Month: January 2010

Sermon: The Drum Major Instinct

Martin Luther King, Jr. (1964)
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Martin Luther King, Jr. (1964)

Photo Courtesy US Library of Congress. New York World-Telegram & Sun Collection.

The Drum Major Instinct

Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice; say that I was a drum major for peace; I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter. I won’t have any money to leave behind. I won’t have the fine and luxurious things of life to leave behind. But I just want to leave a committed life behind. And that’s all I want to say.

[…]

We all have the drum major instinct. We all want to be important, to surpass others, to achieve distinction, to lead the parade. … And the great issue of life is to harness the drum major instinct. It is a good instinct if you don’t distort it and pervert it. Don’t give it up. Keep feeling the need for being important. Keep feeling the need for being first. But I want you to be the first in love. I want you to be the first in moral excellence. I want you to be the first in generosity.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Drum Major Instinct,

Sermon at the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, GA

Delivered Feburary 4th, 1968

Listen to the Audio Courtesy of Black Media Archive – Episode 11: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. One of the great sermons of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. titled \”The Drum Major Instinct\”. Delivered at Ebenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta, Georgia on February 4, 1968. (audio file fades out a little early at the end)

Also subscribe to the Black Media Archive Podcast on iTunes or by XML feed here.

Questions about Yele still unanswered even as Wyclef attempts to answer them.

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Wyclef Jean and other Yele officials have responded to Gawker and The Smoking Gun’s fair research into the background of Wyclef’s NGO Yele.

Wyclef responds in anger and answers question about his integrity, which no one questions. He doesn’t answer valid questions about

  • the operational efficiency of his operation,
  • its failure to remain in good standing with the State of Florida,
  • incomplete or unfiled tax returns the IRS,
  • how these inefficiencies effect the immediate impact of dollars donated to Yele for this crisis

All of these leave questions about the efficacy of his organization vs. other purely disaster and aid focused NGOs (like the Red Cross or Doctors Without Borders or UNICEF). No one has questioned the intentions of Wyclef Jean’s NGO. Wyclef seems to think he is being accused of pocketing funds. No one has done that (at least not at Gawker and/or the Smoking Gun). Gawker and Smoking Gun are fairly pointing out that Yele has unique problems that do not make them the most attractive charity to donate to if you want your money to help those people we see suffering right now.

Gawker’s Foster Kamer, fairly and firmly, rebuts:

As we’ve noted before—and it can’t be stressed enough—Wyclef’s been in Haiti, he’s been on the ground helping, and he’s definitely trying to help the cause. That said, the talking points Wyclef read off his BlackBerry sound like they came directly from Locke, and they’re mostly vague obfuscations regarding some of their stateside financial organization issues, and whether or not Yele can help at the moment more than, say, UNICEF, the Red Cross, or Doctors Without Borders. These are organizations that have worked immediate disaster relief efforts, that are on the ground now in full force, and that already have the resources to handle both efforts in the wake of a disaster and the financial infrastructure required to do so.

Haiti’s going to need help for a long time after this. Nobody has any questions as to the sincerity of Wyclef Jean’s efforts, or that as a native Haitian, he could be well equipped to handle certain situations other organizations aren’t. Yet, Yele’s ties to Wyclef’s commercial interests and questions about their financial structuring are clearly trumped by seasoned organizations who have experience in accepting and utilizing donations when they count the most, when Haiti’s need for things like food, potable water, and medical care are absolutely crucial: right now.

via Wyclef Jean Delivers YouTube Address over his Charity’s Questionable Financial Past – Wyclef Jean – Gawker.

In my opinion, donate to Doctors Without Borders, UNICEF or the Red Cross now. The Red Cross has pre-funded administrative costs for processing donations for Haiti earthquake relief to avoid a repeat of the 9/11 Relief effort fiasco.

I really do believe that Yele, is a good organization to donate to in the medium to long term. There is no reason to doubt Jean’s intentions, after all as Yele’s founder, a millionaire whose albums I have bought, he is literally two boots on the ground in Haiti with his family yanking dead bodies off the streets. As can be seen below, he is a very strong advocate for his country of origin.


Yele Haiti just doesn’t seem like the best conduit to micro-fund immediate disaster relief.

NOTE: this sounds like an excellent blog project to answer the question: What is the real value per dollar donated to an NGO.

Conan free NBC

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The public and their colleagues have sided with Conan while Jeff Zucker and Jay Leno become the evil empire

And this, you see — the part where we the viewers come in — is part of the public outrage being stoked here. It isnt just a fondness for Big Red. Theres a collective scorn for the way that NBC has so openly pooped on its audience like Triumph the Insult Dog: replacing its 10 p.m. lineup with five nights of cheap, clunky Jay Leno shows because theyre easier than, I dont know, creating something new that doesnt suck? Well, fuck you, too. Theres nothing like swaggering around in your “too big to fail” pants to summon the gods of ironic punishment, now, is there, Jeff Zucker? So excuse us if were Googling the German word for that derisive pleasure gained by watching a networks lazy contempt for the American public fail spectacularly.

via Conan OBrien – Salon.com.

Looks like Conan may be on Fox in the fall.

Eagles. damn.

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Coates links to Michael Irvin cross hosting w/Philly guy Mike Missanelli on ESPN Radio

The Michael Irvin Show: 1/12

HOF QB Troy Aikman joins the show to talk about Dallas ending the post season drought. Mike, Nate and Kevin simulcast with 97.9 (In Philadelphia) The Fanatic in Philadelphia to rub g…
via The Michael Irvin Show as heard on ESPN Radio 103.3 FM.

Great Soundbite (and I hate to give Michael Irvin props but this was “The U” quality smack right here):

  • Michael Irvin to Eagles fan in Dallas named Tyrone: “Tyrone, what they need…is a fan like you! We gonna send you home by yo’ crib, Pack up and GET OUT!, that’s what you do! You pack up and get out and go to Philly wit those losers!”

What kills me is the brazen ignorance of my fellow Philly fan, Tyrone. Tyrone said we need a “Reggie White type of lineman”. They need the reincarnation of the best interior lineman ever to win the championship? WTF. Hold your breath and wait for that clone to be football ready Tyrone. I would rather have the guys we have now be healthier toward the end of the season (namely 3/5 of our offensive line). Because the Eagles o-line couldn’t block, the offense couldn’t run plays, and by extension sustain drives, and our defense played the bulk of the game against one of the best offenses in the league.

Another off season and another long wait for training camp and new hope. Another winter and spring filled with “dump McNabb”. The truth of the matter: McNabb probably stays. Without an extension, heading into an uncapped year, it doesn’t make sense to trade McNabb. He pretty much has all the leverage right now. There are many teams who would take him as he is when he becomes a free agent. He is still a much better than average QB. I think the Eagles front office will try and move Vick, keep Kolb and McNabb as the starter.

Either way, here’s hoping the Cowboys lose.

Favorite Noise: Teddy Pendergrass (R.I.P.)

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Grown folks music, right here.

Pendergrass was just one of the artists you had to know from parent’s LP collections. Its funny how songs you learned as a kid while running around at barbecues, being toted around in carpools to church, at the barber shop or playing in the background while the family did chores become so much a part of you.

Note: I went out last night, here in Philadelphia, and I didn’t hear any Pendergrass or Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes songs (let alone sets) by any of the DJs. Pretty shameful. I won’t repeat that mistake. Teddy P posts all weekend.

Pat Robertson proves you don’t deserve what you get or get what you deserve

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ROBERTSON: [S]omething happened a long time ago in Haiti and people might not want to talk about it. They were under the heel of the French. Napoleon the Third and whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, “We will serve you if you get us free from the prince.” True story. And so the devil said, “OK, it’s a deal.” They kicked the French out, the Haitians revolted and got themselves free.

But ever since, they have been cursed by one thing after the other, desperately poor. That island of Hispaniola is one island. It’s cut down the middle, on the one side is Haiti, on the other side is the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic is prosperous, healthy, full of resorts, etc. Haiti is in desperate poverty. Same island.

They need to have, and we need to pray for them, a great turning to God. And out of this tragedy I’m optimistic something good may come. But right now, we’re helping the suffering people and the suffering is unimaginable.

via Think Progress » Pat Robertson Cites Haiti’s Earthquake As What Happens When You ‘Swear A Pact To The Devil’.

The only thing almost as bad as Robertson’s profoundly ignorant and bigoted statement was the f*cking idiot sitting next to him nodding and moaning in empty headed agreement.

Maddow, thankfully, provided Haitian Ambassador to the US Raymond Joseph a platform to give a little history lesson on the integral role French Slaves who would become Haitians played in the formation of the United States and South America.

Top Econ Blogs by Contributors Scholarship

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Rank Economics blog SIS ADPV

1 Becker-Posner Blog 783.24

2 Greg Mankiw’s Blog 756.38 20,245

3 RGE Monitor 332.17

4 Inside the Economist’s Mind 180.35

5 Neuroeconomics 102.36

6 Organizations & Markets 98.84

7 Freakonomics 94.09

8 Game Theorist 77.76

9 Vox Baby 76.19 42

10 John Lott’s Blog 52.13 1,501

11 Grasping Reality with Both Hands 43.46

12 Daniel W. Drezner 39.35 2

13 Marginal Revolution 32.69 25,374

14 EconomistMom.com 25.47

15 macroblog 24.30 0

16 Core Economics 18.56 963

17 Environmental Economics 18.49 1,419

18 EconLog 16.70

19 Café Hayek 16.43

20 Division of Labour 16.36

21 The Sports Economists 14.88

22 The Austrian Economists 12.77

23 Hypothetical Bias 12.48 13

24 Dynamist.com 11.86

25 Economics Roundtable 8.29

26 Economist’s View 8.28 11,267

27 Mises Economics Blog 7.64

28 Adam Smith’s Lost Legacy 6.05 22

29 timharford.com 5.00

30 Economic Principals 4.81

31 the Attention Economy 4.74

32 Reasonable Bystanders 3.36

33 Newmark’s Door 3.08 905

34 Market Power 1.93 283

35 EclectEcon 1.74 347

36 Equinometrics 1.50

37 Knowledge Problem 1.39

38 The Perfect Substitute 1.06

39 The Blog of Diminishing Returns 1.00 19

The Capital Spectator 1.00 211

Key: SIS=Scholarly Impact Score; ADPV=Average Daily Page Views (Gongol.com).

via Eastern Economic Journal – Table 2 for article: Blogometrics.

Grayson calls out GOP on lies about Bush record

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Guiliani, Matalin, Perino and others who insist nothing bad happened while W was president need to be directly and strongly countered. There are many reasons Obama was elected, and one main reason was to run our US government competently.

More of this, please.

New Favorite Noise: Gucci Mane x Diplo – Diplo Presents: Free Gucci

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Gucci Mane is a prolific, oft jailed trap rapper from Atlanta. Diplo is a DJ and producer who is half of the group Major Lazer based out of the Philadelphia area. “Diplo Presents: Free Gucci (Best of The Cold War Mixtapes)” is a selection of some of the best tracks from Gucci Mane’s three disc “The Cold War” mixtape remixed with Diplo’s selection of dance beats. It’s dope. [NSFW Language]


Gucci Mane x Diplo - Excuse Me (Memory Tapes Remix)

Download “Free Gucci” here.

Obama’s done a lot. A LOT.

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Not everything a progressive could want, but he’s done as much as a President can do. In fact, he’s had one of the most jam packed years of legislative accomplishments by a US President.

Maddow:...consider what moved from the to do list to the done list...

Gillibrand’s Empire State of Mind

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Senator Gillibrand lays out her case against her potential primary challenger Harold Ford.

“If Harold Ford wants to move from Tennessee and run in New York, he is welcome to do so and I welcome an honest comparison of our records and our work for New York. I will take a back seat to no one when it comes to fighting for New York.

“His record of being anti-choice, anti-marriage equality, and now opposed to President Obama’s health care legislation may be right for Tennessee, but I don’t believe New Yorkers will stand for a senator that says they will oppose President Obama, just like the insurance companies want.

“In our state, we have 2.7 million New Yorkers who don’t have health insurance and it is a New York value to get them the quality, affordable care they deserve. While we continue working to address the funding gap, we have already saved nearly $40 billion for New York in President Obama’s bill. I have been working on the Medicaid issues from day one and I have been fighting for more than six months to secure more funding for New York. As we continue negotiating, I am hopeful that we will make improvements.

“Harold Ford is saying no to the President’s plans to expand health coverage to 2.7 million New Yorkers, end discrimination based on pre-existing conditions, and prevent families from having to declare bankruptcy when they face a major illness. The legislation requires insurers to cover preventative care at little or no cost and it will reduce the hidden tax that we all pay when caring for the uninsured. It closes the Medicare Part D ‘donut hole’ so that 500,000 New Yorkers will be able to afford their prescription drugs. It also provides tax credits to 1.6 million New York residents and 249,000 small businesses to help them purchase health coverage.

“The bill is not perfect, and I am fighting as hard as anyone to deliver more funding for New York. I have played a strong role in improving this bill. I helped lead the fight to defeat the Stupak Amendment, worked to increase Medicaid funds and eliminate the cuts to hospitals that serve those most in need. I’ve met with Harry Reid and other leaders in the Senate and I’m working closely with our House delegation to improve the bill and secure more funds for New York. In fact, the National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems have thanked me for taking the lead on these efforts.”

via Gillibrand to Ford: Bring it On – The Note.

Just a thought: How Soon…

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Before some wing nut complains that Secretary of State Clinton made a statement about the Earthquake in Haiti faster than President Obama made about the failed Christmas Day attack?