tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58012550107116273382024-02-14T14:55:00.465-06:00The Nubian Epistlecoachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.comBlogger448125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-36910884793240047882013-06-15T16:51:00.001-05:002013-06-15T16:53:16.968-05:00What Happened to Brenda Sykes?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg19x52kIXjeEk4JmD8B9IrQltZD5HiVvgp60Zp48RWgYVaTVRsTfL_6Ae0h3AvFXRZ4DsV5qq2Qy1H5a6x03hum1KW7yINhGUNaxe8qD8i4974QgFJi5nv5GNYKiIWZU_3KJDjaIw_NQU/s1600/Brenda+Sykes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg19x52kIXjeEk4JmD8B9IrQltZD5HiVvgp60Zp48RWgYVaTVRsTfL_6Ae0h3AvFXRZ4DsV5qq2Qy1H5a6x03hum1KW7yINhGUNaxe8qD8i4974QgFJi5nv5GNYKiIWZU_3KJDjaIw_NQU/s400/Brenda+Sykes.jpg" /></a></div>
Back in the early 1970s any young men who saw Black movies, television shows, or read Jet and Ebony Magazines has memories of a number of Black beauties, but the ONE that stood out above them all was Brenda Sykes. You probably never heard of her, but during her short period of stardom this dark-skinned beauty was everywhere in Black entertainment. This was the first time we had seen anyone like her. No one in Black entertainment was like he. She wasn't the mammy type nor was she the Hollywood bombshell. Hollywood had never produced a dark chocolate skinned beauty like this without her being an unbelieverable character or being an overweight servant.
After being discovered on the Dating Game, Brenda Sykes would co-star in 70s such films like Cleopatra Jones, Black Gunn, Mandingo, and The Liberation of L.B. Jones amoung. And she appeared in numerous television series like Good Times, Executive Suites, The Streets of San Francisco, etc. and even appeared in a soap opera.
Brenda Sykes was born in Shreveport, Louisiana. And was married to musician Gil Scott-Heron. This union produced daughter and poet Gia Scott-Heron. The ultra shy beauty really never fit into the Hollywood scene and decided to leave the celebrity atmosphere and spend her life as an everyday person. When you think "Black is Beautiful", think of Brenda Sykes.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-68715716424250411402010-09-26T17:46:00.014-05:002010-10-01T09:31:32.438-05:00Bishop Eddie Long Addresses Sexual Exploitation Allegations<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgry4fN-2o2wWmwTmJ-_YpN9tz6Kpks_4ixYGtVcq4rtpSHLOOvW7QwzQ4NGgQ6R1O3ynuUJxqt0HIDyvz-S2qMufGH7yqelYN1ui8rloI5RYqAOWdRuXdhilzUKPQo06tmzeTsfcWr_n8/s1600/Bishop+Long.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 213px; height: 161px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: hand;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5521360385758709810" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgry4fN-2o2wWmwTmJ-_YpN9tz6Kpks_4ixYGtVcq4rtpSHLOOvW7QwzQ4NGgQ6R1O3ynuUJxqt0HIDyvz-S2qMufGH7yqelYN1ui8rloI5RYqAOWdRuXdhilzUKPQo06tmzeTsfcWr_n8/s400/Bishop+Long.jpg" /></a><br />Bishop Eddie Long, senior pastor of Atlanta’s New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, spoke in front his congregation Sunday for the first time since he was accused of sexual exploitation in law suits filed against him several days ago. During his sermon, he vowed to fight allegations from four male members of his church, who claim that Bishop Long coerced them into sexual relationships by bribing them with cars, clothing, electronics, jewelry, money, and trips.<br /><br />“I’ve been accused, I’m under attack. I want you to know, as I said earlier, that I am not a perfect man. But this thing, I’m going to fight,” said Bishop Long. He went on to say, “And I want you to know one other thing. I feel like David against Goliath, but I’ve got five rocks and I haven’t thrown one yet.”<br /><br />To go along with his denial of the sexual exploitation allegations, Bishop Long asked for worshipers to pray for him and vowed not let to the case be tried in the media. The plaintiffs in the case, Maurice Robinson, 20, Anthony Flagg, 21, Jamal Parris, 23 – as well as a fourth man, from a satellite church in Charlotte, North Carolina, who stepped forward on Friday – are seeking unspecified damages (read money). They are popping up faster than Tiger Woods' accusers.<br /><br />Two of the young men claim they were members of the church's LongFellows Youth Academy, a program that mentored young men, when Bishop Long gave them gifts and took them on trips to seduce them. The lawsuits claim the pastor abused his “spiritual authority.” But federal and state authorities have said they will not investigate the allegations because all four men said they were 17 or 18 years old when the relationships with the bishop began. Georgia's age of consent is 16 years old.<br /><br />Over the past 20 years, Bishop Eddie Long became one of the most powerful church leaders in the U.S. He led the church as it grew from a congregation of 150 to a 25,000-member powerhouse with a $50 million building and a membership that includes athletes, entertainers and politicians. One of his pastors is Bernice King, daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.<br /><br />Bishop Long told the congregation that his lawyers had advised him not to “try this case in the media.”I like to give the benefit of the doubt, but I have a problem when you don't flatly deny such allegations. The very first thing out of my mouth would be that this is a flat out lie.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-84830825032649508282010-07-06T22:15:00.002-05:002010-07-06T22:24:31.998-05:00Meet God's Gift<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ada6xYP_GHkGuqfIi4dmX65bmuen9SvmzcB0OjbwSWcnxD71as9P1XjFnoYqoDklKh4ppF3raIIS9rO6a9YACLR7ZRTarTsnYUWdD6gnVAZOMsoI86X93pKGq11gJ42o_YHI7n05YEM/s1600/ept_sports_ncaab_experts-876654233-1278359067.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 285px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ada6xYP_GHkGuqfIi4dmX65bmuen9SvmzcB0OjbwSWcnxD71as9P1XjFnoYqoDklKh4ppF3raIIS9rO6a9YACLR7ZRTarTsnYUWdD6gnVAZOMsoI86X93pKGq11gJ42o_YHI7n05YEM/s400/ept_sports_ncaab_experts-876654233-1278359067.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490999914308752402" /></a><br />The first thing that anyone asks when they meet this young man: is that your nickname or something. But his real name is God's Gift Achiuwa. The native Nigerian's father is a minister, so the first name he chose for his son is a reflection of the family's religious beliefs. God's Gift Achiuwa is a 6' 9” forward for the Erie Community College basketball team. Coach Nwora discovered him at an annual camp the coach runs in Nigeria and brought him back to Erie, Pennsylvania.<br /><br />The bruising power forward is making sure he is known for more than just his name. He is averaged 13.1 points, 13.5 rebounds and two blocked shots per game as a freshman, earning third-team All-American and leading Erie to a 27-2 record.<br /><br />He also excelled in the classroom, earning a 4.0 Grade Point Average in the fall semester and a 3.8 in the spring semester. Division One powerhouses such as Kansas, Pittsburgh, St. John's and Tennessee are among the schools that shown interest. He is a bit on the raw side, but the talent is there and playing in the U. S. has helped him. And Coach Nwora said he is still training like the season begins tomorrow. God's Gift Achiuwa doesn't have a nickname, though his teammates sometimes call him "Gift" for short. For a kid as gifted as Achiuwa on the court and in the classroom, it's a fitting name.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-58039965650244350992010-06-30T20:31:00.006-05:002010-06-30T21:10:29.089-05:00South Shore Drill Team Provides Different Avenue<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/28WzEoNqmv0&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/28WzEoNqmv0&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br />While news from Chicago report of dozens of shootings on the first weekend in April 2010, a group of teenage boys gather on a basketball court in a tough South Side neighborhood called the Pocket and picked up their rifles. This was the end of an especially bloody few days in Chicago as police crime scene tape hung from the South Side to the West Side. In 26 hours 41 people had been shot, 3 dead. <br /><br />And so these boys pick up their rifles and began another four-hour practice session of a unique youth group, the South Shore Drill Team and Performing Arts Ensemble. The group was designed as an alternative to gang activity, high school drop outs, and teen pregnancy. The group offers young people an opportunity to develop self-esteem, self-discipline, goals for their future, and a chance to travel. The South Shore Drill Teams repertoire includes contemporary music, jazz, hip-hop, modern dance numbers and more. <br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHODZYqpR7upzzZlsy6jZ61cqDI1UEd4aDoY7UCLwJ31rPmNkBGRnlGxl4ICdAmLw_RbtGPKeflCG2QaLJNllWY-UQ7bvH_f66fgPTrs9aUnOzL3aS60eCztjzEU9kw5MVntnI7iHlnPQ/s1600/south-shore.jpg"><IMG style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 306px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488746144832121890 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHODZYqpR7upzzZlsy6jZ61cqDI1UEd4aDoY7UCLwJ31rPmNkBGRnlGxl4ICdAmLw_RbtGPKeflCG2QaLJNllWY-UQ7bvH_f66fgPTrs9aUnOzL3aS60eCztjzEU9kw5MVntnI7iHlnPQ/s400/south-shore.jpg"></A> <br />Since 1980, the drill team has been providing boys and girls, ages 9 to 21, with a highly disciplined and choreographed alternative to the street. Team members use wooden mock rifles, hip-hop music and modern dance moves in their performances, which have taken them from Morocco to Walt Disney World to the annual back-to-school Bud Billiken Parade down Chicago’s Martin Luther King Drive.<br /><br />In 2009, the team performed at 130 events in nine states. This past June 5, the team marked its 30th anniversary with a night of performances at the Chicago Theater. Although many on the drill team come from struggling families and from schools where sometimes up to half the students drop out before the 12th grade, 99.5 percent of the members graduate from high school and many go on to college, said Arthur Robertson, the former Chicago public school teacher who founded the team with only four boys, two of whom were his nephews. Now, its membership has grown to about 350. The team recently participated in the 33rd annual drill team and color guard world championships —the Winter Guard International — in Dayton, Ohio, where more than 300 teams from across the United States and four other countries were entered. The South Shore team won the championship in 1992. <br /><br />Some parents of these boys allow them out of the house only to attend team practices and events. They want to keep them as safe as possible. The boys feel trapped in their rough neighborhoods; they can’t go outside and be regular children. Here you can be. Without groups like this, many of the boys would be headed down a path of fast-money dreams and jailhouse nightmares. Instead they now spend days learning how to twirl a mock rifle high into the air, do a back flip and catch the rifle without missing a step as they parade. For some, the drill team has saved their life.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-11127000359922133802010-06-12T20:46:00.004-05:002010-06-12T21:11:51.882-05:00Barry Bonds Wins Major Battle<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIq_0EK76QGRVM80c9UtbKQY2AIBHPxdNbMfWLDWFKC-5ai2EXOOO72aVwQJ5jNCiB6vw7wi2CmpfoND9s7wJ_kLwTLfc4u_I5dQ9pBtH_3f4hJuwekZSO5MyRUM2HVlMuAgjR75l4FQ4/s1600/48254193.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 271px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIq_0EK76QGRVM80c9UtbKQY2AIBHPxdNbMfWLDWFKC-5ai2EXOOO72aVwQJ5jNCiB6vw7wi2CmpfoND9s7wJ_kLwTLfc4u_I5dQ9pBtH_3f4hJuwekZSO5MyRUM2HVlMuAgjR75l4FQ4/s400/48254193.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482075144201446114" /></a><br />Baseball's all-time home run champion Barry Bonds won a big legal victory Friday when a federal appeals court ruled that evidence the government says would prove he lied about using steroids is inadmissible in court. The 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, in a divided opinion, said the government cannot use urine samples and other evidence in its perjury case against the former baseball star. Barry Bonds was indicted in federal court in December 2008 of making false statements to a grand jury, denying that he knowingly took steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs.<br />The government alleges BALCO helped supply Barry Bonds with steroids and drug-masking substances. BALCO was accused of covertly marketing tetrahydrogestrinone -- known as "the Clear" -- a then-undetectable performance-enhancing steroid.<br /><br />Steroids were allegedly commonly used from about 1995 to 2003 with the allegedly full knowledge of Major League Baseball's commissioner and owners. Steroid use was banned by MLB in 2003. Some owners allegedly even cut players who didn't use it! Use of steroids were not against MLB rules at that time. MLB only wrote rules forbidding steroid use after it became public knowledge that so many players were using it. If it's not against the rules, and owners push it, and other players that are having more success due to using, I don't think you can blame any player for trying to be competitive. The commissioner, owners, managers, coaches should share in the blame. So the crime is lying; and if we are going to prosecute everyone who lied we would have to fire every member of congress and every CEO of every major corporation in the U.S. <br /><br />So it's all about public relations work to keep a good image. No lawyers are going after Mark Maguire. In fact he even has a job as hitting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals.<br /><br />The saddest thing about the whole situation is that Bonds was arguably the best baseball player in the game before all this. Now, he will only be remembered for the steroid scandal. <br /><br />I think it is a waste of time and money that the U.S. Department of Justice is worried about professional sports steroid use when major corporations are causing death and destruction because of unsafe operating practices. <br /> <br />Barry Bonds simply could not have gotten away with taking banned substances without the tacit approval of MLB. And MLB allegedly turned a blind eye to what players were allegedly doing because it reinvigorated ticket sales in a sport that had been losing public interest. Billions of dollars were at stake in TV negotiations, also. Mark McGwire's home-run blitz was said to have "saved baseball" and Bonds was simply carrying on that tradition. MLB is a huge commercial enterprise. When MLB turned a blind eye toward Barry Bonds' dramatic physical changes and unprecedented ability to hit the long ball, it knew exactly what it was doing.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-81832504782753065942010-05-31T21:33:00.006-05:002010-05-31T21:54:57.165-05:00Go #85<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaqIasMfI3VxLtup1tunDUBjOjdGtwVi6EYtmR-cfOTl-PCabppwmiimiUqRJaQfJQiMqiSTqVCohF-H4RPyomrXMP16hyimmdbEfRAe-E_tvWwmPEPf0s-ULLd1PmE1LOfIpxGI83oZ8/s1600/ept_sports_nfl_experts-329815064-1275264762.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 275px; height: 381px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaqIasMfI3VxLtup1tunDUBjOjdGtwVi6EYtmR-cfOTl-PCabppwmiimiUqRJaQfJQiMqiSTqVCohF-H4RPyomrXMP16hyimmdbEfRAe-E_tvWwmPEPf0s-ULLd1PmE1LOfIpxGI83oZ8/s400/ept_sports_nfl_experts-329815064-1275264762.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477633291944481202" /></a><br />Nine-year-old Ruben St. Hilaire, Jr., who lives with this mother in a homeless shelter in New York City, sent a letter to his favorite football player, Chad Ochocinco, formerly Chad Johnson, and received an autographed jersey from Ochocinco for his efforts. He then sent a second letter thanking #85. The letter read in part: <br /><br />"...Mr. Johnson, you really make me happy. One of my goals in my future life is to be just like you when I grow up. I wonder who was your role model when you were little? I have three role model(s) in my life that's my mom, Mr. President Barack Obama and my favorite football player Mr. Chad Johnson. To me you are the best football player in the NFL. May God bless you and your family..."<br /> <br />Ruben's dream was to go to a football camp. Then at the annual gala fundraiser for the Children Mending Hearts organization in Hollywood, young master Hilaire was surprised when he received a certificate to attend Deion Sanders' camp. And unbeknownst to Ruben, his hero, Chad Ochocinco stepped onstage to present the certificate. An added bonus, was that it was Ruben's birthday and #85 led the crowd in singing “Happy Birthday”. (Well I was kind of hoping the surprise was that he game them a house – but I like to dream big).<br /><br />It was a pretty amazing day for young Ruben, who said it was the happiest day of his life. Although it was a happy occasion, I hope someone helps him and his mom find a home.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-32914424702883297592010-05-29T01:34:00.004-05:002010-05-29T01:46:29.459-05:00Haiti's Connection to Louisiana<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNyXhvq34l2XgYqOpJyjJDgEDTHF1TZMr-8tVBPBCW5ykSDTAo7Bss1N3Gi8Ind9YcgZ_wGjrn9qbuZFtH170RbOUMXQZFrByaXhqoVvPsIrANsjEBDBvoHiAS7jkGxusMW5YxbTQNJic/s1600/haiti-eartake.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 265px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNyXhvq34l2XgYqOpJyjJDgEDTHF1TZMr-8tVBPBCW5ykSDTAo7Bss1N3Gi8Ind9YcgZ_wGjrn9qbuZFtH170RbOUMXQZFrByaXhqoVvPsIrANsjEBDBvoHiAS7jkGxusMW5YxbTQNJic/s400/haiti-eartake.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476579006022301666" /></a><br />Like everyone else, when the earthquake hit Haiti, I watched hours of news coverage. And like everyone else I saw the horrifying scenes caused one of the most devastating natural disasters of our time. And like most of us I had never been to Haiti nor did I know much about this small Black nation in the Caribbean. So I, like everyone else immediately got on my computer and began googling - reading about Haiti's history. <br /> <br />We were taught about the slaves in the U.S., but we were never taught that the people of this tiny nation had defeated Napoleon's mighty army in 1803. That was the same year the French decided to sell their only other colony in the Western Hemisphere - Louisiana. Had the slaves, led by Toussaint L'Ouverture, not overthrown the French Army in Haiti, would the French have sold Louisiana to the United States?<br /><br />The Louisiana Purchase instantly doubled the size of the U.S. I was born and raised in Louisiana, so I am interested in anything pertaining to the state, and I am a history buff. But I never linked these two events. I am sure the average U.S. Citizen does not know that the Haitian revolution possibly played a large role in the history of the United States of America. The question is, had Toussaint L'Ouverture not lived, would America be the America it is today? If his army and the slaves had not defeated the French, would the French have wanted to sell their only other colony, which itself had thousands of slaves? <br /><br />So, major events like this earthquake influence us to read about history and look at events a little more closely. It makes you wonder how politically and historically events in other places on earth contribute to our lives. Why is it that a country so close to some of the richest economies in the world could be in this position. It makes you wonder how, Haiti's own government and those of nearby countries have shown no accountability.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmnzxJvixSlya8UzhvbnsmiBw1l_BXTMnp9DHxi3JW7xA1hlQO-a98prKudNUAXIzlZWDfnYeD2Uc03LU2-YOWrnBDUvBdyq226Dn0z0oCTmrEOIX4dX4gWAevBi7gDpPh5hd243HJ5Sg/s1600/Haiti-Earthquake_1558606c.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmnzxJvixSlya8UzhvbnsmiBw1l_BXTMnp9DHxi3JW7xA1hlQO-a98prKudNUAXIzlZWDfnYeD2Uc03LU2-YOWrnBDUvBdyq226Dn0z0oCTmrEOIX4dX4gWAevBi7gDpPh5hd243HJ5Sg/s400/Haiti-Earthquake_1558606c.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476579475333815186" /></a><br />Yes the world responds during moments of emergencies, but Haiti was dirt poor long before the earthquake. But we must be helpful to our fellow humans more than when disaster happens. We Black folk must not limit ourselves to only what goes on in our hood, but open our eyes to events and the plight of other Black people all over this world. The reason I don't use the term African-American is that it limits our thinking to what happens in the U.S. We have to broaden our thought to thoughts not only to Black people in Cleveland, Dallas and other U.S cities, but also what is happening in Kingston, London, Capetown and everywhere else, including Port-Au-Prince. It is easy to forget about what is no longer on the front page or the main story on CNN. We have to be effective in keeping the light on problem everywhere. <br /><br />Haiti is in a state of emergency and it was in an emergency long before January 12.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-23252450657246546432010-04-23T22:00:00.030-05:002010-04-24T00:40:26.959-05:00<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaQZ3FyLotbXWc8GeeZkIO7EyfKVcxxzciSAlEdWM2v9GQskVGs2UdIlYSjakb30UuO8OYx_MOww4JC-kMSwUIoRKyu1TcggfDkon_2MrdGx5cj4Hr1p7-_dQOdrff-at0BUsTH20iuiU/s1600/047+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaQZ3FyLotbXWc8GeeZkIO7EyfKVcxxzciSAlEdWM2v9GQskVGs2UdIlYSjakb30UuO8OYx_MOww4JC-kMSwUIoRKyu1TcggfDkon_2MrdGx5cj4Hr1p7-_dQOdrff-at0BUsTH20iuiU/s400/047+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463561911902932306" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsEJNg14xGWqFAKnZFj6bL_DWNdtMxOUVddcSED34kKPi69KlHeeBT3Gv6mW-Viu7mbn6WV9l3gW3m3LlBCzah1KjDbzSGQi5zl2xBO72dyRPyeXHSevqrXrS91iK0vla_Uu6mnGAMaf8/s1600/046+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsEJNg14xGWqFAKnZFj6bL_DWNdtMxOUVddcSED34kKPi69KlHeeBT3Gv6mW-Viu7mbn6WV9l3gW3m3LlBCzah1KjDbzSGQi5zl2xBO72dyRPyeXHSevqrXrS91iK0vla_Uu6mnGAMaf8/s400/046+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463553285054820178" /></a><br />Just returned from my first cruise - absolutely planning for others. We flew to South Florida on Friday, went aboard Carnival Ship "Liberty" Saturday afternoon and got underway a few minutes after 4 pm.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnNAqrg85VwDUuh0-6JJjm-qAuVuDzfn1laGvtE9xvmMUSsPLY7C3FAslKL1JPrQz1Ke4_G0E4BYIHEcfa5CDVF3GJ5UPuEXxVp6iSoLW5zmXucfjgt6YSWGyM4eXAQNxWnQ7yUl-_JaI/s1600/038.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnNAqrg85VwDUuh0-6JJjm-qAuVuDzfn1laGvtE9xvmMUSsPLY7C3FAslKL1JPrQz1Ke4_G0E4BYIHEcfa5CDVF3GJ5UPuEXxVp6iSoLW5zmXucfjgt6YSWGyM4eXAQNxWnQ7yUl-_JaI/s400/038.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463554466547039714" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNA0B22tol6ZjpgibLTgMhyphenhyphenakHoEU79JPv6nqOjklV3DusY223KqxdhZL9Xf3jrpabmdMCfT8pxmIbyNGosg1lzQsa4XSy4aec3_c3nBA9cCdXtuHGVruWBnHNUt9uh8AyGkztEizwkG8/s1600/Carnival%2520Liberty%2520Pool%2520Deck.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNA0B22tol6ZjpgibLTgMhyphenhyphenakHoEU79JPv6nqOjklV3DusY223KqxdhZL9Xf3jrpabmdMCfT8pxmIbyNGosg1lzQsa4XSy4aec3_c3nBA9cCdXtuHGVruWBnHNUt9uh8AyGkztEizwkG8/s400/Carnival%2520Liberty%2520Pool%2520Deck.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463555799241820290" /></a>And after a day at sea we pulled into Cozemel, Mexico.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPQjFDPtTtEiEdGpEdvm-9148qtUN5Tyd-pd9vkRAq8WQnLru6iqq3dehrMksMwWJB7euhbzq-p-4ptNB9rF7kvVjxzXQyCeP3PHoTOCPl2nVcd2rKbPdgMMIy2LjYiqN5TqYBxuefZis/s1600/056+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPQjFDPtTtEiEdGpEdvm-9148qtUN5Tyd-pd9vkRAq8WQnLru6iqq3dehrMksMwWJB7euhbzq-p-4ptNB9rF7kvVjxzXQyCeP3PHoTOCPl2nVcd2rKbPdgMMIy2LjYiqN5TqYBxuefZis/s400/056+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463558281414080898" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL4zcd0Gaf7pbkr6p1HHdRGnIyWp-3Yb1quH9xDnoFjgmiotZ1FPA7fnZ5P3bUdZhOmQNKnH3XrUtPQd0_ywNcqQGGDxJwKe34NGPIupFjAU80sxkntiKGRivjZ6FxzXSLfX2iMtZQWD8/s1600/059+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL4zcd0Gaf7pbkr6p1HHdRGnIyWp-3Yb1quH9xDnoFjgmiotZ1FPA7fnZ5P3bUdZhOmQNKnH3XrUtPQd0_ywNcqQGGDxJwKe34NGPIupFjAU80sxkntiKGRivjZ6FxzXSLfX2iMtZQWD8/s400/059+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463559069374717138" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXQDgf07aM1Npzc5y_xdO2XhdsLYdFf3l_-nZsxx16OXuUV7bk6NejU9kuanuGKZ7hfn7romqw4q8je3r578pDurLXYCqYi1L-ZfttjWOcRLyvY33pE5AskwLxbrrEM06yLciBDcEtRrA/s1600/062+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXQDgf07aM1Npzc5y_xdO2XhdsLYdFf3l_-nZsxx16OXuUV7bk6NejU9kuanuGKZ7hfn7romqw4q8je3r578pDurLXYCqYi1L-ZfttjWOcRLyvY33pE5AskwLxbrrEM06yLciBDcEtRrA/s400/062+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463559688882553618" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUAPT3bZOC4U2nMe4ld79NG6JevGXKUkREfJ2JRyDXRxMTogprOqA86BXKXJGi33VtSgY2e4Z9zohxSqM-p7hd-9fTKOlhmC7o6qJkzLQFAUo0fGnbScVVtDnW7DoUbXgO_rSVv9rtHZ0/s1600/061+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUAPT3bZOC4U2nMe4ld79NG6JevGXKUkREfJ2JRyDXRxMTogprOqA86BXKXJGi33VtSgY2e4Z9zohxSqM-p7hd-9fTKOlhmC7o6qJkzLQFAUo0fGnbScVVtDnW7DoUbXgO_rSVv9rtHZ0/s400/061+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463560257465100530" /></a><br /><br />Next stop Grand Cayman Island.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgsFxIcNeUjoFRxcInFqWwI8lu70w8Fku5jDKSiqSvccPGwZ1v5VPSxlrdWfbWjbV7-B_3JyDhNOwRz0ySzILiwcKDeQseppCQGmPiDDRDGc6pxTbXvKXyzterxK4wqiDWV4geSxlV2M/s1600/041.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgsFxIcNeUjoFRxcInFqWwI8lu70w8Fku5jDKSiqSvccPGwZ1v5VPSxlrdWfbWjbV7-B_3JyDhNOwRz0ySzILiwcKDeQseppCQGmPiDDRDGc6pxTbXvKXyzterxK4wqiDWV4geSxlV2M/s400/041.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463557364461211794" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLjC2p-03GLEwV3PyaqjxlwjppVKzUg7Zu9vO_B-ZfSCRx_Lhs7LB_QDhzRcIUOSrjcukbpUkV4LGihxEk8UsEWC2Db2F7hoP0pZg4c8ijjIZaNyT4s3cq6BFz8Mpmk6sBkVzb6s0OQ0Q/s1600/073.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLjC2p-03GLEwV3PyaqjxlwjppVKzUg7Zu9vO_B-ZfSCRx_Lhs7LB_QDhzRcIUOSrjcukbpUkV4LGihxEk8UsEWC2Db2F7hoP0pZg4c8ijjIZaNyT4s3cq6BFz8Mpmk6sBkVzb6s0OQ0Q/s400/073.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463566689514266018" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD6DvzjlBRws88UpXyvwkzs3Q7YuiWxuA0RrcpfPr01tl79v4jJ7zfCH0R6ie9C3S_AvAA3sanXyvxwmmkB0c7pE6Y9CYFVx1rjHeJ84Z5r98owRtHURZ2iFbQAr1zvSyaC7KA24pVdGE/s1600/074.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD6DvzjlBRws88UpXyvwkzs3Q7YuiWxuA0RrcpfPr01tl79v4jJ7zfCH0R6ie9C3S_AvAA3sanXyvxwmmkB0c7pE6Y9CYFVx1rjHeJ84Z5r98owRtHURZ2iFbQAr1zvSyaC7KA24pVdGE/s400/074.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463565097835097650" /></a><br /><br />We love Ocho Rios, Jamaica<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3-R3wPkUxBpq7BQSoT1iuYpEhqvxBsuHa2Yx2Ea8lLYLXrxppSjWyttllnS-wMEuhTvmMthz1RErI9V-ZUSpWPjv84RoJgzUwQaH9RJ1JHqpfYjCd1JaknA2CGwJJKYaGkLlwST6CmMQ/s1600/053.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3-R3wPkUxBpq7BQSoT1iuYpEhqvxBsuHa2Yx2Ea8lLYLXrxppSjWyttllnS-wMEuhTvmMthz1RErI9V-ZUSpWPjv84RoJgzUwQaH9RJ1JHqpfYjCd1JaknA2CGwJJKYaGkLlwST6CmMQ/s400/053.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463562680193152386" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNb5c_tMHwhJwY9TS7CBdheKy4naTeZkg_p_3C_Ll7G35ShDtILLC_wF8fQfMLoF9ez6g0Bh9djQO9cHhC6bwTee2fX0-OGzFxEvK2JRUELYb2Qky1fIPn24ixFGv-AFABpU0mo6uePeA/s1600/078.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNb5c_tMHwhJwY9TS7CBdheKy4naTeZkg_p_3C_Ll7G35ShDtILLC_wF8fQfMLoF9ez6g0Bh9djQO9cHhC6bwTee2fX0-OGzFxEvK2JRUELYb2Qky1fIPn24ixFGv-AFABpU0mo6uePeA/s400/078.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463564358462047442" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXc-YPglSejnfkHEd3K9-CRvekJ2aodTEpbmkfEwmwOZSEI3b7w6b2OrNfsw2jE0c2FLvH1EtncjF-orQRwl1vPVQL_xOxJLjeSJ6IKjoFqMpydO8VT_Xz8Un_Rm40ej-bIo1VbF365Lw/s1600/054.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXc-YPglSejnfkHEd3K9-CRvekJ2aodTEpbmkfEwmwOZSEI3b7w6b2OrNfsw2jE0c2FLvH1EtncjF-orQRwl1vPVQL_xOxJLjeSJ6IKjoFqMpydO8VT_Xz8Un_Rm40ej-bIo1VbF365Lw/s400/054.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463568255424197234" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaSq0_szWpeioHKkrqkM-N2NnJZFbFT-fRAUb27NBD0mDPct-QlreobWFD3_EJqBnJRp26Me1JRy-KcgLHx18LqzlhehofrLkdgBfCQDgl1ebdIHhURy5qEaSIFpjO08xK7mDfkowr53g/s1600/087.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaSq0_szWpeioHKkrqkM-N2NnJZFbFT-fRAUb27NBD0mDPct-QlreobWFD3_EJqBnJRp26Me1JRy-KcgLHx18LqzlhehofrLkdgBfCQDgl1ebdIHhURy5qEaSIFpjO08xK7mDfkowr53g/s400/087.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463569269214047778" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtaouLhDtgVaESxt_pg5RvyHivySjTPCQdIYRKW8buJxZQjGU5Xa6SM2M3b0OyTfa2Z8Z-6pIkV6EMVYJIglAgv4Br289N1FN9gQt5WluI1sbQBx1pKcQDbiRV9M0E28S1c7Em6G4y1xU/s1600/059.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtaouLhDtgVaESxt_pg5RvyHivySjTPCQdIYRKW8buJxZQjGU5Xa6SM2M3b0OyTfa2Z8Z-6pIkV6EMVYJIglAgv4Br289N1FN9gQt5WluI1sbQBx1pKcQDbiRV9M0E28S1c7Em6G4y1xU/s400/059.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463570342058025154" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Rndgewwz4b3nWQ-CaTn2P1Iww0Ge8qvSZqQ72xxXQeck8uvi_l0Q3kQ7LgphsMUr-tFfV4xV_H_xjT4Nw0QyJqTCN3fU1p777YPl0yURwJ45Y6FyiePaULjOFvZ11RluEqd-YjzEOSY/s1600/093.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Rndgewwz4b3nWQ-CaTn2P1Iww0Ge8qvSZqQ72xxXQeck8uvi_l0Q3kQ7LgphsMUr-tFfV4xV_H_xjT4Nw0QyJqTCN3fU1p777YPl0yURwJ45Y6FyiePaULjOFvZ11RluEqd-YjzEOSY/s400/093.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463570942433787570" /></a><br /><br />And back to Miami.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0lRuNBxxl0BDq-9tyAY1GpzROw8PNagp_pOJ0l9njkSa0tN1ZSx4lVY1zwNlHNsk_0ItMv3qUhSOHimO5iFYPTRstRNzq1M8fif0OyqxUpYDB0rXXWAaefqu4OohFe4hhFyEsGrg2dso/s1600/036.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0lRuNBxxl0BDq-9tyAY1GpzROw8PNagp_pOJ0l9njkSa0tN1ZSx4lVY1zwNlHNsk_0ItMv3qUhSOHimO5iFYPTRstRNzq1M8fif0OyqxUpYDB0rXXWAaefqu4OohFe4hhFyEsGrg2dso/s400/036.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463572008450813762" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhisDDV8mWx1Fvk6CqoCuXtOu2c3B-82c9S13wOxzS6pvso7AwjL2DTTAjwB8o9Qxhy7IhygNkhBd-24rpf2DL6Rrtk9Mxy4kWWCjqZFoLR1zqumaeacQGK7Hv0P2-R-MXom3bpOW_V6sc/s1600/048+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhisDDV8mWx1Fvk6CqoCuXtOu2c3B-82c9S13wOxzS6pvso7AwjL2DTTAjwB8o9Qxhy7IhygNkhBd-24rpf2DL6Rrtk9Mxy4kWWCjqZFoLR1zqumaeacQGK7Hv0P2-R-MXom3bpOW_V6sc/s400/048+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463573790858649954" /></a>coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-73145631660607151442010-04-21T15:41:00.005-05:002010-04-21T15:45:38.505-05:00Notre Dame's First Black Valedictorian<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOQ79d2GnQtgDrpORdQVkBbNEdLhl8RoonlG_ASJI1UJd1lYIp8nS1S2qZukLvtTei_QqHthZrXiRYBtuGR2Ccx74GtBO5Dio1hbtDYfh-XN_V2jcqN-nBjV1r4pS2H4VoiRTo510iLbo/s1600/1539224.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 251px; height: 294px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOQ79d2GnQtgDrpORdQVkBbNEdLhl8RoonlG_ASJI1UJd1lYIp8nS1S2qZukLvtTei_QqHthZrXiRYBtuGR2Ccx74GtBO5Dio1hbtDYfh-XN_V2jcqN-nBjV1r4pS2H4VoiRTo510iLbo/s400/1539224.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5462693939423391778" /></a><br />In the 161 years the University of Notre Dame has been awarding degrees, never had there been a Black valedictorian. Until this year. Katie Washington, a biological sciences major from Gary, Indiana, has been named valedictorian of the 2010 University of Notre Dame graduating class and will present the valedictory address during Commencement exercises May 16 in Notre Dame stadium. <br /><br />Ms. Washington, who earned a 4.0 grade point average, and has never brought home anything less than an A throughout her school career, has a minor in Catholic Social Teaching. She has conducted research on lung cancer and performed genetic studies for Global Health on the mosquito that carries dengue and yellow fever. She is the co-author of a research paper with David Severson, professor of biological sciences.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhggX20BQd9FUH9Q1UgUPM0YVaU-LW1HTw3T0iGxbRgfso4RkrldBqI37YpUaxLhTcriEsJ8Gt6PnVCh7oz9W-tVfA5NX1J7ocTcy15KVqQ9532jazORASYMdRsFI7fp4dgNpqjjDkzKHM/s1600/katie_washington_photo.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 233px; height: 168px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhggX20BQd9FUH9Q1UgUPM0YVaU-LW1HTw3T0iGxbRgfso4RkrldBqI37YpUaxLhTcriEsJ8Gt6PnVCh7oz9W-tVfA5NX1J7ocTcy15KVqQ9532jazORASYMdRsFI7fp4dgNpqjjDkzKHM/s400/katie_washington_photo.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5462694294158787746" /></a><br />She is well-rounded and has polished her leadership skills through research and volunteer activities. She practically grew up in her father's doctor's office in Gary. Ms. Washington other activities includes directing the Voices of Faith Gospel Choir at Notre Dame, being a mentor/tutor for the Sister-to-Sister program at South Bend’s Washington High School, and serves as the student coordinator of the Center for Social Concerns’ “Lives in the Balance: Youth Violence and Society Seminar.” She graduated from Gary’s West Side High School and was valedictorian in 2006.<br /><br />Upon graduation, Katie plans to continue her studies at Johns Hopkins University through a joint M.D./Ph.D program there and follow in her parents and siblings’ footsteps into medicine. Dad William is a doctor and mom, Jean is a nurse, brother Mark is completing his residency at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, and sister Terry is a nurse. Another brother, Navy veteran Vincent, works for British Petroleum. (So the Huxtables do exist). Clearly she was focused on her mission in life and she has some good adult guidance in her life. She comes from a family of achievers. I would expect a child from a family of educated middle class folks to excel, regardless of race. Education was part of her home culture. Why bring this up? Because it shows how home culture influences our achievements. This is the story that we don’t normally see. This is not an unusual thing for Black Americans. it does happen all over the U.S. We, as a community, have other stories like Katie’s that need to be on BET, and TV One, etc..<br /><br />Although she is not 100 percent sure of what kind of doctor she wants to be, she plans to train as a physician scientist with the intention of treating patients with disease. You have to serious grey matter to get into John Hopkins Medical Research Scientist program (that's what the MD/PhD program is called). This is serious sacrifice - over $300K in debt (even with grants) and in school until your late 30's. Not having a real income until around age 40, and be forced into a specialty or into research, more likely the former, since you'd be way overqualified and too far in debt to work as a primary care physician. There is only one word for this kind of person DRIVEN.<br /><br />Katie demonstrates that if one is given an equal opportunity and makes the requisite sacrifices; great achievement and success will follow. "Luck is when preparation meets opportunity".coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-79236719515190160262010-03-24T19:48:00.004-05:002010-03-24T20:26:33.992-05:00An Entire Senior Class On Their Way to Four-Year Colleges<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAGW5zFDrP8Qu3HFQllNZJ981X_M0jOPDULe312Hhe0jlv7oqiAu9xgc6wGuXK_0nb6FYBSTmuxtp8mk4BIFOrEYuNEwx94H9Of7E47vXNBAGydGiQV2s_7-_12i1j2ojtKEuieuq_D5s/s1600/urban+prep+academy.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 113px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAGW5zFDrP8Qu3HFQllNZJ981X_M0jOPDULe312Hhe0jlv7oqiAu9xgc6wGuXK_0nb6FYBSTmuxtp8mk4BIFOrEYuNEwx94H9Of7E47vXNBAGydGiQV2s_7-_12i1j2ojtKEuieuq_D5s/s400/urban+prep+academy.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452376711856215810" /></a><br />In the mist of news flashes of Black young men with their pants "saggin" and walking around as if they are in leg irons, I thought I would share this positive picture of positive picture of our future leaders.<br /><br />Urban Prep Academy is a charter school in tough neighborhood in Chicago. Four years ago a fressman class set a goal to all go to college and now four years later that goal has been met. Yes, 100% of the Senior class has been accepted to four-year colleges or universities. <br /> <br />Yes, 100% of the senior class at Chicago's only public all-male, all-Black high school has been accepted to four-year colleges and universities. The 107 seniors have earned spots at 72 schools across the U.S. It's the first graduating class at Urban Prep since it opened its doors in 2006.<br /><br />This kind of accomplishment requires goal setting, perseverance, focus, having a dream and following that dream. These are words not associated with Black youth in the main stream media. But if it can happen in Chicago, it can happen everywhere else.<br /><br />The school enforces a strict uniform of black blazers, khaki pants and red ties -- with one exception. After a student receives the news he is accepted into college, he swaps his red tie for a red and gold one at an assembly. The last 13 students received their college ties recently to thunderous applause.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjxOHVr30dTzBAgHdSPBT_FIePt0vh_6jxlKqU_LILM0et3_DE21tegy2k35yb2kyBQwxDCul3Q6t4lwDNwyQqvqZ9fpkMTrXCikV7slz6aVXB3br9JID50V-xVZUOB6dr1IQGgRC_uUc/s1600/upa.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjxOHVr30dTzBAgHdSPBT_FIePt0vh_6jxlKqU_LILM0et3_DE21tegy2k35yb2kyBQwxDCul3Q6t4lwDNwyQqvqZ9fpkMTrXCikV7slz6aVXB3br9JID50V-xVZUOB6dr1IQGgRC_uUc/s400/upa.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452375918667754322" /></a><br />College in this and other similar neighbor was merely a concept--never a goal--for most of these young men growing up. Urban Prep, a charter school that enrolls using a lottery in one of Chicago's more troubled neighborhoods, faced difficult odds. Only 4 percent of this year's senior class read at grade level as freshmen, according to Tim King, the school's CEO. Every single person hired four years ago knew from the day one that this was the goal: Get our kids into college.<br /><br />Before the students begin their freshman year, they take a field trip to Northwestern University. Every student is assigned a college counselor the day he steps foot in the school. Even the school's voicemail has a student declaring "I am college bound" before it asks callers to dial an extension.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-48056428887103075902010-03-14T19:40:00.019-05:002010-03-14T21:44:01.350-05:00Does Any of This Look Familiar?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJKN11gYZlQsJH3g8EhPZd811M3L5tpNg0P2x4u3ZO4gxB21qLEcg70n53Q0cP-xBZq9FVIL7s3pE_h9G9JN5sfLm5N6vyjnlPrxYkpiZsrAneVFWVXkHJCncILFWqbjGv1OL4PYC6Mto/s1600-h/securedownloadCAJCV7FG.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 163px; height: 156px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJKN11gYZlQsJH3g8EhPZd811M3L5tpNg0P2x4u3ZO4gxB21qLEcg70n53Q0cP-xBZq9FVIL7s3pE_h9G9JN5sfLm5N6vyjnlPrxYkpiZsrAneVFWVXkHJCncILFWqbjGv1OL4PYC6Mto/s400/securedownloadCAJCV7FG.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448657125350801058" /></a>45 rpm spindles<br /><br /> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg85FGGcAhaCPpxtd1vSqaOPWBj_9-iubR1-Bdkoh_kbnlH-ax2MYcre6rSH2_k6W6KOqz2qoRAiDwf0Z6LX6210mzOKwPFr6rNy0QEoBO14t7QvNOr9N-wgzNGBvxTBgHjeTqhTZ0YLcM/s1600-h/securedownloadCAYN74A3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 297px; height: 229px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg85FGGcAhaCPpxtd1vSqaOPWBj_9-iubR1-Bdkoh_kbnlH-ax2MYcre6rSH2_k6W6KOqz2qoRAiDwf0Z6LX6210mzOKwPFr6rNy0QEoBO14t7QvNOr9N-wgzNGBvxTBgHjeTqhTZ0YLcM/s400/securedownloadCAYN74A3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448657638435195138" /></a>S&H Green Stamps<br /> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Mi4k6GBWKK4ffmbllqJOypXuLoPC8LWa6txGZUzu0suY31Q_5FWwv7SJX9oGbPMHo4YbhgqPZaPD99YsGAzxzcUjbHB26pqcJEr0s1g6OvyfbsN_Uz_7PP6oJMRsGA2PVWOGwmoxNKs/s1600-h/securedownloadCAPZCGTV.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 291px; height: 151px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Mi4k6GBWKK4ffmbllqJOypXuLoPC8LWa6txGZUzu0suY31Q_5FWwv7SJX9oGbPMHo4YbhgqPZaPD99YsGAzxzcUjbHB26pqcJEr0s1g6OvyfbsN_Uz_7PP6oJMRsGA2PVWOGwmoxNKs/s400/securedownloadCAPZCGTV.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448658382337864338" /></a>Metal Ice cube trays <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjPhhpaeF2ROG88ySOWPAGxazfZJv3KCjPQW5EttGjF-xMM-ozhTpajRwgY5Kh0gzEJpPQmJ0jpYtS4F6oQzlugrK0wXVEAW8r1Z_zYec99bxh4SjPan-W1T0G48BLZ6x58DV9XIego9w/s1600-h/securedownloadCAAF1I10.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 277px; height: 208px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjPhhpaeF2ROG88ySOWPAGxazfZJv3KCjPQW5EttGjF-xMM-ozhTpajRwgY5Kh0gzEJpPQmJ0jpYtS4F6oQzlugrK0wXVEAW8r1Z_zYec99bxh4SjPan-W1T0G48BLZ6x58DV9XIego9w/s400/securedownloadCAAF1I10.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448661537840457794" /></a>Drive in Movies <br /><br /> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6Wj0Miuwr1-j4a2YjNPaX2Nj6Ynyj-Qu2kUZYgFGb2rm-4zsRZ3KpFhLo1pnXnZYncFcBEeiZ1ngkxl6gTsNLXJe_bJ4GhQreS_ZfuxLlkpT4BlLDhY14akRx4KZfHBL6PChF2Q4hhSg/s1600-h/securedownloadCAW6L3PP.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 277px; height: 187px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6Wj0Miuwr1-j4a2YjNPaX2Nj6Ynyj-Qu2kUZYgFGb2rm-4zsRZ3KpFhLo1pnXnZYncFcBEeiZ1ngkxl6gTsNLXJe_bJ4GhQreS_ZfuxLlkpT4BlLDhY14akRx4KZfHBL6PChF2Q4hhSg/s400/securedownloadCAW6L3PP.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448662779139956882" /></a>Studebakers <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKQMH7sh-h03N6mw7zyz1PACehOCk_f3APIInw56DDpE_ZRbiNEjYoLLmdVjXHZ9JHBlvy3WB1GeCSi8guIiOBzsgoBvsvA6MDuebh3514o-T21xZvQjOgVFAWyC9hd5lZbNslqEUCUp4/s1600-h/securedownloadCAQ2QL8V.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 183px; height: 263px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKQMH7sh-h03N6mw7zyz1PACehOCk_f3APIInw56DDpE_ZRbiNEjYoLLmdVjXHZ9JHBlvy3WB1GeCSi8guIiOBzsgoBvsvA6MDuebh3514o-T21xZvQjOgVFAWyC9hd5lZbNslqEUCUp4/s400/securedownloadCAQ2QL8V.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448663780904032242" /></a>Washtub wringers <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipy-9dVksVuD7eGtd5T83Kjua1XFmTC4os_DPHdLo2SibHdErLlWk4TBwubGtx0_pEbq5BmMY4KzhlGV4_rOescHxehCwEpLr12ivISLhBB4SQf1nmJmua2AoHkTUP_77Pq-NuvuHnKOE/s1600-h/securedownloadCARB3EUJ.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 180px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipy-9dVksVuD7eGtd5T83Kjua1XFmTC4os_DPHdLo2SibHdErLlWk4TBwubGtx0_pEbq5BmMY4KzhlGV4_rOescHxehCwEpLr12ivISLhBB4SQf1nmJmua2AoHkTUP_77Pq-NuvuHnKOE/s400/securedownloadCARB3EUJ.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448664847882256338" /></a>Reel-To-Reel tape recorders <br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIzRGm9OCSQ4MtN9ZHnt7SU-4alQFlghyphenhyphen3R76RCtP970B7GcOPFhaok6BQXfOyVGodK5i-FBLC0Q6Gw7B9_sVto4cHI79fkI6qgHl65hx2OhV_MFDW78046SWnD6aOXvFalZCWaDVo68U/s1600-h/securedownloadCA1QQ5ZA.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 199px; height: 270px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIzRGm9OCSQ4MtN9ZHnt7SU-4alQFlghyphenhyphen3R76RCtP970B7GcOPFhaok6BQXfOyVGodK5i-FBLC0Q6Gw7B9_sVto4cHI79fkI6qgHl65hx2OhV_MFDW78046SWnD6aOXvFalZCWaDVo68U/s400/securedownloadCA1QQ5ZA.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448665782341900322" /></a>15 cent hamburgers <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgLKDcyrBKEfbcy3TBBhcyoSLuYTirvMWdlofOJe10dDzjY-1H_LF0sJglfA0j-BV6NBVphRCWmhrnxRkJOF1E1Q1En1PCEo2s3FUqZ5g8MjQ5cZ-osu_-Q_ocqbVJCl6XnXbdeng2MQs/s1600-h/securedownloadCAHA1GPF.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 218px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgLKDcyrBKEfbcy3TBBhcyoSLuYTirvMWdlofOJe10dDzjY-1H_LF0sJglfA0j-BV6NBVphRCWmhrnxRkJOF1E1Q1En1PCEo2s3FUqZ5g8MjQ5cZ-osu_-Q_ocqbVJCl6XnXbdeng2MQs/s400/securedownloadCAHA1GPF.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448667030640020850" /></a>5 cent packs of baseball cards <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA3oh7JsEA5sa3WQzUT3EoS4YmAb1kRctuLnKcLT2QT7w9KCD_OiQnzEpLrKA7RIhuxm4iUnOssZEMeyGRDGgIxXMRwA9eJSyQOfVvogOc0OaZn1-_8KeHPcI-lPf8o1YiT2e1RMLBE4M/s1600-h/securedownloadCA3UWN7D.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 345px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA3oh7JsEA5sa3WQzUT3EoS4YmAb1kRctuLnKcLT2QT7w9KCD_OiQnzEpLrKA7RIhuxm4iUnOssZEMeyGRDGgIxXMRwA9eJSyQOfVvogOc0OaZn1-_8KeHPcI-lPf8o1YiT2e1RMLBE4M/s400/securedownloadCA3UWN7D.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448668277431318306" /></a>25 cents a gallon gas <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNS5WcSv_Kz0FajiVsaTOXsjNLbHUdQGeu0YpAPG1tvy9_DKpICiFu5WLz-GiSLpf2-gdYWaHrHsoVtS2OG8WsfqLDTO3S5T6hKdjPtvFwjIM7VtWSUGR3Zfd4p91qUoZwlFwNfYr68es/s1600-h/securedownloadCAAK99VK.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 158px; height: 253px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNS5WcSv_Kz0FajiVsaTOXsjNLbHUdQGeu0YpAPG1tvy9_DKpICiFu5WLz-GiSLpf2-gdYWaHrHsoVtS2OG8WsfqLDTO3S5T6hKdjPtvFwjIM7VtWSUGR3Zfd4p91qUoZwlFwNfYr68es/s400/securedownloadCAAK99VK.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448669891571674418" /></a>Jiffy Pop popcorn <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlxJBUdN5nPI-lvm0OswmTV7hho2ZoPPfEjko1E8JLpR3GihRKB3MxWjouLlyquwZmTR_x3elzXrkUVZPMWsBMvIZRfv_ioHEMyo_1tkWoYFuQv7Yb20qlDJ-D3Gi0ONQXia4-k5x2T2o/s1600-h/securedownloadCAPAGV9T.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 324px; height: 243px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlxJBUdN5nPI-lvm0OswmTV7hho2ZoPPfEjko1E8JLpR3GihRKB3MxWjouLlyquwZmTR_x3elzXrkUVZPMWsBMvIZRfv_ioHEMyo_1tkWoYFuQv7Yb20qlDJ-D3Gi0ONQXia4-k5x2T2o/s400/securedownloadCAPAGV9T.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448672008350326130" /></a>5 cent Cokes <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmtp6SX-5TeHCZktZfNKWy-WtGhWxYLUChp9vPkB3wdaFqO8oLr0H9MWIOzcChgOaLTBRWL0LZ57s9eh2jVTfbvgz2x1SaJr-EjYe8zDmcGeEgPCGihvJRmyekEUdO75t-N5ov8sqILig/s1600-h/securedownloadCA0E8G8V.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 217px; height: 259px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmtp6SX-5TeHCZktZfNKWy-WtGhWxYLUChp9vPkB3wdaFqO8oLr0H9MWIOzcChgOaLTBRWL0LZ57s9eh2jVTfbvgz2x1SaJr-EjYe8zDmcGeEgPCGihvJRmyekEUdO75t-N5ov8sqILig/s400/securedownloadCA0E8G8V.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448672827301157938" /></a>Brownie camera <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyi0FqDwP7Is5HituHjxZ8ZCdBaxvAZJAOY_MTy-fMKUpy5zRMWUIS8iztIq7iRNhYSJJARPEjybZJnPs6PSrdotQwd-ydJ9hDOd8-6iiMPzKK8RkV1F1YfLGHnoHGmz-V9q7AMFY7UV0/s1600-h/securedownloadCAS1ISS6.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 341px; height: 227px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyi0FqDwP7Is5HituHjxZ8ZCdBaxvAZJAOY_MTy-fMKUpy5zRMWUIS8iztIq7iRNhYSJJARPEjybZJnPs6PSrdotQwd-ydJ9hDOd8-6iiMPzKK8RkV1F1YfLGHnoHGmz-V9q7AMFY7UV0/s400/securedownloadCAS1ISS6.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448678195321555410" /></a>Flash bulbs <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTfGf8Y0IK1yITIvtxUvI5aggRNK94JzkvEBHNugCLkHOMFj2iMtine0RcUjgjobqnFf642LnKUQx8FCjBMRGsu8L5VqgGir-tGTjA1fVRVH1nYYkhciwYULgM9gWSuDvYeHgSwTVvxWA/s1600-h/securedownloadCADWL4R2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 236px; height: 181px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTfGf8Y0IK1yITIvtxUvI5aggRNK94JzkvEBHNugCLkHOMFj2iMtine0RcUjgjobqnFf642LnKUQx8FCjBMRGsu8L5VqgGir-tGTjA1fVRVH1nYYkhciwYULgM9gWSuDvYeHgSwTVvxWA/s400/securedownloadCADWL4R2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448680697650681874" /></a>Timmy and Lassie (long before Black folks on TV) <br /><br /> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHrOWR_qVbrV5GzGHR_FdtysiTUqrFSf05GZ3tQdNstJvvdS4mbwDFndKPp_BbOkVsXYlzoOsiXb_BqnBp0zHJ08NE6W5YusVKq0KiS28s19YzwtrKBJHQl10CIH4gDTBYYc9yv9F2Glc/s1600-h/securedownloadCA28AV3R.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 252px; height: 189px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHrOWR_qVbrV5GzGHR_FdtysiTUqrFSf05GZ3tQdNstJvvdS4mbwDFndKPp_BbOkVsXYlzoOsiXb_BqnBp0zHJ08NE6W5YusVKq0KiS28s19YzwtrKBJHQl10CIH4gDTBYYc9yv9F2Glc/s400/securedownloadCA28AV3R.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448681869128511282" /></a>TV Test patterns <br /><br /><br />The sad thing is that I remember all of these.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-90792737647391908732010-03-08T21:11:00.003-06:002010-03-08T22:05:33.722-06:00Serena Williams Opens Second School in Kenya<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/vtfxaxXmXHw&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/vtfxaxXmXHw&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Serena Williams, the world's #1 womens tennis player, made a whirlwind 3-day trip to Kenya in late February. The trip included the opening of the Serena Williams Wee Secondary School, the second such school in her name in that African nation. The school is located in the remote village of Wee, east of Nairobi. This is the second school she’s opened in Kenya with help from computer giant Hewlett Packard. Serena opened her first school in 2008. Oprah, you're lagging.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCMi7au0K78MknJiVidP0ZMYAvI-l4e66V4qWBFnS2iDKe3YMZppa1l4n3wiuFlteuMfXpW-syv7eyYMRuoMn2xlZdOKxIn8AtLiAmDu4kcAAAvm-6UczX_lRQnHSB0Yp4XLfH_u3f9MY/s1600-h/Serena's+1st+school.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 371px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCMi7au0K78MknJiVidP0ZMYAvI-l4e66V4qWBFnS2iDKe3YMZppa1l4n3wiuFlteuMfXpW-syv7eyYMRuoMn2xlZdOKxIn8AtLiAmDu4kcAAAvm-6UczX_lRQnHSB0Yp4XLfH_u3f9MY/s400/Serena's+1st+school.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446480020017370578" /></a><br />Just a couple months ago Serena was all over the news for her rant against a line judge in a tennis match and the media was calling for her head. But where is the main stream media when not only Serena Williams, but any athelete does anything positive?<br /><br />The tiny village of Wee was a beehive of activity as Serena and her entourage arrived in aboard helicopters to preside over the grand opening. Hundreds of school children and their parents turned out to receive the celebrated star player which they only hear about in the media. The greatest moment of the event came when Serena was decorated as an Akamba woman amid song and dance.<br /><br />Wee students, having heard of a popular joke that Serena’s roots are in Western Kenya due to her imposing physique, impressed the visitor with a rendition of popular songs from the region like mwana wa mama apepetanga (mama’s girl is a star dancer). The children sang: “Serena we like you, Serena we love you, Serena come dance with us,” and Serena acknowledged by waving back with a smile.<br /><br />For hundreds of Wee residents, the presence of helicopters attracted their attention much more than did the tennis star as they gathered around the machines they only see flying above the hilly region.<br /><br />Serena’s school has a special class for deaf students, the first of its kind in the region. <br /><br />Serena also met with the Prime Minister and Vice President of Kenya and conducted a tennis clinic with the children. And being that Serena was recovering from the flu, her appearance was all the more impressive.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-56502487118018429102010-03-04T21:13:00.003-06:002010-03-04T21:59:39.260-06:00RNC Documents Reveal Use of Scare TacticsAs the Bible says, what's done in the dark will come to light. Republican National Committee leaders are once again doing damage control after a document was found revealing their plans to use voters' fear in the coming campaign season. The problem started when an attendee at the RNC conference last month Florida left a 72-page document from its 2010 strategizing session in a hotel room. <br /><br />The memo states that the best path to victory in 2010 is for Republican candidates to depict themselves as the best hope for resisting the "trending toward socialism" taking shape in a Democrat-dominated Washington. The presentation calls President Obama's administration "The Evil Empire," and includes the image of President Obama made over in the makeup Heath Ledger used in his performance as the Joker in the 2008 Batman movie "The Dark Knight." <br /><br />The memo candidly states that the aim of such caricature is to amp up "fear" among the Republican conservative base. RNC leaders NOW say "the language and the imagery will not be used in any capacity in the future."<br /><br />The RNC will not admit to it, but evidence points to their founding and backing the "Tea Party Movement". Ever wonder why only Republicans are speakers at tea party" functions. The Obama-as-Joker image is a very familiar icon at Tea Party rallies. <br /><br />It's time for Black folk to do what the actors in Spike Lee's Skool Dayz say "WAKE UP". While Black folks are still celebrating a year after Barack Obama became the first Black president of the U.S., his and your enemies began plotting, the day after the election, how to not only defeat him, but to embarrass and destroy him. And all the while, we, including the Congressional Black Caucas, NAACP, Urban League, churches, the twin reverends high five and dap.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-4960048475506644172010-02-20T20:05:00.003-06:002010-02-20T20:13:14.737-06:00Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong – The Snow Leopard<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE9XDaAvHlE_CQo-pN3a-iaf0Wq_beEBdllNsHNLJ7_kWF-hrYOb9ZxwAattyxV25vm4jxQ1tTQaVj23fsuAOcCTHanIvnHOK5cx2eBGSdIKk7HUa5pfgxsx-ii5hFPcfsu4ArW8Lfb58/s1600-h/Kwame-Nkrumah-Acheampong.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 303px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE9XDaAvHlE_CQo-pN3a-iaf0Wq_beEBdllNsHNLJ7_kWF-hrYOb9ZxwAattyxV25vm4jxQ1tTQaVj23fsuAOcCTHanIvnHOK5cx2eBGSdIKk7HUa5pfgxsx-ii5hFPcfsu4ArW8Lfb58/s400/Kwame-Nkrumah-Acheampong.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5440513125836753890" /></a><br /><br /><br />Despite being called the Snow Leopard, Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong hails from a dry, savannah town in Ghana where the temperature rarely falls below 72F – and until five years ago he had never seen snow. But the Snow Leopard, is on the prowl for a medal in the 2010 Winter Olympic games. He has drawn a lot of interest as an African skiing in the Olympics. Kwame will participate in the Alpine Slalom race which is scheduled to take place on February 27. He will make history as the first Ghanian skiing in the Winter Olympics.<br /><br />Quite the athlete, he also represented Ghana in the West African Student Games in tennis. Kwame took ski lessons when he got a job as a receptionist at a ski center. Kwame said that the only thing Africans have to overcome is the cold. I hear you brother.<br /><br />Dedicated to encouraging Ghanian youth to ski, he founded the Ghanian Winter Olympic Association and is working on building an artificial ski slope in Akuapem Hills, Mamfe, Ghana.<br /><br />As well as being a professional ski racer Kwame has achieved academic success completing a first degree in Geography and Tourism in Cape Coast University, Ghana. He then went on complete a Masters in Westminster University in Tourism Management. Born in Glasgow, Scotland where his father was completing a doctorate, he grew up in a dusty town an hour from Accra, Ghana where children dream of becoming soccer stars, not Olympic skiers. But, after moving to Britain and finding a job as a receptionist in the Xscape snow dome in Milton Keynes, he discovered he had a knack for hurtling down the artificial slope.<br /><br />His tale of triumph over the odds has echoes of the Jamaican bobsleigh team, whose appearance at the Calgary Games in 1988 inspired the Hollywood film Cool Runnings.<br />Nkrumah-Acheampong is determined not to embarrass himself or his country in Vancouver. “I don’t just want to get down, but ski well and not come at the bottom of the table,” he said.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-4768976916289228912010-02-19T20:35:00.006-06:002010-02-19T21:48:36.579-06:00Still Large and In Charge<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC4RUpurX-LtcYMp8R7-B5P-lkStbHOFo3XkVKBPy6oNlLpNn-kxKJENJZkKLr5i4ax3zPOTsJEKIgCtutj2VKPhazRnz_Qway1iNSJQwP7OXb493AoKxHa4sceCJ8f36LQl9XQmGkqIs/s1600-h/woods-conference-400.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC4RUpurX-LtcYMp8R7-B5P-lkStbHOFo3XkVKBPy6oNlLpNn-kxKJENJZkKLr5i4ax3zPOTsJEKIgCtutj2VKPhazRnz_Qway1iNSJQwP7OXb493AoKxHa4sceCJ8f36LQl9XQmGkqIs/s400/woods-conference-400.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5440167452900239282" /></a><br />PR Genius...fantastic job. Tiger Woods controlled his message without creating a circus around it. And, going back for more "counseling" some period of time while the pr's take the pulse of public perception. Brilliant. Tiger has a sickness. He is realizing it. He is dealing with it. He is probable cranking up his golf practices right now. In 5 years he will likely be a stronger model than before. And to finish top it off was the long emotional hug with his mother. <br /><br />Tiger Woods delivered his "apology" before a handpicked audience that included family, close friends and members of the professional golf community, but most importantly, business partners. <br /><br />Sitting in the front row: his mother Kultida, on her right, Amy Reynolds, of Nike, cried through the speech. Kathy Battaglia, of Tiger Woods Enterprises, sat on his mother's left. <br />Also in the front row: Rob McNamara (in a cream-colored blazer), PGA commissioner Timothy Finchem (in a red tie) and his close friend, and fellow Stanford University grad, golfer Notah Begay III (far left). And please, no other Black folk present...not "friends" Mike and Chuck.<br /><br />Just how powerful is Tiger Woods - his 13 and a half minute apology was carried live on every major television network. Name me any other celebrity who can command such. One pro golfer was whining today that Tiger apology overshadowed this week's tournament - exactly - did you even know there was a tournament this week. The PGA can't wait for his return. It will be their largest rating ever.<br /> <br />He's human, he makes mistakes. I wish him AND his family all the best.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-18562882096806018582010-02-12T08:56:00.008-06:002010-02-12T10:07:19.950-06:00Captain America Angers "Tea Party" Folks<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzC85h-OZCFK35jyCOzlgTWQilfoOBtRyI6vDP-VgOGrVVA_xDAdtFJcXGHljiuuz0VhvK371QhTWG1-knD_4YevSKvR3NsOk7o2NjzbJFvi_7sXwkWv-zFv_nvnvJllP4d9qRMAFnUoM/s1600-h/221px-Cap_america_v4.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 197px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzC85h-OZCFK35jyCOzlgTWQilfoOBtRyI6vDP-VgOGrVVA_xDAdtFJcXGHljiuuz0VhvK371QhTWG1-knD_4YevSKvR3NsOk7o2NjzbJFvi_7sXwkWv-zFv_nvnvJllP4d9qRMAFnUoM/s400/221px-Cap_america_v4.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437388264793305938" /></a><br />The fictional superhero, Captain America, has been one of the most popular comic book heroes since his creation in 1941. But now that the Captain has turned his attention to what appears to be the "Tea Party" movement, he has upset "real Americans". Issue number 602 has Captain America and his Black sidekick The Falcon observe an anti-tax protest from a rooftop, while trying to infiltrate a White supremacists anti-government militia group, "the Watchdogs". It was fine when Captain America fought Nazis during World War II, or took on those who burned the American flag during the Vietnam era, but when he turns his attention toward "patriot Americans", he is "out of line".<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTvmxVZLGjV3_20UBUTG_EwrMwjjyi2DD-XBqTu9uF6L3g-baL9CZBTiCwZIObKlYiW2G_fcJ369gRTraPGSTZSajR6m-wiYJUIPYSQZ8CX5ceBnMJPqMmjQKbsrajVaadRrNfvnAha_0/s1600-h/captamer_teapartyfear.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 155px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTvmxVZLGjV3_20UBUTG_EwrMwjjyi2DD-XBqTu9uF6L3g-baL9CZBTiCwZIObKlYiW2G_fcJ369gRTraPGSTZSajR6m-wiYJUIPYSQZ8CX5ceBnMJPqMmjQKbsrajVaadRrNfvnAha_0/s400/captamer_teapartyfear.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437385642569955042" /></a><br />The protestors depicted are all White and carry signs adorned with slogans very similar to those seen in "Tea Party" rallies. The Falcon mentions that the gathering appears to be "some kind of anti-tax protest" and notes that "this whole 'hate the government' vibe isn't limited to the Watchdogs." He then tells Captain America that he doesn't think their plan will work because "I don't exactly see a Black man from Harlem fitting in with a bunch of angry White folks." Captain America then explains that his plan to send The Falcon in among the group posing as an IRS agent, thinking that a Black government official will surely set off their anger.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlKnHP80zdJdCGsr_KoIHkmWM9lDNlA0rlSRA3iRI5f9aek3-9ooMk111DTHzYF0e73_T0-tCL0TM0i6DZ0BC3owbkvJyClMjt1xfVjWqsfagbsPSuRHxjqUYPgoMuep4JiS-zQnPLqLE/s1600-h/CapFalcon10.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 305px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlKnHP80zdJdCGsr_KoIHkmWM9lDNlA0rlSRA3iRI5f9aek3-9ooMk111DTHzYF0e73_T0-tCL0TM0i6DZ0BC3owbkvJyClMjt1xfVjWqsfagbsPSuRHxjqUYPgoMuep4JiS-zQnPLqLE/s400/CapFalcon10.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437388877607008402" /></a><br />It appears that certain protesters want Captain America to go back to the 60s, "when Captain America was a pro-America figure." Well I see the Captain really becoming a pro-American figure - mixing a little something for everything in the "melting pot" and not just the potatoes alone.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-11150952124564196492010-02-10T22:00:00.006-06:002010-02-10T22:16:48.653-06:00Super Bowl Champions, New Orleans Saints Put On A One of A Kind Parade<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTHscGRFQtsE5HxpqEGaNh2plK4FrsQDU3qqUwBJcJyJ12AVJ1p4jTgGF4nPwfGE4XqZmbaRuhJC3kMIhnMQ3I3m9RYdwWW2JQeXBpYBpkImK2HqOF-dYb7WLOt2pDmM_l6VF_5FSZr5o/s1600-h/capt_f1f53e5a47b84e909567005155ee757a_super_bowl_parade_laps101.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 273px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTHscGRFQtsE5HxpqEGaNh2plK4FrsQDU3qqUwBJcJyJ12AVJ1p4jTgGF4nPwfGE4XqZmbaRuhJC3kMIhnMQ3I3m9RYdwWW2JQeXBpYBpkImK2HqOF-dYb7WLOt2pDmM_l6VF_5FSZr5o/s400/capt_f1f53e5a47b84e909567005155ee757a_super_bowl_parade_laps101.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436831988552394130" /></a><br />A co-worker, the same one who for the whole week leading up to the Super Bowl would stop by my desk three or four times a day and ask me are you getting nervous yet, stopped by Tuesday, (and no I didn’t go to work Monday), and said I still believe the Aints won the Super Bowl. I immediately came back with, they didn’t – the Saints won the Super Bowl – the Aints haven’t existed in a long time. People seem to forget that the Saints were one game away from playing the same Colts in the Super Bowl in 2007. Then they had a half the team hurt and went 7-9, and last year’s 8-8 record could have easily been 13-3 as they lost 5 games by a total of 8 points and closed out the season winning 5 of the last 6. The Aints now play in places like Cleveland, Oakland, and his team Washington, D.C.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicI-eXLT_ut8XV-zlHR33gQkK0Q1y71DAHco2XGsevlbBDzVQU3uXZ32o-L_EQYrWWog9SfacF8SCYuUm2wpgB46t8Lim5VJLj1FGXrJjbK7ZTfPetuvkwoQqikGnKMl6hSEKuP9eJcB8/s1600-h/saints-parade-huge-crowdjpg-eee255d6e38b4b54_large.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 271px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicI-eXLT_ut8XV-zlHR33gQkK0Q1y71DAHco2XGsevlbBDzVQU3uXZ32o-L_EQYrWWog9SfacF8SCYuUm2wpgB46t8Lim5VJLj1FGXrJjbK7ZTfPetuvkwoQqikGnKMl6hSEKuP9eJcB8/s400/saints-parade-huge-crowdjpg-eee255d6e38b4b54_large.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436833151497784626" /></a><br />Forget Endymion, forget Bachhus, forget Zulu. The Super Bowl champs have set a new standard for superkrewes and their Mardi Gras parades.<br />Anyway, the Super Bowl Champions (I smile every time I say it) put on a parade that only could happen in New Orleans. Forget the Endymion parade, the Super Bowl champs have set a new standard for superkrewes. New Orleans went all out, deliriously welcoming back the team that brought home the hardware after 43 years. Saints fans were packed 15 deep along the streets of the Central Business District on Tuesday, braving temperatures cold enough that New Orleans officials had to enact the city’s freeze plan. But who really cared? As diehard Saints fans who had endured the ridicule for years partied throughout the night.<br /><br />As the parade got set to roll, the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve band got the crowd primed with the unofficial Saints anthem, “Halftime (Stand Up and Get Crunk).” The second float featured quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Drew Brees, his backup, Mark Brunell, and the men in charge of protecting them: the offensive line.<br /> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhskFHKz79UxePeCfUOCJAmn8nAQ0Y_HBZipaHP3iEWR9U7PeWQyoln3q1E8PbA9otuadGUzmistAcgubnL3BKERSEQizHQClYV9PON9MRew7MBiUeG8zXUYi8U6qGBQLdtKeey5fd6HWM/s1600-h/capt_331b57d44a3a4953a5f9e5f27350346e_super_bowl_parade_laps102.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 399px; height: 270px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhskFHKz79UxePeCfUOCJAmn8nAQ0Y_HBZipaHP3iEWR9U7PeWQyoln3q1E8PbA9otuadGUzmistAcgubnL3BKERSEQizHQClYV9PON9MRew7MBiUeG8zXUYi8U6qGBQLdtKeey5fd6HWM/s400/capt_331b57d44a3a4953a5f9e5f27350346e_super_bowl_parade_laps102.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436831633540396610" /></a><br />The floats were loaned by Krewes of some of the biggest parade organizations. The float with the runningbacks also featured beloved Saints former tailback Deuce McAllister, who led the team onto the field in the NFC championship game and then retired. The crowd responded as if it was third-and-one on an October afternoon in the Dome: “Deuce, Deuce, Deuce.”<br /><br />Coach Sean Payton, on a float with his family, held the Lombardi Trophy high above the crowd, kissing it over and over and blowing kisses to the crowd. He also showed off some dance skills, rhythmically pumping the trophy in the air while bouncing up and down, as “Halftime” blared yet again. As his float stopped in front of Gallier Hall, where politicians and other dignitaries gathered, Mayor Ray Nagin toasted the coach — and his “gazubas” — and led the crowd in a “Who Dat” chant.<br /> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ_GU1ewQZNgCl3vNNnXq7s9kUP-DUN2KEcb5CeVuujqHlOX2H8wked8NnLs1MrhQvYm917GOWfOnIdEIS5Q8z2GhWr7lWxp8TGwJbFupg7qGIQ2VKyM1oCeBspMXlztwztxVahF6M5wc/s1600-h/capt_d7edb12705454c05bc4cc536850de861_super_bowl_parade_lawh109.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 399px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ_GU1ewQZNgCl3vNNnXq7s9kUP-DUN2KEcb5CeVuujqHlOX2H8wked8NnLs1MrhQvYm917GOWfOnIdEIS5Q8z2GhWr7lWxp8TGwJbFupg7qGIQ2VKyM1oCeBspMXlztwztxVahF6M5wc/s400/capt_d7edb12705454c05bc4cc536850de861_super_bowl_parade_lawh109.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436834569484075586" /></a><br />Coach Payton, in turn, promised: “We’ll see you again this time next year,” to thunderous cheers.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-8954389562674087532010-01-31T19:38:00.008-06:002010-01-31T20:04:14.295-06:00Tony Dungy: The Man in the Middle<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvAx-IhG5p1vbDKtgB3Foc6D4Tunr41uOqyuuKxliGhMIdooKxGMMd4qj-unJMsy9aoedv8b0bjfWrCSBIsiLIVMX5A8TCnL6vQ0dgBseAJXRBvh0kGCtb4R_lFkPVilIh5YL_dnl-A0/s1600-h/tony-dungy.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 260px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvAx-IhG5p1vbDKtgB3Foc6D4Tunr41uOqyuuKxliGhMIdooKxGMMd4qj-unJMsy9aoedv8b0bjfWrCSBIsiLIVMX5A8TCnL6vQ0dgBseAJXRBvh0kGCtb4R_lFkPVilIh5YL_dnl-A0/s400/tony-dungy.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433087388944394770" /></a><br />Tony Dungy navigates a world in which sport was once viewed as vital to building character but now is dominated by the dollar. Tony Dungy speaks deliberately and enthusiastically and maintains an unhurried demeanor: He speaks with the power of what is possible. 4½ years after spending time with a former NFL superstar, he still regrets what he sees as a major failure: He believes he could have saved the life Michael Vick once had, the one he'll never have again.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAnmkTdAgGWJ-2ckLpZvI3TXDNWAN7bfqKndYdknQgmvnjst0w-S_zf0Ec_Zaeq1dN_gobKeflIT_0Q6nZbMue0hMt5I9LA5aKuB5i7uRzpse8qvIBSoQyt6IARIKwVxyylhaf0EAJNZg/s1600-h/images.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 140px; height: 140px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAnmkTdAgGWJ-2ckLpZvI3TXDNWAN7bfqKndYdknQgmvnjst0w-S_zf0Ec_Zaeq1dN_gobKeflIT_0Q6nZbMue0hMt5I9LA5aKuB5i7uRzpse8qvIBSoQyt6IARIKwVxyylhaf0EAJNZg/s400/images.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433086962151543762" /></a><br />The Colts were in Japan for a preseason game against the Falcons. Coach Dungy, coach Jim Mora, quarterbacks Peyton Manning and Mike Vick were going to different events to promote the game, so they got to know each other more. Warrick Dunn had Vick that Dungy liked to fish. They agreed to get together and go fishing when they got back home. It never happened.<br /><br />When the dogfighting stuff came out, Tony Dungy never stopped thinking about what might have happened with eight hours on a boat. He thinks maybe he could have been to redirect Vick from his ultimately destructive path. What type of individual honestly believes that, given a single afternoon casting a fishing line into the sea, he could have been the one to change the course of another person's history? Tony Dungy believes deeply in God and the gift that God has given – the ability and power to reach and rehabilitate by listening.<br /> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbRwldfTA9wCZzOnLYB2JNX3Z6AWrPdtvrMGoH1CCSnUoY0L9TG9HfTp5lO1vRETm1xN76YFpTRG8qfGHQjaShFp2ydc5kjxi9L2imxNE3bsjksSXvLZQzR6XKblHVhLInxh1_hO6Q6mM/s1600-h/200px-Tony_Dungy_award_cropped.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 277px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbRwldfTA9wCZzOnLYB2JNX3Z6AWrPdtvrMGoH1CCSnUoY0L9TG9HfTp5lO1vRETm1xN76YFpTRG8qfGHQjaShFp2ydc5kjxi9L2imxNE3bsjksSXvLZQzR6XKblHVhLInxh1_hO6Q6mM/s400/200px-Tony_Dungy_award_cropped.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433089545072251394" /></a>In his first year outside the NFL since the early 1980s, Dungy is a unique and powerful figure. He has developed a huge profile while emerging as a confidant of NFL owners, coaches and the commissioner. He is a connected insider, yet strives to maintain a special rapport and credibility with the disadvantaged. Unlike many of the league's ex-coaches, who use the broadcast booth as a paid couch until another position on the sideline opens, Dungy has used the platform to establish himself as a substantive voice. On one broadcast, Dungy offered criticism of the lack of Black Division 1 football coaches. At a time when deep labor issues are beginning to intensify, Dungy allowed himself to be positioned as a bridge between management and the players.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzz8uJg5_tj4ybSBNowxySHwC5fCy3QC-WMIaz_0j3J7u2Y3BNtleyIPnABffgLRoAfGan8VzgYwgV3xGMncMdftyS1vaRD_-v427xRnWMYdy1LE6LVskvkCrSGSHHiXAlnrOiqjrbADo/s1600-h/super.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 116px; height: 131px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzz8uJg5_tj4ybSBNowxySHwC5fCy3QC-WMIaz_0j3J7u2Y3BNtleyIPnABffgLRoAfGan8VzgYwgV3xGMncMdftyS1vaRD_-v427xRnWMYdy1LE6LVskvkCrSGSHHiXAlnrOiqjrbADo/s400/super.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433088502110723634" /></a>At a time when the sports culture influence has been reduced by extremes -- basketball coaches caught having sex in restaurants, golfers said to be having sex everywhere, lots of much money, lots of guns, too much temptation at the expense of accountability, decency, self-respect -- Tony Dungy often is viewed as the moral compass of American sports. With that comes power. For owners unsure of the latest troubled athlete in need of a second chance, Dungy can provide the Good Housekeeping seal or the killing third strike. He is uniquely positioned, the serious power broker, the voice upon which the powerful often depend to mediate the gap between themselves and their young, extremely wealthy employees. He does not, of course, provide redemption. Messengers do not have that power. It is a role he has never actively sought, but he has accepted the mission, and the rare and subtle combination of nationwide respect and moral authority have transformed Dungy into one of sport's most powerful figures, and he is at once aware that he must gauge whether those seeking his help are only using him to launder their soiled images or truly desire redemption.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-5155345217456740662010-01-25T15:16:00.011-06:002010-01-25T16:18:01.440-06:00Saints Go Marching In To The Big Show<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdMCoY6NRztX2kJJHsvwT-PyUpv0_yFBw7hceLjjm9pG9m96Hn2rligVs1GICvMyas7mmizOAWg5I5rS3G1HQQXkc4dtAaHWGD6DTsEym2zsSHsB3dbVyyoEy7TN3GGJ9GXoi1WkBlAPs/s1600-h/010124-spt-saints-celebrate_h2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 342px; height: 275px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdMCoY6NRztX2kJJHsvwT-PyUpv0_yFBw7hceLjjm9pG9m96Hn2rligVs1GICvMyas7mmizOAWg5I5rS3G1HQQXkc4dtAaHWGD6DTsEym2zsSHsB3dbVyyoEy7TN3GGJ9GXoi1WkBlAPs/s400/010124-spt-saints-celebrate_h2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430802146978119010" /></a><br />No longer the "aints", The Who Dats, National Conference Champions, are marching into the Superbowl for the first time ever.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeCN2uFYIg0CL5UZLndDH95GQk7uvykVfhvILNaoI53M8Qsh_uTlbkLxXPm8D5gw5rRuzkokxoJ77J-95FG5uHBQxDvuA6ukvI7Unwnc1QMyi-r2VuzqikGFOKcwLbxY67SO7vGatq-G4/s1600-h/nfl_u_bush11_668.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeCN2uFYIg0CL5UZLndDH95GQk7uvykVfhvILNaoI53M8Qsh_uTlbkLxXPm8D5gw5rRuzkokxoJ77J-95FG5uHBQxDvuA6ukvI7Unwnc1QMyi-r2VuzqikGFOKcwLbxY67SO7vGatq-G4/s400/nfl_u_bush11_668.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430803202168327074" /></a><br />Since the 1967 season, when I was 15 years old, true Saints fans have been waiting for this. Those of us who remember the first ever game when John Gilliam took the opening kickoff 94 yards for the first ever New Orleans Saints touchdown for the only Saints highlight of that loss to the Los Angeles Rams at Tulane University Stadium where home games were played until 1974 before moving to the Louisiana Superdome in 1975.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA1q1uZ1lfcU3f4-qS1xYNHNi6oEkCkMY7xVUd_Xsty_P8UNemwGSoyK7kxOsz_-LUX7p6IfW8NM1ncQszapdm6vC_E2zfPAzDW9XAP7Zg84OU6bqyhhVKkZeg3e6R2UOo7IY09JFiiDg/s1600-h/g1_thomas.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 278px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA1q1uZ1lfcU3f4-qS1xYNHNi6oEkCkMY7xVUd_Xsty_P8UNemwGSoyK7kxOsz_-LUX7p6IfW8NM1ncQszapdm6vC_E2zfPAzDW9XAP7Zg84OU6bqyhhVKkZeg3e6R2UOo7IY09JFiiDg/s400/g1_thomas.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430803728333452994" /></a><br />Their first season record was 3–11, which set an NFL record for most wins by an expansion team. However, things went down hill after that. The Saints didn't even have a season where they were .500 until 1979. One of the team's shining moments came on November 8, 1970, when Tom Dempsey kicked an NFL record-breaking 63-yard field goal to defeat the Detroit Lions by a score of 19-17 in the final seconds of the game. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge0-tqbqixQLImrUX1tDvSuoYvnX6eRIr0GQVy2IGU149dnqgz45Vm3DuHXu8KE8yZoSpPpgMvCVZivemHWX3OEZd_RMXLnaj8pEXWt_04_RMzd7K7FiBaogA-arfZaJT2g6QWWTxN63I/s1600-h/nfl_u_hartley11_203.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 203px; height: 114px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge0-tqbqixQLImrUX1tDvSuoYvnX6eRIr0GQVy2IGU149dnqgz45Vm3DuHXu8KE8yZoSpPpgMvCVZivemHWX3OEZd_RMXLnaj8pEXWt_04_RMzd7K7FiBaogA-arfZaJT2g6QWWTxN63I/s400/nfl_u_hartley11_203.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430804102051759762" /></a><br />The first successful years were from 1987–1992, when the team made the playoffs four times and had winning records in the non-playoff seasons. But it wasn't until the 2000 season that the Saints won their first playoff game, defeating the then-defending Super Bowl champion St. Louis Rams. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTrIPff-Ye93rM2hjtoK24iDZuWPMEiuc8NCtuvh5dTu5NXCc5vtFWrVTIxSQAuP-82QJBc2h2hxGzlWHrmc7lE4euhowiTmmB5qrpZ87qJQ98qUXzaLIfdeirHBrcZp8cXfa65vcrwP4/s1600-h/nfl_a_saintsdts_576.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTrIPff-Ye93rM2hjtoK24iDZuWPMEiuc8NCtuvh5dTu5NXCc5vtFWrVTIxSQAuP-82QJBc2h2hxGzlWHrmc7lE4euhowiTmmB5qrpZ87qJQ98qUXzaLIfdeirHBrcZp8cXfa65vcrwP4/s400/nfl_a_saintsdts_576.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430802770451318946" /></a><br />2005 brought Hurricane Katrina which caused damage to the Superdome and the Saints became the road warriors for the entire season playing their home games between LSU's Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge and the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. But the Saints returned to the Dome in 2006 on fire, going all the way to the NFC Championship game before losing to the Chicago Bears. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZS0RopT3CDltchDywF8S5GxpUbYeY8rarWEuv5L2bcZJfdUyV2fIKey2PiJzyjDx-CG3tV3wR48WkmD1WsO8cTk5T1hDwNTlBdjTDxkFstRghcKUuIzbalR3ygS6_HfV3aE3BYFVHTL8/s1600-h/g1_hartley.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 258px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZS0RopT3CDltchDywF8S5GxpUbYeY8rarWEuv5L2bcZJfdUyV2fIKey2PiJzyjDx-CG3tV3wR48WkmD1WsO8cTk5T1hDwNTlBdjTDxkFstRghcKUuIzbalR3ygS6_HfV3aE3BYFVHTL8/s400/g1_hartley.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430802391251430706" /></a><br />The 2009 season was the team's best season. The Saints started the season going 13-0, the best start to a season in its franchise history. Saints also set the record for the longest undefeated season opening (13-0) by an NFC team since the AFL–NFL merger, eclipsing the previous record (12-0) held by the 1985 Chicago Bears. They went more than 10 years before they managed to finish a season with a .500 record, 20 years before a winning season, and over 40 years before reaching the Super Bowl. So when you see a Saint Fan being loud and bragging, remember we haven't been here before, so we don't know how to act like we've been here before. There is still room on the Saints bandwagon, but all the long time Saints Fan, who endured the years in the wilderness get to ride up front and I'm driving!!!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6uF1Tn6SOr6fsM90nN99KrQ6YFhkeWpmUxRaCrhattEvRNbtENyS4IeZlpv_XUnSf-0VM9SPX_uzo8JdW6I3uinHgCF957yzOl7tvX-y57c66vUln5268C6KnsqI-4zKuKAnBQoVTVXE/s1600-h/drew-brees-peyton-manning-bald-balding.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6uF1Tn6SOr6fsM90nN99KrQ6YFhkeWpmUxRaCrhattEvRNbtENyS4IeZlpv_XUnSf-0VM9SPX_uzo8JdW6I3uinHgCF957yzOl7tvX-y57c66vUln5268C6KnsqI-4zKuKAnBQoVTVXE/s400/drew-brees-peyton-manning-bald-balding.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430804646450667186" /></a><br />Curt Warner, Brett Farve,...Peyton Manning your next.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-72054110860370277222010-01-21T20:26:00.007-06:002010-01-21T20:48:04.089-06:00Basketball League for White Americans Only<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjmQIFUo4tDnCFDKQK1JZqcfD7z4ADPa7wTWdjBU5xt5ULl5Jo5O24GKueWjolH2ohZUZaFyrTixXnblMtE8lYfDUMX-t5KHwT-XBVq4xRAy_7zq6-6aSM-zgku3mL42JyQp3Zg9fDy5g/s1600-h/ept_sports_nba_experts-761486791-1264016590.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 314px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjmQIFUo4tDnCFDKQK1JZqcfD7z4ADPa7wTWdjBU5xt5ULl5Jo5O24GKueWjolH2ohZUZaFyrTixXnblMtE8lYfDUMX-t5KHwT-XBVq4xRAy_7zq6-6aSM-zgku3mL42JyQp3Zg9fDy5g/s400/ept_sports_nba_experts-761486791-1264016590.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5429388706285187154" /></a><br />The All-American Basketball Alliance intends to start its inaugural season in June with teams in 12 cities. Only players that are natural born United States citizens with both parents of Caucasian race are eligible to play in the league. Don "Moose" Lewis, the commissioner of the AABA, said the reasoning behind the league's roster restrictions is not racism. He stated that it will be a league for White players to play fundamental basketball. BORING!<br /><br />He pointed out dissatisfaction with the way current professional sports are run. Dissatisfaction – try buying a ticket to the NBA All-Star weekend to be held in Dallas next month. The lowest price is $500. I don’t think you will get dissatisfied fans to fork over $500 for the nose bleed seats.<br /><br />In a free country they should have the right to form any kind of league they want; just don’t expect people to come out and support it. And I’m not talking about 200 to 300 people in a private school gym – because they won’t be playing in any public schools. And get this - the Atlanta-based league, which will operate as a single-entity owning all of its teams, is looking for local contacts to pay $10,000 to become a "licensee" in one of 12 cities throughout the Southeast. What kind of crap are you going to get for $10,000? Mr. Lewis said he has already received threats from people opposed to the roster restrictions and several cities have told him to stay out of town.<br /><br />The real irony here is that if he really had a problem with the NBA, he should acknowledge that it is owned by a majority of Whites and the rules are written and enforced by Whites. Lewis downplays NBA talent as 'street ball'. In the 1920's Jews dominated basketball on the streets of New York and the semi-pro barnstorming teams. Moose Lewis' words can be read throughout the first half of the 20th century when others referred to Jewish dominance of the game. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmQhtM90F6s8-tpsqhQw4S1Rk9orfRvSuTa0DLCPVzU3MeWEmkofYhqxxmUeoItAy4IBzX-YCWsluFZ493mZ5-guRsbOUyMzO04qMbnwMvbjeUwd8vOir4WseHipPNONcNq2H7ArGSyEI/s1600-h/n2232547555_34356.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 393px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmQhtM90F6s8-tpsqhQw4S1Rk9orfRvSuTa0DLCPVzU3MeWEmkofYhqxxmUeoItAy4IBzX-YCWsluFZ493mZ5-guRsbOUyMzO04qMbnwMvbjeUwd8vOir4WseHipPNONcNq2H7ArGSyEI/s400/n2232547555_34356.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5429389138967175426" /></a><br />The idea of an all White basketball league isn't racist to me; it's the idea of creating an all white basketball league because as Mr. Lewis stated, all black players "play streetball" and will "flip you the bird" and grab their crotches while doing so. if this guy wants to create a league that plays "fundamental" boring basketball then so be it. But the ignorance behind it is the racist part. He also stated that "people of White, American-born citizens are in the minority now." I hate to tell him but the U.S. census begs to differ with him. Black Americans currently make up 12.8% of the population. Furthermore I would love for him to define "White". How are White players going to confirm their "Whiteness"? There are Blacks that look White, Latinos that look White and Whites that look Black. American is a melting pot and it seems to me this guy only wants the potatoes out of this pot. You think he would take an Irish potato?<br /><br />So let Don "Moose" Lewis create this league that we all know will last for, I don't know, let’s say a week. Good White basketball players will not play because it just sounds, BORING, not challenging and an excuse for the talentless. <br /><br />The more Moose get's turned down the Angrier, hateful, spiteful, detestably he will become, when all this boils over for him, from many failed attempts and denials from cities and threats (so he says) he is going to use this as wood for a fire to ignite a rally with and for the hate groups who love and feed on this kind of stuff. I wonder if they will have confederate uniforms, or if they will play in their robes without the hoods? We need team names: The Atlanta Supremacists, The Jackson Grand Wizards, The Charleston Real Americans, but certainly not The Birmingham Ballerz. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvbTpe22kPHzoA9VoR0fz-EZM8JcXaJZRFBN1FZLrPRevlbGYdqSIR-dW6XFBIMFVRwxpjHWw7Zz-TSLdihFw3-9fuhUdfXLIHI_YdfOz5YyF5UcNt9jINT3EDZGVS2mlnT-XLxpDrcGU/s1600-h/cairo.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvbTpe22kPHzoA9VoR0fz-EZM8JcXaJZRFBN1FZLrPRevlbGYdqSIR-dW6XFBIMFVRwxpjHWw7Zz-TSLdihFw3-9fuhUdfXLIHI_YdfOz5YyF5UcNt9jINT3EDZGVS2mlnT-XLxpDrcGU/s400/cairo.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5429390210003158978" /></a><br />As a Black man I would like to start an all Black swim league where Blacks can splash around, which is what we like. I mean, do we want to go to a swimming pool and have to worry about swimming really well like White Americans with all their fancy strokes - breast stroke, back stroke, butterfly. We just want to do belly flops and hold onto the sides of the pool. I am looking for a pool not more than 4.5 feet deep to start the league. <br /><br />I wouldn’t go to see any all white games because quite frankly, I like good basketball.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-76145177463291914332010-01-18T21:16:00.004-06:002010-01-18T22:07:09.045-06:00Is the Dream Alive in You?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm98wU69LG5DFa2kCbHAQMJIWjNWi59fquo8-bvOmf95C9Unr3UJbAdid35pZUqQagIRNFGlXZyaz_iuQiaSCWha6TqcySLRQJgtTrzbdJx6UPoHdM8eQNlZiTbtX3ekVexE6PC7upm4k/s1600-h/84ec2b56d17a5e528d1ab371da7ef5.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 284px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm98wU69LG5DFa2kCbHAQMJIWjNWi59fquo8-bvOmf95C9Unr3UJbAdid35pZUqQagIRNFGlXZyaz_iuQiaSCWha6TqcySLRQJgtTrzbdJx6UPoHdM8eQNlZiTbtX3ekVexE6PC7upm4k/s400/84ec2b56d17a5e528d1ab371da7ef5.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428297497562190210" /></a><br />As "we" celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I see a growing disassociation with the slain civil rights leader among young people. I know it is a generation further removed from segregated schools and a society more in tuned to selective memory sound bites. Dr. King would have turned 81 Friday should be remembered everyday, is often forgotten on this day in some circles.<br /><br />Dr. King left a great legacy behind but unfortunately too many people, young and old, these days don’t hold onto that legacy. The disconnect concerning King began years ago. Our generation spent so much time trivializing what he was really about that young people have no idea. We have lost sight of the fact that he died organizing poor people’s campaigns. It is ironic, almost poetic, that the Haiti crisis happened days before the celebration. If Dr. King were alive his energy would have gone not only to addressing the crisis caused by the earthquake but before the earthquake.<br /><br />Those who remember King have allowed parades and banquets to replace marches and relief efforts. We have these wonderful parades and social events but do nothing when the event is over. Like other leaders whose image grows into idolatry, King has always been misremembered. For a lot of people King the Peacemaker in the sense of race relations is more comfortable than someone like Malcolm X. But you take a closer look there are similarities between the two that gets lost in the shuffle. <br /><br />In the years leading up to his assassination in 1968, King focused much more intensely on economic dislocation, social democracy and the war in Vietnam. The “I Have a Dream" speech is a symbolic snapshot but it isn’t the whole person. <br /><br />We have to remind our youth where they come from and how they got where they are today. On this Martin Luther King Day let us all keep our dream alive. Take a look at that person in the mirror and know that everything is possible.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-50976225419160770722010-01-16T19:59:00.003-06:002010-01-16T20:06:16.309-06:00Limbaugh and Robertson Remove All Doubt As to Their StupidityI’ve heard of idiots, but radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh and televangelist Pat Robertson have sealed their spots as being right at the top in that field with their comments in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti that has killed tens of thousands. Critics from all directions are denouncing their remarks as insensitive to the disaster and attempts to score political points from human tragedy. Even fellow conservatives have said that they are deeply insensitive.<br /><br />Limbaugh said the earthquake has played into Obama’s hands, allowing the president to look “compassionate” and “humanitarian” while at the same time bolstering his standing in both the “light-skinned and dark-skinned Black community in this country.” Then added: “We've already donated to Haiti. It’s called the U.S. income tax.” His comments were, in part, a riff on Senator Harry Reid’s remark in a new book that President Obama was able to win the election because he is “light-skinned” and lacks a “Negro dialect.”<br /> <br />The president speaks for the country when he says we’re going to go in there. Whether you like a person or not you respect the position. He criticized President Obama for holding a news conference the day after the earthquake. As far as I can remember the U.S. has been the leader in helping when others have suffered and the president at the time has always held a press conference to pledge U.S. aid. The saying goes “it’s better to have people think you are stupid than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. Maybe the question is whether Limbaugh is upset because we are donating to a predominately Black country or whether he dislikes the thought of a Black man being in charge. With thousands of people dead already and as the suffering continues in Haiti, Limbaugh and his kind only care about one thing: destroying President Obama.<br /> <br />While Limbaugh received a sprinkling of support, nobody of note has stepped up to defend Pat Robertson’s claim that Haiti got hit by an earthquake because it is “cursed.” Speaking about the disaster during his program “The 700 Club” on the Christian Broadcasting Network, Robertson said that when Haiti was still a French colony its leaders “swore a pact to the devil” to get out from “under the heel of the French. But ever since they have been cursed by one thing after the other.” “That island of Hispaniola is one island. It is cut down the middle on the one side is Haiti the other is the Dominican Republic. Dominican Republic is prosperous, healthy, full of resorts, etc. Haiti is in desperate poverty.” Robertson has a long history of making controversial remarks on his program.<br /> <br />In reality Haiti is in the situation it is in because of poor leadership of past dictators. Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and just like any third world country, there is no middle ground; you are either very rich or very poor, with most falling into the latter category.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-54085614372593303972010-01-04T19:39:00.006-06:002010-01-04T21:16:19.592-06:00Speedskater Shani Davis Aiming for 5 Gold Medals<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/o8Ws70yVWIw&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/o8Ws70yVWIw&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />World-record holder Shani Davis has once again decided not to skate on the U.S. team pursuit but he does plan to race all five individual events at the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Attempting to compete in all five events will be awfully tough, but even coming close could cement him -- already the world-record holder at 1,000 and 1,500 meters -- as one of the greatest all-around skaters his sport has ever seen. Most skaters specialize in either the sprints, middle or long distances. <br /><br />His decision is sure to stir debate, however. Shani had said earlier last month that he planned to skate the team pursuit in Vancouver after feuding with other U.S. skaters over his decision to skip the event at the 2006 Games. The U.S. U.S. team surely would be a top medal threat with him in the team pursuit lineup. Without him, they finished sixth at the 2006 Games.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAIjF4JpYLvsN3lkTiTBcYuKZxenuwFOftr5RkTTT80MZK9b2ynaDs9rTp2letOA8FQEtT8CFjFFgyHC7xqnZyD-gC7e5uXwvVeEJvpq105qIhXzJDWFzgT6nDqDgGzwdr27wuLIjuCnQ/s1600-h/shani-davis.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 333px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAIjF4JpYLvsN3lkTiTBcYuKZxenuwFOftr5RkTTT80MZK9b2ynaDs9rTp2letOA8FQEtT8CFjFFgyHC7xqnZyD-gC7e5uXwvVeEJvpq105qIhXzJDWFzgT6nDqDgGzwdr27wuLIjuCnQ/s400/shani-davis.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423073990846418370" /></a><br />When he won gold in Torino, he became the first Black man to win gold in the Winter Games. Shani Davis grew up to be 6-foot-2 (a disadvantage in a sport where being short is a great advantage) and lean and while the other children in his Chicago neighborhood played basketball he was speeding around ice rinks. <br /><br />Shani (I wonder where that name came from), decided when he was very young, that if he was going to do a sport, he wanted to be different. He succeeded. He has become the best speedskater in the world in a predominantly White sport.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-8042446744913453492010-01-01T19:06:00.016-06:002010-01-01T22:37:21.592-06:00Top Stories of 2009<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjpFV0vUjEot6LKMRWqYANtt8mLVuTJlXLmiIHaCY13DUVJit5xCw4-35SdVWy1JA2KqoEeGRWOmT0-W73YCJy56z0nBhv5gnEnsCIaembGb6RChGedX_JPYiAhw2bu5k4IzQKaXvoCs/s1600-h/2009.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 242px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjpFV0vUjEot6LKMRWqYANtt8mLVuTJlXLmiIHaCY13DUVJit5xCw4-35SdVWy1JA2KqoEeGRWOmT0-W73YCJy56z0nBhv5gnEnsCIaembGb6RChGedX_JPYiAhw2bu5k4IzQKaXvoCs/s400/2009.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421987929878731490" /></a>As we close out 2009 I look back to the top stories in our community. Of course there were more stories that concerned us and even more inportant stories, but these were the most talked about stories of 2009. <br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkaCojD9OK_koka5DNjZX42A2oEyPmK2-azfBbMLX8UY2Q7qubxSxXvoYy-BYdq4jyt3-5OXXl6X6Y2GeDyxd3eBHxsyW53-hIUIJghIO2J5qNSn-XLdCj7grM-CmOsjc7GM53Re2HB9s/s1600-h/the-queen-and-michelle-obama-pic-epa-480743043.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 304px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkaCojD9OK_koka5DNjZX42A2oEyPmK2-azfBbMLX8UY2Q7qubxSxXvoYy-BYdq4jyt3-5OXXl6X6Y2GeDyxd3eBHxsyW53-hIUIJghIO2J5qNSn-XLdCj7grM-CmOsjc7GM53Re2HB9s/s400/the-queen-and-michelle-obama-pic-epa-480743043.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421988291394344018" /></a>Number 10: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/02/michelle-obama-hugs-queen_n_182237.html">Michelle Obama Hugs Queen Elizabeth</a>, Stirs Controversy.<br /><br />Number 9: <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2009/04/11/2009-04-11_its_easter_puppy_for_obamas_first_family_getting_portuguese_water_dog_puppy__rep.html">1st Family gets a dog</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh5YDbCnhYvuG6ZSU13FUY9yhraVhw5NTiSfRPWfwag7XjMgRBEJQdlyIglc3DsH4C8aoJJm7vu4rKdlt7uFpR30AzcsqBuvVRUYARNGo7-zm2V7HxcODqdCbgyo4qtA2YqGieAhLquJY/s1600-h/princess-and-the-frog-450a031909.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 364px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh5YDbCnhYvuG6ZSU13FUY9yhraVhw5NTiSfRPWfwag7XjMgRBEJQdlyIglc3DsH4C8aoJJm7vu4rKdlt7uFpR30AzcsqBuvVRUYARNGo7-zm2V7HxcODqdCbgyo4qtA2YqGieAhLquJY/s400/princess-and-the-frog-450a031909.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421990498790992162" /></a>Number 8: Disney's first <a href=".http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122152254&ps=cprs">Black Princess</a>.<br /><br />Number 7: Serena Williams' <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1213164/Furious-Serena-Williams-dumped-U-S-Open-told-official-If-I-Id-ball-shove-throat.html">Outburst</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBDXBgJtVgBgNFHEDS9VGV6VrnaBG45ZjQFyYT_5BnUT8Bu5qmzHtkeKv8p39sUClqIJxZIZzRavf9PSSxKxk_ZHc80KwxkPsMh5mdhqmHvZ4QOlxDJeVTWcCIevEvQzuuyh1LjyLGINY/s1600-h/281x211.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 281px; height: 211px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBDXBgJtVgBgNFHEDS9VGV6VrnaBG45ZjQFyYT_5BnUT8Bu5qmzHtkeKv8p39sUClqIJxZIZzRavf9PSSxKxk_ZHc80KwxkPsMh5mdhqmHvZ4QOlxDJeVTWcCIevEvQzuuyh1LjyLGINY/s400/281x211.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421991968414974226" /></a>Number 6: <a href="http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1621389/20090913/west_kanye.jhtml">Kanye West </a>& Taylor Swift.<br /><br />Number 5: <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4397938">Michael Vick returns </a>to NFL. <br /><br />Number 4: Tiger Woods <a href="http://blog.timesunion.com/highschool/the-tiger-woods-escapade/5003/">Escapades</a>.<br /><br />Number 3: <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2009/11/06/2009-11-06_rihanna_remembers_chris_brown_during_beating_.html">Chris Brown & Rihanna</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlkZmgXoCU_rG_6wnWXYfH5XldizYtKjrmq4jTfEvePFiOOxPLyrxAgoZjw6ktVMjw6HLK3BMBi-kQ4WCrFxWX2rQPMRe7x1vCuhrmL5dUJ4PMCurHmFcfzIt82pU95Jr_QC7z20LBTxk/s1600-h/michael_jackson.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 269px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlkZmgXoCU_rG_6wnWXYfH5XldizYtKjrmq4jTfEvePFiOOxPLyrxAgoZjw6ktVMjw6HLK3BMBi-kQ4WCrFxWX2rQPMRe7x1vCuhrmL5dUJ4PMCurHmFcfzIt82pU95Jr_QC7z20LBTxk/s400/michael_jackson.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421994306331476242" /></a>Number 2: Michael Jackson's <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Music/06/25/michael.jackson/">Death</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit55tMdinG0aa3DIIcnaJeujp8lFPOqmWvpar82bn13De926571gZFV-hH9Wi9-qO0uOzYSyhzyKcKmbto3ajvuzMV8g5NT3irjsL8X9sjwS_-KL2-vSdahDtykS2nFCiNOMCsFcH_WHQ/s1600-h/obama_swearing_in_1243081c.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit55tMdinG0aa3DIIcnaJeujp8lFPOqmWvpar82bn13De926571gZFV-hH9Wi9-qO0uOzYSyhzyKcKmbto3ajvuzMV8g5NT3irjsL8X9sjwS_-KL2-vSdahDtykS2nFCiNOMCsFcH_WHQ/s400/obama_swearing_in_1243081c.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421994962658633874" /></a>Number 1: Do I even have to write it? The First U.S. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/21/us/politics/20web-inaug2.html">Black President</a>.coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5801255010711627338.post-53699055586416752152009-12-28T20:56:00.003-06:002009-12-28T21:24:34.483-06:00Teammates Give Vick Courage Award<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS79rPrE2MPXmPScAdr-xkc4swGOQQZcH7e4uc3wlJyfjgWPsHf49NXFVsFYQiYtbpb5tvN8ewOVXbWw_WDVKnjWMJi-J7HkgVeBxr77yEwAywhyUCw_We2tKm68-6nfEefvxgd1tbKCw/s1600-h/Vick-thumb-120xauto-5230.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 120px; height: 90px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS79rPrE2MPXmPScAdr-xkc4swGOQQZcH7e4uc3wlJyfjgWPsHf49NXFVsFYQiYtbpb5tvN8ewOVXbWw_WDVKnjWMJi-J7HkgVeBxr77yEwAywhyUCw_We2tKm68-6nfEefvxgd1tbKCw/s400/Vick-thumb-120xauto-5230.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420493734668353634" /></a><br />Related NewsWelcome back: Vick still rules in Atlanta<br /><br />Just yesterday Michael Vick was a disgraced star and the most hated man in the world to dog lovers everywhere. But it seems that his peers appreciate his tough journey back to the NFL. His Philadelphia Eagles teammates unanimouly voted and gave him the Ed Block Courage Award, after he returned to the league after spending 18 months in a federal prison for his role in a dogfighting ring.<br /><br />The three-time Pro Bowl quarterback in six seasons with the Atlanta Falcons has not played much with the Eagles. He has two touchdowns rushing and one passing in 12 games. The Eagles were criticized by animal rights activists for signing Michael Vick less than a month after he was released from prison. And some fans threatened to give up their tickets. But he received a warm reception in his first game with the Eagles and has been a model citizen off the field.<br /><br />The Ed Block Award honors players who exemplify commitment to the principles of sportsmanship and courage. Eagles star quarterback Donovan McNabb called the award "well-deserved." Each of the 32 NFL teams selects a recipient.<br /><br />Michael Vick has spent time working with the Humane Society of the United States, speaking to school and community groups about the mistakes he made in getting involved in dogfighting.<br /><br />"Congratulations to him for turning his life around and bettering himself as a human being," coach Andy Reid said. "He's obviously very well-respected by his teammates."coachrlmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16363992325535865381noreply@blogger.com0