The Boomer Feud Between Tom Joyner and Tavis Smiley

"Why can't we all just get along?"

When Rodney King uttered those now famous words following his ruthless beating at the hands of police back in 1991, who knew that would be the same question many in the black community are still asking today.

This time President Obama is the one who is taking the whipping and it's coming from two unlikely sources: Tavis Smiley and Dr. Cornel West. Here are two respected boomer men who, for whatever reason, have chosen to step outside the box and give plenty of ammunition to Obama-haters with their words---and even sometimes, with their SILENCE.

It's a funy thing about celebrity. Once you get a taste of it, some people will do whatever it takes to hang onto it---to keep their name in the spotlight so they can keep selling their books and making a name for themselves.

Well, it appears Tavis will have to find another media platform to use to smear the President, since he is no longer a part of the Tom Joyner Morning Show as indicated in this blog post by the FlyJock himself:




My New D-Word for Tavis and Cornel

Before I get to Mark Halperin, let me give you a little background.

They say that if you’re angry with someone, you should write a letter, get all the mean stuff out, and then tear it up or delete it. When you’re a little more calm, you write another letter or confront the person face to face.

About a month ago, I wrote a blog about Tavis Smiley and decided to table it because I said some things I didn’t want to publish. You’re probably thinking I went too hard him, but no. In reality, I hadn’t gone hard enough – and I knew it. I said I’d wait until something pissed me off so bad that I would have the words harsh enough to express what I was really feeling about him and his side piece – I mean side kick – Cornel West.

Well, yesterday, when Mark Halperin – a well-respected journalist, employed by a well-respected magazine and a contributor to a well-respected news network – had the audacity to call the president of the United States a dick, that was all I needed.

While I am appalled at Halperin’s statement, I have no expectations of him as a man and know nothing about his character. I am appalled, however, that as editor-at-large of Time magazine, he is responsible for among other things, deciding what stories will be covered in that publication. As the person in charge of political content, it is upsetting to know that he probably has not been objective in his dealings with material I and so many people look forward to (until now) reading each week. Needless to say, I’ve cancelled my subscription to Time magazine and hope you will too.

But I’m even more disgusted with Smiley and West, two brothers who I did have expectations of – and thought I knew. These two have done much worse than what Halperin has done because they set the tone for it, opened the door to it, and must take much of the blame for creating a climate that would make a white, professional journalist feel comfortable verbally and vulgarly attacking the first black president of the United States.

When you think you know a person, when you’ve given a person a forum to present his views, when you’ve had a hand in a person’s success, you want to believe that he is the same person he always was.

Remember THAT Tavis – the one who could take any complicated political story that had an impact on black America and “break it down” for us every Tuesday and Thursday in less than five minutes. The one who coined the phrase “radio advocacy” and alerted us any time anyone – from a private business owner to a politician to a corporate giant – even thought about doing black folks wrong. The Tavis that loved black people so much that he would sometimes, during his commentaries, be moved to tears. Where is that guy? You know, the guy that would have been telling me, “Fly Jock, Halperin has got to go.” For a while, I thought he was still with us, even though people around me (and many of you) tried to convince me otherwise. “Tavis is a hater.” “Tavis is only about himself.” “Tavis is jealous of the president.” I wouldn’t believe any of it. I had so much respect for him before his primary goal became selling books, and, later, selling out.

As we approach the Fourth of July weekend, one that celebrates our freedoms, including freedom of speech, I wish someone would use that as a defense of what Tavis, Cornel and Mark Halperin have said against our president. When dangerous words incite and brew up hatred and violence, there is a line. And these three crossed it.

In case you believe I think Tavis and Cornel called the president an offensive name, I don’t. I think they did something even worse. Any black people with any sense know that racists on the job, at school, at church or on the bus wait for opportunities to feel comfortable enough to spew their evil thoughts. If a black person tells a racist joke in front of a racist or laughs at one, it won’t be long before the racist begins to fire off a couple of his own. Mark Halperin and others are no different. They hate the president because he is black, and Tavis and Cornel, by not having the sense to not give them the opening they waited for, went all in. And this is what we get.

So, yes, MSNBC, fire Mark Halperin. I hope he never works again. I’ve already fired Tavis and Cornel. There’s nothing either can ever do for me or with me again.

I’ve got a new D-word for the two of them: Done.

Listen Up Tavis: You're not Oprah!

I guess it’s my turn to weigh on the controversy surrounding Obama’s no-show at the annual State of the Black Union forum hosted by Tavis Smiley in New Orleans last Saturday. As a veteran journalist, I have an opinion on the actions of my fellow journalist and baby boomer.

Tavis apparently asked Barack Obama to be a part of the forum but Obama declined. In a letter to Tavis’ people Obama said, “In the final stretch, I will be on the campaign trail every day in states like Ohio, Texas and Wisconsin talking directly with voters about the causes that are at the heart of my campaign and the State of the Black Union forum. That is why, with regret, I am not able to attend the forum."

Tavis took offense to Obama’s decision not to attend, saying "I think it is a miscalculation on his part not to appear and a missed opportunity."

There were also reports that Michelle Obama offered to go in her husband’s place but she wasn’t apparently good enough. She was good enough for The View but not for Tavis’ fancy soiree---where only the cream of the crop in the African-American community were invited to grace the stage in his presence.

I guess Tavis just figured he was important enough to have Barack Obama drop his campaign tour schedule just for him. I guess he forgot that Obama is trying to win votes from registered voters of ALL races in two of the most important states to date. Sure Hillary showed up but she did so because of her eroding support in the African-American community.

Funny how some people perceive themselves to be larger than life and want you to believe the world must evolve around them. Tavis Smiley shot himself in the foot when he attacked Obama for not coming to his shin-dig.

Listen up Tavis: Obama’s appearance at your forum probably wouldn’t have changed many minds one way or the other. You probably just wanted him there for “show and tell” so you could make your baby boomer buddies think how big and powerful you are.

Honey, you’re not Oprah.

Daytime TV's Hottest African-American Couple is Hotter than Ever

I don't care what I'm doing at 1pm EST---I have to take a pause to watch my favorite daytime Soap, All My Children. Since the writers decided to bring the story of Angie and Jesse back, I have been glued to the set.

Twenty years ago, the Angie and Jesse characters (played by Debbi Morgan and Darnell Williams) created magic as the first African-American couple with a real story line that didn't involve drugs or prostitution. Now they are back as baby boomers and setting the show on fire!

I sat with baited breath as I waited for the pair to finally connect with each other on Friday. But you know how the Soaps do it. They give you this cliffhanger to make you want to come back and watch the show again on Monday. All we got to see was Jesse step off the train while Angie, is standing a distance away in a teary-eyed daze.

Well, they don't have to worry about me. I can't wait to see their reunion as he steps off the train and into her arms.

But the plot is only going to get thicker because there's still quite a few unanswered questions. How are the writers going to explain his death 20 years ago? What kind of shady business is he connected to this time?

Can someone just give this brother a break and let us enjoy the romance?

Daytime TV's Hottest African-American Baby Boomer Couple

Thank You All My Children for giving me a reason to come back and get my fix. I was a soap opera junkie for many years. My mother turned me on to the ABC line-up when I was a child so I grew up with Erica, Tad and Dr. Martin. I stayed hooked through high school and college.

I became obsessed when the ABC soap brought in a young actress who looked like me. Her name was Debbi Morgan and she played the daughter of a well-to-do couple in Pine Valley. This was the first time I could recall seeing a black woman who wasn’t playing a prostitute or “mammy.” I could so relate. And then the Soap decided to shake up the pot by bringing in actor Darnell Williams, who played “bad boy” Jesse Hubbard. Despite all the drama between the two of them and their families, they eventually became America’s African-American Super Couple. But then, Jesse died and Angie (who went on to become a doctor) left Pine Valley.

But some genius in that All My Children Writer’s Group had the brilliant idea to bring the couple back to the show. They're now Baby Boomers, just like me. I, for one, am so glad they decided to bring them back because I had stopped watching the Soap because I couldn’t identify with anything that was going on. Yes, Erica may still look as good as she did 40 years ago but she just wasn’t enough to hold my interest.

Now, once again, I am glued to my TV watching for every scene that depicts Angie and Jesse. But Jesse’s supposed to be dead. I watched the episode where he died in Angie’s arms. How they’ll explain this one is beyond me but I don't care.

In a recent interview with Essence Magazine, Debbi said she thought the whole story line was going to be exciting as it unfolds:

D.M.: “He is supposed to be dead and when that turns out to be something else, there is so much drama. I don’t know exactly what has happened in Jesse’s past but whatever it is, I don’t think it’s gonna sit well with her.

Essence.com: You really don’t know the details, Debbi?

D.M.: “I swear to you, I really don’t know. I do know that he’s not dead. He’s not a ghost. I have not been told why his death was faked. There’s a part of me that doesn’t want to know so when we play the scene, it will be spontaneous.”

OK so instead of wasting my life away at the computer as I have been for the past couple of years, I can now sit in front of my TV with some bon-bons and butter pecan ice cream and enjoy watching the drama between America’s favorite African-American Baby Boomer Couple unfold.

Top 10 African American Baby Boomers of 2007

BAM Enterprises, a Company catering primarily to baby boomer women, has announced its Top 10 African-American Baby Boomers of 2007. African-American Baby Boomer author and expert Beverly Mahone is CEO of the Company. She says the list was created because African-Americans baby boomers tend to get overlooked when it comes to their achievements. Mahone says, “Our contributions are no less than anyone else so I felt it was necessary to come up with a Top 10. I’ve seen other lists floating around that make no mention of the contributions of African-American Boomers.” Ms. Mahone says she received input from other African-American entrepreneurs in generating the list.


Politics: Barack Obama
Educational Scholar: Henry Louis Gates
Business Leader: George Fraser
Mover & Shaker: Rev. Al Sharpton
Inspirational: Sheryl Lee Ralph
Philanthropist: Russell Simmons
Actor: Denzel Washington
Actress: Angela Bassett
Radio Host: Tom Joyner
Who Made a Difference Overall: Oprah.


In addition to being CEO of BAM Enterprises, Beverly Mahone is also the Founder and Creator of the Baby Boomer Diva Web of Fame. The internet-based site recognizes women 40 and over whom Mahone says are “women on the move and making a difference.”

To view the complete list and read more on the Top 10 Boomers, go to: thebabyboomerdiva.com

Boomers Raising their Kids in the Burbs

Before today, I had never heard of a place called Groesbeck, Ohio and I’m from Ohio---born and raised. According to BusinessWeek.com, this little town just outside of Cincinnati is the absolute best place in America to raise a child. Also making the top ten is another town in the Buckeye state called Waterville; another place I’ve never heard of.

Groesbeck, according to BusinessWeek.com, offers kids and their parents the right combination of safety, community and education. This quaint little town with a population of just over 7000 and a median income of $49,000 is one of 50 so-called best cities to raise children.

Rounding out the Top Ten are:

2) Western Springs, Ill—population 12,493; median income $98,8761
3) Deerfield, Ill---------- population 18, 430; median income $107,194
4) Echelon, N.J.----------population 10,440; median income 49,410
5) Arapahoe, Nebraska--population 1,028; median income 29,500
6) Waverly, NB---------- population 2,448; median income 42,454
7) Wilmette, Ill------------population 27,651; median income 106,773
8) Waterville, OH--------population 4,828; median income 60,000
9) Lackland, TX----------population 7,123; median income 32,250
10) Hopewell, TN--------population 1815; median income 43,973

What is interesting to me is the fact that these towns are all an arm’s throw away from a major city where crime runs rampid--yet they manage to stay private. I’d be curious to know how many of my fellow baby boomers grew up in these places. After all, weren’t the baby boomer generation kids the first to experience what it was like to escape urban sprawl and find comfort in the suburbs?

Well, at least some of us anyway.

African-American Baby Boomers & The American Nightmare

A new report just released by the Economic Mobility Project of the Pew Charitable Trusts reveals that African-American baby-boomers are more likely to have slipped down the socioeconomic ladder than their white counterparts. According to the series of three studies, 45 percent of black children born to parents earning middle-class incomes in the 1960s, about $55,000, are in the bottom 20 percent of wage earners today. In comparison, only 16 percent of whites from the same socioeconomic background find themselves in the same position. The report also reflects the fact that whites were more likely than blacks to rise out of the poverty they were raised in.

Columbia University sociologist Ronald Mincy, who served as an adviser on the study, told the Washington Post that researchers do not have a definite explanation for the findings, but speculated that there were many contributing factors. Mincy cited gaps in education, racial isolation, and a disparity in wealth and assets between blacks and whites as potential causes.

So what else is new? I wrote about this very subject several months ago: Black Baby Boomers and the American Dream.

If my grandparents had just gotten that forty acres and a mule they were promised, articles like these wouldn’t need to be written. I’m still open to the offer but with inflation and all, make that 140 acres please.

Election Day from a Baby Boomer's Point of View

All Republicans are NOT racist! Despite the actions of a few---maybe quite a few—it’s unfair to lump the entire Republican Party together as bigots. Sadly, however, that seems to be the prevailing attitude in our community, especially with African-American baby boomers, and it keeps good Republicans from getting the respect, attention and votes they deserve…even when they’re Black.

On Tuesday, voters in my city were given a choice between two mayoral candidates—both Black men. (The incumbent is a Democrat). I worked at a couple of the precincts on behalf of the challenger whom I’ve known for several years and have appreciated his stance on the issues that concern me. White Republicans and even some white Democrats said they felt it was time for a change and wanted new leadership. Meanwhile, the overwhelming majority of blacks I talked to snubbed their noses at the idea of having a Republican mayor and were even more indignant over the fact that he was a “Black” Republican.

When are we going to make decisions about voting based on our research and not on the fact that mama, granddaddy and everyone else in the family is a democrat so I must be one? If my history lesson serves me correct, the Democratic party stemmed out of the “Dixicrats” who were southern racist politicians. Did they only teach that in the North? When are we going to stop taking the attitude that “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it?” It might not be broke to the visible eye but there could be a cancer festering on the inside.

Not long after the polls closed, the incumbent was declared the winner again for an unprecedented 4th term. So the city is back to business as usual once again.

Maybe the Republicans really do need to clean up their act and make the party all-inclusive and the Democrats need to stop taking all of us for granted.

Baby Boomers are NOT all Alike: Part II

You would think that marketing to baby boomers would be an easy task, but if you look at the media and its advertisers, you could easily see a different picture.

To be young, gifted, beautiful, blond and white has long been the image that sells. Remember Barbie, Ken and Chatty Cathy? I actually remember throwing my life-like black baby doll (who could walk) down the stairs of our basement because she didn't look like Barbie. In some advertising circles that philosophy still holds true. However, the “hype” that advertisers have long used on the younger “gullible” generation no longer works on us baby boomers. These days you have to SHOW US YOU KNOW US!

Slowly but surely companies are starting to take note of this economic power baby boomers are supposed to have. It’s just been in the past couple of years that someone discovered that women go through something called menopause. And to help all of those horny baby boomer men cope with their issues, there’s Viagra and Cialis to the rescue!

But what is disturbing is the lack of diversity in marketing to baby boomers. I went to the www.knowmenopause.com site recently. I saw Meret, Caitlin, Pam and Denise front and center, but none of them looked like me. Why is that? Menopause doesn’t discriminate. It’s an equal opportunity annoyer so why not portray that diversity?

Ironically, I did see an ad for Viagra with an African-American male recently and I thought, “Why would he need that?” Throughout history we’ve been told the black male is a beast in bed and his anatomy is larger than life.

The media, unfortunately, continues to lump baby boomers into one big group. Their theory is that we are all grew up in the suburbs, watched the Mickey Mouse Club and then went on to change the world through our opposition to the War and our fight for civil rights. In addition, we received top notch educations and went on to achieve tremendous success in Corporate America while maintaining the all-American family lifestyle. If you look at who's running the newsrooms, you can see how that conclusion is drawn.

WHATEVER!

You need to read my book, Whatever! A Baby Boomer’s Journey Into Middle Age to get the “other” side.

Baby Boomers are NOT all Alike: Part I

I was born in 1957 so that means I’m a baby boomer. But what does being a baby boomer really mean? By all accounts, we are the children of the Post World War II era, which began in 1946.

In May, 1951, Sylvia F. Porter, a columnist for the New York Post, used the term "Boom" to refer to the phenomenon of increased births in post war America. She said "Take the 3,548,000 babies born in 1950. Bundle them into a batch, bounce them all over the bountiful land that is America. What do you get? Boom. The biggest, boomiest boom ever known in history." That boom she referred to continued until 1964.

Much attention is being paid to baby boomers these days as the first wave of us moves towards retirement and social security. Yes, we were the first generation to grow up with television; many of us lived through the civil rights era and the Vietnam War. But the “real” image of a baby boomer is now in question. We are not all white kids who grew up in the suburbs watching the Mickey Mouse Club. We have been referred to as the most diverse generation but the fact of the matter is some of us actually grew up in a separate and unequal society. According to a study conducted by two Duke University sociologists, diversity has not led to equality: Baby boomers are the first generation to come of age after the Civil Rights era, however, the study revealed differences of income according to race, ethnicity and country of birth so entrenched that, in effect, there are ethnic classes. Blacks in the boomer generation, for example, are no better off relative to whites than their parents and grandparents. Many older southern baby boomers can still tell you stories about the Jim Crow laws and the impact it had on their lives. And educational levels also are unequal across the baby boom generation, which is often described as the best-educated generation in history.

We have also been called the wealthiest generation but despite what some would have you believe, we are not all living in the land of milk and honey. Some of us may have plenty of disposable income but, according to the Duke Study, quite a few of us are struggling financially. Late boomers have the highest levels of poverty since the generation born before World War I. One in 10 late boomers lives in poverty at middle age. "What surprised us the most was how racial inequality persists among the boomers compared to other generations," co-author Angela M. O’Rand said. "The figures are quite dramatic regarding the continuing relative disadvantage of African Americans."

There's a saying: The more things change---the more they remain the same. So it should come as no surprise that many African-Americans don’t identify themselves as baby boomers. It's time to take the blinders off.

Find Your Baby Boomer Soul Mate Behind Bars

When you’re a woman over 40 years of age, finding companionship with the opposite sex can be a challenge. Gone are the days of Looking for Mr. Good Bar, finding him in church or being fixed up with the friend of a friend. These days, we have people telling us we can find true love on the internet. I’m not knocking it because I did it and ended up getting re-married. But I have to tell you, I had to weed through some garbage to find him. You see, for every decent individual out there in cyberspace, there are at least a dozen weirdoes, freaks, and others who give the concept a black eye. There are men whose motives are simply to prey on the poor old widow, divorcee, or “I’m desperate” never-been-married woman.

Then you have many men in our age group are already married, gay or dead. So what’s a middle-aged woman to do when she wants to meet a guy? Well, why not try prison? I actually heard a woman on the radio recently talking about her upcoming nuptial plans with someone sentenced to 30 years behind bars. She fit the profile perfectly. She was over 40, had never been married, no children and no real social life. Before hanging up, she joked about knowing where her man was going to be at all times.

According to statistics from the Justice Department, the nation’s prison population is becoming more middle-aged. From 1995 through 2003, inmates between the ages of 40 and 54 accounted for more than 46 percent of the total growth in the U.S. prison population. The number of inmates in federal and state prisons age 55 and older increased more than 30 percent from 2000 to 2005. They say that’s a faster rare the overall prison growth rate of nine percent. And according to the Southern Legislative Conference, in 16 Southern states, the growth rate has escalated by an average of 145 percent since 1997.

Where’s the best place to find a prisoner to marry? Probably in California where prison weddings are said to be a regular occurrence. Officials say about 20 inmates get married in ceremonies held on the first Friday of even-numbered months at San Quentin, and usually at least one death row inmate is among them.

Based on this information, I guess there’s no reason for anyone to be alone ever again, right?

Whatever!

Fifty Years of Leave it to Beaver

Can you believe it fellow boomers? It’s been 50 years since Leave it to Beaver first made its debut on television.

To commemorate this occasion, TV Land is holding a 50th year marathon of the show. The episode I’m currently watching (as I write this) is the one where Wally hosts a teenage shin-dig but doesn’t want to invite his little brother. Beaver gets upset and decides to sabotage the party. He does this before Wally has a change of heart---at the urging of his always neatly dressed mother---June Cleaver.

OK, I admit that, as a little black girl, I used to watch the “Beev” because he was a kid just like me. I never gave one thought to the fact that he (and his family) didn’t have any black friends or that his school environment was quite different than mine. His dad surely wasn’t like my dad. He didn’t go to work everyday wearing a suit and tie but I bet my dad worked HARDER than Beev’s dad and he did so for HALF the pay. The only time my mother ever wore pearls was to go to church and you would’ve never seen her cleaning the house wearing them in one of her BEST dresses.

How much times have changed over the past 50 years……or have they? Let's ask our kids.

A Baby Boomer's View of the Jena 6

As a veteran journalist and baby boomer, I have followed, with much interest, the controversy surrounding the Jena 6 in Jena, Louisiana. This is one of those times when I wish I was still working in the newsroom---fighting for the right to cover stories of the injustices done to African-Americans---especially to African-American males.

I have seen very little coverage on this story and I know why. The “white shirts” who run newsrooms around the country don’t see the same significance as they do in a story berating OJ Simpson. It’s OK to kick a black man down BELOW the ground but don’t try to lift him up because he might try to steal a white woman.

I worked in an environment where an Assistant News Director expressed his fear of driving in a predominately black neighborhood and chastised me for his belief that I wanted him to show me favoritism because of my race. My question was----and still is---how do you get objective news reporting coverage from a manager like that?

What is getting ready to happen in Jena is historic. But let’s not forget, it’s happening in other places across America. Take the case of James Johnson in Wilson, NC who is scheduled to stand trial for the murder of an 18 year old white girl next week. There is NO EVIDENCE linking him to the crime but the District Attorney seems gung-ho on connecting him since he was apparently at the crime scene with another young man who has already confessed that he did it and he acted alone.

The Jena 6 movement is also very similar to the marches of the late 1950s and 1960s when people who believed in freedom marched and said “I ain’t gon’ let nobody turn me around..turn me around…turn me around…”

It is somewhat similar to Woodstock, when free thinkers said make love---not war.

I salute Davie Bowie who recently donated $10,000 to a legal defense fund for the six black teens charged in the alleged attack on the white classmate in Jena. It tells me that there are baby boomers who still have a conscience and awareness for what SHOULD be right with the world

Now I know this blog is going to piss some people off but I thank God I live in a country protected by the First amendment.

Are Baby Boomers Responsible for Child Poverty?

If Baby Boomers have so much money as it keeps being reported by various media sources, why is it that so many of our children and grandchildren are living below poverty?

New Poverty Data released today by the U.S. Census Bureau indicates the number of children under 18 living BELOW poverty continues to climb---with 37 states showing an increase from 2000 to 2006.

I guess it should come as no surprise that the southern states lead the way when it comes to rural children not having enough. Even less of a surprise are the number one and two states which have the highest rates: Mississippi and Louisiana. In Mississippi, there are nearly 150,000 children living below the poverty line with an overall under 18 population of a little more than 421,000. In Louisiana, there are more than 101,000 children living below poverty. That number jumped significantly from 2006 when the total was 92,000. Could Katrina have something to do with that?

In North Carolina, where I live, the number increased from 128,000 in 2006 to more than 157,000 in 2006. In Ohio, where I used to live, the number of children living below poverty in 2006 was 128,000---up from 73,000 in 2000.

On the other side of the spectrum, Connecticut has the lowest poverty level among children under 18 with 5,993 but even that is significantly higher than the 2000 reported number of 2336.

These are startling statistics! How can this be? Who is responsible for this? Haven’t we figured out YET that the child poverty rate is widely used as an indicator of a child well-being since growing up in poverty often compromises the future health status and educational attainment of these young people? Changes in child poverty signal important changes in a child’s quality of life and future outcomes.

What are we baby boomers---especially the really rich ones--- spending our money on if we’re not spending it on our kids and grandkids? Oh, maybe we’re spending it on vacations, RV’s and other frivolous things so we can get away from them? How sad.

Whatever! happened to David Hartman?

He’s alive and well right here in Durham, NC! I ran into him and his wife this morning while getting my daily workout in at the Duke University cross country trail.

I was just starting my 2.8 mile trek and it looked as though they were finishing up. I immediately recognized Hartman even though he had on sunglasses. Some faces you just never forget and his was one I watched for many years when he was the co-host of Good Morning America.

He looked great and he was so charming! He was even gracious enough to stop and chat with me for a few moments. Of course I just had to tell him about my book, Whatever! A Baby Boomer’s Journey Into Middle Age. He smiled as he told me he was beyond the baby boomer generation. He may be 72 but he doesn't look a day over 50! That’s when I turned my attention to his baby boomer wife and told her she would absolutely love my book. I wanted to give them a copy but I didn’t have any in the car.

Let this be a lesson to all authors: Carry your books EVERYWHERE YOU GO.

Hartman said he and he wife walked the trail often so I was bound to see them again. And you know I’ll be looking out.

This is what I am calling a “Thank God for menopause moment!” because menopause and its annoying symptoms have forced me to be much more conscientious of my physical health and that’s why I go to the trail and that’s how I was able to run into David Hartman.

Happy Family Barbie Grandma? Whatever!

My baby boomer girlfriend Angela hipped me to something today in her blog (www.angelabetts.com) I wasn't aware of and now I'm on my soapbox (thanks Angela)

I want to go on the record as totally objecting to Mattel's introduction of the Happy Family Barbie Grandma!!!

Who in the world is calling the shots at Mattel that they would think this is an acceptable product? I bet it's some youngster under 40 who doesn't have a clue about the baby boomer generation. We are the grandmas---we are baby boomer divas---and many of us don't look like the version they have depicted. The majority of "grandmas" I know are in the business world. They are sophisticated and savvy. We go to the Spa and work out at the gym. And Lord knows, the vast majority of us aren't looking like we're ready to retire at any moment. We don't have to hide our figures by wearing those grandma-looking sweaters and baggy polyster pants.

It's just like 50 years ago when they brainwashed us into believing that the only example of a "cute" doll was one who was white with long blonde hair. Now Mattel adds further insult to injury by doing this.

A doll like that might've been great for our generation when we were growing up. The family unit was different back then. Our grandparents looked somewhat like the image they're depicting. But it is totally unacceptable now. Mattel ought to be ashamed for introducing such a figure to the American public. I am starting a petition to get them to remove this doll image from their product line.

But if there's any consolation to this whole thing----she ISN'T BLONDE!

African American Baby Boomers and the American Dream

If there are more than nine million black baby boomers according to the 2004 US Census, why are there only a little more than two hundred thousand of us making $100,000 or more? Maybe it’s because we were never meant to live the American Dream.

More than forty years after the end of the baby boom, black Americans born between 1946 and 1964 "are no better off relative to whites than their parents and grandparents" were in terms of income, according to a Duke University study. Black baby boomers have not closed the income gap, even though they were the first generation to come of age after the civil rights era, the researchers said.

The Duke study correlates with statistical information recently released by Nextmark.com (www.nextmark.com); a company that collects data to be used for mailing lists. According to the 2004 US Census, even though California is the largest state in the US, it ranks sixth when it comes to the number of blacks making at least $100,000, according to the Nextmark data. New York may have the largest black population overall but it ranks a distant second when it comes to the number of blacks making at least $100,000.

Maryland, meanwhile, holds the distinguished honor of being the state that tops the list of blacks making at least $100,000. Interestingly, Maryland is the 19th largest state. Out of 1.4 million blacks, there are a little more than 32,000 who earn at least $100,000. On the other hand, New York’s black population is just over three million but only 18,500 thousand blacks are reporting a six figure income.

Here are the states in order of blacks making at least $100,000:
1) Maryland 32,189; 2) New York 18,533; 3) Texas 12,098; 4) Georgia 11,429 (tie); Illinois 11,429 (tie); 5) Michigan 10,546; 6) California 10,511; 7) North Carolina 8,704; 8) Florida 8,226; 9 ) Virginia 7,908; 10) New Jersey 6,778.

Another interesting statistic is the fact that although Ohio is the seventh largest state, it barely cracks the top twenty with blacks making six figures. It falls behind states like Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and South Carolina. African Americans have made their way more into the middle class than before," said Duke sociology professor Mary Elizabeth Hughes, "but when you look across the board, you don't see the type of equality Americans would like to see. It suggests there are very deep root causes here, not one-answer causes."

Could that deep rooted cause be something called institutionalized racism? Remember, many black baby boomers grew up in a separate but so-called equal society filled with unequal education and unequal access. Then integration came along. But how much really changed? You do the math.


Sources for this story: www.census.gov and www.nextmark.com

My attitude about "dumb jocks" has changed

When I was in high school I was a cheerleader. At the time it was my life's ambition. You see, back in the day, girls my complexion weren't seen on the pep squads. Oh, they would have a "token" here and there but for the most part, if we wanted to be seen we either played in the band or ran track (which I also did). I had no musical talent to speak of. My singing in the shower doesn't even sound good.

Being a cheerleader was cool because I got to wear those cute little short skirts and cheer for the boys all the girls loved. It's interesting...I never dated a "jock" because I didn't feel they were up to my academic standards. I'm sure you've heard athletes being referred to as "dumb jocks." I really thought they were and one of them, who will remain nameless here (because some of you would recognize the name), instilled that thought in my head when he used to always cheat off of my paper in Math class. We actually laugh about it today but it wasn't funny back then because the teacher always felt I was the one trying to help him and I would get in trouble for "allowing" the cheating to occur.

WHATEVER!

Anyway...my attitude towards athletes have changed over the years as I have met more and more people who have used their sports careers as stepping stones to other things. I recently met one such person and I'm delighted to share my interview with you.

He's a two-time super bowl champion from the San Francisco 49ers and he is definitely a baby boomer on the move!

One more thing...thanks for stopping by and reading my blogs.

African American Baby Boomers and Money

I was doing a search online recently and came across a rather interesting site. A company called NextMark (www.nextmark.com) had released some statistical information on African-American baby boomers. It included the number of black women in each state; the number of black women with children per state; the number of magazine buyers; book readers, etc.

But what really caught my eye was the number of African-American baby boomers making $75,000 or more and what states they were concentrated in. The study was actually broken down into baby boomers making $75,000 and those making $100,000. Much to my surprise, the big states like California and New York were NOT number one in either category, which makes me question how the numbers were gathered.

What was even more surprising is the state that claims the number one spot for black baby boomers making $75,000 or more. Do you think you could guess? I couldn’t. It’s Maryland. According to NextMark, there are approximately 59,000 black baby boomers making $75,000. Maryland, meanwhile, has a population of nearly 5,300,000 (according to the 2000 Census) in comparison to California which has a population of nearly 34,000,000 but just 21,069 black baby boomers making $75,000. And California didn’t even make the top five. How could that be with all of the black celebrities there? Is their income being reported? Or are they just not included in this list?

Here are the top five states where black baby boomers are making $75,000 or more:

Maryland
Georgia
NY
Illinois
Texas

What I found startling about the top five states is Texas has four times the population of Maryland but has only around 27,000 black baby boomers making at least $75,000.

The bottom five states that show black baby boomers making $75,000 or more:

Vermont
Wyoming
Rhode Island
North Dakota
South Dakota

First of all, I didn’t even know these bottom five states had a recognizable black population so maybe that means that if you’re black living in one of these states, the chances are greater that you can make a decent wage. According to NextMark, South Dakota has 166 black baby boomers making at least $75,000; North Dakota has 141, Rhode Island 103, Wyoming, 93 and Vermont has 58.

Keep in mind the overall population statistics are based on the 2000 census so there may be significant changes in some states---but I kind of doubt it. What is sad is the fact that there are 36 million blacks in the US according to a March 2002 report by the Census Bureau. Talk about disproportionate wealth.