Big Sole Blog (BSB)

I have been very quiet at this blog on the George Zimmerman trial because it feels more like the defense has been prosecuting Trayvon Martin than defending George Zimmerman. It's been painful to hear and watch, especially for those of us who have black sons and perceive that what's being said is "all young black men are dangerous criminals." Nevertheless, I had to share this picture which I

Look at this picture, part of several released by the New Orleans Police Department on May 13. Is that a small child running alone from the shooter? So young, so small, and already he's had to learn to escape a bullet. The man is aiming a gun into a crowd attending a New Orleans Mother's Day Second Line Parade. He and his partner wounded 19 people. Another person was injured when she fell.

Through his Rebuild the Dream organization, environmental activist Van Jones seems to be playing the prophet Nathan to President Obama's David on matters of climate change. Jones says in the video above that if President Obama continues to support the Keystone XL Pipeline, then the president should rename it "The Obama Tar Sands Pipeline." Clearly Jones is disappointed in President Obama

In a recent interview with his close friend Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry compared Langston Hughes's negative criticism of Zora Neale Hurston's work to Spike Lee's negative criticism of Perry's work.  I think Perry could use a better example when it comes to contemporary black writers downing his movies, plays, and television shows. (The timing of Perry's interview with Oprah coincides with the

With all this talk of the Vatican's papal conclave choosing another Pope in the wake of Pope Benedict XVI's departure, along with the rumors of why he retired, the song "Pope" (1993) by Prince (His Royal Purpleness), keeps running through my head. The song is included on his album, "The Hits/the B Sides," a compilation of his early hits. In particular, I recall the song's chorus, which follows

In the video above, CNN's Anderson Cooper interviews Milwaukee Police Chief Edward A. Flynn about the chief's heated exchange with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) at a hearing on an assault weapons ban. During the hearing, Flynn, in full dress uniform, rightfully asked Graham to stop talking over him and to let him speak. Graham had been interrupting Flynn to deliver NRA talking points in an

On Facebook, a friend of mine shared this article at Cracked.com headlined "4 Things Politicians Will Never Understand About Poor People." In plain language (with occasional cussing) John Cheese debunks the common myths politicians perpetuate about people living in poverty, such as they don't work and that they only want handouts. His post also reveals some of the offensive rhetoric some

We don't want no sequestration. We don't want no harmful goals. Close the chasm 'tween rich and poor. Leaders leave our net alone. Hey! Leaders! Leave that net alone! All in all it's just another trick. We're appalled. All in all you're just another brick in the wall. These lines play off Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall." © 2013 Nordette Adams

I saw this photo of President Obama in a Huffington Post slide show of best political pictures. It's captioned as:A light shines behind President Barack Obama as he speaks during a campaign event at Bayliss Park, Monday, Aug. 13, 2012, in Council Bluffs, Iowa, during a three day campaign bus tour through Iowa. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)Knowing that the president has been promoting solar energy,

The video above shows Senator and former presidential candidate John McCain in a pickle again, having to defend President Obama to the fringier folks of the Republican base. The first clip is from a 2008 neeting when a McCain supporter says then-candidate Obama is an Arab. The second clip comes from footage of a McCain Town Hall meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, held this year, 2013.First a

I don't know that much about Matt Kibbe, except that he is an ardent Tea Party activist. I dislike the Tea Party and oppose the austerity measures its policies recommend. I do know, however, quite a bit about Rush Limbaugh and it's no secret that I don't like him and think he's a racist and enema bag. So, when I hear that Limbaugh and Matt Kibbe are telling their fellow conservatives that

Real-life "Olivia Pope" inspiration, Judy Smith, has been hired by Jill Kelley of the Petraeus fiasco, reports AdAge. I came across this tidbit while reading Margaret Colson's column at Bloomberg in which she discusses the differences between how the media treats women during such media spectacles and how the media treats men. Of Kelley hiring Smith, Colson observes that both Kelley and Paula

Throw a rock in New Orleans and you're likely to hit a singer/musician, and apparently that's true even if the rock taps the city's mayor, Mitch Landrieu. He did his part Tuesday night at the city's Pay It Forward benefit for survivors of Hurricane Sandy. The Times Picayune reports: During the first of three hours of music at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts on Tuesday,

Today I saw an article at the Huffington Post with the headline, "Bobby Jindal: GOP Should 'Stop Being The Stupid Party'." The article includes the following statement: Jindal told Politico Republicans should “stop being the stupid party” by working to embrace a larger group of constituents rather than becoming the party of "big anything." As I read this statement and more of Jindal's rhetoric

Despite a recent tragedy in my life, I am very grateful and overjoyed that President Barack Obama has won a second term. Forward! The picture above shows the president, the FLOTUS, Michelle Obama, and the two first daughters, Sasha and Malia, on the stage in Chicago before the president delivered his acceptance speech, November 6, 2012.

Have you seen the pro-Romney ad that begins with voice over saying, "Welcome to the New Normal"? It proceeds to argue that although President Obama's campaign slogan is "Forward," America is falling behind under his policies. Romney's Super PAC called "Restore Our Future" sponsors the ad, which has been running a lot lately in the last few days of the campaign. This ad has a big flaw. Tucked

WDSU meteorologist Margaret Orr acknowledged that Hurricane Sandy was a horrific storm and its death toll of 50 lives is tragic, but she also took time on Tuesday night's broadcast to compare Hurricane Sandy to Hurricane Katrina. The picture above shows her basic points, one of which is that Katrina had a storm surge 28 feet, but Sandy had a surge of 13.88 feet. Yes, 13.88 feet is

Mitt Romney, who's been attacking President Obama on the debt, says in his budget plan that he will not be able to balance the budget until the end of his second term. So, how do his supporters defend the Romney argument that Pres. Obama has not balanced the budget in his first term and therefore should be voted out of office? Do people actually listen to the words or read what Romney says he

A young Barack Obama with his grandmother Madelyn Dunham of Hawaii. She passed away in 2008 at age 86 due to cancer. I can only guess at the reason my blog suddenly has so many hits from people searching for information about President Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, who was his maternal grandmother, the mother of his mother, Ann Dunham. The president spoke about Madelyn Dunham last

On the heels of his narration of the parents' book, "Go the F*ck to Sleep," actor Samuel L. Jackson now narrates a nightmarish tale with a message for presidential election voters: Wake the F*ck Up!" Here is a link to the website that posted the video. The site is funded by the Jewish Council for Education & Research. The story begins: "In the silvery moonlight that bathes every town,