Regarding the Mayor and Mrs Kilpatrick's speech on January 30, 2008

As usual, Mayor Kilpatrick still showed his true colors, (No Manners, No Class, No Social Graces) soon after arriving at the church. All I could wonder was where was the influence of his mother, Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, who is an astute experienced politician that rarely had any public problems while she has held office. But unfortunately, even with many advisers around him at that hour, Mayor Kilpatrick still exhibited the thug-like behavior that was expected of him. Is there anyone with any common sense or backbone in his camp?

Before the televised speech at the church, as the Mayor exited the Cadillac Escalade, he was rushed by news reporters and photographers. Channel 7's (WXYZ) investigative reporter Steve Wilson, one the major media thorns in the Mayor's side, immediately asked him who was Christine Slowski, the woman that was allegedly to have been with the Mayor while he gave a speech in North Carolina during the MLK holiday. Mayor Kilpatrick's reaction was to shove Mr. Wilson and then knock back the camera of Free Press photographer Mandi Wright, thus striking her in the face with the camera. Channel 7 displayed the incident on last night's broadcast and Ms. Wright's video footage is also on the Detroit Free Press website. If I had been the Mayor's Security Chief, I would have already had a wall of security in place for the mayor and his wife to pass through as they walked into the church. If I had been his lawyer, I would have seriously instructed and demanded that the mayor Say or Do Nothing that would display any of the arrogance that he has been charged with by certain folks and the media.

As I watched Mayor Kilpatrick and his wife address the city last night from his church, the Greater Emmanuel Institutional Church of God in Christ on the northwest side of Detroit, I could not help but feel sorry for Mrs. Kilpatrick. You could tell that their speech was rehearsed and that they were reading from a teleprompter. Their body language was very stiff and impersonal, especially exhibited when their hands touched, which should be expected under the circumstances. However my view has not changed regarding Mayor Kilpatrick after last night's speech. His leadership of this city has had too many problems, and I still want him to leave office, although he has emphatically stated that he will remain as Mayor of Detroit. We still will have to deal with him for a while longer.

During that broadcast, I could sense Mrs. Kilpatrick's feelings of helplessness and even despair, since she is caught up in a web of deceit, and has a lot to lose. The potential impending outcome for Mrs. Kilpatrick could be dealing with her husband being charged with perjury, resulting in conviction and jail time. Her life could dramatically change and she may have to uproot her children from the area that they have grown to know. Some may say that Mrs. Kilpatrick is complicit in this affair, either unknowingly or maybe because she could have been involved in some of the incidents. Or some may believe that she may have chosen to tolerate or to turn a blind eye to her husband's illegal and extramarital affairs because she enjoyed the lifestyle that his position afforded her. I just hope that she can stay strong, and keep herself together for the sake and well being of her children.

However, the parties that I feel for the most, are the children. The family's 2007 Christmas card is being featured on Ebay. I know for a fact from my own personal experience, that children can be cruel. I can only imagine the ribbing, teasing, and insults that the Kilpatrick and Beatty children will have to endure in the future. No matter how much protecting/sheltering and care is taken by the school officials and their parents, those children will receive some taunting and hear some ugly comments from some schoolmates and folks on the street.

Below is the transcript of the Mayor and Mrs. Kilpatrick's address of the city with links.

COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT: Private pain the focus

January 31, 2008

This is the complete transcript of the televised speech Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his wife, Carlita Kilpatrick, gave to Detroit on Wednesday night:

KWAME KILPATRICK: "Good evening, Detroit. I want to start tonight by saying to the citizens of this great city, I'm sorry.

To all of you who have believed in what we've been doing here since 2002, to all of you who have believed in me, in my leadership, to all of you who have stuck with me through very difficult times, to all of you who prayed for me: I'm sorry.

For the embarrassment and the disappointment the events of the past few days have caused you, for what you as my supporters, many of you, have had to hear as you traveled around our city to beauty shops and barbershops, what you had to hear when you were in church this past Sunday from people who know that you have supported me.

For those of you who have not always been Kwame Kilpatrick supporters, but who lift up our city, who live in our city, who support this town in various ways, I truly apologize to each and every one of you individually and to the whole city.

Most of all tonight, I want to make a public apology to my entire family, and specifically to the four people who I love the most in this world.

First, I want to apologize to my sons, Jelani, Jalil and Jonas. For the first time in my life, I had to have a conversation with my 12-year-old twin sons about very grown-up things. It was, without a doubt, the hardest conversation that I've ever had in my entire life.

Finally, and most importantly, I want to make a public apology to my wife, Carlita, who I fell in love with when I was 19 years old. We decided to build a family together, and we did that.

Our marriage has not been perfect, but it has been great. Now, I put her in a situation which many couples deal with in the privacy of their own homes, but in our case, it's on the front page of the newspaper. This dynamic, strong, caring woman has been forced to go through this very difficult experience because of me. I truly apologize to you.

As many of you know, I'm not the type of person who displays my emotions in public, but I have to tell you I've felt more emotion in the last week than I have in the past 20 years. I've been truly hurting. I've been hurting because I know that many of you are hurting. And most of all, I've been hurting because I know my family is hurting. And I'm responsible for that.

Over the past few days, there's been some speculation about who is in charge of the city. Make no mistake about it, since 2002, I have been in charge of the city.

There have been ups and downs, there have been hills and mountains and valleys, but through it all, I remained in charge of the city. I believe we built a team here that understands the mission and focus and commitment that we must have to serve our citizens. We've done some amazing things, but we have a lot of work left to do.

Over the past few days, there has also been a lot of speculation about me resigning from office. Let me be clear tonight: I would never quit on you. Ever. We've got a lot of work to do, and with your help, I'm going to continue to lead this city in getting the work done. I am truly blessed and grateful that my wife is beside me tonight, and she has some personal remarks of her own to make."

CARLITA KILPATRICK: "It is very difficult for me to talk to you at this moment, but I want to let you know what is on my heart tonight.

Like all marriages, ours is not perfect. Like all people, we are not perfect, but through our commitment to God and each other, my husband and I will get through this. Yes, I am angry, I am hurt and I am disappointed. But there is no question that I love my husband. With the help of our pastor and others, we have been having very difficult, very frank discussions to work through some very painful issues.

Most couples who work through problems in their marriage are able to do so privately. Unfortunately, that option is not available to us. Our family has endured the most painful and intrusive week of our lives. Our most intimate issues have been laid out for all to see, for all to comment on, for all to dissect and analyze. However, this private matter is between me, my husband and God. We are deeply committed to working through these issues together as a family. As his wife, I know how committed my husband is to the City of Detroit. I am asking the citizens of this city to be committed to him, and our family, and to the continued growth of our city.

Allow our family the space and the privacy that is essential to anyone when they work through these very personal issues. Lastly, I would like to thank each and every one of you for all of your prayers and your uplifting words. Thank you."

KWAME KILPATRICK: "This has been a very difficult time for my wife and my family. I would ask, from this point forward, that if you have to attack someone, attack me. I would ask that you don't follow my wife, you don't film my kids going to school. I ask you not to have helicopters flying around our home. I ask that you leave them alone. I am the mayor. I made the mistake. I am accountable.

Because there are legal matters pending at this moment, unfortunately, I am unable to discuss any of those issues at this time. But I do have some personal words I want to share with you tonight:

Over the past week, our marriage has been opened up for public view. This has been a situation where, yes, it's been embarrassing, yes, it's been painful, but through all of that, through the grace of God, we've also had a feeling of thankfulness and freedom. We have committed to moving forward together, to make our marriage better and stronger.

Last week was the first weekend since I took office in January 2002 that I just put everything aside and focused only on my family. I know people have been wanting to hear from me, but I needed to do that first. I want to thank the people of Detroit for their patience in allowing us to have that time. We as a family needed to do that. I told my sons this past weekend that when you make a mistake, you learn from it, you get up, you dust yourself off and you keep moving forward.

Detroit, I am determined that we will keep moving forward. I am determined to continue the tremendous progress we are making in this city, in the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression.

Detroit, together we have managed to do great things. We have paved more streets than ever, we have built more new houses than ever. We have balanced our budget and wiped out a $300-million deficit.

We have developed 75 buildings downtown, large and small, we have built seven new hotels, we have built three new rec centers in neighborhoods that have not seen rec centers in 20 years. We are building out our riverfront, and we are not stopping now.

Detroit, please continue to pray for our family, for our city and for our continued progress. God bless you, Detroit. I love you, and I'll see you at work tomorrow.”

Free Press transcription of Kilpatrick's speech as broadcast on WDIV- Local-4

Borrowing from Spike Lee....."Do The Right Thing"

At times I am tired of trying to hang in with Detroit. Some folks, like a certain family member would respond, "Then get the Hell on...." I just wish it was that easy to disentangle myself from certain responsibilities, and take off for greener pastures, which is an anomaly. As I travel and shop around the city, I see folks of all nationalities hanging in, trying to make a living, and trying to maintain a residence despite the crime, pathetic services, undesirable neighbors, and the fact that this area is in an economic depression. I have not physically worked in the city since 1998. Most of positions that I was able to secure were in the suburbs. Many of my suburban coworkers, both black and white, quizzically could not understand why I stayed here. I stayed here because my family is here, some of my closest friends are here, and some of my favorite places are here, for example, Belle Isle and the African American Museum.

I voted for Kilpatrick when he was first elected as mayor, with hope that he would continue to improve this city. After the first two years, I felt that it was a mistake. After the mayor's antics, and despite his public apologies, I voted for Freman Hendrix in the next election. To this day, I do not really believe that Kilpatrick truly won the second election. It was too close, some of the election workers raised concerns, and I feel that the political machinery in place made sure he was kept in that job. Some of the prominent black citizens and media personalities in the city who are supportive of Mayor Kilpatrick, indicate that they think Mayor Kilpatrick should be allowed to continue in his job. Later I understood the main reasoning behind that school of thought, is that Mayor Kilpatrick was a public official when alleged crimes happened, so he is still entitled to paid legal assistance that the city 's charter affords him. If Mayor Kilpatrick does not step down before his term is up, the only way we can get him to go is to recall him, or he be convicted of a crime. Right now I think folks are too nervous to sign a recall proposal, after rumors of two dead women are still lingering around. Politically and visually, Detroit is really starting to look like one of those third World countries...........

As I did some research, I found out that many of the openly supportive citizens have personal and professional relationships with the mayor, so I now throughly understand their allegiance. I just hope that is not the case with our Wayne County Prosecutor. Kym Worthy, the prosecutor has spoken Friday, indicating that her department will investigate throughly and will not be rushed. She also revealed that the Mayor contacted her, which was a rare occurrence, to let her know that he will not be endorsing anyone for the Wayne County Prosecutor's race. I know that if I was in her shoes, and barely had a friendship with him, I would have thought that the call was odd and that he wanted something.

But I do believe that she was savvy enough to know something was up. Ms. Worthy even probably already knew about some of the behind the scenes' goings on. However, she indicated in Friday's news conference, she was surprised about the text messages as we were when the news first came out. I also believe that Mayor Kilpatrick had to have said more in that phone conversation, but I doubt that Ms Worthy is going to reveal that. As I have indicated before, I just hope that she can successfully perform her job in a fair and ethical manner and only time will tell how things will pan out.

Canine Regrets..... & Pussy Fangs?

Had a dream about Brown.

Brown was a honey brown stray pitbull mix that adopted us. He would have been a good pet except.......that he was an escape artist and my children's dogs wanted to be like him. Had we kept Brown, he would have been my dog. During the water main break that shut off the water on my block last weekend, we left and spent Sunday night with relatives. When we came home, the house was a wreak. My children who left before I did, thought that I did not put the their dogs in their cages. I insisted that I did, but the cage doors were open. I can only surmise that Brown helped their dogs out, and I was angry. But Brown was a sweet dog that really seemed to want to please. However, he was a bit head strong too because he liked his freedom, and he wanted to sit on the furniture too.

Before Brown started following the kids home, one of their friends in the neighborhood would feed him. Since she had a lot of dogs already, she could not keep him because her dogs would not have tolerated it. Brown would hang around the house and sit on the porch. On one frigid night I felt sorry for him, with help from the kids begging to bring him in, I allowed Brown into the house. The first week was okay, until he helped the other dogs escape. The damage was done and I threw him out. But he kept hanging around the porch looking pitiful, and scaring the postman. After dropping the kids off at school, I would find him sitting at the front door. I shooed him away several times but he would come back. After hearing Brown bark at the mailman, I brought him in, and he promptly went to the basement couch and stayed out of my way.

When the kids returned home from school, they demanded why he was back in the house, and I admitted feeling sorry for him and my need to stay on our mailman's good side, especially since he is patient with the ice on our steps. I let Brown stay for two more days but after he picked a fight with one of the dogs, and curled up on my winged chair in the living room, it was time for him to go. Also with me not being employed at the moment, it was hard enough trying to feel the two dogs that we already had. We took him to the Humane Society and it was heart wrenching when the staffer told me that if Brown was not claimed in a week, he would be put to sleep since he was a pitbull mix. In my dream, Brown was lying in on the living room carpet being on his best behavior, and trying to get some affection like he usually did. When he wanted your attention, Brown would scoot along the floor until he got near you, and beam you with those sad, begging eyes as he nudged your feet.

When I woke up, I wondered if Brown was one of dogs that belonged to the former next door neighbors. They only stayed in the house for about nine months last year, and I remembered that they had two dogs; a white and a brown pitbull. Both dogs would snarl at us when we went into the backyard, but we did not see them a lot because the neighbors mainly kept them in the garage. I am now wondering if Brown got away from them and returned to our area because it was familiar to him. The dream made me realize that I felt safe and comfortable with him, and I missed Brown. I want him back, but with the woeful shape of my finances right now, I can't handle feeding him, along with the necessary shots that he would require. However, if I was blessed some money, I would go get him right away. I just hope that if that does not happen, somebody sees him and takes him on because Brown would be an asset to anyone that is able to take care of him.

Teeth

New Horror movie...the concept is interesting, too bad that it can't be used as a scare tactic........

SYNOPSIS
High school student Dawn works hard at suppressing her budding sexuality by being the local chastity group's most active participant. Her task is made even more difficult by her bad boy stepbrother Brad's increasingly provocative behavior at home. A stranger to her own body, innocent Dawn discovers she has a toothed vagina when she becomes the object of violence. As she struggles to comprehend her anatomical uniqueness, Dawn experiences both the pitfalls and the power of being a living example of the vagina dentata myth.

I rarely watch horror films. My children relish them, and sometimes cajole me into viewing one with them. The only way I can watch one if I am snuggled up close to one of them. Then I demand my daughter to sleep with me at night. She grudgingly does so sometimes............and I enjoy the warmth and security of her body, knowing that one day she will grow up and be gone.........and it seems like our roles are reversed, even for a moment....

Google want to gobble the New York Times?

I came across this article via Mark Morford, SF Gate Columnist. This article floored me, but the author makes a convincing argument for Google instead of Rupert Murdoch. Life is really changing to the point that long standing institutions have to consider their own survival..........

January 22, 2008 via Real Clear Market

Might Google Buy the New York Times?

By John Ellis

In the last five years, the New York Times has declined in value by an astonishing 70 percent. There is no indication that things will get better any time soon. Indeed, as the specter of recession looms, there is every reason to believe that things will get worse. At some point here in the near future, the market capitalization of the New York Times will fall below $2 billion. At that point, a psychological floor will have collapsed and the company will be in play.

The company that has the most to gain from buying the New York Times is Google. If it proffered a Murdoch-like, no-auction bid of $4 billion, wouldn't the Sulzberger family have to accept it? Every single class B shareholder would accept the offer. It's their only exit. It is also likely that Times employees and retirees would enthusiastically support the deal; it's their only exit as well. So it would all come down to whether the Sulzberger family (smaller in number and not as far-flung as the fractious Bancroft clan that owned Dow Jones) would accept the deal.

The choice for the family would be basically this: double your money or double down on "young Arthur," as the NYT's Chairman and CEO is sometimes called. In the back of their minds, the prospect of doubling down on "young Arthur" could only mean that the company's stock will continue its relentless decline. The prospect of doubling up with Google offers realized value, a global platform and thus a much clearer path to future growth. Everyone would be a lot richer than they are now. Assuming a cash/stock transaction, some might be a whole lot richer in the future.

I am told by smart people who know the business that the Sulzbergers will never sell; that their identity is the New York Times. It's also said that they take their role as stewards of journalistic "excellence" and "integrity" seriously. They're plenty rich as it is, if not as rich as they once were, so it's not about the money. It's about the Statue of Liberty and justice and righteousness, all of which they feel The New York Times embodies. And I believe that they believe all that.

But as everyone knows, and the Sulzbergers know better than most, the game has changed. Classified advertising has been gutted by Craig's List (and a thousand other web-sites). Department stores have consolidated and newspaper advertising budgets have consequently declined. The way people access information has fundamentally changed, thanks to the Internet. On and on it goes.

But perhaps the biggest change is that The New York Times is squarely in the cross-hairs of the aforementioned Rupert Murdoch. Mr. Murdoch recently acquired Dow Jones for $6 billion. He did not buy Dow Jones because of its growth potential. It's a mature business, to say the least. He did not buy Dow Jones because he sees limitless growth opportunities in financial news and business information. It's a crowded field. He bought Dow Jones so that he could own The Wall Street Journal. He intends to use The Wall Street Journal as a precision-targeted weapon. And the target he has locked onto is The New York Times.

The Sulzbergers understand this. The question they have to ask themselves, knowing that Mr. Murdoch intends to bleed them to death, is this: Can they afford to engage in this battle without a very deep-pocketed partner or do they sell the New England properties (The Boston Globe, NESN, The Boston Red Sox stake and the Worcester Star-Telegram) and use the proceeds to fund the counter-offensive? Given "young Arthur's" tenure as Chairman and CEO of the enterprise, is there any evidence that he would deploy the proceeds from the sale of the New England properties in a manner that would thwart Mr. Murdoch's siege.

If the answer to the latter question is "no," then the Sulzberger family's argument (that they are the keepers of the flame of journalistic "integrity" and "excellence") disintegrates. You can't keep the flame burning if you don't have any fuel. You can't be a national and international newspaper if you don't have the means to support it. And from a fiduciary point of view, the Sulzbergers have to accept the fact that Mr. Murdoch's platform (News Corp.) enables him to lose money on the Wall Street Journal without any debilitating consequence. He really can bleed them to death.

What's in it for Google? Well, for one thing, it's cheap. Sell off the New England properties and the real cost is $3 billion. That's not much money to buy one of the premier brands of the information age. It also comes with some excellent real estate, which further reduces the risk. And happily enough, it will probably get cheaper in the coming months. So the price is definitely right.

Second, Google is embarking on an ambitious mobile platform. It is buying wireless spectrum and will soon introduce Google Mobile. In so doing, it is entering into an arena where the established players have hired (almost) every lobbyist and (almost) every law firm with expertise in telecommunications in Washington, DC and in virtually every state capital. Owning the New York Times would level that playing field in one fell swoop. Owning major media outlets is a strategy that has worked very well for General Electric, Disney, News Corp., Time Warner and others in their dealing with the federal government and with state governments. There's every reason to believe it would be helpful to Google.

Third, there's all that content. Google is a company that could actually make money repurposing the cultural and culinary coverage, to pick just two categories, of the New York Times, across both its Internet and mobile platforms. An acquisition of The New York Times would greatly enhance the richness and reach of Google News. And should Google choose to invest in expanded news and cultural coverage, it could greatly enhance the richness and reach of The New York Times.

Finally, a Google acquisition of the New York Times would allow Kleiner Perkins (which would likely be assigned the task of finding new management for the paper) to attract people of great talent to a fascinating and challenging project: the reinvention of a great newspaper across multiple platforms and within a variety of applications. Even if the project failed, the knowledge gained from the undertaking would make Google a better, smarter, more deft information age company.

The alternative, which is what the Sulzberger family must keep in mind at all times, is a slow, steady slide with a relentless and ruthless competitor attacking at every turn. Whatever else he does, "young Arthur" is not going to lead The New York Times to greater glory. He's had more than enough time to turn things around and no turn around has been forthcoming. Taking the company private will not work, because then the mission becomes debt service. The only real hope for the paper is what it could call a "strategic sale," on mutually agreed upon terms that would enable the Family to say it held up the flame.

John Ellis is a contributing columnist to RealClearPolitics.

An Affront to the city? Or just business as usual?

Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has denied repeatedly over the past four years that he had a sexual relationship with his chief of staff, Christine Beatty.

Still believe that the Manoogian Mansion party is an urban legend? 

I commend his wife for standing by her man........

I am not surprised but I am frustrated.................
The Free Press today broke the news today that folks knew & gossiped about, but did not have evidence. The Skytel texts between him and his Chief of Staff definitely proved that both of them lied during their testimony at last summer's trial. The cost (according to the Detroit Free Press) to the city was around 9 Million dollars for the settlements with the dismissed officers which could have paid salaries for fire/city/ police personnel and etc. I feel that since Marion Jones is going to jail for perjury, our most illustrious Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his chief of staff, Christine Beatty should do so also. Those salacious texts tell a lot about our mayor and his Chief of Staff. I just hope Kym Worthy is an ethical person and does her job, because our Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox who also has his own issues of being a philandering husband, has indicated that “Usually the county prosecutors get first crack at that. I’m really not interested in stepping on any jurisdictional toes", which translates as "I am not going to touch that hot potato with a ten foot pole."

Online and on the airways, folks are having a talk fest and exchanging views. This scandal is national and international. Here was some notable mentions:

I Am Inspired Blog: How to eff up Dr. King's Dream Class 101

Akindele Unleashed: Mayor Kilpatrick Failed Democratic Leadership

On the USA Today website article (borrowed from the Detroit Free Press) one of the comments made by "Dan", brought up a very valid point:

“The issue hear is not race,"sex", or the affair per se. The real issue is that they railroaded two police officers out of their jobs in order to cover up their philandering. While performing this cover up they both lied on the stand. To add insult to injury Kwame could've settled out of court for pennies on the dollar - which was what the arbitrator strongly recommended. However, Kwame's hubris forced him to go to trial and subsequently lose to the toll of $9 million dollars or the Detroit's money. ...I feel bad for their spouses, children, and colleagues. He needs to step down tomorrow afternoon at 4:30 PM regardless of any of the other finer details.”

I listened to several talk radio shows today. Some I listen to everyday, some occasionally and some that I only listen to when I want to hear the outsider perspective. Midday on one major urban radio station, the hosts still had Kilpatrick's back as expected, and they likened the situation to former President Bill Clinton's scandal during his presidency. I already knew that the female host worshiped the ground that Mayor Kilpatrick walked on, when I once witnessed her ferociously defending the mayor on the WDIV TV show “Flashpoint” hosted by Devin Scillian. What bothered me about one exchange on her show today, was when one of her guests, who has worked as a political consultant for Mayor Kilpatrick and former Mayor Coleman Young, indicated that there was no point of Mayor Kilpatrick stepping down. He also suggested (along with the Detroit News editors) that the mayor should clean house by removing Ms Beatty, whose other past antics does not help her case.

The political consultant felt that Ms. Beatty would be able to find another job, since she had political experience and is a law student at Wayne State. However after this scandal, Ms. Beatty may not be able to obtain a law degree. He assumes that she would survive the political fallout, but he has not been keeping tabs on Monica Lewinsky. As I watched Monday on the ABC network show “The View,” Barbara Walters who keeps in touch with Ms. Lewinsky, talked about how Lewinsky who earned a masters degree from the London School of Economics, still finds it difficult to find a job. To me, it just goes to prove that folks do not easily forget and forgive.

As a woman, I was so surprised that the political consultant's comments did not provoke or enrage the female radio host, whom I must give credit as usually providing very empowering messages to women on her show. All I could think that the female host must have not been a fan of Ms. Beatty. Soon after the political consultant's comments, the female radio host mentioned that the other guest, who is a prominent TV newscaster/radio personality on other stations in the area, was interested in Ms. Beatty's job. I was appalled at the timing when the prominent TV newscaster/radio personality, openly expressed his interest in the mayoral Chief of Staff position on the that radio show today. I wanted to call in and tell the guy that he should stay at his TV news job to keep his career/reputation viable. I truly believe that even though he is confidentially “out” there, the prominent TV newscaster/radio personality really can't navigate the treacherous waters of Detroit politics. I so disgusted that I had to turn off the radio after his revelation.

Right now for me, this ongoing scandal of Kwame Kilpatrick as Mayor of Detroit is such an embarrassment for the residents of Detroit, and does not encourage me to keep an investment here. Many folks have already shown what they thought: They just packed up and left. I do not believe that all the foreclosures in the city are due to the loss of jobs or mismanagement of funds. Now this week, it was announced that the Detroit's Carl Chop House, is trying to get a license to become a strip club. Most already think that this city is a cesspool. My naive optimism has deflated long ago, and that news along with the mayor's issues, are reinforcing that view. I can't help but wonder about the thoughts on the minds of the major business investors that are betting their money on downtown regarding the mayor and his antics. Will they hold their cards, or fold and run?

As I told my outstate family:

“Enjoy and appreciate where you are..........”

News that affects..........

I do listen daily to the news on the radio, and check out news online daily, and television news on a weekly basis. Occasionally I buy a Sunday newspaper twice or once a month. I know that I do not pay attention to the news, and it is mainly because I feel that the news is depressing. The major media outlets says that we are not yet in a recession, but I want to scream and tell them that at least here in Michigan, WE ARE IN A DEPRESSION!

At times the news really affects me deeply, and at times I do not believe that we get the entire or true story. However, I came to realize a long time ago, that information does affect me emotionally. When the Oklahoma Federal Building was bombed back in April 1995, my children and I were on the way out the door that morning to run an errand. My daughter who suddenly threw up, was crying and upset. Initially I was angry, but as I was cleaning her up, I got sick, also threw up and felt ashamed of my reaction. My usually stoic toddler son who was easily satisfied with a bottle, became fussy and whiny.

It took a while to clean both of us and the soiled areas up, but after some chicken noodle soup and apple sauce, I was able to lay my children down for their nap. Later I turned on the TV around 1 pm, and saw the news. I was shocked by that tragedy. It took me several years later to realize that my daughter and I somehow intuitively felt the trauma. The shock and pain was manifested to us when we became physically ill before I actually knew or heard about the situation. As a person who is struggling to keep her head up in these hard times, the last thing I need is something to bring me down.


Last Sunday I watched CBS's 60 Minutes, mainly because I wanted my children to see the profile on the creator of Facebook, since they frequent the site. One of the featured stores was also about the widespread rape of women in the African Congo by the rebel army militia. It was so demoralizing to see the room of women that had been raped and survived, but still carried the pain and stigma of that violence physically and psychologically . It really bothered me that rape there is the norm, and that it is used as a tool as explained by Anneka Van Woudenberg, the senior Congo researcher at Human Rights Watch, to CNN reporter Anderson Cooper:

“This is not rape because soldiers have got bored and have nothing to do. It is a way to ensure that communities accept the power and authority of that particular armed group. This is about showing terror.” (War Against Women: The Use Of Rape As A Weapon In Congo's Civil War. Aired January 13th on CBS) .

That story and those women's faces stayed heavily on my mind for several days. Several days earlier before seeing that program, my daughter was verbally accosted by a man driving down one of the main street in Northwest Detroit. He tried to get her and another girl to come to his car, but both of them ignored him. As he drove off, he called them “B*tches” because they would not acknowledge him. I was angry because I felt helpless knowing that I can not be around her all the time, but I had to comfort her. I had to advise her how to be careful when traveling and to also pray for protection.

While watching the program, I reminded my children that despite some of the messed up things that are going on in our society, that we are still very blessed to be here. I strongly encouraged them to make the most of the opportunities that are available. Unless they have exhausted all their efforts, they can not get mad at any foreigner that comes here and has success through hard work and education. I also reminded them to stay abreast of the news, which is something that most Americans do not do unless they are very curious or believe that they have a stake in the world. After watching and thinking over that report, I was also reminded that myself included, needed to increase my awareness of events, no matter how painful and traumatic the subject may be. I plan to contribute to one of the following organizations and hopes that anyone who saw and reads of these women's plight will feel inspired to do the same. Below are the links:

* Women For Women International's Congo Program
* International Rescue Committee Aid In Congo
* Panzi Hospital
* Donate Via The Stephen Lewis Foundation
* Donate Via V-Day
* Human Rights Watch

She was very vivid..........

Was recently perusing some artist links and came across these cat/animal bags from Studio-259. Their colorful tones and detailed construction really captivated me as I admired them. But also they reminded me of another artist's work, in that they were more of a 3D version. When I went to look up that other artist, I was surprised that she had recently died. I never knew anything about her other than she made some beautiful work and that her stuff was major forms of merchandise. I adored the vividness of her work, even had one of her artwork mugs and bags.

After reading the NY Times article, all my assumptions disappeared. I had just assumed that the vivid artist had come from a pampered art school background and just lucked into her success. I was so wrong.

Laurel Burch who in died in September 2007, had been a struggling single mother on welfare who was savvy/inspired/intelligent/fortunate enough to use her art as way to support her children and turn it into a major enterprise. I admire her for her fortitude, and the capacity to live life despite all the stumbling blocks she faced. Hopefully I can be inspired and cultivate some of that drive to get me through these times also

New Year and Calender choices..............

(Sunday Morning Calender that my kids gave to their grandmother)

Christmas was nice and I stayed home this year with my children and some of their friends hung out with us. Spent New Year's Eve in church this time. Last year I was tired and went to sleep before 11 pm. Despite the snowy and slippery drive home this year, I enjoyed myself and felt really blessed. The pot luck was nice, with some amazing bread pudding, which is something I rarely touch, but enjoyed the little bit I tasted. Although it was supposed to be a joint effort with all the choirs, my choir was the main choir singing to my surprise. I had missed the rehearsals due to helping out with my sister's wedding reception. I mentally kicked myself as I winged it along on several songs, and promised myself to try to make the rehearsals in the future. The guest speaker, a minister who got his start in our church, gave a very inspirational message that provided us with food for thought. He is also a handsome man that reminded me of an old boyfriend, but he had much more charisma than my old beau. As we left, it was so nice to see folks wishing each other a Happy New Year. I was able chat more with folks that I rarely talk with and felt really hopeful and good inside.

Since it is a new year, I went through the house pulling my old calenders. I have one in the kitchen, one in the bathroom, one in the dining room and one in my sewing room. My son already has his, a video gaming calender, and my daughter has her puppy calender. At this time I have not bought a new calender, although I did receive some from my local grocery store and drug store. Usually I get the Quilting Arts Calender for my bedroom. I love waking up to the vivid artwork of the selected winners of their annual calender challenge. Last year I bought the Joann Fabrics calender for my sewing room and later came across Mary Engelbreit's 2007 calender, “A Little Piece of Quiet.” I had enjoyed the quotes along with the artwork and promptly purchased it for my dining room.

As I took that calender down today, I considered getting another ME calender for 2008. I love Mary Engelbreit's work. I have two of her crafts books, and a small collection of ME teapot ornaments. I was going to toss the calender, but decided to first cut out the monthly quotes for a decoupaging project. I have an old box that been sitting for a while and I want to make it into a jewelry box. As I went through the pages, I noticed something that bothered me. While cutting out the quotes, I realized that there were no Hispanic or Black/African-American images featured in the calender. I used to have a subscription to her Home Companion Magazine and remembered that she had featured two Black artists. However as I browsed again through the year of magazines issues that I kept, I only found an occasional ethnic character featured on pages of an occasional issue.

As I went thought those past issues, I could not help but wonder as a black woman, do we really exist in her world? Her art images to me, inspire simple peaceful moments and times which we all crave, and that is why I think she is such an successful artist. However, I question if her imagination also includes Hispanic and Black/African-Americans? I know that I can not dictate what images to produce to a person who has channeled their art into a major enterprise. Ideally, it would nice to see the entire spectrum of races represented in her work. But as a consumer, the allure of Mary Engelbreit's work lost its luster for me then and after I checked out her calenders online. So I have been checking out some alternatives online and may go with some of these:

Classic Jazz 2008	Annie Lee 2008		Keep It Simple 2008

I have not settled on those options yet, but I am still looking around (this one too!) and hope that I find some that I can enjoy every day..........