Project 21: New Visions

"Django Unchained," a new movie from white director Quentin Tarantino, is making headlines for its violence and raw racial language. An action movie rooted in a raw portrayal of the slave era, its content is proving to be quite troublesome for many black Americans. Actor Jamie Foxx, the star of the movie, would love for people to see it because that puts dollars in his pocket and sets him up for more lucrative future roles. On the other hand, director Spike Lee announced he is boycotting the movie because he believes it is "disrespectful to my ancestors." In a Wall ...
READ MORE

It's obvious that President Obama wants to curtail our Second Amendment freedoms. It's now completely believable that Americans' constitutional right to own and use firearms might even be diminished with the stroke of Obama's autopen signature. American democracy is called a "grand experiment." It is not called this out of some romanticized fascination with ourselves, but from the understanding that the natural condition of mankind throughout history has been for man to govern himself in a non-democratic fashion. Physics teaches us that nature abhors a vacuum. Where there is empty space, something will always quickly enter that space to fill ...
READ MORE

I recently took my daughter to our pediatric ophthalmologist — a physician she has seen for several years, and with whom we have a very good relationship. At this appointment, however, the receptionist gave me three new forms to fill out. These forms were not the usual update forms. This new paperwork required specific and personal demographic information. As I filled out the new forms, I wondered why my daughter's eye doctor suddenly needed to keep track of things that seem irrelevant — such as the color of our skin. When our doctor arrived and the exam got underway, it ...
READ MORE

As a conservative, President Barack Obama's reelection was one of the most disappointing experiences of my life. As a black American, my sorrow was only amplified. Just look at President Obama's economic track record. Look at the unemployment rate during Obama's first term. Throughout his first four years as the nation's CEO, the official unemployment rate rested almost exclusively between eight and ten percent — with data showing the inclusion of those leaving the workforce altogether out of despair actually made the number much higher. He promised much better. But then asked for more time. Despite being carried to re-election ...
READ MORE

Almost six months into the reign of Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, many people in the West and even Egypt lament the "Arab Spring" overthrow of long-time dictator Hosni Mubarak. America and Mubarak shared a concern for anti-Western Muslim fundamentalists seeking to turn Egypt into an Islamic state. Mubarak's treatment of the Muslim Brotherhood and other critics was undeniably harsh, but he did protect the weakest members of Egyptian society — specifically women, children and Egypt's Christian minority. Morsi took a very different approach. Pandering to those fundamentalists, it's essentially "open season" on Egypt's defenseless and disenfranchised. For example, a 14-year-old ...
READ MORE

Jason Whitlock started it, and Jason Whitlock can end it. On December 1, the Fox Sports columnist penned a column about what happened earlier that morning when Jovan Belcher — the starting linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs — murdered his girlfriend, Kasandra Perkins (the mother of his three-month-old daughter), and then drove to Arrowhead Stadium and killed himself. In his piece, Whitlock questioned and lamented how the NFL and the Chiefs decided to play their scheduled game against the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. He argued the appropriate thing to do was cancel the game. So far, no harm no ...
READ MORE

In an increasingly secular America — where moral absolutes have vanished — it is not surprising that same-sex marriage referendums recently passed in Maryland, Washington and Maine. After all, noted theologian N.T. Wright said, "by itself, human reason can no more be guaranteed to tell us which way to go than a compass in a room full of strong magnets." A recent survey by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found approximately one in five Americans — roughly 33 million people — have no religious affiliation. Of those, 13 million consider themselves atheist or agnostic. That's a lot ...
READ MORE

In post-election post-mortem mode, many so-called Christian conservatives wonder why President Obama won so decisively. They similarly scratch their heads over same-sex marriage victories in Maryland and Maine and defeated pro-life candidates in states once thought to be reliably conservative. I contend everyone has lost focus on the modern relationship between politics and faith. The moral vacuum created by a declining faith benefits liberal politicians and policies. In the final days, I became too vested in the recent election. I began believing the election of the wrong person would immediately and adversely affect my life. This is just not true ...
READ MORE

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, a vision of the federal government as our savior is being perpetuated by the media and the left. This romanticized vision of the benefits of an ever-expanding government assuming command of everything — from disaster relief to managing our waistlines to promoting breastfeeding to mandatory vaccinations and to how we live and die — needs to be given serious thought. What price are we paying to allow the government to extend far beyond its constitutional mandate to "provide for the common defense" and "promote the general welfare" to the degree that America is descending ...
READ MORE

Homeownership rates have declined in America since the start of the economic crisis in 2008. Nowhere has the homeownership decline been more acute than in the black community. In 2004, 49.1 percent of black households owned their own home. In 2011, that number fell sharply to 44.9 percent. This may be a now or never last opportunity for many blacks to be able to buy a house and realize the American Dream. For a myriad of reasons, the homeownership rate for black Americans should not be expected to rise anytime soon — if ever. There are several reasons supporting this ...
READ MORE

Obama's victory means four more years with no hope or change. When I think about what the future offers, it reminds me of the last thing I said during my closing remarks at a 2008 debate for state representative in Massachusetts. I said: "If you like the way things are, vote for the incumbent... and don't complain." Liberals, you got what you wanted — and there's no doubt that Obama's friends in the media properly informed you. Gloat... and don't complain. When you continue to have problems finding a job, and the government begins to run out of money to ...
READ MORE

To take a phrase used by President Obama's former pastor, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, the "chickens are coming home to roost" for Obama and his economic policies. Under Obama's watch, America's middle class is suffering. It was recently revealed that over 11 million Americans will likely face a "no insurance" tax penalty if ObamaCare is fully implemented (with an estimated average penalty of $1,200). This directly contradicts Obama's promise to not raise taxes on families making less than $250,000 per year — which includes the middle class. At the same time, the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey reveals that the ...
READ MORE

Every year, on the Sunday before the U.S. Supreme Court convenes its fall term, many justices of the Court go to St. Matthew's Cathedral in Washington, D.C. to celebrate the "Red Mass." A centuries-old tradition that originated in Europe, this special religious service allows judges to seek guidance from the Holy Spirit. This year, on the following Sunday, during religious services across America, clergy put themselves and their membership in the government's crosshairs in hopes of creating a case that might put them in front of those justices. October 7 was a "Pulpit Freedom Sunday," where hundreds of clergy openly ...
READ MORE

For those believing Medicare is sacred and needs to be saved, know there are disturbing truths conveniently swept under the rug in the name of politics. Medicare now exists in name only. Medicare has morphed into a bloated and virtually bankrupt system. People are fooled into thinking money taken out of paychecks waits to be spent on their health care needs. In fact, money in Medicare's trust fund has been steadily raided for seemingly everything except the health of seniors. Couple this with the fact that there are more people becoming eligible for Medicare while the labor force used to ...
READ MORE

When Chicago schoolteachers recently went on strike, the only city-run schools open were those set up to serve meals to needy students. While striking Windy City teachers screamed about pay and evaluation standards, food was a problem apparently being ignored despite it affecting health and spending. What do school meals have to do withthe teachers' strike? Earlier this year, misleading media reports — largely from ABC News — caused a scare over the use of lean finely textured beef (LFTB) in ground beef. Safety concerns arose primarily because of an antimicrobial used in its production. LFTB was smeared as "pink slime." Foodie ...
READ MORE

Years ago, some conservatives rebelled against the establishment's support of big government, large deficits and spending levels that would make even the most intoxicated midshipman blush. Out of this rebellion, the Tea Party movement was born. Many Tea Party heroes were born. Thousands of angry Americans packed parks and town halls across the nation to vent their frustration with soaring spending levels and draconian domestic policies they believed encroached on their liberties. The national media consistently bent over backwards looking for the Tea Party's response to the issues of the day. Candidates professing Tea Party values ended up being elected ...
READ MORE

To those who are attacking our embassies and are convinced they are committing an act of justice on behalf of the one true faith, I would say to you, that the one true God does not need mankind to seek justice on his behalf. If you think your God needs human assistance, we are not worshiping the same God.  My God doesn't need my help. I need his. I have been blessed with a gift for languages and an ability to travel abroad without people immediately recognizing me as an American.  This affords me an opportunity to be privy to ...
READ MORE

Afghanistan seems safer than Chicago. As of August 6, 272 American and NATO troops had been killed in Afghanistan in 2012. In Chicago, 318 people had been murdered by that same date. So why is the mayor of Chicago so concerned about the personal beliefs of Chick-fil-A executives? As the temperature peaks and the murder rate climbs ever higher, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel chooses to strut in front of the national media about his outrage about Chick-fil-A executives and their opposition to gay marriage, saying, "Chick-fil-A's values are not Chicago values." Oh, really? I support traditional values. I still support ...
READ MORE

Overly-sensitive liberals are crying foul over Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy's admission that he is a supporter of traditional marriage. Why? How can one not already have figured that the head of one of the most well-known faith-based businesses in America — a business closed on Sundays so employees would "have an opportunity to rest, spend time with family and friends and worship if they choose to do so" — would favor defining of marriage as solely between a man and a woman. Cathy's crime is his open faith, having outing himself as a supporter of traditional marriage and further said: ...
READ MORE

August was the 43rd straight month in which the overall unemployment rate remained above eight percent. While officially reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics as 8.1 percent, the U-6 unemployment rate — totaling all potential workers (including those who stopped looking for work) — was a much more sobering 14.7 percent. For blacks, August unemployment remained above 14 percent. It was above ten percent for Hispanics. Women had an overall unemployment rate in August of 7.3 percent. For teenagers, it was close to 25 percent. In August, the economy added only 96,000 jobs while 368,000 people chose to leave ...
READ MORE