Riots in Oakland

On Wednesday night, the Bay area experienced some of the worst rioting in recent history. People were protesting the shooting of a 22 year-old African American male by a police officer. The young man, Oscar Grant, was shot in public, at a subway station while lying face down on his back. The shooting was captured on video and is now circling the Internet. Sadly, Grant died from his wound. Protesters began the rioting out of frustration in the development of the case against the officer that shot him. The shooting happened on New Year's day, but there hasn't been significant steps towards convicting the officer.

I don't endorse riots, but I do believe this would have been another story that mainstream media wouldn't have reported if the riots hadn't taken place. Oscar Grant would have been just another American American man killed by a bullet.

CNN reported the rioting that took place afer Grant's funeral:

John McCain Needs a Chill Pill

After 2 subpar debates, Barack Obama, John McCain, and the Commission on Presidential Debates finally got it right. The 3rd and final presidential candidate aired last night; it was engaging, entertaining, and McCain's facial expressions were down right hilarious. Bob Schieffer was hands down the best moderator of all the debates and asked questions that pushed the candidates out of their comfort zones.

John McCain performed better than he has on any other debate, but made his common mistake of speaking on and continually repeating comments that diminish his performance rather than help. John really failed this time when he brought up Joe the Plummer. I thought the debate's topic was domestic issues, not Joe the Plummer. Another blow to the McCain camp was when he got all bent out of shape after Schieffer asked an excellent question about the negative ads from both sides of the campaign. McCain claimed that Obama's campaign has "spent more money on ever in the history of presidential elections" on negative ads. He was also extremely upset about a congress man's recent statements that basically labeled him and Sarah Palin racist and the fact that Obama didn't repute these statements. Obama summed it up nicely when he said the American people could care less about our hurt feelings and that his campaign did issue a response. If McCain was so bent out of shape, why for remainder of the debate, did he continue to bring up negative issues to attack Obama with; he commented on Obama's "association" with Williams Ayers, Acorn, his views on abortion, and school vouchers. John McCain needs to take a chill pill and practice hiding his disdain for Barack Obama better.

Fortunately for Obama, McCain's falters were his opportunities to build. Although he did not have to, Obama explained every attack McCain made against him. I mean Obama's was an attorney at law, what did McCain expect?

Change We Really Need Rally!!!!!!!!!

After hearing Mrs. Michelle Obama speak about her husband's belief and dreams for this nation with enough the passion and belief to move mountains, I am ready to go out a march on Washington!! Well maybe I can't just yet, but I am definitely more fired up about this election than ever before. She only mentioned McCain's name 1 time during her conversation (the audience barely reacted) and spent most of the time talking about her life and her family. I call her words a conversation, because she did not talk to us like she had memorized a speech, but rather like she was having a one-on-one conversation with each person and every person in the room. She spoke as if I saw her walking down the street, stopped her, and asked, "Michelle, tell me about yourself and your family." This woman is amazing and I can't wait for her to take the role of first lady to a new level.

If Michelle is having a rally or community event in a city near you, I highly suggest you see her. It was a moment I will never forget.

Don't Forget To Register to Vote!

Deadlines across the Nation are fast approaching. Make sure you're registered to vote because when you are not a part of the solution, you're a part of the problem. Check out Rock The Vote's website for deadlines in your state:

http://http//www.rockthevote.com/electioncenter/

Also, click on the Rock The Vote Link on our page to go directly to their voter registration page. Exercise your rights: Vote or Die!

Biden vs Palin

The VP debates were much more exciting than the presidential debates because the candidates actually debated. Both Joe Biden and Sarah Palin performed well during their first and only pubilc debate.

Fortunately, Sarah Palin was not a train wreck and did what she was supposed to do tonight: Stick the the rehearsed script that the McCain campaign gave her and mention that John McCain is a "Maverick" at least 25 times in the 46 minutes she spoke. And when didn't have a good/rehearsed answer to a question, she made sure to remind people of her experience as governor of an energy efficient state and the ticket that's going to bring real change to America. She also remembered to smile, look into the camera during the well rehearsed sections, and wink when she said something that she thought would connect with the all "Joe six-packs and hockey moms" that were watching. I am only commenting on what I saw during the debate because this was the candidate's first chance outside of the conventions to let the American people know who they are and their stance on tough issues.

Joe Biden is chairman of the Senate's Foreign Relations Committee and effectively displayed his knowledge on foreign policy; especially when he spoke on the threat of Pakistan and Iran. However, Sarah Palin has no experience with foreign policy and made sure she avoided answering the difficult questions by reverting back to her work as governor of a state, in America. For example, when asked about the condition of Israel, Palin gave her rehearsed answer and then listened to Biden's answer. However, rather than rebuttal his statement, she completely avoided the chance to prove her intelligence on the issue and started talking about "how the American people needed a ticket that believes in this country and the ticket that's going to bring real change to Washington."Her rebuttal had nothing to do with Israel, in fact, I believe she repeated the same "Ahmadinejad said we're going to wipe Israel off the face of the Earth" statement that John McCain said last week's debate.

The only time Biden really took a stab at a Palin mistake was when they were both asked about Dick Cheney's belief on the role of the VP. Palin made a big mistake by saying she agreed with the idea that the vice president's role is not fully part of the Executive Branch. She didn't stick to the script and her response made it look like she didn't understand the basic fundamentals of the U.S. Constitution. Biden quickly answered back that the role of the VP is clearly stated in article 1 of the constitution and that his role is to support Obama.

Both candidates came to do what they had do; they did not say anything absolutely crazy to upset the American people and send the media into a frenzy. Final note; kudos to the McCain camp for showing us they know how to turn a woman into a well trained doll!

The Greate Debate

I thought Obama won the first debate and it looks like the polls agree with me:

CNN: 51% Obama 38% McCain

USA Today/Gallup: 46% Obama 34% McCain

CBS News: 39% Obama 24% McCain and 37% tie

Don't get me wrong, both candidates walked around questions and did not really answer any question directly but actually Obama spoke about the middle class and people I can relate to. He addressed energy independence, the fact that this economic crisis has a lot to do with the money spent on the War in Iraq (which most government officials aren't trying to admit), the importance of early childhood education and college affordability, and health care. He also called McCain out on those tax breaks for multi million dollar corporations. And plus, McCain "The Maverick" couldn't look Obama in his face once; should be called "The Coward."

DO NOT WEAR ANY CAMPAIGN PARAPHERNALIA TO VOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

PLEASE don't show up to vote on Nov. 4th looking like Beyonce, Ryan, or Halle. We are urging people to call their State Election Boards to confirm if the so called "internet rumor" is true or false. Yesterday, I called the Minnesota State Election Board and found out this is not a rumor here. An operator told me, "You cannot wear campaign paraphernalia within 100 feet of a polling location; it's considered campaigning."



We're going to call as many state election boards as we can; but if you would like to call yourself, here are a few numbers to get you started:

California: (916) 653-7244
North Carolina: (919) 733-7173
Illinois: (312) 814-6440

Maryland: (410) 269-2840

Virgina: (804) 864-8901
New York: (518) 474-6220

Yes He's Black, Get Over It!

I personally think the political race should be about the issues and focus on how each candidate plans to change our lives for the better. Unfortunately, people are still stuck in 1862 and believe a black man can't run the country. In case the public has forgotten, Barack Obama is half white and was raised by a white mother. I ran across another article talking about how Obama's race could a "cost him the presidential race." I always knew some people couldn't see past his race (and a lot of my successful black men) and notice his accomplishments, but now I have statistics to prove it!

http://news.yahoo.com/page/election-2008-political-pulse-obama-race

Racism Against Obama

I read an article today about racist threats against Obama and his campaign. It's time for people to stop denying the truth about America; racism is alive and well. No one wants to speak any harm into Obama's life, but the reality is some people in America still cannot handle the idea of having a black male as a president. Racism is an ugly disease that blinds people of the good in others. It is sad that some people still see Obama as just another black man and disreguard his ivy league education, his time as a lecturer at the University of Chicago, or when he worked for a law firm that specializes in neighborhood economic development. Read the article.

http://http//news.aol.com/elections/article/secret-service-investigates-obama/178700

All Types of Recession

Yes, it hurts to be broke, doesn't it?

I know we've been in fashion mode for the past week, but we also like to keep people informed about current events. Lehman Brothers, one the nation's top 10 financial institutions filed for bankruptcy today. Their $631 billion dollars in debt makes this the largest file for bankruptcy in history. I know certain presidents ( BUSH!) have been trying to "ease" the minds of Americans by telling them we are not in a recession, but let's face it, we're in all types of recession now.

Without getting too heavy into financial terms, let's break this situation down. The former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan said, " I can't believe we can have a once-in-a-century type of financial crisis without a significant impact on the real economy globally and I think that indeed is what is in the process of occurring." So basically the stock market fell through the ground today and people have no idea when things are going to get better. The housing market will most likely get worse, people will continue to cut back on spending disposable income (if they have any left after paying $3.69 for a gallon of gas and $2.50 for a loaf of bread wheat bread), so spend your money wisely and save where you can.

From Fashion Week to RNC

Melissa is still living life in the fab lane at Fashion Week, but I spent sometime at the RNC last week. I didn't even get inside the Xcel center!! But, I did get to see the protesters outside and they were the BEST!! I also met some delegates, Todd was the coolest. They were protesting the war, freedom of speech, the right to assemble, etc... Definitely an experience I will never forget. My camera was acting up, so major thanks to Japhlet for sending me the ones of the police on the bridge! Obama '08!