Thursday, May 20, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
I, too, sing America.
I, too, sing America.
I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.
Tomorrow,
I'll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody'll dare
Say to me,
"Eat in the kitchen,"
Then.
Besides,
They'll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed--
I, too, am America.
Langston Hughes wrote this poem in 1926.
H/T Crooks and Liars.
I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.
Tomorrow,
I'll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody'll dare
Say to me,
"Eat in the kitchen,"
Then.
Besides,
They'll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed--
I, too, am America.
Langston Hughes wrote this poem in 1926.
H/T Crooks and Liars.
Friday, May 07, 2010
Public Schools Are Better.
Here is the link where I read that.
Here is a bit of what this study had to say (click on it to read the actual study):
"To summarize the most important findings once demographic and location differences were controlled:
• Public schools significantly out-scored Catholic schools (by over 7 points in 4th grade, and almost 4 points in 8th grade).
• Of all private school types studied, Lutheran schools performed the best. 4th grade scores in Lutheran schools were roughly 4 points lower than in comparable public schools, but were (a statistically insignificant) 1 point higher at the 8th grade.
• The fastest growing segment of the private school sector, conservative Christian schools, were also the lowest performing, trailing public schools by more than 10 points at grades 4 and 8.
• Charter schools scored a significant 4.4 points lower than non-charter public schools in 4th grade, but scored (a statistically insignificant) 2.4 points higher in 8th grade."
Here is a bit of what this study had to say (click on it to read the actual study):
"To summarize the most important findings once demographic and location differences were controlled:
• Public schools significantly out-scored Catholic schools (by over 7 points in 4th grade, and almost 4 points in 8th grade).
• Of all private school types studied, Lutheran schools performed the best. 4th grade scores in Lutheran schools were roughly 4 points lower than in comparable public schools, but were (a statistically insignificant) 1 point higher at the 8th grade.
• The fastest growing segment of the private school sector, conservative Christian schools, were also the lowest performing, trailing public schools by more than 10 points at grades 4 and 8.
• Charter schools scored a significant 4.4 points lower than non-charter public schools in 4th grade, but scored (a statistically insignificant) 2.4 points higher in 8th grade."
Monday, September 28, 2009
Aida - The Gods Love Nubia
This one is for my cutie pie daughter Nubia. The lyrics for "The Gods Love Nubia" from the Opera Aida.
Take me in my dreams recurring
Cheerful as a childhood dance
Into one more taste of freedom
One more longing backward glance
In the sway of somber music
I shall never, never understand
Let me slip into the sweeter
Chorus of that other land
The Gods love Nubia, the beautiful, the golden
The radiant, the fertile, the gentle and the blessed
The pain of Nubia is only of the moment
The desolate, the suffering, the plundered, the oppressed
The Gods love Nubia, the glorious creation
The songs roll sweetly across the the harvest plain
The tears of Nubia, a passing aberration
They wash into the river and are never cried again
The Gods love Nubia, we have to keep believing
The scattered and divided, we are still it's heart
The fall of Nubia, ephemeral and fleeting
The spirit always burning though the flesh is torn apart
Saturday, February 07, 2009
Wednesday, February 04, 2009
...had not paid attention till now
Sinead O'connor
Feel So Different lyrics
(Sinead O'Connor)
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change
Courage to change the things I can
And the wisdom to know the difference
I am not like I was before
I thought that nothing would change me
I was not listening anymore
Still you continued to affect me
I was not thinking anymore
Although I said I still was
I'd said "I don't want anymore"
Because of bad experience
But now I feel so different
I feel so different
I feel so different
I have not seen freedom before
And I did not expect to
Don't let me forget now I'm here
Help me to help you to behold you
I started off with many friends
And we spent a long time talking
I thought they meant every word they said
But like everyone else they were stalling
And now they seem so different
They seem so different
They seem so different
I should have hatred for you
But I do not have any
And I have always loved you
Oh you have taught me plenty
The whole time I'd never seen
All you had spread before me
The whole time I'd never seen
All I'd need was inside me
Now I feel so different
I feel so different
I feel so different
I feel so different
I feel so different
Feel So Different lyrics
(Sinead O'Connor)
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change
Courage to change the things I can
And the wisdom to know the difference
I am not like I was before
I thought that nothing would change me
I was not listening anymore
Still you continued to affect me
I was not thinking anymore
Although I said I still was
I'd said "I don't want anymore"
Because of bad experience
But now I feel so different
I feel so different
I feel so different
I have not seen freedom before
And I did not expect to
Don't let me forget now I'm here
Help me to help you to behold you
I started off with many friends
And we spent a long time talking
I thought they meant every word they said
But like everyone else they were stalling
And now they seem so different
They seem so different
They seem so different
I should have hatred for you
But I do not have any
And I have always loved you
Oh you have taught me plenty
The whole time I'd never seen
All you had spread before me
The whole time I'd never seen
All I'd need was inside me
Now I feel so different
I feel so different
I feel so different
I feel so different
I feel so different
Monday, February 02, 2009
...mmh...
Our names are labels, plainly printed on the bottled essence of our past behavior. ~Logan Pearsall Smith
Friday, January 16, 2009
Desired Things - Desiderata
Desiderata
Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let not this blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore, be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams; it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.
--- Max Ehrmann, 1927
Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let not this blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore, be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams; it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.
--- Max Ehrmann, 1927
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Phenomenal Woman By Maya Angelou
Phenomenal Woman
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I'm telling lies.
I say,
It's in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It's the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Now you understand
Just why my head's not bowed.
I don't shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It's in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Maya Angelou
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I'm telling lies.
I say,
It's in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It's the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Now you understand
Just why my head's not bowed.
I don't shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It's in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Maya Angelou
Thursday, October 02, 2008
Friday, September 26, 2008
Poem Without Ends
One cannot take the beginning out of the air
saying 'It is the time: the hour is here.'
The process is continuous as wind,
the bird observed, not rising, but in flight,
unrealized, in motion in the mind.
The end of everything is similar, never
actually happening, but always over.
The agony, the bent head, only tell
that already in the heart the innocent evening
is thick with all the ferment of farewell.
Alastair Reid
saying 'It is the time: the hour is here.'
The process is continuous as wind,
the bird observed, not rising, but in flight,
unrealized, in motion in the mind.
The end of everything is similar, never
actually happening, but always over.
The agony, the bent head, only tell
that already in the heart the innocent evening
is thick with all the ferment of farewell.
Alastair Reid
Monday, September 15, 2008
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Monday, August 18, 2008
Poll: Obama Faring Poorly Among Racists
Bigots Oppose Barack by 1000-1 Margin
In a potentially ominous sign for the presumptive Democratic nominee, a new poll shows Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill) trailing far behind G.O.P. standard bearer Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz) among voters who identify themselves as racists.
Pundits and pollsters alike have wondered about the role racists might play in the 2008 presidential contest, but the new survey released today was the first concrete attempt to take the pulse of this key voting bloc.
The poll, conducted by Duh Magazine, suggests that Mr. Obama faces an uphill battle in his effort to win the votes of dyed-in-the-wool bigots.
"We wanted to know, why isn't Barack Obama closing the deal among racists?" said Charles Plugh, editor-in-chief of Duh. "The answer seems to be, because he's black."
In a head-to-head match-up, likely bigots chose Sen. McCain over Sen. Obama by a margin of one thousand to one, with a majority of racists saying they "strongly disagree" with Sen. Obama's decision not to be white.
Asked under what conditions they would conceivably vote for a black presidential candidate, 95% of racists responded, "Only if he was running against someone from a group I hated even more, such as Arabs."
Duh editor Plugh says the poll indicates that Sen. Obama "has his work cut out for him" if he is going to make up lost ground among racists.
"Sen. Obama made a choice at the beginning of this campaign to run as a black man," Mr. Plugh said. "He could change his position on that, but racists might see that as too little, too late."
H/T Andy Borowitz
In a potentially ominous sign for the presumptive Democratic nominee, a new poll shows Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill) trailing far behind G.O.P. standard bearer Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz) among voters who identify themselves as racists.
Pundits and pollsters alike have wondered about the role racists might play in the 2008 presidential contest, but the new survey released today was the first concrete attempt to take the pulse of this key voting bloc.
The poll, conducted by Duh Magazine, suggests that Mr. Obama faces an uphill battle in his effort to win the votes of dyed-in-the-wool bigots.
"We wanted to know, why isn't Barack Obama closing the deal among racists?" said Charles Plugh, editor-in-chief of Duh. "The answer seems to be, because he's black."
In a head-to-head match-up, likely bigots chose Sen. McCain over Sen. Obama by a margin of one thousand to one, with a majority of racists saying they "strongly disagree" with Sen. Obama's decision not to be white.
Asked under what conditions they would conceivably vote for a black presidential candidate, 95% of racists responded, "Only if he was running against someone from a group I hated even more, such as Arabs."
Duh editor Plugh says the poll indicates that Sen. Obama "has his work cut out for him" if he is going to make up lost ground among racists.
"Sen. Obama made a choice at the beginning of this campaign to run as a black man," Mr. Plugh said. "He could change his position on that, but racists might see that as too little, too late."
H/T Andy Borowitz
Friday, August 08, 2008
Monday, July 28, 2008
Saint McCain's Got Cute Friends... Well Some People Think Katie Couric is Cute.
Here is the video that should prove to McCain that somebody does love him. Who else would show the level of care it takes to throw out the only news worthy part of the interview. You know the part where McCain shows how little he understands about the Iraq War (his supposed strong point), and erases his actual answer with his answer to another question. Got that... McCain totally screwed up and pretty much lets us know how ignorant he is on this war thingy, and CBS replaces his real answer to the question with an answer to another question. Yes, well how nice. How nice of CBS for covering such a major gaffe. Otherwise I may have been informed, and well who the hell wants that.
Obama Better Just Stay In Europe...
Because McCain's got a new ad and, well its over. We will go back and look at this couple of minutes and remember how McCain rose like a Phoenix from the ashes to give Bush a 3rd term. Hello Canada.
H/T Wonkette
H/T Wonkette
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
...and now... Geraldo Rivera: "Secretary Chertoff, Call Off These Raids"
These completely overdone costume dramas are targeting cowering economic refugees just trying to feed their families. They would be ridiculed as overkill and posturing by any real soldier or cop.
read more | digg story
read more | digg story
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
