OUTDABOX

R.I.P. "Fast" Eddie Johnson: The King Of Cotton

2005-05-12T05:12:00.000-07:00

As I am writing this article we are on the last leg from Louisville, Kentucky traveling through the beautiful mountains. Overall the trip went well and we sold out of shirts. If you can ride back home with an empty van, you can call yourself a "KING OF COTTON". Right now, we are the Kings.

While at the event in Louisville, one of our partners, Eddie Johnson passed away back home in Nashville, Tennessee. He had been suffering from cancer for a few years, but up until a few months ago he was still making trips. Fast Eddie was a long time vendor and a really good brother. He was on the vending circuit for years. I first met Eddie about 3 years ago at a bike rally in Huntsville, Alabama. We all sold out at that event. The shirts he had were different than what I had seen before. He had photographs and realistic art printed on shirts. Not just on white shirts, but on dark ones. Printing on dark shirts is very difficult; printing a picture on a dark shirt is extremely difficult. He taught me a lot about the technique- four color process, duotone artwork on dark shirts, fine halftone printing, I mean really good stuff. Fast Eddie was one of the most successful vendors in the south. Eddie would set up with 100 dozen or 150 dozen shirts- and sell them all. Not only was he good, he treated people good and had a warm personality. He would always do what he could to help a person out. Fast was known nationwide as being a motivated person and one of those people who set the trend. Rest in Peace Eddie, you are the original KING OF COTTON.

Very few people know what it's like to go on one of these trips. Patrons don't want to pay for your product. People sometimes try and steal. You have to grind 15-18 hours a day for days on end. You have to pack and unpack, load and unload cases and cases of product, set-up tents and break them down every day, deal with personalities and attitudes all day. You have to travel tightly packed and uncomfortable for hours, sleep in hotels or in the van. It's really physically and emotionally draining.

The chances of selling out are dependent on your location, your set-up, your design, your energy, the weather, and the turnout. Everything has to be right, you cant make a lot of mistakes and you have to get lucky. Even then, you have to really grind to get you shirts sold- even at $5.00 a piece. A lot of times you lose money or barely break even. These events cost alot of money to pull off. You have to pay for you inventory, travel, gas, food, hotels, vendor's fees, liscences- it's extremely expensive. Next to farming, T-shirt vending is the hardest task I have ever taken up. Big, Big respect for anyone who does it. Big Respect to Fast Eddie Johnson- "The King Of Cotton" and the best that ever did it.

Gone To The Derby

2005-05-04T05:12:00.000-07:00

We're gone to the Derby in Liousville, Kentucky. I hope to bring back some pics and sell some shirts. Boy I need to get out of town! Hold down the fort while I'm gone-would ya?

The Cart Before The Horse- Supply Creates Demand

2005-04-27T06:20:00.000-07:00

The cart or the horse, which leads? Do leaders lead the people, or do the people lead the leaders? Does art reflect life or does life reflect art?

We are lead to believe that television, movies, media, music, and news are just artforms; they are fantasy and entertainment. However, news and documentaries are supposed to be accurate depictions of current or historical events. Nowadays the line between what is real and what is fantasy is blurred beyond comprehension. We are supposed to be sophisticated enough to know the difference between fantasy and reality, but I can't figure out how. Adults can't always decipher what is real from false- children do not stand a chance.

My belief is that what we are exposed to in the popular culture is designed to plant a certain seed. If you want to have power and make money, you can anticipate a demand and fulfill it- thus capitalizing on the opportunity; or you can CREATE a demand. If you can create a demand for market and have the money to fill the supply, you can't lose! My contention is that the mass media creates demand for products that are almost invariably bad for our consumption. I'm talking about knowledge consumption as well as physical products advertised through the media by the corporations.

We are told, "If you don't like what you see, turn off the T.V.", "If you don't like what you hear, turn off the radio.", Etc. But you cannot mask out all of the sources of popular culture, it is pervasive in our society. If you ever venture outside or watch a sports event or go to the movies or watch the news, you will be inundated with advertisement-i.e. psychological indoctrination. I think the grip of mass media has gotten way too strong. With Hip-Hop or Rap, the effects are vivid. The songs talk about drug money and women and cars. Why do communities with none of what you see in videos try to emulate the lifestyle? Becuase it's human nature and basic psychology. The recording industry knows what it is doing to our youth.

Through the media, our leaders and talking heads sway AND create public opinion. They tell us what to think, how to think, what is important, what is not, who is the enemy, who are our friends, etc. The American public have become sheep, easily led in whatever direction our leaders decide we need to go. I think the direction is HELL and DEATH. PHYSICAL, MORAL, SPIRITUAL, ECONOMIC-DEATH! Just look at the streets and the classrooms and the prisons and you can see the effects of a doctrine of sex, drugs, fraud, greed, corruption, and despair. We have all the money in the world, yet it's still not enough. We have all the resources of the world yet we cannot or WILL NOT solve basic social problems- actually EMERGENCIES- right here in our own country.

The cart is now before the horse, and the cart is loaded with death. We'd better find the BRAKE and use it before we hit the wall.
Got Freedom?

Ill Ridge

WHERE DID THE LAND GO?

2005-04-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

If Black-Ex slaves were able to possess this much farmland in the Southern States, what happened to it all? How did they get any land in the first place? The year of this map is 1910. Only a generation after The Civil War and Reconstruction. How is it possible that these ignorant and uneducated, penniless and broken ex-slaves were able to purchase or be granted this amount of land in America?

I have been trying to dig up some info on land ownership for Blacks during this period, but it's very difficult. Most information online deals with Sherman and his field orders for 40 acres of land to be given to freed slaves in order to provide living quarters and sustenance for the freed slaves themselves. I want to find out how Blacks ended up with 16 million acres as of 1920 and how we only have 3 million acres today.

Interestingly I learned that the cotton trade had undergone a decline in the 1910's and 20's due to overproduction and halted trade with England during WWI.(see "The Last Plantation") Evidently Black farmers suffered from the declining cotton trade more than whites. White farmers were able to diversify their crops from just cotton to soybeans, corn, etc. No doubt the USDA and banking institutions subsidized White farmers during this time, but neglected Black farms. During this same time period the industrial revolution was taking off in the world. Production and large manufacturing was building in the North while down home in the South, we were still getting lynched, Jim-Crowed, beat, robbed, basically terrorized, so many Blacks fled the South and the land. Considering the fact that the production rates for farming versus the price you could get for your crops on the market, many Blacks felt they stood a better chance of having a better life in the North in promises of good jobs with good wages and good homes. In addition younger land owners who might have gained land from inheritance decided to sell their land and take the money to live in the northern industrial cities.

Getting Blacks off their land and into the cities was public policy. :

" Amazingly, some African-American families did prosper as farmers and business people in the early 20th century. Some African-American communities thrived, even establishing their own banks to build savings and investment within the community. However, there was particular resentment against successful African Americans, and they were often targets of the vigilante violence common in this period. State and local governments helped vigilantes destroy their homes, run them out of town, and lynch those "uppity" enough to resist, and the federal government turned a blind eye. Sometimes entire black communities were targeted. For example, the African- American business district in north Tulsa, known as the "Black Wall Street" for its size and success, was torched on the night of June 21, 1921 by white rioters, who destroyed as many as 600 black-owned businesses. The Depression wiped out black progress, which did not resume at all until the New Deal period. Even then, African Americans were often barred from the new asset-building programs that benefited whites. Under Social Security, workers paid into the system and were guaranteed money in retirement."(From "The Black Commentator")

White folks believe that they have nothing to atone for and that they owe no debt to the Ex-salves. Surely they do, but who's going to make them pay? They say they have not directly benefited from the Slave trade and the practices of Jim-Crow and Radical Republican Legislature during the early half of the last century. They may want to believe this lie, but the truth stands bare for all to view. Everything they sit upon on high looking down low was from ill-gotten gains, but we all know that is "The American Way". I know that America will never give Blacks justice. I know America will never own up to it's debts. I know that Whites in power are there riding on the backs of Blacks and the poor and will not look back. I know this. However, I just want to expose the hypocrisy so we can all face it. Why do we look for justice in a land of thieves and liars, who can we call upon to ever get FREEDOM, JUSTICE, AND EQUALITY from a people such as this?

A friend of mine's told me that "you have to forget about unifying Black people in-mass, that time has passed. You have to unify with small groups who see the reality of what you're talking about." This makes sense to me although it knid of hurts. So let me find more of those who can and are acting on some positive things and let others deal with the politics and Bull Sugar Honey Ice Tea. More next time, God Willing.

Peace,
Ill Ridge

The Moment Of A Lifetime!

2005-04-12T06:48:00.000-07:00

The date, October 16,2005. This will be a momentous moment in time. For better or for worse , this is the TIME. It is the proper time and it is a fulfillment of time. It is time for unity, we will unite or we will die-period. This will be a test and it will not be easy. The "powers that be" will oppose this gathering and celebration of the tenth anniversary of the Million Man March. Even yourself will oppose this march, but it will happen and it will be successful. This will not simply be a march, this will be a new program and call to government to address our needs as they are documented on paper. It will also be a call to unity for all of our disparate lives and beliefs. This will be the ultimate test of the Black community.

We are of the type that when our back is against the wall, we do what it takes to overcome and survive. Our backs are being steadily pushed up against that wall- it ain't gonna stop! WE WILL wake up, but it will be the very last minute as usual. Even then, it wont be everybody, just those with the spirit of truth and faith in what is real. Where do you fall? Unity is the missing link, it is the key, it is something that we have never tried before and it will free us.

Although we may not yet realize it, there is a movement welling up in the streets and communities. It is a call for change. I don't mean talk or programs or committees or research or more non-profits- I mean change for real RIGHT NOW TODAY! October 2005 will be a culmination of world events for the past decade. It will be a climax of all that we have been striving towards for years. It will be a critical time. Where will you be as history is being made once again?

The Sheep-dog: The sheep-dog is a dog raised amongst sheep. He believes he is a sheep, although he is clearly not. The dog is raised to protect the sheep and the interests of the sheep. He will attack other dogs who threaten the sheep. The sheep-dog is a metaphor for the raised American Negro- the Ex-Slave, the Nigga. The cause of the problem of non-unity is that we do not trust one another and we have been trained to look after the interests of the slave master instead of ourselves as a family. Oh yeah, the psychological effects of this training are extremely deep-rooted and have not been eradicated from our collective psyche. My dear brothers and sisters, the time for this silliness is OVER! For those of you who only have the backbone to beg for crumbs from the table, I feel for you. You only need to look at what happens to those of us who speak up and act for the real freedom of the Ex-slave children. Look at how you can be built-up in the American culture, then when you step outside the box too far or take a controversial stand, they crucify you in public. America has never really accepted you, even when you play your role as a sheep-dog faithfully. "They" refers to "it". "It" is a mindset and social system motivated by pure greed and profiteering. "It" is a methodology and a paradigm.

Our progress up from slavery has always been hindered by those forces who capitalize off of weakness, chaos, confusion, poverty, and ignorance. No it is not all of America that codifies "They", but still the machine rolls on. Every other community forms bonds and links to better themselves in this counrty except Blacks. We are taught not to unify. We are told to "join in" and take part in the system, but can't seem to amass enough resources and power to change the conditions of the vast majority of our family. The Hatians have banks, the Latinos have construction locked-down, the Arabs and Pakistanis have clothing locked-down, the Africans have CD's and clothes locked-down, the Koreans and Chinese have convenient stores and beauty products locked-down.... What do we have with all of our civil-rights victories? NOTHING! Don't believe the hype, those few Blacks with a little are Window Dressing.

You think $10,000 is money. You think that big rims and gold teeth are signs of affluence, you are a foolish and lost people, it will take a miracle of God to save you. It is a miracle that is needed and a miracle that I pray for. We all strive to do what we can to get what we can for ourselves and to hell with everybody else. But you don't have %!#%! So how can you help others? We have to unite and pool our wealth. We must get over egos and mistrust. We don't individually have assets so we need to pool. Unity will require sacrifice. Sacrifice of money, time, labor, ego, notoriety, fame, glorification... We must be willing to give a little to get a lot.

The thing I feel most excited about is the Covenant with Black America. This will serve as a Constitution and business plan on a large-collective scale. If we face the situation head-on and look inward instead of outward for the answers, we will be successful. We already have the will, the knowledge, and the resources to do this damn thing, all we need to do is do it. Where will you be when the clock strikes twelve? Where will you be when history is written? Be part of the solution, not part of the problem!

What lies before us is a miraculous moment and gift from the Creator to change our current trends and fulfill our destiny. We will capitalize on this moment in spite of opposition. Unity will not be subverted, not this time. As for the sheep-dogs, I will be watching you.

Peace
Ill Ridgely Shawn

Broken Glass Everywhere

2005-04-11T08:11:00.000-07:00

Well, it happens again. Somebody broke into the Chineese Food Resturant- China House last night. They broke the front glass and kicked the shards out into the shop and out on the sidewalk. Why would anyone open a business on Phillips Ave? Why would corporations or non-profits risk loss of property and life trying to bring economic development to this abyss?

I do it for the love, but I tell you, I hate to think how I would be feeling right NOW waiting for the police to show up and do a police report. The Chineese guy-Yung told me his cameras are turned off at night- bad idea. The local bad actors love to sneak around late, late night when the streets are deserted.

What can be done to prevent this, other than going door-to-door finding potential suspects or could be, would be suspects. Acts like this make it bad on everybody. I geuss we should just pray because this is crazy.

Sucker Punched

2005-04-08T11:18:00.000-07:00

This is what I've been talking about. The income and wealth disparity in America between Blacks and Whites. We are led to believe that Blacks are not that bad off, we are doing pretty good, we are making more money, we are moving up to the middle class, etc. etc. etc.

These are lies. They are perpetuated and propagandists misinformation. Given the benefit of the doubt, maybe most people may just want to believe that things are not what they actually manifest themselves to be. I wrote several weeks ago about income and wealth gaps in America. Here is an excellent article on the topic:

"The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan recently described the state of Black economic underdevelopment in a most succinct and poignant manner. He said that when you go to a department store and you see the mannequins in the window, if they have on the type of clothes that you might want, then you go in the store. In the Black community you have a few Blacks who have a little wealth or symbols of wealth. These mannequins will make you think that you can also get these things, if you would take full advantage of the "democracy" that America offers all of her citizens.

This is a most excellent description of the reality of Black life in America. However some might say that Min. Farrakhan is exaggerating to make a point or is just making up stuff to make Blacks angry with America. Let us see if there is data to back up Min. Farrakhans claims. I have analyzed some relevant economic data taken from the 1990 Census on Whites, Blacks, Hispanics and Asians in the categories of Median Income, Median Net Worth, Mean Net Worth, Median Net Financial Assets and Mean Net Financial Assets.

Net worth is the balance of what you own after debt is removed. In other words, a car or house, minus any debts, such as a mortgage or car note. Net financial asset is the value of your financial assets minus whatever debt is associated with owning that financial asset. A financial asset is a claim to a present or future payment of dollars, such as a stock certificate, government or corporate bond.

"Mean" is the average, while "median" is "most likely" or where most of the individuals fall within a given category. A comparison of "mean" versus "median" can give you an idea of how skewed or balanced a distribution is within a certain category. We will see the importance of this type of analysis further down.

As a member of a "democracy" one expects to earn money, own property and participate in capitalism. When we look at the data, it is clear that Blacks are behind every other ethnic group when it comes to income, net worth or net financial assets. Why? Are Blacks lazy or stupid?

First of all if we look at the income gap between Whites and Blacks, we see that Blacks are "most likely" to earn about $20,508 or 61% (.61) of what Whites earn ($33,600). However, most Blacks are much further behind Whites when it comes to net worth. According to the 1990 Census the common Black has a net worth of about $6,127.26 or 12% (.12) of the most common White's $52,944.01. These disparities get much worse when you look at net financial assets. The most typical Black owns about $100 in net financial assets, while the most typical white owns $7,400. The most typical White owns 74 times more financial assets than the most typical Black. So, basically Blacks do not participate in this portion of the "American way of life".

Furthermore, there are only a few Blacks who participate in owning financial assets at all and those "few" among Blacks is a lot less, percentage wise, than those "few" among Whites. Let us compare the median to the mean of net financial assets between Whites and Blacks. The median for Whites is $7,400, while the overall mean or average is $56,199. This indicates that although most Whites have very little, there are a few Whites who have a lot. In fact if you divide the mean ($56,199) by the median ($7,400) you get about eight (8). This figure does not tell you a whole lot unless you do the same calculation with Blacks and make the comparison.

The mean net financial assets of Blacks is $7,600 while the median is $100. When you divide $7,600 by $100 you get the number seventy-six (76). Now when you compare this distribution ratio of 76 for Blacks and 8 for Whites, we find that the distribution is more skewed for Blacks than Whites by a factor of 9 (76/8). This means that within the White community, although you have a few "haves" and a lot of "have-nots", within the Black community you have even fewer "haves" and a lot more "have-nots".

This tells me that the "system" allows very few Blacks to participate in capitalism or the "money-making-money" sector of "democracy" in comparison to Whites. Yet these same Blacks can be pointed to by those who want to demonstrate that "some have made it". However, these "some" that have made it only window dress the underlying reality that most Blacks are dirt poor when it comes to financial assets, net worth and even income.

It is most interesting that when you do the same analysis of the distribution of net worth and net financial assets for Hispanics and Asians, Blacks still have the most with nothing and the least with a lot. "
(read the whole article)

The key is to decide as a group / unit / family - how WE are going to develop an economy and become self-sufficient and viable. There are those who will say " We need to join in this economy, we need to be 'let-in' the circle of haves", "We need a DIVERSE community, we can't be exclusionary or racist", "We need to get government funding and grant money for more programs and outreach to the community".... It goes on and on, but if you do not realize the key GROUND factors that consistently put us at the very bottom of the socio-economic ladder, then we will be running around in circles broke until we perish. The time for the hankerchief-heads and window dressers is over, so is the time for idle words and actions. Quit looking to the "man" to save us and start thinking outside of the box!
Start thinking for yourself and stop having others think for you. You are getting pimped and don't even know it.

Peace Out Hommie
Ill Ridge

WHAT WE DO

2005-04-01T07:57:00.000-08:00

THE WORLD IS WHOSE?

2005-03-31T08:34:00.000-08:00

OPEN THE BOOK!

2005-03-28T06:35:00.000-08:00

I would argue that we should go one step further than the Truth and Reconciliation Project- actually a "Giant Leap For Mankind". Why don't we just open the book and reconcile the truth with lies and distortion. Why don't we open the book and move past historical wrongs and regrettable actions? Why don't we open the book and look with unprejudiced eyes and muster the spiritual courage to work past our mistakes and evolve past our present condition?

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE BOOK

The book I'm referring to is a record or account of what events happened- what, when ,who, where, etc. In courts of law, the record is reconstructed piece by piece from evidence collected and presented by the two opposing sides. Certain facts may be in dispute, others may be undeniable. It is the task of the court to weigh the evidence and come to a judgment. Naturally, the more accurate the record, the more justly a verdict can be rendered. The complete and accurate record is vital in this proceeding.

In life, we see events as cyclical- what goes around comes around. It is foolish and wreckless to proceed with the future without having a clear understanding of what events occurred in your past that may provide insight into your future. This is the process of growth and development. The more precise and accurate the record, the more insight this look into the book will be, the more successful you will be in moving forward. The book is vital in this regard.

Dealing on a community level and upwards to a national level, the record is extremely distorted and imprecise. As a matter of fact, the record has been purposefully and successfully re-written on a lot of issues starting with the very first contacts of Europeans with the Native Americans until the present day. One day- soon- the record of this country and everyone in it will be exposed for all to see. Better that we do it voluntarily, than have it done for us; for if we do not open our book, we will be judged harshly. Some of us may feel like we have a lot to lose by a clear reading of the book. How can you lose on the truth? I believe in the forgiveness and wisdom of the Creator, for surely He alone can judge and grant forgiveness. I believe that through that law of love and righteousness, we can always be redeemed of past errors and wrongs, if we are honest and sincerely repent and atone. All of us must grab hold of what we believe and humbly seek guidance on how to reconcile the past with the future because we are heading for disaster. It is not about you, it is about the future!

EXPOSE THE BOOK!

Maybe what the book will reveal is not as bad as it may seem. Surely, for Blacks in the "inner-city" there is a problem. There is definitely a misreading of past events because we are not making progress in the future. There are those who would argue that progress is being made by Blacks in this country. I beg to differ. Don't just look at the attempts of pacification by granting some "superstars" millions or some athletes millions, while we as a general population are in dire straits. Look at the schools, the jails, the streets, the "hood"; this is where the real picture becomes clear.

I support the reparations movement. I believe that America owes a debt to the Blacks that built this country for the White Man and have received no benefit from that work and suffering. Other peoples have been awarded compensation for crimes committed against them, but nothing for the African Slave. I believe that Blacks can do much better and be much better off on our own than stuck in this oppressive and devoid society. I believe that America owes us land, and self-determination so that we may be holders of our own future. The only future America promises us is death and destruction. They do not want to "open up old wounds" but we are dying daily from the effects of these wounds with no cure available, surely this is an untenable situation- a relationship born out of greed, misuse, abuse, theft, and ill-will. Surely, now is the time for divorce.

Prove me wrong and open the book. Show me that America has the intestinal fortitude to look upon the book with honest eyes and humbly seek a solution to the ills that abound in this country. Show me that you are better than your forefathers who I believe sold their souls to the devil. Show me that I am wrong in thinking of America the way I do. Show me that you believe in Freedom, Justice, and Equality. Please show me and the world that America is indeed "God's" country and that we are striving for perfection of a Godly order and peace on the planet. Please show me that we can do better. Step up to the plate, the time is now, the opportunity for atonement is narrowing. Let us OPEN THE BOOK and look, our future is at hand.

Peace
Ill Ridgely Shawn

WORK IS NOT SLAVERY

2005-03-18T06:34:00.000-08:00

Even hard work is NOT slavery. Now working hard for someone else's benefit under conditions of bondage and servitude with no legal way out is slavery. What exactly is slavery? Where is the line drawn between slavery and freedom?

It is 2005, the age of information and technology. Mental and spiritual slavery is much more common and effective as a means of exploitation- except in the penal system. According to the Constitution, 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction. This amendment was never rewritten. Slavery is STILL legal. If you look at the imprisonment rates for the country from 1970-2000 the number incarcerated has grown from 200,000 to over 2 million according to the US Dept. of Justice.

Prisons are being built like shopping centers. The prison system is being privatized. The incarceration rate for Blacks is 43.9% of the total prison population. Blacks get jailed at nearly ten times the rate of whites. Looks like they're trying to bring slavery back-physically!

Work is NOT slavery, even hard work cannot be called "slavery". What is slavery is working under bondage and servitude with no benefit for yourself. If you work hard and "slave" for yourself or your family, that's something different. Our experience during slavery and the entire time since then, Blacks have grown an aversion to "work", not that we're lazy, we just can't stand the idea of being "pimped"-especially for our backs and labor.

I believe the struggle for freedom and liberation is in itself hard-work. If you have to work all day for ten dollars in order to eventually free yourself and your family- that's what you have to do. I , myself would rather work for nothing (no printed money) on my own land or factory or business than to work for someone else's benefit. Most great men have had to work hard and sacrifice in order to further themselves and accomplish their goals, there is nothing wrong with that, in fact, it is consistent with the Creator's reason for giving us life. I believe work is freedom. There is no stronger unity than a people working together towards one aim and purpose. All the egos, jealousies, envies, etc., fall to the wayside in the face of the "struggle". The common mission is more important than the petty grievances within the group.

Mental slavery is a condition in which you are being trained by educational and psychological means to be a tool for exploitation by someone else. Mental slavery works like this: You get tired of not working and advancing, you get despondent and depressed, you turn to readily available drugs. "They" wage a "war on drugs", you get caught with drugs, you go to prison and become a physical slave. Scenario 2: You get bored and despondent about no having work or a means of progression, you're already poor amongst the poor. You can sell readily available drugs and make more cash money in a day than anybody you know without having to punch a clock. You sell in you community, "they" watch, take notes- bam! You go to prison and become a physical slave all over again.

Somehow we are being mental slaves to somebody, because we're ending up back in bondage- physical slavery. If we could "slave" for our own spiritual, economic, and educational growth; we could become (or remain) free. By being a slave to ourselves and our future rather somebody else's slave, we mist just survive the attack. I don't use that word "attack" lightly. Let's look at it for what it is worth. "Bodies are falling, but I didn't see where the shots came."

Peace
Ill Ridge

A BROTHER STOLE MY CELL PHONE

2005-03-14T07:06:00.000-08:00

Well Friday, it happened again. Somebody stole something from my shop. This time it was a phone laid down carelessly with a shop full of people. I guess everything in here has to be under lock and key and I must not turn my head for an instant. Such is life in the ghetto. Around Valentine's day it was a laptop computer. Last summer it was the whole shop- they broke in twice within a week span. The person who stole the phone actually had the nerve to call me Sunday and ask me "Hey man, how'd you get your cell phone back?" I had to pay- that's how!

The question I have to ask myself is what kind of mind is in control? I've said it before and I'll say it again, "there's a war going on outside...". Our community is plagued with self-hate. It's not crackheads that are doing the thieving- it's young Black men who are probably not in school, or rarely go. I have an idea who may be responsible on the phone thing, and I kinda know who had a hand in the break-ins. The police have proven useless in solving the crimes- I guess they get paid to look for folks who may be trying to drive to survive but don't have a license or insurance.

You see what some of us do is watch and listen, waiting for an opportunity to steal or subvert one another's progress. It is instinctual. The "slave mentality". After over 140 years since slavery, our group mindset is still not healed. If anything, I see it getting worse, much worse. The "enemy within" is gaining ground and looking to snuff out all signs of life and progress. Being tougher on crime won't solve it either- they'll just be more and more young Blacks in the prison system. The causes of a lot of crime are not being addressed.

We come to each other with deception in our hearts-ALREADY. Smile in your face, but are looking for a way to exploit any weakness for our own gain. What is really sick is that some of us don't really expect to gain- just make you lose ground our heart or give up, too. Many of our young have GIVEN-UP. They do not see a future and don't give a damn about no-thing! You can believe it or change the channel! Why would white -owned businesses come into a "hood" like Phillips Avenue when our crime rate is so high? The city would have to bribe and beg a company to invest in the community and I bet the police force would protect that business better than it protects mine's. Community development starts with a community. What we have here is a free-for-all in a hopeless environment. A lot of people want there to be nothing on Phillips Av. They would rather have a "block" of no businesses and call it "theirs" than to help develop a wealthy "block". Who in the hell wants to claim an empty lot?- The defeated Black Man does.

They know that those cowardly attempts at running me off the block will have little effect, but they must try regardless. They won't approach me one-on -one, they won't do it in my face, but behind my back. They won't show their face for cowardice and lowliness. My own "brothers", plotting to see me fail at trying to become free. This is the "Enemy Within". This is spiritual and mental death and disease. Is this country interested in curing this disease or just paying lip service?

Money will not solve the problem of self-destruction. You know the "crabs in a barrel syndrome", the "N___az can't have s___t!" complex. Re-education from the young to the old is the only thing that can help. And I believe this can only be accomplished on our own land, with our own laws and culture. Our "original" culture does not allow for the overrun of positivity by negativity. It does not allow weakness to win over strength nor lies over truth.

What exists in our community is a culture of hopelessness, depression, struggle, envy, and self-hate. Look at it! We can't keep our head in the sand- it's a problem and no one is immune to the disease or it's effects. The "powers that be" have a solution- that's to lock 'em all up- and they will. Hell of a solution. There has to be a better way to heal our communities. I myself am a force of struggle and overcoming- I with the help of my God-Allah- will not succumb to the predatory nature of my kinsman or any man, but I don't need the extra help in creating more struggle. It's a damn shame that the weak-ones in our community have such a negative impact on the whole. It is out of balance and way past due for a change! We'll see what happens this week- God willing.

Peace
Ill Ridgely Shawn

Correction on the War On Poverty

2005-03-11T13:38:00.000-08:00

My bad. I confused Keynesian economics and supply-side economics. Keynesian theory is that government intervention should be on behalf of the poor, tax money should be given to them, because they will immediately spend it and by doing so boost the economy.

Supply-side economics is what Reagan adhered to. That theory supposes that if you give tax breaks to the wealthy, they will in turn re-invest that extra money into factories, employment, production facilities, etc.

Well we see what the wealthy have decided to do with their "extra" money- they are investing it overseas at our expense. Sounds like another scam on the ill-informed and broke.

THE SPIRIT WORLD & THE AUTHOR OF CONFUSION

2005-03-10T09:02:00.000-08:00

There is often confusion when speaking of the spirit world and "spiritual" things. Heaven, Hell, The Hereafter, where does your spirit go when it leaves your body? I mean if you could see yourself in a spiritual realm, similar to a dreamstate- you would still have some concept of self. You would have to have something to "see"; whether it be with the spiritual "eye' or the physical "eye". YOU would have to have some confines, some boundaries in space and time, some shape, some form in order to distinguish "YOU" from what is not YOU. How do we know that we are not now IN the spirit world?

It may be that the "spiritual" and the "physical" are more closely related than they may appear. They may not be as "separate but equal" as we may think. Scientists have been studying the make-up of matter itself. Can you guess what they find as they peer deeper and deeper and deeper into the atoms that compose all that physically exists? Nothing! I mean NO-THING. There is simply empty space that exists between fields of pure energy. It is only the vibration and spinning and dancing of that energy that creates the "illusion" of matter and "solid" odjects.

You and I and the ground and the stars exist only as a manifestation of a spiritual force. The fabric of reality is held together by the will and enrergy of the Creator Himself! The mind of God alone accounts for the very existence of everything "real". So when He thought, "Let there be light and made it so," His motive of Love was powerful enough to bring forth light out the womb of darkness- in fact creating light OUT of the darkness itself. Creation was the effect of bringing order out of chaos, righteous laws out of confusion, life out of death.

If you think of the magnitude of creation, the awesome beauty, the complexity, the simplicity- it could only be an intelligent mind at work and not an "accident" of creation. You can't build a stack of garbage without a plan and a method- some sort of intelligence at work. The universe- all that exists within creation - was created in the spirit of truth and righteousness. Everything in creation obeys the laws of creation intuitively- everything else does not have to "think" about what it should do- it just does. It does according to what the thing was designed to do by God Himself. The stars, the grass, the sky, the birds, the bees- everything except us. We are designed special. The Creator made the woman to be a womb to manifest himself and resurrect himself in his creation. The nature of a human being is to be a vessel for the spirit and mind of God. Being such, man must have an almost unlimited range of choice and options. Now with that freedom of choice comes responsibility.

If we chose to disobey the laws of God and the universe that He alone created, there are consequences. It's written throughout the Bible about cultures and nations that were destroyed for disobedience to God and his universal laws. We have a long leash, but our "arms are too short to box with God".

The Author of Confusion is the counterforce to creation. It is the tendency towards disorder, confusion, chaos, death. Was the counteragent a by-product of the process of creation? Was it a design flaw in creation? Was it a mistake or was it necessary? Does the counter-force have a purpose. Does it balance the system out? You know how a battery works, it has a positive side and a negative side. In order for there to be light, darkness must exist, in order to step up, you gotta have something to step on. I do know this- the negative side has bounds and limitations and in the end cannot win out or the light itself will be snuffed out by the overwhelming void.

Heaven and Hell are abstractions of a real spiritual phenomena. They are not physical locations somewhere "else". They are spiritual states of being manifested on the physical plane. If we have heaven in our minds, then heaven would be manifested in the world. If we have hell in our minds, then hell will be what we manifest in the world. Which world are we living in? Most people I talk to think that living here and now is hell. They believe that this life IS HELL, and there has to be a better place somewhere else after this life. On the other hand, I'm wiling to bet that there are those who think this is heaven and they are not trying to go anywhere!

This IS HEAVEN! But this can also be HELL. There is nothing wrong with the creation. The creation is the order out of the void, without creation lies the void. This is the gift of life that God gave us, now we want to throw it away and exist in the spiritual realm where we think heaven is. This is false thinking. It is the Author of Confusion which spreads this mindset. Creation is the realm in which the spiritual acts. This is the playing field and you are in the game!

We are now in a time of Universal change. The power of the Chaotic Force has run its course. The divine purpose of unrighteous rule has served its term, and a new order will begin in the world. Will you be here in the Hereafter? Will your seed continue to live and grow and be reborn?

Intelligence is built-in to everything in creation. The plants communicate chemically through amino acids in the soil. Birds migrate thousands of miles and back by sensing coordinates on the globe. We are supposed to be the highest form of life on the planet, yet we are destroying everything around us and inside of us. Brother killing Brother, Mother against Son, Son against Father, Nation against Nation. If we are so smart, then why are we dying so much? The Author of Confusion is to blame. It is the nature of the counter-agent to bring creation back to the womb of darkness.

We are but dust and empty space, but with the breath of God we are animated on the physical plane. We have the gift of life yet we wish to throw it away. We are here by divine plan for the divine purpose of perfecting the spirit. There is no escape, there is no place to run. We are designed and destined to grow into His mind and be as He is. Not to be a force of destruction, but a force of creation. That we are given this awesome power, we have great responsibility and must be reigned-in because of our power. We now know too much about the creation and are dangerous to the creation. Unless we change our path and submit to the will of the Creator, we are going to run into a wall.

Peace,
Ill Ridge

THE WAR ON POVERTY

2005-03-09T15:13:00.001-08:00

This war was begun during the Johnson Administration in 1964. Victory was described as being an end to poverty in the United States-outright. Now in 2005 the war has not been won. What went wrong with the war and why has it not been won?

In his first State of the Union address on January 8, 1964, Lyndon B. Johnson declared an “unconditional war on poverty,” and the Economic Opportunity Act1 was submitted to Congress later that year. According to Johnson, the plan was designed to deal with the causes of poverty, rather than simply trying to ameliorate its consequences. By expanding educational and training opportunities for the poor, Johnson believed it would be possible to end poverty forever.
Specifically, his Act:

1. Called for the creation of Head Start, a Job Corps, a Work-Training Program and a Work Study Program. 2. Sought recommendations from citizens throughout the country (CAPS – Community Action Programs), to design long-range proposals to fight poverty in their communities. 3. Requested the authority to recruit and train thousands of citizens (VISTA – Volunteers in Service to America) for the war against poverty. 4. Asked Congress for funds to help those currently unemployed (through a new program of loans and guarantees) as well as struggling farmer workers (through the purchase of land, the organization of cooperatives and the creation of new family farms). 5. Created the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO). Through this office, Johnson proposed the implementation of a comprehensive plan to create opportunities for the underprivileged.,(From "The War on Poverty After 40yrs)

These are all good ideas, but why did they have little if any effect on the underprivileged Black community in particular? The answer lies in the underlying assumptions and approach to economics. Keynesian economics is a school of thought that has been adhered to by Reagan- remember "trickle-down economics", Bush I, Clinton, and Bush II, among others. Remember - "A rising tide lifts all boats."?

The paradigm is that to end poverty , an economy must be geared towards supply-side policies which promote the growth of the private sector believing that investors would put their extra money into building new factories and more cars, thus creating a demand for labor. The problem is that the more high tech and profitable these companies become, the less need they have for workers in general, and low-skilled workers in particular.

In addition there is a catch 22 situation in that some economists believe:

"This, in turn, resulted from the CEA’s belief that a) poverty is not inextricably
linked to unemployment, b) unemployment could be sufficiently reduced through aggregate fiscal policies (such as JFK’s tax cut of 1963), and c) millions of Americans would have to be maintained as an unemployed buffer stock to keep inflation in check. These views still hold sway among economists"

Adding to the problem is the fact that in the Global Economy of 2000, jobs and capital are being exported overseas which leaves little room for hiring the poorly educated and unskilled. One glaring stat was :
"there are nearly as many black males in prison as there are employed (and two-and-a-half times the number unemployed)"

Being that the imprisonment rates are jumping WAY UP since the 1990's, we can only envision the trend continuing and in fact getting worse in the coming years. The educational system is failing our young at the same time. Sounds like a recipe for disaster.

Minsky considered the war on poverty “a conservative rebuttal to an ancient challenge of the radicals, that capitalism necessarily generates ‘poverty in the midst of plenty’” (1965, p. 175). As he saw it, Johnson’s version of this “conservative rebuttal” was fundamentally flawed. Instead of providing the impoverished with an opportunity to work, it provided them with the
opportunity to learn how to work. Thus, by emphasizing education and job training, Johnson sought to change poor people, rather than changing the system that leads to their impoverishment.

It may well be that we have to take a look at restructuring our whole understanding and approach to economics in order to defeat poverty. Please make sure to read the Levy Institute's article in its entirety.

Peace
Ill Ridge

African Americans On Shifting Ground

2005-03-08T11:13:00.000-08:00

African Americans on Shifting Ground
By Alec Klein
The Washington Post

Saturday 18 December 2004

A tenuous hold on the middle class.

Miami - A couple of months ago, Kayasa Cobb entered a dim, cramped cubicle to apply for a job
paying about $7 an hour selling clothes at Burdines-Macy's.

Then she started thinking. She already had a full-time job as an executive at an image-consulting
business earning $39,000 a year - slightly more than the national average of $17 an hour - and was
strapped for time as it was. Her husband was holding down two jobs, at a library and a movie theater,
to help pay the expense of raising two small children. Did the family really need a fourth income to get
by?

"It was absurd," she says of the department store job, which she ultimately decided not to pursue.
"It was a crazy idea."

Even as African Americans and other minorities have made economic progress in the last 40 years,
many of those reaching the middle-income rung, like Cobb, are finding it a hollow promise. In earlier
decades, a union-protected factory worker or government employee earning such a wage could expect
a comfortable life with company-provided health and retirement benefits, and perhaps enough money
for indulgences such as the occasional new car.

Now, though, blacks and other minorities reaching the economic middle find the ground shifting.

By all rights, Cobb should be making it. She studied evenings and weekends to graduate with a
master's degree in human resources earlier this year, and then was hired as operations manager for an
African American-owned business, a springboard - she hopes - to becoming an entrepreneur herself.

But the 33-year-old and her husband aren't even close to making it. "Why don't we own our home?"
she wants to know. "Why don't we have money in the bank? Why are we just making ends meet?"

Changes in the global economy and advances in technology have, of course, buffeted
middle-income workers of all races. Blacks, however, have faced some particular challenges.

Beneficiaries of the post-World War II boom in manufacturing, they have lost a disproportionate
number of jobs as the factory workforce declined in recent years. While African Americans have made
substantial advances in the service sector and have been opening small businesses at a pace quicker
than whites, other vulnerabilities work to offset those gains. Employer-sponsored health care and
retirement benefits have been eroding throughout the economy, but, in the case of private pensions,
have declined faster for blacks. With generally fewer resources to fall back on - the median net worth of
African American families is $19,000, about 15 percent of that for whites - home down payments move
out of reach, and periods of sluggish wage growth, like the current one, hit even harder.

Subject historically to higher-rate credit cards and mortgages, even black families with steady and
respectable incomes find themselves treading water or falling behind. According to a recent study by
Harvard Law School professor Elizabeth Warren, black families are more than six times more likely to
file for bankruptcy than whites.

"In a sense, it's a legacy of the racism that kept today's black families' grandparents out of good
paying jobs," Warren says. "That echoes through the generations."

To be sure, there are more African Americans in the upper income bracket than ever before. The
portion of black households making $75,000 to $99,999, for example, increased nearly fourfold
between 1967 and 2003, rising to 7 percent of the black population. The portion of white households in
that income range merely doubled, to 11.5 percent.

But for African Americans, the picture overall is of a group with a tenuous hold on economic health,
even for those ostensibly in the middle class.

"Even for blacks who are following the model of the American middle class, going to college, getting
a white-collar job, blacks have taken it on the chin," says labor economist William Spriggs, former
executive director of the National Urban League Institute for Opportunity and Equality, which analyzes
African-American issues.

One Step Away

That's how Cobb feels.

She grew up in the shadow of the nearby Miami projects in a small, three-bedroom home with as
many as 15 relatives packed in at once. Her mother worked as a state foster care secretary for 32
years, a testament to the type of career security that generation relied on to raise their families. Cobb
says her father was killed during a robbery in his home when she was 10 years old.

Cobb was the first in her family to get a college degree. When she was hired in June by HeavenSent
Consultants Inc., she was thrust into the biggest job of her life. She had no experience in image
consulting - giving clients advice about how to dress and look better. But as operations manager, she
handles accounting and vendor relations and oversees the company's three staffers. On occasion, she
also teaches a welfare-to-work class sponsored by the firm.

The job pays $2,000 a year more than what she earned before as an assistant director of human
resources at Florida Memorial College. But Cobb didn't take the consulting job because of the money.
What she was looking for, she said, was "room for growth," a job that promised the possibility of
owning her own business one day. Cobb would like to start a temporary employment agency, and even
has a name for it: K's Temporary Service.

"I want to change my life," she says, "so my children won't have to go through this."

By "this" she means the barrage of phone calls, demanding she write a check for her overdue car
payments ($346 monthly). There's day care for Kennedy, her infant daughter, at $520 a month. The
family's health-insurance premium is approaching $400 a month.

It's little things, like the cubic zirconia ring on her wedding finger; that's all her husband, Jammie,
could afford.

It's big things, too, like the $80,000 her family owes in student loans, car loans and credit cards.
That's about four times the median debt of a minority family and twice that of whites, according to the
latest Federal Reserve figures.

Even with her husband's income - he earns about $21,000 as a librarian assistant and $5.45 an hour
as an usher and maintenance man at a movie theater - the household is run on a razor-thin margin.

"I feel like I'm one step away," she says, from becoming the welfare recipients she tries to help.

Ground Gained and Lost

If it looks tough from Cobb's perspective today, the past century has told a story of progress for
blacks and other minorities. The first two World Wars created new opportunities for factory jobs in the
North, and blacks migrated by the millions from the Jim Crow South, creating the backbone of a
nascent middle class, with relatively secure jobs and benefits. Coupled with the desegregation of
colleges and universities and the increasing influence of black communities in urban centers like
Washington, African Americans began to find firmer economic ground. Immigrant groups, particularly
Hispanics, have also been absorbed into that generally rising economy.

Since 1967, the earliest year for which statistics are available, median household income for blacks
has increased by nearly 47 percent, to $29,645 in 2003. That's much faster than the 31 percent growth
rate for white households during that time. But the median for black households is still $16,000 less
than for white ones, a point reinforced by a study released this week by two Duke University professors
who found that African Americans in the baby boom generation have not closed the income gap.

Hispanics have made gains, too, with household median income rising to $32,997 in 2003, up 13
percent since 1972, the earliest year for which Census has tabulated data for that minority group.
Asians have a household median income of $55,699, although their rate of growth, at 12 percent since
1987, the earliest year available, has not been as dramatic as it has been for blacks.

Within the trend, however, there are some troubling footnotes. The unemployment rate for blacks
remains nearly double the national rate of less than 6 percent. In addition, two of the job categories
that have historically helped boost black income - manufacturing and the public sector - are stagnating,
or worse.

Public-sector jobs opened up to blacks in greater numbers in the wake of the civil rights movement
of the 1960s, but cuts in government spending throughout the United States in recent years have
limited growth. Black employment in such jobs rose 66 percent from 1983 to 1995 but has been
essentially flat since then.

The number of manufacturing jobs, meanwhile, has been sliding for a quarter-century, falling by 10
percent between 1992 and 2002 alone. Blacks lost ground at an even quicker pace: Over that same 10
years, the number of African Americans in manufacturing declined by 18 percent.

As a result, African Americans have turned to the service sector - spanning such professions as
data processing and advertising and lower-level jobs such as housekeeping - like much of the rest of
the workforce, only more so. The number of African Americans working in the service sector has nearly
doubled in the past 20 years and now makes up about 43 percent of the black workforce, a percentage
larger than for the economy as a whole.

But many of those jobs have been characterized in recent years by anemic wage growth and
eroding benefits. On a percentage basis, far fewer blacks than whites are covered by
employer-sponsored health care - 52 percent compared with 71 percent - and less than 40 percent of
blacks are covered by private pension plans, compared with more than 46 percent for whites.

The lack of benefits is also partly due to the fact that blacks have been opening their own
businesses in record numbers, and many of those small enterprises don't offer health insurance and
pensions. The number of black-owned businesses jumped 33 percent to 823,499 in 1997 from 621,000
in 1992, according to the latest census figures. Black businesses still make up only about 4 percent of
the national total, but their growth rate was more than four times the increase for all U.S. firms over
that period.

Encouraging as a sign of entrepreneurship, that trend has also presented some hard truths about
what it takes to get by, as Cobb testifies.

Trapped in a Trend

Cobb's career has followed a common path. As a college graduate, she can be fairly well assured of
staying employed: The unemployment rate for those with a bachelor's degree or greater in the United
States is 2.5 percent, far below the national average.

Service jobs such as Cobb's now make up about 80 percent of the employment in Miami-Dade
County and increased 59 percent since 1990. She also reflects the county's growing black population,
which has increased by 23 percent since 1990. That includes her boss, Carla Harris, who moved from
Washington to Miami, where she opened HeavenSent.

For much of the past decade, Cobb could feel the momentum of those trends in her own life, as she
earned pay raises and promotions.

But every day, Cobb says, she is reminded of her family's economic strains on the way home from
work. Listening to Christian radio, she picks up her infant daughter from day care, then her husband
from the library, then her 8-year-old son from her mother's house.

All the while, in bumper-to-bumper traffic on I-95 North, the conversation revolves around how they
can make their lives better: How can they cut costs? Should her husband go to community college?
Where can they afford to live? At home, the conversation continues as her husband cooks a late
dinner, while she uses the heel of her infant's white shoe to stamp out a trail of ants crawling on an
empty kitchen cabinet.

Things could be worse. Just outside her apartment, they are. In her concrete complex, she says the
night is sometimes punctuated by the echo of gunshots, or the crash of a neighbor's door knocked
down by police.

"I don't even let my son play outside," she says.

She feels trapped, too.

Earlier this year, Cobb applied for a local government grant to help buy a home in a safer
neighborhood. She was denied, she says, because her family made too much money.

"Sometimes, I wonder," Cobb says. "Is my life normal?"

==============================================================

Published: Dec 18, 2004
Modified: Dec 18, 2004 2:05 PM

Probe prompts review of national
black farmers' case

By TERENCE CHEA, Associated Press Writer

SAN FRANCISCO -- An investigation into a public defender who was practicing
without a law license could have wide-ranging implications for one of the
largest civil rights settlements in U.S. history.

The focus of the local investigation, Margaret O'Shea, worked for the U.S.
Justice Department on a series of settlements with black farmers who claim
they were denied federal loans because of their race.

Two national groups representing the farmers, including one based in North
Carolina, are calling on Congress and the U.S. Justice Department to
investigate O'Shea's involvement two years ago in the historic class-action
settlement. To date, thousands of black farmers have received awards totaling
more than $650 million.

"It's a disgrace," said John Boyd, a Virginia farmer who is president of the
National Black Farmers Association. "It's a shame that after all we've been
through, we had an unlicensed attorney reviewing cases and affecting the lives
of black farmers across the country. ... She should have been checked out
before she was assigned to work on these cases."

O'Shea, who lives in Santa Cruz, was charged with one felony count of grand
theft for cashing paychecks under false pretenses and one misdemeanor
count for practicing law without a license after her supervisors learned she
wasn't an accredited attorney. Monterey County is reviewing 86 cases she
handled during a three-week period ending in late September.

She is scheduled to be arraigned Monday in Monterey County Superior Court in
Salinas.

The national case involved thousands of black farmers, most from the South
and Midwest, who sued the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1997. They allege
discrimination when they applied for crop loans and subsidies.

In 1999, the department agreed to a landmark settlement with 22,000 farmers.
They could receive $50,000 each if they could demonstrate that they didn't
receive the same treatment as comparable white farmers.

About 40 percent of the 22,000 farmers were denied payments. Some 73,000
others claim they were shut out because the settlement deadline wasn't
advertised widely enough, according to a report by the Environmental Working
Group.

The report claims that the Justice Department, which represented the
Department of Agriculture, spent at least 56,000 staff hours and $12 million
contesting individual farmer's claims.

"The government is trying to get out of paying the farmers," said Gary Grant,
president of the Black Farmers and Agriculturalists Association, based in
Tillery, N.C. "They had no intention of paying in the first place."

It's still unclear exactly how O'Shea was involved in the case and whether her
involvement could lead to individual settlements being overturned.

O'Shea, 38, and her attorney, Enda Brennan, did not respond to multiple
telephone calls over several days seeking comment.

Justice Department spokesman Charles Miller confirmed that O'Shea was
hired specifically to work on the case, known as Pigford vs. Veneman, from
April to September 2002. The department hired her as a "general attorney,"
according to personnel records obtained by the environmental group through
the Freedom of Information Act.

Miller wouldn't comment on the nature of O'Shea's work or whether the
department was investigating her role.

The House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on the Constitution is
investigating O'Shea's involvement, said Todd Lindgren, a spokesman for
subcommittee chairman Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio.

The groups representing the farmers said they plan to raise the issue when
the subcommittee holds its next hearing on the contentious settlement
process, likely to take place next month in Cincinnati.

"Both sides (Republicans and Democrats) agree that there have been
enormous problems with the Pigford settlement process," Lindgren said. "Both
sides have been critical of the government's handling of this so far."

The Justice Department should review all the cases O'Shea handled, said
Arianne Callender, a lawyer for the environmental group.

"The farmers may have made different decisions during negotiations if they
had known the lawyer they were working with wasn't licensed to practice law,"
Callender said.

The Black Farmers and Agriculturalists Association said the Department of
Agriculture should make sure all the attorneys are licensed and review all the
denied awards.

"If she was in the office, and she was having discussions about them, we don't
know who she influenced," said Grant, of the Black Farmers and
Agriculturalists Association.

O'Shea was hired by the Monterey County Public Defender's Office in August
after indicating on her application and during interviews that she was licensed
to practice law in California. Shortly after she started, a co-worker tried to
research O'Shea's legal background and discovered she wasn't listed as a
licensed attorney.

Monterey County Assistant District Attorney Terry Spitz said his office
investigated O'Shea's background and could not find evidence that she was
licensed in any state. If convicted of the two charges, O'Shea faces up to three
years in prison, he said.

Big Up Guilford County DSS

2005-03-08T08:06:00.000-08:00

I would like to praise the Guilford County DSS for at least having a seemingly open discussion amongst their staff on racism and it's effects on our community. The article was in the Rhinoceros Times March 3rd edition. I think the Rhino Times did a good job of covering that story.

Some of us would like to think that racism does not exist anymore, or that it's effects are small if any; but I'm here to tell you, it is real and very harmful to Blacks- especially. Some white folks may think that the reason for our condition is that we are just ignorant, lazy, or just plain niggardly. I don't really know... but I can tell you this, the only way we will ever stay in this condition is if our government -Local, State, National- continues to "cheat" and conspire to hold us back. It's 2005 and we are still talking about race like it's the 1970's.

Herzing said the problem isnt going to be solved overnight.

This is a long-term plan, he said. Its taken several years to get to this point its a 50 year plan."
50 YEARS? 50 YEARS? That is not going to be sufficient. I really commend the staff of the DSS for opening up this can of worms, but fifty years is far too long. We can make a 10 year plan that will significantly change the lives of the Black community- especially the poor. It might be a little radical of an approach, but who is willing to wait 50 more years, and that's no guarantee of success. No, I think we can find a better way, we must find a better way, because in 50 years we'll be too far behind and too DEAD to do anything about it. My dear brother and sister, do not wait for another half century to pass before you demand what is rightfully yours, what GOD has ordained that is rightfully yours. We can change this thing right now if we only had the will and the backbone.

Once again big-up to the DSS, and I hope the "race" discussion spreads to other government agencies. I am sure this won't be the end of the conversation.
Peace
Ill Ridgely Shawn

THERE'S A WAR GOING ON OUTSIDE....

2005-03-08T07:43:00.000-08:00

It's a war goin on outside, no man is safe from. You can run but ya can't hide forever, From these streets that we done took...
-(Mobb Deep)
They set the speed for this posting. You gotta feel these dudes- don't be shook and scared to look.
We don't know it, but there is a war goin on right here in these streets. Even though there are bodies all around us, we don't know we're combatants. Bodies hittin the ground and ain't nothing stoppin... Nobody heard a sound, but the man still down. How can times be so rough in the land of plenty? Where's the milk and honey, I got Monopoly money. Am I broke by design or just my bad luck? Is there a way out, or am I just stuck in da box? Look at the stat sheet, dude, Shit is real...
Is-Ra-El? or am I just a dead God? They firing at my squad, nobody heard where the shots came,
Damaged with bad food, so I'm already weakened. My soldiers behind bars, they got our troops real thin, then the rest of us struggle with sin. It's a game and I'm the pawn gettin merked on the humbug. Yo- LOOK OUT! - there's another one better duck! What the F#$%$ they droppin men left and right, better stand up and face the fight.

If Babylon falls, are you gonna fall with it? Better link up and get some land- fall back- fall back.
Retreat to the flagpost, get yourself some land. Plant a flag get your own, before the shit hits the fan. Matter of fact, it's been hittin, the Prophets are still spittin, be not enough are standin up! Get some land, plant a flag, I want out. 40 acres and a mule? Now I'm too cool, I'd rather be a fool riding on twenty-two's. Hey shoot- Hah made ya look, you a slave to a page in somebody else's book. Come out of her- Babylon is burning and you still locked in.
There's a war going on outside, no man is safe from... You can run but you can't hide forever.

Ill Ridge

THE ULTIMATE HYPOCRICY

2005-03-04T07:59:00.000-08:00

We do not believe in freedom and justice for all. We do not believe in freedom and democracy for all. We do not believe in giving to the world the economic riches that we enjoy. Maybe I should say some of us?

Why do I say this? Because if we did, we would not live the way we live. Some folks say, "They hate us because of our freedoms." Bullshit. They hate us because we act as devils- plain and simple. I was listening to a C-span program yesterday at Colorado State University. A Native American professor- Ward Churchill- was giving a speech :Ward Churchill speaks about his book "On the Justice of Roosting Chickens: Reflections on the Consequences of U.S. Imperial Arrogance & Criminality." He discusses the way that our attitudes and policies have been unjust and criminal. After the speech during question and answer, some of the young white kids in the audience were indignant to the points raised. They said they "were proud" of their country and what it has done.

Well speaking as a Black man in America, if you are "proud" of the way you and your ancestors have conducted theirselves for the last400 plus years, then we have a serious problem. I can see no common ground under this mindset. This paradigm is probably what is preventing the government from formerly apologizing and atoning for slavery.

Last night at the Concerned Citizens meeting at Peeler Center, a petition was circulated addressing the Truth and Reconciliation Committee. It seems as though some of those in our local city government does not want this commision to go foward. What is wrong with examining the painful truth of what happended in Greensboro in 1979? Why not face it, deal with it, learn from it, atone and move on? The arrogance, pride, and false self-perception of those in power is what is preventing this dialogue. It can be said for the Greensboro City Council, The county government, the state, the national government, the whole thing. Hypocricy has taken over the seats of power in this country. If we didn't talk so much on our "shining light of freedom and human rights", maybe the spotlight wouldn't be so bright.

Let's look at it. The whole world cannot live like we do, there are not enough resources on the planet to fuel our gluttony, let alone the entire population on the planet. Since resouces are limited, who decides who gets what? You wont give up your 5 meals a day, your two gas guzzling suv's, your plasma screen t.v.'s so somebody has to always do without. We can't all have it all, that's simple mathematics. The rich ride the backs of the poor, and it must be so under our current culture.

There are plans in operation for the poulation control of the world. There are 6 billion people in the world according to the US census dept. The plan is to REDUCE the number by 2 billion! (see "WORLD DEPOPULATION IS TOP NSA AGENDA: CLUB OF ROME ") Some sources say 5 billion. How is it going to happen, who's going to do it, who's gonna go and who is going to stay, who decides? These are some important questions to ask ourselves and our policymakers.

My point is that we have to unravel the hypocrisy in our own deeds and actions as well as our false paradigm. What motive force is in control of us that we would allow our "leaders" to enact these types of policies while we try to defend our actions globaly? When the shit hits the fan, we all will be held accountable for the fallout. No one is innocent, especially since we're son free and demecratized- we run this country, not the people we appoint to run it, so WE are the ones to blame.

You see to the outside world we act like devils; say one thing and do another, tempt people with visions of mamon and pleasure, lie about our intents, see other brown peoples as evil and wicked, abuse the land and resources of our country and anything else we touch, promote the lowest form of human values in our popular culture, leave our young and poor in the streets to fend for themsleves, it goes on and on. Did you know that in Iraq, we have placed a set of special orders in place superceding their own constitution? No matter who gets voted in office in Iraq, they already have a rule book to play by that we gave them. One of the orders outlaws farmers from harvesting their own seed to grow for the next year. They must purchase seeds from U.S. agricultural Firms! This is an act of war, maybe geonocide, but we are there to "liberate" them.

Hypocrisy at it's highest and most dangerous level. We had better get a grip on our reality or suffer our deserved fate.

Peace,
Ill Ridge

THE MILLIONAIRE MENTALITY

2005-03-03T07:32:00.000-08:00

"He carefully considers each expenditure... Believes that freedom and power are better than momentary pleasure... Does not equate spending with happiness, and protects the nest egg."
This is a quote from an article in the Final Call Newspaperr
Do we want to be comfortable and content or do we want riches and fame? Do we want to build and help others build a future or just outshine our next door neighbors? What motive force is in control? Who is in control?

Do you want to be rich, or wealthy? There is a distinction.
One leads to more wealth and prosperity, the other leads to consumption. Consumption means to use-up or burn, not burning in Hell but burning the hell out of everything you touch. The "I wanna be a baller" or " I wanna have paper" mentality leads to selfishness, greed, envy, low values, and a grimy nature. This allows the "Enemy within" to find root and latch on to your character.

The "Millionaire Mentality" on the other hand, leads you to believe that if you come up- I come up. If you grow- I grow, If you get paper-I get paper. This is true if we are connected somehow. If we are not connected, I see every dollar you make as being one "that could have been in my pocket; Matter of fact- should have been in my pocket, matter of fact I'll just take the nigga money, 'cause he don't deserve it, he ain't shit no way." This is the enemy of jealousy and envy that speaks to us in our hoods and projects.These two traits are some of the most insidious and vile characters to posses. It runs rampant and destroys our growth- our health- our wealth. And we wonder why we don't have shit. We wonder why we have to always call on the white man to mediate between us and help us solve our problems.

The "Millionaire Mentality" is one that cultivates and develops wealth- I mean Health - I mean wealth. Being wealthy is not stacking worthless paper money! It is cultivating wealth. Wealth grows like a plant, greed burns like a fire. True power comes from manifesting love and growth, which is the power and motives of the Creator himself.

Greed and Peace cannot co-exist, Envy and Peace cannot co-exist,
Wealth and Peace can, Love and peace can, growth and peace can.
There is nothing wrong with being prosperous, but a true wealthy person really shines at making the universe around him grow and flourish. Manifest love and it will multiply and increase.

THE ENEMY WITHIN 2

2005-03-03T06:45:00.000-08:00

The Enenmy Within, Hides inside skin...
Closer than your next of kin, unleashed to lurk inside men.

The Enemy Within... This is the power of sin,
It allows the hook in - LOOK IN! These are the faces within, inside skin.
Your enemy pretends to be, but not Godly actually selling me...
Is this what you telling me? Free by fame and celbrity?
You gotta be kiddin me, it must be me that be killin me.

This is The Enemy Within, My Best Friend
Closer than your next of kin, inside skin.
Power to the user of truth, not the abuser of life,
Observe limitations on all things and habits...
Love of self is the anwer to wealth and good health,
Give peace not envy to feed the power within,
For he is the enemy of men inside skin,
For he is the weakness of man inside me!

THE ENEMY WITHIN

2005-03-02T10:28:00.000-08:00

Throughout our history in America and even while in Africa during the slave trade, we have had those among us who would sell us out. What do I mean? There were tribes in Africa that would help the slave traders collect bodies from another tribe to sell to the Europeans. They would sell their own brother because as they saw it, they were not really brothers. They were from a different set, a different side of town, a different click! The black Africans would do this to their own for small profits or territorial gains, basically petty shit.

In America during the time of slavery we would have uprisings and revolts against the slave masters, but would always have Blacks in bondage who would inform on those rebels. During every period in our history in this country we have had Blacks who would sell the masses out. Now surely some would be acting on their "perceived" idea of what would be the best interests of their people, but in the end these acts would hurt us.

The sad thing is that our enemy has mastered the concept of "divide and counquer". While the Black sell-outs would gain little, the enemy would gain massively. Look at Africa during the colonial period. Europe divided amongst themselves an entire continent already weakened by depopulation during the slave trading days. Already weakened by tribal wars and conflicts.

The same thing happened during the civil rights struggle. Our original intent was for equal accommodations for schools in the south. Actually, we migrated to the north in the first place because of the barbaric treatment we received from lynch mobs, the KKK, and other acts of terrorism. The jews in the north through the NAACP and other organizations promised us good jobs and more humane treatment in the northern industrial cities. What we got after the civil rights struggle was the same segregation, the same treatment , and the same unbalanced economic system. Sure a few of us got jobs and homes, but the whole affair was a farce. Look at the actual stats, not the propaganda. We own less now than in the early 1900's. We a more sick more often, we have more death, more crime, lower income ratio, less land-no land, less ownership, more HIV, the list goes on.

My point is the real enemy is the enemy within. The enemy without is of no power to a nation or people unified with one god, one aim, one destiny. The time is coming soon for a separation. The wheat from the chaff, the men from the mice, the real from the fake. It's about to be on! The Time for the bullshit is over, the time of God has arrived. Choose your side, NOW!

Peace,
Ridgely

What is the Black Agenda?

2005-03-01T10:49:00.000-08:00

What should the agenda be for national Black improvement and empowering for the next 10 years, 20 years, 100 years? We have to understand that people's plan long range for the development of their selves. Everybody plans, but us. We have to have people plan for us because we have no vision or we don't have time to see a future. We're struggling so hard and fast, we cant even THINK about 1 year down the line, nonetheless 20 years.

Tavist Smiley convened a national Black summit on the 26th of February held live on C-Span. Among the photocopying were Micheal Dyson, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Jocelyn Elders, Cornell West, Rev. Lowery, and Min Lious Farrakhan. The summit's goals were to develop a "covenant" with Black America for our health and overall development. If you get a chance to check it out, DO SO.
Everyone had valid points on our present condition and a possible means out. However, one thing that I really have a problem with is that some of us cannot think "outside the box" and not cry to the government for money to help solve our problems. The issue is that giving a fool money will not make him any less a fool.
We have over $760 BILLION of gross income among blacks in the US. 760 billion! If that is not enough money, then surely a trillion will do. My point is that we HAVE the money, if money is the problem. If it is not money, then what?
If it is programs or education, then who will we pay to do so? Surely we can train our own youth in how to provide a means of economic survival and prosperity. Surely WE can provide health care that keeps people OUT of the hospitals. Surely, we can provide jobs for our youth as they walk the streets looking for something to do. The fact is that only WE have the answers to our problem. We cannot expect others to have these answers, even if they wanted to help, they would be inadequate. Our issues are too personal, too developed, and too deep rooted.
Our problem is us to be real with you. Black businesses fail because blacks don't support the businesses and steal from them. Schools fail because the system is designed to fail you. Health care for Blacks fails because it is designed to fail. Take it or leave it. We have given up on ourselves. We feel impotent and powerless to affect our own conditions. It shows because after letting $760 billion slip through our hands; guess what?.... After the year is over, we end up with $100 per person average net worth! That means that after you sell you house, pawn your big screen, and hock your 20" spinners, then pay off your debts, you only come out a yard! This is SICK. To not recognize the fact that you are sick is a menu for disaster.
With almost ten churces on Phillips Ave alone, you would think that we would have some healing of our sickness. The evidence suggests otherwise. Remember last summer at the community cookout hosted by Kut Kreations? There were some kids performing on stage and the prize was ten dollars. Everybody enjoyed the love, the joy, and the sense of community so much that the purse went up to $180!!! That was yet another sign by the creator-GOD- to show us that the answers lie within, not without. We have all the resources it takes.
How can you "demand" a job from someone? Especially one who outright despises you? Someone who has a proven track record of doing anyhting they can to do you ill? We think that getting a good job is the end-all be -all. I got news, there ain't no company in Greensboro that could pay me enough money for the knowledge and skills I posess. Dig it. I'm not bragging , I'm stating actual fact. To hell with a job! We need to create and support our own jobs. You dont see China House beggin nobody for no job! Dammit we need to get of our sorry behinds and make our way. The only thing we want to do is lay around and smoke blunts, while we blame everybody for our sorry ass predicament.
Don't get me wrong, I KNOW the "powers that be" have opressed us for 400 years. I know that, but who cares? We don't because we still hate on eachother. Our house has to be in order before we can help anybody, that's not exclusionary or racist, just simple damn common sense. Do you want to stay a second-class citizen forever? Farrakhan said it best on C-Span, he said:
"Power conceeds to nothing but power itself, and power won't even conceed then if you lack the testicular fortitude to back it up."
We have to be real and srious and realistic about taking another path. They are building thousands of new jail and prison cells, while exporting thousands of jobs overseas. You and I know who will be in those cells-US! Lets form a real and energized community based on some solid shit right now today, or shut the hell up and suffer our deserved fate.
I know at times I've been harsh but we're a hard-hearted and rebellious people. I just got a lap top stollen out my van a few weeks ago up here at the shop. We are our own worst enemy. Hell if the weak ones would just lay down and die, the other 5 or 10 or 20 percent could handle this thing. I love each and every one of you, beleive it or not. Holla at a Souljah.
Peace,
Ridgely

CAPITALISM

2005-01-20T08:16:00.000-08:00

Are words like "Freedom" and "democracy" code words for capitalism? This is an issue I would like to discuss with the online local community. I find it hard to beleive that America is interested so much in the freedom and democracy of the middle -eastern countries all of a sudden. What about China, Korea, Russia, etc. Why don't we "spread freedom" over there? Let's stop letting our leadership dupe us. We all know that America is only interested in freedom when it is profitable. To boot, America will bend it's so-called "moral values" when the situation is beneficial to those who have power, i.e. those who have captial or money. We could care less about the rest of the worl or each other for that matter if it will cost us one trip to Wendy's.

Peace,
Ill Ridgely Shawn

Was Civil Rights Civil or Right?

2005-01-14T14:36:00.000-08:00

Was it all just to ride on the front of the bus, (even though we still like the back)? Was it all just to shop at Dillards or JC Penny? Was it for equal schooling? Equal to what, look at the public school system. Was it all for the sake of feeling white?
If we take an honest look at the stats, Blacks were far better off after slavery-1890-1910 than we are now. If the trend continues ,we'll be DEAD SOON. We think its a joke and we think our government and our leaders are jokes. I assure you they are not. While we smoke ounces of weed and listen to 102jamz or watch BET, they plot and plan for the eventual takeover of the world and destruction of human rights and freedom and eventually, the destruction of the whole damn thing. Was Civil Rights Right or civil?
We've been had, hoodwinked, run amok, flim-flammed. We never got what WE wanted out of civil rights now we have the right to be broke. Holla at a Solja,

Peace

OUT DA BOX PRINTING AND DESIGN

2004-12-20T11:44:00.000-08:00

NEW JOINTS...
JAN 2005