Last month The Oregonian reported on the case of Douglas Schmidt, a 36-year-old epileptic who lost his prescription drug benefit because of budget cuts. The benefit paid for his anti-seizure medication. Eight to 10 days after his supply of pills ran out, Mr. Schmidt suffered a massive epileptic seizure. He has been in a coma ever since and is not expected to recover.

Last week I interviewed Rose Spears, who is 50, has had thyroid cancer and is disabled from diabetes. She lives alone in a one-bedroom apartment. The table beside her bed is covered with medicine vials.

"I lost my prescription drug coverage," she said, "so I have to pay out of pocket for my 11-odd medications, plus two insulins. I can't afford it. The total bill is $912 per month and my income is $728. Right now I'm surviving off samples my doctor can give me."

HIP-HOP SUMMIT ACTION NETWORK SETS GOAL TO REGISTER 20 MILLION VOTERS AS PART OF NATIONAL CAMPAIGN TO TRANSFORM AMERICA

APRIL 27, 2003 - DETROIT, MI. - Russell Simmons , Dr. Benjamin Chavis and the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network (HSAN) reported historic results in the aftermath of the Detroit Hip-Hop Summit yesterday. The largest Hip-Hop Summit ever drew over 17,000 participants in the Detroit Hip-Hop Summit's panel discussions at Cobo Arena, Poetry Slam at St. Andrews' Hall, Hip-Hop Concert at the State Theater and the official Summit reception at the Detroit Historical Museum.

The Honorable Kwame Kilpatrick, Detroit's 32-year-old ("hip-hop") mayor, along with Grammy and Oscar Award winning Detroit native Eminem and Clear Channel's premier hip-hop radio station FM98 WJLB joined with the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network to co-host the Detroit Hip-Hop Summit during the Detroit branch of the NAACP's Freedom Weekend.

Some of the leading hip-hop icons, moguls and artists traveled from across the nation to deliberate and commit to an action agenda on issues ranging from voter registration, community economic development, supporting public education and expanding career opportunities in the recording industry. Joining Russell Simmons and Eminem for the Summit's panel discussions were Nas, Reverend Run, Doug E. Fresh, Noreaga, D12, the DOC, MC Serch, T3 of Slum Village, Cherub and Red Café, Play of Kid n' Play and Obie Trice. The Summit Concert, featured the Def Jam Vendetta Tour with Method Man and Redman, Noreaga, along with the first concert appearance by the DOC in 14 years, Cherub and Red Café, Slum Village and Shady Records' Obie Trice and D12.

Dr. Benjamin Chavis, President of the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network, announced the launch of the national voter registration and education program entitled, "Hip-Hop Team Vote." The goal of the program is to register 20 million new voters, four million per year over the next five years, primarily from the 18 to 30-year-old age group, throughout the United States. The official website where youth can join HSAN's "Hip-Hop Team Vote" and become an active Team member in the national registration and voter education project is

www.hiphopsummitactionnetwork.org

"We are making better citizens of youth through hip-hop and the Detroit Hip-Hop Summit, with the presence of hip-hop Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, exemplifies what we should now replicate in many other cities throughout the country," declared Russell Simmons.

Special presentations were made at the Summit by Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) and by former Congressman Walter Fauntroy (D-DC), who both encouraged the youth to transfer the strength of their cultural impact into political empowerment.

A highlight of the Detroit Hip-Hop Summit was the presentation of national awards to Nas and Eminem for outstanding contributions to youth empowerment. Nas was awarded the National Heroes Award for the powerful and positive impact of his hit song and video, "I Can." Eminem was given the National Outstanding Achievement Award for his charitable work and support of youth in Detroit and in other cities.

"What we saw at the Detroit Hip-Hop Summit was more than a glimpse of a new Detroit … what we really saw was a powerful image of a new America being transformed by the youthful action of the hip-hop community," added Dr. Chavis.

Hope! In the same speech, he mentioned faith and charity too, thus showing how all the virtues taught by God Incarnate are embodied in the act of blowing things up and killing people in distant lands. Now, this kind of language can be dismissed as boilerplate, but in fact it has repercussions in domestic policy. The advocates of big government seize on this to make the case for government to actively intervene in all aspects of life. If the armed forces really bring a message of hope wherever they go, maybe they should come to your town. If the world can be shown the might and skill of the American military, why shouldn't it be shown to America as well?