The Black Snob Feed

President Obama Says He's Not Dick Cheney

2013-06-18T13:00:26Z

Image from NY Mag (source)

After all, he hasn't shot anyone in the face or inspired images of Darth Vader. Glad he cleared that up.

But seriously, since the NSA's spying program has been a-spying since the Bush Administration, President Obama has come under fire for not ending these policies that violate American's civil liberties. He went on PBS and talked to Charlie Rose where he said the NSA surveillance programs were transparent. (Even though they're authorized in secret, sez USA Today.)

From USA Today:

"Some people say, 'well, you know, Obama was this raving liberal before. Now he's, you know, Dick Cheney.' Dick Cheney sometimes says, 'yeah, you know? He took it all lock, stock, and barrel.'

"My concern has always been not that we shouldn't do intelligence gathering to prevent terrorism, but rather are we setting up a system of checks and balances? So, on this telephone program, you've got a federal court with independent federal judges overseeing the entire program. And you've got Congress overseeing the program, not just the intelligence committee and not just the judiciary committee -- but all of Congress had available to it before the last re-authorization exactly how this program works."

The federal court that both the President and USA Today are referring to is the FISA -- Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act -- court that rules in secret on these surveillance cases. Meaning, all this boils down to -- do you trust President Obama? This view tends to (obviously) break down along party lines. I've been fine with most of President Obama's foreign policy decisions as he doesn't seem hell bent on having us evade and occupy other countries like the last president. (I know, it's a really low bar on my end.)

There are things I don't like, such as drones blowing up wedding parties in Afghanistan to get one guy (if that guy is even the right guy, etc. etc.), rather than bringing alleged terrorists to judgment in our courts, but I know that what I want is easier said than done in a country where trying alleged terrorists is completely politicized, even though we've done it multiple times. We can't even close GITMO because Congress won't let the President do so. Even though GITMO is a hellish limbo that goes against everything we're supposed to stand for as a country.

But while I guess I fall on the "I trust Obama" side, I don't exactly trust the next president, or the one after that. Something has to be done about these policies that give too much power to too few people. Yesterday I wrote that it's rare for a president to give up power. Serving two terms used to be a gentleman's agreement until FDR decided to go for four. Fearing someone else might set up a permanent rule by Democratic vote, presidential terms were slashed to two and only two. But post that, you could argue that the last president who was truly checked for an overreach was Richard Nixon and it's been a power grab ever since. Will Obama close the door on these policies that give him so much power, but would also give who ever we get stuck with in a few years the same kind of power? Does HE trust the next guy? I don't know. But for the sake of our union, I'd hope that Obama and Congress can agree on something and decided that they don't.*

*But of course, they won't do that without a little pressure from people like you and me.

CNN: President Obama's Approval Rating Drops 7 Points

2013-06-17T13:06:24Z

President Barack Obama holds a National Security Council meeting in the Situation Room of the White House, April 5, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)In a new CNN poll, President Obama is proving he's had the worst three months ever with his approval numbers dropping seven points in 100 days. CNN, of course, links this to the myriad of I-Can't-Believe-It's-A-Scandal! scandals that have popped up of late.

Some are old hat, like Benghazi, but others are fresh and new flavored like the IRS targeting Tea Party groups ... for slower approvals and more scrutiny, but still eventually approving them. These scandals are not sexy, dirty, rotten scandals. They're not easy to explain like extramarital sex or graft. They're all overly complicated and kind of mind-numbing, like the NSA spying on people -- something that's been going on since forever now -- but is now shocking because Obama is in charge instead of George W. Bush.

I'm not particularly surprised the spying is still going on under Obama because what president gives up power? It's disappointing, but if you're just now disappointed that might have been a bit more helpful back when Alberto Gonzales was stalking former Attorney General John Ashcroft's sick bed, trying to violate the Constitution.

Still, Obama isn't made of Teflon. It was only a matter of time before all the rabble got to his approval rating.

From CNN:

Fifty-six percent of those questioned in the poll approve of how Obama is handling his duties as president. Four in 10 disapprove.

The 56 percent approval is down five percentage points from June, and represents a drop of seven points from the president's April showing. The CNN/Opinion Research Corp. figures are in line with numbers from most other national polls out the past few weeks. See the full results (pdf)

"Since April, Obama's rating has stayed steady among white women, but he has dropped 14 points among white men. A majority of white men supported him at the 100-day mark, but now most white men disapprove of how he is handling his job," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Obama has also slipped among non-whites, but he still gets support from over 70 percent of that group."

But the poll isn't all doom and gloom for the President. More from the poll:

"44 percent say that Obama's polices have so far made the economy better"
"More than four in 10 are pointing fingers at Republicans" (for our economic woes)
"Nearly 6 in 10 feel that the president has tried to handle more issues than he should have."
"Just over half questioned feel that the first six months of the Obama presidency have been a success."

So what have we learned? Well, I could say that despite the scandals most people still kind of like the President and want things to work out (unless you're a disillusioned white male). I could also say, we've learned nothing since despite the 7 point drop, it's more breath-taking that it's not worse considering how hard the rabble's been rabble rousing about these "scandals." And it took 100 days to put in a dent. And multiple dramas. And lots and lots of screaming and more media coverage of that NSA leak guy's girlfriend than the guy.

Because these scandals are complicated and "Swoden's girlfriend: Hot or not" is easy.

The Snob Profiled on SheThrives Network

2013-06-17T12:46:53Z

Recently I gave an interview to SheThrives, a new web site for women, about my life as a writer and blogger. Here's a snippet:

... the blog really resonated with people. They really enjoyed the content and it validated me because I felt, when I was in journalism, it was really hard for me to breakout. I worked for a lot of small town newspapers and I lived in small markets. And, it’s really hard to get the attention of major magazines and publications when you go to a no name university and you work in Bakersfield. So, the internet was really a way to level the playing ground for me to show that I did have the type of skills that could resonate with a larger audience. That could transfer on a larger scale nationally and without the internet, I don’t think I would be able to do that. I think I’d be still be stuck. Small towns, I probably wouldn’t even be in journalism anymore. I don’t know what I’d be doing if it weren’t for the website.

You can check out all three parts of the interview here. (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)

Clutch Magazine: Single Black Male Seeking Long-Term Commitment, Won't You Help A Brother Out?

2013-06-07T12:41:55Z

In my Thursday post for Clutch Magazine Online I wrote about a recent NPR poll that found more black men wanted commitment than black women. Well, knock me off a chair with a feather! So I had a little fun with the findings, celebrating an end to "desperate" single black women articles and a new era of "can't get a woman" single black man articles. Yes! YES! Bring on stories about dudes dying alone with their cats!

Here's a snippet:

Love. Eternal and pure. Obtained by some, elusive to others. But who knew a desperate poetic soul existed in the heart of the single black man, sitting along amongst the 15 or so of his pet cats and collection of knitting needles wondering where-oh-where is a woman to make my sandwiches?

According to a new poll out by NPR, this is the reality, not the common narrative of the lonely, beleaguered black woman, but of black men who want a commitment more than their female counterparts.

What’s up with that?

So says the poll:

Just one-third (34%) of these young-to-middle-aged singles say they are currently seeking a long-term committed romantic relationship, while just one in ten (10%) say they are already in one. Men are more likely to say they are looking for a committed relationship (43%) than are women (25%). Nearly all of those seeking such a relationship want to get married someday (98%).

Commitment. Isn’t that a dirty word?

Read the full story here at Clutch Magazine Online.

The Snob Named Among the Ten Best ... Interracial Dating Blogs? Who knew!

2013-06-05T15:44:59Z

Never one to look a gift honor in the mouth, ye olde Snob Blog was named by DatingAdvice.com as one of the top ten Interracial Dating blogs. I don't actually write that much about interracial dating (or any kind of dating), but when I do, I try to be fair. My mantra is pretty much love who you wanna love and don't treat people of different races like exotic animals, stereotypes or objects to be possessed. I was honored along with sites The Root, Beyond Black & White and more. Check out who else made the list here.

Clutch Magazine: How to Make Nothing Your Fault Like A Celebrity

2013-06-04T20:12:51Z

After Lauryn Hill's life took yet another turn for the tragic (yet she remained unrepentant), I started thinking, "Wow. That takes balls, or really strong self-delusion or perhaps ... both." So I wrote a post about it for Clutch Magazine Online, counting off all the ways you can make anything everyone's fault but your own.

Here's a snippet:

Now, you may wonder why at times it’s so easy for celebrities (like Hill) to come up with excuses for terrible behavior and to just trot out those excuses without shame or self-awareness. You could blame the delusion that years of worshipful adulation can do to a person. But that might involve some self-awareness and self-awareness, as all shallow people know, is the devil.

Because being fair, nice, forgiving, Christ-like (if you like Christ) or moral (if you like morality) is a lot of work, and it is often work for which a paycheck does not come. Turning the other cheek may make you the bigger person and could even win in the end (and about ten other clichés), but what about right now? Right now in this very moment where you feel bad and the only thing that could make you feel better is being a complete, selfish a-hole?

Read the full post at Clutch Magazine Online.

The Snob Talks NPR's "African American Lives Today" Survey

2013-06-04T20:02:35Z

Tuesday The Snob returned to Tell Me More with Michel Martin to talk about NPR and Harvard University's poll of African American views on racism, finances, relationships, their communities and healthcare. For the discussion I was joined by author Gil Robertson, regular "Tell Me More" parenting contributor Dani Tucker, and Howard University Professor Ivory Toldson. The poll had results both surprising (more black men are looking for a committed relationship than black women), and unsurprising (black people overwhelmingly value education).

Check it out.

The Snob Talks Professor's "Twitter Hate Map" on NPR

2013-05-30T20:40:00Z

Thursday The Snob returned to NPR's Tell Me More with Michel Martin to talk about Humbolt Prof. Monica Stephen's "Geography of Hate," a geographical map outlining where in America the most racist, homophobic and other hateful commentary was coming from ... when it comes to Twitter.

Check it out.

The Snob to Be on NPR Today

2013-05-30T10:07:00Z

Making a return to NPR's Tell Me More with Michel Martin, I'll be on during a piece about Humbolt Prof. Monica Stephens' interactive Geography of Hate map -- a map of Twitter users using racial, homophobic and other slurs negatively online. Check your local listings for when Tell Me More airs to hear the show today and to hear myself, Stephens and Martin discuss the map.

Clutch Magazine: Shade and Married to Medicine

2013-05-29T09:47:45Z

In my latest post for Clutch Magazine Online I tackle how on the hit Bravo show Married to Medicine two of the personalities -- Quad and Mariah -- are extremely fond of black gay slang. Really fond. To the point of absurdity where they sound more like the old Looney Tunes "Goofy Gophers" than real people. In a lengthy post I talk about the history of cross-pollination between black gay culture and black lady culture and how both sides do so much dipping and stealing and modifying it's at times hard to tell who came up with what? A drag queen or your drunk grandmother? But in the end, this is all about being "extra," and standing out. Some walk across the street. Other work it like a runway. This post is about those people.

Here's a snippet:

The black gay catchphrases in particular are fascinating as not too long ago on Gawkerwriter Rich Juzwiak wrote a post entitled “Go Ahead and Throw All the Shade You Want, Straight People,” that seemed to be a dig at straight people using “gay” slang, completely ignoring the fact that the slang he referenced throughout the article is black gay slang, which by extension is also black lady slang as the cross-pollination between black gay men who are extra and the extra, extra black women they love is at an all-time high.

What is fascinating about this particular obtuseness all the way to Quad and Mariah “throwing shade” all over the reunion show, is how there can be any “pure” debate about ownership of these terms. Many of these terms came out of black drag queen culture. Black drag queens are often creating personas that are homages to the black women they love – both the iconic and the familiar – leading to quite a few of them sounding like Patti LaBelle meets your profane grandmother. These same men then create something new that’s a mix of black lady tribute and something wholly unique to black gay culture, but now you have straight black women imitating the black gay men who created a slang meant to mimic/give tribute/make-fun-of them.

Read the full post at Clutch Magazine Online.