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Our Big Brothers (and Sisters) Are Watching
The U.S. government is engaged in an unprecedented effort to monitor the activities of Americans, the Washington Post reports. The paper says the FBI, Homeland Security, local police and military-intelligence officials are tracking the activities of thousands of U.S. citizens, most of whom have not been accused of wrongdoing. The government’s goal is to have all…
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Tech Toys for the Late Holiday Shopper
Remember when you had to figure out how to get those speaker wires across the room? Not an issue when you buy the Jambox speakers. They’re colorful, deliver good sound — and connect wirelessly to your iPhone or computer. The Jambox also doubles as a speakerphone, making a conference call a lot easier to manage.…
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Haitian Presidential Candidates Head for Runoff
Nearly 10 days after Haitians overcame the rubble of destruction and the threat of cholera to go to the polls and choose a president from among 19 candidates, the country’s election commission announced Tuesday that Mirlande Manigat, a 70-year-old law professor and former first lady, and Jude Célestin, a candidate supported by outgoing President René Préval, will…
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One Step Forward and One Step Back for African Democracy
Sometimes elections don’t solve problems. Africa, which has been plagued by coups and dictatorships, has taken halting steps toward democracy in recent years. But two recent elections show how different outcomes can affect hopes for more open government. Cote d’Ivoire (the Ivory Coast) is trying to figure out if it’s better off after the latest…
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Merck Names Black Chief Executive
Merck, the world’s second-largest pharmaceutical company, has named Kenneth C. Frazier, an African American, as its chief executive. Frazier, 55, a graduate of Harvard Law School, has been the company’s general counsel and president and was expected to rise to the No. 1 job. He will succeed Richard T. Clark on Jan. 1. Clark will remain as chairman.…
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Haiti Election Ends in Confusion
If Haitians were hoping that Sunday’s election would give the battered country a fresh start, they can forget about it. Twelve of the 18 candidates for president of the Caribbean island nation called for the results to be put aside, claiming massive fraud in the process. There clearly was violence, with three dead in the…
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Obama Takes an Elbow: 12 Stitches
President Obama is known for having game. Apparently, being chief executive means nothing when you play a friendly basketball game with your friends. The president took an elbow to the lip from another player during a Friday-morning pickup game that required 12 stitches, according to news reports. The president got his stitches under local anesthesia…
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Carol Moseley Braun Joins Chicago Race
Carol Moseley Braun, who was the first black woman elected to the U.S. Senate, hopes to establish another first. She wants to be the first black woman elected mayor of Chicago. Braun announced her entry into the crowded field on Saturday with a rally and slogans that sounded familiar. She declared that she wanted to…
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Sorry, Charlie, It's Time for a Change
It’s time for Charlie Rangel to go. After a tumultuous ethics trial that he walked out of, a House committee has recommended that Rangel be censured by the House of Representatives for almost a dozen ethics violations. Yet the Harlem congressman clings to the seat he’s held for 40 years and continues to plead for…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
