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Black Kos, Week In Review: "Forebodings of Disaster Enter into Box Scores" [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2025-05-23
Voices & Soul
by Justice Putnam, Black Kos Editor
I purchased and built my first crystal radio with an ear-set with funds gifted to me on my birthday in March of 1963. I was eight years old. It took a couple of weeks before the components arrived in the mail and I set out to put the thing together. The radio was small and fit in the pocket of my coveralls, while a thin cord snaked its way to my left ear. We lived on the farm in Philomouth outside of Corvallis and I had many chores to do before the bus picked me up for school. That radio kept me linked to the world while I milked the farm's only cow, slopped slop for the pigs, fed the geese and chickens, collected eggs and churned butter from the cream of that only cow. The strongest frequency the radio picked up during those early morning duties was a station that broadcast local news, early morning weather and farm reports, and the conservative, baritone intonations of Paul Harvey ("... this is Paul Harvey... good day!"). I attended Saint Mary's Catholic School in Corvallis and like many Catholics of the day ( and even now, not so surprisingly), photographs of JFK were prominent at home and school. There was something about Harvey that bugged me as an eight year old. His halting, yet dulcet vocal delivery were pleasant enough, but the content of his broadcasts grated. Later that year, after the 16th Street Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, that killed four young school girls, Harvey attempted to diminish the tragedy by explaining that no matter how brutal the murders were, they were to be expected. Murdering four black school girls was an expectation in America? Even as an eight year old, I knew that wasn't and shouldn't be correct. A year later, a Great Uncle helped install the antennae for the short wave radio he gave me. I could now listen to the BBC, music from Paris and New York, and I discovered Studs Terkel in Chicago.
Though both Terkel and Harvey broadcast from the City of Big Shoulders, they were worlds apart. Terkel's interviews with Bob Dylan and Mahalia Jackson still resonate in a deep seated radio tape loop in the middle of my cerebellum. We never owned a television in Oregon, reception being poor or non-existent where we lived. When we moved to Southern California in the summer of 1965, when my father began a thirty-five year professorship at Cal State Fullerton, we purchased a television shortly after settling in. Later, we purchased one of the first generations of color televisions. I would match the news from the three broadcast networks with that of the BBC, that I listened to on the short wave radio, (it was a big argument about dismantling and moving the antennae from Oregon to California, but my dad prevailed on my mom that it was a good idea). I began to triangulate information before I even knew the word. It just seemed the prudent thing to do. As a child, I couldn't get enough information. It remains the same today. With each new technological advancement, the ability to gather info increases and I anticipate it strongly. But care must be taken. It is said, Knowledge is Power, but the manipulation of knowledge, it might be argued, is even more powerful.
I remember being taken aback early in high school when I read the Kabbalah should not really be studied until age forty. But it took only a few passages when I realized I was totally unprepared for such a scholarly endeavor. I lacked the basic critical thinking skills and even enough life experience for it to make sense. So I held off for about a decade.
We now live in a total information awareness society. All ages are bombarded with unfiltered information from all quarters without nary a penny for our thoughts. We have been nickeled and dime’d into marketing ourselves as the product, while millions and millions have sold themselves out for a little knowledge from suspect information meant to make us suspicious, fearful and alone. Connected only by the tethers of a total information awareness network, devoid of any self-awareness.
“This bubble had to be burst, & the only way to do it was to go right into the heart of the Arab world & smash something.” The hotel heiress, snapped flashing her bum in a Bahamas club. To go right into the heart of the Arab world, they claim their device can trigger an orgasm: flashing her bum in a Bahamas club on a boozy date with her new bloke, Nick Carter. They claim their device can trigger an orgasm. American officials who spoke on condition of anonymity on a boozy date with her new bloke, Nick Carter, say he confessed under torture in Syria. American officials who spoke on condition of anonymity without touching a women’s genital area say he confessed under torture in Syria. “There’s no explanation why. We’re just not saying anything.” Without touching a women’s genital area, I take it all seriously. I am withdrawing from all representation. There’s no explanation why. We’re just not saying anything to make this objective absolutely clear. I take it all seriously. I am withdrawing from all representation, but he was in the special removal unit. To make this objective absolutely clear, the development of counterterrorism technologies— but he was in the special removal unit. This had profoundly shocked the commission, the development of counterterrorism technologies with the flick of a switch. Women get turned on. This had profoundly shocked the commission. No one detected any radical political views. With the flick of a switch, women get turned on to a new business model that only pretends no one detected any radical political views. I take it all seriously. I am withdrawing from all representation to a new business model that only pretends to give consumers more control. In fact, I take it all seriously. I am withdrawing from all representation that she refused to be photographed in body paint to give consumers more control. In fact, he was handcuffed and beaten repeatedly. That she refused to be photographed in body paint constitutes an integral goal of the IOA. He was handcuffed and beaten repeatedly. There’s no explanation why. An information whiteout constitutes an integral goal of IOA while Justice turns to Syria’s secret police. There’s no explanation why. An information whiteout. Forebodings of disaster enter into box scores while Justice turns to Syria’s secret police, constructing systems to counter asymmetric threats. Forebodings of disaster enter into box scores to achieve total information awareness, constructing systems to counter asymmetric threats. This bubble had to be burst, and the only way to do it was to achieve total information awareness & smash something. The hotel heiress snapped. - John Beer “Total Information Awareness” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
News round up by dopper0189, Black Kos Managing Editor
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The bizaro world justice department’s civil rights divion News One: Trump’s DOJ Thinks Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson Hired Too Many Black People, So It Launched An Investigation
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Last month, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division saw a mass exodus of more than 100 attorneys who up and resigned from the department due to its focus on white grievance and steering away from (or outright gutting) cases involving civil rights protections for Black people, people of color and other marginalized groups under the administration of President Donald Trump. Well, the department is currently solidifying its role as a “reverse-racism” watchdog by launching an investigation into Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s hiring practices, which, apparently, was brought on after the mayor publicly spoke on the diversity of his administration—and we all know diversity is a cardinal sin in the Church of Making White Nationalism Great Again.
On Monday, May 19, the DOJ sent a letter to Johnson’s office informing him of the investigation to determine whether he has violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which the Trump administration has largely been manipulating to fight fictional anti-white discrimination since the very start of the president’s second term. “In your remarks made yesterday at the Apostolic Church of God in Woodlawn, you highlight the number of Black officials in [your] administration,” the letter reads. “You then went on to list each of these individuals, emphasizing their race.”
“If these kind of hiring decisions are being made for top-level positions in your administration, then it begs the question whether such decisions are also being made for lower-level positions,” the letter continued.
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During the White House meeting, Johann Peter Rupert told President Trump, "Just Google my name." The Root: The Story Behind the Mystery White Billionaire Who Told Trump There's No 'White Genocide' in South Africa
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Growing tensions between the two countries began after Trump’s reelection. That’s when the president cut off trade to South Africa and recently gave 59 white South Africans— better known as Afrikaners— refugee status, as we previously reported. Trump falsely argued the Afrikaners were being targeted based on their race, but in fact the amount of Black murders in the country drastically outweigh that of white killings.
The issue comes down to South Africa’s immigration and crime problems. Ramaphosa came to Washington, D.C. in hopes of refocusing his relationship with America and also get Trump’s help tackling crime.
He even brought famous guests with him to cool off the temperature in the room: Two well-known golfers and— most importantly— the second richest man in South Africa. Johann Peter Rupert is one of 22 billionaires on the entire continent of Africa and one of only seven billionaires in South Africa, according to Forbes’ 2025 report.
The 74-year-old is an international business mogul, so his appearance with Ramaphosa holds more weight than you can imagine.
Rupert got real with Trump after President Ramaphosa’s attempt to refocus the conversation to technological and trade needs was disregarded. While the president perpetuated claims that Afrikaners— the most privileged ethnic group in South Africa— are being targeted, Rupert echoed Ramaphosa’s words saying, “We have too many deaths, but it’s across the board.” The billionaire continued, “It’s not only white farmers... We need technological help.”
Experts told PBS that although white farmers have been murdered in South Africa, those killings account for less than one percent of the total 27,000 annual nationwide report— most of them being murders of native, Black South Africans. “The idea of a ‘white genocide’ taking place in South Africa is completely false,” said Gareth Newham, head of a justice and violence prevention program at the Institute for Security Studies in South Africa.
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After announcing a rollback of DEI initiatives in January, a boycott of the retailer has led to a decline in sales and foot traffic, impacting the company's bottom line. Yahoo: Target admits DEI rollback and boycotts contributed to sales decline
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Target's (TGT) sluggish first quarter was partly due to consumers' protests to the retail giant's rollback on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies.
On Wednesday, shares of the retailer slid more than 7% after it posted a 3.8% year-over-year decline in same-store sales, compared to the 3.7% drop it saw last year.
CEO Brian Cornell said during the earnings call that one headwind Target faced in the quarter was consumer reaction to "updates" it shared on belonging in January.
Those reactions, Cornell said, compounded ongoing pressure on consumers' discretionary spending amid five months of declining consumer confidence and uncertainty about tariffs.
"While we believe each of these factors played a role in our first quarter performance, we can't reliably estimate the impact of each one separately," Cornell said.
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Understanding the symptoms and the reasons behind prostate cancer risk in Black men is a critical step toward early detection and developing better health outcomes for our kings. News One: Prostate Cancer: Symptoms In Black Men And Why The Risk Is Higher
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Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers affecting men worldwide. According to the American Cancer Society, about 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime. While the disease can impact anyone, regardless of race, research consistently shows that Black men face a significantly higher risk—not only of developing the disease but also of experiencing more aggressive forms and worse outcomes.
Understanding the symptoms and the reasons behind this increased risk is a critical step toward early detection and developing better health outcomes for our kings.
In its early stages, prostate cancer often presents no symptoms. This is why regular screening is vital, especially for high-risk groups. Notably, prostate cancer typically develops at an early age for Black men compared to other races. Symptoms can begin to show as early as 45, according to Prostate Cancer UK.
When symptoms do appear, they may include frequent urination—especially at night—or difficulty starting or stopping urination. Erectile dysfunction, blood in the urine, or a persistent pain in the back, hips or pelvis area could be a tall tale sign, according to Medical News Today.
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WELCOME TO THE FRIDAY PORCH
IF YOU ARE NEW TO THE BLACK KOS COMMUNITY, GRAB A SEAT, SOME CYBER EATS, RELAX, AND INTRODUCE YOURSELF
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