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Comment by charles derrick jr on December 4, 2010 at 8:25pm

I agree solutions that we must bring too light and start applying as a people cause there is power in numbers so we must join together and pull ourselves out of the h*** that we and others dug for us

Comment by William E. Mackson on December 4, 2010 at 8:30pm

@Leisa-Peace, I believe if all of or maybe some of our Black millionaires start creating businesses in poor Black communities, such as grocery stores, bakeries, restaurants, laundry mats and banks. And assist each establishment with accountant, management and banking services.

Comment by William E. Mackson on December 4, 2010 at 8:36pm

we can address many of the problems that are in our communities

Comment by Leisa Monique on December 4, 2010 at 9:01pm

@William: We have enough black entrepreneurs in our communities to do the job! It would be nice if the sports figures, movie stars and TV personalities pitched in to help out but the fact of matter is that we can no longer sit around and look to anyone else to come into our communities to do what the people of the community can do!

Education: Start with the parents and care-givers! We can't depend on our schools to do our jobs! I pulled my oldest daughter out of public school last week and am home schooling her. The public education system was not able to provide her the environment she needs to thrive so I took the parental responsibility and am education my child at home where she will get everything she needs!

Jobs: I'm an entrepreneur and I recently started my political consulting company here in my city! I was able to hire a young man who my intern as an employee. so, we don't necessarily need the black elite to do what we small business owners can do: open viable businesses and employ our own! It worked for our predecessors who ran thriving businesses and it can work for us in this generation if we get our priorities straight and stop looking to the President, Congress, local elected officials and others to make the changes that we need! We are the change! The ones of us who are on this thread responding...we are the ones that can begin the change!!

Comment by Carolyn Ross on December 4, 2010 at 10:48pm

@Leisa and William-There are many black entrepreneurs that could be doing better or more start-ups with the right capital. So to all those black millionaires that want to "lend" their money and not interested in starting a new business need to pool those funds and make available to entrepreneurs thereby being a apart in growing a business and earning interest from the investment. Speaking of investments; to the great parents that have the capacity to home school their children by choice, please reconsider the choice and become an advocate for the many other children attending the same school as your child. If you have the capacity to handle homeschooling your child, you could choose to supplement what you think is lacking at home and become an advocate for your local school for improvement by becoming a part of the school's school improvement team, serve in a leadership role on your school PTA, become the voice that supports public education, the teachers and administration. Become that voice that goes to the state capitol and school board regarding funding issues and the needs of the school. I know the instinct to withdraw and take care of your own but I also know the gratification that comes from knowing that when you speak out for your child you are also speaking out for hundreds of others, so instead of pulling out be fearless about stepping out and advocating for hundreds of children on behave of your child.
Thoughts on the Bush Tax cuts set to expire soon. The great debate to extend the cuts to folks earning over 250,000; if the choice is to extend for all or nothing. I think it should be for nothing, let it expire. Consider this, something from nothing gets you nothing, but something from something will gettcha something, right? We say we are becoming a country of haves(those with something) and have not’s (those with nothing) so if the tax cuts expire- It’s the something’s that will being paying more cause you can't take something from nothing! But more seriously, if it is allowed to expire without any modifications then a generous amount of revenues will be generated to either pay down our debt OR fund improvements to our infrastructure - roads, bridges, electrical grid and light rail construction--oh yeah that might even create a whole lot of private sector jobs, oh my! Do a Google search to read about what the fallout would be if the tax cut is allowed to expire.
If there are 3.1 million millionaires in the US and we have a population of 310 million people. We are suppose to be in a democracy where the majority rule (by vote) so did all 3 million millionaires out vote- 310 million other citizens for representation they protects their interest?

Comment by sharon lovely on December 5, 2010 at 3:47am

I am looking forward to interesting thought provoking conversation...can't wait to chat live...what I know for sure is it will be very informative! I am living to chat out loud with Smilely and West...loving it!

Comment by Leisa Monique on December 5, 2010 at 6:16am

@Carolyn: Love your thoughts and ideas; I think that with the right information more entrepreneurs will do better.

I find that a lot of us don't think we need any additional business training or education and tend to think that we "have all we need" to run a successful business. I believe that if we understood the impact that our businesses could have on the community and understood the business side of business we would do better.

I hear you about the education thing. As I stated in my previous post, I elected to pull my daughter out of public school because the public education system was not able to provide the environment she needs to succeed. Until a year ago my children have been educated in the private school system with great results. Private schools tend to have smaller classrooms and more one-on-one interaction with the teachers and that is what my child needs. Unfortunately, with over 40 kids in a classroom six times a day for five days a week she was not getting that and her grades reflected that.

What I didn't mention in my previous post is that rather than enroll my children back in the private school system, which was an option for me but would have only solved the problem for my four, I have decided to run for the office of school board trustee. Yes, I can be concerned about my children (and they are my first priority) but who will be concerned about the thousands of other children that face the same plight as mine did?!

Again, I say that as parents and care-givers we have to do what is best for our children and not look to the schools to do what we as parents should be doing. Whatever works for individual families is what works for them. Changing a system of education will not be easy and will take some time. As parents we have to weigh the pro's and con's of keeping our children in a system that is not serving them until it gets better or being pro-active and taking necessary steps to ensure that our children get what they need while working to make the system better. The latter was my choice!

LOL, no comment on the tax cuts...at least not yet! That is a sticky issue!

Comment by Jared Blair on December 5, 2010 at 8:56am

When we look at the ideas from the left and the right.

The left seems to think that all business owners are greedy and will not take care of the common worker (this is why they like regulations and intevention). They also feel that the less fortunate are trying very hard to move up and succeed, but they are not being treated fairly.

The right thinks that the poor are lazy and should find work (this is why they don't want to extend unemployment). They also feel that the free market will take care of everything and corporations will take care of the common hard worker.

But we must ask ourselves, what are the consequences if both of these parties being wrong? If the right is wrong, then we will get what we have now, a chasm between the poor and the wealthy. If the left is wrong, we have a few freeloaders and tight government regulation on business.

I think that I would much rather have the left be wrong than the right.

Comment by Carolyn Ross on December 5, 2010 at 11:43am

Consider this Jared when comparing the rationale--the average well meaning and responsible business owner is doing what is in the best interest of the business and able to conduct that business using fair practices, respectful of time and safety and appreciative of the commitment of his workers and responds accordingly--"regulations and interventions" are in place typically in response to misuse of authority or abuse of a consideration and even prevention--I dare venture to suggest that if you were presented with a business owner conducting his business using fair practices, she is not bothered by "regulations/interventions enforcement"
I compare this issue to affirmative action- if you are doing what's right and fair you are not affected by affirmative action enforcements- affirmative action puts those who may falter in check. so if you are doing what you’re suppose to- no problem. Just as I know its wrong to hurt someone- I don't need a law to tell me that? But that law is in place (like regulations) only enforced when I do something wrong-same for "regulations and interventions" a deterrent for most to avoid abuse and enforced upon breech. Let us not get regulations entangled with standards- that's a later discussion..AND another thing- the hand out vs. hand up-first there's enough to go around, when folks finally get that we are all connected and need one another will be a wonderful day...If I can help you do better that benefits me and all in my world as well- people who point fingers and complain about wayward youth need to be reminded that misery likes company and that misery will come to you in some form as one of the ills of our society but when we are mindful that the child that is tossed aside could have been the child that was pulled up and redirected to become the cashier at grocery store where you shop that can count your change when the computer malfunctions or the clerk that pleasantly addresses you when you go to social security to apply for retirement benefits, or that missionary that serves to ensure the availability of clean water anywhere in the world, we cannot afford to waste human potential. And Jared greed does have a lot to do with what's happening in our free market today- when greed is defined as getting as much as possible by any means regardless of harm.

@Leisa blessed are the parents that have the option to change environments, AND advocates for improvements where needed, beside the many that do not.

Taxes is the collection of funds from all of us to pay for the services we enjoy as Americans- free libraries, free schools, roads, highways, bridges, fire and police protection, military guard, waste water treatment, reservoirs, beautiful parks and campgrounds, ensure the safety of the airplanes I get to jet across the country in to see family, ensure the food I eat is somewhat ok to eat, conducting research and development to cure diseases and new vaccines, supplementing health clinics in rural areas of the country, providing care for our injured soldiers,......AND NOW I WANT I high speed rail which will impact housing trends due to commuter access and shorter travel time with increased distance, and greater use of natural gas, so I can pull in my driveway and connect my natural gas car to the pump that's near the water hose because the same gas that is being delivered to my home to power the furnace is on the same meter that can track my usage for the car and just add it to my monthly utility bill, and want to do what needs to be done to make public schools more competitive,...there's nothing sticky about the tax issue-it’s what do we want and how do we pay for it - cash, layaway or credit?

Comment by Lorie Taylor on December 5, 2010 at 2:03pm

I'm looking forward to chatting live with Smiley & West & all the members, this will be very I interesting intellectual & informative!! Let's go!!

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