BlackPerspective.net

I skipped a breath at reading this. It’s bad enough he died, but that’s him and his brother both dead 17 months apart at almost the same relatively young age - goodness, that’s gotta be tough for the family.

Sean LeVert, one third of 80/90s soul trio LeVert, and younger brother of and son of Gerald LeVert and the O’Jays’ Eddie LeVert respectively, died Sunday night.

According to Music.Yahoo.com “Levert was sent to the Cuyahoga County jail last week for failing to pay child support. He died at Lutheran Hospital in Cleveland late Sunday, less than an hour after he was taken there from the jail, said coroner Frank Miller.”

Well, I was a pretty big LeVert fan. Casanova is one of my all time favorite songs from my childhood. I guess I’ll go home tonight and dig out my LeVert cassetts.

Starting with their first album in 1985 the group put out four consecutive platinum albums: I Get Hot, Bloodline in 1986, The Big Throwdown in 1987 and Just Coolin’ in 1988. They reeled off classic singles and anthems such as “Pop Goes My Mind”, “Casanova”, and “Just Coolin”.

Their sound was a mixture of classic soul and up-tempo, rhythmic new jack swing.

After older brother Gerald embarked on a successful solo career, the group came back together intermittently including for 1993’s For Real Tho’ and 1997’s The Whole Senario ablums.

Sean made his own solo attempt in 1995 with “Other Side “, but it made no head way on the charts.

R.I.P. Sean
9/28/68 to 3/30/08

It really doesn’t make sense. Hillary Clinton gives rousing speeches about the crises that sub-prime mortgage lenders methods have caused our country, yet she hired a director of a major sub-prime lender, Delta Financial, to be her campaign manager. Magret ‘Maggie” Williams, sat on the board of Delta making 175,000 over the last two years as Americans lost their homes to her mortgage campany’s sub-prime rip off.

“Clinton Communications Director Howard Wolfson told FOXNews.com late Sunday that Williams, a longtime Clinton ally, didn’t join Clinton’s Democratic presidential campaign as a volunteer until after Delta Financial Corporation — for which Williams is a director — went bankrupt in December 2007.”

Is that supposed to be a selling point here? So what’s the argument; after bankrupting American families, Maggie helped run her business into the ground? That explains the Clinton campaign’s financial woes.

How can we believe that Hillary Clinton’s fighting for us when she’s so tied to big money corporate interest? This revelation comes less than a week after Clinton’s rich corperate donors threatened to destroy the Democratic Congressional Caucus if they didn’t get their way from Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic Leadership visa via the party nomination.

Is Maggie Williams going to be a part of Clinton’s administration, as campaign mangers often are (i.e. Republican Dick Morris was Bill’s top political advisor in the white house after being his campaign manager in ’96). If so, how’s she going to stand up to Wall Street and Financial predators, when one of those very predators is over policy.

People say all types of things on the campaign trail; but I think it’s indisputable that the type of people you put over policy tells more truth about what type of policies a candidate will have. As Mrs. Clinton is so fond of saying, words are not action. She can say whatever she wants, but having a Sub-prime lender run her campaign is action that speaks louder than her words; just like how George Bush said he would be a “compassionate conservative” in 2000, then picked Cheney to be his vice president. That was a signal of his true intentions. There’s nothing the least bit compassionate about Dick Cheney, and the record shows what kind of policy he lorded over. Will “Sub-prime Maggie” have a say in shaping financial policy in a Clinton White House?

It should be no surprise though that Senator Clinton would be cozied up to corporate interest, given the position she’s take on corporate interest in her campaign.

About a year ago Hillary Clinton angrily lets us know how much she’s for special interest; and resents being asked to part with them:

The Long Version:

Question for the readers: Do corporate lobbyist represent you?

This is a letter from Color of Change about the latest injustice at the Louisiana State Prison at Angola; once a plantation and still is.

Dear Friend,

After a week of intense public pressure, officials at Angola prison moved Herman Wallace and Albert Woodfox out of solitary confinement for the first time in 35 years. But they’re still locked up, for a crime everyone knows they didn’t commit.

ColorOfChange.org members have helped turn things around by making it a political liability for the authorities at Angola to keep Wallace and Woodfox in solitary confinement. I’ve joined them to keep the pressure on by forcing federal and state authorities to intervene and release these innocent men who have been punished for challenging the violence and segregation at Angola.

Will you join me?

www.colorofchange.org/angola3/?id=1456-138198

Prisoners picking cotton at Angola in 1999

When ColorOfChange.org spoke up about the Jena 6, it was about more than helping six Black youth in a small town called Jena. It was about standing up against a system of unequal justice that deals an uneven hand based on the color of one’s skin. That broken system is at work again and ColorOfChange.org is joining The Innocence Project and Amnesty International to challenge it in the case of the Angola 3.

“Angola”, sits on 18,000 acres of former plantation land in Louisiana and is estimated to be one of the largest prisons in the United States. Angola’s history is telling: once considered one of the most violent, racially segregated prison in America, almost a prisoner a day was stabbed, shot or raped. Prisoners were often put in inhumane extreme punishment camps for small infractions. The Angola 3 - Herman, Albert and Robert - organized hunger and work strikes within the prison in the 70’s to protest continued segregation, corruption and horrific abuse facing the largely Black prisoner population.

Shortly after they spoke out, the Angola 3 were convicted of murdering a prison guard by an all-white jury. It is now clear that these men were framed to silence their peaceful revolt against inhumane treatment. Since then, they have spent every day for 35 years in 6×9 foot cells for a crime they didn’t commit.

Herman and Albert are not saints. They are the first to admit they’ve committed crimes. But, everyone agrees that their debts to society for various robbery convictions were paid long ago.

NBC News/Dateline just aired a piece this week about the plight of the Angola 3. And it’s time to finally get some justice for Herman and Albert. For far too long, court officials have stalled and refused to review their cases. Evidence of prosecutorial misconduct and constitutional violations have not swayed them.

It’s now time for the Governor of Louisiana and the United States Congress, which provides the funding for federal prisons like Angola, to step in and say enough is enough. Please join us in calling for Governor Bobby Jindal and your Congressperson to initiate an immediate and full investigation into the case of the Angola 3.

www.colorofchange.org/angola3/?id=1456-138198

Thanks.

[I sent this to Mr. Rall about 4 days ago. Having given him sufficient time to clarify himself, I feel it fair to take public.]

Open Letter To Ted Rall - You Just Had To Racial

Ted, for the life of me I can’t understand why you choose to insinuate, and stoke racial stereotypes and fears, that Blacks would start a race riot just because our candidate didn’t win.

How many instances can you name, of the Black community rioting just because a Black candidate didn’t win an election, that would lead you to this thinking?

The suggestion in your piece, “IS CHICAGO BURNING?”, that subsequently doesn’t provide any reasoning to back your hypothesis of Black race riots if Obama doesn’t win0; is so out of place and out of line.

I saw someone make that type of comment in response to an online article somewhere today, and brushed the person off as the typical racist lunatic fringe; but here you are echoing the same sentiment.

I enjoyed over the years you taking the Bush white house and company to task over the war, and even having some on point things to say about Katrina and race; and then you do this 180?

You say “precedents count”; well where is your precedent to even suggest that Blacks would riot over a losing candidate? To the contrary, all precedent would suggest that if any group in America were going to riot over the outcome of political elections or policy, it would be middle to upper class white’s in their late teens and 20s.

You know that ’68 Chicago convention you referenced; who do you think those folks were? They sure weren’t “black ghetto youth” from the south side. Actually Hillary Clinton admits to being their in her hometown to supposedly to “observe”; but claims she didn’t participate.

At all the WTO and the war protesting, particularly the ones where the anarchist get violent; do you not see an overwhelming sea of white faces as I always see?

You start off suggesting that Blacks might riot, but then your whole post was about cross-racial Obama supporters turning violent; so why did you even throw out the Black specific nonsense in the first place?

I picked up this story from aapoliticalpundit

From: Nichole Wicks
Date: Fri, Mar 28, 2008 at 3:09 PM
Subject: BLACK ACTIVISTS PARTICIPATE IN STORMING NBC/ABC STUDIOS DEMANDING

BETTER MEDIA COVERAGE OF OBAMA

Hello!

I just wanted to let you know that we delivered the 200,000+ petitions with
MoveOn.org demanding better media coverage around the elections – in
particular Barak Obama. We had almost 50 people in attendance and we
anticipate continuing to hold FOX accountable for their racist and
culturally insensitive journalism. I’ve included additional material about
our investigative videos illustrating this problematic coverage at FOX.
Folks – particularly Black folks often think that there’s nothing to be done
about FOX they’ll still continue to be ‘racist’ or ‘bigots’ but we believe
that you shouldn’t let them get away with it, call them out on it their
bigotry, and that you CAN fight back by calling them out on their tabloid
coverage. Take care and please feel free to contact me for further
information.

Nichole

Here’s the Brave New Films Fox Attacks Petition, that I signed yesterday. You’ll want to see their video about the Fox virus that the rest of media is parroting, just like my contention that they parroted Fox on election night 2,000 having called the Florida for Gore and switching only after Fox called it for Bush, and parroted them in the flag waving drumb beat to war in Iraq.

I didn’t see the MoveOn.org petion for this, but here’s another petition regarding Hillary’s threat to the entire Democratic Congressional Caucus.

“A music teacher from Dublin transforms a Bronx elementary school by turning her students on to the joys of Irish dancing.”

See Video Here

I don’t care for the Irish Dance all so much, but I do like seeing Black kids exposed to other things, and broadening their horizon and world view at an early age.

The bad thing: I bet another “how the great white hope teacher saved the Negroes” movie is coming based on this.

[Edited to add: This was Faxed to Chairman Dean, House Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid; before I posted it.]

Open Letter to Chairman Dean and the DNC

On Tuesday March 25, the Afrosphere Action Coalition and the Committee To Unite The Democratic Party embarked on a day of Blogging for Voter Justice, encouraging those who don’t want to see John McCain as our next president to sign our petition (www.petitiononline.com/ACUDP2/petition.html) and to let the Democratic National Committee know how they feel about this divisive campaign that is raging on despite the fact that the will of the majority of Democratic voters has been decided.

Three of our representatives have contacted the DNC for a response as to why they are letting this self-destructive catastrophe continue unabated; leaving phone messages for Chairman Dean and Communications Director Karen Finney. Likewise, any numbers of emails have been sent and have not been responded to; so we’ll speak to you via this letter and ask that Democratic Party leaders take decisive action and bring to a close this temper tantrum by Senator Clinton.

Please do not tell us that you are neutral and that you can do nothing. This is simply not true. Chairman Dean gets to appoint the credential committee. He can choose to appoint people that will unfairly seat the Florida and Michigan delegates, or appoint a committee that will stick to the DNC’s own rules, which Hillary agreed to. All of the superdelegates can come together and make a decision now that would render one campaign or the other pointless. Certainly Democrats cannot choose to wrench the nomination away from the popular vote winner; but if that’s what you will do, do it now and get it over with one way or the other.

Operation Chaos, as you must know, is an organized effort by the republicans to flood the democratic primaries with votes for Hillary Clinton to keep the Democratic slugfest going so that the apparent eventual winner, Barack Obama, will be so damaged by Hillary’s tactics that they then can finish him off in the fall.

These Operation Chaos voters are not the republicans switching over because they actually want to vote for a democrat in November, but are people intentionally trying to rig the nomination process, and will reregister as republican and vote for McCain in the fall.

All of the DNC members are superdelegates, so in the end they will cast a vote, therefore by definition they are not neutral when it comes down to it. They will each have to make a decision. They should make it now, and actually bother to lead their party, rather than just being head administrators.

You’re allowing Rush Limbaugh and republican crusaders to determine the outcome of the Democratic nomination process, while the bunch of you sit and twiddle your thumbs. Limbaugh is showing leadership within YOUR party, and you’re doing nothing! Operation Chaos proves that Senator Clinton’s vote totals are not representative of sincere votes; but are significantly enhanced by those looking to weaken the Democratic Party candidate, as to pounce on said candidate in the fall.

What the hell is the point of the Superdelegates, if not for this?

Barack Obama is an acceptable candidate both platform wise and elect-ability wise; he’s already secured the vote of the people (those who would actually vote democrat in November) and this continued underhanded, “kitchen sink”, “Tonya Harding Option” campaign does nothing but bloody the eventual nominee, and makes it increasingly likely, week by week, that McCain will be the next president of these United States.

Hillary Clinton is now even threatening the entire Democratic Party to a convention floor fight if they don’t give her, her way visa via Florida and Michigan delegates; she’s sent out her big money stooges to threaten Nancy Pelosi and the entire Democratic Caucus in congress; and has embarked on a campaign of intimidation of superdelegates such as sending out surrogate James Carville to send a shot across any wavering party officials bow with the “Judas” comments regarding Governor Richardson.

Chairman Dean, DNC Members, Congressional Party Leaders and other Superdelegates; when are you going to actually LEAD! What are you for if you’re just going to stand idly by as your party is ripped apart for a nomination that has already been decided anyway?

Are you that scared of the Clinton’s? Are Democrats really as spineless as their growing reputation? Is the party that in love with their former standard bearers that they can’t move on from the Clinton’s for the sake of the party; even if the Clinton’s are willing to destroy the party for their own personal ambition?

Chairman Dean and DNC, we urge you to act now! Hillary Clinton Must Concede or you all must put down her personal rebellion by coming together as superdelegates for the candidate who has already won.

D. Yobachi Boswell
Afrosphere Action Coalition, Lead Coordinator
lionrunner777@yahoo.com
www.blackperspective.net/

Edited to add: [Opps I “misspoke”, but not by remembering a gun battle that I was in that never happened; but by saying “federal court”; this apparently was state court, I guess because no weapon was used. I still don’t see why one of them is just going home.]

What, one of them gets off scott free, and the other a lax punishment for bank robbery; which is one of the most vigurously prosecuted federal crimes.

I guess when white women cry, things go well for them.

If that would have been Shameka and Shawna instead of a couple of Becky’s, I can just imagine what the sentencing would be like.

In an unprecedented move Senator Clinton has already endorsed the other party’s candidate over the leading candidate in her own party. Now she has threatened the Democratic party as a whole to give her what she wants or she will mire the party in a devastating 1968 like credentials fight at the Convention.

Likewise, her rich, self-entitled surrogates today threatened the entire party by sending a letter to Nancy Pelosi saying that if Pelosi doesn’t support Hillary’s position visa via the superdelegates, they will withdraw funding, not just for Pelosi specifically; but for all Democrats running for congress in 2008.

How the hell can the Democratic Leadership just sit on their hands and abide this woman’s tyrannical kamikaze-ing of the party? She tears down the front running candidate, who’s virtually already won, weakening him for the general election; uplifts the other party’s candidate, and threatens to destroy not only the presidential hopes of the Democratic Party, but also threatens to destroy their congressional power.

As I stated in an open letter to the DNC and Chairman Howard Dean that will be public soon, “when are you going to actually LEAD! What are you there for, if you’re just going to stand idly by as your party is ripped apart for a nomination that has already been decide anyway”?

Here’s the story:

In a teaser of a Greta Van Susteren interview on the Fox program “On The Record”, Hillary dares the Democratic Party to not seat the Florida and Michigan delegates (even though Obama and other viable candidates at the time weren’t on the Michigan ballot), or she will force another dehabilitating fight at the convention. With a sly smile on her face she said that she’s going to make sure those delegates are “seated one way or the other”, and dared the party to not seat those two states’ delegates.

Also, in response to House Speaker and 2008 Democratic Nation Chairwoman Nancy Pelosi saying that superdelegates should not over turn the voters; rich Hillaryites sent her a not so veiled threat about withdrawing financial support for Democratic congressional candidates.

Here’s part of it:

“We have been strong supporters of the DCCC. We therefore urge you to clarify your position on super-delegates and relect in your comments a more open boew to the optional independent actions of each of the delegates at the National Convention in August. We appreciate your activities in support of the Democratic Party and your leadership role in the Party and hope you will be responsible to some of your major enthusiastic supporters.” (The New York Observer)

And note the last sentence says that the Democratic Party should give more weight to the few rich people in the party than to everyone else. How so very republican of them.

“I don’t care how, I want it now!”

Samantha Power was right, she is a “monster” who “will do anything to win”.

Ever since the Republican nomination was wrapped up more than a month ago, republicans, led by Rush Limbaugh, have been engaging in Operation Chaos . The operation is a campaign to have republican voters switch over to the democratic side to vote for Hillary, so that she will hopefully defeat Obama, and they can run against her in the general. And if they can’t defeat Obama in the primary, well just keeping Hillary in there to tear him down is plenty good enough; because that gives them a weakened candidate to finish off at the end of the summer. So as long as these republicans can get her enough votes to keep her campaign going, that’s fine too.

We already knew that this had happened in Ohio and Texas by these people’s own admission on the radio and internet; but now some concrete proof of doing so in a criminal manner.

It seems that some Texans figured they forget switching over, and just voted in both party’s primary elections:

“That’s why Kaufman on Tuesday presented the DA’s office with a list of 1,147 voter names.

Some of them, she says, voted in both the Democratic and Republican primaries. Others, she says, voted twice in the same primary.

“I’m convinced that there are some instances where people had strong feeling on both sides of the aisle where they wanted to vote for a candidate on both ballots thinking they wouldn’t get caught,” Kaufman said.”

You can watch the video here