Manns Medium

I ask this question because of the recent news accounts of the current unrest going on in Egypt. Many are blaming the Obama Administration and while they may be right, I believe that there may be another explanation which no one is reporting.   Take for example my time line.   John McCain and Lindsey Graham were both in Egypt prior to the recent charge made by Egyptian Police and this curfew put in place by the Egyptian military.   History tells us that these two men, among others, have always been more about saber rattling than diplomacy.   Both have made it an art form to shoot first and ask questions later.   Could this unrest be the result of them sent to ease transition but placing an American burr under the saddle instead?   It is reported that the Vice President of Egypt has resigned over the actions not being diplomatic but forceful instead.   He believed, as those in the President Cabinet believed, that a peaceful solution coul...

Living in these times, the question always surfaces as to why many of us have a very hard time seeking and finding equal treatment or equal justice.   Some rationalize that it is all about money and others say that it is because we refuse to fight for it as hard as those who came before.   It may be a little bit of both but one main ingredient that exist but seldom verbalized is the perception of equality and how it affects all things that we come in contact with. First let us describe what we are talking about.   The perception of equality is a trait but not one which is genetic.   It is a trait that we all can possess because it is what I call a teachable trait.   Basically the perception of equality is believing that the world and all that’s in it is equal.   If you perceive that all is equal, you do not feel the need to get involved or see what all the fuss is about.   If you see the glass as half-full or a partially equal society, then you ...

We prefer a lie over the truth because it is easier to deal with.   That lie then begins to infect the very foundation of any relationship because once it is accepted; you have to now justify it each and every day.   You have to remember that lie word for word and express it the exact same way, with the same emotion and expression that you used the first time or it will be discovered and everything you said or did after that will now be questioned.   The lie was just supposed to be a quick fix and not a permanent solution to an immediate problem but what now happens is that lie becomes the one and only reason for your downfall.   So why do we prefer a lie over the truth, because a lie gives us a chance to re-invent ourselves and challenges our ability to be creative.   Even though we have to repeat it the same every time, the challenge of doing just that feeds our ego and transform us into whatever we see ourselves to be at that very time.   The trut...

Many people are all up in arms about the recent Supreme Court decision to gut a portion of the Voting Rights Act and the long-awaited voting rights laws that’s affecting many Republican-controlled states and municipalities, but what they seem to be missing is the real reason why. Some say it is to stop a certain type of voter from voting in the up-coming elections, some say it is to give the GOP a better chance of controlling all aspects of government both local, state and national but there are those who say that it is to fight voter fraud.   Regardless of which you choose to believe and you are free in this country to believe whatever you desire, one thing is extremely true and undisputable. It is the new adaptation of the “southern strategy”, one where the “closet Klan members” and “fake Christians” rule as they did in the time of Jesus where only the laws of Moses were important to those religious and righteous leaders.   Where a simple man born to a carpenter co...

Many of you probably have not yet heard Bill O’Rielly’s rant about why Trayvon Martin lost his life on that cold and rainy night in Sanford Florida.   O’Rielly believes that it had nothing to do with race but everything to do with wearing a hoodie.   To thse who know better, that reasoning sounds niave and childish but to those who are like minds of O’Rielly it sounds quite possible if not extremely true.   So what can we do to provide them with a much deeper understanding?   Some, including our president Barack Obama, say it’s time for a nationwide honest conversation for others like Chris Hayes; it may be time to ask “what’s the matter with white people?”   We are beginning to have that conversation now and I stand here to try and answer Chris’ question. What’s the matter with white people?   The same thing that is a problem for all races of people, nothing.   There is nothing wrong with white, black, or brown people except we all fall into on...

In the wake of the Trayvon Martin Trial, many are now beginning to take a good hard look at themselves.   Whether it is those of the Black Community, the White Community, Hispanic Community, Asian Community, Gay and Lesbian Community, Religious Right and Left Community or any other community which seeks to survive and thrive in these United States of America.   We look at ourselves in order to discovery if we have done as much as we can to erase all bias and prejudice.   Some have little work to do but the majority of us have a whole lot of work ahead of us. When we speak of racism, bias or prejudice, we need to know that it is not particular to one race or another and surprisingly it is directed at not only those outside of our own race but within just as well.   If we are to eradicate hate, it has got to happen not only toward those who are of a different skin color but those whose pigmentation resembles our own. Take for example, two prominent gentlemen ...

In the aftermath of this tragedy, we are all looking quite closely at the events leading up to and after this trial searching for a lesson, a reason and a solution.   In that vein, some are being held to a different standard than before.   Now you don’t have to say anything but agrees with the verdict and you are either a racist or ignorant.   If you disagree with the verdict you are either racist or ignorant.   Either way, you get the point; we are all now ignorant or racist. Case in point, in an article written by Aliyah Frumin for Hardball titled “Opinions of Juror B-37 were her own, say fellow jurors” , reports of this juror saying things like “she didn’t think Martin’s race was the reason why Zimmerman, then a volunteer neighborhood watchman, followed him” or Trayvon made a mistake by not running and sticking around.   This same article reports that four (4) of the other jurors got together and released a statement that request an appeal “to the high...