The New Yorker has the article The Populist Prophet about Bernie Sanders.

In June, when NPR’s David Greene pressed Sanders on whether he embraced the phrase “Black Lives Matter,” the Senator got irritated. “It’s too easy for quote-unquote liberals to be saying, ‘Well, let’s use this phrase,’ ” he said. “We need a massive jobs program to put black kids to work and white kids to work and Hispanic kids to work. So my point is, is that it’s sometimes easy to worry about which phrase you’re going to use. It’s a lot harder to stand up to the billionaire class.”

Sanders does not argue that greater economic equality would end racism, but for most of his career he has subsumed discussions of race under class. Van Jones, a criminal-justice reformer and a former Obama adviser, derides that approach as “trickle-down justice”—and told Salon in August that he had been “warning the white populists in the Party, behind the scenes, for several months, that their continued insistence on advancing a color-blind, race-neutral populism was going to blow up in their faces.”

So know I understand why Bernie Sanders won’t use the phrase “Black Lives Matter”. I also agree with Van Jones that this stance will probably blow up in their faces.

I might have called Bernie Sanders principled for sticking to his ideals even though it might cost him the Presidency if it weren’t for the Elizabeth Warren speech discussed in my previous post Elizabeth Warren just gave the speech that Black Lives Matter activists have been waiting for. I think her speech was far more principled than Bernie Sanders’ approach, and it shows a depth of understanding that he just does not seem to have.

I did sense a rigidity in Bernie Sanders’ reaction to the people of Black Lives Matter. Now I see that what I sensed was actually true. He is going to rigid himself right out of the White House if he can’t listen well enough to figure out why he is wrong on this issue.

October 10,2015

On reading the article more thoroughly, I did come across softening paragraphs such as this reaction after the Black Lives Matter disruption at Netroots Nation

A week later, in his Senate office, Sanders sounded chastened. “The issues these young people raised are enormously important,” he said. The video showing the arrest of Sandra Bland, the African-American woman who died in a Texas jail, had just been released, and Sanders seemed shaken. “It impacted my night’s sleep,” he said. “I don’t sleep that great, and it made it even worse.” He went on, “It’s hard to imagine if Sandra Bland was white she would have been thrown to the ground and assaulted and insulted.” Sanders, speaking more broadly about police violence directed at black people, said, “I plead guilty—I should have been more sensitive at the beginning of this campaign to talk about this issue.”

Still, that understanding seems to have eroded in his recent speeches. He does not have the understanding that Elizabeth Warren does about the special hell that the oligarchs have reserved for African American victims of their plans to strip the wealth away from the people below them.

NPR has the story Where The Wild Fractions Are: The Power Of A Bedtime (Math) Story.

We compared kids who used the Bedtime Math app that involved reading stories and doing math problems with their parents to kids who did a very similar app that didn’t have the math content. We showed that when kids frequently used the app with their parents, those who used the math app were three months ahead in terms of math achievement relative to kids who just did the reading app.

This sounds like it may be a great idea for kids and parents who are struggling with math in school.

This is the home page for Bedtime Math, the subject of the NPR story above.

An email conversation I had today gave me an occasion to re-look at some items I had posted on the Sturbridge For Bernie Sanders Facebook page.

The first item was posted on September 28 with the headline from above.

Speaking in Boston, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) says black Americans still face violence, economic injustice and restrictions to voting rights. She highlights the efforts of activists in the Black Lives Matter movement. (Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate)

It had a three minute excerpt from the speech that I thought was excellent.

I was looking for reaction from the Black community when I came across the article that I posted on Facebook on September 29.

This post was about the Color Lines article ICYMI: Elizabeth Warren Talks About Structural Racism and Black Lives Matter.

I focused on a dissenting view of Warren’s speech.

But some wondered online if Warren isn’t just riding the wave of the movement in an attempt to win black votes. Arielle Newton, founder of the Black Millennials blog, wrote on Facebook

At the time I posted the article, I didn’t have time to listen to the 55 minutes of the entire speech from which the above clip was taken. Later someone who had taken the time told me that I really ought to listen to the whole thing. Today, I finally watched and listened.

During her talk at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate on Sunday, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) gave a speech that bore the heart of the structural racism that activists have long known to be the sparks that necessitated the Black Lives Matter movement.

Warren touched on many topics that are key to the every day lived experiences of black people in America, covering everything from housing discrimination, to police violence, to domestic terrorism, to the gutting of voting rights.

This was such a great speech. It had me and the audience close to tears at some points. How I wish Bernie Sanders could make a speech like this. That wish is even taking into account that Bernie Sanders delivers one heck of a rousing speech when ever he makes an appearance.

October 6, 2015

People on Facebook have been so resistant to the message I am trying to convey, that they missed the comment in the Color Lines article I mentioned above. Even though I quoted a bit of what I was trying to emphasize, people’s mind filters seem to be so strong, that they still missed it.

Perhaps if I quote the entire section below, they will have a harder time missing it. Unfortunately, I will not be surprised if they still resist understanding what Arielle Newton said. I didn’t say agree. All I am asking people is to consider why she might have the feelings she expressed. In all the management courses I ever took, they always told me you cannot deny a person’s feelings. You may disagree about whether they should or should not have those feelings, but you cannot tell them that they do not have the feelings they profess.

But some wondered online if Warren isn’t just riding the wave of the movement in an attempt to win black votes. Arielle Newton, founder of the Black Millennials blog, wrote on Facebook:

Black Lives Matter (as a Movement and affirmation) holds tremendous political capital. Folks can literally get votes and funds if they court the growing Black vote that is disillusioned by of the system and is ready to divest from it.

Black folk are conditioned to accept so little, to the point where we applaud white folk for recognizing our work, labor, analysis, and most importantly…our lived existence. We praise a white women who made credible our claims against institutional racism. We laud a white women who probably wouldn’t have delivered these words had it not been for sustained protest and uprisings. We uplift a white women for doing what she’s supposed to do. …

If you wanna praise Sen. Elizabeth Warren for the words that’ve been uttered, written, screamed, chanted, whispered, and proclaimed by many Black folk, fine. But don’t get complacent.

Sharon and I attended the October 3, 2015 Springfield rally with Bernie Sanders. We volunteered to be ushers. Here are some pictures.

I have been finding a lack of understanding of people of color in the mostly white Bernie Sanders’ fan base. I thought I might be able to act as a conduit of people from communities other than the majority one. Even though I had some feeling about the issues of other groups, I thought I might try to interview some local people to find out their views more exactly.

What I have discovered, much to my chagrin for not having figured this out before, is that there are plenty of outlets for these voices, but we, the majority community, have to seek them out and listen to them.

Using a hashtag of #BlackLivesMatter (Too) on twitter and on Facebook led me to instant results.

Here are just a few things I found. There is a much, much larger universe to explore.

wolbbaltimore has the article What Is The Ask: Iyanla Vanzant Addresses #BlackLivesMatter Controversy featuring the “video” below.

News One has the article Should The Black Lives Matter Movement Hold A Presidential Candidate Forum To Address Our Issues? The article features the “video” below.

Everyday Feminism has the article Here’s What It Really Takes to Be An Ally to Black Justice Movements. This article features the video below.

Naked Capitalism has the post Debacle, Inc.: How Henry Kissinger Helped Create Our ‘Proliferated’ World

Less well known is the way in which Kissinger’s policies toward Iran and Saudi Arabia accelerated the radicalization in the region, how step by catastrophic step he laid the groundwork for the region’s spiraling crises of the present moment.

When I linked to this article on Facebook, I commented as follows:

I won’t mention any names, but how many of you know which current Presidential hopeful counts Henry Kissinger as one of the people she admires? As Secretary of State, her foreign policy looked remarkably like one that could have been advised by Henry Kissinger.

Again, not mentioning any names, but which Presidential hopeful seems to disdain the realpolitik tendencies of Kissinger and his acolytes? He came out pretty firmly in support of the recent deal with Iran on nuclear weapons. Perhaps in an effort to undo some of the damage that Kissinger has done.

Naked Capitalism has the post Wolf Richter: This is When Bonds Go Kaboom!

But the $40-trillion US bond market is not an entity by itself. Many of these companies are publicly traded, and stockholders are at the low end of the capital totem pole. Even the lowliest, most kicked-around unsecured bondholders come ahead of them. That’s how problems in bond land tear into stocks. To get an idea where Chesapeake’s and Olin’s stocks are headed, watch their bonds.

Now this is some financial advice that I had not thought about. Perhaps I have been spending too much time on politics, and not enough time watching my portfolio. Actually, there is no perhaps about it.

Naked Capitalism has the post Bill Black on the Department of Justice’s Failure to Prosecute Individuals and Promises to Do Better.

Here is the video featured in the article.

When I posted this article on Sturbridge For Bernie Sanders Facebook page, I introduced it with the comment.

Even some of Bernie Sanders most ardent fans do not know how much we need the revolution. Those of us who have been following this for years have been trying to get the word out. Now is the time to enlist the followers of the Sanders campaign to rise up in protest, and demand the revolution.

For those who wonder why we go after the oligarchs for their success in making money, the answer is “Because they didn’t earn it. They stole it through criminal fraud.”

The Washington Post, acting as a responsible media outlet, has published Transcript: Pope Francis’s speech to Congress.

All of us are quite aware of, and deeply worried by, the disturbing social and political situation of the world today. Our world is increasingly a place of violent conflict, hatred and brutal atrocities, committed even in the name of God and of religion. We know that no religion is immune from forms of individual delusion or ideological extremism. This means that we must be especially attentive to every type of fundamentalism, whether religious or of any other kind. A delicate balance is required to combat violence perpetrated in the name of a religion, an ideology or an economic system, while also safeguarding religious freedom, intellectual freedom and individual freedoms. But there is another temptation which we must especially guard against: the simplistic reductionism which sees only good or evil; or, if you will, the righteous and sinners. The contemporary world, with its open wounds which affect so many of our brothers and sisters, demands that we confront every form of polarization which would divide it into these two camps. We know that in the attempt to be freed of the enemy without, we can be tempted to feed the enemy within. To imitate the hatred and violence of tyrants and murderers is the best way to take their place. That is something which you, as a people, reject.

The pomp and the hoopla are fine, but let us not forget the real issues that should concern us.

Naked Capitalism has the article Private Equity Asset-Stripping Strategy Meets Charter Schools to Produce Even Better Looting.

Have you ever wondered how you could make a private (charter) school that would provide a better education and cost less money than a public school and yet turn a profit? As with all the other efforts to privatize public services, haven’t you suspected that there must be some trick to this? Well this article exposes one of the key tricks.

If you read about how banks could make fraudulent mortgages that had a built-in high rate of defaults, and still make some people rich, then this will be no surprise. If you knew how Mitt Romney made his fortune by buying failing businesses and “turning them around”, then you won’t be surprised by this article.

I suppose what might surprise you is that you didn’t see this scam coming.