Mental Meanderings

I remember the first time that the idea there is no longer a Black community, the idea I grew up with, was now a defunct idea, I thought, ludicrous! We are a functioning (at times) community! Then the sexual violence by some beings of Dunbar Village on a woman and her young son brought me around to knowing the Black community is truly only a Black collective, nothing in common with that. This is not the same as saying that ‘we are not a monolith’ in some inverted way. It’s a realization that there are some Black people that live in such a way as I could never imagine nor relate. Nothing in common to form a unity. I would never unite with the type of people that commit such violence on other Black people or any other human being. I have nothing in common with people that would produce such offspring. There are among us, a set of people that are no longer interested in life the way those that I have a common unity with. I accepted the idea of a Black collective rather than a Black community about three years ago. It appears the concept of a Black collective is spreading.

Over the last year, while riding on my daily commute, I’ve noticed there are less people reading. I used to see people reading something. Most women would have books by E. Lynn Harris, Bebe Moore Campbell or some other author of that genre. Men, would of course, have the sports section of the newspaper folded in some coded angle that only avid news paper readers know how to fold and gleaning every word as if it were the gospel. No doubt women read the sports section too but, mostly during NFL season.  Oddly enough I don’t see people reading the bible as I once did, living here in the ‘bible belt’ southeast. No sir, no reading going on here. Everyone is into some mental escape, listening to Mary Mary, Waka Flacka, or Warrior King or watching tel-lie-vision on their mobile divice.

Our government (public) school system is functioning to full capacity. We have been schooled into thinking that we cannot understand economics or the stock market. Yet, at the same time we are all out here working for Federal Reserve Notes to pay our bills, save, travel and generally enjoy life. I fell for the, ‘boy you can’t understand the stock market’ school of wisdom for far too many years. As I re-entered working in the finance world I felt I needed to learn as much about “money” as I can. Gold, silver, and other precious metals would be money. Paper, greenbacks, dollars are currency, not money. This basic bit of info about whats in our pockets/bank accounts is not difficult to understand and easily found on the web or in books. Because we’ve been taught to think economics is something we cannot understand, we are unwitting pawns in an economic scheme that involves everything you do. Far too many of us believe its easier to deal with what we think we can understand like racism and racists and their actions without ever considering the economics of racism and racists.

I’m just wondering has anyone noticed how its okay to be British on TV? I mean for white folk. I have long made note that its ok to have a heavy British accent on tel-lie-vision here in the U.S. White Amerikkkins are not bothered by the British accent. Black people are excluded from this, however. Marianne Jean-Baptiste is a British actress of Bajan descent and you would never know it watching her character on Without A Trace. Sure, you can point to Hugh Laurie and say he doesn’t use his British accent. All in all there are far more accented white Brits on U.S. tel-lie-vision than any other accented people, save the British. That’s followed up by the white Latino and Australians. Aussies seem to be accepted since they sound close to the British in speech. I suppose the Spanish sounding accent is tolerated since the us government is saying “Hispanics” are the new number one minority in the U.S. Most Anglophone Caribbean (or African) people, you would never recognize verbally on tel-lie-vison unless you happen to be from the same country. I have yet to hear or read a conservative/Black conservative (bless they heart) speak about immigration policies and complain that “theys too many redcoats heyah.” Never, have I heard, read or seen people complain of immigration and talk about the British or the Australians taking job.