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      Combative minds can be virtuous with a mixture of wisdom and knowledge, while negative minds fuel the energies of a declining society.  On the eve of the most controversial presidential election in my lifetime, I’ve never been more concerned for the future of our nation, as it resembles the quiet before the storm. There’s no doubt I’m not alone in this assessment, being forced to take sides under the derivatives of fear, hate, distrust, plus anger.

      In July 2016, I self-published “Guidance Against The Odds.” A timeline auto-biography with two objectives. The first was to validate how it’s possible for me to overcome and evolve regardless of the mind fields planted before me. The second was to demonstrate to my grandchildren that anything is possible as long as you believe in yourself, communicate honestly and be willing to listen, all of which were never meant to coincide with an election year.  Not being a writer, the impulse came as a result of realizing the type of influence I was not having on my grandchildren.  Just going along, finding myself complaining,  not doing anything for a change, was not setting a good example.    Childhood is the beginning, with the first decade being the most precious, as there’s only one chance of getting it right.  Recently viewing a trailer of the movie “Moonlighting” directed by Barry Jenkins, reinforced the facts of “Cause and Effect.”  While discrimination (racism/sexism) is the biggest underlining problem, we don’t see or seem to realize what complicates the mindset of our youth in other areas of life.  Regardless of who wins the presidency, millions of attitudes within our youth have been tattooed, illuminating mentalities that will have a dire effect on the nation in the future.  For those who don’t believe, history has a way of repeating itself and comes back strong.  An example: Dick Gregory, an American civil rights activist, social critic, writer, entrepreneur, conspiracy theorist, and comedian, ran for president in 1968.  He won the state of Pennsylvania by 9 million votes as a write-in, but it was declared a computer error.  In May of that same year, J. Edgar Hoover sent a memo dated May 15th ordering the Chicago Bureau to neutralize Dick Gregory.  Ten years later, on March 10th, of 1978,  the Chicago Tribune printed the story.  Fact or fiction, a seed of conspiracy was planted.  Almost sixty years later, and yes, it’s emails rather than a memo, but again the FBI is involved.

      A powerful nation, but the intellectual ability of its people to rationalize and use its intuitiveness as predictors for warranted or unwarranted optimism has left the planet.  Resulting in an atmosphere where creditable information cannot exist.  A bridge for the rebuilding of trust by the American public can only be attained by today’s youngest adult generation, the Millennials, through spiritual partnering.  Or else, in years to come, the offspring of this generation will showcase the irregularities of the 2016 presidential primaries/debates, and the downward cycle will continue.   As a member of the Silent Generation, my voice is small, and my book “Guidance Against the Odds” to some people may come off as convoluted, but truth can never be validated by ignorance.  For a country built on immigration, slavery, and peonage, we all must have a voice, and we all must listen, or we all will fail.  “If there’s no enemy within, the enemy outside cannot hurt you.”

 

In my youth, when I walked into a room where there were adults and did not give a respectful greeting, I knew immediately, or at some point, I would be admonished.  This was called the teaching of respect, not just for adults, but in general for one another.  Like any habit, it becomes habitual over time. The same would be true about addressing adults with Mr. or Mrs.  It does not bother me in the lease if a teenager addresses me by my first name, even though I am in my seventies; it merely reflects upon the individual. 

 

I started this blog referencing protocol as a lead-in, for manners can be one of life’s first enlightenment for prodigious communications.  Do unto others as you would like done unto you.  The development of empathy with shame or fear with hate in our behavior towards others becomes instinctive through assimilation before learning right from wrong. Animals have natural stinks due to various adaptations that serve different purposes. Respect goes a long way.  A child who learns respect early learns the act of hearing attentively.  In the adult years, earlier habits of listening become a valuable tool. Listening does not mean you agree with what someone is saying, but it can demonstrate charisma, plus you may learn something.   Knowing when to speak without putting a foot in the mouth reveals character. 

 

In his wisdom, my dad preached the phrase, “A closed mouth gives way to an open mind,” which kept me out of trouble. Over the years, this has proven to lead to meaningful relationships. People love to talk, and they generally automatically connect with a good listener.

 

 “Is the glass half empty or half full?” A common expression used rhetorically to indicate that a particular situation could be cause for optimism (half full) or pessimism (half empty), or as a litmus test to determine an individual’s national or worldviews, i.e., politics; presently as our youth can see, creating a verbal impact, thereby an impasse.  Making defaming one’s character more important than the country’s welfare has become the mentality of politics, with cordiality becoming the whipping post. Which in reality made many Republicans hop off the presidential primary train. Signifying that a bully has more power than the words from the pulpit.

 

 Our Youth today have little chance of entering a room where likely optimistic, future-thinking adults are gathered; it’s the signs of the times. “It takes a village to raise a child” is no longer possible living in a fast-paced opinionated society. 

 

An antagonistic culture, with duplicity will maranade itself.  Adding acid to young minds, requiring society to inact laws to punish or correct behavior seeded, inplated by people in positions of  authority, romodels in the first place.

 

When we think of our youth, we should put them in the light: 

“Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.” “Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.”

Matthew 5:14.15 (KJV)

2016 politics have allowed the muzzle to be taken off.  Adults allow their children to yell the “B” word at political rallies, which might as well be the “N” word.  A call for a revolution at these rallies has also been heard.  Hate is hate, no matter how you slice it, and it has been my experience dealing with people who have a tendency, or the desire to dominate, lack the emotions of real empathy and shame. They would be cowardly if standing alone, never serving honorably in the military or in any capacity in the defense of our country.  Merely sucking up the freedom from a nation that gives them the right to do so while all the while weakening the strength of the nation from within.  

I will continue to blog on points to ponder with postings to BookMyStory website and domain. 

On September 13th and 16th of 2016, I posted two tweets regarding Colin Kaepernick’s kneeling during the national anthem. I did not take a position on his patriotism. In one post, I asked a (why) question and stated facts in another. The first was an attempt at setting a firm basis in reality and therefore having a significant and meaningful conversation. After Bill O’Reilly’s take on history and his book, l had to write a second post. In my second post, I used a metaphor, figuratively stating he had a megaphone, able to reach a large audience, thereby causing a snowballing effect with what he says. I also left out the hyphen and used a lowercase (r) and put the (i)  before the (e) in O’Reilly’s name; a fishing technic, as fishermen, we know it’s the bait, and sometimes it’s luck. But where you fish and what you’re fishing for will determine what you catch. I caught a human grouper. Groupers feed on other fish. I was immediately attacked. First, telling me, I wasn’t a historian. In the first place, I never made that claim. The veracity of it all, I was a high school dropout. I stated I had written a book and had read history (meaning books)– in which a list of which is included in the book.  That does not make me a historian. But, in his bio, stated he was a historian but identified himself with a picture of a cartoon.  I wonder why?  “The Wrecking Crew” by Thomas Frank is one of many that can give a methodical timeline.  My grouper also said I didn’t know how to spell.  I guess because of the misspelling of O’Reilly’s name. So busy trying to consume and discredit my blog, the not-so-friendly grouper didn’t realize he was feeding on my bait.   It has become common in our society to argue as opposed to listening for points to compromise on. Many politicians are previous practicing prosecuting attorneys. If not, they’ve learned the method of discrediting their opponents to win by using what is called in the black community a form of “Yo mama jokes.” My question is, with elected leaders of this mentality, who will speak for America?

My Grouper, who identifies himself naturally anonymously, has opened the door for me to plant a better seed. Besides my publisher, WestBow Press’s one-time media bliss, I have promoted my book by sending postcards and emails to colleges, libraries, and churches of all denominations all across America.  “Guidance: Against the Odds, The first 39 Years” is not a classic, but metaphorically speaking, it could be a “Rams Horn” for the virtual walls that continue to divide us.   My book is an autobiography, but in reality, it’s not just about me. It’s about millions of African-Americans who have experienced the life of being on constant defense to survive.  In that respect, many blacks probably would not be interested in reading something that would cause them to relive pain and suffering. But, it could be a reference point for understanding on the other side of the fence, leading to constructive conversations. America is in denial as to the extent racism and stereotyping are destroying its inner fabric, as the cycle keeps repeating itself, generation after generation.
During the Industrial Age, being told, “I had to walk 10 miles to school, barefooted,” was not believable in my youthful listening.  Along those same lines, many things I wish to forget and blanket out from memory must be told to my grandkids.  Likewise, if told in general conversation, they will probably not be believable.   My book was written for them while omitting many humiliating details, but even more so for a socially deteriorating America. One cannot understand another unless there are open lines of communication. Walking in ignorance of the shoes of another is a sign of fear and/or blindness by hate.  As long as there are Groupers out there, we will never heal a decaying society. With the opening of the new Smithsonian African American Museum, time will only tell by the ratio of black to white visitors if America is trying to heal. When there are no enemies within, the enemy outside cannot hurt you.
(African Proverbs)

           I don’t have the money, nor the recognizable voice of a Bill O’Reilly, but I wrote a book inspired by my grandchildren. I’ve also studied history and have done my work on Black history, which was denied me through my limited formal education.  I am also a 22-year Navy veteran, born during the era of Jim Crow; lived through the March on Washington, the Civil Rights Act, the Affirmative Act, and the Voting Rights bill; all of which, was stood up against with an antidote as if it were a threat to America.  Examples: Claims of voter fraud when there was none.  The election of an African American President and the seeds of disrespect and discontentment in the form of antidotes began to flow from all directions. Bill O’Reilly, in 2014, in an interview, lectured the president rather than asking questions.  House Speaker John Boehner invites the Israeli Prime Minister to speak to Congress without consulting the White House.  Rudy Giuliani “I do not believe the president loves America, speaking of then-President Obama.  During an address to a joint session of Congress, Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) yells, “You lie!” The claims of being a Muslim (as if it was some disease) and, of course, the birther movement.  Subliminal messages are planted in the minds of an unsuspecting but already discontented America.  Now, it’s “Black Lives Matter” – the antidote – “All Lives Matter.”  Of course, all lives matter, but the movement was watered down intentionally by people like Bill O’Reilly.  While the whole purpose of “Black Lives Matter” was to bring national attention to an ever-growing problem.

There’s history like Black Wall Street and the Apartheid Baltimore Style Act of 1917; in time, if it were not for the televised Bloody Sunday, the Civil Rights Act might never have happened.  I don’t believe Bill O’Reilly understood the human toll that happened on Bloody Sunday.  But he does know what he’s doing with his diversionary tactics of hitting below the belt.  I wrote my book, “Guidance: Against the Odds” at the age of “72,” to give my grandchildren a reflection of my life growing up in America and an insight into how important it is to know history.  I served my country in the United States Navy for Kaepernick to have the right to do what he thinks is a just cause and also (unfortunately) for dirty mouths to keep their snowball rolling under free speech.  The only antidote to a violent society is for all of us to revisit history and try to understand cause and effect for a decent conversation to be had.  If there is no enemy within, the enemy outside cannot hurt you; an old African Proverb.

It was 1949; I was five, and I didn’t know my body was black.  I was the son of a migrant who purchased his first home in the city of Baltimore on the east side.  My first best friend was white, as it was an all-white block within the neighborhood.  Our friendship came to an end in 1950 when we started school, and we went our separate ways.  He abruptly stopped talking to me, and the friendly smile went away; I didn’t know why.

Although following my dream of pursuing my education, in 1960, I became a high school dropout because of racial bullying.  The connotation of a dropout is not very bright, rebellious, and a burden on society.  In April 2016, a youth with a BB gun resembling a firearm was shot by police in East Baltimore.  The Police Commissioner, Kevin Davis, an honorable man, stated: “He could not wrap his head around (because he had teens) a child leaving home with a replica of a gun.”  It’s understandable; the problem is, neither he nor their children have lived through the learned experiences of fear and survival that inner-city youth face.  Many have never visited or physically seen the abandoned houses of economically deprived neighborhoods.

        In 1960, being racially bullied, if I had access to even a replica, I might have carried it to school because the school administration, “Baltimore City College High School,” did not protect me. I cannot speak for the young man with the BB gun, but I have experienced fear and the psychological effect it can have.  Poverty, joblessness, and educational deficiency are the proving grounds for drugs and crime.  Black youth will spontaneously run, not because they have done wrong but because they don’t trust the law with their lives. The police aren’t the only fear inner city youth deal with on a regular basis.   A gun in the hands of a teenager can be a symbol of power. I’m not in favor of carrying any weapon by youth, just a statement of fact.  On the other side of the coin, there’s workplace violence and victims of bullying who simply give up and commit suicide.  When this happens, the Monday morning quarterbacking begins, as usual. Someone should have seen it coming!  Give me a break.  Whether it’s one-on-one or an entire group of people, racism and genderism are the elephants in the room, compounded by economic depravity, but the blind eye is always there.  African Americans have had to deal with setbacks in the fight against the ugliness of slavery since the party of Lincoln.  Every attempt at moving forward came to an antithesis “against” racial advancement as if it were a germ.  From Reconstruction came Jim Crow, along with peonage.  From forty acres and a mule came carpetbaggers and sharecropping.  From desegregation came white flight and redistricting.  From Black Power came White Power.  From the Civil Rights Act and Affirmative Action came the claim of reverse discrimination. From voting rights came the allegations of voter fraud, spearheading new voting rights laws.  From “Black Lives Matter” came “All Lives Matter.”  Not that all lives don’t matter, but the antidote lessened the attention.  All lives matter, making the number of black males killed at the hands of police across the nation seem trivial.

        I am encouraged by the number of whites who demonstrated with “Black Lives Matter” at a police convention recently in Baltimore.  Although I am sure they’ve received backlash from (workers of the antidotes) individuals who support the comments of an official from the police union in an email sent out in a formal department memo.  In the email, the official stated union members attending the state FOP conference should “expect more bad behavior from the THUGS OF BALTIMORE,” referring to protesters outside the Hyatt Regency Baltimore. “On the bright side, maybe they will stop killing each other while they are protesting us.” 

              I have had to deal with language from this type of mentality consistently for most of my life.  It took an internal investigation by the Justice Department to inform the police department that the elephant was in the room, running the show, not that they didn’t know.  I would invite the writer of the email to read my book, “Guidance Against the Odds,” and also “Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates, another Baltimore native, or ask him to live with an inner-city black family restrictively for thirty days.   He would be surprised by how poor, law-abiding citizens would welcome and prayerfully accept his presence.  At the conclusion, send another email to the next FOP conference with his findings.  Without some effort on his part, I don’t believe his views will ever change.  This is a pipe dream when people of this mindset don’t think they are the problem.