Wednesday News in the Midst of the Super Cold Weather.

There is a wicked global plutocracy in the world. We witness the eve of the spectacle of parasitic wealth and power in the World Economic Forum in the Alpine resort town of Davos, Switzerland. The Oxfam charity has issued a recent warning of the unprecedented growth of social inequality throughout the Earth. The forum will include a select number of human beings of plutocrats that are malevolent. The report stated that the richest 85 people in the world control as much wealth as the bottom 50 percent of the world's population or 3.5 billion people. It stated that the richest 1 percent today controls 46 percent of the world's wealth. Oxfam writes: “The wealth of the one percent richest people in the world amounts to $110 trillion… 65 times the total wealth of the bottom half of the world’s population.” Oxfam even shows a chart in conjunction with their report that shows that since 2008, the United States has had the largest increase in social inequality of any developed country. The economic inequality in the States is higher than Singapore, Ireland, Japan, Italy, etc. Ever since the Wall Street crash of 2008, there is still the massive impoverishment of the working class and the further enrichment of the financial elite. The wealth of the world's billionaires has doubled and today there are over 1 billion human beings in the world living on less than a dollar per day. Nearly half of the world's population or more than 3 billion people subsist on less than $2.50 per day. On the same day of the study, the International Labor Organization reported that the number of unemployed people worldwide grew by 5 million in 2013, to 202 million. The ILO predicted that the ranks of the unemployed would continue to rise in 2014. There is no time in human history do we witness this immense concentration of wealth that exists today. There are the extremes of parasitism and decadence that outline the "new normal." Contemporary capitalism (that the ruling class and political and media agents of the ruling class call the "free enterprise system") has created a world where every policy decision is dictated by the need to protect and increase the wealth of an infinitesimal portion of the world's population. The global plutocracy uses wealth to exploit society. The super-rich manipulate money, use speculation, and use swindling too. These criminal actions destroy human life. These few hundred of the ruling elite are backed by an army of bribed politicians, academic apologists, intelligent agents, etc. including the repressive force of the military and the police as a means to maintain their control (and greed). The working class' living standards are attacked by them. They advance austerity, wage cuts, job slashing, dismantling social programs, closing schools, and gutting health care. Record bailouts are sent to banks and corporations. Central banks pump trillions into the financial markets to drive up stock prices, corporate profits and CEO pay. All legal restrictions on profit-making are lifted. Some countries even in Europe limit strikes. The police state in the West was created as a means to prevent genuine social revolution. The elite have cliques of plutocrats that compete against each other too. The Davos conference dealt with human beings form the UN, the EU, the World Bank, the IMF, billionaire bankers, and corporate CEOs. The global financial elite are preparing to go into the Swiss Alps to advance token talk. The cost of attending the conference, estimated by CNN at around $40,000 per person, is about 50 percent greater than what a typical worker in the US makes in a year. The conference wants to talk about social inequality when many of them are the same ones who increased it in the first place. The elite fear real revolution. We are in the 100th year anniversary of WWI. WWI was created in the midst of social upheaval. One solution is to end the power of the plutocracy. The  people should have the right to get jobs, health care, education, housing, nutrition, and access to culture and art freely. Power must not be concentrated into the private hands all of the time, but in the hands of the people. Workers should not only have rights, but all in the human race should have basic human rights too. 

The Oklahoma State Capitol has tons of architectural influences. It houses the government of the U.S. state of Oklahoma obviously. Both the executive and legislative branch offices are found there. The building is located along Lincoln Boulevard in Oklahoma City. The present structure includes a dome that was completed in 2002. The building is a National Historic Landmark. Oklahoma's first state capital was found in Guthrie, OK. It was moved in Oklahoma City in 1910. The state capitol was constructed beginning on 1914. It was finished in 1917. The state capitol complex is the only state capitol grounds in the United States with active oil rigs. The capitol has many white limestone and pink granite as a means to build up the structure. The building's dome is made up of steel reinforced concrete and reinforced plaster casts. Surrounding the Capitol building is found other government buildings, non-government agency locations, museums, libraries, and tree lined streets and boulevards. The complex includes the State Capitol Park, the Oklahoma History Center, the Oklahoma Judicial Center, and the Oklahoma Governor's Mansion. The 14,000-square-foot (1,300 m²) mansion has a limestone exterior to complement the Oklahoma State Capitol's exterior. The surrounding neighborhood is home to numerous restaurants and bars. The Oklahoma History Center opened in 2005 and is operated by the Oklahoma Historical Society. It preserves the history of Oklahoma from prehistoric Native American tribes to the present day. There are many chambers found in the interior of the Capitol. Tons of artwork is found in the Capitol as well. The Chickasaw artist Mike Larsen created the mural of the Flight of Spirit. This mural honors the Five Moons or the famous 20th century Native American ballerinas from Oklahoma. The mural is found in the Capitol rotunda. There are many large paintings made by Wayne Cooper on display in the building as well. Many of them depict the early heritage and oil history of the state. Seminole artist Enoch Kelly Haney's painting entitled, "The Earth and I are One" is on display on the first floor of the building. The Senate lobby includes a 6 foot by 10 foot oil-on-canvas painting of the "Ceremonial Transfer of the Louisiana Purchase in New Orleans - 1803" by Mike Wimmer. The Senate Lounge displays a watercolor painting entitled "Community of Boling Springs" by Sonya Terpening. 

The Chicago charter scam has been exposed for all to witness. Education justice activists have protested Rahm Emanuel's school privatization agenda. Protesters are trying to stop the tide of the proliferation of charter schools. About 50 Chicago public schools have been closed in less than a year. Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the millionaires on his handpicked Chicago Public Schools (CPS) board are ready to give approval for creating 31 new charter schools over the next 2 years. On January 21, 2014, there has been members of the Chicago Teachers Union led parents, students, and community activists in a vigil. They did a vigil outside the board's headquarters downtown. They experienced arctic temperatures as for them to watch a board vote on the charters. The protesters have supported public forums held in the city. They discussed on the dangers of charter schools and how they sap resources from a strong system of neighborhood public schools. On January 14, 2014, almost 200 people (including teachers, students, parents, and other members of the community) suffered the cold to oppose charter school expansion. The forum was held in Brighton Park neighborhood on the Southwest Side. It was hosted by Raise Your Hand or an organization of parents against so-called school "reform." Many panelists were education researchers and high school students, including others. There are many instances of inequalities and corruption in Chicago charter schools. Funds sent to charter schools don't always come from private sources. Charters do receive donations and private grants, but 75 percent of their total funding comes from public resources. For example, United Neighborhood Organization (UNO), which operates 16 charter schools in Chicago and the surrounding area, has received $280 million in public funds in the past five years. In 2009, UNO received a $98 million grant from the state of Illinois that is believed to be the largest public subsidy for a charter school operator in the country. Charters pay 1 dollar in rent for their use of public school buildings. There are many handouts to charters. CPS has a nearly 1 billion budget shortfall. There has been the slashing of 100 million dollars form traditional school budgets last years. Charter schools have decreased enrollment in Chicago and they get more funding despite the mass closing of public schools. Many students are suspended from charter schools for just breaking up a fight. Another lie that charter school opponents are unmasking is the claim that charters perform better than neighborhood schools. In reality, according to researchers on the forum panel, 80 percent of charter students showed no improvement or a worse performance in reading, compared to students in traditional public schools. For math, the figure was 63 percent. There has been corruption of some charters refusing to give bilingual and Spanish language instruction according to researchers. Many charters are non-union. They use newer teachers who are paid less than experienced teachers and have a high turnover rate, which affects the students. SINCE 1997, 135 neighborhood public schools have been closed in Chicago--and 122 charter schools have opened. The corruption found in charters is known. That is why groups use forums like Raise Your Hand to give statistics and firsthand accounts about the truth on charters. There is solidarity among students, teachers, parents, and the community to fight the charter school invasion. 

The younger generation legitimately showing their creativity in the world is fine. Yet, a flyer that disrespects the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in that fashion has the right to be criticized with great strength and rational thinking. I am with Bernice King and others on this issue. The venue owner spoke his peace. This incident should cause more dialogue between the younger and older generations in the black community as a means to move forward too. We should never fall into the trap of being divided by generations. We should be UNITED as one community as a means to make a difference. Also, it is important for us to not make the YOUTH the total scapegoat for our situation. Our situation has been in the making via CENTURIES OF OPPRESSION (derived from the system of WHITE SUPREMACY as Brother Edud has eloquently and accurately written about). We should have self-reflection, accountability in our lives, and we should condemn injustice too (we should condemn discrimination and racism). We have the right to fight any injustice plaguing our communities. We should all grow with better insights, with radical activism, and with just plain commonsense to flourish in our lives. The communal spirit and the hope of our ancestors to see a better tomorrow are still in our hearts, minds, and souls. The young should be given the great opportunity to improve their lives (not embracing just any type of education, but the young should embrace TRUE EDUCATION about society in general) and to live out their destinies. Regardless if we are OLD or YOUNG, we should be treated with DIGNITY and with RESPECT. We all embrace the common goals of black liberation and human justice. We all love our people and we are all mortal. The older generation should guide PLUS TEACH and they have great value too. In the final analysis, we are ONE BLOOD, WE ARE ONE PEOPLE, AND WE ARE ONE COMMUNITY (Regardless if we live in the States or in Ghana). The reality is that BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL AND BLACKNESS IS STRONGER THAN YOUR HATE. Also, many Brothers here are fighting for truth and their actions should be respected as well. It is right to defend real black men. Any black person that goes against the expectations of mainstream white society is hated on by bigots and extremists. It is right to defend BLACK WOMEN too. BLACK WOMEN ARE THE GIVERS OF BLACK HUMAN LIFE. So, it is important to recognize the sacrifice of the Sisters in the black liberation movement. Not to mention that showing STRENGTH in the world legitimately is not evil. Mistreatment, abuse, and blaming folks unfairly in the world are evil actions though. I will continue to grow. The great news is that we have the truth on our side and real Brothers & real Sisters will continue to prosper and grow in life. The good news also is that we love THE TRUTH AND THE TRUTH IS ALL ABOUT LOVE, JUSTICE, AND HUMANE TREATMENT.

To fairly evaluate the Beyoncé album, I will analyze the least controversial songs first and the most controversial songs last (We all know her most controversial songs on the album. LOL. That is self-explanatory). Her songs Blue and Pretty Hurts outline many important issues of love and body self-image in the world. Blue is about the love that she has for her daughter named Ivy. We all wish more blessings for Ivy. Blue is about the human being that the father and the mother cherish with all of their hearts. The song comes from a sincere place since we all cherish children. Having a child or children is a great blessing from the CREATOR. I respect Beyoncé’s love her own daughter. Her love for Ivy is truly beautiful. We all want her and her family to be stronger and to be blessed in a great fashion. Inner strength is a necessity in our lives. Without it, we can never reach our total, true potential in our lives. I think that song Pretty Hurts was real. I felt her sincerity in the song and in the video. Also, the elite in that world are much more wicked than her. Some folks refuse to make a distinction between artists and the powers that be that try to harm society. So, we have to have a balance. We should expose evil in any industry (we should research about symbolism and things of that nature. We should oppose the evil actions of the PTB with strength and vigor. We should always advocate morality and righteousness in the world), but we should not call every single musician an Illuminati member or some paranoid statement. We certainly know the truth. The truth is that the gift of black musicians should not be degraded. The truth is that we are fighting for truth, justice, and common decency. With faith, hope, and action, we will win. Self-improvement is great and we all want Beyoncé to be the best that she can be. The message of Pretty Hurts is transparent. At the end of the day, beauty is something that is precious in the world. It is diverse and never monolithic. Beauty exists in many colors, shapes, and sizes as the old cliché goes. Hope and inspiration should be sent to those suffering self-image issues. Women suffer much extreme humiliation in real life, so we should be progressive by respecting any female of any background via a mature fashion. Also, True beauty is when a human being honestly expresses true dignity, true humanity, and true honor in the world. How we treat each other and how we endorse justice is very beautiful too. XO describes about love between human beings. She used sounds from the Challenger disaster in the beginning of the song & video of XO. In retrospect, she should have not used that, but I don't believe she had malice intent in utilizing that sound in her song. Her song Heaven is about spirituality and it is influenced by Catholic themes in her video (with the beads, etc.). With that being said, you know I will outline information about her more controversial records and videos. Jealous is about song being human in Beyoncé’s mind. Her more controversial songs of videos of Blow, Haunted, Drunk in Love, Partition, Yonce, Blow Down, etc. deals with similar subjects of empowerment, femininity, human sexuality, love, fantasies, and visions. The song Yonce is interesting. LOL. Yonce is Yonce. Yonce is Beyonce's new nickname. The video of Yonce describes Beyonce using real life fashion models as a means for her to express her feminine strength, great feminine beauty, and feminine empowerment in general. Obviously, Beyonce is a Beautiful Sister, but she is also a wife and a Mother. So, I will treat any woman with dignity and with respect. The models admire Beyonce's body and Beyonce admires the model's bodies. Beyonce talks about her beauty and twerks. We live in a new generation indeed. This generation is something else to put it lightly. I feel like an old man, but I'm not.  LOL. They or the famous models and Beyoncé celebrate their power in the world. The models shown in the video Yonce are Joan Smalls, Chanel Iman and Jourdan Dunn (all beautiful, talented women). The model industry has imperfections ironically enough. The video of Yonce use huge drum beats and it is organic in its arrangement or composition. The video of Bow Down portrays Beyoncé as like a European Queen like Queen Elizabeth when European Monarchs historically harmed people of color, especially black people for centuries via the Maafa, imperialism, economic exploitation via cut throat capitalism, and colonialism. The videos have tons of symbolism and discusses about human sexuality again. Bow Down was about Beyoncé trying to defend herself against her critics. The symbolism deals with sacred geometry, viscis piscis (as found in the Ghost video), the one eye, etc. Beyoncé is rather honest about her fantasies and sexuality in the videos of those songs. The best policy when dealing which issues is balance. We should never be ashamed of our sexuality and respect for sex legitimately is a great thing. Yet, we have to temper that respect for sex by not being inappropriate too (as in my view, some of the stuff and some of the lyrics in those more controversial songs and videos go too far). I don't want to be drunk in love. I want to sober in truth and sober in love with righteousness. I don't want to be drunk with the materialism, lies, and perversion of modern day Babylon, but I will love women and I will love the total TRUTH AS WELL. There is nothing wrong with a woman and a man loving each other in a real fashion though. Many artists push boundaries and that is commonplace among the time frame of human history. So, when you look fairly at the album it shows great talent, many legitimate themes, some things that I think go too far, and you witness the diversity of Beyoncé’s emotions and visions. We wish the Sister Beyoncé the best in her life like we wish any human being. 

By Timothy