Dec 07

MY FIRST REVIEW SORT OF….

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read 0 comments
Hello everybody, As one of my favorite comedians used to say, can we talk? Well today, I want to talk about reviews. Everybody meaning, all the book marketing experts, tell authors to get reviews. The experts say you can figure out approximately how popular an author is by the number of reviews they have. That translates into a large number of reviews equals a large number of readers, which of course equals a large number of books sold. I agree with a bit of reluctance about everything said thus far. When I say reluctance, perhaps I should explain. I have to admit when I buy food; office furniture; beauty and cleaning products; shoes; clothes; belts; electronics; videos; cars; DVDs; floral arrangements and most other things, I read reviews religiously before I make a purchase. I will research a product to death before I buy it. I go on different site to check out what other users/buyers say about the product. I’m one of those buyers that take months to do research before I’ll spend a dime on a product. I use Google Search to do my research until I’m satisfied I’ve found the best deal for my money. After all […]
Dec 07

More Than 3,000 New Voters Have Registered In Ferguson Since Mike Brown’s Death

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read 0 comments
Portside Date: October 3, 2014 Author: Carimah Townes Date of Source: Friday, October 3, 2014 Think Progress Voter registration jumped 30 percent in Ferguson, Missouri between August 9 — the day unarmed teenager Michael Brown was fatally shot by Officer Darren Warren — and September 30. As protests and clashes with police continue, the town’s residents want to see more race representation in their local government in the near future. Approximately 3,300 citizens in the town of 21,000 registered to vote after Brown’s death, totaling two-thirds of new voters in St. Louis County. Currently, 5 of 6 Ferguson council members are white, but roughly 70 percent of the city’s population is black. And Ferguson’s mayor is white Republican James Knowles. Recent voter registration is due, in large part, to community efforts to boost civic engagement. Organizations like the NAACP and League of Women Voters, in addition to sororities and fraternities, are actively involved in registering the city’s residents. Other community members are handing out registration cards for voters to mail them in. But some are not pleased with the surge of registered voters. In August, Matt Wills, the executive director of Missouri’s Republican Party, denounced protesters’ voter registration efforts, saying, […]
Dec 07

INTRODUCTION TO FERGUSON & ERIC GARDNER ARTICLES

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read 0 comments
As Eric Gardner’s demonstrators and Ferguson protestors take over New York City at night, I decided to look at some of the articles that date back to the early days after Michael Brown’s killing at the hands of police. Other articles speak to the recent grand jury decision in Eric Gardner’s death, not to indict anyone. I will be posting one or two articles a day. I found them interesting and insightful. I hope you do too. BL Wilson
Dec 05

READ MORE: As per Indiewire article Spike Lee merged Do The Right Thing, with Eric Gardner’s video.

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read 0 comments
http://www.indiewire.com/article/watch-spike-lee-combines-do-the-right-thing-with-eric-garner-tape-for-unsettling-recut-20141204 When Spike Lee’s landmark film about racial tensions in a Brooklyn neighborhood was released in 1989, it resonated with viewers in a monumental way: “Do the Right Thing” acted as a much needed snapshot of the institutional racism of that place in time. In light of the recent Eric Garner decision, Spike Lee has edited together a short film, titled “Radio Raheem and The Gentle Giant,” using a scene of police brutality from the movie juxtaposed with the real life video of Garner’s death. The near-invisible line between fact and fiction makes what’s already heart-wrenching content even harder to watch. One of the most disturbing elements of the video is how unsettlingly poignant Lee’s film continues to be 25 years later. Most directors hope there art will stand the test of time, but the lack of progress demonstrated in “Radio Raheem and the Gentle Giant” is tragic to witness.
Dec 04

What You Need To Know About The Ferguson Grand Jury

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read 0 comments
ST. LOUIS (AP) — A Missouri grand jury has been hearing evidence for months as it weighs whether to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in the Aug. 9 fatal shooting of Michael Brown, which was followed by sometimes violent protests. Some answers to common questions about the grand jury: ___ Q: What is the grand jury deciding? A: The grand jury is considering whether there is enough evidence to charge Wilson with a crime and, if so, what that charge should be. ___ Q: How is the grand jury different from other juries? A: The grand jury will determine only whether probable cause exists to indict Wilson, not whether he is guilty. If the jury indicts him, a separate trial jury will be seated to decide whether to convict or acquit him. ___ Q: How many people are on the grand jury and how were they selected? A: The grand jury is composed of 12 people “selected at random from a fair cross-section of the citizens,” according to Missouri law. The jury is 75 percent white: six white men, three white women, two black women and one black man. St. Louis County overall is 70 percent white, but about […]
Dec 04

ERIC GARDNER PART 3

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read 0 comments
I couldn’t help but respond to an AOL article about the differences between Michael Brown’s Ferguson MO and Eric Gardner’s Staten Island, NY. I felt I needed to point out additional differences other than the video or no video; why they were stopped; the manner of victim’s death; victim age, victim size and public reaction.  Below is my response.   You forgot to mention the role mayors, police officials and governors played in this. The governor of Missouri Jay Nixon (great creepy name) declared a state of emergency. He sent the National Guard twice, long before results of the grand jury were public. Each time the guard appeared, it stoked an already tense situation in Ferguson. The governor did very little to calm the situation. The mayor of Ferguson wasn’t much better. I don’t recall that he apologized to Brown’s parents for what happened to their young man. I don’t recall that he expressed sympathy or understanding what it might like to lose a child in such a violent way when the country is not at war. Meanwhile, you had a police chief taking an active role in releasing disinformation on his officer as well as about the officer’s victim, […]
Dec 04

ERIC GARDNER PART 2

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read 0 comments
I just watched six congress people from NY hold a news conference about the grand jury voting a no true bill in the Eric Gardner murder. In other words, the grand jury voted not to indict ANY of the police for ANYTHING, resulting in Mr. Gardner’s death. How is that possible?   As Congressman Meeks said “Do you trust your lying eyes or not in this case?” Unlike the Mike Brown case, where we didn’t have videos of the incident as it happened, we did here. We all saw the video of a number of police jumping on Mr. Gardner. One officer applied a chokehold to bring him down while several more sat on him as pressed him face down into the sidewalk. We could hear him say eleven times in the video. “I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe.” Each time he said it, Mr. Gardner’s voice grew weaker and more desperate.   I have asthma. My worse fear is chest colds and stuffed up nasal passages. I can only imagine how desperate Mr. Gardner must have felt not being able to breathe well with extra weight on his belly and chest and strong arms choking off what little air […]
Dec 04

BREAKING NEWS ON ERIC GARDNER

by B.L. in Most popular, Must read 0 comments
Body cameras are not the answer. We had what amounts to a body camera in the Eric Gardner case and the grand jury with the DA’s urging voted not to indict ANYBODY for ANYTHING in this homicide. We need justice. We need transparency. We need special prosecutors in police shootings in NYC. The DA’s office has a huge conflict of interest in these types of cases, which is why the grand jury did what it did. How can you expect the DA’s offices who work closely with the police department to turn against them when the shoe is on the other foot and an officer accused of homicide? The answer is you can’t expect that from the DA’s office. That’s why we need special prosecutors in these types of case whether it’s through the Federal government or through local governments.   DO BLACK LIVES MATTER TO WHITE AMERICA? I’m afraid of the answer, if the police represent guard dogs of America’s wealthy while being an invading militarized force to communities of color people. Vastly different viewpoints, huh?
Dec 04

NO RESPONSE TO AN ARTICLE I READ ABOUT THE FEAR OF PUBLIC SPEAKING

by B.L. in Must read, Worth a look 0 comments
In 2011, I’d been struggling with platforms and how to sell my books for years. Not that I’ve published a great number of books, I hadn’t. I’ve published only one but I’ve written several other books, the exact count is 38 romance and mystery novels, one, how-to book based on the workplace memoir I published and another memoir. I bet you’re asking yourself why haven’t I heard of this writer before? Well, you haven’t because I’m one of those writers you mentioned in your piece, Strutting Your Stuff in Your Platform Shoes. You know the writer who is too shy to sell her books in public. I did one and only book signing in 2008 when my book “Mr. Jefferson’s Piano and Other Central Harlem Stories,” a workplace memoir first came out. I had an upset stomach for days afterward. Before you ask, yes, the book signing was a success. According to the bookstore owner, I sold out the store’s 50 pre-ordered books but it was still an unpleasant experience for me. Several months later, I did a public speaking gig at a local library describing how to write a workplace memoir. It attracted six or seven people. It was […]
Nov 23

SO YOU WANNA BE A WRITER, HUH? THERE GOES YOUR PRIVACY!

by B.L. in Must read 0 comments
Hello everybody, I just tried to create a blog ever the weekend. I’ve been thinking about a blog for a while and what I’d post on it. Experts say don’t do obvious book selling on it. Use your blog to tell people who you are and give them information they can’t get other place. They’ll become your fans and come back to your blog spot. I agree with the latter part. It’s the former that part I don’t like. Telling people who I am, that’s difficult for me. I’m normally a private person. Some people would say I’m reserved or that I’m shy. I’m quiet as I watch everything going on around me. I enjoy people watching a great deal. I’ve sat on park benches all day observing kids as they had fun playing or eavesdropped on their parents as they issued orders and dished discipline. It’s nothing for me to occupy a comfortable chair for hours, watching the latest in mall entertainment…shoppers armed with brightly colored bags, strolling through stores or standing outside department store windows filled with buy-me-today stuff. Writing or should I say publishing my novels or going even further, filling out social media ads for my […]
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