Category Archives: Socio-Cultural Commentary

Section for cultural views, critique, analysis

Health and Fitness, Socio-Cultural Commentary

$1,000 pill may cure Hepatitis C but leave you bankrupt

July 15, 2014 admin Leave a comment

$1,000 pill may cure Hepatitis C but leave you bankrupt

By: Dr. Samori Swygert

How will Obama Care manage this medical conundrum? A new Hepatitis C medication has hit the market. The name of the drug is called Sovaldi (Sofosbuvir). The cost is $1,000 per pill. Yes, I said $1,000 per pill, and the prescribed regimen is for 12 weeks.¹ This yields an astronomical medical expense of $90,000. However, clinical trials have noted that it cures 9 in 10 Hepatitis C patients. Gilead Sciences is the drug company that manufactures the medication.

The final prognosis of Hepatitis C results in liver transplantation, this usually occurs after severe decompensated Cirrhosis of the liver and treatment failure. The liver can’t be salvaged once this disease progresses to a certain point. Liver transplants cost as much as $577,000 according to an article published by WTOP (a reputable news source for Washington DC).³ Secondly, Hepatitis C has a 95% recurrence rate after liver transplantation. The public should also note that there are different genotypes of Hepatitis C, some more extensive and severe.

Hepatitis C is transmitted by blood, and sexual intercourse. The Infectious Disease Society of America (the leading medical authority on infectious disease) furnished their epidemiological estimates. The society estimates that approximately 3 to 4 million Americans are infected by Hepatitis C.²

There are other conventional therapeutic regimens that include medications like Ribavirin, Interferon, Simprevir, and more. However, many of the traditional regimens come with more undesirable side effects, and don’t produce the cure rate of Sovaldi.

This is critically important, because the Infectious Disease Society of America has actually updated their clinical guidelines for Hepatitis C. The update has made Sovaldi the first line treatment.

According to an article in Forbes Magazine, this same drug only costs $ 900 to complete the whole regimen in Egypt. You must ask yourself, “how does the manufacturer calculate their drug price?”. Many times drug manufacturers have to recoup all the expenses in research, drug development, marketing, and etc. However, this is a kind of precedent setting, and especially when you consider how cheap it is in another country but 100 times more expensive domestically.

This is going to throw so many curveballs and monkey wrenches in the Affordable Care Act and Medicare/Medicaid. How will states and insurance companies decide who is worthy of this drug?

The state of Oregon has already initiated discussion on how to limit access to this expensive medication to low income individuals. This is a social joust between ethics and economics. This manifests the true meaning of “the cost of living”. This also accentuates the argument of wealth disparities. A clear and distinct argument can be made about health versus wealth. A 1%’er with Hepatitis C wouldn’t flinch at the cost of this medication, however this budget item could dismantle an entire family that’s struggling in today’s economy. This makes you question the “AFFORDABILITY”, in the Affordable Care Act.

Lastly, this emphasizes the importance of responsibility in lifestyle, and creating wealth base. When individuals participate in risky behaviors such as unprotected sex, and IV drug use, you increase your susceptibility to disabling diseases such as Hepatitis C. The disease itself is physiologically crippling, and so is the burden of expense from pharmaceutical therapy.

We must understand that the interests of pharmaceutical lobbyists reside in maximization of profit for drug manufacturers, and not necessarily the patient in all instances. If the concern for patients were top priority, the government and the manufacturers would devise a more economically affordable strategy to increase accessibility to all infected patients, independent of costs.

What are your thoughts?? Is this a form of medical gentrification? Should the government intervene and regulate drug pricing?

Sources:

1. http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2014/06/17/the-sovaldi-tax-gilead-cant-justify-the-price-its-asking-americans-to-pay/

2. http://www.hcvguidelines.org/

3. http://www.wtop.com/628/3644354/1000-a-pill-Sovaldi-jolts-US-health-care-system

Business & Financial News, Socio-Cultural Commentary

How NSA surveillance can compromise our financial security

July 15, 2014 admin Leave a comment

How NSA surveillance can compromise our financial security

By: Dr. Samori Swygert

I think that the surge in government intrusion into our privacy poses a risk. Eric Snowden revealed the vast collection and archiving of our telephone, email, and internet data. Can unlimited access to our private plans compromise and undermine the American financial system, economic system, and rights to intellectual property (patents, trademarks, and research)?

My hypothesis is, humans are flawed and are easily corruptible when the appropriate stimulus is presented. As humans we are imperfect and live with vices, habits, hang-ups, and react in the most unpredictable manner when we’re desperate.

NSA versus Intellectual Property

The following is a hypothetical scenario to illustrate my point. Let’s say myself and 3 other colleagues have been designing a new invention that we wish to get patented. We may email each other the layout, designs, specifications, mechanisms, equations, measurements, and other details that go into making an invention. Our invention could revolutionize the automobile industry forever.

Let’s say an NSA employee scans our email because one of my colleagues has an Arabic name that flags their system protocol. While reviewing the email, the NSA employee realizes that he/she has stumbled upon a gold mine because he understands the potential of our invention. He/she then takes all of our information and either sells it to bankrolled car industry expert or to a friend that decides to beat us to the patent process.

We can’t say this isn’t possible when Eric Snowden was able to pull hundreds to thousands of highly classified documents for his agenda. I believe this is how mass surveillance can compromise the intellectual property of American citizens.

NSA versus the American Financial System

Allow me to pose another hypothetical scenario. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), regulates the investing system. They protect the financial market from fraudulent activity, insider trading, promote a fair monetary system, and a myriad of other responsibilities. We’ve seen Martha Stewart serve time for insider trading of her shares of ImClone stock. We’ve seen what happened with Bernie Madoff, Enron, WorldCom, and more.

Imagine the amount of powerful information an NSA employee has at their disposal. What kind of financial power could be gained by accessing Warren Buffet’s email, phone calls, and internet activity.

The NSA employee could literally tip the hands of any and every corporation, private equity firm, hedge fund, and mogul. They would have private knowledge on future mergers, acquisitions, sell-offs, splits, and other big Wall Street /private sector deals. This valuable information grants a secret advantage and privilege to an NSA employee. They can sell this knowledge to a select few, or use it to unfairly enrich themselves.

This is how I think mass surveillance can compromise the American Financial System.

NSA versus the American Political System

American history and civics classes always reinforced the dynamic of “checks and balances”. This purported mechanism was constructed to guarantee that no branch of the federal government overstepped their respected boundary.

However, the American political system has consistently evolved since its’ initial inception. We’ve arrived at a crossroad where money, Super-Pacs, soft money campaign contributions, television, radio, and social media steers our political system in an unprecedented manner.

We’ve seen how the IRS is now under the scrutiny and investigation for targeting Republican and Tea Party affiliated political figures. The IRS is accused of illegally going through their emails.

Do you remember the David Petraeus scandal, or New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s bridge debacle? Their political integrity were and are placed on the line by emails and text messages. Imagine the political power that can be yielded if bank rolled special interest groups started throwing massive amounts of money at NSA employees to excavate private dirt on political opponents. What if they paid them to divulge political strategies, and campaign plans of political opponents, to intervene and prematurely counter attack other political candidates?

This is how I believe this era of mass surveillance and collection of data compromises the American political system, financial system, and possibilities of intellectual property.

We are vulnerable and susceptible to a hidden monkey wrench in our daily lives. We don’t know how our data is being used, manipulated, and exploited. We have no way to assess the character and integrity of the individuals that have unlimited access to our most intimate and private plans. The more technology and government become intricately interwoven in our lives, we evolve into victims of control. The person that doesn’t know, will always be the victim to the well informed.

I would advise you to watch the cable show: American Greed. This show profiles how some of the most sophisticated crimes have been orchestrated by individuals in power due to a perversion of their moral character.

Peace

Government, Socio-Cultural Commentary

The Library of Congress archives everyone’s Tweets

July 15, 2014 admin Leave a comment

The Library of Congress archives everyone’s Tweets

by Dr. Samori Swygert

We live in a highly sophisticated and technology driven society. Many of us have become desensitized to the intrusion of privacy by various governmental agencies. We’ve seen civil liberties dwindle away piece by piece under the Patriot Act. Many people are comfortable with the sacrifice or trade-off of civil liberties for the promise of national security.

Edward Snowden, William Binney, and other whistleblowers have divulged the various means in which the government conducts “data mining.” This is a process in which any and all desired digital data is collected, intercepted, screened, stored, warehoused, and archived for retrieval at any request.

Well, the Library of Congress and Twitter signed an agreement in which the Library of Congress collects and stores all Tweets from the users of Twitter.

This may be old news to some people, but this may be new news to many people. The following is a direct excerpt from the Library of Congress website : “This month, all those objectives will be completed. We now have an archive of approximately 170 billion tweets and growing. The volume of tweets the Library receives each day has grown from 140 million beginning in February 2011 to nearly half a billion tweets each day as of October 2012.”

I think the important message in all of this is that as consumers and patrons, we need to truly understand all the implications of the privacy agreements before we click “ok” or “agree” at all times. Many service providers of software, telecommunication, and other digital services have disclosures that we should think about seriously. Many companies have established contracts with the government to hand over your personal data (if requested) to specific government agencies. We’ve seen this resurface with the email and cellphone providers in this Edward Snowden versus the NSA debacle.

Twitter is made for individuals to publicly express their opinions, interests, and perspectives. However, I think it’s important to keep this in the back of your mind as you think about posting various statements and pictures on the internet. We all can use a reminder, but I also believe we need to remind our kids and adolescent family members about internet etiquette, appropriateness, and integrity of character.

We’re in the age of “selfies,” “cyberbullying,” and “doing it for the Vine!,” but always remember Big Brother is watching, Third Party Cyber Voyeurs are lurking, and what you say and post can potentially come back to haunt you in the future. Don’t forget about the young black male that is serving time for threatening the President on Twitter.

This is also extremely important in era when unemployment is high, job and education competition is intense. You don’t want your future judged on a knee jerk Tweet, drunk Tweet, or indecent photo that you posted. I think sociopolitical commentary is okay as long as it’s respectable, logical, and devoid of violent rhetoric.

Here are some links from the Library of Congress for reference and to share with your children:

http://blogs.loc.gov/loc/2013/01/update-on-the-twitter-archive-at-the-library-of-congress/

http://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2013/files/twitter_report_2013jan.pdf

Socio-Cultural Commentary

African American homicides may fuel organ trafficking

July 15, 2014 admin Leave a comment

African American homicides may fuel organ trafficking

By: Dr. Samori Swygert

I was having a conversation with my studio engineer last night, and he encouraged me to watch a BBC documentary on the underground economy of organ harvesting and cadavers. This came up because I was telling him about the morbidity rates of African Americans that come through the hospital I work at.

I was explaining (in anonymity for HIPAA purposes) how there are so many young African Americans diagnosed with HIV, HIV(+) mothers that are giving birth, and of course victims of shootings, and stabbings. We were discussing potential methods of reducing crime and risky behavior through the music we’re producing, via positive and real life messages.

I watched the BBC Documentary, and the facts in the documentary hit me like a ton of bricks. Various factions of society are profiteering hundreds of millions into billions of dollars from both an illegal underground, and a legally regulated economy based on dead bodies.

The documentary detailed the intricacies of demands that medical schools have for cadavers, to train medical and dental students. This is how soon to be doctors gain their skill, and mastery of anatomical orientation. Anatomy and physiology are the basic bricks in almost any career in the healthcare field. Thus, there is a high demand for cadavers for students to dissect and train.

Many people also undergo orthopedic surgery, organ transplants, and other tissue replacement surgeries. There is a reciprocal balance to life and death. The longer you live, the probability of needing some sort of surgery increases, and the humans that die and choose to donate their bodies, serve as a viable resource for successful surgeries. Cadavers can be used for their: corneas, bones, heart valves, skin, blood vessels (Saphenous Veins for cardiac bypass surgery), and of course their organs.

The documentary estimated that a cadaver can be worth up to $250,000. This made me extrapolate this to our African American community and the conversation I had with my music engineer, Highlife. Are we worth more posthumously, when we consider young African Americans dying in the violence like in : Chicago, Miami, Camden, Philly, Detroit, New York City, New Orleans, and etc?

Let’s look at the math. Let’s say a relatively young 18 year old male that lives in the streets without a financially established family bleeds to death from a gunshot to the neck. If the family can’t afford to bury him properly, or there is just no family claim to him, he can be a jackpot for this economy. Harvesters can use his veins for bypass surgery, his corneas, heart, liver, lungs, kidneys, his bones, and a whole lot more. Let’s extrapolate this to annual murder rates within America that hit triple digit numbers on an annual basis in numerous states across the country.

This is serious, remember Trayvon Martin’s body lay in the morgue unclaimed and unidentified for a few days. What would have happened to his relatively healthy young body?

Between the use of cadavers and the prison industry, we are fueling a multibillion dollar industry from cultural genocide within our African American community. One person goes to jail and institutions cash in, the other dies and institutions cash in, funeral homes cash in, firearms and ammunition manufacturers cash in, medical supply companies cash in from surgical use and supplies required for length of stay in a hospital.

People were we born to be the cash cow of America by subscribing and resorting to violence? Also, I’m not interested in hearing that other cultures kill their people, I’m solely focused and concerned about what’s happening in our community because these homicides, and suicides are affecting our families and future.

What’s your thoughts on this? I have attached the link to the BBC documentary below so you can watch it with your family or just yourself. Peace……

http://youtu.be/gzy4N1KzOAc

Business & Financial News, Socio-Cultural Commentary

Is “increasing minimum wage” just feel good rhetoric?

July 15, 2014 admin Leave a comment

Is “increasing minimum wage” just feel good rhetoric?

By: Dr. Samori Swygert

For many workers across America, their hourly wage has remained stagnant, fixed, and inflexible. The only financial increase many have experienced is the cost of living.

This article will address the everyday cost of living and its’ incongruences with the hourly wage of the average American. The question to ask is, “Is an increase in hourly wage, too little too late or a last minute attempt to pacify the American populace?”

Household budgets remained strapped for cash. Family members routinely trim expenditures, and choose between their wants, needs, and mandatories. The inability to effectively prepare for retirement, emergencies, children’s education, afford a wedding, and even deciding to have children are all governed by our earning potential.

President Barack Obama rallied for an increase in the federal minimum wage with vigor, fervor, and tenacity in his State of the Union address a few months ago. President Obama’s aim was to increase the federal minimum wage to $10.00/hour. However, that is federal minimum wage, meaning for government employees. I agree with the President that the minimum wage should be increased.

My 2 questions for America is: “What about the non-federal employees across America?”, and “Is $10.00/hour enough to survive in America, realistically?”

Some states are adopting the approach that President Obama rallied for, and have begun to increase their state minimum wage. We’ve seen strikes, walkouts, and protests from fast food to Walmart employees breakout from state to state.

Let’s analyze this

Virtually every facet of our society has increased the price tag on the goods and service they provide to Americans.

FITNESS- Washington D.C. has moved to implement a Yoga tax. Yes, gyms will now have to pay a Yoga tax for fitness. The D.C. government feels this tax based revenue can help subsidize the expenses on the city’s budget.

MILK- The New York Post published a March 2014 article that details how the cost of a gallon of milk may increase to an extra $1.00 based on the projection of dairy industry experts.

MEAT, POULTRY, FISH- The Daily Mail quoted some statistics published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in a June 2014 article. They assert that the cost of meat, poultry, and fish have increased 7.7% over the last year. Furthermore, they graphically displayed the increase in cost of meat, poultry, and fish based on the Consumer Price Index. Meat, poultry, and fish are at the highest point they have ever been since 1967 according to the Consumer Price Index.

CHILD CARE- In April 2014, The Pew Research Center published an article that analyzed the increasing trend of stay at home mothers over decades. The data reveals that more mothers are choosing to be stay at home moms due to the elevation in the cost of child care. The research also shows that from 1985 to 2011, the average weekly cost of child care increased by more than 70% when using inflation-adjusted dollars. All my friends and work colleagues with children attest that their weekly childcare is approximately $250 or more. This calculates to at least $12,000 per year in basic childcare. A $10.00/hour job calculates to $19,200 before taxes. Childcare alone will consume over half your income in a $10.00/hour job. This doesn’t factor in food, transportation, housing, utilities, clothing, emergencies, and SAVING!

Moving along……….

RENT- April 2014, The New York Times published an article that detailed how the average cost of rent has drastically increased nationally. The asserted premise recommends that rent and utilities should not exceed 30% of your household income. They provide detailed data from 2000 – 2013. The average percentage of rent and utility expenditures in 2000 hovered around 25%. 2013 the average percentage of rent and utility expenditures has risen to almost 40%.

ENERGY BILLS- I won’t go too far in detail about the increase in energy bills for households for the sake of brevity in the article. I’ll furnish the links for you to review at your leisure. However, from Chicago, to Baltimore, to New Orleans, to California, the utility bills are increasing dramatically. Chicago’s electricity bills are projected to increase by 18%, Baltimore Gas and Electric Company will add an additional $15.00 to customer’s monthly bill in the upcoming months. The New Orleans energy company, Entergy, has reached an agreement with Algiers, New Orleans to increase energy rates by 31% over a 4 year period.

TRANSPORTATION- Transportation costs have risen and are increasing nationally. The supplied links will illustrate how fares have increased for subways, tolls, bridges, tunnels, buses, and ferry.

COLLEGE TUITION- We can’t forget how the cost of tuition has skyrocketed to unimaginable and almost unattainable proportions (please read the NPR article that is attached).

GASOLINE- We can’t forget the cost of gasoline, and the implementation of the gas tax (please see the Washington Post article).

HEALTHCARE- Yes, we have Obamacare in play but not all states are implementing it. Secondly, just because you may now get healthcare, it doesn’t stop the increase on healthcare deductibles and copays that many insurance companies are hiking up. (Please see the USA Today article)

So in conclusion

The increase in minimum wage to $10.00 isn’t enough. This increase doesn’t match the cost of living in today’s society. The sad part is that the outcry from millions of workers across the nation is loud. However, corporations assert that they won’t have enough to run their business, and will be forced to lay off workers if they increase minimum wages. This is a bunch of nonsense because these same corporations give multimillion dollar year-end bonuses to their top cabinet members each consecutive year. This is supported by McDonald’s deciding to give their new CEO a $13.8 million dollar package from his $4.1 million dollar package in 2011.

Let’s not forget about the raiding and dismantling of employees pension funds.

The promise to raise minimum wage by 2 or 3 dollars is a pacifying move, something to placate the American demographic into silence. However, we don’t need a conciliation prize, we need gainful employment, and in the same breath, we as citizens need to focus on entrepreneurship and group economics to uplift ourselves.

The articles I furnished are proof positive that corporate America doesn’t care about the proletariat that propels them into wealth.

Science & Technology, Socio-Cultural Commentary

Weaponized drones will create the most unthinkable atrocities

July 15, 2014 admin Leave a comment

What happens when drones become weaponized domestically?

by Dr. Samori Swygert

Most Americans are familiar with drones or UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles). What will happen when drones become weaponized domestically?

This article will address the dangerous possibilities of the manipulation and exploitation of drone technology and the dilemma of science and technology that outpaces legislation and regulation.

Some citizens are unconcerned about drones. Many feel that drones provide national security. However, drones are like any other device that can be used as a weapon. The final result resides with the person in control of the apparatus.

Here’s an example:

You can put a gun in the hand of a well-trained, ethical police officer and she/he can provide security without a problem. You can take the same gun and put it in the hands of a Virginia Tech student, and he can kill and injure multitudes of innocent citizens. What is the intent and mind state of the operators of these killing apparatuses?

Now that drone technology is out of Pandora’s Box, what are we to do? The government isn’t the only manufacturer of drones, there are private sector manufacturers that construct drones.

To confound the situation, we also have home-made engineers and physicists that build all types of machines and apparatuses within the confines of their abode.

The majority of American inventions were built in an attic, basement, garage, backyard, or private lab. These same inventions are eventually sold to government agencies, corporations, or propel the inventor into successful entrepreneurship.

I forecast that in the near future, backyard inventors will equip home-made drones with guns and other forms of munitions. The moment this occurs, we will witness some of the most unthinkable atrocities across the country.

Exploring the possible implications

Think about how Medgar Evers, Martin Luther King, and John Kennedy were assassinated. Imagine an armed weaponized drone that can hover around a specific target unknowingly and discreetly. The drone could be perched at an inaccessible but perfect vantage point for a kill shot, and then remotely guided back to its owner with stealth. Instead of drive-by’s we could start seeing fly-by’s.

Think about how we have Neo-Nazis, KKK, Skinheads, and other racists and anti-Semitic groups across the country. These groups could wage their own sick wars on innocent civilians with personal weaponized drones. They could fly these drones into highly populated African American communities and take out many blacks, and the news would probably say, “They were victims of random acts of gun viοlence, gang wars, innocent by-standers, or drug related shootings,” and people wouldn’t think twice.

Let me make this clear: This could enable a high-tech, modern day “Black Wall Street” or “16^th Street Baptist Church Bombing.” The Black Wall Street bombing was the aerial fire-bombing of a productive African American community in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The 16^th Street Baptist Church bombing in Alabama was a hate crime where four little girls were killed by a racist. The only difference now is that this new technology could allow this to be done by a drone.

You may say I’m pushing the envelope, but let’s extrapolate this to mass school shootings. Imagine a sick individual that has positioned a weaponized drone by schools, offices, or shopping malls, and remotely shoots innocent civilians while at home eating milk and cookies like it’s a video game. Woah! Well we just saw two 12-year-old girls stαb another girl multiple times to please a fictional internet character.

Let’s be logical

I’m just a writer that thinks about situations from several angles other than the one angle presented. The use of drones is presented as a security tool, but there are many other dimensions that are ignored and intentionally dismissed.

Last week, CBS reported that a Seattle woman saw a drone hovering outside her apartment window and viewing her activity. The woman alerted the building staff and they went outside, at that point the owners of the drone quickly packed up their equipment and drove away before local authorities arrived.

According to Politico, this also happened to Sen. Dianne Feinstein. Dianne Feinstien said she walked up to one of the windows in her home and a drone was positioned just inches away from her face. Once that occurred, she began pressing for drone regulation. Now, imagine if that was weaponized.

My thoughts

I think it’s too late now. The technology is here, and you can’t regulate criminals. You can make laws, but a criminal’s philosophy is premised on the disregard for law. How do you regulate and control what people are building in their homes?

My other concern is the government or police’s use of drones domestically. Once you’re on a watchlist, you don’t know if you’re targeted for surveillance and or elimination. There is a no fly-list, but people are unaware of the eligibility criteria that places them on this type of list and other lists. What happens if you’re viewed as a threat or your name is confused with another individual that should be on a watch-list? There are even companies in South Africa that have built drones that fire pepper spray bullets for striking South African miners.

However, there is a drone industry, and industries generate money and tax-based revenue. I’m very cautious about the use of drones. If I can see this and feel reluctance and apprehension, please believe some sicko is probably already plotting and salivating for the right time.

This is not a case of IF but a case of WHEN. Keep your eyes peeled! Peace!

Here is a Youtube parody clip I made from Watch the throne by Jay-Z and Kanye West:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=iEHFRgW-j8Q

Environmental, Socio-Cultural Commentary

11 catastrophic trends that we are ignoring

July 15, 2014 admin Leave a comment

11 serious trends that we may be ignoring

by Dr. Samori Swygert

Are we paying attention to these critical trends in today’s society? Our Brave New World is so busy. The average citizen is stuck on a social hamster wheel and the rest of the country is like a circus or movie.

It appears as if we only have enough time to take a breather of a nap, and do it all again the next day. We only have a morsel of “me time” between careers, spouses, children, relatives, social/civic/religious commitments, school, traffic and friends.

However, do we take enough time to piece apart what we are seeing? Do some of us just brush off serious events like they’re one-time scenarios? Are we growing desensitized?

Let’s look at these trends:

1. Parents killing children and children killing parents

A 16-year-old may face 40 years for killing his parents because they punished him by taking away his iPod. In the same vein, we just saw a father throw his child off the roof in New York City this winter, and a mother driving her kids into the sea, and a father hacked his son to death because he said his son was possessed. What’s behind all of this? I’m positive that there is some mental health issues at hand here. However, these are not isolated incidents. There has been a surge in these atrocities across the nation, but are we paying attention and taking tally? Why is murder considered as a solution for problems now?

2. Teen Suicide is on the rise

The cry for help, attention, and love from our children is reaching the highest audible decibel, but we still turn a deaf ear to our offspring. Elementary school kids to college students are killing themselves in unprecedented numbers. Our youth are killing themselves because they feel they aren’t accepted, they’re bullied, harassed about sëxual orientation, unloved, feel the pain of broken families, and more. Are we too busy as parents, relatives, friends, and neighbors to stop, listen, talk to and help workout the complexities of life with our youth?

3. There’s an increase in the diagnoses of Bipolar Schizophrenia, ADD, ADHD, OCD, Depression

Whenever you watch a TV show, a drug commercial comes on that advertises the latest prescription drug for a psychological disorder. The commercial typically starts like this, “Do you feel moody sometimes; Have your friends sensed a change in you?; Do you just not feel like that person you once were?; Do you have problems focusing through the day?” The commercial will list a myriad of signs, symptoms, and subjective adjectives that you can relate to. However, that is just the commercials. How many people do you know that have been diagnosed with a mental disorder? How many children do you know that have been diagnosed with a behavioral/mental disorder? Are you paying attention to this increase? What is it about today’s society that has many of us undergoing behavioral/mental/psychiatric disorders? Why are so many Americans suffering from mental illness lately?

4. There’s an increase in natural disasters

We have grown accustomed to natural disasters plaguing our environment. They appear to happen like clockwork. The only thing that we can’t predict is the severity and the number of casualties involved. Think about the tsunamis, earthquakes, hurricanes, mudslides, wildfires, sinkholes, droughts, and flooding. Some of us are so busy, and don’t care to think in depth, as long as these disasters don’t affect us or our loved ones. I’m also aware of man-made disasters and human tinkering of our planet with geo-engineering, fracking, mining, and underground experimentation. Where are we headed environmentally if these disasters keep occurring naturally or by human manipulation of nature?

5. There’s an increase in emerging infectious disease

I’m not just referring to HIV, I’m talking about the resurgence, and spread of new and old diseases. Polio has reappeared all over the globe, we have MERS spreading, the measles and mumps are popping up all over the map, SARS and “SARS-like” diseases are spreading. There’s the Chikungunya virus plaguing Africa and the Caribbean. How, why, and where do these diseases originate? Are we dealing with pure microbial progression or something more sinister in nature?

6. A surge in blatant police brutality

It’s strictly my opinion that police brutality has increased in frequency and rapidity. It seems like every other week, police officers are being caught abusing their power, using excessive force, and/or shooting unarmed citizens. How comfortable or conditioned are we with this abuse of power, and increased militarization of local law enforcement?

7. Surges in banking fiascos

We can talk about the long list of banking employees that have committed suicide since last year. We can talk about how hundreds of millions of dollars keep going missing, and a manager will get fired with a fat severance check. We can talk about the Libor scandal, or even the closing of banks in Europe, or offshore banking with Credit Suisse. Yet, Wall Street is seeing one of its biggest rallies in history. How do you feel about that?

8. Stripping of civil liberties

Police can take your DNA samples, your phone, your email, and your text messages are no longer private. Drones hover above us; cameras are ubiquitous. Cops can now pull you over for driving and search your car based on an “anonymous tip.” Do you feel like everything is being taken away from you bit by bit?

9. Food, Device, Automobile, and Drug recalls

If it’s not tomatoes, spinach, chicken, thousands of pounds of beef, automobile airbags, ignition switches, defective seat belts, child car seats, peanut butter, or prescription medication, something is always being recalled. What is really going on in our production and manufacturing process? Does safety, quality, and care go into anything we make anymore?

10. Pastoral Suicides

I won’t even try to count the amount of pastoral suicides. All I will say is visit: www.allchristiannews.com and do your own homework.

11. Gentrification

Across America we’re seeing citizens being displaced from their communities. We can look at Harlem, Chicago, Washington, D.C., all the way to California, and you will see this socio-economic phenomenon rearing its head. How are we creating a population of nomadic citizens?

Thoughts????

Business & Financial News, Socio-Cultural Commentary

Corporate America’s “do more with less” is killing us

July 15, 2014 admin Leave a comment

Death and product recalls tied to job layoffs

by Dr. Samori Swygert

The O’Jays made a song entitled “For the Love of Money.” Now, the chickens are coming home to roost.

I started thinking about the unemployment rate and the associated correlations. There is nothing wrong with creating revenue, but corporate greed always produces human carnage. Have you paid much attention to the increase in recalls of automobiles, drugs, and food? Have you really examined the root cause analysis of the VA Hospital debacle? What about the recalls of cribs, car seats, and strollers?

It’s strictly my opinion that America has become obsessed with the philosophy of, “do more with less.” I think this corporate economic ideology is responsible for increased layoffs, downsizing, and the shipping of jobs overseas. Ultimately, this approach results in tragedies and greater expense.

However, if we continue conducting in-depth analysis, we’ll see there’s a correlation between many of these recalls and the cutting of jobs, and cutting of corners. Check out the examples below:

General Motor Recalls and Layoffs

I read a June 7, 2013 article in Bloomberg Business that explained how GM was going to lay off 430 factory workers (in Michigan) so the company can “retool.” The article said that 430 workers will be furloughed in phases, and they have no obligation to keep temporary workers. GM was reported to be building a new plant in which the workers would return to work. I don’t have an update on the employees that returned. However, we now see that GM has come under intense unprecedented corporate scrutiny and chastisement for faulty ignition switches which have been implicated in 13 deaths and 54 accidents. Globally, GM had to recall approximately 15 million vehicles.

Ford Motor Recalls and Layoffs

Ford Motor Company had to recall 1.3 million vehicles due to power steering defects at the end of May 2014. According to USA Today, “The biggest recall was of 915,216 Ford Escapes and its corporate sibling, the since-discontinued Mercury Mariner, from the 2008 to 2011 model years over the steering issue. All of the compact SUVs were made at Ford’s Kansas City Plant and 736,407 are believed to be in the U.S., with most of the rest in Canada and Mexico”. Ford also recalled 195,527 vehicles produced from its Chicago plant from 2011-2013.

I researched this a little bit and the Kansas City Business Journal reported that Ford laid off 150 workers from its Kansas City Plant. A 2008 article from The Chicago Tribune reported that Ford was going to cut over 2,000 salaried employees. The following are direct excerpts from the article, “There’s a full-court press on to get things done as quickly as possible,” said David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Michigan. “The pressure is on to get the turnaround under way before the money runs out. They’ve got to conserve cash as best they can. Ford has 23,700 salaried workers at the end of 2007. The automaker has cut the number of full-time salaried workers in North America by 10,800 since the end of 2005.”

Graco Car Seat Recall and Layoffs

You start to see a direct correlation when you compare the time frames of the layoffs to recalls. I think this also is prevalent with the baby car seats. Let’s take a look at Graco. Graco is a Minnesota-based company that manufactures baby car seats and other retail items. According to a December 2008 Star Tribune article, Graco cut up to 240 jobs, and the company projected that the cut would save them $9 million per year. Fast forward to 2014, Consumer Reports published an article detailing the recall of 3.7 million car seats due to buckle issues. The time frame for the recall included various models from 2009 to 2013. Hmmm… Coincidental???

We open Pandora’s box of trouble when we look at the American human labor force as dispensable. Yes, many companies took a hard hit from the 2008 economic crisis and had to make decisions. However, it’s imperative that companies conduct true risk-benefit analysis and not just cost-benefit analysis. The cycle of layoffs, furloughs, and downsizing can carry risky ramifications that may cost more than the money you project to save through layoffs. This over conservative practice eventually compromises quality assurance, product integrity, inspection, oversight, and safety.

Saving a few million dollars doesn’t compare to the loss of money from a tarnished brand, class action lawsuits (from death or injury), litigation, forced inspections, and upgrades from government and industrial agencies.

I think this illustrates how the greed of capitalism destroys families via unemployment and physical harm. This illustrates how greed returns to ruin you. Furthermore, this illuminates the necessity, and integral role that human labor plays in public safety.

Can I definitively conclude that layoffs cause death and product recalls? No, but based on the preponderance of evidence which I’ve supplied, there is a strong correlation. What are your thoughts? You decide….

“Money can drive some people out their mind”- The O’Jays

http://youtu.be/kjuRhETwbI0

Human and Civil Rights, Socio-Cultural Commentary

Does the black LGBT community give away too much of its’ power?

July 15, 2014 admin Leave a comment

Does the black LGBT community give away too much of its’ power?

by Dr. Samori Swygert

Routinely, popular culture loves throwing out slogans and clichés. The following are my favorite two because they are so far from correct: “We’re a post-racial society” and “Gay is the new black.”

I want to address the cliché “Gay is the new black.” When a person tries to explain why they are not the same, many people immediately jump to Bayard Rustin as a convenient talking point. Bayard Rustin was an African-American civil rights advocate that assisted Dr. Martin Luther King. He was also a homosëxual.

Well this write-up is to stimulate critical thinking and wise logic to assess the priorities of the parties involved. Before readers get on their knee jerk soapbox — no, this article isn’t about “gay bashing.”

Here is my question to the public:

What about the gay racist?

I think because homosëxuality is a race-neutral issue, some people don’t consider this a reality. When I say race-neutral I mean, there is no one specific race that practices, embraces, subscribes, or endorses homosëxuality. All races have individuals within their race that are homosëxual (American, European, African, Asian, Hispanic, Latino, Middle Eastern, East Indian, Pacific Islander, etc).

When you look at the still photos and video footage of gay pride parades, you’ll see an assortment of ethnicity. However, homosëxuality only denotes sëxual preference or orientation. Homosëxuality has nothing to do with race relations at all. These are two completely separate social issues.

The same way that there are racist heterosëxuals, there are racist homosëxuals. However, there is never dialogue or discussion about this particular subject.

A hypothetical situation

Let’s examine this a little bit: Assume there’s a racist white homosëxual male that is seeking the passage of marriage equality in his respective state. I believe he would be more than welcoming of all homosëxuals (regardless of race) because they would contribute power (numerically) to get legislation and policies passed or changed. The multicultural support would benefit his goal of marriage equality in his state. His goal has been met, yet he can still be dedicated, committed, and devoted to the oppression of African-Americans, Latinos, and an Anti-Semite.

What I’m saying may sound like theatrics, but think about J Edgar Hoover.

There are several books, witnesses, materials, and even the movie about his life that denote he was homosëxual. J Edgar Hoover was committed, devoted, and dedicated to the systematic oppression and undermining of the civil rights movement. J Edgar Hoover was complicit in the COINTELPRO program that was responsible for the suppression of the Black Panthers, Martin Luther King, Fred Hampton, Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X, and more.

This is an interesting point that I think deserves heavy contemplation. When non-white homosëxuals rally in mass numbers for marriage equality and other rights, liberties, and freedoms for homosëxuals, they may help many racist homosëxuals achieve their goal, but there may be no reciprocity on other issues that pertain to them.

The numerical power of African-American homosëxuals can sway political decisions that can turn the tide on marriage equality. However, how many racist homosëxuals are vehemently and diametrically opposed to affirmative action, reparations, or even support policies like Stop and Frisk and Stand your Ground (which adversely affects African-Americans more than whites)? Would all of the members of GLAAD and the LGBT community support reparations? How many members of the LGBT community would thank you for the vote but still consider you subservient, inferior, or support policies and legislation that adversely affects you as a race?

Remember, race relations and sëxual orientation are two separate social issues.

I don’t have an answer for this at all. I just wanted to stimulate thought because at some point in time, a person will have to prioritize or make a critical decision in which race and sëxual preference are the tipping points of a scenario. How will they choose, and what will govern their decision making process?

Think very broad in scope about this, because I simply used a racist white male as an example, but racial hatred can come from any race and be directed at whomever.

What are your thoughts? Lastly, please refrain from negative and vulgar commentary, it’s unnecessary.

Global Issues, Socio-Cultural Commentary

America claims ownership of 782,000 square miles of the Pacific Ocean

July 15, 2014 admin Leave a comment

America claims ownership of 782,000 square miles of the Pacific Ocean

by Dr. Samori Swygert

I hate saying, “I told you so,” so I’m moving along as planned… A front page, above the fold article in the June 17th Washington Post, revealed the United States plan to expand our claim over the world’s oceans. According to the article, President Obama has addressed the plan at a meeting. He detailed how a vast portion of the Pacific Ocean will now be off limits.

The impetus that’s driving the proposal is to preserve a precious section of the Pacific Ocean. Supposedly, this section has some of the most purest water on earth, it’s devoid of pollution. The proposal will also prevent fishing, energy exploration, and “other activities.” There is an open comment period in which the public can submit concerns and issues for the administration to review.

The terminologies that the administration is using to refer to this vast expanse of water are “sanctuaries and monuments.” Currently, America has claim over 87,000 square miles of the ” Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.” President Obama will expand this to 782,000 square miles. The article also says, ” The ocean area under consideration, by contrast, encompasses uninhabited islands in a remote region with sparse economic activity.”

Early last week, I wrote an in-depth 2-part article called New World Water: Part 1 and Part 2. I illuminated the fact that nations and multinational corporations are laying claim to the world’s water supply. There was a 2014 Global Water Summit in Paris, France that the TV media failed to cover back in April, and the newspapers failed to give any fanfare or attention. This only confirms my assertions and position about the summit. This appears to be one of many sequential steps in complete global dominance.

It’s ironic that only two months after the 2014 Global Water Summit, President Obama seeks to expand the designation and demarcation of America’s “claim” in the Pacific Ocean. The article I wrote addressed only a few topics from the Global Water Summit such as: purchasing water rights, developing water management systems, imposing water restriction policies, and how to develop profitability policies. I’m certain there was more to the summit, but it was an exclusive meeting, and the specific material would only be divulged to entities privileged or authorized to attend.

The Washington Post article also reports that the British government is also creating a “marine sanctuary’ in the Pacific, and the president of a Pacific Island nation of Kirbati said he will close an area “the size of California” to commercial fishing by the end of 2014. President Bush also set aside a claim in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands while he was in office.

The intentions appear noble and good because we are using terms like: “conservation,” “preservation,” and “sustainability.” These terms sound good — they are audibly palatable and pleasing. However, there is a fine line between conservation and imposing man-made limits of a natural resource required for human vitality. When America demarcates these geographical boundaries, who are we depriving of a resource? Who gives us the authority to lay claim over the ocean, and who can/can’t fish in specific marine locales? Why must other nations be restricted from one of the most purest portions of Earth’s oceans?

Understand Political Talk

We must specifically assess the verbiage in political speak. What do they mean when they say “other activities” and “other threats”? These are broad terms. What will it entail, and require to enforce these boundaries? Will this portion of the ocean be specifically untouched by everyone, or only our military and other governing bodies? What’s the criteria for use if this section of water is needed?

I will attach the Washington Post article, my article on the NEW WORLD WATER and the Global Water Summit of 2014, also note that the U.S. Military has developed a way to create Jet Fuel from seawater.

Are we exercising “maritime manifest destiny”?…what are your thoughts?