The comments on this post are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer or any other individual.
If you happen to recognize the quote above, you will recall that it was often thunderously and inspiringly uttered by the late actor and NRA President Charlton Heston. I first heard Mr. Heston say those words as he raised an 18th century musket ,as I watched the 2000 NRA Convention on CSPAN. I was so inspired that I immediately called to join the organization. I was happy to know that I didn't need to be a gun owner to join as long as I supported the Second Amendment. So to fast forward, I am proud to say that I am now in my 13th year as a member of the National Rifle Association.
Actually I didn't intend on writing any posts about the NRA or gun rights issues (at least not yet anyway), that is until I read a Los Angeles Times article about Colion Noir . www.latimes.com/news/nationworld He is a Los Angeles based attorney who has become somewhat of an internet sensation because he is a black man who happens to be a member of the NRA.
I was quite heartened to see a fellow NRA member who also happens to be a black man be in the position to express the views of thousands of Americans who believe in our Constitution and in the Second Amendment. Quiet as it is kept there are a significant number of black Americans who are also NRA members. Actually I am often amused at the reaction that I get from people who are not only shocked when I tell them that I am a member but also gasp in horror when I show them my membership card. " Excuse me while I whip this out". ( Sorry Mel Brooks)
So a shout out to Colion Noir !
That's all for now. Love your country and always stay on the right side.
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Will work for food
The comments below are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer or any other individual.
The opening segment of the Saturday, July 27 edition of CSPAN's Washington Journal, asked viewers to weigh in with their thoughts on whether food stamp recipients should be required to work. As I am sure you would expect, viewpoints on the matter were pretty widespread ranging from the full throttled "absolutely" on the right to the horrified "no" and other moral umbrage from those on the left.
I think that States should be able to have the flexibility to decide if they want to implement work requirements for taxpayer provided assistance. Certainly there will be those individuals who will not be able to work due to physical or mental impairments. However we must keep in mind that as with any public funded program there will be those individuals who will abuse it by engaging in illegal activities. In fact, there were three callers from Ohio, Mississippi and Indiana, who talked about the scam to sell food stamps for fifty cents on the dollar. I am sure that this illegal extortion of the taxpayer is probably going on in other states as well. Actually one of the callers, I think it was the gentleman from Ohio, who said that he didn't mind buying the stamps back because he saw it as getting some of his tax money back.
Granted, most of the people who receive food stamps are not out to extort their fellow American but are truly in need of help. Indeed there have been several recent documentaries to illustrate the issue of hunger in our nation ( 'A Place at the Table' and the Frontline program 'Poor Kids' are two examples). However there are far too many of these individuals who misuse this program to purchase drugs and alcohol. Another program that needs serious examination and revamping is the Supplemental Security Insurance or SSI program, but more on that at another time.
The role of government in our lives should be as limited as possible, that is what our Constitution advocates. Hence the resolution to our domestic ills lies with the States and more importantly with individuals. The solution to these problems can be found with individuals and government should be sought out as an absolute last resort. Unfortunately our society has become so accustomed to government intervention, that the views I've just expressed will be seen as some as nothing more than "right wing clap trap". I should caution those who are so ready to dismiss calls for limited government to look at the fate of cities like Detroit, Michigan and Stockton, California. We as Americans can not continue to leave the important matters that impact our lives to government. We must learn to rely on ourselves.
That's all for now. Love your country and always stay on the right side.
The opening segment of the Saturday, July 27 edition of CSPAN's Washington Journal, asked viewers to weigh in with their thoughts on whether food stamp recipients should be required to work. As I am sure you would expect, viewpoints on the matter were pretty widespread ranging from the full throttled "absolutely" on the right to the horrified "no" and other moral umbrage from those on the left.
I think that States should be able to have the flexibility to decide if they want to implement work requirements for taxpayer provided assistance. Certainly there will be those individuals who will not be able to work due to physical or mental impairments. However we must keep in mind that as with any public funded program there will be those individuals who will abuse it by engaging in illegal activities. In fact, there were three callers from Ohio, Mississippi and Indiana, who talked about the scam to sell food stamps for fifty cents on the dollar. I am sure that this illegal extortion of the taxpayer is probably going on in other states as well. Actually one of the callers, I think it was the gentleman from Ohio, who said that he didn't mind buying the stamps back because he saw it as getting some of his tax money back.
Granted, most of the people who receive food stamps are not out to extort their fellow American but are truly in need of help. Indeed there have been several recent documentaries to illustrate the issue of hunger in our nation ( 'A Place at the Table' and the Frontline program 'Poor Kids' are two examples). However there are far too many of these individuals who misuse this program to purchase drugs and alcohol. Another program that needs serious examination and revamping is the Supplemental Security Insurance or SSI program, but more on that at another time.
The role of government in our lives should be as limited as possible, that is what our Constitution advocates. Hence the resolution to our domestic ills lies with the States and more importantly with individuals. The solution to these problems can be found with individuals and government should be sought out as an absolute last resort. Unfortunately our society has become so accustomed to government intervention, that the views I've just expressed will be seen as some as nothing more than "right wing clap trap". I should caution those who are so ready to dismiss calls for limited government to look at the fate of cities like Detroit, Michigan and Stockton, California. We as Americans can not continue to leave the important matters that impact our lives to government. We must learn to rely on ourselves.
That's all for now. Love your country and always stay on the right side.
Iced Tea, Skittles and the Canary Yellow Dress
The comments below are solely my own and do not reflect any position held by my employer or any other individual.
Thank goodness for CSPAN ( one of only three reasons to have cable, the others being CSPAN 2 and CSPAN 3). I had the opportunity to watch the July 24 congressional "hearing" on the status of young black men. ( You can view the broadcast at www.cspanvideo.org/program/Black male)
The " hearing" was convened by the Congressional Black Caucus and featured on the panel Tracey Martin (father of the late Trayvon Martin), his attorney Benjamin Crump, Dr. Eric Michael Dyson, former congressman Kwesi Mfume and David Johns of the White House Initiative on Education. Although the presumed purpose of the meeting was to address the state of black men in light of the Zimmerman verdict , the end result fell well short of any new ideas or insight on this matter. Sadly the " hearing" served as little more that an excuse for the CBC and other liberal Democrats to shake hands and take a picture with Mr. Martin.
A particularly distressing sight was Congresswoman Frederica Wilson, a Florida Democrat, who in spite of the somber subject matter chose to wear a bright canary yellow dress complete with a yellow cowgirl hat. Granted she's a politician and a photo op is a photo op. But is it too much to expect that either she or her staff would remember that she was going to work and not an Easter Sunday social event?
As you will likely see after viewing the "hearing", none of the panel members offered any new thoughts as to what is happening to black men and more importantly what can be done to implement concrete solutions. Indeed except for a few brave souls, most of the CBC members sat stone faced throughout the proceedings. Stone faced that is, until it was time to rush up to Mr. Martin for a hearty handshake and a picture. I was sorry to see a man of such strong poise and character surrounded by those grinning opportunists. I wonder how many of them will still support him or even answer his phone calls long after the spotlight has dimmed from this tragedy. If we are to find solutions to address the concerns of black men in this country, at least we know that we don't have to bother asking the CBC for help.
That's all for now. Love your country and always stay on the right side.
Thank goodness for CSPAN ( one of only three reasons to have cable, the others being CSPAN 2 and CSPAN 3). I had the opportunity to watch the July 24 congressional "hearing" on the status of young black men. ( You can view the broadcast at www.cspanvideo.org/program/Black male)
The " hearing" was convened by the Congressional Black Caucus and featured on the panel Tracey Martin (father of the late Trayvon Martin), his attorney Benjamin Crump, Dr. Eric Michael Dyson, former congressman Kwesi Mfume and David Johns of the White House Initiative on Education. Although the presumed purpose of the meeting was to address the state of black men in light of the Zimmerman verdict , the end result fell well short of any new ideas or insight on this matter. Sadly the " hearing" served as little more that an excuse for the CBC and other liberal Democrats to shake hands and take a picture with Mr. Martin.
A particularly distressing sight was Congresswoman Frederica Wilson, a Florida Democrat, who in spite of the somber subject matter chose to wear a bright canary yellow dress complete with a yellow cowgirl hat. Granted she's a politician and a photo op is a photo op. But is it too much to expect that either she or her staff would remember that she was going to work and not an Easter Sunday social event?
As you will likely see after viewing the "hearing", none of the panel members offered any new thoughts as to what is happening to black men and more importantly what can be done to implement concrete solutions. Indeed except for a few brave souls, most of the CBC members sat stone faced throughout the proceedings. Stone faced that is, until it was time to rush up to Mr. Martin for a hearty handshake and a picture. I was sorry to see a man of such strong poise and character surrounded by those grinning opportunists. I wonder how many of them will still support him or even answer his phone calls long after the spotlight has dimmed from this tragedy. If we are to find solutions to address the concerns of black men in this country, at least we know that we don't have to bother asking the CBC for help.
That's all for now. Love your country and always stay on the right side.
Sunday, July 21, 2013
George and Trayvon
The comments in this post solely reflect my personal opinion. They do not reflect those of my employer or any other individual.
I have been pondering the emotional outpourings from across the country since the verdict to acquit George Zimmerman was issued last weekend. I think that the verdict was the only appropriate decision that could have been reached given the evidence that was presented. The death of Trayvon Martin was a tragedy but it wasn't a crime.
Unfortunately the intense emotions related to this incident make it difficult to engage in a constructive conversation about this situation as well as the broader issues of race, crime and politics in our nation. Although the Trayvon Martin death was a single event that took place on a cold February Florida evening, for many people it immediately became wedged to Sean Bell, Amadou Diallo, Yusef Hawkins, James Chaney, Emmett Till and many others. All of these deaths are a tragic part of our history but they are not related to the acquittal of George Zimmerman.
I agree that Zimmerman should not have left his vehicle on that tragic night, but his job was to serve as a neighborhood watchman. Hence it was his responsibility to keep young Mr. Martin in his sight. Unfortunately no one will ever know what really took place that night but it was enough to provide the jury with reasonable doubt which is the standard for acquittal.
I write this post two days after President Obama's remarks about race in America. The President and I are about the same age, we were both born in 1961 (me in July and the President in August).However unlike the President, I can't compare my life as a 17 year old to Trayvon Martin. I didn't engage in the sort of behaviors that would have caused the police or any other authority figure to become suspicious of my actions.
As for me, my relationship with the police has always been a good one. There have been occasions when I was stopped for traffic infractions , the stops were justified and the officers involved conducted themselves in a professional manner I also recall two instances in which I was followed by a store security person while shopping. One occurred while shopping (circa 1996) with a friend of mine, actually he noticed the security person and was quite upset about the matter. I wasn't as troubled by it and decided that the store wasn't worthy of my money and opted to shop elsewhere. The other instance was also quite some time ago and took place at a now defunct Coconuts record store in the West Village . As with the first instance, I didn't immediately notice the security person and actually didn't really care that he decided to waste his time by following me. I knew that I had no intentions to shoplift or steal anything from the store so his presence there was basically insignificant to me.
I am aware that others have not had similar experiences and probably would not have handled these instances in the same manner that I did. Although I have given great thought to trying to understand the emotions surrounding "profiling", I find that I am not able to connect to it. I would like to understand it better because I have a grandson and two nephews who have probably had far different experiences than I have. I will try to do my best to offer the best guidance that I can to them. I do know that I will not be signing any petitions or joining any marches. I will however try to help them to become the best individual that they can be.
That's all for now. Love your country and stay on the right side.
I have been pondering the emotional outpourings from across the country since the verdict to acquit George Zimmerman was issued last weekend. I think that the verdict was the only appropriate decision that could have been reached given the evidence that was presented. The death of Trayvon Martin was a tragedy but it wasn't a crime.
Unfortunately the intense emotions related to this incident make it difficult to engage in a constructive conversation about this situation as well as the broader issues of race, crime and politics in our nation. Although the Trayvon Martin death was a single event that took place on a cold February Florida evening, for many people it immediately became wedged to Sean Bell, Amadou Diallo, Yusef Hawkins, James Chaney, Emmett Till and many others. All of these deaths are a tragic part of our history but they are not related to the acquittal of George Zimmerman.
I agree that Zimmerman should not have left his vehicle on that tragic night, but his job was to serve as a neighborhood watchman. Hence it was his responsibility to keep young Mr. Martin in his sight. Unfortunately no one will ever know what really took place that night but it was enough to provide the jury with reasonable doubt which is the standard for acquittal.
I write this post two days after President Obama's remarks about race in America. The President and I are about the same age, we were both born in 1961 (me in July and the President in August).However unlike the President, I can't compare my life as a 17 year old to Trayvon Martin. I didn't engage in the sort of behaviors that would have caused the police or any other authority figure to become suspicious of my actions.
As for me, my relationship with the police has always been a good one. There have been occasions when I was stopped for traffic infractions , the stops were justified and the officers involved conducted themselves in a professional manner I also recall two instances in which I was followed by a store security person while shopping. One occurred while shopping (circa 1996) with a friend of mine, actually he noticed the security person and was quite upset about the matter. I wasn't as troubled by it and decided that the store wasn't worthy of my money and opted to shop elsewhere. The other instance was also quite some time ago and took place at a now defunct Coconuts record store in the West Village . As with the first instance, I didn't immediately notice the security person and actually didn't really care that he decided to waste his time by following me. I knew that I had no intentions to shoplift or steal anything from the store so his presence there was basically insignificant to me.
I am aware that others have not had similar experiences and probably would not have handled these instances in the same manner that I did. Although I have given great thought to trying to understand the emotions surrounding "profiling", I find that I am not able to connect to it. I would like to understand it better because I have a grandson and two nephews who have probably had far different experiences than I have. I will try to do my best to offer the best guidance that I can to them. I do know that I will not be signing any petitions or joining any marches. I will however try to help them to become the best individual that they can be.
That's all for now. Love your country and stay on the right side.
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