I scored 35% on Obama and 50% on McCain. I took both quizzes for fun, expecting I’d know more about Obama than about McCain. But according to this quiz, it is John McCain with whom I am more familiar.

How should I interpret these test results? Does knowing less about the candidate I’m supporting make me a less informed voter, or does knowing more about the candidate I’m not supporting make me a more informed voter?

Personally, I was expecting to score at least 75% on both candidates. Guess I’m not as informed as I thought I was. Although, I’m fairly certain most voters, regardless of who they support, would’ve gotten a lower score than myself.

In case you’ve already clicked on the links above and have just finished both tests, the parts of the tests I got right were their campaign platforms. The parts I failed were the questions regarding the Senators’ personal histories, although I found I knew much more about John McCain’s personal history than that of Obama’s. Still, I was expecting to score much higher than I actually did.

If you’ve gotten to the end of this entry without taking the tests, go do so now, and please share the results with the rest of the class.

Chalk it up to my paranoia, my distrust of government or even my sneaking suspicion that from the inception of this country the ruling elite has waged class warfare in a battle so subtle the middle and lower classes of this nation don’t even realize they’ve been on the losing side.

Whatever the reason, I’m not the only one nor am I the first to express a lingering fear that the first black President may be assassinated. There are people who even think there might have already been assassination attempts on Obama during the campaign (besides character assassination) that were thwarted by the Secret Service.

I even have some mean-spirited acquaintances who are deliberately voting for Obama just so they can watch him get shot.

Senator Barack Obama is still mulling over who to select as his running mate. I have some advice for him if he wants to reduce his chances of being shot.

DON’T PICK A WHITE MALE.

A lot of people are speculating that Obama may choose a white male to placate white Democrats and even a few swing voters who are keen on voting for Senator John McCain. But if Obama’s Vice President is in fact a white male and he is elected to office, all the white supremacist whackos will say to each other, “All we have to do is kill Obama and we’ll have a white man back in the White House!”

In his stand up routine, comedian Dave Chappelle talks about his aspirations of one day being President, just not the first black President, and that if he is elected President, he’ll make a Mexican Vice President just for insurance. “You can go ahead and shoot me,” he jokes. “You’ll just be opening up the borders. Just let Vice President Santiago and myself to our own devices.”

Here’s a few alternatives to white male candidates for Obama’s VP, and why I think they would make a good running mate. Note that included in this list are some Republicans. I think a Republican or at least a conservative running mate for a Democratic Presidential candidate would provide a good balance for a nation which has been torn apart by partisan politics.

Black VP: Possible choices: Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell.

Picking a black Vice President would solidify the stereotype that black elected officials appoint primarily black administrations. I don’t see the big deal; white Presidents have been picking white VPs for centuries. There are some people who might think that a black President and Vice President is too black too soon for America. Obama could pick Condoleezza Rice and sweep up the Hillary supporters (at least the female ones anyway). Her upbringing in Jim Crow-era Birmingham, Alabama will provide Obama with the African-American socio-political context he very much lacks.

Like Rice, Colin Powell has high ranking Presidential administration experience (at least I think Secretary of State and National Security Advisor are higher on the totem pole than First Lady) and Powell’s military background could woo all those vets considering supporting McCain. I think choosing conservatives like Rice and Powell would be a good ideological balance. While they may have played key roles in the Bush Administration, they are by no means cronies, as Powell and Rice (as Secretaries of State) have both made significant reform in America’s foreign policy in ways that almost contradict the attitudes of their boss, George W. Bush.

White VP: Possible choices: Hillary Clinton, Rep. Barney Frank, Michael Bloomberg and Nancy Pelosi.

Hillary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi are the two most powerful figures (of either gender) within the national Democratic Party. This would definitely snap up the white Democrat vote. Besides, Pelosi looks like she wants it.

While still white males, Michael Bloomberg’s Jewishness and Barney Frank being both Jewish and openly gay would seem, at least to anyone who would not want a black President, just as bad as or worse than being black.

When New York City was still reeling from eight oppressive years under Rudy Ghouliani in 2001 and badly needed real leadership. Michael Bloomberg was that leader. He completely tore apart and rebuilt a public school system that has been allowed to wallow in inefficiency and corruption for two decades. From day one, the billionaire served as Mayor for only $1 a year, something he might also do as Vice President. He is also a supporter of gay marriage as well as immigrants’ rights and supports amnesty for illegal workers. He once said,

“It is as if we expect border control agents to do what a century of communism could not: Defeat the natural forces of supply and demand and defeat the natural human instinct for freedom and opportunity. You might as well sit on the beach and tell the tide not to come in.”

Barney Frank makes me laugh. He is very funny, and as a comedy duo, Obama’s serious will play a good straight man (no pun intended) to Franks’ witty and insightful quips. He is also a strong supporter of civil liberties, advocating fiercely for medical marijuana, to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana and has fought against Congressional attempts to regulate online gambling. He also opposed legislation prohibiting anti-war protesters from demonstrating outside of the funerals of fallen soldiers, citing the Constitution’s right to free assembly. Lets not forget the Frank Rule!

Latino VP: Possible choices: Bill Richardson, Linda Chavez, Antonio Villaraigosa and Rosa Clemente.

Even I admit I didn’t know Bill Richardson was Hispanic the first time I heard his name. But upon learning more about him, he quickly became my first choice for Presidential Democratic nominee before he dropped out of the race. I’ve already discussed my reasons for supporting him here and here. Here’s the short(er) version:

Being half non-Hispanic white (his Anglo family can trace their lineage back to the Mayflower) will win over some of the white Democratic vote and maybe some of the swing votes leaning towards McCain. His massive foreign policy and diplomacy experience is much needed in a time when America needs to mend a few fences among the international community. As a Congressman, Richardson has negotiated with the likes of Saddam Hussein, Fidel Castro and North Korea dictator Kim Jong Il to release American hostages. In 2007, he brokered a 60-day cease-fire in war-torn Darfur.

The Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, regards Richardson as the most fiscally responsible Governor in the U.S., a quality this country could use after eight years of rabid Bush spending. He is a supporter of gay rights and of medical marijuana and has fought attempts at eminent domain in his own state.

Like Richardson, Linda Chavez is also half non-Hispanic white, which should ease white voters. Like Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell, she is no stranger to high-ranking positions in Presidential administrations. She was the highest ranking woman in the Reagan Administration, and was nominated to Secretary of Labor by George W. Bush in 2001, becoming the first Latina to ever be nominated to a Cabinet position. Ronald Reagan also appointed Chavez to Staff Director on the U.S. Commission for Civil Rights, and George H.W. Bush appointed her to be the Chairwoman on the National Commission on Migrant Education. The UN Human Rights Commission appointed her U.S. Expert to the UN Sub-commission on the Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities.

Antonio Villaraigosa is like a Latino Obama. Young, good looking and charismatic, Antonio is sure to win over female voters regardless of race. He is the first Latino mayor of Los Angeles since Cristobal Aguilar in 1872, so like Obama, he is no stranger to breaking racial barriers. Like Michael Bloomberg, one of Villaraigosa first acts as Mayor was to fix Los Angeles’ failing public school system.

Rosa Clemente, a Puerto Rican from the Bronx, has an academic background and is an avid writer, just like Obama. She has a background in grassroots community organizing in urban communities, just like Obama. She has led workshops on everything from hip-hop activism to feminism to black-Latino intercultural relations. The only problem? She’s already running as VP on the Green Party ticket alongside Cynthia McKinney.

Who are your VP picks for Obama? Also, if you disagree with any of my VP suggestions, please, fire away.

First Sen. Hillary Clinton’s Presidential campaign spread the offensive and far fetched rumor that Latinos were less likely to vote for a black candidate for President, loosely basing such a ridiculous idea on tensions between Mexican/Chicano gangs and African-American gangs in Los Angeles. Now, the media has chosen to embrace a more truthful assumption about the Latino vote in this country: that many Latinos vote conservatively.

This assumption is based mostly (and solidly) on how much of the Latino vote George W. Bush won in 2000 and 2004. But I think some people-namely white liberals-are often shocked that a Latino can be anything but a blindly loyal Democrat. A lot of black people are also surprised to find out I do not subscribe to liberalism. I’m surprised why more black Americans aren’t conservative. (more…)

I’ll admit my bias here; I am not that into sports.  I rarely watch sports on television and when I do, my attention span barely allows me to tolerate it for more than 15 minutes.  Ironically, my first paying job in journalism was as a newspaper’s sports editor.  I understand the basic rules for football, soccer, baseball, boxing and other less complicated team sports.  I’m just not interested.  As you can guess, I’m even less interested in the Olympics. (more…)

This particular Jose Celso Barbosa Day was more politically heated than usual, as the pro-statehood Republican Party rallied for their gubernatorial candidate in Barbosa’s name.

Jose Celso Barbosa (1857-1921) accomplished a number of firsts for Puerto Ricans. He was the first mixed race person to attend Puerto Rico’s Jesuit Seminary and in 1880 graduated from Michigan University to become the first Puerto Rican to have a medical degree and the first Puerto Rican to have a degree from an American University.

After the U.S. defeated Spain in 1898 and seized Puerto Rico, Barbosa was one of the first advocates for statehood even when the U.S. barely knew what to do with their new war prize. He founded the Puerto Rican Republican Part, solidifying his legacy as the father of the Statehood for Puerto Rico Movement. He also began Puerto Rico’s first bilingual newspaper, perhaps a testament to his eagerness to have his island join the United States as an equal and shed its centuries-long history as a subservient Spanish colony.

While I would love to see an independent Puerto Rican nation, I do favor statehood as a second choice. Anything is better than remaining a colony. I believe the best solution for Puerto Ricans is for Washington to force them to choose only between independence or statehood. (more…)

I’ve always considered myself to be a fairly practical person, but choosing to attend college forced me to make some fairly impractical decisions. For example, attending classes full-time made it absolutely impossible to work full-time; my grades suffered the few times I did attempt to do so. As a result, I could only search for part-time employment and passed up several promising full-time positions. (more…)

The first problem with Affirmative Action is that it is based on the assumption that all white people are wealthy and that all minorities are poor. This theory is highly flawed; even when Affirmative Action was first drafted in federal law in the 1960s, this was not true. There were many successful African-Americans who were, although segregated from whites, highly educated and among the middle-class, well before the Civil Rights Movement. (more…)

So I’m going to offer what I believe to be the top ten scams facing Americans today, in no particular order.

1) Affirmative Action

2) Bilingual education

3) College

4) The Anti-Globalization Movement

5) Welfare

6) Health insurance

7) Privatization of core government functions

Public schools

9) Unions

10) The minimum wage

Here’s where you, the reader come in. I’m a little disappointed with the lack of comments on INTOO. According to Google Analytics, for the last 30 days I’ve roughly gotten an average of about 50 people coming to this site every day, so someone is obviously reading this. I’d like my readers to tell me which scam they’d like me to discuss first, why I see it as a scam and who specifically benefits from the scam.

The ball’s in your court now. Drop me a comment on this post and whichever topics gets the most requests will be selected first for discussion by me. Also, I believe in instant run-off voting, so feel free to declare a second choice you’d like me to discuss first if your first choice does not get the most requests.

And I’m not going to discuss any of these scams until I see at least 10 requests. What I’m looking for here is reader participatio, so please don’t disappoint. Thanks.

For those unfamiliar with the term, transracial adoption is when a child is adopted by an adult or couple who is of a different race or ethnicity. The aspect of transracial adoption which has been deemed the most controversial among over reactionary so-called black advocacy groups is when white families adopt African-American children.

Though the CNN.com article above mentions that the opponents of whites adopting black children include the Dave Thomas Foundation for adoption (pretty funny considering he was a white guy!), the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute, the North American Council on Adoptable Children and the Child Welfare League of America, I will focus on the National Association of Black Social Workers (NABSW), who is the most vocal opponent and, presuming from the name, is comprised completely of black people. (more…)

While U.S. foreign policy focused more on Mexico and the Middle East in the last 20 years, South America (with the exception of Colombia) was left to its own devices, without interference from their powerful neighbor to the north.  Most Americans may vaguely recall South America as a continent full of banana republics ruled by totalitarian thugs who are as corrupt as they are brutal. But as Kozloff explains in “Revolution!”, over the last few decades, the nations of South America have shed the dictatorships which held them hostage and caused many a dissident to disappear.
In its place are an array of leftist governments headed by socialist leaders like Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Bolivian President Evo Morales who seek to use their country’s newly nationalized natural resources to finance various social programs, all the while demonizing capitalism and the United States.

As Hugo Chavez has replaced Fidel Castro as the ideological enemy of the United States, it is no surprise that the bulk of the book focuses on Chavez and his Bolivarian Revolution. Not only is Chavez mentioned on almost every page (Jesus Christ gets fewer mentions in the New Testament of the Bible!) but an entire chapter is devoted to the Venezuelan President’s propaganda campaign conveyed through the country’s state-owned television stations, state-sponsored art exhibits, state-owned movie studio, state-owned publishing company and laws requiring that 50 percent of what DJs play be Venezuelan music.

Kozloff does not hesitate to expose the endless arrangements between Chavez and former Cuban President Fidel Castro, or Chavez’ lofty goal of creating institutions to rival U.S. institutions such as Mercosur, a free trade bloc between South American nations, a movie industry to rival Hollywood and El Presidente’s obsession (bordering on fetish) with Simon Bolivar, the liberator of Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador.
The book is an exercise in outstanding, insightful investigative journalism, a kind rarely seen in this country.  The research in Revolution dives deep into the histories of South America’s largest economies, detailing past dictatorships (many of which were supported by the U.S. in exchange for allowing American oil companies to freely drill into natural oil and gas reserves while leaving behind environmental disasters) such as the Pinochet regime in Chile, Roberto Viola in Argentina and many other military-driven coup d’etats resulting in totalitarian regimes elsewhere in the continent.

The author does a pretty good job of remaining objective, interviewing both supporters and critics of Chavez, Morales and other key players in the governments of Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador and Peru.  But Kozloff’s true political leanings as a leftist certainly come forth in his writing.  The word neo-liberal appears almost as frequently in the book as Chavez’ name does.  As I turned the pages, I could almost feel Kozloff rooting for this ideological shift in South American politics, this trend towards, as Chavez calls it, “socialism for the 21st Century”.

Revolution! is definitely an eye-opener for any American who gets all of their news from the mainstream media.  If nothing else, readers will become aware of the diverse history and political culture of South America’s nations.  That South America is not a monolithic demographic, but a cluster of neighboring societies that have fought as well as allied with each other, not unlike the countries of Europe.

After reading Revolution! it becomes obvious that the rise of the new left is not a comprehensive one in the continent, as governments focus on the social welfare aspects of socialism and not much else, as countries like Argentina, Peru and Chile shy away from the notion of mimicking Venezuela, and as Colombia remains a strong U.S. ally.

Chavez is bent on creating a South American version of the European Economic Union, with the mission of undermining U.S. supremacy in the Western Hemisphere.  But after reading Revolution! it becomes obvious that if such a union materializes in the future, it will most likely not resemble Chavez’ vision but will rather be an awkward compromise between free market principles and socialist values, with ideological differences set aside in the name of a united South America.