Oprah: ‘You don’t have to like her'.

 

Oprah Winfrey’s message for undecided voters is simple: There’s only one choice, and you don’t have to like her. 

The former talk show host and media mogul, who endorsed Hillary Clinton in June, said she has been largely silent in this election because she wasn’t sure she had words that were loud enough to be heard over the tumult. 

“The reason why I haven’t been vocal, other than saying I’m with her, is because I didn’t know what to say that could actually pierce through all the noise and the chaos and the disgusting vitriol that’s going on and actually be heard,” Winfrey told the Dallas-based pastor T.D. Jakes, according to an excerpt of the hour-long sitdown to air next Thursday.



“But there really is no choice, people. All the people sitting around talking about they can’t decide. This is what I wanna say — wait a minute,” she said, silencing Jakes to make her point. “I hear this all the time. You get into conversations — and there’s not a person in this room who hasn’t been in this same conversation — where people say, ‘I just don’t know if I like her.’”

 

But you don’t have to, Winfrey said, stressing that’s not the question voters should be asking.

 

“She’s not coming over to your house! You don’t have to like her,” she said. “You don’t have to like her. Do you like this country? Do you like this country? You better get out there and vote. Do you like the country? Do you like freedom and liberty? Do you like this country? OK. Do you like democracy or do you want a demagogue?”

 

Courtesy: Politico.



The Only Prayer You'll Ever Need.

At the Stanford University's Memorial Church last Monday, Oprah Winfrey was reported to have educated the audience on what it meant to live a meaningful life.



Asking the more than 1,000 members of the audience to close their eyes, the media mogul encouraged them to breathe and feel the pulse of their personal energy.

"Open your heart and quietly to yourself say the only prayer that's ever needed: Thank you, thank you, thank you," she said. "You're still here. You get another chance this day to do better and be better, another chance to become more of who you were created and what you're created to fulfill. Thank you. Amen."

Oprah Winfrey was there to deliver an annual lecture in honor of the late Professor Harry Rathburn, a former faculty member at Stanford Law School. She went on to give students a glimpse of the earliest parts of her spiritual formation, back when she was a child attending Sunday school classes in rural Mississippi.

That’s it! I am in total agreement with Oprah. The only prayer we’ll ever need is a prayer of thanksgiving. All God needs from us is a heart of gratitude. Therefore, there is no point in delivering long speeches to God in the name of prayers. At the end of the day, those verbal epistles rarely contain one word of thanks but a long list of demands.

 

Oprah in Her Own Words.

Selma and America’s Ugly Past.

I have resolved to stay away from movies about slavery and the American Jim Crow eras. They only evoke anger in me. It took some persuasions before I finally summoned the courage to see Selma. And I realized that it was positively, “a different kettle of fish”.

In the aftermath of watching the movie though, I came away with the following personal conclusions:

1. America, as great and as wonderful as it is, is a nation that is being horribly hunted by too much evil and bloodshed that were unleashed on innocent people in its past. For instance, there were the four little girls (see their picture below) that were bombed while inside their 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama on Sunday, September 15, 1963. It was described as an  act of white supremacist terrorism. It’s been over 50 years and I wonder about the lunatics with pea-sized brains in Ku Klux Klan who perpetrated the evil. Many of them would have died and probably re-incarnated somewhere else by now. In Metaphysics, there is a discourse on the Law of Karma (as you sow, so you shall reap). Therefore, for those animals in human shapes and their ilk that unleashed so much hatred, evil and bloodshed, it’s easy to figure out the possible fate of their souls. And these are manifested in the many “strange” diseases, negative phenomena, natural calamities and an excessive presence of depressions in a nation so rich-blessed. While people in countries such as Norway, Denmark and others across the world are being celebrated as the happiest, "God’s own country" is well-known as the home of the most miserable people in the world. Happiness can only thrive on the foundation of benevolence, peace and tranquility.

2. One thing has remained constant in spite of the evil and bloodshed that doted the landscapes of the America’s ugly, dark past. Back then, there were some white folks that stuck their necks out on the side of the maligned black people. And they did this at the risk of physical attacks that often led to severe injuries and deaths. They deserve to be celebrated along with Dr. Martin Luther King and the other heroes.

3. Finally, it’s a shame to see how ignorant and nonchalant some blacks behave when it comes to exercising their voting rights. Selma and other horrible places in the American south have shown us that too many black folks died or got maimed just so as to pave the way for the future generations to vote. Therefore, any black person who refuses to vote at every American election is not only being ungrateful and self-defeatist but also declaring himself or herself non-existent and voiceless!

The four girls killed in the bombing (Clockwise from top left, Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson and Denise McNair). May their tender and gentle souls continue to rest in perfect peace.

 

will.i.am (of the Black Eyed Peas) & "The Four Amigos."

Most times, celebrities get on my nerves. Why so? They are vain, self-loving, self-admiring, self-absorbed, self-obsessed, conceited, self-centered, self-regarding and grossly egotistic. Many of them (especially the blacks) don’t even care a hoot about giving back to their communities.

It was therefore with an impressive and appreciative heart that I read about the great, heroic feat performed by will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas.

In 2009, four high school students from Delaware (my awesome state), Elijah, Darien, Jaiquann and Barien were accepted into their dream universities. But there was a mutual problem. They could not afford the costs. This was in spite of the fact that these young men were Field & Track stars and top academic students. In fact, they were said to have worked assiduously in a bid to help their respective single mothers.

Two of the boys, twins Darien and Barien (their father was in jail) went further to continually motivate the others to keep their grades up.

"Well, I've tried to learn from my dad's negative decisions,” Barren said. “…and it has influenced me to strive in school, and to get good grades…"

Then fate intervened one day. The young men were invited to share their story with Oprah. That was where they got the biggest “pleasant shocks” of their lives. Black Eyed Peas star (will.i.am) stepped in and gave all four boys the first-ever “i.am scholarships” that covered their tuition, books and fees for four years.



 

Trust Oprah. She did a follow-up with the young men. This was to find out how the boys were doing today. They filmed a video update, calling themselves "the four amigos."

Barien is now in his second year of pharmacy school. He will be graduating in 2016.

Elijah graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in May. "I want to get into the architectural field, so it's just been a lot of years of hard work," he declared joyfully.

Jaiquann earned his degree in education from Cabrini College and is now a teacher. He admits that he was holding back tears when he found about the scholarship.

Darien is currently attending Morgan State University in Baltimore with plans to graduate with an industrial engineering degree next year fortune enough to have a full-time position lined up for once I graduate."

Although will.i.am is the greatest hero here, the young men also deserve some commendations. They did not just cry for help. When the help finally came, the young men did not disappoint their benefactor. These great acts are worthy of emulation by the many other celebrities out there and the numerous young black folks who are desirous of a better life.

 

 

 

Ne-Yo Swindled out of $4.5M by Manager.

Kevin Foster (the former manager, trusted adviser and friend) of Shaffer Smith - aka Ne-Yo allegedly forged the singer’s name and signature on some loan documents. And thereby incurred a big loss for the singer, to the tune of $4.5 Million.

In papers filed in Manhattan Federal Court, Ne-Yo said the erstwhile manager swindled him out of $4.5 million. The money was sunk into a floundering water company, a get-rich-quick scheme. The two were first introduced to each other way back in 2005. Shortly afterward, Foster convinced the singer to let the accounting company he was then working for "handle all of Smith's business management and accounting needs."



It was Foster's job to manage the star's bank accounts and ensure that ne-Yo was financially situated as to maintain his accustomed lifestyle for the remainder of his life.

The two guys eventually developed a personal relationship, with Ne-Yo placing complete trust in Foster's handling of his finances and affairs. The singer however later discovered that his faith in Foster was misplaced. Ne-Yo discovered that Foster had been spending some of his money without the singer’s permission. The singer finally decided to hire a different accounting firm which uncovered instances of Foster engaging in self-dealing and inappropriate conduct that included forging Ne-Yo's name on loan documents.

From sports celebrities to those in the entertainment industry, a simple lack of education is their bane. At the height of their fame, some of them even entrusted their money in the hands of mere hangers-on. And this is not talking about “newly-arrived” celebrities that live above their means.

My question is when will those celebrities begin to emulate Oprah Winfrey who insists on signing all checks going out of her account? But, come to think of it, Oprah is a college-educated celebrity. Education will always make a huge difference in a person’s life. It’s the utmost foundation for a life of success. #Nothingbeatseducation

 

Beyoncé, Jay Z and the Judases Around Them.

Lately for Beyoncé and Jay Z, “there is always something”. However, that “something” is rarely good to the ear. The more the power couple wishes ordinary folks (like me) will mind our business, the more we keep getting “bombarded” with arsenals of rumors about their marriage. And if we are to go by the popular adage, “there is no smoke without fire”, one has no choice but to “pay mind” to the "delicious" stories.

In my humble opinion, the biggest problem confronting Beyoncé and Jay Z is not really the alleged acts of cheating on the part of the guy. And neither is it because their marriage appears to be fast and furiously heading in the opposite direction of “Till death do us part”. These are serious issues but the "fire" in them would not have continued to burn without the "oxygen" of the catalysts to the issues.  

Rather, the biggest problem facing both husband and wife are the families, friends and associates that hang around them. It’s from among these very close individuals that some "Judases" spring forth to play the role of “reliable sources” to the nosy media.

Naturally, the worst bane of the rich and the famous are their poor families and relations. Remember what Oprah Winfrey’s relation did to her some years back, selling the famous woman’s story to the National Enquirer?

For some fast cash, a typical "Judas" from the enclave of Beyoncé and Jay Z will “spill the beans on them” without batting an eyelid. Unfortunately, fishing out such treacherous culprits from among a retinue of “ass-kissing” hangers-on will be a hard nut to crack.