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Obama Launches ‘My Brother’s Keeper’ to Help young Minority Men.....

humbolt said:
I wouldn't disagree, except that what we generally witness is a continued effort to simply throw money at such problems. Unfortunately, money will not help the problem without a much larger helping of hard work. It's hard work to motivate the depressed and dispossessed and no amount of money will replace the personal effort required both by those offering assistance and those receiving it. After all the years of the war on poverty we should know that funds legislated, money raised, and money spent does not equal the desired outcome. It never will.
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Actually it's pretty simple. All the money in the world isn't going to convince the impoverished youth of our country to believe that a polished version of the turd their lives will be is significantly better than the unpolished one they observe prior to programs like this. Unless and until the economy alters in such a way as to offer some semblance of opportunity equality, all these programs will continue to fail, private or government.
 
Summerwind said:
Regardless of government, it shouldn't be a racially exclusionary program. See that's where we agree. Honestly, it's not the "government" part that's the problem, right? If there is a successful program, then I don't care who runs it, right? You care obviously more about who's running it than that it's racially exclusionary. I think that's backward.

And either way, private or government, these programs seem to fail to work. Without some semblance of true opportunity equality, all these programs do is slap pinkie bandages on gaping wounds.
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We agree on a couple points here. I also agree that these sorts of programs fail with regularity because they don't address the environment adequately.

However, there is a reason why it's particularly odious coming from government. Simply, the government is supposed to offer to all with an equal hand. Serve all equally. Or as close as is possible. Especially now considering the racism discussion is in full swing in our society.
 
CalGun said:
I really do not worry about what people do with their private money - I believe our society should be FREE enough for them to do whatever they want to benefit whom ever they want. What does make me sad, it bothers me a very small amount, is that if G.W.Bush was to launch a foundation / trust / organization for the advancement of economically challenged white boys from Houston or Dallas he'd be labeled a racist bigot and in fact someone would likely file a law suit demanding they include people of minority races and women. Like I said - I have no trouble with sorority charity groups, NAACP, and others who want to promote an agenda and a group of people, but try to form one for white men and see what happens.
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Heya Cal. :2wave: Election time is coming. Democrats are reeling. They are going to go full tilt to try and garner up votes. The more they can do for people the more they will get that vote.

Al Sharptones isn't around for just the Photo Op.

Of course I am looking at thru the political lens.
 
Summerwind said:
Actually it's pretty simple. All the money in the world isn't going to convince the impoverished youth of our country to believe that a polished version of the turd their lives will be is significantly better than the unpolished one they observe prior to programs like this. Unless and until the economy alters in such a way as to offer some semblance of opportunity equality, all these programs will continue to fail, private or government.
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The economy needs some serious work, that's for sure. I don't have all the correct answers, but I have a pretty good handle on the ones that are definitely wrong. This program sounds like more of the same. I hope not, but I won't hold my breath for serious change.
 
President Obama had a nice feel-good moment.
He could have knocked it out of the park with some needy white faces behind him.
BHO missed a golden opportunity to bring together ALL colors needy.
White voters have a right to be upset at not being included, since 'inclusion' is the going word .
Objective Voice said:
I have to agree with you, Nimby. It was a very good OP until you got down to the end and the author just had to make it a partisan issue. What really makes me shake my head over how the OP's near instantaneous devaluation was reading other threads that constantly put down young Black teens (or Blacks in general) for being lazy, shiftless, thugs, vagrants and everything negative under the sun or how Pres. Obama is just "giving away tax payer dollars to minorities" for whatever reason, the moment he goes out and persuades private corporations to put their own money forward to bring about jobs skills and job placement initiatives to help these very "shiftless, lazy, thuggish" young Black teens (and subsequently Black families) learn how to do better for themselves, suddenly it's all about garnering Democratic votes.

Sometimes, you just have to shake your head and ignore stupid. It's hard sometimes, but I do try.
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I knew I heard this term before.....My Brothers Keeper. Yeah.....aint Obama one Coooool Cat. :cool:
His Brother's Keeper! :lol:

A New American Dream.....huh! ;)




 
Summerwind said:
Actually it's pretty simple. All the money in the world isn't going to convince the impoverished youth of our country to believe that a polished version of the turd their lives will be is significantly better than the unpolished one they observe prior to programs like this. Unless and until the economy alters in such a way as to offer some semblance of opportunity equality, all these programs will continue to fail, private or government.
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What is needed is a way to convince the youth that, if their life is a turd (polished or not), it is due to the choices that they have made, and, if they don't like it, they need to make different choices.
 
Dittohead not! said:
What is needed is a way to convince the youth that, if their life is a turd (polished or not), it is due to the choices that they have made, and, if they don't like it, they need to make different choices.
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i would agree if that were true. Unfortunately it's not. There are no choices made by that youth that forces his mother to have to work 3 jobs, put him in cheap, overcrowded daycares, have no energy to help him with homework or a quality homemade meal if she's even lucky enough hours off her other jobs to do more than sleep, unequal likelihood that he's going to be regularly hassled by the police ....
The list is long. You're ability to see and empathize with reality is shallow.
 
annata said:
if someone can tell me how this "task force" is supposed to work other then throwing money at the situation), i'd be fine with it - otherwise this should stay at the state/local level, where it has been making a difference.

I'm constantly AMAZED at the amount of fed'l programs that need not be run from DC. If they want to just fund local/state programs, i'm not even gonna complain about that.
That's the definition of the old "block grants" or what has become known as "new federalism"
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I wonder just how many people who are critisizing this effort really took the time to read the linked article in the OP?

From the article:

...the White House is still signing on private businesses and does not have a final number for how much they have committed to “My Brother’s Keeper.” The White House hopes corporations will pledge to mentor and hire young minority men.

And some of the foundations that are involved in the effort were already planning on making investments in young minority men before the White House got involved. Robert Ross, the CEO of the California Endowment nonprofit, said his organization had already pledged $50 million over seven years for its “sons and brothers” program,
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Reading comprehension, folks. Nothing in the OP article mentions the use of federal tax dollars for this mentoring initiative. From the sound of it, every nickle would come from private funding. So, why are you folks complaining? I'd think you'd be glad on two fronts:

1. No tax dollars are being spent on the program; and,

2. It helps these so-called "thugs" learn how to "take more responsibility for themselves". :roll:

3. Rich people are putting their own money to use....you know, the money they earned to have the freedom to keep more of it and do with it whatever they want.

I mean, these companies and charities are living by the principles Conservatives preach about. So, who are you folks to critisize? I say STFU! It's not your money.
 
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Summerwind said:
i would agree if that were true. Unfortunately it's not. There are no choices made by that youth that forces his mother to have to work 3 jobs, put him in cheap, overcrowded daycares, have no energy to help him with homework or a quality homemade meal if she's even lucky enough hours off her other jobs to do more than sleep, unequal likelihood that he's going to be regularly hassled by the police ....
The list is long. You're ability to see and empathize with reality is shallow.
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Yes, no doubt it is tough being the son of a single mom who is struggling just to survive.
Still, the outcomes of one's life depend on the choices one makes. If youth can be shown that their quality of life depends on the choices that they make, and if they can be guided to making better choices, then they can break the cycle of poverty. If a kid's daddy ran off, never married their mom, is a total sleeze ball, that doesn't mean that the kid has to do so as well. Of course, it's more difficult than it is for middle class kids, but the bottom line is that we are still the masters of our own fate.
 
Objective Voice said:
I wonder just how many people who are critisizing this effort really took the time to read the linked article in the OP?

From the article:



Reading comprehension, folks. Nothing in the OP article mentions the use of federal tax dollars for this mentoring initiative. From the sound of it, every nickle would come from private funding. So, why are you folks complaining? I'd think you'd be glad on two fronts:

1. No tax dollars are being spent on the program; and,

2. It helps these so-called "thugs" learn how to "take more responsibility for themselves". :roll:

3. Rich people are putting their own money to use....you know, the money they earned to have the freedom to keep more of it and do with it whatever they want.

I mean, these companies and charities are living by the principles Conservatives preach about. So, who are you folks to critisize? I say STFU! It's not your money.
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I know it is like the bigotry and ignorance of the right blinds them to reality or something.
 
Erod said:
There isn't an amount of money that can possibly address a man's innate lack of concern for taking responsibility for his own children.

What, are we going to bribe them?
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You're right. Good thing the program isn't geared towards dead-beat dads. Or perhaps it should! But then you'd only classify that as wasted money, too. :roll:
 
Dittohead not! said:
"Men of color" is code for "anyone whose ancestors didn't come from Europe", and includes Native Americans, Asians, and Hispanics in the same somewhat diverse group.

As long as it is, as advertised, privately funded, I have no objection to it. If my money is to be used, then it needs to include poor whites as well.
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If this was a privately funded all white male only program, would you still not have a problem?
 
Dittohead not! said:
Yes, no doubt it is tough being the son of a single mom who is struggling just to survive.
Still, the outcomes of one's life depend on the choices one makes. If youth can be shown that their quality of life depends on the choices that they make, and if they can be guided to making better choices, then they can break the cycle of poverty. If a kid's daddy ran off, never married their mom, is a total sleeze ball, that doesn't mean that the kid has to do so as well. Of course, it's more difficult than it is for middle class kids, but the bottom line is that we are still the masters of our own fate.
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Except that we can't show them that in this economy or in the oligarchy we currently live under. It's like religion, you can believe in it, but there's no current reality that backs any of it up.
 
jimbo said:
If this was a privately funded all white male only program, would you still not have a problem?
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as long as it was privately funded, no. I wouldn't contribute to it, you understand, but other people can contribute to whatever charity they choose to.
 
jimbo said:
If this was a privately funded all white male only program, would you still not have a problem?
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Heya Jimbo :2wave: .....Well as some have pointed out. That exclusion part.....and equality thingy. Doesn't seem to hit home.
 
Summerwind said:
Except that we can't show them that in this economy or in the oligarchy we currently live under. It's like religion, you can believe in it, but there's no current reality that backs any of it up.
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Oh, I think current reality is that the US is still a land of opportunity. If you choose to believe that the problem is "society" or "whitie", or "the man", then you'll never make the effort to break the cycle of poverty. If you can be led to believe that your choices really do make a difference, then the cycle can be broken. Our society has many middle class Americans who were born into poverty. It can be done, and is all the time.

but, no one said it was easy, or that a little help along the way is a bad thing.
 
Objective Voice said:
I wonder just how many people who are critisizing this effort really took the time to read the linked article in the OP?

From the article:



Reading comprehension, folks. Nothing in the OP article mentions the use of federal tax dollars for this mentoring initiative. From the sound of it, every nickle would come from private funding. So, why are you folks complaining? I'd think you'd be glad on two fronts:

1. No tax dollars are being spent on the program; and,

2. It helps these so-called "thugs" learn how to "take more responsibility for themselves". :roll:

3. Rich people are putting their own money to use....you know, the money they earned to have the freedom to keep more of it and do with it whatever they want.

I mean, these companies and charities are living by the principles Conservatives preach about. So, who are you folks to critisize? I say STFU! It's not your money.
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I read what I can, but I go thru columns of text each day; so it's easy to miss something.

About this:
The president will create a new interagency My Brother’s Keeper Task Force headed by Broderick Johnson, the Cabinet secretary and assistant to the president. Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Attorney General Eric Holder, Labor Secretary Thomas Perez and other senior officials will be personally involved in “My Brother’s Keeper,” according to Jarrett.
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are these federal duties?
Does the Task Force use fed'l organizational abilities -or I this all done by these officials on their own time?

If it's part of fed'l duties, it does impact on other duties these Cabinet officials have to accomplish ? A smaller point then actual fed'l $ being used, and I doubt cabinet officials are over worked
. But it's worth looking at.

I doubt anyone here has any problems with peer mentoring, but it is worthwhile to question whether these ideas are better implemented by locals or state or feds, or a combination of all 3.

Too many people just willy-nilly look at an idea and are automatically OK with federalization, was the larger idea of my post.
 
Objective Voice said:
No. But we call that the 4-H Club, Boy Scouts, Boy's Club, YMCA or better yet COLLEGE! :lol:
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My bad. I was under the impression that none of the clubs you mentioned excluded anyone.
 
NIMBY said:
President Obama had a nice feel-good moment.
He could have knocked it out of the park with some needy white faces behind him.
BHO missed a golden opportunity to bring together ALL colors needy.
White voters have a right to be upset at not being included, since 'inclusion' is the going word .
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You have got to be kidding me?

I can't speak to the press conference, but did anyone bother to look at the picture from the OP article? I counted 3 White adults in the shot...2 males, 1 female.

MBK.jpg

Would you be okay if that became the poster for the "My Brother's Keeper" program? Would that make y'all White folks happy?

(I'm being sarcastic, but dang, man! :doh Why does everything this man does have to be laced by the pundits with a touch of racism or political partisan brinksmanship? Why can't he just be doing something because it's the right thing to do?)
 
jimbo said:
My bad. I was under the impression that none of the clubs you mentioned excluded anyone.
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They don't. However, my point is such programs have long been far more accessible to young White boys than they have been to young Black boys. Don't confuse "access" with "restriction".
 
About this:
The president will create a new interagency My Brother’s Keeper Task Force headed by Broderick Johnson, the Cabinet secretary and assistant to the president. Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Attorney General Eric Holder, Labor Secretary Thomas Perez and other senior officials will be personally involved in “My Brother’s Keeper,” according to Jarrett.
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Does it cost any more tax payer dollars to add to these Cabinet member's responsibilities? Did their pay increase? No!?! So, again...

WHY DO YOU CARE? It's not your money being spent.
 
MMC said:
Young black men persistently lag behind other groups in high school graduation rates and employment, and, as White House officials point out, they are six times more likely than their white peers to be murdered.
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The best fix for the problems of young black men is to give them a job.

The problem of black male joblessness has increased at the same time that the immigrant proportion of our population has increased. The greatest gains made by blacks occurred during the 2nd Great Migration from the South to the North at a time when employers were desperate for employees and our immigration system was basically shut down. Labor scarcity FORCED employers to hire black men and women.

What's happening now is that blacks are being displaced from the labor force. We can't blame employers for preferring harder working, less troublesome immigrants but we're not engaged in a population swap here where for every immigrant brought into the nation we ship out a jobless black person.

Our first duty should be to our own citizens, not to foreigners. We need to create labor market conditions which FORCE employers to hire these young black men. It's at this point that improvements in their lives can begin. They'll have some responsibility, they'll be earning some money, they can improve themselves and be rewarded with more responsibility on the job and higher pay. This will boost their self-esteem. They can modify their own behavior by observing the behavior of their coworkers.

Obama though doesn't want to deport the illegals and cut off legal immigration, the direct causes of so much devastation in the African-American community.
 
Objective Voice said:
that constantly put down young Black teens (or Blacks in general) for being lazy, shiftless, thugs, vagrants and everything negative under the sun
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The labor market data doesn't paint a pretty picture. The reliability of many black men on the job is subpar and employers prefer avoiding the problems that they cause and instead seek out labor from other communities. You can't blame the employers for wanting less troublesome employees.
 
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