Understand the Variable Value of a Masters Degree

 

As the economy slowly recovers from a recession that has crippled the job market for the last four years, American employers are preparing to hire more college graduates. While job growth is being reported across employment sectors, some fields stand to increase their hiring more than others – and as a result, academic experts are urging students to choose their majors wisely.


According to Job Outlook 2013, a report compiled by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), companies and organizations plan to hire 13 percent more graduates from the Class of 2013 than students who earned their degrees one year earlier. According to Marilyn Mackes, the executive director of NACE, industries projected to increase their hiring most substantially include STEM-related fields like chemical/pharmaceutical manufacturing and computer and electronics manufacturing, and business-oriented fields like retail trade, finance and management consulting. “While employers are seeking graduates from a broad range of disciplines, this fall they expressed particular interest in hiring new graduates with business, computer science, and engineering-related degrees and are looking to college campuses to supply their hiring needs,” she said.


In addition, Christopher Matthews of TIME recently wrote about several burgeoning fields that show strong projected growth over the next five years. One of these fields is 3D printing, which grew less than 9 percent between 2002 and 2012, but is now expected to increase employment opportunities by 17 percent over the next five years. Another burgeoning sector is sustainable construction; fueled by the recent “green movement,” green homebuilding is expected to grow 22.8 percent by 2017, while solar panel manufacturing projects a five-year growth rate of 8.2 percent. Another recent trend, online technology, indicates strong growth over the next five years – particularly the field of social network game development, which expanded by 128 percent over the last decade and is expected to grow 22 percent by 2017.


In order to capitalize on the hiring boom in these sectors, Forbes contributor Jacquelyn Smith urges graduate students to select a master’s degree program that will make them attractive to prospective employers. Computer science, for instance, boasts a median mid-level salary of $109,000 and a projected growth rate of 22.9 percent. Other science - and
technology - related fields of study dominate her “best majors” list, such as electrical engineering, mathematics, information systems and physics.

However, she notes that a master’s degree is not necessary to thrive in other STEM-oriented sectors. Graduate-level degrees in biology and chemistry are not always sound investments, she argues, because the cost of tuition often outweighs the potential income gains students stand to earn. Another problematic major for grad students is business; while MBA
earners stand to make a six-figure income after just a few years in the field, the corporate sector does not exhibit strong levels of projected job growth. There are usually more qualified candidates than there are available jobs, which leads to frustration and, often, debt.

Despite the expected hiring boom, one long-standing problem still lingers: minority groups are underrepresented at the post-undergraduate studies level. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), roughly 611,700 Americans earned a master’s degree (or its equivalent) during the 2009-10 academic year. Of these recipients, approximately 73 percent were white, 12.5 percent were black, 7 percent were Hispanic, 6.9 percent were Asian/Pacific Islander and less than 1 percent were Native American. An even stronger disparity could be seen at the doctoral studies level. Of the 140,505 American students who earned a Ph.D. in 2009-10, 74 percent were white, 7 percent were black, 5.8
percent were Hispanic, 11.8 percent were Asian/Pacific Islander and less than 1 percent were Native American. While these most recent figures reflect a gradual shift toward on-campus diversity over the last decade, experts argue that minority groups still comprise an insufficient percentage of today’s collegiate population.


Josh Oppenheimer of The Daily Princetonian recently noted some of the reasons behind the graduate-level racial imbalance. Many students belonging to underrepresented minority groups (such as African-Americans or Hispanics) grow up in low-income neighborhoods with inadequate schools, and deficient education hinders their academic progress. These individuals are also less likely to have relatives or close friends who have earned master’s or doctoral degrees, and lack of information about these programs may cause many to forego graduate studies. Eddie Glaude, a professor of African-American Studies at Princeton, told Oppenheimer that graduate schools should emphasize their diverse campus communities and programs in order to attract multi-racial applicants. “If the department is committed to diversity, then the graduate students will come,” he said.
As hiring increases across the national job market, college recruiters now face the task of improving diversity in American graduate programs. In order for the economy to fully recover, U.S. students belonging to all minority groups must receive an advanced education in equal number and positively contribute to the country’s workforce.

Unemployment continues to be a major national problem, as this blog and others have covered extensively in recent months. In the article below, writer Sophia Foster looks at how modern college and graduate school students may be able to beat the odds by being strategic in their choice of major and degree program. Ms. Foster has published extensively on how masters education can help students in hard economic times, and her advice should be beneficial to a range of readers.  Ms. Foster is a writer and researcher for MastersDegreeOnline.org. Feel free to check more of her writing!

The Republicans should have vetted Artur Davis and his new identity!!!

We have to not only point out the obvious flaws of the Republican Party that goes against "OUR" interest but we must also have the intelligence and foresight to check the party that 99.9% of our people support without any repercussion. Our "paralysis of analysis" has to cease and we are going to have to start to think about what we do and do what we think is right...Liberals and Conservatives sometimes are hard to identify when it comes to policies that affect the community of people that I most resemble. ~ A. McBride

I did a previous post on Artur Davis after he got his tail kicked in the Democratic Primary for Governor of Alabama.  Artur ran the weirdest campaign in the history of politics.  He ran away from black folks and black media. Thus causing him to lose in his own home district (that's like not even being liked in your own house). Davis has a new bag and is now running with the Republicans.  Davis is 64 years late in joining the Dixiecrats so I guess he did what he thought was best.  But before all Republican’s I know (which are 2 in number) get too excited, let’s see what Davis “The Man” is about. 

In 2008, Davis backed Barack Obama for President.    

In 2009, Davis co-sponsored Bill H.R.3590 also known as The Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act. 

In 2010, Davis ran for Governor of Alabama….as a Democrat.

He actually voted with Democrats 95% of the time. STOP!!!  Did I say 95%??  And now he magically found the light and is more Conservative?  I think he only gets cheers because he is downgrading Obama in public.  The Puppet Master always likes when his Puppet dances.  The faster the Puppet dances the more the Puppet Master likes it.  Let me tell you what the Republican’s got when they let this clown come through the doors.  They have a man that can’t even show his face in his own state.  He was so shamed that he had to run to Virginia.  Now he is acting like “I left the party not because I changed but because they changed.”  Um did this happen before or after the 95%?  As an Independent voter, I don’t care which party black folks join.  I believe they should join them for the right reasons i.e. they speak to their beliefs.  Davis is just mad that he lost his chance to be the Obama of Alabama.  Like they were really going to vote for him anyway!!  They weren’t lying when they said the Deep South had strange fruit in the trees.  He would have had a better chance running for Governor of Atlanta.  He lost because of his strategy to pander to White Folks (either they know fake when they see it or they just didn’t want a Black Governor).  I’m pretty sure his 95% didn’t help him when conservatives entered the voting booth.  They had already witnessed Obama being sworn in and now this!!!  Another light skinned Ivy League Politician spreading the message of Radical Socialistic Communism.  It was a suicide mission from the beginning!!!  And now he has the nerve to tell his fellow Republican’s to pick their audiences when talking to black folks.   Yeah, for sure, the Republican’s got a dud on their hands. 

Kings pass on and Regime's change. The D.C. Story

I was in Washington D.C. the week that Chuck Brown died.  One of America’s beloved cities had lost its King and the city was in mourning. The city once dubbed “Chocolate City” was once a Mecca for Black Folks.  Before Atlanta became the flavor of the month, D.C. was the spot for black folks.  A prime example of that blackness was U Street. U Street was once the stomping ground for black legends Duke Ellington and Pearl Bailey.  But times have changed for the city.  I could tell standing on U Street that a shift in demographics has happened.  I saw more white faces for the first time than I could remember.  And I don’t mean more but MORE!!!  Every after hour spot I would attend had white folks in attendance.  They were even in a club that was predominately white.  Just 2 years ago when I visited, the only white folks I saw were driving through on their way to Adams Morgan.  Now some white dude was walking down the street in pajamas.

This appears to be an event that is not lost on the black residence of D.C.  They know that their city is changing and some don’t like the change.  White Flight has been replaced by Urban Gentrification.  White folks are coming back to the cities and don’t mind paying a pretty price to do so.  You have Million Dollar Condo’s popping up in neighborhoods that back in the day people wouldn’t even drive through.  But this isn’t just a D.C. issue. Most cities are dealing with this new revival.  I remember when I first arrived to Charlotte N.C. for college I was warned about going Uptown.  During the day it was cool but after dark it was not.  A couple of years later, white women are jogging down the streets with their dogs.  I don’t think black folks that lived in these neighborhoods ever saw this coming.  Especially when they were sitting on their porch during the drug infested and low property value days. They couldn’t have known that their property would be worth so much in the future? 

The angst that some black folks have with these changes is understandable.  Will chain storesreplace mom and pop stores?  Will the increase in taxes drive out residents that don’t want to leave?   With their core audience leaving, will white folks continue to shop at black businesses?  Then again, I’m 100% sure that black folks who sold their homes knew they could get paid. They weren’t concerned with the loss of heritage but with the bottom line.  Only time will tell if all of this will be a good or bad thing.  If you look at the surrounding areas of D.C. i.e. Southern Maryland, you see neighborhoods full of black folks.  Black Folks are populating the suburbs to where the demographics have changed dramatically.  How interesting to see this reverse in population and color.  D.C. will probably never be the same again.  Gentrification isn’t perfect but it’s not going anywhere.  Every inner city area that has redeemable value will receive a makeover (if it hasn’t happened yet in your town it will). 

I started off talking about the death of a legend.  Chuck Brown’s death has meaning in the revitalization of Washington D.C.  Brown was a consummate professional that kept the beat going all night long.  The community around him might have been changing but that never stopped him from representing his city.  There is something that is still majestic about our nation’s capital.  I think the black residents of the district should take a page from Brown’s book.  Although the music might change the beat never stops.

I didn't see this movie at my local RedBox!?!?

Fox News viewers turn on Juan Williams and you thought NPR was bad!!!

“How is it that we hear the loudest yelps for liberty among the drivers of Negroes?”

~ Samuel Johnson

The folks on the left already thought Juan Williams was suspect and now they are clowning him on the right.  Williams fancied himself as a black man that couldn’t be pegged into a neat little circle.  He wasn’t too far right and he wasn’t too far left.  But when NPR gave him the boot, Fox News scooped him up with the quickness.  NPR known by the far right as a “Bastion of Liberalism” and Fox News known by the left (notice I just said the “Left”) as the “Epicenter of “Conservative Thought.”  Williams worked for both organizations at the same time before NPR ditched him.  And I think he thought that it gave him “Street Cred” in the “I can’t be pigeonholed” category.  But it was an act that he was ill prepared to pull off.  His views angered black folks and liberals alike.  That made him sort of like a “Black Best Friend” to the Right.  Or at least that was until he moderated the Republican Primary Debate in South Carolina. 

After the Debate, a Newt Gingrich supporter thanked him for “putting Williams in his place.”  Uh Oh!!  Where have we heard that before?  In just about every movie that ever featured a racist person or old video footage of racist southerners talking about the Civil Rights Movement.  But by today’s standards she wouldn’t be a racist….she would be called a “Concerned American Citizen.”  In this “New” America, racism doesn’t exist and there are only “Those that work” and “Those that beg”!!!  Or as those crazy hippie kids camping outside say: the 1% and the 99%. 

So what was it that Williams said to upset the good folks of South Carolina?  What were the questions that he asked that made Republican voters want to break off a piece of leather in Williams John Brown hind parts?? 

- Governor Romney, your father was born in Mexico. You still havefamily there, yet you have taken the hardest line of anyone on this stage on immigration reform, including opposition to key parts of the DREAM Act, which is supported by 80 percent of Latinos in this country. Are you alienating Latino voters that Republicans will need to win the general election?

- Senator Santorum, the Obama administration has not specifically addressed high levels of joblessness and a 25 percent poverty rate in blackAmerica. They say they want to fix the economy for all, but given the crisis situation among a group of historically disadvantaged Americans, do you feel the time has come to take special steps to deal with the extraordinary level of poverty afflicting one race of America?

- Speaker Gingrich, you recently said black Americans should demand jobs, not food stamps. You also said poor kids lack a strong work ethic and proposed having them work as janitors in their schools. Can’t you see that this is viewed, at a minimum, as insulting to all Americans, but particularly to black Americans?

So instead of Juan Williams playing his role, he wanted to show that “he couldn’t be pigeonholed.” Too bad it didn’t work out for him that way.  Although he may think he can’t be labeled, a Gingrich supporter let him know exactly who he was.  And based on the cheers that she received when making the statement, a lot of people feel the same way.

Deuces Herman Cain, I hardly knew you.

Mediocrity requires aloofness to preserve its dignity.  

~ Charles G. Dawes

 

Becoming famous in America has become as easy as ordering a number one at McDonalds.  Any Tom, Dick or Harry can be a star if they believe in themselves and can get in front of a camera.  But there are serious pitfalls to having too much pride in your abilities.  Sometimes you believe that you are great when you really aren’t. 

 

Hence the story of Herman Cain, a former pizza executive that wanted to be Head of the American Empire.  But as he ends his campaign, we are still trying to figure out who he is?  He tried to shake off all previous allegations but couldn’t shake a 4am phone text.  What married man sends a text to another woman at 4am in the morning and periodically gives her money?  Did I forget to mention that Cain’s wife didn’t know anything about this woman?  Cain sold himself as a Christian with moral values.  And now a woman is claiming that he was serving her more than pizzas?  Cain needs to call Eliot Spitzer for some advice ASAP!!!!!  Don’t forget the allegations from the many women that claimed he sexually harassed them.  For a minute it started to look like a Tiger Woods Mistress coming out party. 

 

When I first heard a former CEO of a pizza company wanted to be head honcho, my mind started swimming.  I thought it would have to be someone from a successful well known company.  Pizza Hut?  They are tops in everything plus those personal pan pizzas are the bomb!!!  Domino’s?  I know they had some issues but they are making a comeback and their crust tastes a lot better.  Papa John’s?  So that dude in their commercials wants to be president?  Little Caesars?  I think their Hot and Ready Pizzas is an interesting concept.  But it has cheapened the product a little.  CiCi’s Pizza?  YES!!!…I love that place.  I know their pizza isn’t quality pizza but their buffet is one of the cheapest deals around (i.e.  recession prices!!)  Hungry Howie’s Pizza?  I know I know, their pizza probably isn’t the healthiest but those flavored crusts are amazing.  Well that’s all the pizza places that…..wait a minute...did you say Chuck E. Cheese’s?  No? Oh what’s that?  Godfather’s Pizza?  Really?  Where are they located?  Omaha, Nebraska….are you serious??  Unless you are in the Midwest or the smallest most backwoods town you could get lost in.  There is a good possibility that you have not enjoyed eating at a Godfather’s Pizza.  But none of this stopped Cain, who felt that he had something to offer America. 

But if he had something, only his hardcore fans and the lady he was sending 4am texts to knew what it was.  I don’t know if people actually believed in him or they were just that pissed off at Mitt Romney.  What can you say about a presidential candidate that knew absolutely nothing about foreign policy?  He couldn’t point to countries on the map or pronounce them.  He made light of his foreign policy credentials and told us that the voters are looking for someone to fix the economy.  But wouldn’t it be smart for him to know something about China, because we do still owe them money.  And because we still get oil from the Middle East, shouldn’t he know something about them too.  Not to mention Korea and India who will become major players on the world stage in the next few years.  I guess we’ll never know if Chuck Norris was on the short list for Secretary of Defense.  So foreign policy wasn’t his specialty.  He still had his business acumen working for him.  Who could forget about his financial plan that sounded like an ad for a pizza commercial?  And based on the plan’s figures, it seems that a pizza coupon would be better for you financially than his actual plan.  His Chilean 999 plan sounds like something you get at the Mustang Ranch in Nevada.  Since he was such a successful businessman, he couldn’t come up with anything better.  I’m curious why journalists never asked why Godfather’s Pizza wasn’t as well known as the other pizza chains.  Wouldn’t it have been impressive if he took Godfather’s to the highest level possible?  What if they were as competitive as the other chains..i.e.  stores on every corner, online ordering, adding chicken and pasta to their menus and putting more cheese in their cheesy bread (because you can really never have enough cheese stuffed in a pocket of bread).  But in the end, all we know about his time at Godfather’s is what the women that he allegedly sexually harassed said about him. 

 

Although Cain had no more business in the White House than a 14^th and K Street Prostitute, I hated to see him go out like this.  Just because I didn’t think he stood a chance didn’t mean I hated the guy.  I just thought he wasn’t qualified and lacked the intellectual curiosity that I think he needs for the job.  He reminded me of the drunken uncle that always had these crazy life stories.  Even the dumbest stories seemed to be the funniest.  My major problem with him was that he pandered to conservative whites entirely too much.  So much so that he seemed to dismiss black folks as some lost group of people that needed direction.  Did he not think that black folks (that aren’t tethered to the Republican Party) weren’t going to vote for him?   All blacks aren’t liberals.  You have a lot of them that are Independents like me.  I can judge a candidate on their views and make an intelligent decision.  And it doesn’t matter the gender or race of the candidate. But what I won’t do is vote against my own self interests.  And I won’t vote for someone that clearly wasn't up to the challenge. 

ELIZABETH AND HAZEL Two Women of Little Rock.

The following Book Review has been sponsored by www.AuthorsOnTheWeb.com

David Margolick has written a moving yet somber piece of work.  His book perfectly captures the mood of racial progress in America.  For all the answers you thought you knew, there are just more questions.  Are white folks really interested in racial reconciliation or are they unable to admit their culpability. Or maybe black folks have too much anger and resentment to move on from the past.  Elizabeth Eckford and Hazel Bryan Massery were part of history for all the wrong and right reasons.  Their story starts in 1957 during America’s tumultuous Civil Rights Era. Two women from different sides of the tracks met on a day that changed their lives forever.  Eckford one of the Little Rock Nine, only wanted to get an education.  And Massery only wanted to be seen. At the end of the book I had my own questions. Was Eckford doing something noble or was she being used as a pawn?  And was Massery better suited to be a scapegoat than an agent of change?  Don’t get me wrong because there is reflection and redemption in these pages.  But while we have made many significant strides, we still have a long way to go.  

Throwing Stones at other people’s God$.

The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.

~ George Bernard Shaw

When I first heard Chuck D, front man for Public Enemy, say “Is your lord a god. Or is your god a dog?” I almost fell out of my seat.  Wow!!!  What prophetic words!!! Chuck D was asking you a very serious question with that chorus to his song.  Is the God that you serve a false God? 

Well move over Tea Party, there is a new movement in town.  The Occupy Wall Street Movement has taken the country by storm. Ground Zero for the movement started at the financial district of New York but it has spread to different cities.  The group that is involved in this movement calls themselves the 99%.  No, not the 99, and not this 99% but this 99%.  Who knew that 99% was a popular number?

Side Note:  I hate math so if it was my movement it would not be a fraction.

Because this movement is taking aim at America’s Financial Institution it has taken on great criticism.  There are people pissed off that these dirty hippies have invaded Wall Street.  And that they are unorganized and do not have some ready-made list of demands.  This movement is getting shade because the 99% are going after other peoples’ Gods.  Capitalism in this country is worshiped like Christianity.  And you know how “us” Christian’s get when people talk about sweet baby Jesus.   The 99% are hitting people where they hurt and they don’t like it.  Anytime you bad mouth capitalism you set yourself up for harsh criticism.  But don’t just take my word for it.  Next time you see someone bashing the Occupy Wall Street Movement take a look at their background.  What ties do they have to Wall Street?

One of the good things about being an independent thinker is that you can make your own decisions.  I’m not bound by Democrat or Republican Thinking.  Whether you want to call it rich folks bashing or wealthy white men hating, it’s obvious that people are mad.  And that they are mad enough to do something about it. 

The middle class is shrinking in America and it’s not a big secret. People know something is wrong when their 79 year old grandmother still has to work to eat.  They also know something is wrong when they haven’t had a raise in 5 years.  They have watched their jobs go to foreign countries and their medical insurance increase.  To try to play the public as if they are stupid is the wrong move.  I remember when the Tea Party was belittled and called a fringe group.  Now they influence public policy – go figure.  I don’t know where this movement is going but I’m not dumb enough to sleep on it. 

Don’t diss the White Folks. You are going to need them next year!!!

Show me a Hero and I’ll write you a Tragedy.

~ F. Scott Fitzgerald

Once again, Obama Loyalist and Foot Soldier, PhD. Melissa Harris-Perry has provided her two cents about President Obama’s critics.  Apparently white folks that are disappointed in Obama since electing him in 2008 are now racist.  Go figure???  Who knew that you could turn white folks into bigots within a 3 year timeframe?  I hope Patrick J. Buchanan doesn’t get a hold of that serum or gas or whatever it is that’s turning them.  Harris-Perry attempted to compare the records of the original 1^st Black President William Jefferson Clinton and the New 1^st Black President Barack H. Obama. She felt that Obama’s record has been more progressive and that he has actually gotten more things done.  What she fails to understand is that the people who had homes in the 90’s are facing foreclosure NOW!  They aren’t looking for a trip down memory lane. They are looking to keep their home.  As Janet Jackson once said "What Have You Done for Me Lately?" 

When Republican Presidential Candidate Herman Cain tells you he’s blacker than Obama, you know things have gone completely wrong.  Black folks have “Gone off the Reservation” and are increasingly showing their dissatisfaction with Obama.  I know Obama told us to “put on your marching shoes.” But I still haven’t figured out where we are marching to?  Even Congresswoman Maxine Waters has issues with Obama telling blacks to take off their house slippers.  She even claimed that she doesn’t own a pair of house shoes.  Really?  No house slippers or house shoes in a black household?  Someone needs to fact check that!!!!  Obama met with the Latinos last week and told them a completely different story.  He said that “this notion that somehow I can just change the laws unilaterally is just not true." I didn’t hear him telling them to suit up and get ready to march.  He sounded like he was pleading with them to give him a break.  Meanwhile black folks have got to quit complaining and suck it up???  Gay folks can now serve freely in our armed services and they are still upset with Obama.  Are Latino’s and Gay’s racist too???  I think it’s safe to say we can cut white folks some slack….well at least for today. 

If Harris-Perry hasn’t figured it out yet, a lot of folks have fallen out with Obama.  A large part of it has to do with not standing on principles and giving in to the opposition.  But maybe I read that from a fortune cookie somewhere. Obama Loyalists can chastise blacks, liberal whites, gays, latinos, and the youth all they want.  The even can attempt to make them pariahs and turn their own people against them (YES…..I’m talking about you Tom Joyner). But that still doesn’t change the issues that led to the fallout. 

Am I to believe that the issue of unemployment is a faux issue that can be dismissed with “well it was higher when Clinton was in office too?”  Obama came in with higher expectations that he himself promoted and ran on.  He talked a big game when he was running for office and now all you hear are excuses.  The fact that he was a community activist was supposed to mean something.  We finally had a president who understands the plight of the working class and poor.   So why is it inappropriate to now display dissatisfaction with Lawrence Summers (formerly against regulation of the financial industry) having a former prominent role in the White House?  You can’t throw stones at the banking industry without at least grazing Obama. So now that white folks are off the hook, who takes the blame? Should his supporters be blamed for their high expectations?  Or should Obama be blamed because he lowered his expectations?  Meanwhile, I wonder what the real racists are doing while all this back and forth is going on?  



If you don’t like Tea, get another drink!!!!

I adore political parties. They are the only place left to us where people don't talk politics.

~Oscar Wilde

If you thought the tea party was going to be a passing fad, after last week you now know the truth. The Tea Party is here to stay!!! With the announcer starting off with the following statement: Tonight, eight Republicans, one goal: to win the White House and kick Barack Obama out. CNN’s Sept 12 Tea Party Republican Debate kicked off in grand fashion. CNN looked like they were getting ready to show a football game instead of a political debate. Being last in the ratings makes you do some crazy stuff sometimes.

The Tea Party finally had all of the Republican presidential candidates together in one room. They even had “Old Man” Newt Gingrich and Herman Cain, the former CEO of Godfathers Pizza. Back in the late 80’s Gingrich was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. That also was the last time that I would see a Godfathers Pizza Commercial. Wow, what a coincidence?!

I know that a lot of folks are still upset over audience members cheering when Representative Ron Paul was asked if society should let a man die if he decides not to purchase healthcare and suddenly needs intensive care. Some yahoos in the audience did shout “Yeah!!” when CNN Moderator Wolf Blitzer asked Paul that question. I think it is safe to say that was a chilling moment in America. Now do all Tea Party Members feel that way??? I can’t say yes with certainty. Besides I personally know a Tea Party Member and my experience with him has always been on the up and up. But until last week many folks didn’t know the Tea Party had that much pull. To be able to have your own political debate on live t.v. is no small thing. But I still have to wonder where the Coffee Party, Cocoa Party, or even the Brown Sugar Party is???????????????

Black folks started off in politics during the Reconstruction Era and we still play the political game like rookies. We still haven’t figured out the importance of having Political Action Committees or Lobbyists. Sure everyone hates (in public) Lobbyists but they need them in order to push their political agenda. Sure everyone bemoans (in public) Political Action Committees but they raise the money and have the votes to push their political agendas. Unfortunately or fortunately (depending on who you ask) this is how the game is played.

My point is this: I’m sick of hearing black folks complain about there not being an alternative to the Tea Party.

If you are bothered by it, create your own!!! Call up Van Jones ifyou need to know how it’s done. I left the Democrats after 2008 because of the hypocrisy involved in the 2008 presidential campaign. I decided to become a free agent i.e. independent because the two party system sucks. Don’t think for a moment that I left the Dems and happily skipped over to the Republicans. This was the same party that southern democrats defected to after the Civil Rights Act of 1964. If you have conservative views on some issues and liberal views on others, what party actually fits you? NONE!! So I’m not thrilled about someone creating another political party but I’m tired of the belly aching. So either put up or shut up!!! If you don’t like tea, find another drink.

MLK and the Battle of New America

America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked ‘insufficient funds.”

 ~ Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

We are at a crossroads here in America.  The country that was called Amerikka by rapper Ice Cube back in the 90’s is changing.  A perfect sign of that change – Ice Cube, once known as “The N****A You Love to Hate”, stars in family friendly movies now.  Another sign of change is the eventual “Browning of America”.  America’s minorities will become the majority by the year 2050.  As early as 2023, minority children will make up half of all children in this country. That figure includes our Latino population which will eventually become the largest minority population.   After it’s all said and done, 1 out of every 3 American’s will be Latino.  Black American’s numbers will increase but not at the projected level of their Latino brethren.  Then add the fact that more people now are identifying themselves as being of more than one race.  America, things are about to get sticky!!!!

Side Note: If Slave Owners would have known this day was coming, they would have fought harder in the Civil War. 

America is changing and the country is ill prepared for the change of direction.  America has its first minority president and you see him catching hell (some of it his own doing) every time you turn on the t.v.  After coaxing Mexicans (That is Mexicans from the Country of Mexico) to do our dirty work by offering them low wages (which to them looked like big money).  We are now trying to kick them out of our country because they decided to stay for the quality of life that they couldn’t get in their own country.  And to add to the foolishness, slavery is now being passed off as the best thing that has ever happened to blacks.  I don’t think that the majority in America is ready for the future.  But that is their problem!!


What does all of this mean for black folks?  While we fight each other over who has the right to criticize President Obama.  Some of our brothas and sistas are slowly languishing into an abyss of despair.  Some blacks are done with all the symbolism at the White House and want something of substance.  Without a job – you can’t feed your family –you can’t afford healthcare – and you can’t better your situation in life.  You can’t pay for gas, college, groceries or a hospital bill with photos of the Obama family.  America is set up for you to succeed based on CASH and CONNECTIONS.  If you learned anything from the Great Recession, it should be that having money and knowing someone means a lot. Of all the corporations that failed or were bailed out, how many of their CEO’s ended up being punished for mismanagement?  Many blacks were (and still are) living from check to check.  If their jobs let them go tomorrow and they could not find work for 3 years…………well you know the rest.  This Recession has also been the great equalizer.  Blacks with master degrees are standing in the same lines with blacks with high school diplomas (or no degrees at all).   Meanwhile the gap between the haves and have nots should be an embarrassment to any country that calls itself a leader among countries.  And the educational problems in America’s majority black communities are shameful at best.  A mix of bad parenting and crime riddled streets, have produced children that even the Terminator would be afraid of.  

Last week was the opening of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in our nation’s capital.  It was good to see that Dr. King was able to receive an honor that was well overdue.  But this is not the time to rest on our laurels.  Dr. King would even have to agree that there is much work to still be done.  No, I’m not calling to arms militias of angry black folks.  That last sentence was for the people that think black folks are looking for revenge for slavery.  Don’t think I’m not paying attention to how history is being skewed on tell-lie-vision these days.  Most blacks won’t be looking for payback in 2050.  Although they will be looking for a paycheck!!   This country has had a terrible history when dealing with its darker skinned natives:

Japanese Internment Camps

Forcing Native Americans to live on Reservations

The Middle Passage – Slavery

But we all still managed to move along as a country (even though some American’s came along begrudgingly).  Dr. King believed that we could live together in this nation but it would take a strong commitment to make that happen. If you didn’t know, Dr. King was an agitator. In his last years, he pissed off people for speaking out against the Vietnam War and shining a light on America’s poorest citizens.  Dr. King knew that you had to roll up your sleeves and get dirty in order to get things done.  You might have thought of him as a pacifist but he was a fighter. A battle is not always about the physical fight.  He pushed President Kennedy to action when America saw black children getting their tails kicked on tv by law enforcement officials.  That was strategic to have children protest along with adults.  Who would actually try to touch a child?  Kennedy had no choice when the moral outrage grew because of the events.  What does this mean for us today?  It means that we still have more fighting to do.  In order to create the society that Dr. King dreamed of requires a great hardship.  The issues that Dr. King faced in the 60's still exist.  Poverty, Inequality, and a Never Ending War are just some of the high points. Just remember that there are forces dead set on Dr. Kings vision not becoming a reality (Dr. King was assassinated remember?).  The reality is that the fight didn’t end that sad day in Memphis.  It was actually the beginning.  A true “Call to Arms” but we weren’t paying attention.  Its 2011 folks!!  Are you paying attention yet?