"Freeze, Niggas..."

Frankly, I'm tired of this shit.

I'm tired of everybody who seems think that black men's lives just don't matter. I'm tired of a justice system that can know that a(nother) young black man was shot down like a dog by trigger-happy police for doing nothing more than "looking suspicious" and still utterly exonerate the cops who slew him. I'm tired of feeling like there's absolutely nothing I can ever do to stop this bullshit.

What to do in the wake of this horrific miscarriage of justice?

"Stay calm," say the politicians, the "black leaders," the power structure itself.

What they really mean -- what the fuck they have no other choice but to mean by so callous a demand that we tacitly comply with verdict after verdict after verdict after motherfucking verdict -- is that they want us to "stay still." Don't move. Sit there. Look on. Cry. Rant. Preach. Pray.

But don't you dare move. Hold still. That's right: Freeze, niggas...

In other words, continue to let us take target practice on you. Let us continue to stack body after body in hails of blows and bullets. Because your lives — lives like that of Sean Bell's — mean absolutely nothing to a system that has never found a cop guilty of murdering you. (And no, I haven't forgotten that too often black folks lives don't mean much to us either; but neither is the average black criminal allowed to duck the consequences of true justice by hiding behind a badge and a union? And speaking of the badges, I also haven't forgotten that )

I knew long before this verdict would be rendered that these cops would walk. Scott free. I told friends. Some people I knew were incredulous that I couldn't see this as an open-and-shut case.

And I couldn't see what they'd ever think otherwise.

We saw this coming. We hoped it wouldn't end this way. But we knew, deep down, that it almost certainly would. Same as the others, this case stuck to the script. The mainstream media smeared the victims, cast aspersions on their backgrounds, distorted the events of the night of the shooting. The justice system pretended to take in all the facts of the case, pretended to examine the cops' action deliberately and fairly, pretended to render a verdict that in any way reflected the reality of what those officers did. The politicians, the "leaders" poured out of the woodwork and asked us to "be calm." Lay down. Stop squirming. Freeze, niggas.

So what to do?

Perhaps we begin to patrol more of our own communities, reinstate citizen patrols, and keep an eye out for crackheads and killer cops alike. You see a cop in your neighborhood doing dirty shit, grab your cell phone camera on the low. Take footage of that bullshit, whether it be the way they run stop signs with no sirens and lights and no regard for pedestrians or the way they shake down the local drug dealers. It's time we started telling on their asses big time. They do a lot of dirty shit in our communities and some of these cats should be ratted out. Seriously. As Cube famously asked, "Who Got The Camera?"

We cannot continue to endure brutality, individual or institutional. We need community police review boards -- with subpoena power. We need authoritative bodies governed by the people that will help keep an eye on those who are supposed to be protecting and serving, even in black communities.

And it's still not enough. Not for me. Not for the families of all those black men and women who've been murdered by the cops over the decades with utter, sickening impunity. I wish these cops — and all the other badge-wielding scumbags who've needlessly and fatally shot and beaten black people and all the other the "blue brethren" who've covered for them— nothing but the worst of a short, miserable, pus-filled life. Fuck them. I hope they all get Ebola. They killed that man for no good reason and walked out of the courthouse looking like they could give less than a shit. In the event of your own untimely, bloody deaths, consider the feeling mutual. (And no, that's not a threat...but I damn sure wish it was.)

And it's still not enough. It will never be enough. Not as long as our communities are stalked by tax-paid, gun-wielding po-lice who think they have a license to kill black men at will. The license needs to be revoked. Murderers in blue need to be brought to heel. And politicians and leaders need to take their tired asses back into the woodwork.

Black people should never "remain calm." Should never hold still as a murderous police culture and uncaring criminal justice system take our lives even while deeming those lives worthless. Damn all this about holding still. Keep it moving, niggas.

Because we freeze at our own peril.

Bitter Beer Face

So let's see...

...Hillary Clinton lies about her trip to Bosnia, lies about her support for NAFTA, lies about her role in her husband's presidency, lies about her position on Bush's failed war of aggression in Iraq...

...but the issue du jour is Barack Obama's suggestion that white, small-town America is often embittered and driven by single issues that have nothing to do with their day to day lives??

Clinton spends a month lying her ass off about this, that and the third, but the media wants to scold (President) Obama for actually telling the truth??

As Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick might say to his ex-chief of staff: LOL.

The President (to be) was right. Here in Michigan, the evidence surfaces every day. Millions of white folks fled the cities (presumably to get away from poor black folks) and are now fleeing the bedroom suburbs (presumably to get away from middle-class black folks) for even more far-flung pastures. Tens of thousands of white state voters, stirred up by the delusional and self-loathing Wardell "I Gotta Make Sure The White Man Gets A Fair Break," Connerly eliminated affirmative action in an effort to stop even minimal black gains. Even a casual glance at the message boards for local news outlets reveals deep-seated, irrational anger and hatred toward anyone urban and/or of color.

Small-town white folks are NOTHING if not bitter.

But Barack Obama wasn't trying to attack them. He was simply pointing out that eight years of failed federal policies and plans have broken this nation, leaving its citizens adrift and bereft of any faith in government to even address their needs, let alone fix 'em. Few pundits pointed out that he also offered parallel assessments of the anger and despair that have swept over African-American young men.

No, instead, we have white folks railing on and on and on against Sen. Obama for having the audacity to suggest they might be a little mad. Truth is, though, people aren't so much mad that he told the truth. The problem is that a black man said it.

Had Hillary the $109-million woman made the same suggestion there would be no attacks, no ongoing "debate" over the veracity of her remarks. But the black man who grew up in a single-parent home and only recently paid off his student loans is somehow "elitist" for making a sincere effort to articulate what is plain to anybody who bothers to really pay attention??

Give me a fucking break.

Seems I recall a few years ago, even white folks were open and honest about their senseless rage. News outlets everywhere were serving up "the angry white male," that GOP-voting, gun-clutching genus of white man bound and determined to take back his "rightful" place in society from black and brown folks bypassing him on the thrust of federal social programs. And who can forget the white boys who rioted in Florida in 2000 right outside the local center where election workers were counting ballots? Oh, they were bitter alright.

You couldn't throw a rock without hitting some white dude who had left the Democratic party because the party no longer seemed to blatantly cater to the myth that white folks "deserved" success whilst blacks had to "earn" it. These white boys have gone by various names over the years: "Reagan Democrat," "the new Republican voter," "the white evangelical," and yes, even, "the angry white male."

Back then (yesterday?), all you heard about was the need to overturn affirmative action because it was "unfair" and no longer necessary. Blacks were now beating out the white boys for jobs, jobs that the white boys "deserved," and this shit had to stop. (Never mind the countless generations of black men and women both then and now who were passed over for jobs they'd "earned" in favor of white folks who were "a better fit for the company.") White men —buffeted by the declining economy, the evaporation of jobs and superpower America's slow but steady ride off into the sunset — were none to silent about their bitterness.

But now we're supposed to believe that that was all just an illusion? The angry white male was just a product of our elitists imaginings?

No, what's clear about this latest "furor" is the same notion that came through during the "flap" about Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Barack Obama is free to tut-tut black folks, free to bitch about the "excesses" of the 60s, free to rewrite and diminish the long sad history driving African-Americans' outrage. (Sorry, but he did.)

But white folks are off limits to Sen. Obama when it comes to criticism this presidential election. Even the most innocuous, bland and vague reference to unflattering attitudes and behaviors among whites is met with stiff resistance and ire.

For decades now, black folks have been saddled with destructive, evil and outright false characterizations of us as a group: lazy, irresponsible, dumb, criminal, unpatriotic, genetically inferior. We've had to stand there and take it, too, even from so-called "sympathetic" politicians like Bill Clinton, who for eight years alternately wooed us and tossed us under the bus when convenient as though we were just another White House intern. We hung in and endured the worst portrayals, hopeful that "our candidate" was just "playing the game," believing that he'd "be our best friend" once he'd been elected after convincing enough white folks that he'd be sufficiently tough on us.

Now, along comes Sen. Obama, far and away the better of the two Dem choices, and many white folks get downright apoplectic if he does anything but kiss white ass and say it tastes like vanilla fudge.

To his credit, Obama has defended and elaborated on his comments. But still, Clinton, her minions and media lapdogs and the bigots in the GOP continue to falsely accuse him of elitism and to try to undermine his campaign with lies and racist overtures to the worst in human nature.

To me, Obama sounds like a man trying to appeal to the soul of this nation, trying to offer frank assessments with one hand and, with the other, a salve for the wounds inflicted by this GOP-perverted government. He sounds statesman-like, caring, genuinely concerned.

Clinton and her screeching peanut gallery? Hmph. They just sound bitter to me.

One-Hitter Quitter: Cornel on Barack

There are some things you think you really want to get deep into, only to realize that, upon further examination, they don't deserve as much as you planned to put into them.

For instance, I had figured I'd write this long column trying to decipher the nuances of Cornel West's recent statement criticizing Barack Obama for not showing up in Memphis last weekend for the anniversary of King's death.

But then I realized this didn't deserve all that. Rhetorically, this deserves nothing more than the one-hitter quitter.

Why? Because, with all due respect, Dr. West was just plain wrong. In scolding Obama for choosing to continue his historic quest for the White House by campaigning in Indiana, Dr. West accused Sen. Obama of subjugating King's commitment to "strategies for access to power." He closed by saying that "commitment to truth is in tension with the quest for power."

Please. Do you really think that Dr. King would rather have Obama laying wreaths rather than do all he could to win the Democratic nomination? And since when does laying a wreath translate into a "commitment to truth??" Bush lays a wreath and suddenly he's committed to Dr. King's dream?

Naw, I ain't think so.

I respect Dr. West immensely and, like most good radicals, certainly have my own nagging questions about Sen. Obama's willingness to embrace a truly progressive agenda (although I openly support him). I could go on and on about how Dr. West is right about a lot of things.

All there is to say about this one, though, is that he was dead ass wrong.

Be Like Ike

Long before I joined the heathen ranks of the Evil Atheist Conspiracy (or, as we affectionately call it, the EAC), there were things about churches that puzzled me to no end. Despite spending considerable time in church as a kid, I never understood wacky shit like the whole alpha and omega concept surrounding god, never quite got how he (she? it?) was supposed to be infinite and without origin. I remember more than once asking Moms how this god was supposed to have come to exist with no beginning. "Did god have a mother and father?" I'd go. "If god created everything, then who/what created god?"

She used to try to explain to me that god was never ending and had always been. I tried to grasp that, but all that ever really came to mind was a picture of a giant spiral winding continuously into itself until its tail seemed to vanish, sort of like that crappy effect on the opening of "The Twilight Zone."

These were the kinds of questions that I had that ultimately led me into the thrice-damned fold of the EAC, yes, but these weren't deep philosophical machinations I was conjuring back then. I was 8, 10, 12 years old. These were the sorts of simple-minded queries any child in his or her right mind would ask when something they were told didn't add up.

Swear to Thor, I felt like that the other day as I read about how mega-church big tymer Creflo Dollar (holla!) was refusing to cooperate with a US Senate investigation into the financial dealings of prosperity cults run by Dollar and other big-money preachers. The appropriately named Rev. Dollar lives like Hugh Hefner sans the bathrobe, having been lavished with jets, luxury cars and mansions through the donations and retail purchases of his sheeples. When Sen. Charles Grassley announced last year that he would be looking into dealings by Dollar and his ilk, Dollar said then that he'd be willing to comply with a "valid request." 

I guess he figures a Senate request ain't valid.

Now, if this Negro were doing something actually principled — were doing almost anything other than standing around lying to people about how his magic genie in the sky is going to make them all rich, if they kneel at just the right angle and break Creflo off the right amount of paper — I might commend his defiance. But he's a charlatan getting rich off a belief system that, at its core, is supposed to be centered around a guy purported to be selfless, charitable and downright contemptuous of the mega-rich. He sells god to people as a financial plan (one that includes Dollar's "brokerage" fees, I'm sure) and is among the fetid ranks of conservative-jocking black ministers prone to mimicking the sort of bigoted Bush-ian rhetoric that equates poverty (especially that of the black, urban variety) with moral failing.

Dollar's about as big a Christian as I am. Only difference is, I won't lie to you. And on the real: Even if you believe in god, why in the name of Shango should you have to make a clown like this rich just to get to know him (her/it)??

But to me, the even larger question is, why are people like the Wrong Reverend Dollar (holla!) allowed fleece their kindhearted (if desperate and delusional) members out of 10 percent of their take-home every Sunday and not be subjected to more scrutiny? I thought snake oil salesmen were no longer permitted to pump any old Python Tonic they decided to bottle?

I'm not talking about people offering a room and a hot meal to the traveling evangelist, either. Cref and his folks have private jets! Jed Clampett-style cribs! Rolls Royces! (Well, in Dollar's case, as he felt the need to tell CBS, it's only one Rolls, not two. Guess it's hard out here for a pimp.) 

For Zeus' sake, can't we start taxing these niggas? They aren't the spiritual descendants of Christ; they're the offspring of Rev. Ike.

They have no business being exempt. Seems to me they're just stealing money. Hell, I've known drug dealers who paid their taxes. (No lie; they claimed to be pro gamblers on their returns.) Why should Creflo and these other preachers, hucksters out here slangin' that spiritual sticky-icky, be allowed to skate with their bank intact??

And what's so special about religious groups that they can't be taxed? They claim all kinds of wacky shit that can't be proven. They don't even agree among themselves about what god they want to worship. And having listened to Creflo for myself, I know that this Negro is spouting sheer lunacy. (And even if you don't, why should that mean your church doesn't have to pay up? You're damn sure making income. Render unto Caesar, baby.)

So I say don't just investigate them. Start taxing them...hard.

Think of what we could do with the money. The mega-churches alone would bring in billions, money that President Obama and future politicians could use to rebuild our infrastructure and properly educate our children.

Sure, some theists might claim that the churches should be exempt because some of them perform services for the public. Bump that. Let the government -- which is to say, the people, irrespective of religion -- do it for themselves. Let the churches pitch in just like almost every other institution in this country.

I know it likely won't happen in my lifetime. Same as I know Ponzi schemers like Dollar, Kenny Copeland and others will continue to get fat off of the naive, the desperate, the narrow-minded and the primitive.

But one day, just like Grassley's doing, we're going to start looking much harder at the Creflo Dollars of the world. We're going to start asking those same sort of simple -- but infinitely powerful -- questions that even a kid would think to raise.

And when that day comes, Amen-Ra willing, those pious, fat cat assholes won't have the luxury of refusing to answer.