MODEL:
NAYKESHA KING
HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEO'S
THAT DAY GONNA COME BELIEVE ME THE TIMES GONE CH ANGE. NO MOOR HATE COMBINED WITH ELEVATION OF FORGOTTEN IDENTITIES, AND BASTARDIZED NAME S. NO MOOR DISPAIR, NO MOOR JAI LS, NO MOOR FALSE PROMISES, NO MOOR HELL. SEE TIMES GONNA CHANGE, FOR MADDNESS CAN NOT LAST, ONE DAY WE WILL LEARN THE JEWELS GIVEN TO US BY CHOSEN ONES OF THE PAST. ON THAT DAY THE WORLD GONN A CHANGE, THE TRUTH WILL BE DOMINANT AND LIES WI LL APPEAR INSANE. PEOPLE GONE GET TOGETHER, THEY GONNA TO WORK IT OUT. THEY GONNA LOVE ONE AN OTHER, AND SHARE IN EACH OTHERS CLOUT. THIS DAY IS COMING AND NO MA N CAN STOP, THE RISE OF THE CIVILIZED , WITH OPEN EYES, SHOWING THE WAY TO THE TOP. BY SAADIQ BUSBY
Kentucky Jail Sends Black Woman To Court With No Pants. This Judge Won’t Have It. “What the hell is going on?” Judge Amber Wolf demanded. By Sebastian Murdock
A black woman from Kentucky was humiliated by jail officials when she was brought into a courtroom without pants, leaving a Louisville judge in disbelief. “Am I in the Twilight Zone right now?” Judge Amber Wolf asked on courtroom video Friday afternoon. The female defendant in the video was in jail for failing to complete a diversion program for a prior shoplifting charge. During her time at Metro Corrections in Louisville she said she was never given a uniform and was forced to spend her time there without pants or feminine hygiene products. Wolf immediately began making phone calls to Metro Corrections officials in the video, outraged over the treatment of the woman. “I’m not trying to embarrass you, I’m very sorry,” Wolf told the defendant in court. “Can we get her something to cover up with? Anything, anything, anything. I don’t care what it is.” Steve Durham, a spokesman for the jail, told local station WDRB that the woman had not been in custody long enough to receive a jail jumpsuit. She had been in the jail for three days prior to her court appearance. “What the hell is going on?” Wolf can be heard saying on the phone. “I am holding her here until she is dressed appropriately to go back to jail. This is outrageous.” “This is her only charge ever,” Wolf added. “She should have been in jail for maybe a day, tops.” Jail officials contend that the woman was wearing athletic shorts covered by a long shirt, according to WDRB. The defendant told the judge other inmates at the facility were also being denied proper clothing and basic hygiene products. “I just want to tell you how incredibly sorry I am that you’ve been treated this way,” Wolf told the defendant after she was clothed and brought back into the courtroom. “No one deserves this, but particularly in a situation like this where you failed to complete a diversion program and didn’t even pick up new charges.” Wolf gave the woman a sentence of time served and a $100 fine. “The fact you’re in custody is your fault ― you gotta come to court,” Wolf said. “The rest of this is completely inhumane and unacceptable, and I’m incredibly sorry you had to go through this.”
5 Reasons Why Trump Will Win By Michael Moore
Friends: I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I gave it to you straight last summer when I told you that Donald Trump would be the Republican nominee for president. And now I have even more awful, depressing news for you: Donald J. Trump is going to win in November. This wretched, ignorant, dangerous part-time clown and full time sociopath is going to be our next president. President Trump. Go ahead and say the words, ‘cause you’ll be saying them for the next four years: “PRESIDENT TRUMP.” Never in my life have I wanted to be proven wrong more than I do right now. I can see what you’re doing right now. You’re shaking your head wildly - “No, Mike, this won’t happen!” Unfortunately, you are living in a bubble that comes with an adjoining echo chamber where you and your friends are convinced the American people are not going to elect an idiot for president. You alternate between being appalled at him and laughing at him because of his latest crazy comment or his embarrassingly narcissistic stance on everything because everything is about him. And then you listen to Hillary and you behold our very first female president, someone the world respects, someone who is whip-smart and cares about kids, who will continue the Obama legacy because that is what the American people clearly want! Yes! Four more years of this! You need to exit that bubble right now. You need to stop living in denial and face the truth which you know deep down is very, very real. Trying to soothe yourself with the facts - “77% of the electorate are women, people of color, young adults under 35 and Trump cant win a majority of any of them!“ - or logic - “people aren’t going to vote for a buffoon or against their own best interests!“ - is your brain’s way of trying to protect you from trauma. Like when you hear a loud noise on the street and you think, “oh, a tire just blew out,” or, “wow, who’s playing with firecrackers?” because you don’t want to think you just heard someone being shot with a gun. It’s the same reason why all the initial news and eyewitness reports on 9/11 said “a small plane accidentally flew into the World Trade Center.” We want to - we need to - hope for the best because, frankly, life is already a shit show and it’s hard enough struggling to get by from paycheck to paycheck. We can’t handle much more bad news. So our mental state goes to default when something scary is actually, truly happening. The first people plowed down by the truck in Nice spent their final moments on earth waving at the driver whom they thought had simply lost control of his truck, trying to tell him that he jumped the curb: “Watch out!,” they shouted. “There are people on the sidewalk!” Well, folks, this isn’t an accident. It is happening. And if you believe Hillary Clinton is going to beat Trump with facts and smarts and logic, then you obviously missed the past year of 56 primaries and caucuses where 16 Republican candidates tried that and every kitchen sink they could throw at Trump and nothing could stop his juggernaut. As of today, as things stand now, I believe this is going to happen - and in order to deal with it, I need you first to acknowledge it, and then maybe, just maybe, we can find a way out of the mess we’re in. Don’t get me wrong. I have great hope for the country I live in. Things are better. The left has won the cultural wars. Gays and lesbians can get married. A majority of Americans now take the liberal position on just about every polling question posed to them: Equal pay for women - check. Abortion should be legal - check. Stronger environmental laws - check. More gun control - check. Legalize marijuana - check. A huge shift has taken place
- just ask the socialist who won 22 states this year. And there is no doubt in my mind that if people could vote from their couch at home on their X-box or PlayStation, Hillary would win in a landslide. But that is not how it works in America. People have to leave the house and get in line to vote. And if they live in poor, Black or Hispanic neighborhoods, they not only have a longer line to wait in, everything is being done to literally stop them from casting a ballot. So in most elections it’s hard to get even 50% to turn out to vote. And therein lies the problem for November - who is going to have the most motivated, most inspired voters show up to vote? You know the answer to this question. Who’s the candidate with the most rabid supporters? Whose crazed fans are going to be up at 5 AM on Election Day, kicking ass all day long, all the way until the last polling place has closed, making sure every Tom, Dick and Harry (and Bob and Joe and Billy Bob and Billy Joe and Billy Bob Joe) has cast his ballot? That’s right. That’s the high level of danger we’re in. And don’t fool yourself — no amount of compelling Hillary TV ads, or outfacting him in the debates or Libertarians siphoning votes away from Trump is going to stop his mojo. “You need to stop living in denial and face the truth which you know deep down is very, very real.” Here are the 5 reasons Trump is going to win: 1. Midwest Math, or Welcome to Our Rust Belt Brexit. I believe Trump is going to focus much of his attention on the four blue states in the rustbelt of the upper Great Lakes - Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Four traditionally Democratic states - but each of them have elected a Republican governor since 2010 (only Pennsylvania has now finally elected a Democrat). In the Michigan primary in March, more Michiganders came out to vote for the Republicans (1.32 million) that the Democrats (1.19 million). Trump is ahead of Hillary in the latest polls in Pennsylvania and tied with her in Ohio. Tied? How can the race be this close after everything Trump has said and done? Well maybe it’s because he’s said (correctly) that the Clintons’ support of NAFTA helped to destroy the industrial states of the Upper Midwest. Trump is going to hammer Clinton on this and her support of TPP and other trade policies that have royally screwed the people of these four states. When Trump stood in the shadow of a Ford Motor factory during the Michigan primary, he threatened the corporation that if they did indeed go ahead with their planned closure of that factory and move it to Mexico, he would slap a 35% tariff on any Mexican-built cars shipped back to the United States. It was sweet, sweet music to the ears of the working class of Michigan, and when he tossed in his threat to Apple that he would force them to stop making their iPhones in China and build them here in America, well, hearts swooned and Trump walked away with a big victory that should have gone to the governor next-door, John Kasich. From Green Bay to Pittsburgh, this, my friends, is the middle of England - broken, depressed, struggling, the smokestacks strewn across the countryside with the carcass of what we use to call the Middle Class. Angry, embittered working (and nonworking) people who were lied to by the trickle-down of Reagan and abandoned by Democrats who still try to talk a good line but are really just looking forward to rub one out with a lobbyist from Goldman Sachs who’ll write them nice big check before leaving the room. What happened in the UK with Brexit is going to happen here. Elmer Gantry shows up looking like Boris Johnson and just says whatever shit he can make up to convince the masses that this is their chance! To stick to ALL of them, all who wrecked their American Dream! And now The Outsider, Donald Trump, has arrived to clean house! You don’t have to agree with him! You don’t even have to like him! He is your personal Molotov cocktail to throw right into the center of the bastards who did this to you! SEND A MESSAGE! TRUMP IS YOUR MESSENGER! And this is where the math comes in. In 2012, Mitt Romney lost by 64 electoral votes. Add up the electoral votes cast by Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. It’s 64. All Trump needs to do to win is to carry, as he’s expected to do, the swath of traditional red states from Idaho to Georgia (states that’ll never vote for Hillary Clinton), and then he just needs these four rust belt states. He
doesn’t need Florida. He doesn’t need Colorado or Virginia. Just Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. And that will put him over the top. This is how it will happen in November. 2. The Last Stand of the Angry White Man. Our male-dominated, 240-year run of the USA is coming to an end. A woman is about to take over! How did this happen?! On our watch! There were warning signs, but we ignored them. Nixon, the gender traitor, imposing Title IX on us, the rule that said girls in school should get an equal chance at playing sports. Then they let them fly commercial jets. Before we knew it, Beyoncé stormed on the field at this year’s Super Bowl (our game!) with an army of Black Women, fists raised, declaring that our domination was hereby terminated! Oh, the humanity! That’s a small peek into the mind of the Endangered White Male. There is a sense that the power has slipped out of their hands, that their way of doing things is no longer how things are done. This monster, the “Feminazi,”the thing that as Trump says, “bleeds through her eyes or wherever she bleeds,” has conquered us — and now, after having had to endure eight years of a black man telling us what to do, we’re supposed to just sit back and take eight years of a woman bossing us around? After that it’ll be eight years of the gays in the White House! Then the transgenders! You can see where this is going. By then animals will have been granted human rights and a fuckin’ hamster is going to be running the country. This has to stop! 3. The Hillary Problem. Can we speak honestly, just among ourselves? And before we do, let me state, I actually like Hillary - a lot - and I think she has been given a bad rap she doesn’t deserve. But her vote for the Iraq War made me promise her that I would never vote for her again. To date, I haven’t broken that promise. For the sake of preventing a proto-fascist from becoming our commander-in-chief, I’m breaking that promise. I sadly believe Clinton will find a way to get us in some kind of military action. She’s a hawk, to the right of Obama. But Trump’s psycho finger will be on The Button, and that is that. Done and done. Let’s face it: Our biggest problem here isn’t Trump - it’s Hillary. She is hugely unpopular — nearly 70% of all voters think she is untrustworthy and dishonest. She represents the old way of politics, not really believing in anything other than what can get you elected. That’s why she fights against gays getting married one moment, and the next she’s officiating a gay marriage. Young women are among her biggest detractors, which has to hurt considering it’s the sacrifices and the battles that Hillary and other women of her generation endured so that this younger generation would never have to be told by the Barbara Bushes of the world that they should just shut up and go bake some cookies. But the kids don’t like her, and not a day goes by that a millennial doesn’t tell me they aren’t voting for her. No Democrat, and certainly no independent, is waking up on November 8th excited to run out and vote for Hillary the way they did the day Obama became president or when Bernie was on the primary ballot. The enthusiasm just isn’t there. And because this election is going to come down to just one thing — who drags the most people out of the house and gets them to the polls — Trump right now is in the catbird seat. 4. The Depressed Sanders Vote. Stop fretting about Bernie’s supporters not voting for Clinton - we’re voting for Clinton! The polls already show that more Sanders voters will vote for Hillary this year than the number of Hillary primary voters in ‘08 who then voted for Obama. This is not the problem. The fire alarm that should be going off is that while the average Bernie backer will drag him/herself to the polls that day to somewhat reluctantly vote for Hillary, it will be what’s called a “depressed vote” - meaning the voter doesn’t bring five people to vote with her. He doesn’t volunteer 10 hours in the month leading up to the election. She never talks in an excited voice when asked why she’s voting for Hillary. A depressed voter. Because, when you’re young, you have zero tolerance for phonies and BS. Returning to the Clinton/Bush era for them is like suddenly having to pay for music, or using MySpace or carrying around one of those big-ass portable phones. They’re not going to vote for Trump; some will vote third party, but many will just stay home. Hillary Clinton is going to have to do something to give them a reason to support her — and picking a moderate, bland-o, middle of the road old white guy as her running mate is not the kind of edgy move that tells millenials that their vote is important to Hillary. Having two women on the ticket - that was an exciting idea. But then Hillary got scared and has decided to play it safe. This is just one example of how she is killing the youth vote. 5. The Jesse Ventura Effect. Finally, do not discount the electorate’s ability to be mischievous or underestimate how any millions fancy themselves as closet anarchists once they draw the curtain and are all alone in the voting booth. It’s one of the few places left in society where there are no security cameras, no listening devices, no
spouses, no kids, no boss, no cops, there’s not even a friggin’ time limit. You can take as long as you need in there and no one can make you do anything. You can push the button and vote a straight party line, or you can write in Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. There are no rules. And because of that, and the anger that so many have toward a broken political system, millions are going to vote for Trump not because they agree with him, not because they like his bigotry or ego, but just because they can. Just because it will upset the apple cart and make mommy and daddy mad. And in the same way like when you’re standing on the edge of Niagara Falls and your mind wonders for a moment what would that feel like to go over that thing, a lot of people are going to love being in the position of puppetmaster and plunking down for Trump just to see what that might look like. Remember back in the ‘90s when the people of Minnesota elected a professional wrestler as their governor? They didn’t do this because they’re stupid or thought that Jesse Ventura was some sort of statesman or political intellectual. They did so just because they could. Minnesota is one of the smartest states in the country. It is also filled with people who have a dark sense of humor — and voting for Ventura was their version of a good practical joke on a sick political system. This is going to happen again with Trump. Coming back to the hotel after appearing on Bill Maher’s Republican Convention special this week on HBO, a man stopped me. “Mike,” he said, “we have to vote for Trump. We HAVE to shake things up.” That was it. That was enough for him. To “shake things up.” President Trump would indeed do just that, and a good chunk of the electorate would like to sit in the bleachers and watch that reality show.
How America’s Puritan Roots Helped Create Its Unforgiving Prison Culture
By John Carl
While I was in Ireland teaching a criminal justice course this past semester, I had the opportunity to take a tour of an Irish prison. The Irish prison service states one of its key missions is to protect human rights: the rights of the public and the rights of the offender. A tour of a temperature-controlled prison in the Irish city of Cork revealed prisoners had access to Wi-Fi, educational programs, drug treatment and counseling. Clients interact with staff on a first-name basis. Prison food is high-quality and health care is equivalent to what is available to the general public. As you may know, none of this is true in American prison systems. As a criminology professor and U.S. prison system researcher, I get a front-row seat to the atrocious conditions that American prisoners live in day in and day out — overcrowding, violence, rape, a funding deficit and a disappointing health care system, among other problems. Early Calvinists were known for their intolerance of others’ perspectives. As I toured through the Irish prison, I began to formulate a simple thought: In all common law countries — countries that are legally guided by judges — except the U.S., going to prison is the punishment. Because that is the punishment, the prison does not have to “add to” the punishment. In the Irish prison, workout rooms, in-cell TVs and quality food were all present. As the prison staff discussed their jobs, they noted that all of their prisoners eventually return to society and that the staff ’s job is to keep them from returning to prison after their release. Having studied prisons in the U.S., I’ve found it is clear we do not share that ideology. America views prison not only as the punishment, but also as the place for punishment, deliberately making prison more difficult in hopes of reducing recidivism. However, when comparing Ireland, which had a recidivism rate of about 62 percent in 2007, and the U.S., which had a recidivism rate of 67 percent in 2005, you quickly see that our “get tough” strategies haven’t made return rates any lower. Could this difference in the idea of punishment be related to some foundational ideology rooted in the religious history of these countries? I started to reflect upon German sociologist Max Weber’s book “A Protestant Ethic and a Spirit of Capitalism” during my time in Ireland. Weber suggests that a major branch of Protestantism called Calvinistic Christianity laid the foundation for modern industrial capitalism by proposing beliefs and values that would lead adherents to adopt a “spirit of capitalism.”
Calvinistic Christianity is the belief that Calvinists took on as a reaction to the Lutheran movement and the Roman Catholic Church, with a theology that proposed a strict adherence to the Bible and right living. While other sects of Christianity preach right living, early Calvinists were known for their intolerance of others’ perspectives. In addition, they dropped the more sacramental notions of sin and forgiveness found in Anglicanism, Catholicism and Lutheranism and adopted a personal relationship of understanding between the penitent and God. In Protestant sects, such as Calvinist Christians, the sinner has no assurance of divine forgiveness or acceptance. With Weber’s theory in mind, I began to consider the role of religion in the creation of the modern American criminal justice system. Of all the common law nations, only the U.S. had its origins rooted in a form of religious fundamentalism, known as Puritanism. Puritans believed that strict adherence to sacred scripture was the only real faith. A pure faith was a biblical faith, and that was generally rigid and unwavering in its adherence to their interpretation of scripture. Although the U.S. was and is a country without a dominant religion, many colonists incorporated beliefs rooted in Calvinistic Christianity into the new nation and its laws. Even though Pew Research Center data from 2014 shows about 70 percent of the U.S. population practices Christianity, down from about 78 percent in 2007, the religion — Calvinist Christianity in particular — remains a cultural power in the country. Foundational ideologies of right and wrong and punishment and redemption remain rooted in this religious tradition. These concepts are at the forefront of our country’s attempt to deal with criminals. While it is certainly true that religion is weakening in the United Kingdom, with 46 percent of citizens identifying as Christian in 2012 from about 59 percent in 2011, the U.K. and all other common law countries do not house their cultural roots in Calvinist Christianity. The Church of England, like the Roman Catholic Church, recognizes the role of private and public confession for the forgiveness of sins. In these institutions, the penitent acknowledges his or her sin to a priest and is absolved, or washed clean, by the act of the church. Once the sinner is forgiven, they are assured that he or she is “right with God,” will never again need to confess that sin and are free to go on with life, assured of salvation. In the 1850 American novel “The Scarlet Letter,” Hester Prynne is condemned by a Puritan New England court for adultery. Her punishment is to stand, holding her out-of-wedlock daughter, upon the scaffold in the town square for three hours and to wear a scarlet A embroidered upon her clothes for the rest of her life. (Hulton Archive/Getty) In Protestant sects, such as Calvinist Christians, Weber points out that the sinner has no such assurance of divine forgiveness or acceptance. In fact, Protestants who join a non-sacramental sect must trust that their confessions of guilt were heard by God, accepted as valid and actually absolved. They are told that their confession to God is “heard” but no human being is touching them, absolving them or telling them that a sacramental change has occurred. The forgiveness for most Protestants happens not in the public arena of a church, but in the private recesses of the mind. This personal confession, according to Weber, creates a level of insecurity about whether or not one has actually received God’s forgiveness, which then forms a collective anxiety for Protestants who are not in sects that
believe in a sacramental type of forgiveness. Calvinists dealt with this anxiety by strict adherence to rules for “right living.” For example, Puritan punishment in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter” is to force a woman caught in adultery to wear a red letter “A” around her neck. Violations of the rules were dealt with authoritatively. Since Calvinist sects and their deviants dominated the American religious ideology for hundreds of years, this could be one reason for the differences in punishment ideologies that trickled into criminal justice systems. What emerges in the U.S. is a penal system grounded in a Protestant fundamentalist religious history, with a strong sense of right and wrong and a penchant for justifying abuse.
MODEL:
NAYKE KING
ESHA
NAYKESHA KING
Iran and Russia discuss increasing military ties; Iran blasts US for 'violation' of nuclear deal By ARIEL BEN SOLOMON Senior Iranian and Russian defense officials discussed improving defense ties in a meeting in Moscow on Sunday. “Iran and Russia have the needed capacities to broaden their mutual cooperation in the defense field,” Brig.-Gen. Vali Madani said during a meeting with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Iran’s Fars News Agency reported. They met after the International Army Games 2016 began on Saturday. The Iranian commander voiced his satisfaction with the friendly ties between Tehran and Moscow, and the Russian defense minister said that the countries have agreed to expand their defense relations. “Iran’s armed forces have good relations with Russia. We are sure the competitions will strengthen them more,” Madani said on Saturday according to the report. “We are grateful to Russia for holding these very significant competitions. We are looking forward to winning them,” he said. Contingents from Iran’s army, Islamic Revolutionary Guards, Basij militia and police are taking part in the competition in Russia and Kazakhstan, Russian state news agency Sputnik reported. Teams from 30 member countries, including China, Belarus and Azerbaijan, are participating. Meanwhile, the spokesman for Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, Behrouz Kamalvandi, blasted the US for what he claimed was violating the nuclear deal signed last summer by preventing cooperation between large international corporations and Tehran. “We have not violated the nuclear deal, but the other side has violated it through its political approach toward huge firms,” Kamalvandi said in an interview with Iranian staterun TV on Saturday night, Fars reported. Sanctions regarding human rights and terrorism charges remain in force, the Atomic Energy Organization spokesman noted, claiming they violate the nuclear agreement. On the Syrian front, Hossein Sheikholeslam, a senior adviser to Iran’s foreign minister, said the Islamic Republic would continue its “advisory” assistance to the Syrian government until the elimination of all terrorist threats to the country, Iran’s Tasnim News Agency reported. He spoke about “Western countries plots” to topple from power Syrian President Bashar Assad. Separately, Ankara’s ambassador to Tehran, Reza Hakan Tekin, praised Iran for quickly coming out against the Turkish coup attempt. “Iranian officials, including the president and parliament speaker as well as the Iranian nation, stood by the Turkish government and nation,” he told Tasnim in an interview, the website reported on Sunday. Tekin noted that President Hassan Rouhani told counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a recent phone conversation that he stayed awake all night to follow the coup developments. Shi’ite Iran and Sunni Turkey are on opposite sides of the regional sectarian conflicts.
re A y h W o: a n ist T i h C c a n I R n o a S ? i e r e l e r p Nig ple He k Peo c o a l e P ds B r a w “There are so many more Chinese people who live in my country and yet they don’t get hassled anywhere near as much as we do in China! Why?” Eric Olander and Cobus van Staden are the duo behind the China Africa Project and hosts of the popular China in Africa Podcast. We’re here to answer your most pressing, puzzling, even politically incorrect questions, about all things related to the Chinese in Africa and Africans in China. China’s engagement in Africa is a distinctly 21st century phenomenon and, as such, is still poorly understood by most people, most notably among Chinese and Africans themselves who are still getting to know one another. In that spirit, we’ve started this new column as a way to help spark dialogue and cross-cultural communication in order to explore this fascinating, complex relationship. In many instances, people are either too shy or embarrassed to publicly ask that question that could be misconstrued as insensitive or politically incorrect. In an issue like this that touches on questions of race, power and culture, things can get messy real fast. Instead, we’ll take each question seriously, and with the benefit of our backgrounds in China-Africa journalism and academic scholarship, we’ll do our best to give you a thoughtful, well-reasoned response. So let’s get started... Hey Guys: why are Chinese people so racist towards black people? I mean really. I am from Nigeria and I have lived in Guangzhou for 6 months already and I can tell you that a lot of people here really don’t like black people. What %$^&#* me off so much is that there are so many more Chinese people who live in my country and yet they don’t get hassled anywhere near as much as we do in China! Why? — Sent from Guangzhou via email *** Yeah, you’re totally right to be upset because it sucks big time to be on the receiving end of any kind of discrimination, racism or prejudice. So we get that. Before I go any further, though, I also want to point out that none of my explanations here are intended to justify people being jerks and their bad behavior. However, there is a context here that may be helpful to shed some light on why some Chinese people seemingly respond negatively to blacks, whites and people of other ethnicities (yes, it’s not just a black thing). The Chinese will take every opportunity they can find to talk about their 5,000 years of history and that theirs is the longest continuous civilization on Earth (which is pretty impressive). For all of that history, including the present, China has been almost exclusively a mono-ethnic culture that is basically ethnic Han Chinese. Moreover, throughout Chinese history there has been a strong belief that they are superior to all other countries and people. As you may already know, the word “China” in Chinese is pronounced “zhong guo,” which literally
means “Middle Kingdom,” or in plain English, “The Center of the Universe.” So combine the fact that there has long been a sense of cultural superiority that is deeply ingrained in Chinese culture mixed with the fact that the vast majority of Chinese people you meet on the streets of Guangzhou have probably never interacted with someone of another race or ethnicity and, well, you have all you need for a lot of cultural misunderstanding. But wait, there’s more… When I worked at a radio station in Hong Kong way back in the day (really really way back in the day in 1990), a young student intern in the company would often quiz me about life in the U.S.. Not surprisingly, it didn’t take long for our discussions to turn to the issue of race. For someone who’s grown up largely around Chinese people, she was particularly intrigued about what it was like to live in a more racially diverse country. Interestingly, though, when I turned the question around and asked about her views on black people in particular, she became much more animated. She told me straight up that when she sees a black person on the street she crosses the street in fear. Wait what?! Curious about what in the world could provoke such mortal fear, I had to find out what she was so afraid of: “Have you ever met a black person?” I asked. “No,” she answered without hesitation. “Have you ever even spoken to a black person?” Again, without any reservation, she said, “no.” The vast majority of Chinese people you meet on the streets of Guangzhou have probably never interacted with someone of another race or ethnicity. “So let me get this straight,” I followed up feeling a bit agitated over the stunning level of ignorance, “you’ve never met or even talked with a black person but yet you are so afraid that they might hurt you that you cross the street to get away? It just doesn’t make any sense.” She then went on to explain that the only black people she has ever seen are in Hollywood movies and in almost every movie the black person is the violent, bloodthirsty bad guy who hurts people. “So I know what I see from the movies and I just don’t want to take any chances,” she explained with that “duh” look at me as if I was the idiot! That night I went to a movie theater to try and see the world not as an American who grew up in a multicultural environment but someone who is ethnic Chinese. I saw the Sylvester Stallone movie “Cliffhanger” (totally dating myself here, I know) and sure enough guess who was the bad guy who tried to kill the white movie superstar? Yup, the main black character! Not only that, he had blood dripping from his teeth and depicted to be not only violent but immoral, and since that was the ONLY black character in the film, it highlights just how racist American films have been and continue to be today in their depictions of black and brown people. So to wrap this all up, sure, there are racist jerks in China just as there are everywhere. However, a lot of these people are struggling themselves to live in a suddenly new multicultural environment that challenges a lot of what they have learned from their own culture on top of the fact that a lot of the messaging about black people they consume from Hollywood and elsewhere contributes to their ignorant attitudes. As China engages the world and more of the world comes to China, a lot of these views will likely begin to change. It will take time… so in the meantime, the best thing I can tell you is hang in there and good luck! — Eric
China Scores A Victory At ASEAN Over South China Sea Ruling The international organization dropped a U.S.-backed proposal to mention a legal ruling against China.
(Reuters) - China scored a diplomatic victory on Monday as Southeast Asian nations dropped a U.S.backed proposal to mention a landmark international court ruling against Beijing’s territorial claims in the South China Sea in a joint statement. A weekend deadlock between Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers was broken only when the Philippines withdrew its request to mention the ruling in the face of resolute objections from Cambodia, China’s closest ASEAN ally. China publicly thanked Phnom Penh for the support, which threw the regional bloc’s meeting in the Laos capital of Vientiane into disarray. The United States had earlier on Monday urged ASEAN to make a reference to the July 12 ruling by the U.N.-backed Permanent Court of Arbitration, in which U.S. ally Manila won an emphatic legal victory over China on the dispute. In a meeting with host Laos’ Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry “urged ASEAN to reach consensus and issue a joint statement on the arbitral tribunals recent ruling on the South China Sea,” said U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner. Kerry pressed the issue during other bilateral meetings with ASEAN members, Toner said. Competing claims with China in the vital shipping lane are among the most contentious issues for the 10 members of ASEAN, who are pulled between their desire to assert their sovereignty while fostering ties with an increasingly assertive Beijing. ASEAN CONSENSUS The Philippines and Vietnam both wanted the ruling, which denied China’s sweeping claims in the strategic seaway that channels more than $5 trillion in global trade each year, and a call to respect international maritime law to feature in the communique. But ASEAN works strictly by consensus, and Cambodia rejected the wording on the ruling, diplomats said, backing instead China’s call for bilateral discussions. Manila backed down to prevent the disagreement leading to the group failing to issue a joint statement after a meeting for only the second time in its 49-year history. The communique referred instead to the need to find peaceful resolutions to disputes in the South China Sea in accordance with international law, including the United Nations’ law of the sea, to which the court ruling referred. “We remain seriously concerned about recent and ongoing developments and took note of the concerns expressed by some ministers on the land reclamations and escalation of activities in the area, which have eroded trust and confidence, increased tensions and may undermine peace, security and stability in the region,” the ASEAN communique said. ASEAN Secretary General Le Luong Minh said that the communique was not a victory for China, but for ASEAN’s values and principle of finding consensus. But he conceded an earlier proposal for the communique referred to the court’s decision. In a separate statement, China and ASEAN reaffirmed a commitment to freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea and said they would refrain from activities that would complicate or escalate disputes. That included inhabiting any presently uninhabited islands or reefs, it added. China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi said a page had been turned after the “deeply flawed” ruling and it was time to lower the temperature in the dispute. “It seems like certain countries from outside the region have got all worked up, keeping the fever high,” Wang told reporters. China frequently blames the United States for raising tensions in the region and has warned regional rival Japan to steer clear of the dispute. MAJOR POWERS ARRIVE The United States, allied with the Philippines and cultivating closer relations with Vietnam, has called on China to respect the court’s ruling. It has criticized China’s building of artificial islands and facilities in the sea and has sailed warships close to the disputed territory to assert freedom of navigation rights. Meeting U.S. National Security Adviser Susan Rice in Beijing, Chinese State Councillor Yang Jiechi said
both countries needed to make concerted efforts to ensure stable and good relations between the two major powers. “So far this year, relations between China and the United States have generally been stable, maintaining coordination and cooperation on bilateral, regional and international level. Meanwhile, both sides face challenging differences that need to be carefully handled,” said Yang, who outranks the foreign minister. Kerry arrived in Laos on Monday for the ASEAN regional forum and East Asia summits. After a meeting with the foreign ministers of Japan and Australia, the three countries issued a statement in which they called on China and the Philippines to abide by the court ruling “which is final and legally binding on both parties.” “The ministers stressed that this is a crucial opportunity for the region to uphold the existing rules-based international order and to show respect for international law,” they said. Kerry was also expected to discuss maritime issues in a meeting with Wang on Monday.
Government pledges to fight racism against Ethiopians By LIDAR GRAVÉ-LAZI I am not willing to tolerate racism in our country,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday evening as attorney Ami Palmor, director-general of the Justice Ministry, presented him with a report with recommendations on how to eradicate racism against Ethiopian Israelis. “I refuse to let people be discriminated against based on the color of their skin; it is a terrible thing,” the prime minister said. The 170-page report acknowledges the racism and discrimination faced by Ethiopian Israelis on a daily basis and presents 53 recommendations for government ministries to implement. An interministerial task force compiled the report following widespread protests by Ethiopian Israelis in May 2015. The prime minister said that he and his ministerial committee had heard “heart-wrenching and hair-raising stories” of racism and discrimination against Ethiopian Israelis. “We decided to take countermeasures against racism even before [hearing the stories],” he said. “But now, due to this report which is a part of our decision-making process, we will take further steps, and I am happy that there are people – women and men – who are steadfast in uprooting this phenomenon from our lives. “This doesn’t suit our country, our citizens, or our people,” he said. The task force met with numerous experts and representatives from the Ethiopian community and heard their grievances before formulating the report. Palmor said: “During our work, the team was forced again and again to look into the mirror that the Ethiopian community in Israel held up for them, and deal with the grim reality, a reality in which our dark-skinned citizens stand out the most and are the most visible [minority], and at the same time, invisible in so many other respects.” The report outlines incidents of racism and discrimination faced by Israelis of Ethiopian background – from rejection of their blood donations and segregation in maternity wards, to their exclusion from schools and workplaces – based on ethnicity and a lack of recognition from the religious establishment. The report also discussed incidents of police brutality, deemed mainly responsible for sparking the protests. One episode that received a lot of the attention was the case of Yosef Salamsa, an Ethiopian-Israeli youth who committed suicide in July 2014 a few months after his arrest in Zichron Ya’acov. Police officers had allegedly abused him. Another incident involved a video that went viral showing police officers abusing Ethiopian-Israeli soldier Damas Pakada in Holon in April of last year. The task force’s main recommendations include the establishment of a unit within the Justice Ministry to coordinate the fight against racism as well as the appointment of an “officer against discrimination and racism” for every government ministry.
The task force also called for disciplinary action against civil servants and professionals in cases of “racial harassment” as well as providing free legal representation for those claiming racial discrimination in public places. With regard to the police, the report noted that several recommendations have already been implemented and called for the expansion of several programs to reduce discrimination, including a pilot program that equips officers with body cameras in cities with a high concentration of Ethiopian Israelis. The report also encourages holding seminars for employers and employees to eliminate stereotypes and address racism in the workplace. Other such seminars involve employers and Ethiopian Israelis and explore ways of integrating Ethiopian academics into the civil service. The report recommends that the Education Ministry train and integrate Ethiopian-Israeli educators and school principals. It also urges schools to “increase the use of content and textbooks” pertaining to the history and heritage of Ethiopian Jews, as well as books promoting diversity. Additionally, the report called for increasing the “positive presence” of Ethiopians in the public sphere, culture and media.
AVADORA MIMOUNI Height: 5' 11" Weight: 135 lbs Bust: 34" Waist: 25" Hips: 36" Born in the islands of the Azores Portugual , imigrated to Usa 1996, Worked in Nyc for Patricia Field . experience modeling , now acting ..... Published Model Cosmopolitan Magazine Fashion Avenue News Magazine Model World Magazine Sheeba Magazine Billie Blunt Magazine Indulge Magazine
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JUST-US DON'T SLEEP Why have so many black people been shot down this year?. Why is it that black people must live in fear? Why must we tolerate poor wages and less means? I mean it has been that way, since I first stepped on the scene. Why is wrong for me to defend my self? Why am I the victim for fighting back, just like everyone else. Why do I go to jail so quick, get pressured into confessions and wrong directions? Why are so many affraid, of the black man's erection? Is it because someone knows the truth or two about my precious past, is that the reason for his hatered, the reason he wants to destroy my ass? Did he read about Kemet, or hear about Timbuktu? Did someone tell him about the Zulu and make him aware of the Bantu? I think he knew about them nubian riders of times long gone, and he promised he would never let them rise again, because that is where he went wrong. Well I’m here to tell you, you can be as mad as you want, but believe me, you will no longer have the power to flaunt. Wait until Obama leaves, and the ball is in your court, then we can all see who really rules this righteous blood sport. Your head start won't help you, for God has appointed your time. And just like opressors before you, you will drop your own dime. You will call to the angels, but none shall hear, you will call to your God, but none will appear. You will run for protection, but you can't hide. Because justice will surrond you, and burn through your wicked eyes. Then and only then, can we all be free! by Saadiq Busby
Mexico Supreme Court: Individuals Have the Right to Consume and Cultivate Marijuana By Drug Policy Alliance MEXICO CITY — In a 4 to 1 vote, Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the prohibition of the consumption and cultivation of marijuana for personal use is unconstitutional. The Court determined that the prohibition of the consumption of marijuana – and its cultivation for non-commercial ends – violates the human right to the free development of one’s personality. This landmark case could lead to the legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes if followed up with legislation. “This vote by Mexico’s Supreme Court is extraordinary for two reasons: it is being argued on human rights grounds and it is taking place in one of the countries that has suffered the most from the war on drugs,” said Hannah Hetzer, Senior Policy Manager of the Americas at the Drug Policy Alliance. “Uruguay became the first country to legalize marijuana, Canada is expected soon to follow suit, medical marijuana initiatives are spreading throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, and marijuana is legal in a number of U.S. states. Now with this landmark decision out of Mexico, it is clear that the Americas are leading the world in marijuana reform.” The public debate on marijuana has surged in Mexico in recent months since the case of an 8-year old girl with epilepsy who became Mexico’s first medical marijuana patient made national and international headlines. The government granted the right to import and administer a cannabis-based treatment for the young patient. Marijuana reform has gained unprecedented momentum throughout the Americas. In the United States, Colorado, Washington, Alaska, Oregon, and Washington D.C. have legalized marijuana for adults. In December 2013, Uruguay became the first country in the world to legally regulate marijuana. In Canada, the new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Liberal Party have promised to legalize marijuana. There are currently medical marijuana legalization bills being debated in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Mexico.
The Cannabis Manifesto Sara Davidson In The Cannabis Manifesto, Steve DeAngelo has written what amounts to the Declaration of Independence for Cannabis. He's been a leader of the movement to reform marijuana laws for more than 40 years, and is said to know "more about cannabis than almost anyone else." In clear, graceful prose, he begins with a truth he holds to be self-evident: "Cannabis is not harmful, but prohibition is." The War on Drugs, he writes, has resulted in the unjust jailing of men of color, the enriching of violent cartels, and the blocking of effective treatments for cancer, epilepsy--especially childhood seizures--and Alzheimer's disease. When marijuana is legal, he asserts, crime goes down, suicide rates fall, health benefits are experienced, and tax revenues rise. Unlike other books about pot that are sprouting like--excuse the word--weeds, DeAngelo cites studies and references for the assertions he makes. He explains how marijuana fights cancer, and shows that it's a safe alternative to alcohol, painkillers, and surgery. He believes it should be called a "wellness product," not an intoxicant, because, among other benefits, it can facilitate compromise and understanding, "awaken a sense of wonder and playfulness.... enhance the flavor of a meal, the sound of music or a lover's touch," and inspire creativity. DeAngelo's personal story is compelling: born into an alcoholic family, he dropped out of school at 15 to join the Yippies, organized smoke-ins in front of the White House, started businesses, went back to college for his degree, and in 2006, co-founded the Harborside Health Center in Oakland, CA, the largest medical marijuana dispensary in the country, with more than 200,000 patients. It sets the gold standard for the industry, testing all products for safety and potency before dispensing them, and offering its patients free classes, support groups, and alternative healing treatments like acupuncture and chiropractic. DeAngelo is instantly recognizable, wearing long Willie Nelson braids, an earring and mustache, along with a suit and tie and black bowler hat. He speaks with both fierce intelligence and gentleness, and has learned to create businesses that make money while exemplifying social justice. In an interview, I asked him how the Harborside staff can advise patients on how much and which marijuana products to take for specific medical conditions. He said the scientific data doesn't exist yet, because, until recently, it's been illegal to conduct research and double-blind studies. But his staff can share what they've learned and observed by working with patients for nine years. One example DeAngelo relates is about his mother, who developed Alzheimer's before she died. She was living with DeAngelo, and at night would start wailing with "pure despair," he said. When he tried to console her, it made things worse--she grew more agitated. One night he brought her a small pipe of marijuana. She'd been a smoker and enjoyed cigarettes, so she took a few puffs and immediately grew calm, he said. "After that, whenever she saw the
pipe, she'd start calming down. That was one of the few things I could do to bring her peace." The Cannabis Manifesto asserts eight truths, the last of which is: "Legalization cannot and will not be stopped." DeAngelo expects pot to become federally legal after the 2020 presidential election. "I don't think any candidate will take this on in his first term," he said. But given how many U.S. senators and representatives are coming out in support of it, I'm inclined to think it may be sooner. The Cannabis Manifesto has the power to speed the process.
I want to give a very special congratulations to Sofia Davis and Fashion Avenue News Magazine on their 5th year anniversary. Sofia Davis is one of those rare special people, who desrve all the best that life can offer. She has been a star amongst the many stars who she has helped to obtain stardom. No one works harder than Sofia Davis and no one helps out others like she does. She is the truth and her company is bound to continue in success. From all of us who you have helped, we like to say thank you and may God continue to shine upon you. ShakesSpearDark
Medical Marijuana Banana Bread This is a favorite amongst my friends and we usually use it for morning medication. Be sure to use ripe bananas with black spots on the peel. The prep time is usually 13 minutes and the bake time is usually around one hour an twenty five minutes. This recipe will make one loaf of marijuana banana bread. To prepare and make Marijuana Banana Bread you will need: 1 teaspoon of salt 1 teaspoon of baking soda 10 tablespoons of Cannabutter (see recipe for cannabutter above) 1 cup of sugar 2 cups of flour 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract 2 ripe bananas (with black spots on the peel) ½ cup of sour cream 2 Large eggs Preheat the oven to 350 F and adjust the rack to the lower middle level. Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan with more cannabutter. Whisk the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and set it aside. Cream the cannabutter and sugar in a large bowl with a hand held or preferably a electric mixer until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Then, Beat in the eggs one at a time. Beat in the vanilla, bananas and sour cream until well mixed. Gradually add the flour to the wet mixture and stir until it is well mixed. Transfer the batter to the pan (that has been greased with cannabutter and bake for about an hour or until you can place a knife in the loaf and nothing sticks to the knife. Cool the loaf for about 15 minutes in the pan, then turn the loaf out of the pan to cool completely. Important Disclosure: *Please remember that when you cook with medical marijuana you are cooking with a drug and the amounts and sizes of the drug and portions of the food ingested should always be taken into consideration. Always start out with small portions or doses and wait 30 minutes to an hour before eating any additional portions of medical marijuana foods.*
Medical Marijuana Butter (Cannabutter) Quick and Easy Marijuana Butter or (Cannabutter) The great thing about this cannabutter is that it can be used in such a wide variety of recipes. Many great recipes call for butter or oil and cannabutter can be replaced with both. To prepare and make cannabutter you will need: 1 pound of butter ( salted or unsalted ) 1 to 2 ounces of marijuana ( leaves & trimmings ) Or 1 quarter ounce of marijuana (buds) 1 fairly fine strainer ( or screen, pantyhose) 1 large cooking pot (crock-pot or electric skillet) 1 gallon of water Put the water into the cooking pot and add the marijuana. Cook the concoction until it is simmering, then add the butter (cutting it into pieces first). Simmer in the pot for 2 - 3 hours, and wait until most all of the water evaporates, while you stir it on occasion (This process will create quite a strong aroma of marijuana. Remember to cook the cannabutter while you are not expecting company.) Let the concoction cool for 30 minutes to an hour, then strain all of the contents of the pot into a bowl and place it in refrigerator. (Depending on your preference, the contents of the pot can be strained several times. Each additional straining produces a finer and higher grade of cannabutter ) When the strained mixture is cold and mostly in a solid form ( 30 - 60 minutes ), then remove the cannabutter from the refrigerator and pour the remaining water off of the top, thus leaving the butter intact and whole. Put the cannabutter in the microwave for roughly 30 - 60 seconds, until the cannabutter is soft enough to move into a storage container. Keep the cannabutter stored in the refrigerator for a month or so or you can keep it longer if you freeze it. * This recipe makes 1 to 1 & 1/2 cups of fantastic cannabutter.
ST. LUCIA
"a great place to visit, a hard place to leave"
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AFRIKA'S OWN mISTY sTONE phots by Kevin Kolosky
LEGENDARY adult star HEATHER HUNTER WITH MARY JANE phots by Kevin Kolosky
A NEW WAY The old world is gone, it is a thing of the past; now I can climb out of my sorrows and have a good laugh. For last year I died many deaths, but I continue to win; a tropper, a soldier, a General to the very end. I have taken shots in Ferguson, Baltimore, New York, and Texas too, I have been shot so many times last year; that it has lost it's meaning to you. But still I survive, kicking death to the side, giving God thanks and praises for keeping me wise and alive. For no force can stop me and no one can control my rage, I promise you this year, I will rise even moor and defeat death from the grave. I promise to live a better life to come back for a task, to make our world a better world and kick satan's ass. Some say you must be kidding, but it can be done, if you face your fears, then my job is done. By Saadiq Busby
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