Mark Dice: The morons are coming

 

[VIDEO] Mark Dice doing man on the street segment asking people about literary classics. Moby Dick, 1984, Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer, Mein Kampf (let me save you the trouble with that one Adolf Hitler, Nazis, fascism, evil, etc.) to name a few.  A lot of people don't know about these various books they couldn't name a plot or a character from these books. Some of them were adapted into major motion pictures...

And now these are books I want to read aside from that evil book named above I'm not touching that with a 10-foot pole. At the very least I want to see the adaptation of 1984 and if you're an Apple fan there was a MacIntosh ad back in the 1980s that was themes after the George Orwell 1984 novel.

Another quick fact George Orwell is also known for the novel Animal Farm which I vaguely remember reading years ago. Ehhh, while I'm not a huge reader like some people Dice spoke with in the video I can be a bit of a history buff whether politics, social history, or even believe it or not pop-culture or even scientific history. I like to see more about the space program for example.

Anyway, perhaps for a lot of those people who knows if they're readers or if they've even been educated about these books in school. Most of the books I listed were probably something I heard of in school from K-12 to even college. I could believe it's also a matter of interest.

BTW, I feel so bad for the young lady who didn't know that Dr. Seuss is NOT a non-fiction author. Hopefully she was momentarily confused which happens...

Dr. Seuss cancelled

 

[VIDEO] I'm sorry to say my familiarity with Dr. Seuss is pretty low. I know about the Cat in the Hat or Green Eggs and Ham for example. On Tucker Carlson Tonight I learned about the book about the Sneetches which someone has further explained on my twitter according to their own POV as much as I could disagree. I allowed that individual to have his opinion while I hold onto my own.

Dr. Seuss has been dead since 1991 - and I might vaguely remember that. It was a sad day when he passed away, and surely many of his fans were sad.

Bill O'Reilly goes over the Seuss controversy and other things primarily brands that does feature minorities that have been canceled as of late. Aunt Jemima has gone through a name change just like the Washington Redskins and the Cleveland Indians.

I didn't know that Seuss had some racist views in his lifetime although his books are said to contain some these relatable to the issues of equality. In the Sneetches book I saw a theme of individuality while using a physical attribute as denoting status.

Regardless I like to think people can change their values their behavior. Cancelling Seuss for whatever racism he had, especially once he started his career in children's books, and denying his transformation is a travesty.

Rubin Report: Warning To Blue States

[VIDEO] Dave Rubin speaks to Republican Maryland Governor Larry Hogan about his new book - Still Standing: Surviving Cancer, Riots, a Global Pandemic, and the Toxic Politics that Divide America. He talks about his experiences of running one of the more solidly blue states in these United States of America. Gov. Hogan discusses his record in running in such a state and how he had been able to win two terms in state where no one even saw him coming.

What he discusses are these we hear in other states. It's certainly discussed in Illinois and certainly in California how the economic climate causes people to want to move to another state. He talks about Maryland being taxed 43 consecutive times by his predecessor Martin O'Malley and how Marylanders got fed up with the economic climate of that state. He was ready to run on his record as a small businessman and he says he's used that experience to be able to work with people.

Both Rubin and Gov. Hogan agree the future of American politics won't be these longtime politicians it will be those who bring their business background into office. I will agree that this is what our founding fathers - or for those of who are historically challenge these dead white colonizers - had intended to run this nation. If you want citizen farmers who get elected to represent their constituencies.

What I will disagree with is that I do think there is a need for people who understand the system to be in the right place at the right time. Institutional memory or knowledge is not a bad thing. Of course right now in this state we're dealing with one issue of institutional knowledge, I respect him greatly it's just too bad that he's gotten caught up in the latest scandal in Illinois.

Capitol Fax: “La-La Land”

Been a while since Rod Blagojevich aka Blago has been mentioned on this blog. Would you be curious what his brother Robert thinks of his brother?

Robert is doing his own book on his experiences with his brother. Since Rod went to prison the relationship has been described as "completely broken".

If you recall Robert was on trial along with Rod for his part in the former Illinois governor's political schemes which ultimately blew up in his face. Ultimately any charges against Robert was dismissed but even he admits now that Rod is in "la-la land".

Would you want to read this book? Rich Miller would like to read that book.

There should be another Star Trek Compendium book...

USS Enterprise NCC-1701

I had a dream one night that a new Star Trek Compendium was published and was being sold at bookstores where I was browsing and reading. It seemed to include all Star Trek TV series and movies and the cover was much different than I was used to. Alas, it was only a dream.

The Star Trek Comendium I'm familiar with was written by Allen Asherman and largely chronicled the development, production, and eventual re-birth of the 1960s Star Trek series. And recently I just had this vision that some day in the future there may be another Compendium book where the last two Star Trek movies - by JJ Abrams - would be included.

Besides, Star Trek & Star Trek Into Darkness were based on those original characters that Gene Roddenberry created for the original Star Trek series of the 1960s. It wouldn't hurt to include those in addition to synopsis of the original 1960s episodes, the 1970s animated series episodes, and the six movies that feature the original cast of the 1960s series.

Years ago, I had purchased an edition of the Compendium which included the original episodes, the animated series and the first five Star Trek films that featured the original cast. There was an edition that contained synopsis for all six movies but for whatever reason I never purchased it.

However, if Mr. Asherman or anyone else elected to do a companion book for the original Star Trek series and included the Abrams movies. This would be something that's worth purchasing! For now at least the last edition from 1993 is still available via Amazon.

Classical liberalism superior to libertarianism?

The political philosopher in me is somewhat intrigued by this article found at Instapundit!. For a long-time I've considered myself a "classical-liberal" although there's not a certainty as to what that means. I've always equated that philosophy with libertarianism, however, it seems that you still can't. There are some differences as explored in this article.

One takeaway is that the discussion is centered around US Sen. Rand Paul who's only in his first term as a Senator and is something of a rising star. Let's not forget his father was Presidential contender and former US Congressman Ron Paul.

While I'm sure that this is not the only classical-liberal book out there, it's probably about time to read John Locke's Second Treatise of Government (which is a public domain book) again. Thankfully without the pressure of school! :P

It's MLK Day and Black History Month is coming up!

You know what good day to discuss this subject on MLK day. It hits me that Black History Month (BHM) is just around the corner.

When I first started this blog I had been determined to do some Black history posts and at times I've come very short. My goal wasn't just to pull out moments from Black history surely everyone remembers from school, but just to talk about where Black America is going in my view. Perhaps another goal was to say, where should we go.

Last year, I didn't do a very good job of noting BHM until the end of the last month. The point was history is always being made every day and that's important to note.

At the same time I feel as if there is a neglect of Black History and issues on my part, even if it isn't during the month of February. It caused me to come to a new conclusion recently. Perhaps I should start reading more.

I still have a booklist in the sidebar of this blog. There's really no point to this list only to say that these are books of interest and not for myself, but for you if you're interested. These books are across many different interests especially politics, philosophy, or even racial interest.

So there are some books on this list that I actually do have in my collection that would be of great interest and it's time to start reading them. Besides years ago I started the Booker T. Washington autobiography - Up from Slavery - and never finished. It's time to finish.

The face associated with this blog so far is former anti-slavery advocate Frederick Douglass. His autobiography - Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave - was something that was read in school, but if there was a reading test about the book there was no way to pass back then. Now that there's no pressure of class now is the time to start reading.

I have also been keen because it have recently become of interest to read the late Nelson Mandela's book - Long Walk to Freedom. It was once written that I often cringed at the idea of comparing the segregation here to the apartheid of South Africa there was little difference. It's great to learn his experiences as an activist in that nation to truly change that country and he served in prison for his activism from 1964 to 1990. It's time to start reading.

Well no need to stop there, but it's certainly going to be the start. And perhaps there are other books to be bought in the near future on various subjects that it's time to read. What better time to start reading than Black History Month!

ALSO, the earlier links to Up from Slavery and the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass are to public domain copies of the book. Feel free to click on them and read! 

Might want to keep eyes peeled for this one...

George Ryan

George Ryan served as Governor of Illinois from 1999-2003 and if you believe Rich Miller who writes about him today Ryan was a Governor who got things done and in spite of being a convicted felon he was a solid governor. The same couldn't be said of Rod Blagojevich or even the current incumbent Pat Quinn about whom Miller states that, "Pat Quinn will never go to prison, but he’s no leader".

OK so what about George Ryan? He had recently been released from prison after serving a term for corruption and now we see his new plans as a free man. He's writing a book and there are concerned that he's not a significant figure nationally in spite of his moratorium on the death penalty in this state. Another thing he did noted by Rich Miller was meeting with then Cuban President dictator Fidel Castro while Ryan was governor.

All the same, to see this man's reflection on his long time in Illinois politics should be an interesting read. People are expecting him to open some closets although let me not allow myself to get that excited when that book is finally published. Just take it for what it's worth and then learn what we can from it.

This potential book was even compared to one written by Rod Blagojevich before he was finally sent to prison. I'm sure the gripe about Blago's book was that it really didn't say anything other than he continued to plead his innocence for the corruption he was eventually sent to prison for.

Now as for the future of the office of Governor in this state Miller closes with this:

What we most desperately need in this state is somebody who won’t be going to prison, but who still knows how to operate the levers of government and politics. Is that really too much to ask?

That's what we want in all our public official. We just need one who can win elections and credibly!

VIDEO: The K-12 Implosion

[VIDEO] I'm tempted to post this to my other often neglected Shedd School blog. Just concerned that the content of this video would turn off people who hopefully have the same questions about the education system as I do. Although in my case, no kids so there are no real worries for the system on my end. It's just that the goal for our young people is for them to get the best education no matter who provides it.

I've often expressed my frustration with my experience with the public schools especially high school  - GO FALCONS! Still my view of the system isn't entirely marred as my time in elementary school is still remember fondly. It lead me to an important philosophy in life, there are going to be ups & downs.

All the same, this video bounces off of a book The K-12 Implosion by Instapundit blogger Glenn Reynolds. A case is made that our education system still has aspects of the Industrial Revolution style-education embedded. One-size-fits-all can't work anymore as there are many different vocational/career paths out there in the 21st century.

Of course this doesn't mean the schools aren't trending in that direction. It's possible that they're just not doing that good of a job. Whatever the case may be what should a 21st Century education system look like? How can we truly revamp a 19th century system?

Like I stated already I have no children, however, the young people toiling in school today needs access to opportunities that will last them a lifetime. What this means is that we want them to pursue the many opportunities that will be available to them in the 21st century. Let us hope today's education policy experts are able to steer the system in that diraction.

Instavision: Is Atlas Shrugging? Job Creators Are Giving Up on the U.S. Economy

[VIDEO] Glenn Reynolds, the well-known blogmaster of Instapundit interviews Harmon Kaslow who produced Atlas Shrugged, Part 2. The film is based on the Ayn Rand book named aptly enough Atlas Shrugged.

The story itself is considered as much philosophical as it is political. Philosophical about what you may ask. Well the role of government in our economy. It's a story about how the government is entitled to whatever labor and/or products are produced by a private business.

BTW, excuse my ignorance about the book. I've actually never read it and I've only seen a few minutes of Parts 1 and 2 of the film version of Atlas Shrugged. Must say though in my travels on the "world wide web" I've ran into many references to this book. There were some who had the web handle Dagny Taggart who perused the late great Protest Warrior forums in the past. So this book certainly has a following.

Either way, the interview between Reynolds and Kaslow hits upon a main point. The book had been written in the 1950s by Rand and it's still relevant in the 2010s and there's one question to ask in relation to this movie and the book: "Are job creators going to give up on the U.S. economy?"

VIDEO: Why We Still Like Ike

[VIDEO] Last October on reason.tv, Tim Cavanaugh sat down with LA Times editor Jim Newton to talk about our nation's 34th President, Dwight D. Eisenhower. Before becoming President, Eisenhower had been a five-star general well known for serving during the Second World War commanding forces in the European Theater. He is mostly known for the D-Day invasion of the French region of Normandy.

He served as President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 and this interview largely looks at Eisenhower's administration during that time. Eisenhower didn't want to perpetuate crises he sought to calm the nation down. He also believed in fiscal responsibility.

Also discussed here is his record on civil rights. During Eisenhower's administraion the US Supreme Court ruled on Brown v. Board of Education. Eisenhower even used federal forces to desegregate a Little Rock, Arkansas high school.

This is an approximately 11 minute interview.

PJTV: Ed Klein on 'The Amateur: Barack Obama in the White House'

[VIDEO] I showed some clips from Klein's appearance on Sean Hannity's FOX News program last week. Now he's appeared on another conservative outlet PJTV talking about his book The Amateur. Some of what's being said here is not much different than what was already said on FOX News last week. How Klein gave his book its title or even the alleged bribe to Rev. Jeremiah Wright to have him keep his distance from Obama. They do talk about the basis of the President's marriage to Michelle although some of the issues that made this marriage rocky appears to be ancient history. This interview is roughly 13 minutes.

"The Amateur"

[VIDEO - PART 1 & PART 2] Last night Sean Hannity had as a guest on his FOX News program author Ed Klein of the book The Amateur. It's book about Obama and what figures largely is whether or not an associate of Obama had attempted to bribe for Rev. Jeremiah Wright's silence in the 2008 campaign. Let's not forget this was a big issue a few years ago and there are those who want to bring Wright's name back to the public eye.

We was controversial when he was exposed to the general population of this nation for his fiery preachings when he had been pastor of Chicago's Trinity United Christian Church. For some of his statements in the past and during the campaign Obama had been forced to shun Wright who Obama had described as his spiritual father.

Could Wright's reputation figure in 2012, unlikely but I may be surprised. And also note that there are other subject's discussed in Hannity's interview such as whether or not Obama is fit to be President. And fit according to temperament. What do you think? Is he doing a great job as President or are you looking forward to someone else taking over the Oval Office?

This is what I could put on my iPad and hopefully for free!

I don't know when I started compiling a list of readings in the sidebar. Some of the readings listed are of literature that are in the Public Domain. Those that are in the public domain have links to where you can actually read them online.

One link I have is only to another post about a book I checked out at the library. That book is The South Side: The Racial Transformation of an American Neighborhood by Louis Rosen.

Anyway I just wish there was a way to create an app where you can access those readings. Therefore it's possible to be able to read these works which mainly would include two books by economist Adam Smith, Second Treatise of Government by John Locke, On Liberty by John Stuart Mill, The Social Contract by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Democracy in America by Alexis De Tocqueville, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas: An American Slave by Frederick Douglass, and finally Up from Slavery by Booker T. Washington. So these books involve some Black history, political philosophy, even classical economics.

This would make getting an iPad or similar device much more worthwhile! :P

Mary Shmich on The Chicago Code...

Watching The Chicago Code right now, found this column via Sloopin. She noted a couple of fans who have started their own campaigns to save the show. But the excerpt are Shmich's comments:

When "The Chicago Code" premiered in February, I was not an instant fan. The writing was better than average, the plots were ambitious, and Chicago, even in the broken neighborhoods, looked as gorgeous as a tourist brochure. Still, something was slightly off in the pace, the dialogue, the tone.

But week by week, like a stiff new shoe that loosens up, the show has gotten better.

The story, centered on a corrupt alderman played by the riveting Delroy Lindo, tightens like a blood pressure cuff. The annoyances — constant references to the Irish mob, some bad Chicago accents — have either diminished or I've gotten used to them. I've turned into a big fan and think there's an untapped audience for the show.

When word got around Tuesday that I was writing this column, I started hearing from fans from all over.

Several Chicagoans said the show has introduced them to parts of the city they didn't know existed. Out-of-towners said it made them want to visit. Some noted the jobs it brought to the city and the exposure it gave Chicago talent.

And all of them raved about the good acting and uncommonly intelligent, adult plots. Sadly, those credentials don't rival the allure of the show's usual 8 p.m. time-slot competitor, "Dancing with the Stars" on ABC.

Yet Ford and her fellow fans reach for crumbs of hope. Monday's ratings were up 12 percent among viewers 18 to 49. And was it a happy omen that the come-on for next week's show referred to the "season finale," not the "series finale?"

Next week's finale, by the way, is called "Mike Royko's Revenge." I knew Mike, the late, great Tribune columnist, well enough to believe he would have liked "The Chicago Code."

And he'd have let the genius TV executives know just how dumb it was to let such a good show die.

I mistakenly referred to this week's episode as the "season finale" on my Twitter page. As noted in the quote that episode will in fact premiere next week.

Hmmm, another book to add to the book list in the sidebar, Boss: Richard J. Daley of Chicago by Mike Royko. I need to find it and read it however

I've never read "Catcher in the Rye"

People are talking about the author of that book (click the pic for more information), JD Salinger, who died recently. Unfortunately I never had great exposure to that book.

In fact I was thinking about the interview on Chicago Now radio with Chicago TV host Garrard McClendon who said that as a high school teacher he introduced his students to this book. Apparently they loved it, but my only regret is that there was no such teacher in my life who could've introduced this book to me!

Of course that's not to say I wasn't introduced to good literature. You know my history, I went to one of the worst high schools in the city and I was introduced to William Shakespeare. Romeo and Juliet, MacBeth, and Hamlet. Although MacBeth and Hamlet only solidified my admiration for the "Bard".

For me I have to think about what other literary pieces I have read and there was very few. Starting in the 7th Grade my classmates had studied the contributions of "African-American" writers. I wasn't the biggest reader around but there are some that have kept my attention over the years.

If it wasn't for the textbook we used, African-American Literature (well not sure of the actual title), I may never have known Zora Neale Hurston or August Wilson. In fact a few years ago, I recorded the TV movie based on a play we read at school, The Piano Lesson, when it aired on CBS. If I recall correctly there may have been some African authors involved as well.

Well, that is my exposure to the world of literature and the authors who make it up. What is yours?

Went to the bookstore today

Actually in Hyde Park where I made a stop in Treasure Island and saw a uniformed police officer with a card that indicated that he was on the "presidential detail".

Anyway I dropped by Border's and since I've been out of school for perhaps the past month, being a graduate and all, I've got to figure out what's next. My plans have been to return to school although I will admit my road to Morehouse was bumpy but my road out of Morehouse was bumpier still. I need to polish myself a little bit before I can even think I would be good enough to be accepted into a graduate or professional school.

I spent most of my time at Border's looking at prep books. For the GRE or the LSAT and I look forward to finding more information on those two tests. I hear that the GRE is said to be easier than the LSAT perhaps because the LSAT is designed to test your reasoning and reading comprehension.

Anyway I decided perhaps I may need a book on getting into either a graduate program or a law school. There's more literature on getting into law school than on getting into graduate school. Although while both are difficult to enter into graduate school competition just has to be rough because there are less programs than one might find in undergrad.

Since I was in the section I checked out the other offerings. Let's be honest here, I never thought you would need a prep book for the ISAT. The ISAT is a test taken by 3-8 students in Illinois testing in such subjects or skills as math, writing, social studies, reading comprehension, or science. It's roughly the same test I would have taken during my years in school, but it would have been called the IGAP (Illinois Goals Assessment Program). This book I saw was for those who were in 8th Grade. Well this lets me know that these standardized tests that are supposed to measure what these students have learned in school is a big deal enough to warrant having prep books. In my day, the teachers (well my 8th Grade teacher especially) would teach us for the tests whether for the Iowa test or the IGAP. Today you don't need classroom prep, but certainly there is a book to buy now!

BTW, of course there were books on prep for the ACT or SAT. I don't have to take those although when I took the ACT many years ago I probably could have used some prep for that. More than was offered during my junior year in high school. Fact was back then I simply didn't appreciate the meaning and the purpose of these tests enough to really want to do well on them.

My focus was on these books about getting into college. If I had seen these books when I was in my senior year of high school, I would hope that I wouldn't be as intimidated as I was back then. I would have been worth a few dollars if it meant whether or not I could see the course forward as I feel I wasn't at the time.

One book talked about working on an application. One discussed writing an essay for your application, however one piece of advice was while you should be true to yourself. Don't be down on yourself either. Be honest, but be sure to give admissions officers confidence that you will do just fine in their college. The example I remember showed an athlete getting a promise letter for an ivy league school, but it was no good after they saw her essay and that essay proved she wasn't a good fit for them.

I had to look at the books that discussed the various colleges out there. Morehouse in one book was still a school where the best and brightest could go. I was flattered being a Morehouse alumnus myself. Although depending on who you talk to there may be problems in attracting the best and the brightest, especially if going to school in ATL might cost close to $30K a year. That's a lot of grants, loans, and cash with nothing to spare. Probably something to work on if you want to get the best and brightest students and be able to compete with other top schools who can deliver scholarships or what not without forcing students to resort to student loan debt.

Other books listed as top school such HBCU's as Fisk, Howard, or even Spelman. Although in that book that listed Morehouse it failed to list Spelman College and many consider that school to be especially elite.

I had books back then to show me the schools I could go, however, in those days I lacked the follow through. It was difficult to move on the great unknown, although now it's much easier because I did it more times than one. So I expect that moving up in the education world, while not a cinch, is a little easier to do as long as I'm able to investigate what it takes to get to where I need to go.

Anyway let's open this post up a little. I may be asking for a lot so here goes.

• Any recommendations for books on prep tests for the LSAT and the GRE?
• Any recommendations out there for books on prep for the ACT and SAT, for those who are looking to go to college?
• Any recommendations on books regarding college? Especially as far as admissions or going to college?

I know I'm asking a lot, but let's just try to cover some bases here. You might be helping me out as far as LSAT or GRE prep, but I do hope we can help out anyone else who might need a hand into high education as well.

Quote of the day!

I found this quote and it's not necessarily related to anything news related it's just worth your attention.

"Sometimes, I feel discriminated against, but it does not make me angry. It merely astonishes me. How can any deny themselves the pleasure of my company? It's beyond me."

~Zora Neale Hurston.

I found out that this quote comes from Hurston's book, How It Feels to be Colored Me.

Read more about her at Wikipedia!

I think I should return to Booker T. Washington

During year one of this blog, I wrote a post about another black leader from the past, Booker T. Washington. Washington was head of the Tuskegee Institute (well it's now a university these days). I bought his book a while back, Up from Slavery.

So far I'm still in the first chapter. I wanted to talk a little bit about the book on this blog as I read it. Unfortunately I only managed to talk about the introduction written by author Ishmael Read.

I don't know how I came across this old, almost forgotten post. Perhaps I was doing a search of some type and it brought me back to that post. And I saw that grammar and spelling was out of whack so to bring this back to your attention I had to edit it a little bit. What a difference two years can make!

Anyway since I didn't read Washington's philosophy directly from his own voice all I have to go on is the bits and pieces I have heard over time. Washington certainly was of the school of work your way into equality. He certainly had the belief that learning a trade was important to establishing black Americans as an integral part of America.

Anyway I want to share something with you and hopefully I can get back to his book that I've sat on for over three years and haven't even started in earnest reading. A blog named for him, Booker Rising, had this interesting post that I saw yesterday:

Mr. Jackson was always a challenger. He confronted American institutions (especially wealthy corporations) with the shame of America's racist past and demanded redress. He could have taken up the mantle of the early Martin Luther King (he famously smeared himself with the great man's blood after King was shot), and argued for equality out of a faith in the imagination and drive of his own people. Instead -- and tragically -- he and the entire civil rights establishment pursued equality through the manipulation of white guilt. Their faith was in the easy moral leverage over white America that the civil rights victories of the 1960s had suddenly bestowed on them. So Mr. Jackson and his generation of black leaders made keeping whites 'on the hook' the most sacred article of the post-'60s black identity. They ushered in an extortionist era of civil rights, in which they said to American institutions: Your shame must now become our advantage. To argue differently -- that black development, for example, might be a more enduring road to black equality -- took whites 'off the hook' and was therefore an unpardonable heresy. For this generation, an Uncle Tom was not a black who betrayed his race; it was a black who betrayed the group's bounty of moral leverage over whites. And now comes Mr. Obama, who became the first viable black presidential candidate precisely by giving up his moral leverage over whites.

An interesting perspective. If this was over "moral leverage" then I wonder if someone like a Booker T. Washington would have been dismayed. At the same time, I like what an Obama candidacy means perhaps the black candidate needs not tell America how unfair it has been. Perhaps a good candidate should talk about opportunity available not necessarily pull out the worst about America.

Anyway I don't want to sound like a rambling fool when I post about Mr. Washington again so I'd like to offer you another post to read about him. Hopefully you might read Up from Slavery and perhaps you can come back here and offer your thoughts.

The Chosen...The Damned...And Other People

I going through this small book by Dempsey J. Travis. My mother got this book one night and signed it by the south side entrepreneur at a local neighborhood bank. If you get anything out of this book, the man has been around a long time and he's met a lot of people over the course of his long life.

This is a collections essays about people some of whom he's met and some of whom well he mostly likely haven't, but they are important in the history of Chicago, Illinois. For instance there's a chapter on Al Capone, it's likely he never met Capone but his role in Chicago history is certainly undisputed.

Of course Capone isn't the only thug in question ever heard of Ted Roe? He ran the policy racket on the south side. Policy is said to be the forerunner of today's Illinois Lottery. Policy is where like in the lottery people would play the numbers. Another interesting thing about Roe is that he had a nice little row with Sam Giancana a member of the Chicago outfit. The same outfit that counted at one time Al Capone as its leader.

Of course let's stay positive here. He's also writes about playwrights August Wilson & Lorraine Hansberry, singer Marian Anderson, another entrepreneur Thomas Rand, even the long-ago murdered Chicago Alderman from the then racially changing west side, Ben Lewis. There's also a chapter on the old Bronzeville neighborhood likely a different place than it is in the present day.

In any case you may notice in the sidebar that I have a book list. One of the books included therein is The Autobiography of Black Politics. That's one of his books and don't let the title decieve you it's more of a history of black Chicago politics. I would suggest that you check out some of his other books because I know I will.