Change

I wrote the below piece afew days after President Obama won the election.


We have just entered a new era in American history, by electing a Black man to the highest office in the land. The news and media are full of people who are ecstatic, in churches, people are singing and reporters are reporting. Even people from foreign countries are excited about this. Hell, they are just as excited as most Americans. This recent election has become, no is, a huge deal. Rightly so, this country’s past has been littered with racism and peppered with hatred. Yet for over 100 years society has finally managed to elect a black to the presidency. We are making progress, the dream has been full filled; change has finally come.


If all this is happening and great change is going on or about to take place…why am I not impressed? Why do I, a black man in American not feel over joyed as many do? I should be dancing in the streets, singing hymns, quoting MLK or high fiving my buddies. I guess the training I have previously received as an Equal Opportunity Advisor won’t let me. 16 weeks, for 16 weeks I and 13 relative strangers sat in a small room, looking, talking, crying and at times arguing with each other in various discussions that could fuel hate and discontent in someone not in the course. But when it was all said and done, many of us were to be for ever changed. Pandora’s Box, as my roommate and I loved to say had been opened and there was no way to close it. The day after the election I sat and listened to Doug and Dee Dee, a black radio show, the participants were talking when I heard some one on the show say that this is a time for all black men to stand up and be proud. Are you kidding me? You are joking right? That…is a slap to the face for a lot of black men who have been doing “what’s right” for years. But now all of a sudden I should be proud. You’re out of your damn mind. I was raised by a Blackman. Though he made mistakes and was not perfect, he along with my mother did a good job and that I turned out pretty good.

One could easily make the argument that the Military is a future view of society. Over the years the military has led the way in “testing” the waters so to speak in the realm of social equality. The Army, in particular has been seen by some as a large social experiment. The integration of blacks being one of it’s biggest along with bringing women into our ranks which there is no doubt in my mind trickled over to the civilian work force allowing women to be in positions that were previously closed to them. Things happen within the military culture and often society soon follows. This phenomenon is believed so much that Former President Clinton instituted the “don’t ask don’t tell” policy that would prohibit service members from questioning a recruit’s sexual preference. We have had minorities in positions of great responsibility and in the highest offices within the services. So this which is why I am not surprised by what has taken place in the past election.

The ceiling is still there, it’s just that it looks different. About 10 years ago we had our first black Sergeants Major of the Army (SGMA). He didn’t hold the office very long and was brought up on sexual harassment charges and later stepped down. Though Colin Powell had already retired and was one of the most prominent blacks in the military, I don’t think we were ready for a black SGM. Many Americans are oblivious to the fact that many of the same discriminatory policies of a hundred years ago are still in effect today. If I, in the military where we have a much better record and systems in place to deal with some of these issues can tell you we still have a ways to go, then there is no way you can tell me society is good to go. I’m hoping that some in our society do not use this as a way of minimizing discrimination as well as racism. Trying to down play it or argue that it doesn’t exist because a black was elected to be Presidency.

In EO school, we learned about minimization. Minimization: To represent as having the least degree of importance or value. Today some White people continue to minimize racism by saying, “Personal achievement mostly depends on personal ability. Racism isn’t prevalent anymore.” When you say that something may exist but it’s not really that bad. It’s not that big of a deal and you should just ignore it. Well if it’s allowed to slide, it’ll never go away. I just feel we need to be real about what happened and not let joy cloud our judgment. Racism has not gone…it’s still alive and well. Was it not more than two years ago that the incident in Jena, LA. made national headlines? In 1999 a Blackman was drug behind a pick up truck in Texas; drug to the point where his body was found strung out for miles and disfigured. Just days ago an Offensive lineman from the Texas Longhorns, was kicked off the team. Why? Well the young man decided to voice his opinion of the incoming president by going on his facebook page a sending a message to his friends in which he stated that all the hunters need to get their guns because there would be a nigger in the white house. There are still places in this country where I am not welcomed and could be killed for going there.

My biggest fear is that this one event will back fire and blow up…mainly in the faces of Blacks across this country. My childhood friend told me he was waiting for the other shoe to drop. He felt there must be a conspiracy somewhere in the wings waiting to show its head. We laughed about it but there maybe some truth to it. I heard Blacks on TV themselves now saying, “There is not one thing that I can not achieve.” Soon this will be followed by whites saying, “See there is a Black President. Racism doesn’t exist anymore and Blacks shouldn’t complain.” WHOA are you kidding me. A Black gets into office and all of a sudden all the problems will be erased. I think this train of thought is very, very dangerous. We have fought and continue to fight against racism, sexism and any other ism out there. It has not gone away. And as Kenny thought, maybe that’s the conspiracy. All eyes will be on Barack from this day forward. I hope he’s got some big shoulders, because he has been given the biggest weight to carry of any one person on this planet.

So what are we to do? First we need to hold our society to the highest standards. How about the press, we need to start beating them up to report more about the facts instead of sensationalism journalism. The media does more for keeping us separate than together. Do not allow someone to tell you what you can or can not do without you giving it your best. Be a realist, there are some things in this society that we can and can not do. Know we are working towards a goal and though we might not be there yet, we can still get there. But we must do it together. We live our lives the best we can. We do our best not to rely on outward appearances and focus on what’s inside.

Being Thankful

Thankfulness is a virtue that all can not seem to grasp. Day to day we go about our lives and at times complain about…nothing. You can hear, “I don’t have enough money, I hate my car, this job sucks,” etc.etc. Do you really have anything to complain about? Or is it that you are not thankful? As a Soldier, we as a culture have been known for complaining. One of the old quotes states, “If Soldiers aren’t complaining, they aren’t happy.” That works well for us, but not so much for the general population.


As a Soldier, I have a lot to be thankful for and could easily fill a book where as your average American might take awhile. There are so many freedoms that many complain about but until they loose these things, they will never really know what they had. Some of us were taught at an early stage in our careers that you never complain unless you have three possible solutions to said issue. I’ve found that rule an excellent way of keeping things in perspective and cutting down on the basic bitching that many Soldiers do.

For example, when was the last time your job asked you to leave your family for 12-15 months? I’m sure some jobs may take you on a trip for a few days but a year plus? Not many at all. How many ask you to give up some of your basic freedoms? Many just take for granted that they should have this or that. Be allowed to do what ever it is they choose all based on the assumption that it belongs to them.

Being thankful is a state of mind. You must wake up, look out the window and simply say…Thank you. Why? Well for starters you could be some place where you have no windows to see outside. You could be homeless. Or you could be dead. There are so many things to be thankful for but some of us in society have been conditioned to not see the good things within our lives. They tend to concentrate on the negative.

If you’re a follower of the Laws of Attraction, then you may agree that complaining is counter productive and only brings in more of what it is you do not want. I believe there is a time and place for any and everything; complaining too. But on that note I to believe that there is a right way and a wrong way to say things.

For instance, instead of saying, “I hate my car; it’s a piece of crap.” Rework that and be thankful that you have a car. “You know, I like my lil car, its gets me where I need to be. I’m looking forward to retiring it and getting a new one.” There, that was simple. You are thankful and appreciate what you have. This technique can be used by anyone and for anything. I feel that once you condition yourself to think that way that the negative things begin to shrink and those positive ones begin to grow.

There is not a day that goes by that I can truly complain about. I can say I’m having a rough day and things aren’t going as smoothly as I’d like but I can always…always find something to be thankful for. While in Iraq it was hot and numerous days it just sucked. We complained, but was usually followed up by someone saying, “It could be worse.” It would quickly be agreed upon and the conversation would change to how worse it could be with examples. Looking at the examples…things weren’t that bad and laughter soon followed. We learned to be thankful for the lil things that would happen to us on a day to day basis. Just getting from point “A” to point “B” was a blessing.

I currently have a journal that I maintain. In it I write what I am thankful/ grateful for now and on the other page I write now that. It helps you keep track of the small things that are normally forgotten throughout the course of your day. Like electricity, your internet connection, the pen you’re using to write with. The checks you have. Your house has walls in it. Yeah I know, some may say get real or that’s silly. Well that’s your call or your choice. But writing it all down, day to day or when ever you feel the urge. It can keep you grounded and help you appreciate what good things are going well in your life. If you can focus on what you have versus what you don’t have, then to me you’re headed in the right direction.
So thankfulness is just that, being thankful. There are so many things that we can be thankful for yet, like I said they go unnoticed. I am truly grateful for: being alive today, typing on this laptop, my family, my wife, my children, the abundance of money in our bank accounts, I have a home, I have a job, I have two cars that are paid for, the ability to walk, I have use of all my limbs, I currently serve in a unit of Soldiers I enjoy being around, I survived an IED attack, I didn’t loose any of my Soldiers during our deployment, I have friends that care about me, facebook, e-mail, college football, I’m close to retirement, my kids are doing well in school, my daughter can do a back flip without a spotter now, the office that I have, the cold weather gear we were recently issued, being in Korea, my bills are paid, the body armor that we wear, I can see, I can hear, I have been promoted, I have the ability to change my defects of character, my belief system that keeps me grounded and on the path to success.

I’ll leave you with this though that I think sums it up, “Everyday is a good day that no one is shooting at you.”