Baisden - Cannibalism Defined

I was sitting up reading last night with the TV on and heard a character on "Dexter" say a piece of sculpture she'd just created was a representation of the way "we consume one another to feed our own needs." When I looked up, it was a dark metal piece depicting human bodies in various stages of what can only be described as cannibalism. I thought of Michael Baisden and said out loud to nobody in particular, "How appropriate." Marcus Jones was merely a pawn - a greedy one it seems, but a pawn nevertheless. Baisden's using him as a shield against a possible civil suit was just another form of consumption. Michael Baisden certainly knew who the Friends of Justice were since September 10th. I know that for a fact. He knew they were there long before he and the cavalry showed up. But that was the problem. He couldn't get his "needs" met if he had to share the limelight with people who knew way more about the Jena 6 than he did. The sad part about it all is his contribution was so enough in and of itself. We, at least I did, appreciated immensely his spreading the word and mobilizing the masses in a way that the Friends of Justice would not have ever been able to do alone. But he obviously didn't feel that or he wouldn't have sunk to such depths. Black people, for the most part, will continue to not hold him accountable for his bad behavior (celebrity tends to make our eyes glaze over like that sometimes) and chide those of us who won't let it go - for the sake of the "movement." But, as is my prerogative, I will do neither. I will hold him accountable in my own way and while I will not blog about it anymore, I will not let it go in my head nor my heart - precisely for the sake of the "movement." I believe people always show themselves to you, you must just be able to recognize them when you see them so letting it go is not an option. America is, indeed, an exceedingly consumptive society - one in which "wants" seem to supplant "needs" at the expense of integrity, honesty and the greater good. Materialism and all the gory, little ogres to whom it gives birth will end up consuming us all if we don't wake the hell up.

Baisden & The Color of Change: Talk About Black-on-Black Crime!!!

It's just damn amazing to me! Everybody, including the triumvirate of Baisden-Sharpton-Ballentine, is raising hell about how we're just killing each other in the streets, tearing apart the Black community. And during all this ranting and raving, the worst kind of Black-on-Black crime is perpetrated every single day by those who seek and receive our support under the guise of - "I'm doing this for my people" - when really, it's about doing it for themselves (for some reason Armstrong Williams, $240,000 from Shrub's Administration and "No Child Left Behind" just popped into my head!). Mr. Baisden has just joined the ranks of those who are "killing us softly" with their words and deeds. I certainly hope he is "GROWN" enough to do more than offer this weak, on-line apology to those whose names he's smeared. A straight up, "I'm sorry Man," would have certainly been stronger than this qualified, "We do, however, respect the right of four of the Jena 6 families who have insisted that ColorofChange (sic) discontinue collection of any monies on their behalf. But this should not reflect on the integrity of this organization which has collected and distributed over $200,000 to their legal defense." Does anybody else see the double-entendre there? I swear! Maybe the exact, same forum in which he shamelessly denigrated Mr. Rucker and ColorOfChange should be used to apologize to him and his staff. Think so? Better yet, how about picking up the telephone and speaking with him - PERSONALLY? You know, man-to-man, the way "GROWN FOLKS" DO. My grandmother always said, "Whatever you do in the dark, will come out in the light." Truer words have never been spoken, especially given the massive amount of documentation provided directly to his staff by ColorOfChange before he began this character assassination. What he did was blatantly self-serving and showed a lack of moral integrity. Using Marcus Jones to do it was the cherry of manipulation plopped on top for good measure (Make no mistake Mr. Jones, you may have thought you were using them but you were the one used). To say he and his staff "were given inaccurate information" was a poor excuse for a supposedly professional group of people. Anybody know a good fact-checker? Mr. Baisden sure needs one. Or m-a-a-ybe-e-e ___________. Reader you fill in that blank. As charismatic as Mr. Baisden is, he really shoudn't get it twisted. Seriously underestimating the intelligence of some of the people who've been supporting and following the Jena 6 is a huge mistake. Some of us CAN and DO think for ourselves and we have very long memories. Those of us not asleep at the wheel knew full well that when money in the amounts of that which has been and still is being collected are involved, possible manipulation by SOMEBODY was sure to follow. I have to say though, I never expected it would be him. I guess enough is never enough. Some people will always be caught up in the celebrity, sending money to his foundation and paying for tickets to his galas. Some, on the other hand, will not care about the celebrity or getting all the credit and will continue to work with people like ColorOfChange who have a proven and transparent record of fighting for racial justice.