My friend who's a frequent reader of my blog sent me this news below. My personal view is it's about time we had a poll of this type. I'm not surprised at the report.
Blacks See Growing Values Gap Between Poor and Middle Class
Optimism about Black Progress Declines
November 13, 2007
Download the complete report
African Americans see a widening gulf between the values of middle class and poor blacks, and nearly four-in-ten say that because of the diversity within their community, blacks can no longer be thought of as a single race.
The new nationwide Pew Research Center survey also finds blacks less upbeat about the state of black progress now than at any time since 1983. Looking backward, just one-in-five blacks say things are better for blacks now than they were five years ago. Looking ahead, fewer than half of all blacks (44%) say they think life for blacks will get better in the future, down from the 57% who said so in a 1986 survey.
Whites have a different perspective. While they, too, have grown less sanguine about black progress, they are nearly twice as likely as blacks to see black gains in the past five years. Also, a majority of whites (56%) say life for blacks in this country will get better in the future.
Telephone interviews for this survey were conducted among a nationally representative sample of 3,086 adults from September 5-October 6, 2007. African Americans and Hispanics were over-sampled - a total of 1007 interviews were completed with blacks, and 388 with Hispanics.
Other key findings include:
Asked whether blacks can still be thought of as a single race, given the increasing diversity within the black community, 53% of blacks say they can, but 37% of blacks say they cannot.
Big gaps in perception between blacks and whites emerge on many topics. For example, blacks believe that anti-black discrimination is still pervasive in everyday life; whites disagree. And blacks have far less confidence than whites in the basic fairness of the criminal justice system.
But there are also areas of agreement. For example, blacks and whites concur that there has been a convergence in the values held by blacks and whites. On the popular culture front, large majorities of both blacks and whites say that rap and hip hop have a bad influence on society.
Blacks and whites express very little overt racial animosity. As they have for decades, about eight-in-ten members of each racial group express a favorable view about members of the other group. More than eight-in-ten adults in each group also say they know a person of a different race whom they consider a friend.
The most newsworthy African American figure in politics today - Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama - draws broadly (though not intensely felt) favorable ratings from both blacks and whites. But blacks are more inclined to say that his race will detract from his chances to be elected president; whites are more inclined to say his relative inexperience will hurt his chances.
Three-quarters of blacks (76%) say that Obama is a good influence on the black community. Even greater numbers say this about Oprah Winfrey (87%) and Bill Cosby (85%), who are the most highly regarded by blacks from among 14 black newsmakers tested in this survey. By contrast, just 17% of blacks say that rap artist 50 Cent is a good influence.
Over the past two decades, blacks have lost some confidence in the effectiveness of leaders within their community, including national black political figures, the clergy, and the NAACP. A sizable majority of blacks still see all of these groups as either very or somewhat effective, but the number saying "very" effective has declined since 1986.
A 53% majority of African Americans say that blacks who don't get ahead are mainly responsible for their situation, while just three-in-ten say discrimination is mainly to blame. As recently as the mid-1990s, black opinion on this question tilted in the opposite direction, with a majority of African Americans saying then that discrimination is the main reason for a lack of black progress.
On the issue of immigration, blacks and whites agree that most immigrants work harder than most blacks and most whites at low-wage jobs. Also, blacks are less inclined now than they were two decades ago to say that blacks would have more jobs if there were fewer immigrants.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Amazon Kindle Launches Today - Wireless E-Reading
I just saw that Amazon's come out with Kindle, which allow me to read on the go. A great idea. You can take many books in the space of one book. It reminds me of a device Captain Kirk used in "Star Trek" to read status reports given to him by Yeoman Rand.
It could be that the Amazon developers got the idea from Star Trek!
Monday, November 19, 2007
Obama Leada In Iowa, Stunning CNN in The Process!
Yep. Here's the news from ABC : Barack Obama's ahead 30 percent, 26 percent for Clinton, and John Edwards at 22 percent. Wolf Blitzer can't seem to stand that Obama's ahead of Clinton. They didn't mention that, or the Des Moines Register Poll, or the latest poll reporting Obama's lead at 4 percent.
Instead, CNN's Blitzer's focusing too much on other matters like the CIA leak, and totally ignoring Senator Clinton's major gaffe on Pakistan.
The Clinton News Network can't stand the news that Obama can win the Iowa Caucus.
Instead, CNN's Blitzer's focusing too much on other matters like the CIA leak, and totally ignoring Senator Clinton's major gaffe on Pakistan.
The Clinton News Network can't stand the news that Obama can win the Iowa Caucus.
ROBERT NOVAK *I'VE SEEN NO EVIDENCE OF DIRT ON OBAMA
In this video, Fox News interviews columnist Robert Novak, also called "The Prince of Darkness" who in this case spread darkness about Senator Barack Obama by stating that the Clinton campaign claimed to have news about a sex scandal about Obama. Novak -- in the video -- essentially that the source was not from the campaign but who was told by an agent of the campaign. In other words, his source has a source. It's called gossip and he's spreading it, but there's nothing there. Novak does compare Clinton to Nixon!
Mike Gravel - "Hillary, Your Lips are Moving and You're Lying'
In this video, Former Senator and U.S. Presidential candidate Mike Gravel -- who was not invited to be in the Nevada debate -- held his own event where he responded to the answers given by the candidates, well, ok, Senator Clinton here. He says she's lying about Clinton's position on Iran, saying "Hillary, Your Lips are Moving and you're lying. She's ignorant. The law that was past right after 9-11, coupled with the resolution that (U.S. Senator Joe Libermann) put in, gave the President the power to go to war."
It's not right that he was excluded; he'd have made the event informative and unforgetable as well as providing a great check for Hillary Clinton.
Vick Sells Virginia House At Big Loss
Report courtesy of www.wsbtv.com in Atlanta, Georgia.
SURRY, Va. -- Michael Vick has sold the Virginia house that was the headquarters of his dog fighting operation.
The Daily Press reported Friday that Todd Builders Inc. of Carrollton, Va. bought the house for $450,000.
The new owner plans to put the house up for auction on December 15.
The $450,000 price was below the home's assessed $747,000 value.
But that doesn't take into account the property's notoriety, said Kyle Hause Jr., the real estate agent who handled the sale.
"Only one person can own the most famous house in America today," Hause said. "You can ask people from coast to coast which house has the most notoriety in the country today, and it's this house."
The house at 1915 Moonlight Rd. was the home of Vick's Bad Newz kennels.
Dog fights were held at the property. Authorities found dog fighting equipment and 66 dogs when they raided the house back in April.
SURRY, Va. -- Michael Vick has sold the Virginia house that was the headquarters of his dog fighting operation.
The Daily Press reported Friday that Todd Builders Inc. of Carrollton, Va. bought the house for $450,000.
The new owner plans to put the house up for auction on December 15.
The $450,000 price was below the home's assessed $747,000 value.
But that doesn't take into account the property's notoriety, said Kyle Hause Jr., the real estate agent who handled the sale.
"Only one person can own the most famous house in America today," Hause said. "You can ask people from coast to coast which house has the most notoriety in the country today, and it's this house."
The house at 1915 Moonlight Rd. was the home of Vick's Bad Newz kennels.
Dog fights were held at the property. Authorities found dog fighting equipment and 66 dogs when they raided the house back in April.
3 Young Boys Arrested In Rape Case
This story is extremely disheartening and emotionally upsetting. It's unquenchable to believe that a crime of this magnitude could occur in any part of the country.
Report Courtesy of www.wsbtv.com in Atlanta, Georgia.
ACWORTH, Ga. -- Police say they've arrested three young boys on charges they kidnapped and raped an 11-year-old girl in the woods near an Acworth apartment complex.
Police say the boys -- who are 8 and 9 years old -- are in a Cobb County youth detention center but could face adult criminal charges.
"Reportedly two 9-year-old boys and one 8-year-old boy took the girl into the woods against her will where she was raped," said Capt. Wayne Bennard of the Acworth Police Department.
Police reports show the girl went to authorities Saturday for the alleged attack, which she says happened Thursday.
The victim told police they had been playing outside the West Ridge Apartments before the attack.
"The three boys have been charged with crimes ranging from rape, sexual assault, kidnapping and false imprisonment," said Bennard. "The reaction is dismay."
The suspects are being held at the Cobb County Youth Detention Center.
Prosecutors said they have yet to decide whether to try the suspects as adults.
"That decision hasn't been made," said Kathy Watkins, a spokeswoman for the Cobb County District Attorney's office.
Report Courtesy of www.wsbtv.com in Atlanta, Georgia.
ACWORTH, Ga. -- Police say they've arrested three young boys on charges they kidnapped and raped an 11-year-old girl in the woods near an Acworth apartment complex.
Police say the boys -- who are 8 and 9 years old -- are in a Cobb County youth detention center but could face adult criminal charges.
"Reportedly two 9-year-old boys and one 8-year-old boy took the girl into the woods against her will where she was raped," said Capt. Wayne Bennard of the Acworth Police Department.
Police reports show the girl went to authorities Saturday for the alleged attack, which she says happened Thursday.
The victim told police they had been playing outside the West Ridge Apartments before the attack.
"The three boys have been charged with crimes ranging from rape, sexual assault, kidnapping and false imprisonment," said Bennard. "The reaction is dismay."
The suspects are being held at the Cobb County Youth Detention Center.
Prosecutors said they have yet to decide whether to try the suspects as adults.
"That decision hasn't been made," said Kathy Watkins, a spokeswoman for the Cobb County District Attorney's office.
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