RE:think

I Gots To Get Me Some Yellow Pants!

Ah, the late 70's and early 80's. I feel like I am back in 4th grade, when life was easy...

After I get those pants I wanna bust out my old saxophone and find a good flute player!

OK, maybe just one more, while we're REMINISCING...

When Does Blogging End?

I've been thinking a lot about my blogging mortality lately. It would be ridiculous to think I'd blog for the rest of my life. There will be an end to it. So here is the question:

How does one know when it's over?

A couple of years ago I thought I'd had enough. I was finished wrestling the demons of my personal history with Christianity  and the Church. I figured that was it. Nothing more to blog about. Then I came back after a month off and the blog became a mish mash of my life and I found that a lot of fun.

But these days I'd like to get back to more "serious" posts. I tried the politics thing. it drove a good bit of traffic to my site, but I found it to be very tiring and fruitless. Maybe I should go with a humorous site instead?

Anyway, I am asking "What now?" Is the fact I can't come up with anything important to blog about mean that my 5 year run is coming to an end?

I dunno. It doesn't feel like the end. But who knows...

Rainy Days Can Be Nice

It's raining off and on here today. So, I am taking the opportunity to be still. I am in the easy chair, legs stretched out on the ottoman, with a book, the laptop, and college football. Now THIS is what I'm talking about.

A Day With Riley

Dodgers Win the West!!!

My son's favorite team helps my favorite team wrap up their division!

Link: ESPN - Diamondbacks vs. Cardinals - Recap - September 25, 2008.

Completely Uncalled For

Again, I should not be shocked, but...

Florida Rep. Alcee Hastings on Wednesday warned two minority groups to beware of Sarah Palin because “anybody toting guns and stripping moose don’t care too much about what they do with Jews and blacks.”

Tell me now, who is injecting race into things?

Alcee Hastings has always been into race bating but these comments take the cake. And it may be there, but this story was strangely missing from CNN and MSNBC. Hmmmm.

I know that there are plenty of things that plenty of folks don't like about Palin, but come on, I have heard nothing that tells me Blacks and Jews need to fear her and her guns. Did he really need to go there?

These are the types of comments that make me truly sad and come close to destroying any hope I have for racial reconciliation here in the US. If they are not as harmful to reconciliation as the racist attitudes that many whites have, they are pretty darn close.

Link: Democratic Congressman Warns Jews, Blacks to Beware of Palin

When Your Kid's Learn

Wow, it really feels good when your child begins reading and can read things back to you. Ricky it making leaps and bounds and it does my heart good to see him reading.

Public schools get a bad wrap many times, but I am a huge supporter of them and the school my children have been blessed to go to. They have had wonderful teachers and the principal is great. To all you teachers out there that don't hear it enough, THANK YOU!

Election Coverage Free

I have been free of all Election coverage for one week now.

And it has been glorious!

Happy Birthday Ricky!!!

7 Years ago today this little (big now) guy came along and made life that much sweeter...

Is There an Elephant in the Room?

First and foremost this post will not be about either man running for president. Nor will it be about their running mates. It also will not be about policy or who I think should win.

This election is one of the most interesting and history making ever. We have one major party with a mixed race candidate that most identify as black. The other party has a woman running in the number two spot. No matter who wins, history will be made. On the issues side, the economy is hurting and gas prices are through the roof. We are at war and still are in the cross hairs of terrorists around the world. Both candidates have fairly distinct approaches to these issues and are supported well by their bases.  We've seen the polls fluctuate the past couple of months with both men in the lead at one time or another but neither really get too far past the margin of error. And this leads me to that elephant:

Barack Obama and his racial heritage.

Now, I am not saying that people are ignoring the history that was made with his nomination. And surely those of us who long for racial reconciliation here in the US are not missing the huge step we would take if he was our first black president. I think these things have been out in front from the beginning. The positives have been more than accentuated. What I am saying is the following.

No one wants to look at these "polls" and admit that one of the ways they may be horribly skewed is by what many call the Bradley, or Wilder Effect. From Wikipedia:

The term Bradley effect, less commonly called^[1] the Wilder effect, refers to a frequently observed discrepancy between voter opinion polls and election outcomes in American political campaigns when a white candidate and a non-white candidate run against each other.^[2][3][4] Named for Tom Bradley, an African-American who lost the 1982 California governor's race despite being ahead in voter polls, the Bradley effect refers to a tendency on the part of white voters to tell pollsters that they are undecided or likely to vote for a Black candidate, when, on election day, they vote for his/her white opponent.^[5]

Now, I am not saying that this is happening or even that the "effect' is real. (let's please not debate "the effect")  But I am willing to admit it is a possibility and I am greatly saddened by it. I disagree with many of Obama's stances on the issues, but for him to lose the election because people are still so prejudiced is disgusting to me.

I was over at the Reconciliation Blog and Edward Gilbreath points to this article. Here is how it starts:

Deep-seated racial misgivings could cost Barack Obama the White House if the election is close, according to an AP-Yahoo News poll that found one-third of white Democrats harbor negative views toward blacks — many calling them "lazy," "violent," responsible for their own troubles.

The poll, conducted with Stanford University, suggests that the percentage of voters who may turn away from Obama because of his race could easily be larger than the final difference between the candidates in 2004 — about two and one-half percentage points.

Certainly, Republican John McCain has his own obstacles: He's an ally of an unpopular president and would be the nation's oldest first-term president. But Obama faces this: 40 percent of all white Americans hold at least a partly negative view toward blacks, and that includes many Democrats and independents.

We all know that polls are not always the best scientific measure, but 40%? I shouldn't be shocked by that number but I am. It's disgusting. And if we assume that some people didn't want to be honest on this one could it be higher?

What I don't understand is why no one is REALLY talking about this. Even many of those who support Obama aren't mentioning it. It truly is the elephant in the room it seems. It is a very real possibility that Obama could lose the election because of his racial heritage. Again, I disagree with him on many many issues, but my own kids share his biracial heritage. If he loses, I want to see him lose on policy, not skin color.

I think this is worth exposing. For a black man in America to come so far only to be shot down yet again by bigots and racists is disheartening.

I also think it is worth having the discussion about this now. Because if Obama loses, we will definitely be having it later. Of course, if we talk about it now, Obama would be more likely to lose. At the least, he wouldn't find any help to his campaign from the discussion. That's why that elephant will continue to be ignored I think.

Technorati Tags: Election 2008,Barack Obama,Racial Reconciliation