Obama wants to overhaul
education system from 'cradle to career' CNN
WASHINGTON
(CNN) -- President Obama began to flesh out the details
of one of his signature campaign promises Tuesday,
outlining his plan for a major overhaul of the country's
education system "from the cradle up through a career."
President Obama says the decline of education is
"unacceptable for our children."
President Obama says the decline of education is
"unacceptable for our children."
"We have let our grades slip, our schools crumble, our
teacher quality fall short and other nations outpace
us," Obama said in an address to the U.S. Hispanic
Chamber of Commerce. "The time for finger-pointing is
over. The time for holding ourselves accountable is
here."
"The relative decline of American education is untenable
for our economy, unsustainable for our democracy and
unacceptable for our children, and we cannot afford to
let it continue," he said.
The president outlined a five-tier reform plan, starting
with increased investments in
...
Read
More Click Here
Obama lifts Bush
restrictions on stem cell research David Alexander
Reuters US Online Report Politics News
President
Barack Obama lifted restrictions on federal funding of
human embryonic stem cell research on Monday, angering
abortion opponents but cheering those who believe the
study could produce treatments for many diseases.
"We will lift the ban on federal funding for promising
embryonic stem cell research," Obama said to vigorous
applause at a White House gathering.
"We will also vigorously support scientists who pursue
this research. And we will aim for America to lead the
world in the discoveries it one day may yield."
...
Read
More Click Here
Black Caucus Presses Obama
on Priorities By BEN EVANS
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON
(AP) — President Barack Obama reassured members of the
Congressional Black Caucus that he's on their side and
will do what he can to support the group's left-leaning
agenda, lawmakers said Thursday after an hour-long
session at the White House.
Nearly all the group's 42 members attended. Noticeably
absent was Illinois Sen. Roland Burris, Obama's
replacement who is fending off calls to resign.
The lawmakers — all Democrats — said the reception was a
welcome change from the tenure of former President
George W. Bush, who held several cordial meetings with
black lawmakers but rarely agreed with them on
substance.
"There is no comparison," said Rep. Elijah Cummings of
Maryland. "(Obama) basically assured us that having been
a member of the Congressional Black Caucus ... that he
gets the issues and will do everything he can to work
with us."
Lawmakers said they presented Obama with a wish-list
covering...
Read More Click Here
Who's Your Daddy? Steele was smacked back
into place by Limbaugh
“Michael Steele, you are head
of the RNC; you are not head of the Republican
Party”—Rush Limbaugh, talk host
It
has been about a month after the first Republican
Party’s first African-American chairman Michael Steele
took his first initial victory lap around America’s
major media outlets, proclaiming the rebirth of the
party of Lincoln.
He tried to put a bolder, hipper image on the tired old
bastion of white conservatism, saying it was going to be
more inclusive, more accepting in its recruiting of
minorities and women. He was going to breathe new life
into the demoralized GOP.
Following his narrow victory into the top post of the
RNC, Steele should have known that his “house Negro”
stance was not going to be swallowed by the die-hard
Christian right or the staunch bigots who never liked
anything dark unless it was the chocolate lawn jockey at
the edge of their driveways or their narrow-butted
corn-silk haired wives with their bronzed Florida tans.
Actor George Hamilton’s orange skin hue was too close to
the real thing for them. And now Steele was attempting
to shanghai the leadership of one of the last citadels
of white political supremacy. No damn way!...
Read More Click Here
More TV Ads
Project Images of Racial Harmony By TODD LEWAN
AP National Writer
Ever
see an inner-city schoolyard filled with white, Asian
and black teens shooting hoops? Or middle-aged white and
Latino men swigging beer and watching the Super Bowl on
their black neighbor's couch? Or Asians and Latinos
dancing the night away in a hip-hop club?
All it takes is a television.
Yes, that mesmerizing mass purveyor of aspiration,
desire and self-awareness regularly airs commercials
these days that show Americans of different races and
ethnicities interacting in integrated schools, country
clubs, workplaces and homes, bonded by their love of the
products they consume.
Think about one of Pepsi's newest spots, "Refresh
Anthem," which debuted during the Super Bowl. The ad,
which features Bob Dylan and hip-hop producer will.i.am,
is a ...
Read More Click Here
Pop Star
Stevie Wonder Celebrated at White House By PHILIP ELLIOTT
Associated Press Writer
President
Barack Obama presents Stevie Wonder with the Library of
Congress Gershwin Award.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama thanked Stevie
Wonder for creating "a style that's uniquely American"
as he presented the singer-songwriter the nation's
highest award for pop music.
Obama, who called Wonder the soundtrack of his youth,
gave the star the Library of Congress' Gershwin Prize
for Popular Song during an East Room tribute Wednesday
that featured Tony Bennett, Martina McBride and Wonder
himself. The president joked that the group was "the
most accomplished Stevie Wonder cover band in history."
Wonder was emotional at times, thanking Obama for the
award and reflecting on what ...
Read More Click Here
What
President Obama Learned From The Wire By: Casey Gane-McCalla
Jack & Jill Politics
Its
officially been one year that The Wire has been off the
air. Erin Evans over at The Root has a good article on
Wire withdrawal. Still we have to remember that one of
The Wire’s biggest fans, Barack Obama is now running the
country and is caught up in his own drama with
situations and characters so interesting and complex it
could’ve been written by David Simon. Here are some
things that Barack Obama could’ve learned from The Wire.
If the world was David Simon’s Baltimore, who would
Obama be? Who would be Clay Davis and McNulty?
Foreign Policy
If Obama was watching The Wire carefully, he could learn
a lot about foreign policy from two of the major
characters from the first three seasons, Avon Barksdale
and his cohort, Stringer Bell. While Avon was always
willing to go to war for territory and fight over pride,
Stringer was more pragmatic, realizing that war was bad
for business. Like Obama, Stringer was willing to
negotiate with his enemies, including Proposition Joe
and Marlo Stansfield. Rather than war with other drug
dealers over territory, Stringer built an alliance of
huslters from both the east and west side to share a
common package and economic interest.
Obama could take Stringer’s role and avoid wars unless
they are absolutely necessary, negotiate with countries
previously hostile to the US and build alliances with
other countries. He should not however be shady and
conniving, the characteristics which led to Stringer’s
death.
Drugs
Addiction and distribution of drugs have played a big
role in all 5 seasons of The Wire. If anything is clear
from The Wire, it is that...
Read More Click Here
Before You
Buy, Study Rules for New Tax Credits By Michelle Singletary (Washington
Post)
I
hosted an online discussion recently and one of the
participants was particularly perturbed because he had
purchased a new car on President's Day, Feb. 16.
Had he waited just one day, he would have qualified for
a tax break that allows new car buyers to deduct state,
local sales and excise taxes on their federal returns.
The deduction is available only for taxpayers who
purchased new vehicles on or after Feb. 17 -- when
President Barack Obama signed the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009, better known as the economic
stimulus plan.
"I feel duped," the person wrote during the chat. "The
reason I decided on new versus used was because of the
tax credit. I thought I would qualify . . . as the
dealer told me. I would have waited a day to save the
$2,000."
Helping
Laid-Off Workers Pay for Health Insurance By Michelle Singletary
There's
one Web site you need to check often if you intend to
benefit from the many consumer provisions in the
stimulus plan.
That Web site is http://www.irs.gov. It's essential
because several key provisions in the stimulus package
aimed at individuals and families are going to be
interpreted and implemented by the Internal Revenue
Service.
For example, the recovery law includes changes to the
health-benefit provisions of the Consolidated Omnibus
Budget Reconciliation Act, which is commonly referred to
as COBRA. The new law includes a temporary COBRA premium
reduction.
If you have questions about the COBRA provisions in the
new law, go to the IRS site, and in the search field on
the home page, type American Recovery and Reinvestment
Act of 2009. This will take you to a page with
highlights of the tax-related provisions in the new law.
Under COBRA, employers are required by law to offer the
option of continuing your health insurance for up to 18
months. Coverage can be extended up to...
Read More Click Here
Rihanna, The Baffled
Beauty By
Doris Allimadi
After
they had been battered, I found that Black women, and in
particular
women of African extraction, were less likely to seek
help and outside support
for fear of stigmatization ....Whereas I do not condone
a man putting his hands
on a woman, other than in love, Rihanna made a decision
for herself; however
misguided the rest of the world may think this decision
is, it is her body, her
choice. Who made her the spokesperson for every battered
woman in this
world? Why lay such responsibility on the shoulders of
this young baffled
beauty?
Black Star News columnist says no matter how baffling
Rihanna's decision seems, it's not uncommon
I wonder why shockwaves are travelling through the world
because Rihanna was battered and bruised by her
boyfriend Chris Brown.
Everybody seems to be bewildered as to why after
suffering such horrific injuries she would choose to
reunite with him within a few weeks of this assault, as
has been reported. A woman being battered by an abusive
partner is nothing new, and neither is a woman...
Read More Click Here
Simmons to
Pay $40K a Month in Child Support By The Associated Press
Russell
Simmons is seen with his daughters Aoki (center) and
Ming at the recent 40th NAACP Image Awards.
LOS ANGELES - Court records show Russell Simmons has
agreed to pay $40,000 a month in child support. Los
Angeles Superior Court judge Marjorie Steinberg signed
off on an agreement Thursday giving Kimora Lee Simmons
sole custody of the couple's two daughters,
nine-year-old Ming and six-year-old Aoki. The couple's
divorce was finalized in January. Kimora Lee Simmons
filed for divorce in March 2008, citing irreconcilable
differences.
JEREMIAH WRIGHT -
'BARACK'S NAME AIN'T JESUS': Rev. speaks about
former mentee during speech in Selma to mark voting
rights march.
President
Barack Obama's longtime minister, the Rev. Jeremiah
Wright, warned the more than 700 people attending his
speech in Selma, Alabama that the president is not a
savior.
"Barack's name ain't Jesus. Barack ain't gonna improve
your child's reading score. There are things we've got
to do on our own," he said Thursday, addressing a mass
meeting that kicked off the 44th anniversary celebration
of the 1965 Selma-to-Montgomery voting rights march.
Speaking in a brief interview with The Associated Press
before the speech, Wright smiled at the mention the
nation's first black president.
Michael
Jackson Seeks Comeback in London By JILL LAWLESS
Associated Press Writer
LONDON
(AP) -- Michael Jackson is making his first live
appearance in years, but will it still be a thriller?
The King of Pop is due to meet the press at a London
concert arena this week to announce the mother of all
comebacks - a string of concerts that organizers hope
will net the financially troubled star millions.
But after years of erratic behavior, health fears,
child-abuse allegations and money woes, is the
once-golden Jackson brand tarnished beyond repair?
"Because of what's happened to him and how he's lived
his life over the last 20 years, he's made it very
difficult for people to out themselves as Michael
Jackson fans," British music writer and broadcaster John
Aizlewood said Wednesday. "These concerts are a huge
opportunity for ...
Read More Click Here
MOMMY, HE HIT ME!: Angela De Joseph details her story of
abuse. Angela de Joseph
I
don't know what happened between Chris Brown and Robyn (Rhianna)
Fenty. But, I know what happened to me.
I got a call one day from a family friend. I remember
having a crush on him when I was a teenager. I have
always been a romantic idealist, so I thought the fact
we had met in New York twenty years earlier and we were
both now living in Los Angeles and single, meant
something.
This is a long story. As a matter of fact, it is the
subject of a feature film script I wrote called "What's
Done In The Dark." So I won't go into all the details.
I'll just give you the highlights…well the lowlights
that is…
We began dating. Our families were elated. He was a
double Ivy league graduate. He was part of that
exclusive club of Black men, like my oldest brother,
that had gone to Harvard. There were lavender roses;
there was a rather large diamond engagement ring and a
wedding to plan.
He called every day. Actually he called me ALL day. He
wanted to know where I was and what I was doing ALL the
time. He wanted to be with me ALL the time. I thought it
was love. I didn't know it was control.
The first time he flipped out on me, I thought it was my
fault. The second time it was worse and I thought
something was very wrong. He said it was a ...
Read More Click Here
Who Let Alan
Keyes Out Of The Crazy House? Black Star News Editorial
Keyes: Stop Obama or U.S. will cease to exist Click
Image Below to View or
Click Here
Where do the Republicans get these kinds of characters?
Rush Limbaugh; Sean Hannity; Bobby Jindal; and, not to
be outdone, Alan Keyes.
It’s a painful thing to grow up thinking that you’re
brilliant, a genius, because your mother said you were,
only to discover later in life that you’re not so bright
after all.
It’s even more painful when you encounter someone who is
light years smarter than you are, and it drives you off
the cliff. Such is the unfortunate experience of a
familiar perennial candidate, the so-called "ambassador"
Alan Keyes.
In a recent interview, which is now available on
YouTube, Keyes revealed the pain that’s been eating up
at his insides. It’s a wonder that he was able to emit
so much hatred without foaming at the mouth.
WASHINGTON
(CNN) -- President Obama began to flesh out the details
of one of his signature campaign promises Tuesday,
outlining his plan for a major overhaul of the country's
education system "from the cradle up through a career."
President
Barack Obama lifted restrictions on federal funding of
human embryonic stem cell research on Monday, angering
abortion opponents but cheering those who believe the
study could produce treatments for many diseases.
WASHINGTON
(AP) — President Barack Obama reassured members of the
Congressional Black Caucus that he's on their side and
will do what he can to support the group's left-leaning
agenda, lawmakers said Thursday after an hour-long
session at the White House.
It
has been about a month after the first Republican
Party’s first African-American chairman Michael Steele
took his first initial victory lap around America’s
major media outlets, proclaiming the rebirth of the
party of Lincoln.
Ever
see an inner-city schoolyard filled with white, Asian
and black teens shooting hoops? Or middle-aged white and
Latino men swigging beer and watching the Super Bowl on
their black neighbor's couch? Or Asians and Latinos
dancing the night away in a hip-hop club?
President
Barack Obama presents Stevie Wonder with the Library of
Congress Gershwin Award.
Its
officially been one year that The Wire has been off the
air. Erin Evans over at The Root has a good article on
Wire withdrawal. Still we have to remember that one of
The Wire’s biggest fans, Barack Obama is now running the
country and is caught up in his own drama with
situations and characters so interesting and complex it
could’ve been written by David Simon. Here are some
things that Barack Obama could’ve learned from The Wire.
If the world was David Simon’s Baltimore, who would
Obama be? Who would be Clay Davis and McNulty?
I
hosted an online discussion recently and one of the
participants was particularly perturbed because he had
purchased a new car on President's Day, Feb. 16.
There's
one Web site you need to check often if you intend to
benefit from the many consumer provisions in the
stimulus plan.
After
they had been battered, I found that Black women, and in
particular
Russell
Simmons is seen with his daughters Aoki (center) and
Ming at the recent 40th NAACP Image Awards..jpg)
President
Barack Obama's longtime minister, the Rev. Jeremiah
Wright, warned the more than 700 people attending his
speech in Selma, Alabama that the president is not a
savior. 
LONDON
(AP) -- Michael Jackson is making his first live
appearance in years, but will it still be a thriller?
.jpg)
I
don't know what happened between Chris Brown and Robyn (Rhianna)
Fenty. But, I know what happened to me.
