I'm back sorta...

It's been nearly 11 months since I've last posted.  I'm back and hopefully on a regular basis.  Life happens, but I'm working on moving back into Intown areas of Atlanta since I'm starting a new gig in my career field.  Hopefully, I can continue to deliver my analyses of the things occurring in Metro Atlanta, Greater Birmingham, everywhere, and some life/social issues.

I will say this...why are there so many obtuse black gay and bisexual men or males in Atlanta.  Let me be more specific, I was just reading a post by another blogger than mainly focuses on porn, yeah the gay kind.  He was in shock or thrown off by a) how many people but particularly gay and bisexual males that are two timing backstabbers and b) how few people are truly your friends.  I was like, "Uh, I've learned years ago from sheer observation but also some quasi-personal experiences that most of the guys that tend to migrate here are thirsty, whores, attention whores, narcissistic/sociopaths, and finally, the come-up artist aka "stunt queen".  The few that do not fit these narratives are usually homebodies, low-key, or too busy with their careers to be caught up in the shenanigans.

I mean, I have a few friends that happened to be gay or bisexual males, but most of them are not.  It's hard enough as it is to encounter and befriend decent people in general in any major city.  However, befriending one that falls into the gay/bisexual fold is even rarer.  Let's not pretend there aren't thirsty mofos on Adam4Adam, BGCLive and/or Jack'd, (and if you are foolish enough to be on these following ones then the joke is on you) Grindr and/or Manhunt that have profiles based in Atlanta to know what is going on.  The thirst in real in this region and I can log onto any of these websites and look at how quick somebody is looking to fuck you before getting to know you.  So the porn industry is a dog-eat-dog world for sure.  I cannot even begin to tell you how warped the sense of reality because they are already not paid well because it is (black) urban gay porn.  Then you have the come-up-artist and "survival" mode mentality then you will likely not find many whom are really a friend.

*le sigh*

I'm not saying, but I'm just saying...

Tell us something we didn't know...

Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) brings in the big bucks for Atlanta!

I guess it took 2 studies by my fellow planning/economic development professionals on the academic side to affirm this to be true.  The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported on the University of Georgia Carl Vinson Institute of Government Study conducted a study from 2007 and this year and the findings confirmed this:

MARTA’s spending — its 2011 capital and operating budget was $617 million — supported between 20,000 and 37,000 jobs in Georgia between 2007 and 2011. The fluctuations were caused by differences in annual capital expenditures.

Nearly 150,000 workers in the Atlanta area, including car owners, use MARTA for their daily commute.

Of the 18 fastest growing industry sectors, 14 employ workers who rely heavily on MARTA.

Jobs supported by MARTA’s capital budget provide $500 million to $1 billion in personal income each year.

The economic activity of the nearly 100,000 MARTA-dependent workers support another 80,000 additional jobs.

It's quite amusing that 2 studies had to be published to reaffirm what most of us suspected although the majority of Metro Atlantans rejected the T-SPLOST on the 31st of July.  I guess you have to dress it up in a pretty bow and ribbon and then say "See it does work".  However, we are in the South were the car is king and the way things are developed and funded around it.  At the end of the day, Atlanta and Georgia politicos know that MARTA is the reason why so much of the city's prominent existence depends on this public transit system.

Chick-fil-WHO?

That's my response to the above caption of Atlanta-based, Chick-fil-A president, Dan Cathy's comments on marriage equality in the US.  He wants to say "NO" then I have to say "uh yeah, I haven't ate at your restaurants in years...".   The Monotheistic God/Allah/The Creator/Holy One would be cosigning on your ignorance because it doesn't affect you personally, so why would you are so bothered by marriage equality coming to the forefront?

Also know that the "friends" will be out in full force to shut down your 11 "Dwarf House" locations in Metro Atlanta. ;)

THE END AND THAT IS ALL HE WROTE ABOUT THAT NON-MUTHAFUCKIN' FACTOR!

Washington is regretting its selection of Gray...

This is one of those situations where I have to tell folk, "I told you so..." about DC's mayor, Vincent Gray.  Back in 2010, there were so much chatter amongst the black blogosphere about how "bad Adrian Fenty was as DC's mayor", "how he sold DC to white people", and "how Michelle Rhee and Adrian Fenty were ruining DC".  So those across the black blogosphere cosigned the poor judgment of those voting in DC to elected Gray over Fenty.

It's so ironic those are more silent than a whore in church on the huge controversy that has bestowed upon DC for the umpteenth time.  As much as I don't care for any pawn of the business establishment, it seems that Fenty wasn't as idiotic and corrupt as his successor, Gray.  I am actually more annoyed at the fact that folk doesn't seems to want perfection from many that will talk that talk, but never walk the walk.  Gray is a text book example of this mentality and its plethora of failings.

Meanwhile, a number of members in his 2010 mayoral campaign staff, 2 DC Councilmen, and a former mayoral primary opponent were all later implicated to be involved in the shell game of using funds and authority he offered upon getting elected to mayor's helm.  (FYI, for others who want to say "but they do it too", no duh, I know whites do this but they have sense enough to know better to do this do obviously.)  


However, after going from 2 mayors, Anthony Williams and Fenty, whom helped the city regain prominence and allowed significant public works projects and strategies to progress that helped Washington become the planning and community development hub of the East Coast.  Also reformed the DC school district from the average US city school district with low rates of overall scholastic achievement to one where accountability for school progress was enforced from the instructors to school administrators and increase in achievement and test scores during Fenty's tenure.  These are the things that are just as important as allowing adequate access of the citizenry whom are qualified for city jobs and pacifying those whom were in your corner.  It seems that so many in the establishment camp miss this lesson, you have to improve the entire city from across the board.  

I guess living in a city like Birmingham, where this is the reason why there is such a huge leadership void because nobody with pragmatic, progressive, and transparency tied into their political existence that it will continue to be more idiots than leaders at the city's helm.  To sum it up, most Birminghamians lack the nuance of their choices for mayor rather they allow the "establishment" to manipulate their perspectives, and wins every time.  In reality, the same thing happens in Alabama in general, but this applies with white citizens more often than black citizens...

*sigh* This is so depressing and shows that sometimes you have to give it up to the predominately white urban business establishment in a number of US cities.  They can get a progressive that has some sense elected that is smart enough not be caught up in blatant corruption.   I was shock when New Orleans chose Mitch Landrieu, because one he wasn't a puppeteer of the black establishment nor was he was one of the urban white business establishment.  New Orleans wasn't alone considering Charlotte elected Anthony Foxx, whom like Landrieu, wasn't apart of neither camp, rather loosely affiliated with both sides in the way to get elected.

Folk has to get it together because there seems to be a leadership problem in Birmingham, Atlanta, Memphis, and now Washington...

Cities with significant black populations in their region

All this talk about cities with large black populations has got me thinking about the places that have such and the ones that doesn't.  Statistically, a place with a large black population is based upon the percentage being 15% or greater of its overall population being considered African American or black.  Everyone (and their mother) is familiar with some of places off the top of their head like New York, Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia, Washington DC, and nowadays Atlanta.  However, there are some other cities with some impressive black populations, but overshadowed by the aforementioned places.  Here is a list of these places:

Houston
Charlotte
Memphis (which has the highest concentration of any metropolitan area with 1 million+ inhabitants at 43.5%)
Baltimore
St. Louis
Kansas City
Birmingham
Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill
Greensboro/Winston-Salem/High Point
Norfolk/Virginia Beach
Richmond
Dallas/Fort Worth
Cleveland
Miami/Fort Lauderdale/West Palm Beach
New Orleans

Here are some ideal places where one can find black culture in the region, but doesn't want to reside in those in the initial list of places like NYC to DC to the ATL.

A post dedicated to urban radio

I haven't discussed on this blog in over year the affairs of urban radio, but I am dedicating this one post to it.  Right now, I'm going to dub this one the "State of Urban Radio" post.

Right now, urban radio is in a tizzy because of the recent changes and shifts due to the release of more analysis and summary profiles of 2010 US Census decennial count.  In Atlanta, V-103 (WVEE) is still dominating by a long shot as the #1 urban station and overall station in the Atlanta radio market.  As of the January 2012 Arbitron ratings, WVEE is pushing a 10-share with 9.8.  CBS Radio Atlanta management is doing a helluva job maintaining an equal balance of dayparting musical programming with major events and promotions for the station.  Although, Atlanta isn't considered the largest market for the urban division, the station is still the 'flagship'.

Washington DC, is other major urban radio market where things are still changing and shifting with the times.  After nearly 5 years of floating around and dealing with so many shift, CHRurban juggernaut, WPGC 95.5 has found its footing.  It is finally secured its place back into the overall 12+ top 10 of the Washington radio market.  However, it still hasn't found a way to take down the R&B-exclusive urban adult contemporary formatted stations of Howard University-owned WHUR 96.3 and WMMJ "Majic 102.3", which are still respectively #5 and #6 overall.  I'm a huge fan of CBS-owned urban/urban-leaning rhythmic CHR stations, so I'm rooting for WPGC because they have shown they can be a well-programmed station that competes with both UACs, Radio One-owned urban contemporary WKYS "93.9 WKYS", and Clear Channel-owned CHR/mainstream (top 40) WIHT "Hot 99.5".  Unfortunately, they have just had bad management over the past few years since long time program director/VP of urban/rhythmic programming for CBS Radio, Jay Stevens, jumped ship on them just in time for the arrive of the Portable People Monitoring (PPM) system of ratings allocation into the DC market in early 2007.    WPGC is now back to playing actual hip-hop and R&B, contemporary and old school, along with some crossover pop tracks, which works for them considering they aren't V-103, rather a crossover station that targets blacks, Latinos, and some suburban whites.

In San Francisco, Clear Channel-owned and long-time CHRurban, KMEL "106 KMEL", is still doing their thing.  Although they are the only urban station that targets 18-34 year olds, although they program towards the 18-49 year old crowd.  Regardless, they are still doing their damn thing with #5 overall in the 12+ ratings of the San Francisco-Oakland radio market.  It is surprising for a Clear Channel station, well programmed with throwbacks from the late 1980s through mid-2000s integrated into its playlist and mixshows.  Overall, they are doing a good job.  These days, KMEL is the best programmed urban station in the high ranked market in the nation.

In lower ranked but major markets, Orlando has turned into a complete and utter disaster for CBS Radio.  WJHM "102 Jamz" has shifted towards rhythmic category, essentially dropping all of its contemporary R&B from its playlist, not like DC sister station WPGC which maintained its urban-lean the entire time.  Sitting at the bottom of the heap in the Orlando radio market at #15. Now with a playlist consisting of mostly dance, electropop, and hip-pop tracks, and it sounds like garbage.  This is what happens chasing after Cox Radio-owned WPYO, "Power 95.3" and allowing their sister station UAC-formatted WCFB "Star 94.5" runamok in the Orlando market unchallenged. Their play is to chase after Clear Channel-owned WXXL "XL 106.7" and "Power 95.3" with this shift hoping to bounce back. CBS needs to get it together with WJHM because "102 Jamz" is the only true heritage station in the market that has carried urban music over-the-air, but they are too busy trying to experiment with the rhythmic (non-urban-leaning kind) format in a market with a growing black population (15% as of the 2010 Census).

Not very bright at all if you ask me.  CBS might just failed this market not because of it is trying, but because they are trying the wrong things with a station that actually has the best positioning from signal strength and penetration to reputation amongst urban music listeners in Orlando and Central Florida.  I expect this station to remain sitting below the top 10 for a long time to come because Orlando isn't Miami, where they only have one rhythmic "Power 96" WPOW, that had to constantly reformulate itself to deal with Latin rhythmic stations and a rhythmic AC.  Miami is way more ethnically diverse.

Other mentioning is the strength of black-owned and operated station, KPRS "Hot 103 Jamz", in Kansas City.  Carter Broadcasting Group is still going long and strong even in this corporate-owned radio era with a locally-owned and operated (and non-white owned) urban station.  It is another surprisingly well programmed urban station in this Great Plains metropolis.  Although most of the blacks in reside in the cities of Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas City/Wyandotte County, Kansas in the bi-state metropolitan area.  The station has a flamethrower signal that can be hard nearly 70 miles in any direction from its tower site in the southside of Kansas City (MO).

New Year, and one more semester

This year, I embark on the conclusion of my time in Auburn-Opelika area in Alabama and will be moving on afterwards.  THANK GOD!  I will be finishing up my graduate studies and will be relocating elsewhere.  Now I am not totally sure if elsewhere is going to be Atlanta, Raleigh-Durham, Washington, Orlando, Memphis, or New Orleans.  I'm kind of conflicted because I know there is nothing here in Alabama for me and should venture elsewhere because it seems nothing of worth will come from this place for while.  However, I am going to try to blog a little more rather than every 4 weeks on the current issues and things that have been going on with myself.

Uh-oh, Chick-fil-A! The gay bloggers are about come after you!!!!!

Well, it didn't take long for me to hear about this, and the gay blogs to follow up with a pressure-cooker campaign to get them to drop their co-sponsorship with Pennsylvania Family Institute of "The Art of Marriage" on February 11th & 12th in the Harrisburg area and Reading in Pennsylvania.  Although the event isn't about being "anti-same-sex marriage", it speaks on biblical marriage and the support for it.  However, the Pennsylvania Family Institute, is the largest organization against LGBT rights in Pennsylvania.  So it's guilty by association because Chick-fil-A hasn't made it known they are overtly anti-LGBT rights.  Interestingly, they did sponsor Colorado-based Focus on Family and some golf tourney in Ohio led by Ohioan based group, which supports the usage of reparative therapy to change sexuality, which many experts equates to mental torture.  Official at Atlanta area-based Chick-fil-A hasn't made any official comments or stances on anything public involving LGBT rights.  (Maybe it has to do with them being based in the metropolitan area of one of the largest LGBT cities in the nation, so it could be chalked up to guilty by association.  On the other hand, they do close on Sundays for their employees can be with their families...  ***KANYE SHRUG***)

Well, like the Target fiasco, I'm going to remain ambivalent because I shop and eat at places that are cheap and offers quality products and services.  I'm on a fixed income while working on my Masters' degree, and don't eat out often anyways so this fiasco doesn't affect me.  However, it is interesting what's going to go down in the next few days.

UPDATE: Advocate, Towerload, Queerty, Change.org have swooped down on it.

Oh look at what DeKalb County is doing now...

The employment carnage that is known Dekalb County, Georgia has yet to truly see an ending.  Since late 2009, the various governmental agencies from the county government to county school district has been shedding jobs left and right like it's going out of style.  According to this past Wednesday's Atlanta Journal-Constitution, they are planning on outsourcing custodial jobs. Although these are the lowest ones on the totem pole of functionality of a school district we knew who holds most of these positions... (***HINT*** It's folk ***HINT***)

Outsourcing is one of several suggestions that came up earlier this year as part of budget cuts. Facing an estimated $50 million shortfall in next year’s budget, the proposal is back on the table.

I'm more perplexed how a rapidly growing county in Metro Atlanta has been able to function over the past 15 years since they've seen the county population jump by 100,000 new residents.  The county itself has been in the spotlight of mismanagement from the cost-of-living pay raises that occurred for outgoing county commissioners staffers last fall in the midst of massive deficit while refusing to give county police officers raises  to the former county superintendent being indicted for racketeering to 430 school district employees being laid off to  the recommendation to close 14 declining enrollment schools to now this.  Chaos at its very worse in DeKalb.  Unfortunately, it's the one jurisdiction aside from Atlanta proper that I would prefer to reside in Metro Atlanta... ***SIGH***

Teena Marie 1956-2010

I swear it seems like every Christmas Day, a major entertainer passes.  I remember like it was yesterday back in 2006 when James Brown passed on Christmas Day because I was listening to WPGC 95.5 in Washington D.C. via AOL Radio and they announced he passed on air while playing Christmas music.  Now, while listening to WPGC's sister station, WVEE "V-103", in Atlanta they announced during their Quiet Storm on Sunday night that Teena Marie had died in her sleep sometime between Christmas Day and the 26th.  It seems like we have reached a time when a number of the "old school" musicians are passing away at a rapid pace.  ***SIGH***

Her music was legendary with "Fire & Desire" with the late Rick James to "Lovergirl", "Ooo La La La" to my all time favorite "Square Biz".

Rest in peace, Ms. Marie.  I will miss you and your soul-funk music, the Queen of Ivory Soul.  You were also one of the few non-black soul artists that gain my respect and admiration for your tenacity music making.

The Inmate Strike in Georgia Prisons

Something that has been largely ignored by the mainstream media outlets including the majority of the ones in Georgia itself.  This is the inmates in prisons across the state of Georgia have been striking over the lack of humane conditions in the state and county prisons.  According to the Black Agenda Report, the prisons are only leaving their cells for hot showers and food, but refusing to participant in their involuntary and uncompensated work assignments.  Their demands includes demanding wages for their labor, educational opportunities, adequate health care and nutrition, and better conditions.  They have the support of the Georgia chapter of the NAACP, the Nation of Islam, the National Association for Radical Prison Reform, the Green Party of Georgia,  the Ordinary Peoples Society, and the Concerned Coalition to Protect Prisoner Rights, which is a coalition comprised of civil rights attorneys, ministers, community organizations and other prisoner advocates. 


This is understandable considering according to the 2005 report conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice, blacks makes up 39.8% of the prison population.  That's more than 1 in 3 blacks are or have been incarcerated  Something that obviously affects most black Americans since most of us either know or are related to somebody that has or is prison.  Hopefully, this will end peacefully and the inmates will get their grievances fulfilled and have humane standards in the Georgia Department of Corrections systems. 

So Kasim Reed apologizes to the Atlanta LGBTs for the police raid

In an unceremonious manner, Atlanta mayor, Kasim Reed, apologized to the victims of the 2008 raid of the Midtown Atlanta gay bar, Eagle, and called for "healing".  According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the settlement resulted in $1 million to the owners and 60 individuals involved in the raid where Atlanta Police officers handcuffed bar patrons and workers without a warrant.  Reed said:

“I believe that what occurred that evening should not have happened and should not happen again,” Reed said at a news conference. “As mayor of Atlanta, I feel pain for anyone mistreated in our city and apologize to each plaintiff in the . . . case.”

“This week’s settlement agreement is a step forward, and I hope, the beginning of a healing process,” said Reed, who was not mayor at the time. “The plaintiffs and the city . . . have agreed upon clear steps which will strengthen and improve our law enforcement capabilities and help ensure that an incident such as this will not happen again in our city.”

Reed is hoping this will help "heal" the divide between the current administration and the LGBT constituency.  IMHO, that is yet to be seen because I know how some people will be bitter as hell and will hold a grudge for a long time.  Anyways, good to see this case resolved and maybe the APD will not do such random things in the future.

Video is courtesy of the Georgia Voice

Eddie Long attempts to silence his accusers with money

Well, I guess good ol' Eddie Long had decided to "keep it on the hush" rather than "fight it to the very end" as he claimed months ago before his nearly 25,000 congregation in Lithonia (Georgia).  Oh hell, oh well.  It just displays to me the burden of proof he was fucking with those males and is an ephebophile and one whom has some strong homosexual undertones to their being.

A homosexual member of New Birth speaks out...

BET Videos

Well, I have to give it up to Samuel Brown and his partner coming out to admit they is in a homosexual relationship.  I don't know how or why he decided to stay in that church for all those years, but more power to you.

After browsing a little bit of his blog, I can understand his logic of trying to make changes from within the institution.

UPDATE: However, I see how Rod McCullom want to make a backhanded insult and his sycophants want to call the man and his partner "church queens".  SMH, some things changes and stays the same with them...

The Trifecta of Fuckery: Eddie Long edition

WELL, WELL, WELL, WELL, WELL!  THE CHICKENS HAVE COME HOME TO ROOST AND HAS CROWED 3 TIMES!

The messiness, foolishness, and sheer madness of this whole situation has brought me out of my work/career hiatus to post. (I hope to regularly post in general)  Hypocrisy, homosexual behavior, and the black religious fold.  This is PURE UNADULTERATED FUCKERY AT IT VERY BEST!  Now where do I start. 

I've been saying for years (pre-bloggging days) that foolishness ALWAYS finds it source.  Well, Eddie Long has a history of being involved in anti-LGBT foolishness from helping campaign for Georgia to ban any same-sex unions or domestic partnership in 2004 to his silly ass march in the winter of 2005 in Atlanta against same-sex unions to his rabid homophobic ranting in a good chunk of his "sermons" (if you want to call it that).  This man has been the walk body of the stereotype of homophobia in the black religious community.  Yet his stupid ass brought himself down over lust for another man, the irony.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the 3 plaintiffs (whom names I won't repeat since they are already is there for the world to see on most sites, just Google it) have said basically the same thing, Eddie Long likes to be called "Daddy", took them on lavish trips around the world, introduced them to celebs (or "popular people" in my vernacular), slept in the same bed with him, and sexual acts including masturbation, oral sex were engaged.

Now I'm going to speak on some stuff I allegedly now in vague terms since this is an ongoing case.  There are also allegations that Long has been doing this mess since the early 1990s when he first came popular in Atlanta and the black religious circles.  Things of such involving such as him taking those boys to the Atlanta Hawks basketball games and etc.

Art Franklin, New Birth's spokesperson is a former Birmingham news anchor has allegations about about him and his sexuality too (especially considering the allegations surrounding his divorce).  These are among some of the reasons why he allegedly left WBRC "FOX6" to go to Atlanta to work on his music and writing then later wind up at WBRC's former sister station, WAGA "FOX5" and now at New Birth as the spokesman. 

All I'm going to say is this mess is destructive and revealing the bed of hypocrisy involving some black folks especially in the religious and church circles.  That's why I've been giving most of them the side-eye for awhile now because it shows that folks need to leave the LGBTs alone like the racially bias need to leave people of color alone...

The aggregavation of housing...

Some things I do wonder about the world we reside in such as housing.  It seems to be the fabric of our communities since they offer shelter for all of us.  However, that necessity seems to be seen as a luxury by many bureaucratic paper-pushers.  In the case of the Metro Atlanta area, where nearly all the public housing developments have been demolished and replaces with high-end condominium development.  On the surface, this looks as if it is a good thing since public housing seems to attract all the "undesirable" elements in our nation's society, but on deeper look reveals that many of these people have no where else to turn aside from being homeless.  This within itself is disheartening because you have to evaluate the entire situation before casting a broad judgment on housing for low-income residents.

Since 2001, the Atlanta Housing Authority has practically eliminated all the public housing in Atlanta (gotta love gentrification and its side effects).  Now suburban Marietta, in Cobb County, its housing authority is doing the same and hopes to shutter and demolish all public housing by 2012.  The replacements for such developments were vouchers given to former residents so they could either get into senior housing for older residents or at-market rate private housing or apartments for others.

On the other hand, the realization that most of the vouchers only pay for only 65% of such living costs associated with housing puts these people in a tougher situation.  Many people don't have the luxury of being able to afford private apartment, which most decent ones start at $600/month in rent in Metro Atlanta.  The lack of affordable housing is seriously lacking nationwide, but particularly in the South.  Ironically, most of those suffering from this dilemma are our fellow non-white citizens.

I know it's wonderful to see cities like Atlanta, Birmingham, New Orleans, Memphis, and other Southern cities move from their past images as low-income, crime-ridden places with projects everywhere.  However, you should never go from one extreme to another where you are pricing out your own residents to appease a reluctant crowd of non-natives of the city to move there.  It creates a new vacuum where you continuously force those whom need government assistance to another rough place.  There needs to be some type of median place where we can create affordable housing and not go from one extreme to another.

One year, and so...

Now back to regular posting.  Today on the other side of the Sunbelt, a federal judge repealed California's Proposition 8 that banned same-sex unions and such, so congrats to them (for now because you know THEY are going to repeal to the SCOTUS)...

It's another one of those cases where you have to give those in the Democratic establishment in Georgia the side-eye.  This time it's Roy Barnes, whom deliberately avoided being seen near President Obama in Atlanta on Monday when he was there for Disabled Veterans organization speech and Democratic National Convention fundraiser (all in the same hotel, Hyatt Regency Atlanta in downtown).  That's what I call a "nod and wink" stunt to the black Democrats, whom he went all out the way to court up until 3 weeks after he won the Democratic gubernatorial primary...

In the Greater Birmingham area, an young, black Democratic nominee for circuit judge position of Jefferson County, Kenya Lavender Marshall,  might be disbarred by the Alabama State Bar for using clients compensation for personal use.  UH OH, HOT DOG!  That's has to be one of the DUMBEST things I've seen person do when they are running for a judicial position when it requires prudence and discernment to do the job...

Oh yeah, black Democratic Congress members Charlie Rangel and Maxine Waters ought to be ashamed of themselves for being SO DAMN STUPID.  I mean allegations of taking money and using it for their own personal usage and now both face ethics violations when they know they are up for reelection in 3 months.   I don't care how progressive you too maybe on key social issues, you have to be DUMBEST DEMOCRATS in the current sitting Congress, plain and simple.  Once again you see another Southern (white) Democrat pretending to be too busy worried what some rural (white) people will think of them rather than just showing their face for a few minutes with the president...PATHETIC!

LESSON TO ALL BLACK DEMOCRATS: DON'T GIVE OTHERS A REASON TO GET YOU WHEN YOU ALREADY KNOW THAT THEY WILL THOSE OUT THEM WANTING TO GET YOU!  YOU WILL GET GOT!

Georgia happenings of the past week...

Aside from my previous post that occurred in GA (involving Shirley Sherrod), there were other major events in the past week.  On Tuesday, there were gubernatorial primaries for the Republican and Democratic parties along with U.S. Senatorial primaries for Democratic nominee challenging socially conservative incumbent Johnny Isakson.  The Democratic gubernatorial race hands down was going to go to Roy Barnes since it was obvious to me along with anyone that knows politics that Barnes got the black establishment in Georgia along by 'essentially rubbing their bellies' with potent talk about "being a key ally".  I don't have a dog in this fight, but Barnes isn't a progressive at all; on the other hand, it is obvious in most Southern states that most of the black establishment will throw that under the bus to keep themselves in good graces with whomever is going to lead their state Democratic party.

Also there for some of the congressional primaries in both parties for the practically all the seats except for the 1st, 3rd, 6th, 10th, and 11th districts.  Incumbents in the 2nd, 5th, 8th, 10th, and 11th districts went uncontested within their parties.  The open seats like the rapidly shifting 7th district, where there will be a battle royale in the fall since the district's population center, Gwinnett County, has recently become a non-white majority (courtesy of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution).  Meanwhile, Congressman Hank Johnson, of the 4th district was fighting long and hard against former DeKalb County CEO and beacon of racial controversy, Vernon Jones.  However, the more prudent amongst the majority black district voters kept Jones out of the seat (thank God!).

Now on to the other stuff...

On Thursday, Atlanta mayor, Kasim Reed, along with newly appoint APD chief, George Turner, and the Atlanta City Council openly LGBT member, Alex Wan, APD assistant chief, P.N. Andresen, and newly appointed APD LGBT liaison, Patricia Powell, attempted to pacify the city's large LGBT community.  According to the AJC, This meeting stems from the allegedly stake down that occurred in September 2009 at the Atlanta Eagle LGBT bar in midtown.  Meanwhile, I think it is obvious that there are some forces at work within the APD that will continue to harass some of the LGBT fold in the ATL, but event just doesn't seem like much without any actions proving there will a change of regime.  This is STILL the South, you guys should know and that Atlanta might be a major city, but there will always be those whom will show they don't approve of LGBTs within their ranks of the police force and in the city itself...

The continuation of Birmingham's population decline...

Last week the U.S. Census Bureau released their last population estimates before they release the official figures (which are currently being compiled).  However, Birmingham population still look as if it is in the ranks of the Rust Belt cities rather than the ones in the Sun Belt.  Birmingham has declined by an additional 5% according to figures to 230,130 from 242,840 in 2000.  This all due to the poor leadership and political baggage that seems to impede its growth seen in other fellow cities including majority black cities like Atlanta, Memphis, New Orleans (although it suffered a huge blow with Hurricane Katrina), and Washington.  The only Southern city that has seen continual decline as Birmingham is Baltimore (and for similar reasons).

Meanwhile other fellow Sun Belt Southern major cities like Atlanta (climbed to 540,921), New Orleans (up to 354,850 after Hurricane Katrina's aftermath) Nashville (climbed to 605,473), Memphis (slipped to 676,540), Orlando (climbed to 235,860), Jacksonville (climbed to 813,518), South Florida: [Miami (climbed to 433,136), Fort Lauderdale (up to 184,892),  West Palm Beach (up to 99,504)] , Tampa Bay Area: [Tampa (up to 343,890), St. Petersburg (slipped to 244,324)], Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex: [Dallas (jumped to 1,299,543), Fort Worth (climbed to 727,575)], Houston (jumped to 2,257,926), Austin (climbed to 759,673), San Antonio (up to 1,373,668), Oklahoma City (up to 560,332), Tulsa (balancing out at 389,625), Louisville (up to 566,503), Charlotte (jumped to 709,441), The Triangle: [Raleigh (jumped to 404,718), Durham (up to 229,136), Chapel Hill (up to 51,247)], The Piedmont Triad: [Greensboro (climbed to 225,061), Winston-Salem (climbed to 229,828), High Point (up to 101,618)], The Upstate: [Greenville (up to 61,782), Spartanburg (balanced out at 40,387), Anderson (up to 27,181)], Richmond (up to 204,451), The Hampton Roads: [Norfolk (balancing out at 233,333), Virginia Beach (balancing 433,575), Portsmouth (slipped to 99,321), Hampton (slipped to 144,236), Chesapeake (up to 222,455), Suffolk (up to 83,659),] The DMV (District-Maryland-Virginia): [Washington, D.C. (climbed to 599,657), Baltimore (slipped to 637,418)]. 

It's pathetic, but another fact of the Birmingham problem.  The city is still losing more residents than gaining them to balance out or increase city population.  At the rate it going, it will be a city that will wind up seeing a political coup in the next few years lead by yuppies and wealthy whites because there won't be enough black voters to keep the city the way it is politically.  This is all meanwhile the suburban areas in the Greater Birmingham area gaining major population boosts at the expense of the city and the region as a whole.  Birmingham is well on its way to becoming a Southern-version of Detroit, where everybody lives in the metropolitan area rather than the racially stratification city proper.

Hmmm...

I've been away for about 2 weeks and now more craziness from Arizona ranging from bans on teachers with specific accents to now the ban on ethnic studies in secondary schools, colleges, and universities.  Meanwhile, the economy has made a "bounce", but it appears that those who saw the bounce now have just reentered the job market with the unemployment rate to increase.

I'm just tired of Arizona, but made it known about 3 weeks ago that the state is ran by bigoted white politicos who have a very reactionary constituency that will eat anything fed to them including bullshit.  Yeah, the economy does suck (I'm in graduate school and feel its effects even from here), and as I've been saying the Democrats need to stop chasing their tails.  When I mean chasing their tails, I mean following the rhetoric and reactions of the unsettled and foolish.  Those of us out here who are need jobs and some hope are losing what little is out here because there seems to be major droughts in the most diversified urban areas of the nation.  It's very interesting after watching the "Rebuilding America" on CNN has give me some major incite about the recession: 1) the most ethnically homogeneous metropolitan areas are the most recession proof (see Austin, Omaha, Minneapolis-St. Paul, and Des Moines etc.), 2) State and local governments particularly in the most diversified areas are suffering the most with the hemorrhaging of jobs (positions held by usually non-whites or lower salary), and 3) College graduates are the main ones being shut out of the job market the most often because of their lack of "experience" even for entry-level positions.

Houston, Washington, Atlanta, Dallas, Miami, etc. and the rest of the South, we have a problem.  There aren't any jobs for the young people, your future leaders, and they are either forced to take meager jobs that pays below the base living wage of the area or is hiding in the world of academia while accumulating tolls of college loan debt just to survive.  You have a growing diverse young population that can't even start their adult lives because of the unrealistic expectations of this group to attain a job, many of you harboring unresolved ethnic and racial bias leading to them be passed over for job although highly qualified, and the obvious unadulterated paranoia for nothing other than your lack of foresight for the future.  It's time for many of you guys to WAKE UP AND GROW UP! because you guys claim to be the adults but are carrying on worse than us "children" (as many of you claim we are to you).