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Black mediocrity or worse

By Shay | August 7, 2022 | Comments Off on Black mediocrity or worse

Growing up, my father often used to tell me that it didn’t matter what you did in life; just be the best at it. In fact, my Dad would say, “I don’t care if you end up as being a janitor or a sex worker (OK, Dad’s language was a bit more crass on that second occupation but this was …

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Always slipping on the GOP’s banana peels

By Samuel James | August 1, 2022 | Comments Off on Always slipping on the GOP’s banana peels

Watching these January 6th hearings, something occurs to me. You know how republicans claim to be the moral party, but they’re really the most unprincipled, dishonorable, hateful bunch of fascist motherfuckers to rally together since the KKK? Well, if you replace morals with intelligence, the democrats follow the same model. They can’t wait for any opportunity to call a republican …

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Work with your people—it’s time for action

By Shay | July 24, 2022 | Comments Off on Work with your people—it’s time for action

This post comes thanks to inspiration from a series of conversations I have had in recent months, both within the context of my work as an anti-racism trainer and random conversations with white people. A common theme emerged and, frankly, it is a theme that needs to be addressed head on. When I first wrote publicly about race in 2003, …

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Calling All White People, Part 58: Words really do matter

By Average White Guy | July 19, 2022 | Comments Off on Calling All White People, Part 58: Words really do matter

TODAY’S EPISODE: Use your words…but maybe not some of *those* ones There are some things you just shouldn’t say. If you’ve read me before and if you read this blog in general, you might assume I’m about to rant about avoiding the N-word. Good guess, and not entirely off the mark, but that’s just an entry point. The N-word is …

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Joy in hard times

By Shay | July 12, 2022 | Comments Off on Joy in hard times

These are strange times that we are living in—and hard ones. To be frank, the world is a dumpster fire. We are two-plus years into an intensifying pandemic that the majority has decided to simply live with or just pretend doesn’t exist. The problem with ignoring problems, though, is that they have a pesky way of growing. It could be …

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“Benefit of the doubt” gives plenty of room for violence and lies

By Samuel James | July 6, 2022 | Comments Off on “Benefit of the doubt” gives plenty of room for violence and lies

The local TV news interviewed the Highland Park killer’s uncle. The reporter asked if there had been any warning signs. The uncle repeatedly said “No.” Of course, there were warning signs. There were social media posts and a YouTube manifesto. The shooter attended the rallies of our previous president. The shooter’s father (and brother to the uncle) is the type …

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Nothing and no one is safe with this Supreme Court

By Shay | July 1, 2022 | Comments Off on Nothing and no one is safe with this Supreme Court

The Supreme Court’s decision to toss out nearly 50 years of precedent and “settled law” around Roe v. Wade has sent a lot of you into a distress, dismay, and depression. I get it; I really do. It upsets me, too. I do believe all of us are entitled to catch our breath and grieve that the conservative justices ripped …

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Of course a make-believe pirate hijacked the #MeToo movement

By Guest Poster | June 23, 2022 | 1 Comment

By Liz Henry I couldn’t help but sit back, turn off my screen, and consider: How does one combat a dickfestation? Is there an exterminator for that? Like, for the culture? Of course a make-believe pirate would hijack the progress of the #MeToo movement. I did not watch the defamation trial of Amber Heard and Johnny Depp live. This was …

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Move beyond the promise of equity, or Listen to the youth!

By Shay | June 12, 2022 | Comments Off on Move beyond the promise of equity, or Listen to the youth!

The hardest thing about being young is that people don’t listen to you, especially when you are a kid or a human under the age of 18. For some reason, the adults forget what the early years of life are like. At the age of 49, I find myself in a strange place. I am no longer the youngest person …

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Playing politics around guns and ignoring why we’re different

By Samuel James | June 10, 2022 | Comments Off on Playing politics around guns and ignoring why we’re different

Days before being elected president, Biden promised to “ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, implement universal background checks, and enact other common-sense reforms to end our gun violence epidemic.” There have been at least 20 mass shootings since Uvalde—including one in Philadelphia being reported on as I write this and all Biden has to say is, “I can’t dictate this …

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Musings on the political and Graham Platner: Reflections on a conversation, Part 1

By Shay | December 13, 2025

One of the greatest gifts of aging is that with each passing decade, you start to realize that the world and the people in it are a lot more complex than you initially assumed. It often means learning that things are not nearly as straightforward and black-and-white as we assume when we are younger—that life …

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Musings on the political and Graham Platner: Reflections on a conversation, Part 1

By Shay | December 13, 2025

One of the greatest gifts of aging is that with each passing decade, you start to realize that the world and the people in it are a lot more complex than you initially assumed. It often means learning that things are not nearly as straightforward and black-and-white as we assume when we are younger—that life …

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Round Up

A curated list of relevant articles & a peek into what Shay's reading

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Members only get a peek into what Shay's reading and wants to share.

Sample Round Up

By Shay | May 29, 2022

Happy Friday! It’s a gorgeous day up in my corner of the world and way too beautiful to be writing a blog post today. So I present you with the Friday Round-Up a list of blog posts this week from other bloggers that blew my mind. Perhaps if you need to kill some time or have a quiet moment you can check them out. http://ravingblacklunatic.blogspot.com/ Check out this cat, I have been a fan of his work forever. http://www.whataboutourdaughters.com/ Good stuff here as well http://sweetersalt.com/ A Maine blogger who talks fashion and food…the best of both worlds http://paganchild-starmommy.blogspot.com/2011/03/keeping-focused.html A new blog that offers words of wisdom for all of us. http://mscleaver.com/ Another Mainer who for Lent is giving up pants, she is also a crafty gal If you have any links to good blogs, feel free to leave em. It’s my hope to make the Friday Round Up a regular feature at my new home specifically I would live to shine some light and love on smaller bloggers. It’s hard out here in this blogosphere with so many good blogs to choose from and so little time so let’s help everyone get a slice of the pie. I will be back on Monday, at that time I will unveil some ideas I have around monetizing things but You May Also Like: No related posts.

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