Is Requiring a Photo Voter ID Racist?

Image courtesy of tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com.

We've been hearing much lately that states requiring photo identification in order to reduce voter fraud is "racist."  But, is it racist and discriminatory or just more fear-mongering by the Obama Administration and Democrats?

The subject has garnered much attention as of late due to the upcoming 2012 Presidential election and due to South Carolina's current voter law requiring photo identification to vote, a law which is currently being blocked by the arm of the Obama administration, the Department of Justice.  South Carolina will challenge the Administration's interference, as will other states that now have the law on their books, such as Texas and Florida.

In Obama's home state of Illinois, consumers must produce photo identification to buy Drano, the caustic acid normally used to unclog drains.  This comes as a result of two acid burnings of women with the product.  One of the women burned, later admitted to burning herself.  Now, however, thousands of consumers are required to show photo identification to purchase various drain cleaners.

Most states require photo I.D. in order to purchase items such as cigarettes, alcohol, Sudafed, and various over-the-counter allergy medicines. In addition, most states require a photo ID to purchase a vehicle, rent a vehicle, buy a home, rent a home, apply for welfare, government subsidies, and food stamps, to register their children in public school and to obtain a passport.

Republicans state that the new voter ID laws, which now include the states of Kansas, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Texas, which will require voters to prove their identities at the ballot box, will reduce voter fraud.  The number of states that require some form of voter identification now totals 30.

The Democrats' opinion on requiring photo identification is that it's racist, discriminatory and encourages voter suppression.  Why? Attorney General Eric Holder states that the new laws will encourage disenfranchisement of minority voters.  He believes that  a growing number of minorities fear that “the same disparities, divisions and problems” now afflict America as they did in 1965 prior to the Voting Rights Act. Democrats call the laws an "authoritarian assault" upon civil liberties.  The NAACP has even petitioned the United Nations, asking that the law be declared a "human rights violation."

However, the Supreme Court already has ruled on the issue - upholding state voter ID laws. In the 2008 Crawford v. Marion County Election Board decision, the high court held that an Indiana law mandating photo identification at the voting booth was indeed constitutional.  And Democrats have not proven that there is indeed any type of discrimination going on.  Their reason for denouncing voter photo ID laws?  

They say that voter fraud doesn't exist!

Let's examine if that's actually the case:

1.  New Hampshire

The very most recent indication of voter fraud is the New Hampshire Primary where dead people allegedly were registered to vote.  There is an investigation currently underway.

2.  Indiana

There may have been as much as 150 names fraudulently signed to Barack Obama's and Hillary Clinton's primary petitions in 2008.  One man whose name was signed to the petition for Barack Obama's petition was actually a Hillary Clinton supporter at the time and signed her petition.  Several individuals have come forward to verify that the signatures on the petitions were definitely not their signatures.  

Incidentally, 500 signatures were needed and Obama ended up with 534. The St. Joseph County Attorney Michael Dvorak has a thorough investigation underway. Sources say the probe is gaining steam as prosecutors review the petitions that sailed through the St. Joseph County Voter Registration Board, located in South Bend. There have been reports that as many as SEVEN people may have been involved in an alleged conspiracy to fake the petitions.

3.  Wisconsin

As of August 10th, 2011, 113 individuals are now known to have been convicted for voter fraud committed in 2008. Likely, this is the highest number of voter fraud convictions obtained in any state for a single election cycle since 1936. According to a 2006 Justice Department report, there have been more convictions for voter fraud in Minnesota from just the 2008 election than the DOJ was
able to prosecute over a five year span, nationwide. Many of the voters were felons that were ineligible to vote.

There are many more examples, so what are the Democrats complaining about?  Do they not desire fair, representative and lawful elections?

Now, lets take a look at the Voter Photo Identification laws.  Do they prevent eligible voters from placing their votes on Election Day?

From the site:

• Strict Photo ID (8 states):  Voters must show a photo ID in order to vote.  Voters who are unable to show photo ID at the polls are permitted to vote a provisional ballot, which is counted only if the voter returns to election officials within several days after the election to show a photo ID (emphasis added).  At the beginning of 2011, there were just two states--Georgia and Indiana--with strict photo ID laws.  Two states--Kansas and Wisconsin--passed new strict photo ID laws in 2011, and three states with non-photo ID laws--South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas--amended them to make them strict photo ID laws. None of these new laws is in effect yet, although they likely will be before the 2012 elections. Also in 2011, Mississippi voters approved via the citizen initiative process a strict photo ID requirement. The legislature will have to pass implementing legislation before the requirement can take effect. See the notes below Table 1 for more information regarding effective dates for new legislation.
• Photo ID (7 states):  Voters are asked to show a photo ID in order to vote.  Voters who are unable to show photo ID are still allowed to vote if they can meet certain other critieria.  In some states, a voter with ID can vouch for a voter without.  Other states ask a voter without ID to provide personal information such as a birth date, or sign an affidavit swearing to his or her identity.  Voters without ID are not required to return to election officials after the election and show a photo ID in order to have their ballots counted in the manner that voters without ID in the strict photo ID states are emphasis added).  The seven states with photo ID laws are Alabama, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Louisiana, Michigan and South Dakota.
• Non-Photo ID (16 states):  All voters must show ID at the polls.  The list of acceptable IDs is varied and includes options that do not have a photo, such as a utility bill or bank statement with the voter's name and address. Rhode Island passed a new voter ID law in 2011. It takes effect in stages -- beginning in 2012, voters will be required to show an ID (although not necessarily a photo ID) at the polls, and in 2014 a photo ID requirement will take effect.

So, even without proper photo identification, voters are STILL ALLOWED TO VOTE.

It seems to me that the Obama administration is using its surrogates and the Department of Justice (which is embroiled in its own legal woes pertaining to White Gun, Fast and Furious, and Gun Walker) to ensure the 2012 election turns out in their favor.  It's apparent that the administration is trying to whip up minority frenzy, spreading the myth of widespread ballot suppression. The goal is to foster a sense of racial persecution of blacks and minorities with the intent to maximize voter turnout in the Democrats' favor in November. The results, however, will be to poison race relations further, all while the class warfare rhetoric rages on.

Obama Shamelessly Continues His Lies About US Oil

Obama Shamelessly Continues His Lies About US Oil.  As President Obama flits across the country, fundraising and campaigning, he is pushing his "All of the Above" energy policy.  Obama sure talks a good game, but there's one glaring problem - he can't stop lying about US oil.

Obama Shamelessly Continues His Lies About US Oil - Obama's Lies

Here are just a few of Obama's lies, courtesy of Powerlineblog.com:

1)  The US has only 2% of the world's oil reserves

Without a doubt, Obama's most favorite and repeated lie is that the US has only 2% of the world’s oil “reserves,” and therefore cannot even come close to meeting our energy needs by drilling for more oil and gas.  As Obama says,

Here’s the second problem with what some of these politicians are talking about.  There’s a problem with a strategy that only relies on drilling and that is, America uses more than 20 percent of the world’s oil.  If we drilled every square inch of this country — so we went to your house and we went to the National Mall and we put up those rigs everywhere — we’d still have only 2 percent of the world’s known oil reserves.

We will not fully be in control of our energy future if our strategy is only to drill for the 2 percent but we still have to buy the 20 percent.

2)  Obama's knowledge of history is severely lacking

It has been noted several times over the years that Obama’s knowledge of history is below average. It is no surprise, then, that when he tried to insult Republicans who oppose payoffs to his cronies in the “green energy” sector as “flat earthers,” he committed one howler after another. Obama said:

We’ve heard this kind of thinking before.  Let me tell you something.  If some of these folks were around when Columbus set sail — (laughter) — they must have been founding members of the Flat Earth Society.  (Laughter.)  They would not have believed that the world was round.  (Applause.) 

We’ve heard these folks in the past.  They probably would have agreed with one of the pioneers of the radio who said, “Television won’t last.  It’s a flash in the pan.”  (Laughter.)  One of Henry Ford’s advisors was quoted as saying, “The horse is here to stay but the automobile is only a fad.”  (Laughter.)

There have always been folks like that.  There always have been folks who are the naysayers and don’t believe in the future, and don’t believe in trying to do things differently.  One of my predecessors, Rutherford B. Hayes, reportedly said about the telephone, “It’s a great invention, but who would ever want to use one?”  (Laughter.)  That’s why he’s not on Mt. Rushmore — (laughter and applause) — because he’s looking backwards.  He’s not looking forwards.  (Applause.)

3) The US is drilling everywhere!

To hear him tell it, Obama has now become a Sarah Palin supporter!

So that’s point number one.  If you start hearing this “drill, baby, drill; drill, drill, drill” — if you start hearing that again, just remember you’ve got the facts — we’re doing that.

Really?  We are actually drilling everywhere, Obama?

Obama Shamelessly Continues His Lies About US Oil - The Facts

1)  The US only has 2% of the world's oil reserves

This is a flat-out lie, for the reasons we have explained a number of times. Obama’s nose has gotten so long on this one that even the liberal press is beginning to take offense. Thus, the Washington Post’s fact checker Glenn Kessler explained that Obama’s 2% claim is a “non sequitur”:

[I]n the context of higher gas prices — which is how the president often uses these figures now — it just is not logical to compare consumption to “proven oil reserves.” This is a lowball figure that does not begin to describe the oil known to be within the U.S. borders.

What Kessler says is correct, but he omits one key fact: in the United States, unlike other countries, “reserves” is a term of art governed by securities law, and petroleum that is not legally accessible under current laws and regulations does not count toward our “reserves.” Obama’s reasoning is therefore circular; we would increase our “reserves” overnight by opening up ANWR, for example, to exploration and production.

According to an IBD Editorial and Directorblue,

... the figure Obama uses — proved oil reserves — vastly undercounts how much oil the U.S. actually contains. In fact, far from being oil-poor, the country is awash in vast quantities — enough to meet all the country's oil needs for hundreds of years...

Take a look at the FACTS:

• ...At least 86 billion barrels of oil in the Outer Continental Shelf yet to be discovered, according to the government's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
• ...About 24 billion barrels in shale deposits in the lower 48 states, according to EIA.
• ...Up to 2 billion barrels of oil in shale deposits in Alaska's North Slope, says the U.S. Geological Survey.
• ...Up to 12 billion barrels in ANWR, according to the USGS.
• ...As much as 19 billion barrels in the Utah tar sands, according to the Bureau of Land Management.
• ...Then, there's the massive Green River Formation in Wyoming, which according to the USGS contains a stunning 1.4 trillion barrels of oil shale — a type of oil released from sedimentary rock after it's heated.
• ...A separate Rand Corp. study found that about 800 billion barrels of oil shale in Wyoming and neighboring states is "technically recoverable," which means it could be extracted using existing technology. That's more than triple the known reserves in Saudi Arabia.
All told, the U.S. has access to 400 billion barrels of crude that could be recovered using existing drilling technologies, according to a 2006 Energy Department report... When you include oil shale, the U.S. has 1.4 trillion barrels of technically recoverable oil, according to the Institute for Energy Research, enough to meet all U.S. oil needs for about the next 200 years, without any imports.
And even this number could be low, since such estimates tend to go up over time...

2)  The US is drilling, drilling, drilling!

The U.S. rotary rig count was up 11 at 1,984 for the week of March 16, 2012. It is 264 rigs (15.3%) higher than last year.
The number of rotary rigs drilling for oil was up 21 at 1,317. There are 478 more rigs targeting oil than last year. Rigs drilling for oil represent 66.4 percent of all drilling activity which is the highest percentage since Baker Hughes started reporting oil and gas separately in 1988.

So, we have 478 more rigs targeting oil than we did last year.  That's a far cry from Obama's claim that we are drilling everywhere we can drill. In fact, oil production under Obama is reported to become stagnant through next year.

Obama enjoys taking the credit for increased oil production under his Administration, when actually, we can all thank George Bush for increased oil production:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama receives a report on Monday showing a one million barrel per day decline in U.S. oil imports in 2011, as the White House arms itself against election-year attacks on his energy policies, which Republicans blame for high gas prices. ...

"When President Obama took office, America imported 11 million barrels of oil a day. By the end of last year, that number dropped to 8.4 million barrels per day," the White House said in an annual progress report on U.S. energy security...

3)  Obama doesn't know his history

Obama was flat-out wrong in his attack on Rutherford B. Hayes:

It's not unusual for President Obama to criticize his Republican predecessors from time to time, but this morning, he targeted his scorn not at George W. Bush or Ronald Reagan, but ... Rutherford B. Hayes.

We thought it was a bit unsporting of Obama to attack President Hayes, who is quite unable to respond. So we called up the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center in Fremont, Ohio, where Nan Card, the curator of manuscripts, was plenty willing to correct Obama's ignorance of White House history.  Just as soon as she finished chuckling.

"I've heard that before, and no one ever knows where it came from," Card said of Hayes's alleged phone remark, "but people just keep repeating it and repeating it, so it's out there."

Wait, so Hayes didn't even say the quote that Obama is mocking him for? "No, no," Card confirmed.."

Obama Shamelessly Continues His Lies About US Oil - Obama Counts on Uninformed Voters

Why does Obama continue to repeat his lies about US oil and energy?  Because he's counting on uninformed voters to believe what he says and to unwaveringly support him, without question. Obama's ultimate insult to voters is assuming they are stupid.  Obama's ultimate audacity is to continue to lie when he's been proven wrong by not only conservatives, but liberals and the media, as well.  Maybe he thinks that if he says it often enough, it will become true?

Obama Shamelessly Continues His Lies About US Oil.

Obama 862 Billion Dollar Stimulus Package - Three Years Later

Obama 862 Billion Dollar Stimulus Package - Three Years Later.  February, 2012 marked the third year anniversary of Obama's stimulus package.  Has the stimulus delivered on Obama's promises?

Obama 862 Billion Dollar Stimulus Package - What was the Stimulus for?

The stimulus, also known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, is an economic stimulus plan that was signed into law by President Barack Obama on February 17, 2009.

The main objectives of the stimulus were to 1)  save and create jobs almost immediately; and 2) provide temporary reliefe programs for those most impacted by the recession and invest in infrastructure, education, health, and ‘green’ energy.

The original, approximate cost of the economic stimulus package was estimated to be $787 billion at the time of passage. The Act included direct spending in infrastructure, education, health, and energy, federal tax incentives, and expansion of unemployment benefits and other social welfare provisions. The Act also included many items not directly related to economic recovery such as long-term spending projects (e.g., a study of the effectiveness of medical treatments) and other items specifically included by Congress (e.g., a limitation on executive compensation in federally aided banks added by Senator Dodd and Rep. Frank).
The rationale for ARRA was from Keynesian macroeconomic theory which argues that, during recessions, the government should offset the decrease in private spending with an increase in public spending in order to save jobs and stop further economic deterioration.

Obama 862 Billion Dollar Stimulus Package - How is it being paid for?

The stimulus is being paid for, in a nutshell, by printing more money.  This, in turn, equals MORE debt:

"Even before Obama walked through the White House door, there were plans for $1 trillion of new debt," said Niall Ferguson, a Harvard University historian who has studied borrowing and its impact on national power.
He now estimates that   $2.2 trillion in new government debt will be issued this year, assuming the stimulus plan is approved.
"You either crowd out other borrowers or you print money," Ferguson added. "There is no way you can have $2.2 trillion in borrowing without influencing interest rates or inflation in the long term."
Ferguson was particularly struck by the new borrowing because the roots of the current crisis lay in an excess of American debt at all levels, from individual homeowners with subprime mortgages to Wall Street banks who let their balance sheets balloon.
"This is a crisis of excessive debt, which reached 355 percent of American gross domestic product," he said."It cannot be solved with more debt."

The other option Obama has brought forward to help pay for the stimulus is to tax the "rich" (those making $200k and above).

As for the just as troubling question of who ends up footing the bill of this "fully paid" for stimulus act, here are the details.
Earlier today, the OMB director Jack Lew gave some so far largely missing information when he laid out how the president plans on paying for the Stimulus Act (http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/WhiteHouseDailyBriefing1719). Specifically, Obama and his advisors believe they are "over achieving" by raising more ($467 bn) over 10 yrs to pay for the jobs package now. So on an annual basis, tax increases will be as follows:
Per Year (Beg Jan 2013)
1) Itemized Deductions (ie $250k or higher income                       $40.0 bn
2) Hedge Fund managers                                                               $  1.8 bn
3) Oil & Gas Industry                                                                      $  4.0 bn
4) Corp Jet Depreciation                                                                $ 300 mm
The answer:  THE JOBS BILL WILL BE PAID FOR EXCLUSIVELY BY TAX INCREASES (NO SPENDING CUTS)

So, the stimulus is being paid for by printing more money, that will someday become worthless, and by increased taxes.

Obama 862 Billion Dollar Stimulus Package - What did Obama promise?

americanelephant.com

Obama made several very specific promises about what the stimulus package would accomplish.

“Today does mark the beginning of the end.”
“This is the most sweeping economic recovery in history.”
“This package is the right size, it is the right scope, and it has the right priorities to create 3 to 4 million jobs!”
“The Federal government is the only entity left with the resources to jolt our economy back to life”

This sounds amazing!  We will get people back to work and  jolt the economy!

Obama 862 Billion Dollar Stimulus Package - What is Obama saying now?

“I didn’t over promise.”  “Shovel ready was not as shovel-ready as we had expected.”

Yes, that comment got a good laugh out of some, but was it funny?

Obama 862 Billion Dollar Stimulus Package - What Didn't Happen?

Here are the promises and the results, to date, of the Obama stimulus:

• Unemployment was supposed to top out in the summer of 2009.  Didn’t happen, did it?

• Unemployment was supposed to be at 6% by today.  Didn’t happen, did it?

• We were supposed to have a new and thriving green energy industry that would be flourishing.  Didn’t happen, did it?  Just opened up more corruption and showed even more incompetence.

• We have nearly 13 million Americans out of work today.  Didn’t happen the way he said it would, did it?

• We have the longest period of unemployment since the Great Depression.  Didn’t project that, did he?

• We have the worst string of long term unemployment in history and 40% of those unemployed have been without a job for 27 weeks or more.

This is worse than the Great Depression.  Didn’t tell us that would happen, did he?

• Including the under-employed there are 26 million people out if work and are in poverty now.  That’s deplorable and it is an embarrassing shame, isn’t it?

• And, the 50% rate of unemployment among young people is the highest rate since we began breaking unemployment out by age in 1948.

• We have proven you cannot spend your way to prosperity, especially when you have a bill that was poorly designed and as stupidly organized as this one was.

We tried to tell him, time and again over the three years, but he didn’t listen, did he?

• Today we have corruption all around us – like Solyndra and Sun Power and all the other “green energy companies”, don’t we?

Feature image courtesy of politics.blogs.foxnews.com

Obama 862 Billion Dollar Stimulus Package.

The Absence of Black Leadership in America - Beyond Trayvon Martin

The Absence of Black Leadership in America - Beyond Trayvon Martin. Today, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and NAACP leader, Ben Jealous, marched in Sanford, Florida, the city in which  Trayvon Martin, 17, was killed last month.  These black leaders have come out in full force in support of justice for Trayvon, demanding that George Zimmerman, the shooter, be arrested.  But, where are these black leaders when there's not a tragedy they can profit from?


The Absence of Black Leadership in America - March for Trayvon in Sanford, Florida

Today a peaceful rally was held, led by Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and NAACP leaders.  They led a march to the Sanford, Florida police station to demand the arrest of George Zimmerman, the shooter of Trayvon Martin.  Sharpton and Jackson have been extremely vocal about their demand for justice.  Al Sharpton is a show host on MSNBC and regularly uses that platform to put forth his opinions.  In fact, neither Sharpton or Jackson miss an opportunity to be in front of the camera.

Here are their remarks today:

CFNews13 reported:

The purpose of today’s rally is for Sanford PD to bring Mr. Zimmerman to justice,” said Benjamin Todd Jealous, National NAACP President and CEO. “We are all united in our call for justice to be done here in Sanford. And it’s clear that this community is coming together around this call for Mr. Zimmerman to be brought to justice. That is why we are here today. We are joined by NAACP branches from across the southeast from as far away as South Carolina. And people from throughout this community — students, parents, teachers. We’re tired of racial profiling. We’re tired of the lives of young black men, not being treated with the same level of importance when they’re killed as we see when people of other races, other genders, when they’re killed. We’re here to say ‘Save our sons’. Bring Mr. Zimmerman to justice.”

Reverend Al Sharpton also called for an arrest in the killing of Trayvon.
“The real story is this, with all of these marches and all of these gatherings, there’s not been any violence. There’s not been one incident. Report that,” Rev. Al Sharpton said. “And don’t act as though that is not without the discipline and infrastructure of the organizations involved. There are ministers marching right now in London, England with hoodies on. It’s all over the world, under one aim alone — that on probable cause, the killer should be arrested. We have not said what to charge him with, we’re not trying him before a trial. Those on the other side are. They’re trying to acquit him! We’re just saying with probable cause, he should be arrested. And we are going to keep marching. We’re going to keep praying. We’re going to keep doing whatever is necessary in order to make that happen.”

Demanding that justice be done in this case is, of course, a good thing, and and important thing.  Both Sharpton and Jackson have done a superb job of keeping this tragedy in the media forefront.  But, are they accomplishing anything? Do they realize that a special prosecutor is currently investigating this case?

According to the AP:

 The special prosecutor leading the investigation into the shooting death of an unarmed black teen by a neighborhood watch volunteer is known for her tough tactics aimed at locking up criminals for long sentences and making it difficult to negotiate light plea bargains.

Furthermore, 57-year-old Angela Corey has handled hundreds of homicide cases involving the justifiable use of deadly force — experience that could prove invaluable. It will be up to Corey whether to charge 28-year-old George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watchman who says he was defending himself when he fatally shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin during a scuffle. Martin was unarmed as he walked from a convenience store, and the case has become a racial flashpoint with protesters across the nation calling for his arrest. Zimmerman's father is white, his mother Hispanic.

Instead of allowing the special prosecutor perform her job, and encouraging Trayvon's supporters to do the same, it appears that Sharpton and Jackson are simply grandstanding for the cameras, demanding justice, without any interest in waiting for it.

The Absence of Black Leadership in America - Where Are Black Leaders?

Maybe they were speaking in Kansas City, Missouri about the case of the white boy set on fire by black youths, in which no arrests have been made?  Yes, maybe they were there, demanding justice for the victim and encouraging those guilty to come forward and take responsibility for their crime.  Oh, they weren't there?

Well, maybe they were in Palmdale, California demanding justice for the 15-year-old hispanic boy that was beaten by 10 black youths, a case in which three suspects are still being sought? Yes, maybe they were there, demanding justice for the victim and encouraging those guilty to come forward and take responsibility for their crime.  Oh, they weren't there?

courtesy of the Daily Mail

Well, since we know they are in Florida, maybe they stopped by Sarasota, Florida and are comforting the grieving families of the two British tourists that were shot and killed there last April?  Oh, they weren't there?

The murders  also weren't worthy of President Obama's attention:

Friends of two British students murdered in Florida have criticised Barack Obama for his lack of compassion over the deaths.
They said the President’s failure to respond to three letters sent to the White House was because there was no ‘political value’ and it was not worthy of a few minutes of his time.

 They spoke out as teenager Shawn Tyson began a life sentence after being found guilty of the murder of James Cooper and James Kouzaris last April.

The 17-year-old, who shot the men as they begged for their lives during a street robbery last April, will die in prison. His conviction of first-degree murder carries a mandatory life sentence without the chance of parole.

Speaking after Tyson was jailed, Paul Davies and Joe Hallett lashed out at Mr Obama, saying the deaths of their friends was ‘not worthy of ten minutes of his time’.

Mr Davies said: ‘We would like to publicly express our dissatisfaction at the lack of any public or private message of support or condolence from any American governing body or indeed, President Obama himself.

 ‘Mr Kouzaris has written to President Obama on three separate occasions and is yet to even receive the courtesy of a reply.

 ‘It would perhaps appear that Mr Obama sees no political value in facilitating such a request or that the lives of two British tourists are not worthy of ten minutes of his time.’

Hmmm, so not there...  Okay, I know - they were in Miami, Florida last night where there was a mass shooting resulting in 14 shot and 2 dead, comforting the grieving families of those that were shot and killed. Oh, they weren't there?

Courtesy of CBS Local

“Grandma, I’ve Been Shot” Said Girl Hurt In Gang Related Mass Shooting

 Fourteen people have been shot and two are dead in what may be one of the worst mass shootings in South Florida history.

 The shooting took place around 9:30 p.m. outside the Funeraria Latina Emanuel funeral home at 14990 W. Dixie Highway Friday night.

One of the victims, a 43-year-old man, died outside the funeral home, authorities said. The other, a 27-year-old man, died at the hospital. Witnesses at the funeral home had said one of the two people killed was shot in the chest. Their names have not been released.

A 5-year-old girl, identified by her family only as Mckayla, was shot in the leg and hospitalized at Jackson Memorial Hospital along with eleven other victims.

Okay, okay... Maybe these black leaders were in Chicago, Illinois.  Maybe they are tracking the 100+ murders so far this year in Chicago, most of which remain unsolved?  Maybe they are working to bring justice for the countless victims, some of whom remain unidentified, some of whom are children and seniors?  Oh, they aren't there?

my.opera.com

Here's just one from 1995.  Has her death been solved yet?

This was Renee Rondeau's fate.
She was found strangled in her bathroom the day after Halloween. Her gym bag was taken and her bank card was later used at a South Side cash machine. No arrests have been made.

 The news media missed the story. The night that Rondeau died was the same night that American Eagle Flight 4184 crashed during an ice storm in an Indiana field, killing 68 people. Rondeau's story went practically unreported. 

Even Rondeau's neighbors in the apartment complex seemed oblivious. A week after her death, as her parents moved Renee's belongings, the couple discovered that most other tenants in the 25-unit building in the 400 block of West Barry Avenue still didn't know a murder had been committed. It took three weeks for word to spread through the other half of the complex.

The Absence of Black Leadership in America - Justice for One or Justice for All?

Is any one death more tragic than another?  No.  So why is the black "leadership" in America failing?  "Race" has become a money-making, celebrity-plagued, sideshow.  Black leaders latch on only to the cases that will ensure the maximum amount of outrage, thus, creating the maximum amount of press for them.  How are they benefiting black youths today?  Are they setting examples?  Showing young blacks how to get jobs, helping to keep them out of gangs, teaching responsibility?  Are they simply put, "THERE?"  Are they standing up for justice for all, or only justice for those they can make a buck off of?

Here are some interesting takes by author Kevin Powell:

Want to know why large pockets of Black America remain in great despair despite all our amazing post-Civil Rights era advances? Well, look no further than the incredible lack of vision and imagination of our Black leaders--be they elected officials, ministers and imams, public intellectuals, heads of social service organizations, educators, entrepreneurs, or grassroots activists.

Black American leadership has been in a state of arrested development since the days of Fannie Lou Hamer, Ella Baker, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, Angela Davis, and the Black Panther Party. But some leaders were killed or driven mad by those times, while others wound up in jail or sold out their principles for access to the American dream, for themselves and their immediate circle, rather than for us all.

... And W.E.B. DuBois, an intellectual giant who lived well into his 90s, was chief among them. But current sideline critics and some of these multimedia hustlers posing as intellectuals ought to study DuBois a bit more closely. Not only was he a scholar, a prolific writer, and a true renaissance man interacting with Black people globally, but he also helped to build institutions that served the people, including the N.A.A.C.P. He didn't just dog out a sitting president and leave it there.

DuBois understood that talk can be wonderful, but nothing beats action. And that was the principle behind the N.A.A.C.P. before that organization went adrift. A strong difference of opinion on the best way to deal with racism is what led DuBois out of the N.A.A.C.P. in the mid-1930s. Here's a small part of his stinging critique:

Today this organization, which has been great and effective for nearly a quarter of a century, finds itself in a time of crisis and change, without a program, without effective organization, without executive officers who have either the ability or disposition to guide [it] in the right direction.

Sound familiar?

DuBois was addressing the need for Black institutions of all kinds. Something that is still badly needed in Black America in 2010.

No wonder we are at such a crossroads in Black American history... All this noise makes for great headlines and television ratings, but does absolutely nothing to empower Black America.

Feature image courtesy of The Orlando Sentinel

The Absence of Black Leadership in America.

The Obama Administration Continues to Fail Our Military Veterans

The Obama Administration Continues to Fail Our Military Veterans.  President Obama has made many promises to America’s military veterans  during his time in office, and our veterans are still waiting for the fulfillment of those promises.  Today’s veterans are faced with an increasing rate of unemployment, more expensive healthcare, and a backlog of health claims, with many claims being six months old, or older.  What is the plan for the large amount of returning servicemen and women from overseas, many of whom will need to assistance in converting to civilian life?

bereaonline.com

Failing our Military Veterans – Veterans Face Higher Unemployment

Thousands of our servicemen and women are returning from abroad.  We are thankful for their service and so happy to have them home.  But what are they coming home to? Many of our returning veterans will be faced with a slew of challenges.  One of the most important challenges is their conversion from military life to civilian life and civilian employment.

However, according the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the unemployment rate for our veterans, especially our newest veterans, continues to inch ever higher, with the  unemployment rate for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans alone currently hovering at 17%.

“The Bureau of Labor and Statistics report shows 10.3 percent of post-9/11-era veterans were jobless in March, 2012, up from 7.6 percent in February. For all veterans, the unemployment rate increased only slightly, to 7.5 percent from 7 percent.

The jobless rates for men and women were similar: 7.5 percent of all male veterans and 7.4 percent of all female veterans, with 10.2 percent of post-9/11 male veterans and 10.8 percent of post-9/11 female veterans.

After a 2011 peak of 13.1 percent in December, unemployment figures for recent veterans declined in both January and February. The March numbers represent a regression toward the 12.1 percent average monthly rate from last year.”

In fact, the unemployment rate among veterans may continue to rise:

The gap may widen as the U.S. economy recovers. Tens of thousands more troops will be coming home over the next two years from Afghanistan, where the U.S. plans to withdraw most combat forces by the end of 2014. At the same time, the Pentagon intends to reduce the U.S. military by 123,900 troops, or 5.5 percent, by fiscal 2017 to meet budget-cutting goals.
The unemployment burden tends to fall harder on enlisted veterans, especially those who lack technological skills. Most military officers have college degrees and are better equipped to make the transition to civilian careers. Younger veterans who left high school, with or without diplomas, to bear the brunt of combat in infantry or armor units often return to the civilian workforce with no readily marketable skills.

“In August of 2009, President Obama, standing alongside soldiers at George Mason University, promised that the post-9/11 G.I. Bill would help “those who have borne the heaviest burden lead us in to the 21st century.” Under President Obama, that promise has gone unfulfilled.

Too many young veterans report difficulty securing the tuition assistance and housing stipends promised in the bill. For tens of thousands, the post-9/11 G.I. bill is not working, forcing them to rely on savings or to take on debt.”

Failing our Military Veterans – Veterans Face Increased Healthcare Expenses

Spending under the Obama Administration has dramatically increased, however, the only spending cuts the President seems to be on board with are cuts to military spending. The last thing our current and returning military veterans need is expensive healthcare, and definitely not increased healthcare costs.  Under President Obama’s proposed 2013 Budget is his plan to cut  $1.8 billion from the TRICARE health insurance plan in 2013 alone, and an additional $12.9 billion by 2017, thus requiringmilitary families to pay even more for their health care.

The families of active duty military will be forced to pay significantly higher prices for prescription drugs, and retirees will see their premiums spike. Some retirees could see their health care costs quadruple over the next five years. Needless to say, veterans groups are rightfully outraged.

TRICARE

Cuts to military spending don’t just involve military hardware, they also target human beings.  ”The most shameful cuts involve dramatic increases to health care costs for veterans.  TRICARE provides medical benefits to active duty personnel and their families, as well as veterans. With military salaries that are below average for Federal workers, those who serve and have served their country depend on it. After ten years of war and fifteen thousand wounded men and women, TRICARE is a small payment on the debt that can never be repaid.”

Failing our Military Veterans – Veterans Face Huge Backlog of Medical Claims

The Department of Veterans” Affairs has declared that the backlog for veterans healthcare claims has risen to 853,831 pending cases, an increase of 100,000 over last year, and an increase of 500,000 over the past three years.   This number has exploded due to the number of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan,  and due to a policy change making it easier for Vietnam veterans to file Agent Orange-related claims.  However, with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs also facing possible budget cuts, it appears the number of backlogged claims will only increase.

newgibill.org

Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, states that the Obama Administration still refuses to say if the VA will indeed be subject to the proposed spending cuts. “This issue arises due to an ambiguity in the law and the Obama administration’s refusal to answer basic questions on whether VA would be part of this historic cut,” Miller said. “For months I’ve been trying to get clarity about this issue to no avail, and that is why I want to thank you, Cmdr. Samuels, and all members of the DAV, for joining other veterans groups in pleading with the president to direct the Office of Management and Budget to give us, and the nation, the administration’s interpretation of the conflicts in law so we can protect veterans healthcare and benefits.”

“Nearly 1 million veterans today are stuck in the backlog and more than half wait at least half a year to find out if their claim has been processed,” said Rep. Miller.

Although the VA has processed nearly a million claims over the past year, another 1.3 million new claims were filed during the same period.
Of the approximately 2.2 million veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, 624,000 have filed disability claims and many more are expected. In addition, more than 200,000 Vietnam War veterans have filed claims based on new regulations adopted in 2010 making it easier to get compensation for health problems caused by exposure to defoliants such as Agent Orange.

But veterans service organizations are urging quick action. “Vets are dying while waiting for the VA to do this job,” Theodore Jarvi, past president of the National Organization of Veterans’ Advocates stated.

The Obama Administration Continues to Fail Our Military Veterans

Our military veterans and their families deserve leaders who keep their promises. Our country and its citizens owe these heroes so much, and our leaders owe it to them to keep their word.

At a speech in Houston in February 2008, then-candidate Obama said that “maintaining the finest military in the world” requires “caring for our troops when they come home, not forgetting about our troops.” He’s right, and he would do well to remember that, otherwise, the looming crisis for all of our veterans will become reality.

Military Veterans.