Sterling’s Gold, Adam Silver

“It’s not enough to ride First Class, I have to know that my friends are sitting in coach”.

• An excerpt from “Flash Boys” Richard Lewis’ book on the corruption of the Wall Street stock brokers.

So America got a sneak peek into the mind of a billionaire racist?  

LA Clipper owner, Donald Sterling

I believe CNN would call that Breaking News, while the actual targets of Sterling’s racist comments would call that a weekday.  I hear all the outrage on social media (a humorous oxymoron) and the indignation coming from the political ivory towers in Washington and the disgust coming from fellow NBA owner, Michael Jordan -- as the oxymoronic satire becomes more amusing by the timeouts.  Jordan is mad at the way black people are treated?  The next sound you hear may be William Shakespeare tumbling.  

There are two ways to get rid of racism:

1. Get rid of all the people and start over.
2. Educate the ones that are here.

If option (A) was your choice; there will be no way for us mere mortals to measure how successful that suggestion actually turned out. And, if option (B) was your choice; it should be noted that education probably won’t be a large enough incentive for a person that is already a billionaire.  That would be like telling Jay-Z, “Hey man, the next time you go in the studio I think you should keep it real.” 

The only thing billionaires really care to respond to is what made them a billionaire to begin with. I believe the Wu Tang hook C.R.E.A.M. underscored this artfully.  If the people were outraged, truly outraged at what the Los Angeles Clipper’s owner said on an illegally taped phone conversation, you should read some of his statements [that are on the record] in court.  You should talk to some of the people of color that reside in some of his rental properties.  I also suggest talking to some of his former employees.  In comparison, that illegal wire tap will be about as offensive as a grocery list. 

Wu Tang Clan

“What should we do?” is the question I have been most asked.  Well, I have been a fan of basketball my entire life.  Next to (certain) family members, a good book, music (mainstream ignores) and horizontal aerobics there isn’t more I enjoy than a good game of hoops. That said I have not paid to see a basketball game since the early 80’s (if not longer).  There are a plethora of reasons:

1. The players are more Kobe Bryant and less Jim Brown.
2. The regular season competition often feels like pro wrestling.
3. The cost of attendance is funnier than Jordan’s outrage.
4. Culturally, the NBA is starting to feel a lot like organized religion…, where the money flows in one direction and rarely (if ever) does it benefit the community where most of the buildings reside.   

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver

So you can jump up and down and scream all you want, but the only law that was actually broken was by the other person on the phone [who by the way is black].  If you want to take a team from a racist, cool I’m all for that.  While racism isn’t illegal, it probably should be. But, when the NBA Commissioner moves toward eliminating ignorance, make sure you hold the other owners accountable who may be homophobic, anti-Semites, sexists or xenophobes and who are all seemingly outraged by Sterling’s comments but are still sitting in their glass houses with their pot and goal.

Personally, I cannot wait until the day comes when black and brown people finally get together and only spend money with people that have their best interest at heart.

I bet the 1921 Tulsa Oklahoma residents remember even if the media doesn’t. 

 1 love,
Ray Lewis

THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT FROM A –TO- Z

"Liberty is to the collective body, what health is to every individual body.  Without health no pleasure can be tasted by man; without liberty no happiness can be enjoyed by society. "

-- Henry St. John

1. Affordable is relative to who is making the purchase. The number of houses that Mitt Romney owns and the number of boxes a homeless person sleeps under would be exhibit A.
2. People that support Barack truly believe this plan is a good idea. People that oppose Barack’s plan think this is a bad idea. What the two sides have in common is, the percentage of both that actually read the bill.
3. If the government truly cared about the public’s basic welfare, why would they penalize them for NOT having something they cannot afford?  That’s like a home owner’s association penalizing the owner for not having a Bentley.
4. Is it just me or is democracy the total opposite of mandate?
5. If this bill is inclusive of everyone, what happens to people that do not believe in medicinal care?
6. Most fights end with someone winning and someone losing. I’m curious, what side do you fall?
7. I will trust the government more when I get an itemized list of where my tax dollars went?
8. Pop quiz: Do you think this healthcare bill covers the stress it causes?
9. If this mandate is truly in the best interest of the people, shouldn’t everyone have access to the same physicians? There is a hint in exhibit A.
10. Are jump-offs charged a higher premium?
11. I really want to know if this program works, will Republicans still refer to it as Obama Care.  And if it doesn’t will he?
    
    

    

    HISTORY or HIS STORY?

12. I think it’s time to reexamine the meaning of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. 
13. A birth certificate is the only mandate required to access healthcare in the Netherlands and Canada; the two countries most often cited as the inspiration behind this bill.
14. Have you noticed that NO ONE ever mentions that it is a federal crime to NOT financially participate in this affordable act?  Perhaps the name of a good lawyer should be one of the modifications.  
15. I see far less Obama bumper stickers than I used to.
16. I wonder if those people (in example O) just got rid of their cars to offset their premium.
17. A friend once told me: “Those that believe will never question and those that question will never believe.”    

18. 

    A Common Journey

    I get the feeling that if this ever hit a mainstream platform, X-Ray will take on a whole new meaning for me.
19. I highly recommend the Hip Hop CD “Someday It Will All Make Sense."  The author of the CD and the author of the healthcare bill have way more in common now than they did when they were just neighbors in Chicago.
20. The older I get the more value I find in truth and the less I like people that use it as a weapon.
21. Do you think being under oath discourages people from lying or helps them to be more creative?
22. How beneficial is it to celebrate a political victory if the win is based on hurting the people that lost?
23. What do you think is worse, waking up to the American Dream or the nightmare you have chasing it?
24. The older I get the more I miss Malcolm X.
25. When I was younger, the older heads use to tell me that wisdom is wasted on the youth. I wonder if those kids had the option of choosing their parents would that mantra be more or less true?   
26. Do you think animals in a zoo have a more equitable healthcare plan than the people that put them there?          
    
    
     1 love,
    Ray Lewis