I really admire Michelle Obama. She may be the First Lady of the US but her motherly instincts to protect her children are still operating. The Los Angeles Times reported that the Obamas have become quite irritated over the new Sweet Sasha and Marvellous Malia beanie dolls. TyGirlz Collection, the company that brought us Beanie Babies is in trouble with the Obamas. Namely, exploiting the two first daughters, Sasha and Malia Obama writes the LA Times. The worst part is that the toy company refuses to cop to the fact that they plan to profit from the names and likenesses of the Obama girls.Reportedly, the Sasha doll has pigtails and wears a white and pink dress with hearts. The Malia doll has a side ponytail and a long-sleeve shirt with capri pants. The dolls have bronze skin and real doll hair but the makers of the dolls claim that the dolls have nothing to do with the Obama girls. A representative from the company, said that they only chose the names because “they are beautiful names.” (yeah right!) Whatever the case may be the Obamas are upset with all the attention and fuss that is being made over their daughters. I understand MaMa Michelle’s concerns but then again . . .doesn’t this come with the package of being the First Family of the US?

Hats off to the protectors!!!!

I, like many others was very happy to witness the Inauguration of the 44th President of the United States. I had been watching, reading and listening to any updates that would give a clue of just how the events would unfold. When I posted the blog about the train ride that President Obama was going to be taking, I must admit that I became somewhat fearful about the that idea. Talking to many of my friends, they were thinking along the same lines as me. Was it safe? Should he put himself in such a vulnerable situation?
I was pretty sure that law enforcement officials were going to do everything within their capacity to protect Obama but, I was moreso worried about the fanatical people out their who just wanted to hurt Obama just because…well we all know. Reportedly, the biggest risk was the massing on the National Mall, where no inaugural tickets are required and spectators watched and heard Obama's swearing-in and inaugural address on huge video screens. If a suicide bomber or two or three would have gotten loose in that crowd, God only knows what would happen. It would have been disastrous. Since the inauguration was designated a "National Special Security Event," the Secret Service was responsible not only for the safety of Obama and Vice President, Joe Biden, but alsofor protecting everybody in attendance.
I underestimated the law enforcement.
Law enforcement officials reported that Obama wore bullet-resistant clothing, spoke behind a protective glass shield and rode in the parade in the armored Cadillac limousine, with doors and windows so thick that he probably would have survived a bomb blast.
Trailing his car were black vans loaded with Special Weapons and Tactics and counter-assault teams, high-speed communications equipment and electronic devices capable of jamming the detonators for homemade bombs.
Nondescript boxes that could detect the airborne releases of chemical or biological weapons such as lethal anthrax spores were scattered among the crowds.
I am very proud of the job that they did in ensuring that the Inauguration ceremony and events went smoothly. Matter of fact, I stand and give them honor for a job well done. They protected the citizens and the elected officials. “Hats off to the men & women who keep us safe!”

MLK National Day of Service

Happy MLK Day! Today is a federal holiday! State and county offices are closed, schools, banks, postal services, libraries are all closed! In America, we love holidays! To me, holidays normally mean a day of relaxing, catching up on quiet reading, perhaps even the opportunity to “sleep in” a little later than usual but not this day! King holiday is a day a service! Millions of Americans honored Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and answered President-elect Obama’s call to service by volunteering on the January 19 King Holiday. Americans made it “a day on, not a day off” by delivering meals, refurbishing schools, reading to children, signing up mentors, and much, much more. Initiated by Congress in 1994, King Day of Service builds on that that legacy by transforming the federal holiday honoring Dr. King into a national day of community service grounded in his teachings of nonviolence and social justice.
To many this day is bitter sweet. While we celebrate his life and many accomplishments, we can’t help but still mourn his untimely death. In fact, some of us still shed a few tears. Today I shed a tear because I know that we have come a long way as a people but we have an even longer way to go. In Sunday school one of the children asked a question: If Dr. King were alive would he be happy with the way things are going in our communities? (she was referring to the African American community) This was a good question that made many of us pause and think about what this ten year old had really just asked. Her question made me ponder another question: Would things be different within our community if Dr. King were alive today? I believe that one person has the power to mold and shape its surroundings. Dr. King showed us how powerful one voice could be when he decided to cry out against the injustices that were plaguing just about every corner of America with its infectious seeds of hate and racism. Would Dr. King be happy with our current condition and state of mind? (…most likely not) According to studies, criminologist report that murders among black youth have risen in recent years. While the school drop out rates and pregnancies for black teens have declined other numbers have risen. For example: high unemployment rates, domestic violence, number of households run by single mothers and so on. So, no I don’t believe that he would be completely happy with some of the challenges that we are facing our community... but I do think he would us this:
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”

“Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality.”

“If we are to go forward, we must go back and rediscover those precious values - that all reality hinges on moral foundations and that all reality has spiritual control.”

---Dr.Martin Luther King Jr

Everyone needs a model

President–elect Barack Obama seems to be very fond of former U.S. President Abraham Lincoln. He’s not alone. Many refer to Lincoln as the best President that this country has ever had. Not only is he acknowledged for leading the country through the Civil War. But the 16th President is also known for signing the Homestead Act in 1862. (The act awarded 160 acres to settlers who agreed to farm the land for five years. Many of you probably recognize him for issuing the Emancipation Proclamation which abolished slavery in the U.S. (whether or not he intentionally wanted to end slavery or preserve the union is an ongoing debate)…. and Lincoln yes, is the President who we can accredit to creating a national banking system and standardized currency. That’s just a few things that he did.
President-elect Barack Obama will use the same Bible at his inauguration that Abraham Lincoln used for his swearing in. Obama will be the first president since Lincoln to use that Bible. Obama is also tracing the train route that Lincoln took and holding a welcome event at the Lincoln Memorial ahead of his Jan. 20 inauguration.
Obama will continue following the example of Abraham Lincoln; the two may be very different in terms of policy, but they match up pretty evenly in style. Everyone needs a model right? I am not saying that he is going to try to replicate Lincoln because we all know that is impossible. I am just saying that everyone should have someone who they can say, you know what? I like the way he or she did this or that. Don't be a duplicate of anyone because God made us all originals. But, in today's society we all need positive mentors, role models or examples of excellence. January 17th will feature a railway trip for the Obamas that will begin in Philadelphia and end in Washington DC. Like Lincoln, Obama will make stops for speeches and events in Philadelphia and Baltimore before arriving in the Capitol to begin Inaugural Festivities.
One kick is that Obama will break from Lincolnian tradition by stopping in Wilmington, Delaware, to pick up Vice-President-Elect Joe Biden and family.
The environmental organizations Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth have sent the Secret Service a letter asking the agency to switch President-elect Barack Obama's arrival into Washington, D.C., by train on the weekend before Inauguration Day to a safer mode of transportation. The president-elect and his family will travel by train from Philadelphia on Saturday, January 17, and arrive in the district by evening. During the trip, they will pick up Vice President-elect Joe Biden and his family in Wilmington, Delaware.

1/9/09 by Ki
It’s a mere 32’ degrees outside but the tensions are boiling over in the U.S. Nine days into 2009 and already one can tell that this year is going to be a year full of complexity. Many are still facing the unemployment lines in hopes or work. Reportedly, 524,000 jobs were lost in 2008. That’s the highest since 1993. The last time so many people lost their jobs in a one year time frame was 1945. These days even the wealthy are feeling the heat from the economic tensions. The current unemployment rate is 7.2%. For the first time, many Americans, like myself are beginning to become anxious about the possibility of job loss. Thank God I work in the health care field but even we have noticed that our companies are cutting corners and holding back hours. I’ve told some of my coworkers that- “the way things are going everyone should be thinking of a plan B and C.”
So, the only thing that I know for certain is

Deut. 31:8. And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not be dismayed. 1/9/09 by Ki Delete

Guilt by association?
Enter Roland Burris. Roland W. Burris first ran for political office in Illinois in 1968, and since the 1970s has held two of the state's highest elected posts. He was Illinois's first African American comptroller, or treasurer, as well as its first African American attorney general. Yet Burris has also made unsuccessful bids for the governorship of Illinois--a state that has elected more African Americans to its top offices than any other --but he failed to win the necessary political support among the powerful Chicago-Springfield Democratic Party organization. Burris is fighting to fill the vacated Illinois Senate seat of President-elect, Barack Obama. Why is this so complicated? And NO its not about race either, Burris was handpicked by Illinois Governor, Rod Blagojevich. Yes, he’s the one who is accused of trying to sell the seat of Obama. Democrats and Mr. Obama have said that the corruption charges against Blagojevich would strip credibility from anyone he appointed to the seat. Blagojevich denies federal accusations that he tried to sell the seat Mr. Obama has given up for the presidency. Democrats have stated last week that they would block the man handpicked by the state's scandal-stained governor. Burris is known among many to be a squeaky clean politician with an impeccable record. Unfortunately, popular opinion is not considering his record. In their eyes he is guilty by association. We’ll have to see what happens to “Mr. Clean.” Personally, I am rooting for him. As for Blagojevich?….. They are planning on impeaching him. If this happens he will be the first Governor in that state to be impeached.

Global Year in Review!