Here Are Some Web Cooking Tips That Have Internet Folks Ready To Get Their Grub On!

Take It Away Chef Lisa:

See you next time on "Passion In The Kitchen!"

When Black Supermodel Naomi Campbell Is Not Beatin' Folks Up, She's Meeting With Heads of State Like Hugo Chavez

Supermodel Naomi Campbell Visits Chavez

50 Cent Partners with Pontiac on G8
NAACP Disavows Hate Crime March in West Virginia UN, Microsoft Partner to Bring Technology to Africa
New Judge for 'Jena 6' Media Decision
Kanye West Says 'Thank You' with New Book
UN Envoys Find Profound Racism in Dominican Republic 13 Years Later, Arrested Development Returns

Black, Female Leaders Battle Baltimore Urban Woes
Jesse Jackson Takes Aim at FCC
Federal Voting-Rights Chief Responds to Georgia Law
Africa Charity Workers Charged with Kidnapping

Nearly 50% of Black Males in Milwaukee Lack Jobs

BREAKING NEWS: Black Business Icon Stan O'Neal Told To Take A Hike, Retires From Merrill Lynch... Today!

Following much speculation and drama over his inevitable departure, Merrill Lynch's Stanley O'Neal was kicked out... er, stepped down from his positions as company chairman and chief executive.

The top African American businessman had to leave the big house after Lynch posted $8 billion dollars in subprime losses. Merrill (Fortune 500) shares fell 1.4 percent in early trade Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.

The nation's largest brokerage said O'Neal, 56, would retire immediately and that board member Alberto Cribiore would take over for him as interim non-executive chairman. Merrill said both O'Neal and the board agreed that a change in leadership would help the company move forward as it attempts to overcome the $8 billion in losses it suffered last week.

Merrill Lynch Turmoil Won't Hold Other Blacks Back

"We would like to thank Stan for the contribution he has made leading a major transformation of Merrill Lynch into a global and diversified company with enormous potential ahead of it," Cribiore said in a prepared statement devoid of any sincerity. Laurence Fink, chairman and CEO of investment firm BlackRock, in which Merrill owns a 45 percent stake; John Thain, CEO of NYSE Euronext; Bob McCann, the head of Merrill's brokerage division; and Gregory Fleming, Merrill's co-president and co-chief operating officer, have been reported as potential successors to O'Neal. Cribiore, who has served on the board since 2003, is a managing partner of the private equity firm Brera Capital. Previously he served as a president of private equity firm Clayton Dubilier & Rice. The company Tuesday also said that Fleming and Ahmass Fakahany will remain as co-presidents and chief operating officers.

Stan Is The Man, Deserves Every Penny Merrill Will Be Paying Him

The company, currently dealing with racial emails being sent to Lynch's African American employees, did not indicate what kind of payout O'Neal would receive upon his exit. Analysts at the Corporate Library, which tracks executive compensation, estimated the figure to be as high as $250 million. Including salary and annual bonuses, O'Neal took home a total of $46 million in compensation in 2006.

In the firm's announcement Tuesday, O'Neal, whose career at Merrill spanned 21 years, thanked his colleagues for improving the company's competitiveness and expanding its global reach. "The company has provided me with opportunities that I never could have imagined growing up, culminating with my leadership of the company over the past five years," O'Neal said. According to a profile from Harvard Business School, where he got his MBA in 1978, O'Neal was born into poverty in Wedowee, Ala. He worked as a young boy picking cotton on a family farm, while his mother worked as a cleaning lady.

When O'Neal was 12, his family moved to Atlanta and his father went to work at General Motors. He rose through the ranks at Merrill, becoming president and chief operating officer in July 2001; he was tapped as CEO in December 2002 and added the title of chairman in April 2003.

The posts made him one of the most powerful African-American executives on Wall Street, along with Kenneth Chenault (pictured right), who holds two titles at American Express. After taking over as chief executive, O'Neal quickly earned a reputation as an aggressive cost cutter. By slashing jobs and shutting down operations around the globe, he helped revive Merrill's stock, which reached an all-time high in January. Merrill shares have lost 33 percent of their value since this summer's market meltdown.

CNN Money

Kim Myles Makes African American's Proud As Reality TV Newest Design Star

Kim Myles Wins On HGTV, Will Host Own Show

Don Cheadle Documentary Brings Attention to Darfur
Notorious B.I.G. Estate Says Inmate Lied

FBI Used Mob Moll to Solve Civil Rights Cases
Marines Begin to Reverse Slide in Black Recruiting
Sharpton Chides Cheney Over Confederate Flag Flap
Black Lawyers Rare at Supreme Court
Caribbean Woman is First Black to Join Norway Government
Beenie Man Faces Tax Evasion Charges
Obama Fields Tough Questions at MTV/MySpace Forum 'American Idol' Donations to Africa Filter Down

DEMOCRATS DEBATE TONIGHT...OBAMBA'S LAST STAND ?

Senator Barack Obama is a nice enough guy, inspiring most times, comforting in his dreams aspirations and vision for the future of our country ... all the time. But that Clinton 'broad' is kicking his *ss "... and you know this man!" To night is yet another Democratic debate. So, just what does Obama have to say, before we start thinking of his whole aspiration for the presidency as, "cute".

Here's what MSNBC columnist Howard Fineman is quoted as saying: As Sen. Barack Obama prepared for Tuesday night’s crucial MSNBC debate in Philadelphia, his high command back in Chicago was watching a lot of old Clinton videotape — not of Hillary Clinton, but of Bill, and not of Bill as president, but of Bill as a fresh-faced candidate of 46 (which happens to be Obama’s age) in 1991 and 1992.

“You know, I look at Clinton back then, and I find a lot I agree with,” said David Axelrod, Obama’s media adviser. “He said things Barack is saying now.”
As the senator from Illinois searches for a way to derail Hillary without ruining his own good-guy image, perhaps the video offers a shrewd approach: arguing that he, not she, is the true disciple of Clinton’s brand of fresh, bring-us-together politics.

Ok, I like young bill Clinton too, but Howard, I want you to check out one of my favorite speakers, former Governor of New York Mario Cuomo. The year is 1992 when he was nominating Bill Clinton to be the Democratic Nominee, and as you can see life in the USA hasn't changed much. And Obama could use a little of what Mario has to offer.

IT'S TEMPTING TO STEAL FROM THE TEMPTATIONS

Otis Williams, the only surviving member of the original Temptations, is suing three former members of the band for using the name "Temptations" -- which he claims they don't have the right to do.

Williams alleges that he is the only person with rights to the name "The Temptations," but Glenn Leonard, Ali Woodson and Barrington Henderson -- former members of the group -- have been performing under the name "Legendary Lead Singers of the Temptations" and/or "The Temptations Reunion Show" since 2004.

Williams claims they are infringing upon his ownership of the name -- and that by accepting lesser billing at certain shows, they are hurting his reputation. He also claims that they are accepting fees "considerably lower" than the standard fees charged by Williams for performances by the Temptations.


According to court documents, Williams is also suing managers who worked with the "Legendary Lead Singers of the Temptations," as well as venues which promoted them. He claims that advertising used to promote the band was deceiving and hurt his ability to work as the Temptations.

Williams is seeking the maximum amount of damages under the law, as well as interest on all damages awarded, legal fees, and -- get this! -- any properties and assets obtained by the profits of the defendants' infringing activity. Get ready, cause here he comes!

SBE Entertainment, one of the defendants in the case, had no comment. Another defendant, Nick Scully, had not seen the lawsuit and could not comment. Attempts to contact Glenn Leonard, Ali Woodson, Barrington Henderson and the other defendants named in the case were unsuccessful.

The top picure is the David Rufin led Temptations, but lets step back and get a feel for the Dennis Edwards-Eddie Kendricks Temptations. My personal favorite.

The Darfur Crisis: We Know You'd Rather Read About Beyonce, But This Situation Needs Your Attention

Peace Talks In Darfur Seen As Somewhat 'Positive'

British Lawmakers Press China Over Darfur

Now Free, Genarlow Wilson Plans to Attend College

Making of a Gangster, and Denzel's Movie

Tropical Storm Noel Closes in on Haiti

Africa Mobile Firms to Invest $50 Billion Over 5 Years

Africa Waiting for Internet Revolution

Pastor Authors Book on Raising African American Men

CALIFORNIA FIRES ... ARSON IS NOT MY HOBBY, IT IS MY PROFESSION

It has been confirmed by fire authorities that the fires in Santiago California near San Diego among otheres were deliberately started. They base this on the two" flash points"(first ignition points) of the fire. You see I calculated the wind direction and my scientific placement of the two flash points maximized the spread of the fire. I am an Arsonist and I am flattered by the reward of $280,00 that has been offered for information leading to my arrest. The question everyone should be asking themselves is not who set the fire but who paid me to set the fire? Who has gained from the fires.

Is it someone who couldn't afford to pay his mortgage, a builder who can't pay several mortgages, or perhaps a business or group of businesses that are not profitable. Arson is one of the oldest ways to make a "come back". So let's start by asking the right questions, because I know what to do and I was paid very well to do it.

While we wait to hear more from official arson investigators ... check out what the victims are saying about me.

The wildfires that have consumed about half a million acres have terrified and frustrated Californians for nearly a week. But in few places are people, including fire crews, as angry as in Orange County's Silverado Canyon, where the spreading fire appears to have been caused not by nature or bad luck but by a carefully planned arson.

Even as wildfires throughout much of Southern California began to bow to some degree of control on Friday and tens of thousands of residents were allowed back into their homes after days of mandatory evacuations, the blaze in this stunningly beautiful canyon continued to eat through the forest's bone-dry, 100-year-old growth at an alarming rate of speed.

About 750 homes -- everything from single-wide trailers to middle-class dwellings to multimillion-dollar mansions -- were at risk of joining the ranks of the more than 1,800 California homes destroyed by the previous week's raging wildfires. Shifting winds in the canyon were only making the fire's path more unpredictable, though a light sprinkling of rain Saturday lifted firefighters' spirits.

A reward for information about who started the blaze, which has swallowed at least 14 homes and more than 20,000 wildlife-inhabited acres, grew to $280,000 as the FBI and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives aided local investigators."It's very frustrating," said Richard Jenkins, a firefighter from South Pasadena who had been battling the fire in Orange County. "Every year we get the Santa Ana winds and the cuckoos start coming out of the woodwork with their matches. "California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger spoke directly to whoever the arsonist might be during a news conference Saturday: "If I were one of those people who started the fire, I would not sleep soundly right now, because we are right behind you. As a matter of fact, if I would be you, I would turn myself in."

Indeed, at least five people have been arrested on arson charges since wildfires broke out across Southern California last week, but none has been linked to any of the major blazes. Anger and fear over the possibility that more fires could break out because of arson fueled rumors that a terrorist group such as Al Qaeda might be responsible, a theory that has been soundly discounted by state and federal authorities. At a news conference Thursday, federal and local investigators said they recovered evidence from a hollow where the Silverado Canyon wildfire started. They said they were confident the flames had been deliberately started with a form of "liquid fuel."

Authorities confirmed that they had interviewed one person and searched one home but had no suspects. Orange County Sheriff Mike Carona said authorities had received 250 tips, none of which had panned out. By Saturday afternoon, the arson, dubbed the Santiago Fire, was still growing. It was being battled by 1,100 firefighters with 110 fire engines, three helicopters, four air tankers and 10 bulldozers. Flames had traveled 3 miles into the 5-mile canyon, and fire officials were considering lighting backfires in the hope that the two fires would consume one another."We want the fire on our terms," Orange County Fire Authority Chief Chip Prather explained.But as the team of fire spotters feared, the blaze still seemed to hold grave potential to crest a peak in the Cleveland National Forest and make its way into residential Silverado Canyon.

Area homeowners, evacuated since Monday, were being allowed brief trips back to their homes to gather essentials -- important documents, family photos, heirlooms -- with warnings that it could be the last time they saw their homes. 'Burn him at the stake' "It isn't looking good," said Linda Gottlieb, who designed and built a home with her husband four years ago. Gottlieb wore a particle mask over her mouth and nose to filter air that was thick with smoke and blowing ash. As she looked toward the peak where the fire seemed ready to crest, she seemed near tears. But then, as though to buoy her spirits, she explained how her house had been built to state and local standards, was constructed of a special kind of hardy plank wood, had interior sprinklers and had even been used by the local fire department in simulating how to guard houses against wildfires. Gottlieb, like others, was visibly furious that her home was in jeopardy because of an arsonist. "It's infuriating that someone would want to destroy the last pristine part of Orange County," she said. "Even if I didn't live here, I would be infuriated."She paused and then added deliberately, "I assure you, if the people of this canyon got a hold of the arsonist, we'd burn him at the stake for what he's done."

Ironically, fire officials said Silverado Canyon is not normally a fire risk because of the way the canyon is configured. It hasn't burned in some 60 years, Jenkins said. He said firefighters were told at their Friday morning briefing that the area was once a Native American sacred site, and that many residents believed that had long served as a protective force -- until now.----------

Contributions from Kirsten Scharnberg Chicago Tribune

FALLEN SOLDIERS IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN: STARTING THE WEEK WITH THE PROPER PERSPECTIVE: 10-29-2007

THIS WEEK THE PENTAGON HAS RELEASED THE NAMES OF 10 SOLDIERS AND MARINES KILLED IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN:

ANavy SN Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho, 20, of Panama City, FL
Navy SN Genesia Mattril Gresham, 19, of Lithonia, GA
Army SSG Larry I. Rougle, 25, of West Jordan, UT
Army SGT Edward O. Philpot, 38, of Latta, SC
Army SSG Robin L. Towns Sr, 52, of Upper Marlboro, MD
Army PFC Adam J. Chitjian, 39, of Philadelphia, PA
Army SGT Joshua C. Brennan, 22, of Ontario, OR
Army SPC Hugo V. Mendoza, 29, of Glendale, AR
Army SPC David E. Lambert, 39, of Cedar Bluff, VA

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU
WE OWE SO MUCH TO YOU, YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS

Oprah Distraught Over Abuse At Her Girl's School: It's Not Her Fault, But That Won't Stop The Haters For Blaming Her!

With Tears Wailing In Her Eye, Winfrey Asks For Forgiveness For Alleged Abuse At Her South Africa Girls' School.

"I've disappointed you. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry," Oprah told parents at an emergency meeting in a packed marquee tent on the school premises. The TV talk-show queen has visited at least twice in the past few weeks, after allegations that one of the matrons fondled a girl and that other pupils had been physically abused.

Oprah gave the girls her personal telephone number, her e-mail address and her postal address so that they could contact her at any time, day or night. Apart from the matron apparently involved, Oprah sent the principal, a Dr Mzimane, and at least one other matron on leave two weeks ago. Only the principal was on paid leave. A parent told Rapport on Saturday evening that the abuse had visibly upset Oprah. She had felt guilty because she had trusted the principal and the matron. Oprah has laid a charge, "I trusted her (Dr Mzimane). When I appointed her, I thought she was passionate about the children of Africa. "But, I've been disappointed," Oprah said in tears last Saturday.The father of one of the pupils had responded by telling Oprah: "It's not your fault. We don't blame you."

"You trusted them. You have more passion for the school and its existence than anyone else in this country, including us parents." Oprah gave parents the assurance she would do everything possible to ensure that those who had been guilty of abuse would be dealt with. Rapport newspaper has disclosed that the queen of chat personally laid a charge with the police against the matron concerned. Oprah's "daughters" have accused Dr Mzimane of failing to take action, although the girls had often complained of being grabbed by the neck, beaten and thrown against a wall, and being sworn at.

Source

African Americans And The Whole Halloween Thing: Are Black Children Less Likely To Trick Or Treat?

New Poll: Do Minorities Allow Their Kids To "Do Halloween?"

School Cop Fired Over 'Ghetto Handbook'

Eric Michael Dyson Feels that Hip-Hop Is 'Under Assault'

Farrakhan Says T.I. Set Up in Upcoming Speech

Michelle Obama Revels in Family Role
NAACP Demands Apology from Overstock.com Founder

Black Fraternities and Sororities: The Need to Haze

Heavy Fighting Shakes Somali Capital
Black Coaches Look to Break CFB Coaching Barrier
Slave Girl's Bravery Remembered
Affordable Caribbean: Barbados
Breakfast with the Real 'American Gangster'

White Supremacy Group Plans Jena Rally on MLK Day

Miss Fantasia Is Doing Her Thing On Stage, And Letting It All Hang Out Off (If You Know What I Mean!)

American Idol winner turned Broadway sensation Fantasia breaks it down about her role as Celie in “The Color Purple”:

Miss Celie takes a lot out of me. I’m being told everyday that I’m ugly. … you can’t play the part if you don’t kind of put yourself in her and live her life. So it’s like, I carry that stuff with me. I put myself in her shoes in having (daughter) Zion at such a young age and dropping out of school and being in just bad and disrespected. I just feel like God won’t put too much on me than I can bear. As long as I feel like I’m touching somebody … as long as I’m blessing somebody, I know that I’ll be blessed.”

Thanks EUR Web & Bossip for the pics!

Now there does appear to be a freaky side to 23 year-old Ms. Barrino (C'mon, like you don't have one either!). For those pics, No Cream No Sugar has the hook-up. In the meantime, how about we listen to her jam, "When I See You!"

When Is Daylight Savings Time Over: This Weekend, Or Next???

Don't Even Try Going In To Work Late Talkin' About How You Got Confused

I would not set those clocks back an hour this weekend if I were you. This year, Daylight Saving Time ends 2 a.m. the first Sunday in November, instead of the last Sunday in October.

Thank the U.S. Energy Policy Act of 2005 for the mix-up. To save energy, U.S. legislators set the stage then for 34 weeks of DST, beginning this year. So it won't be until next week family that everyone rolls back the hands of time. Hey, you're welcome!

Remember Back In The Day When Black Children Knew How To Behave?

Time out my foot!!!

1. Have you ever been called downstairs from upstairs or the back of the house, or from the front of the house to get the remote, change the channel, get yo momma's cigarettes or fix her a glass of ice water?
2. Have you ever been hit with an extension cord, a switch, or the nearest shoe?
3. Have you ever had to pick your own switch off the tree and ya moms sent you back because the one you picked was too little?
4. Have you ever been burned on your ear with a straightening comb?
5. Have you ever been hit in the head or knuckles with a comb or hair brush?
6. Have you ever been told to 'Shut up or I'll give you something to cry about while big momma beat you with a belt ~ pronouncing every syllable, 'Did-n't---I---tell----you---not---to-do--!--- That---no --- more?!'

7. Your ponytails or plaits were so tight, you got those little bumps around your scalp.
8. The White people in the school office (principal, secretary, etc) were afraid of your mama?
9. You were scared to go home when you had a bad report card?
10. Alcohol, peroxide, cocoa butter, and Vaseline were the main items in the bathroom cabinet. And that red hot water bottle hanging behind the bathroom door?

Bonus: You were never 'on punishment' - you would just get a whooping right out of the shower.

Check out part 2 next time!

Black Model Tyson Beckford Wants To "Make Me A Supermodel"

Relax Ladies, Haven't You Seen My Man Shirtless Before?

Black Voices is reporting that the chisel-chest hottie -- also known as "the first black male supermodel" will be the host of Bravo's upcoming reality show 'Make Me A Supermodel.' Along with fellow former supermodel Niki Taylor, Beckford will be the ringleader of the show, which is based on the successful UK series where beautiful and talented men and women are selected and will compete for a chance to launch their modeling career and win $100,000.

According to a network spokesperson, 'Supermodel' is scheduled to premiere in the first quarter of 2008.

Obama Takes The Surgical Kid Gloves Off: I Don't Care If She's 60, Hillary Needs To Be Cut, Stat!

Illinois Biracial Senator Declares, "It's On!"

Kid gloves. Very soft gloves made from the skin of a kid, that is, a baby goat. Or in this case, a brother trying to make history by taking up residency at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. That would be none other than Senator Barack Obama, who declared yesterday that Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton needs to taken to the woodshed and essentially given a beatdown.

No matter how much folks try to dismiss his destiny, there is mounting alarm among some circles that his lack of assertiveness has allowed her to dominate the presidential race. One aide even recently jumped ship and is now on Team Hillary. Obama’s vow to go on the offensive comes just over two months before the first votes are cast for the Democratic nomination, and after a long period in which his aides, donors and other supporters have battled — and in some cases shared — the perception that he has not exhibited the

aggressiveness demanded by presidential politics.

Barack's Gospel Concert For African Americans in South Carolina Hits The Wrong Note

In many Black circles, however, this is not a complicated issue. History must reflect that when a competent, qualified man of African ancestry with stellar credentials sought to become the most powerful person on the planet, the question will be, "Did you vote for him?" While recent accounts about Harlem, New York residents are a little disconserting, this school of thought transcends class and party affiliation. That said, it may well be time for Obama's campaign to change course. In fact, he has said as much. "Now is the time!" the audacious senator asserted. While he said that he was not out to "kneecap the front-runner, because I don't think that's what the country is looking for," he said Hillary Clinton was deliberately obscuring her positions for political gain and was less likely than he was to win back the White House for Democrats. Asked if Mrs. Clinton had been fully truthful with voters about what she would do as president, Mr. Obama replied, “No.”

For Her 60th Birthday, Hillary Gets Cash: Lots Of It!

“I don’t think people know what her agenda exactly is,” Mr. Obama continued, citing Social Security, Iraq and Iran as issues on which she had not been fully forthcoming. “Now it’s been very deft politically,” he said. “But one of the things that I firmly believe is that we’ve got to be clear with the American people right now about the important choices that we’re going to need to make in order to get a mandate for change, not to try to obfuscate and avoid being a target in the general election.”

In the interview, Obama acknowledged that he had held back, maintaining it was a calculated decision to introduce himself in early voting states before engaging opponents. At times, he said, he has taken lines out of speeches prepared by his campaign that he felt were “stretching the truth.” A test of just how far Obama is willing to go should come on Tuesday night, when Democrats meet for a nationally televised debate in Philly. The interview came amid signs Obama's looking for a fresh start for his campaign after nine months in which his aides said they were startled by the effectiveness of Clinton’s campaign, and worried that her support just may make her presidential aspirations, inevitable indeed!

Source

ESPN Commentators Charles Barkley & Kenny Smith Hit The Web To Grab Some YouTube Traffic & A Little Internet Love

Never Mind The Ghetto Fashion Shows, Fendi Takes It To Another Level

Move Over America's Next Top Model, You Can't Get Any Grander Than The Great Wall Of China As A Runway

Talk about doing something unique and different! Fendi hosted the first-ever fashion show in Beijing, at the Great Wall of China. What an incredible location for a fashion show! Models strutted down a 650 foot catwalk, sporting stylish Fendi fashions by Karl Lagerfield and accessories by Silvia Fendi.

Along with actress Kate Bosworth, Black British thespian Thandie Newton attended the show and looked stunning, wearing a beautiful Fendi gown and coordinated Fendi bag. Check them out.

Meanwhile on last week's America's Next Top Model, Ebony surprised everyone when she decided to drop out of the competition. She ended up in the bottom two with Ambreal and Tyra actually decided to keep Ebony in the competition. However, after weeks of being criticized in panel and being labeled as a diva, Ebony decided that the show wasn't for her and left. Today, she spoke to BuddyTV about how she was never prepared for reality television and lets us know whether or not she wants to continue with modeling. Letting us know her true feelings on every subject from Bianca to Mr. Jay, here is the interview with the woman who walked away from America's Next Top Model.

While Don Imus Plots His Return, Isiah Thomas Is A Black Man Who Still Is On The Ropes

Some Folks Learn Their Lessons, And Some Don't

The sports world is still calling for Isiah Thomas' head following a civil jury's awarding of millions of dollars to Anucha Browne Sanders. He very well could be one who deserves to be immediately dismissed by the New York Knickerbockers organization from his lofty general manager post. Testimony has leaked out and Rev. Al Sharpton, not surprisingly, has weighed in--as have so many others from coast-to-coast.

The only problem with the whole 'affair' is that the definition of sexual harassment is still hazy. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that from boss to employee advances, inappropriate language, etc. can be construed as sexual harassment. However, from employee to employee it's not clear at all. If Thomas asked Browne Sanders to kiss him, that is totally inappropriate. If he demeaned her with vile language, that also is inappropriate. But, society is so quick to weigh in without the benefit of all the facts. Unlike a Michigan radio station's "Imus Test" mocking gangs and ebonics in a way that was clearly designed to slam black folks, this situation is a little more nuanced. Even Sharpton, who had called for a protest outside Madison Square Garden (the Knicks' home) until Thomas apologizes, has now admitted that not all of the information on Thomas' taped interview reached the public.

Don Imus And Isiah: America's New Moral Compass?

So, why not wait before making hasty judgments? Did Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson learn that from jumping on the bandwagon that vilified the Duke University lacrosse players accused of raping a black woman? Sometimes, it appears, very few lessons are ever learned.

This article is from the Collier Corner

Folks Who Get It: Stan Is The Man, Whether Merrill Lynch Kicks The Black Man To The Curb Or Not

Don't Trip, Stan O'Neal Will Get Paid At Least $159 Million For Making White Folks (And A Few Of Us) Rich

Merrill Lynch’s directors may be weighing E. Stanley O’Neal’s future, but one thing is already guaranteed: the company’s chairman and chief executive is entitled to $30 million in retirement benefits as well as $129 million in stock and option holdings. That would be on top of the roughly $160 million he took home in his nearly five years on the job.

O'Neal, 56, joined Merrill in 1986 and has been CEO for nearly five years. He is the highest-ranking African American on Wall Street, and the first African American to run a major investment bank.

Under O’Neal, Merrill moved aggressively into lucrative businesses like the packaging of subprime mortgages and other complex debt securities. Last year, Mr. O’Neal’s $46.4 million pay package made him Wall Street’s second-highest paid chief executive, behind Lloyd C. Blankfein of Goldman Sachs, who was paid $54.3 million, according to Equilar research.

But those big bets appeared to go bust this week. Merrill announced an $8.4 billion write-down, raising questions about whether Mr. O’Neal will keep his job. It is unclear whether Mr. O’Neal will resign. But his $159 million exit package may not look all that egregious when compared with those of other executives. At Pfizer, for example, Henry A. McKinnell Jr. collected a $200 million exit package last year. At Morgan Stanley, Phillip J. Purcell walked out with $114 million in 2005. At Merrill, Mr. O’Neal works without a severance contract and would be expected to forfeit any unvested options. But the Merrill proxy says the compensation committee has “discretion” to award severance benefits.

Mr. O’Neal would walk away with an even bigger pay package if he left after a merger — a potential $274 million payout. That made the Wachovia offer personally lucrative. On Wall Street, of course, bad news can be transformed into good with the same type of alchemy that changed subprime mortgages into investment-grade securities. Even as Mr. O’Neal came under fire yesterday, investors bid up Merrill’s stock by $5.19. That gave Mr. O’Neal a paper gain of $16 million.

New York Times /ERIC DASH

Time Warner's Richard Parsons & Merrill Lynch's E. Stanley O'Neal Are Black Fortune 500 CEO's Making News For All The Wrong Reasons

CEO Parsons May Step Down Earlier Than Expected

China Digs Deeper into Africa with Bank Deal
T.I. Released from Jail on $3 Million Bond
Poor, Blacks Struggling in DC Economy: Report
NY Politician to Pull $84M in State Funding Over Nas Album Title
National March for West Virginia Torture Victim Nov. 3

Is Stan O'Neal Being Ousted Over At Merrill Lynch?

Obama Exit Leaves Michigan Up for Grabs
63 Years Later, Army Exonerates Black Troops
Rev. Jackson, Bernanke to Discuss Mortgage Assistance
Black Men Should Follow the Lead of Philadelphia Brothers
MLB's First Black Coach Honored
Chad Vows to Punish French for Child Smuggling Bid

Harvard Offers Free Tuition For $60k Or Less Families

Is Barack Obama Pandering To The Black Antigay Church Choir With Sidekick Donnie McClurkin?

The biracial brother is about to tour South Carolina with gospel singer Donnie McClurkin. Is this a good move?

Sen. Barack Obama's decision to tour South Carolina with gospel entertainer Donnie McClurkin, a self-proclaimed "former homosexual" who believes it is his mission to turn gays straight, suggests that Obama can't live without the support of the homophobic contingent of the black community, and the black church in particular.

But African-American politicians have already proven that black support is not contingent on homophobia. Few people remember that in 2004, the only presidential candidate besides Dennis Kucinich to support gay marriage was Rev. Al Sharpton -- both a mainstream black leader and a minister. Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and Obama have all spoken out in favor of gay rights and against black homophobia. So does including McCulkin on his "Embrace the Change" tour signal a retreat on Obama's part? Can tacking on an appearance by openly gay Rev. Andy Sidden make up for McCulkin? (And wouldn't you love to be backstage on this tour?)

DONNIE MCCLURKIN'S GAY PAST REVEALED

It may be that the realpolitik of the black church operates more subtly than the Obama campaign has yet understood. There's always been a certain degree of 'give' between sacred and secular black culture. The overly serious demagogues are almost always cut down to size by larger-than-life fictional counterparts. For every Reverend Willie Wilson, the homophobic Washington D.C. minister who claimed that lesbianism was "about to take over" the black community, there's a Sherman Hemsley playing hothead Deacon Ernest Frye on the sitcom "Amen," with black viewers laughing along. For every Donnie McClurkin, there's a pop-culture hero like Tyler Perry's drag matriarch Madea. The media tends to use the black church as a barometer of community standards, but I think in real life, black people compartmentalize more than they get credit for, the way many Irish Catholics balance their deep faith with their deep irony.

Preachers may denounce gays on Sunday, but on Saturday night, a certain percentage of the congregation rented *Madea's Family Reunion," danced and drank all night listening to R. Kelly's "Trapped in the Closet." Black culture can accommodate everything from the Winans and McClurkin to Richard Pryor and Prince, who gets away with bawdy liberalism, gender-bending, and old-time religion, too.

IS BARACK NOW TRYING TO DISTANCE HIMSELF FROM DONNIE?

Black American churchgoers may absorb homophobic rhetoric, and preachers may promote fear and misunderstanding like Wilson, who claimed of lesbianism, "it ain't real." (As if he would know.) But the more general message of the black church seems to be that one should love the sinner and not the sin, and that Jesus can change homosexuals. These mandates may be misguided, but they are thankfully nonviolent, thanks to the legacy of Dr. King. Moreover, few black evangelicals here pounce on the issue with as much intolerance and vitriol as the religious in Nigeria or Jamaica, for example, where the church promotes violence against gays and homo homicide is even celebrated in the campaign songs of political parties. The ersatz black Jerry Falwells and Jesse Helmses, like Wilson, Chicago's Bishop Eddie Long, and L.A.'s Bishop Noel Jones, don't represent mainstream black thought the way those who touched the hem of MLK's garment, like Jesse Jackson, do.

Note that the backlash at Sidden's inclusion has not come from black church organizations so much as gay groups criticizing Obama for retaining McClurkin. McClurkin, for his part, hasn't even pulled out in response, though Obama has virtually done somersaults to justify McClurkin's inclusion. On October 25, as the tour began, Obama supporters from the African-American religious community and LGBT campaign leaders collaborated on a letter to the public which attempted to clarify their candidate's decision to keep McClurkin on board, stating, "We believe that the only way for these two sides to find common ground is to do so together."

Obama's gay advocates obviously support him regardless of this fumble. But his gay critics are right to ask why he thinks getting homosexuals to sit at the same table with anti-gay and allegedly "ex-gay" Christians represents some kind of balance. Had McClurkin been a Holocaust denier, my money says Obama would be "embracing a change" in his tour's entertainment lineup, lickety-split.

It shouldn't surprise anyone that Obama is playing to both sides -- that seems to be what he's best at. He means well, but you know what they say about the highways in Hell. However, adding Sidden to the mix without giving McClurkin the shaft was enough of an afterthought to incense the gay community without fixing the problem. Did Obama overestimate the depth of the black community's homophobia and unintentionally solidify the stereotype about him -- that he's the white man's black candidate? Well, if Al Sharpton refuses to pander to the homophobic faction of the black church, why should anybody else?

By Slate Magazine's James Hannaham

WEB UPDATE: GENARLOW WILSON IS FREE AT LAST ... FINALLY!

Georgia Supreme Court Upholds Ruling Freeing Black High School Athlete And Honor Student

For Genarlow Wilson, it's been a long 32 months. Sitting in prison for consensual oral sex with a fellow teenager while the former high school homecoming king was in his final semester of school was not exactly the plan.

In a breaking development, however, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled 4-3 against the state of Georgia's Black Attorney General and in favor of upholding a Monroe County judge's ruling ordered Genarlow free. Indicating that the sentence constituted "cruel and unusual punishment" the court’s opinion, in part, stated:

Although society has a significant interest in protecting children from premature sexual activity, we must acknowledge that Wilson’s crime does not rise to the level of culpability of adults who prey on children and that, for the law to punish Wilson as it would an adult, with the extraordinarily harsh punishment of ten years in prison without the possibility of probation or parole, appears to be grossly disproportionate to his crime.

This is great news family. Get the whole story about this brother here.

CNN

Juanita Bynum Can't Stay Out Of The News: No Wonder She's Planning On Opening Her Own Spot To Relax!

Bynum pays $32K in Taxes, Plans To Open Spa ... To Calm Her Nerves Over All The Drama

Evangelist Juanita Bynum said last Friday she has paid the delinquent property tax on her $4.5 million compound in Waycross, where officials had threatened to auction the property. The 30-acre compound with a lake view in South Georgia was purchased to house the headquarters of Juanita Bynum Ministries and the Mt. Olive Country Spa for women seeking pampering, prayer and spiritual guidance.

Bynum said at a press conference that the debt was an oversight. Nevertheless, Ware County tax officials say they are depositing Bynum's check for more than $33,000 but they don't intend to take her property off the market until they are sure the payment is good. An additional $300 is still owed on the property. Check out our latest video about Bynum, Paula White and the religious community:


Bynum said she also will release a makeup line called Ethne' and a group of bath products under the Mt. Olive brand name. Bynum asked her fans to keep praying for her. She said the tax issue is not a "big deal" and that she had the money to pay for it all along.

"How many people do you know who can say they own (a) $4.5 million in investment property," Bynum said. "The mortgage is $26,000. Stuff happens." Now folks, I think it's time for that pedicure!

Black Beauty Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon And White Husband Welcome Twin Boys

Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon Welcomes Sons

50 Cent Writes Book about His Life /Criticizes Nas Over 'Stupid' Title

Morgan Stanley Settles Race Bias Suit for $16M

Foxy Brown Put in Punitive Segregation

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Halle Berry Sorry for Joke about Jewish Noses

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Memorial Held for Slain Reggae Star Lucky Dube
82-Year-Old School for Blacks Makes History
Laurence Fishburne to Star on Broadway in 'Thurgood'
Magic Johnson Honored with Freedom Award

National Civil Rights Museum to Receive $1M Grant from Ford
Ethiopia Starts Re-Erecting Ancient Obelisk
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Obama Learned from Failed Congress Run
Baltimore Groups Plan to Draw Attention to Murder Epidemic

Latino Gangs In LA Indicted After Systematically "Cleansing" The City Of Black People

Adding To The Tension, State Alleges Racial Cleansing As Motive Behind Gang Assaults And Shootings

The Sheriff's department stats tell the violent story: 80 gang-related shootings in the past three years, including 20 murders. Now, alleged leaders and foot soldiers in the Hispanic gang Florencia 13, also called F13, are being arraigned this week on charges stemming from a pair of federal indictments that describe how the south Los Angeles Latino gang kept a tight grip on its turf by shooting members of a rival gang—and sometimes random black civilians. The "most disturbing aspect" of the federal charges was that "innocent citizens … ended up being shot simply because of the color of their skin," U.S. Attorney Thomas O'Brien told reporters in announcing the indictments.

No one is sure what started the war between F13 and the black gang known as the East Coast Crips in the Florence-Firestone area of L.A. County. We do know that black areas have become majority-Latino and the two gangs are rivals in the lucrative drug trade. Much of the F13 indictments lay out a conspiracy alleging that gang members controlled drug houses where they sold large amounts of cocaine, crack and methamphetamine. Some say the killings began after the Crips pulled a large drug heist against F13 several years ago.

The federal charges name 61 alleged F13 members in two indictments. The gang-violence charges came in a 53-count RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) indictment against 24 alleged gang leaders, charging them in a conspiracy to sell drugs, possess weapons illegally, and assault and kill black gang members and civilians. In the second indictment prosecutors charged the rest of the men on federal drug-distribution charges. More than 40 of the defendants pleaded not guilty at arraignments Tuesday, according to prosecutors. Michael Khouri, an attorney for Luis Aguilar, 35, says his client left the gang "several years ago" and served recently as a gang negotiator. "Mr. Aguilar will plead not guilty, and he is not guilty," says Khouri. Fifteen of the accused remain fugitives.

The indictments provide a telling snapshot of the changing nature of gangs in south L.A. According to federal prosecutors, F13 has grown into a tightly controlled gang of 2,000 members in 30 cliques led by convicts and parolees who are members of the prison-based Mexican mafia. It's a far cry from the '80s, when the black drug gangs, including the Crips and the Bloods, predominated, mining the crack epidemic with ruthless efficiency. Compared with looser Latino gangs that were seen as turf-conscious fighters, the black gangs were organized and disciplined. "The stereotype was that [the black gangs] were all about the [drug] business," says gang researcher Cheryl Maxson, an associate professor of criminology at University of California, Irvine. With the black gangs, "there was a millionaire in every neighborhood" perched at the top of the crack distribution pyramid, adds gang expert, who edits streetgangs.com.

Now it's the Latino drug gangs that seem tighter and more highly controlled.

Newsweek has more>>>

The Web Is Making A Lot of White Boys Like Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg Rich: When Are Black Folks Going To Get Paid?

Just Announced Microsoft Deal Values Facebook at $15B And Makes 23 Year-Old A Billionaire

The $240 million price Microsoft paid for a 1.6 percent stake in Facebook demonstrates just how badly the world's largest software maker wanted to deepen its relationship with a startup that doesn't even have $200 million in annual revenue. By sealing the deal Wednesday, Microsoft finally trumped Google after losing previous high-stakes bidding battles involving a stake in AOL and ownership of online video sharing pioneer YouTube and Internet ad service DoubleClick Inc.

Besides buying a stake in Palo Alto-based Facebook, Microsoft also will sell Internet ads for its Web site outside the United States, broadening a marketing relationship that began last year. Microsoft's investment underscores the skyrocketing value of online communities like Facebook — a place where Web surfers look for dates, connect with friends and family, and share photos, videos and music. In 2005, News Corp. paid $580 million for outright ownership of MySpace.com, the only social network larger than Facebook. With its investment, Microsoft established Facebook's current market value at $15 billion less than four years after Mark Zuckerberg started the Web site in his Harvard University dorm room.

Already considered a whiz kid, Zuckerberg, 23, now looks even smarter for rebuffing a $1 billion takeover offer from Yahoo Inc. last year. And Facebook now should have more than enough money to pay for its expansion until it is ready to go public. Zuckerberg has indicated he wants to hold off on an initial public offering for at least two more years. In the meantime, Facebook hopes to become an advertising magnet by substantially increasing its current worldwide audience of nearly 50 million active users who connect with friends on the site through messaging, photo-sharing and other tools it offers.

Although MySpace remains the largest social network, Facebook has been growing much faster in the past year. Facebook attracted 30.6 million U.S. visitors during September compared with 68.4 million at MySpace. Microsoft's entry in the social networking arena — "Windows Live Spaces" — attracted 9.8 million U.S. visitors, according to comScore Inc.

To support its growth, Facebook is gearing up to more than double its payroll during the next year to about 700 employees. The company currently employs about 300 workers with annual revenue believed to fall between $100 million and $150 million. Microsoft appears to be very interested in Facebook's success with "widgets" — the interactive capsules that offer applications available on other Web sites. Outside developers have created about 8,000 widgets since Facebook began soliciting the contributions in May. Facebook may have chosen to hook its wagon to Microsoft because Google has made no secret about its interest in building its own social network.

Only in America folks!

By Michael Liedtke, with Jessica Mintz contributing.

Quickie: Is Halle Berry Making You Thirsty?

Are Pregnant Women Sexy or What???

Why Black Women Are Angry: Charlotte West Virginia's Megan Williams Raped And Abused By Group Of Sick White Folks

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Megan Williams thought she was going to a party. That's why she tagged along with a woman she hardly knew, up a remote southern West Virginia hollow to a run-down trailer surrounded by beer cans and broken-down furniture. "But there wasn't no party," Williams said. "I realized I'd made a bad mistake."

For at least a week, authorities say, the 20-year-old black woman was kept captive in a shed, tortured, beaten, forced to eat rat, dog and human feces, and raped by six white men and women who taunted her with racial slurs. "They just kept saying 'This is what we do to niggers down here,'" Williams recently said in an interview.

Seated in a rocking chair in her mother's living room, about 50 miles from that shed, the slight woman with cocoa-colored skin says she was hopelessly outnumbered by people who just wanted to hurt a black person. "I just hope they fry for what they did to me. That's really all I got to say," she said. "I hope they fry."

BREAKING NEWS 10-21-09: MEGAN SAYS SHE LIED!!!!

West Virginia does not have a death penalty, but the six suspects could spend the rest of their lives in prison if convicted of rape and kidnapping charges. Still, Williams and her family want more. Prosecutors have backed off state hate-crime charges, saying they only carry an additional 10-year maximum penalty and could complicate their case.

The Suspects Pled Guilty. Post Her Recanting -- Now What???

For one, hate crimes typically involve strangers, and Williams knew one of the suspects. She filed a charge of domestic assault against him in July. Williams has been advised not to discuss anything about her prior dealings with the suspects, or the more graphic details of her experience.

But when Williams does detail her alleged torture, it comes in fits. Horrifying, disjointed memories of all that she allegedly endured spill forth while she fidgets and frowns. "They braided some switches together and beat me across the back," she said. "They tore my clothes off of me and everything, and then they took me up to the lake and they said that was the place they were going to cut my throat and throw me in," she said.

Williams looks off into the distance at the end of each recollection. She often falls quiet, reverting to yes and no answers, each response softly punctuated with "ma'am." At times, she reaches up to touch her scalp, where her hair was cut off and yanked out during her ordeal.

Megan's adoptive mother, Carmen Williams, said her daughter is "not at full capacity" mentally and easily trusted others. "She's a little slow, so it's kinda hard for her to comprehend sometimes," she said. "So I think that played a big part in it."

CALIFORNIA FIRE RELIEF: SAN DIEGO'S QUALCOMM STADIUM JUST LIKE KATRINA, ONLY COMPLETELY DIFFERENT

I Don't Remember Seeing This Kind Of Treatment For Katrina Victims ... Or Maybe It's Me!

News papers report: THOUSANDS of evacuees flocked into San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium to escape California's fires, evoking scenes reminiscent of 2005's Hurricane Katrina aftermath when the New Orleans Superdome housed flood victims.

But to be blunt, Qualcomm is a stadium for football. The New Orleans Superdome is a place for football ... but that's where the similarities end. To most of you I don't even have to print the pictures of the New Orleans Superdome and the chaos that existed. In fact I probably shouldn't because they are painful. But let's just start with the fact that there were no lights on in that hell hole and all the toilets were backed up. All I need to tell you about the the people staying at Qualcomm is that they are being fed gourmet food donated by local restaurants. There have been live bands playing music all day.

What is this place called San Diego California? I mean how nice could it really be? Well with any place it's important to have work and paid a good salary, enough to raise a family of four right? But if you have ever been offered a job in San Diego California you probably were surprised with how little money was offered to you. Why? Well in each contract in large print at the bottom of your offer sheet , printed very clearly is, THE SUNSHINE CLAUSE: "The city of San Diego is so damn beautiful, and the weather is perfect 12 months a year. You are lucky and blessed to live and work in such a paradise. Please note the palm trees and ocean views. You really should be paying us for giving you this job. Therefore accept this paltry monetary offer for your services and enjoy." Everyone and I mean everyone signs it and moves on with their wonderful life.

In San Diego there are no poor people, no illiteracy, no homelessness. And women of the US hear this. Because of the nearby military bases ... there are men, lots of men, men with jobs!! I think I hear Portland, Seattle, Detroit, Atlanta and D.C. women booking air flights now. Yes, your neighbors are so excited you can hear them right through the wall, "Yes, I said San Diego California. Yes I know about the fires but what's a little smoke? Do you have any flights left for tonight, 'cause I hear they have 200 National guard troops just at Qualcomm Stadium!!!."

Before I go on, let me retract my first statement. There is one more similarity between the California fire disaster and the Katrina disaster. The Federal Government got it all wrong and is messing it up for everybody, again. How??50% of our troops 50% of the planes and equipment that would be dumping water on the California fires, is in Iraq. That's right one billion dollars of equipment that is normally used to control the fires in California, especially those planes, is in Iraq.

Brownee ... er George W. Bush, you are doing a fine job.

Now for those who want front line news at Qualcomm Stadium, some other stories went on to say ...

Old and young, rich and poor, an estimated 20,000 people had formed a well-organised refugee camp in the parking lot of the Qualcomm Stadium. Early accounts said the centre's operations were well organised and clean. The assessments are in stark contrast to the filth and chaos at New Orleans's Superdome after Katrina. President George Walker Bush was lambasted for his handling of disaster relief efforts after the hurricane, and had been quick to react to this latest disaster, promising firefighting resources, money and more.

Several people spoke confidently of being able to return to their homes as soon as the fire crisis subsided. However others were not so lucky. Cindy Alexander, 54, who lived alone and survives on a disability allowance, said she lost her one-bedroom home in Ramona, 80km north of San Diego -- one of the worst-hit areas in the state. "My daughter called me and said it was gone," Ms Alexander said. After receiving her evacuation notice she paused only to gather a few possessions -- clothes, blankets, pillows and a box of family photos.

It was the second time that California fires had hit her family. Her daughter's home was destroyed in 2003. "We've had a hard life. It's like, 'OK God, What else?' " she said. Ms Alexander's daughter-in-law, Brandy, said she had lost contact with other relatives caught in the fire drama. "At least we'll have cots tonight," she said. "And we've got our health, and our cats."

Two parking spaces along, members of the Rey family were relieved to discover that they would soon be leaving the stadium for the comfort of the luxury Loews Hotel in San Diego. "A room opened up tonight and we secured it," said Butch Rey, a 45-year-old software company executive, who arrived at the stadium with his wife, three children and two parents. The Reys had been ordered to evacuate their four-bedroom home in the upmarket San Diego suburb of Scripps Ranch. So far it has not been damaged.

Nevertheless, his children weren't taking any chances. "The boys took all their autographed baseballs," Mr Rey said. He told of the random generosity of strangers. "Last night a man drove up in a BMW and said that he had a five-bedroom house and somebody was welcome to stay there with him," he said. "A family went home with him."

The American Red Cross was receiving donations of blankets, torches, batteries, cots, sleeping bags, tents, hygiene products, canned goods, bottled water and money. And though most peopleI feel are inconvenienced, most are calm and optimistic. Because when it's all over, these people will rebuild their lives ... in paradise.

Meanwhile ...

Louisiana folks still impacted by Hurricane Katrina are still waiting for a hand up!

OVER 2 YEARS LATER!!!!!

Contributions to this story by AFP.