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Where it all began...

I decided to pay homage to my first serious attempt at picture taking by dusting off my old Kodak DX3900 point & shoot. I used to go crazy with this camera. I bought a tripod, filters, micro add-on lenses, and all kinds of other accessories. My most exotic was the Crystalvue 8x32 lens... to this day, I don't know what that means, other than incredible zoom at a basement bargain price. Back in '01 it cost me $150, which was crazy to me. Back then, I didn't know that lenses were supposed to cost more than the camera.

This lens reminds me of that scene is Batman, when Jack Nicholson pulls a pistol with a crazy-long barrel out of his pants. This lens looks ridiculous on a point & shoot. It looks like you are compensating. I didn't care though. I got some wonderful shots out of it.

However, I eventually outgrew the capabilities of the old DX3900 and ended up going with the Nikon line of DSLRs.

Enjoy the pictures...

—Madman out

A little knowledge…

“You wouldn’t ask a Jew to vote for a Nazi, would you?”
“No.”
“Then why would you ask for a black man to vote for a democrat?’
“Wait… what???”

And that’s when he started shouting about the Southern Democrats’ ties to the Ku Klux Klan.

This is a perfect example of a how a little bit of knowledge without context can lead an individual to a semi-informed, ridiculous conclusion. The individual I’m referring to goes by the name of Michael Warns. From what I can tell he is a member of the Ft. Lauderdale Tea Party. His problem with Democrats, and blacks who happen to vote for democrats in elections, is that the Southern Democratic Party founded the Ku Klux Klan. In this assertion he is correct, however, he appeared to struggle with the fact that the Democratic party was the driving force behind landmark civil rights legislation that ultimately allowed him to hold his protest without getting arrested. Or worse.

A little history…

There are three resurgences of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). The first was founded in Tennessee by veterans of the Confederate Army before the civil war. This was a terrorist organization operating under the guise of a vigilante group. They killed and terrorized black and white republicans in slave states. The political effects were the consolidation of power for southern Democrats in slave states.

The second emergence of the KKK was a response to social tensions in the Postwar South. By then it had become a nationwide movement against Blacks, Catholics, Communists, Jews and Native Americans. Although it was able to carry out attacks on individuals, these attacks were by and large relegated to southern former slave states.

The third version of the KKK was in response to the civil rights movement gaining momentum to desegregate and elevate the social status of minorities. This is probably the version that Mr. Warns heard about or researched.

A little context…

The Democratic Party was fractured, with the divide most evident between northern and southern democrats. The civil rights bill was introduced by Michael Mansfield, the Democratic whip (person who tries to get the party to vote together on an issue), and Hubert Humphrey, a Democratic Senator from Minnesota. This is a big deal, because it obliterates Warns’s Nazi-Democrat analogy and exposes him as an unlearned fool.

The southern Democrats however, did not agree with their northern brethren and did indeed attempt to block a vote on the bill through filibuster. In fact, this filibuster turned out to be the longest in legislative history, led by Strom Thurmond, the decmocratic Senator from South Carolina… a former slave state.

what we have here is two truths. One localized and incomplete put forth by Michael Warns, and another, complete and contextual which explains the question that sent him into his childish tirade. “Why do most Black people vote democratic?” This is what I asked, in order to try to understand him.

Vote Totals

Here are the vote totals of the Civil Rights Bill, by region to illustrate my point:

The original House version:

• Southern Democrats: 7–87 (7%–93%)


• Southern Republicans: 0–10 (0%–100%)


• Northern Democrats: 145-9 (94%–6%)


• Northern Republicans: 138-24 (85%–15%)

The Senate version:

• Southern Democrats: 1–20 (5%–95%)


• Southern Republicans: 0–1 (0%–100%)


• Northern Democrats: 45-1 (98%–2%)


• Northern Republicans: 27-5 (84%–16%)

source: Wikipedia

Notice the discrepancy in votes against passage (the first number and percentage). You will see that the democratic votes against the bill come primarily from southern Democrats. Only 3 northern Democrats opposed it. Readers may have heard the term “Dixiecrats.” This is to distinguish southern democrats from their enlightened northern counterparts.

Conclusion

Michael Warns appears to be from the South as evidenced by his Ft. Lauderdale t-shirt and his accent, so I can understand his ignorance. After all, he comes from the place that teaches how the evil Democratic Party tried with all its legislative might to keep the Black man down. The problem is that it was a localized effort, and there is absolutely no way Title IX would have been passed without the strength and bravery of the Democratic Party (proper) of the North.

That is why Black folk traditionally vote for Democrats.

Again, the problem with a little knowledge is that without any context it can lead you to false and foolish conclusions. Hopefully he will eventually learn the complete history and realize his error. Until then I can only leave you with the advice I gave him:

Never argue with idiots. They bring you down to their level, and then beat you with experience.

Disclaimer:

I support neither the Democratic, nor the Republican Party.

—Madman out

Wireless Uploads

starting up the blog again...

I'll be posting again on a regular basis. I have two motives. The first is to express some of the madness. The second is to prime my creative juices for the writing I'll be doing on the job. If anyone is reading this, pass the word that the Madman is back.

–Madman out–

Black in America

My brother sent me a text yesterday to ask if I was watching "Black in America II (this time it's personal)." I told him what I said about the first "Black in America" special: As pretty as Soledad is, I don't need her to tell me what it's like to be Black in America. Just ask the Professor who was arrested, or the Cambridge Police Dept for that matter.

I have to say the reason I voted for Obama over Hillary, or even John McCain (I like them all) boiled down to Dept of Justice statistics. In states where there is a smaller black population, there is a much larger percentage of blacks in Jail. Consider this: in a State like Alabama 30% black, you would expect a larger percentage of blacks in jail, given the historical tensions between minorities and the Justice Dept.

But North Dakota, with only a 3% population of blacks has a 90% black prison population. The trend continues in states with a smaller vs. larger black population. What the numbers say is that a larger percentage of blacks usually translates to some blacks holding political clout in that state whereas states with a smaller percentage do not usually enjoy that protection. If you control for prison transfers,you can see the disturbing pattern. Having Obama, a black man, in office would provide a form of "blanket" protection (albeit at a distant federal level). Add to that, the fact that he appointed Eric Holder, a black AG (Attorney General) and you see that things like this won't go on for much longer- at least not at the current rate. Do you really think that a black man from North Dakota is more likely to misbehave than a black man from a Southern state? Why the disparate proportion of black inmates? You don't have to watch TV to see that. Just check the DOJ (Dept of Justice) website and you will see the charts for yourself. That's a story worth reporting, but prison is a business... Anyway, that's why I voted for Obama.

And they ask me why I call myself the madscientiss.M\

<—>Madman out

 
 
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