On Coincidences & the Dark Child

Sometimes repetitive observations serves useful purposes; but you start know you on the edge of losing your mind when you start gloating over mundane coincidences. Give say, seeing a particular number on the bill boards than others. I have since concluded it is eternally difficult to find a single person without a six in either their birth date, drivers licence number, license plate number or cellphone. If you do find such person, go ahead and tell me. To prove this, I had to mine my cellphone data in an Excel file- only busanga - and sorted it for six. I swear, 89% of all numbers on my cell had six in them. If you think say I dey lie, try am.

But one coincidence has even been troubling me lately. Check this out: I had started to fill up weekly at this Citgo gas station down the street. I normally used a Valero on the other end of the road, before I started noticing an appreciable price differential in the socialist ran, Chavez owned Venezuelan oil giant retail outlet. Not someone to pass up on cheap stuff- awoof dey run belle - I started gassing up the ride there. But to my amazement, five times, five weeks, different prices but characteristically empty yellow indicator, and I have always paid fifty bucks for gas at Citgo. How probable is that? With gas tax, to pay $50.00 five times? No penny less, no penny more. Personally, I think the machines in the station are communists! Okay may be I am paranoid, but am not complaining. The fifty bucks is five quids less than I used at Valero on the average.

Just finished reading the Dark Child by Camara Laye the Guinean author who dies in 1980. Such good re-read. I last read the book when I was twelve. The inflexions make more sense to me now. More detectable is the effect of translating from French to English. Personally, I don't think the happy dignified langauge that the book got translated in was the intent of the author. Some lines also got translated literarily like when he said: "my mother put herself out there for them than us". That is a literal translation from a West african thought- at least the Guineans had this in common with my own native Yoruba. "Mo ko ra mi si ta" means just that in Yoruba..."putting one self out".

The actual translation could mean being lenient or accommodating. Nevertheless, it was such an enjoyable read..a joyful story of growing and living in a lost Africa- one rural, yet so peaceful; shut from the rest of the world yet orderly; one agrarian yet so hopeful. That continent is forever lost to the upheaval of post-independence and the death of culture of reason, order & respect. The new continent is one without a soul- where anything goes!

Paris Hilton Tax is a Good Idea

Okay, now you can call me disingenuous but I do think the recent uproar over the preferential treatment given Paris Hilton should be a reasonable ground for proponents of estate tax to tax inheritances to escalate the national debate on this. This "slut of a whiny" (apologies to Jim Cramer who used those exact words on her) is a poster child on why mega-billions waiting to be passed to heirs and heiresses is such a bad idea.

Put aside the failure of the judicial system of God's own country to be fair and consistent, the overall picture you will get is a young lady whose only public claim to fame is a raunchy porn movie to which her parent were purported signatory after it leaked (thank the so called Enabler i.e. her mum) and a penchant to appeal to the dead beat cameras of the paparazzi & the country's adulation of low achievers like George W. Bush and herself. This young woman has never held a day job in her life, but is somehow expected someday to control Billions of the Hilton empire. If that is not good enough, the risk she will use this money to peddle smut rises by the day; I mean the more often you forget your underwear in the house, the more I believe you really want to advertise your anorexic goods- herself and Brittany that is. This girl is famous for nothing. She has no talent (even the smut video sucked- can u imagine?), except to be notorious.

The recent incident of her purported early release from jail simply because she was too sick just exposes the uneven judicial system in this country where justice has always been reserved for those with the right amount of money and the right color. This is a girl who was pulled over twice for DUI, caught driving under suspended licence twice yet did not see the big house on each of those occasions. Let ordinary Joe try the same thing- in fact it is a sure one strike and you are out. Yet somehow, the cops pulled her over, only wrote a ticket and allowed the luxury of Lawyer instead of a bails bond man! If that is not enough, even after being caught in violation and being placed on probation and then violating that all our "heiress" gets is an automatic 27 days of credit for good behaviour in advance. Gosh! This stinks to high heavens. Who gets good behaviour credits in advance from inner city jails? I mean which black man?

Now our own new age Jenna Jameson, gets to go to the big house and was released five days into her sentence because she was crying too much. Bla Bla bla bla! The Sheriff need to be fired! This was one favoritism taken too far it made no sense. Sick. But in any case, I personally think this smut pusher do not need those millions she is waiting in the wings to collect- it should go to a trust to pay for insurance for the uninsured children of America. If she wants the money, she should go spend one more night in Paris and make more movies! In any case I hope she enjoys her remaining time in jail now that she has been sent back. Geeeeeeeeez!

More of the same Republican Debate

Wow..what a difference four years make unh? Watching the Republicans debates made me ask myself if they were democrats not because they suddenly discovered religion of socialized medicine but because they were just in disarray. They disagreed on fundamentally everything except the war, which they all agree is the best thing after toast bread, and which I think makes even the candidacy of Lincoln running on this party's platform in 2008 absolutely dead on arrival. But at this point I must admit their sharp differences on the issue of immigration, gays in military, President Bush and foreign policy made for better TV than that boring democratic crap called debate. However, how can one fail to see their biggest differences not amongst themselves but with their current mentor, savior and guide (Dubya of course) on the issue of pollution and global warming. I loved their collective spin on this as a security issue and they sure looked good while lying. Typical politicians

One thing that was not different in this debate was their social status, race and gender. Where are the women, minorities and poor persons like Congressan Kucinich in this debate? Did I hear you say Tancredo? I think that moron smoked some weed before he took that stage. People like him make the Grand Old Pedophiles (GOP) look like a bunch of xenophobes. Not that they are not, but at least they are smart enough to reserve such sentiments for their closets or Lou Dobbs TV Show that attract close to as many viewers as buyers of George Bush Proclamation of the end of Iraq War Novel. But Lord , what can ten (now eleven) white men tell you about this party? This is no doubt a party on the brink of extinction. White men are a dying breed- white women don't marry any more, even if they do- they don't like having children, if they do have children it will be one or two, and for the most part nature makes it more likely for them to have girls than boys. See why the party is over? GOP wake up! I know you like young boys (like Foley R-Florida -LOL!) but please Hispanics, Blacks, Women & Middle Class need some love too! I dedicate this group to the cave man pictured above- they are relics

There was no area these rich white men seem more disconnected than when it came to the issue of big oil and healthcare reforms. Not only do they have a losing message, I think the Democrats will relish making them gawk when the real deal starts along with their yeye position on the war. How about that nobody attacking Bill Clinton? Forget Tancredo- as if anyone cared if he was barred from the White House. Ego is evil thing to massage. Yeye man. In any case, I have the perfect answer for Big Oil Profit questions for Country Club Republicans and Pro Growth Democrats- those are my kinds. It is simple- level with the people and let them know big oil pass these profits back to them as shareholders through taxpayer's pensions funds or retirement accounts. I bet you it will fly. Who doesn't own one oil stocks directly or indirectly? Who hates their retirement in sunny Florida?

Okay I am biased, but McCain had a good night- passionate & deliberative, Rudy was stellar in getting his message honed and Romney was unapologetic. Me thinks Bush was the only loser- he lost his party tonight or better still they lost him. Gosh- even my guy Paul won't pardon Bush's second brain. What is happening people?