PETA needs to calm down

The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals need to sit down somewhere.

President Barack Obama killed an ordinary housefly during an interview that aired yesterday and PETA, the folks who fight for animal rights, called the swatting an "execution" and asked the President to be more compassionate.

What?!

"We believe that people, where they can be compassionate, should be, for all animals," PETA spokesman Bruce Freidrich explained.

The group sent Obama a device that traps flies so they can then be released outside.

I am all for the ethical treatment of animals. I certainly don't want people abusing cats, dogs, elephants, tigers, etc. You get the picture. But flies? That's another story.

Flies are annoying. They aim for your food at picnics. Tickle your skin when they land on you. Buzz in your ears. Oh, how they are annoying.

I wouldn't go as far as saying flies deserved to be killed, but when they are inside - not outside where they belong - and getting on my nerves - then, I'm swatting, and if I get it, so be it.

PETA there are more important things in life than expecting people to be more compassionate toward flies.

Race matters

Sometimes, it's not about race. But today, it is.

It's the day after our nation elected Barack Obama, who will serve as the first black president of the United States of America, and I'm still stunned by his sweeping victory. While this win will be savored by Democrats, the Republicans who just couldn't vote their party line and the countries around the world who were rooting for the senator, black Americans will probably relish in this victory the most.

And I want blacks to celebrate harder, longer and with tears in our eyes because of our history in America. Our history of slavery. Our history of segregation. Our history of beatings, hangings, burnings and mutilations because of the color of our skin. Our history of being denied to vote. Our history of unequal opportunities for good schools, fair housing and well-paying jobs. And to think some of that violent, sad history was as recent as 40 years ago. But what's even more disheartening, is that some of that "history" still goes on today.

But even with that history, because of Obama's win, when my 7-year-old niece looks into my eyes and asks if she can be president of the United States, I can finally say "yes."

Because of Obama's win, little black boys, raised by single mothers, will finally have a role model.

And maybe I'm stretching here, but it's my hope that gun-toting blacks, who drive up black-on-black crime statistics, will think twice before pulling the trigger because of Obama's win.

People who didn't have hope before yesterday, now have something to grab on to.

It is amazing to think that come Jan. 20, our nation will be led by a black man - a black man who 143 years ago could have been a slave. America took baby steps in getting to where we are today. It took 44 presidents to elect a black man and he will have a presidency like no other. Not only because the economy has tanked; our troops are fighting two senseless wars and millions of Americas need health care, but because most blacks have to work twice as hard to get half as far. So, some people will hold Obama to a higher standard than previous presidents. I wouldn't wish the weight Obama carries on his shoulder on my worse enemy.

But Obama warned Americans last night that it could take longer than one year or maybe even one term to get the nation back on track. It took President George W. Bush eight years to make his mess, so Obama shouldn't be expected to clean it up overnight.

But even before the first national problem is addressed, Obama is well on his way to fixing the problem of hopelessness in black Americans.

History was made today

I am not a morning person, but I was wide awake at 5:15 this morning, eager to get to the voting booth. Since Barack Obama was named the Democratic presidential nominee, I have been looking forward to Nov. 4.

I vote in every election, and when I say, every, I mean every. With a mother who is a retired American History teacher, my degree in African-American Studies and just being a black woman, I know my people's history when it comes to voting - or being denied to vote. And because of that, I never miss an election - casting my ballot is something I take very seriously.

I arrived at the polling location at 6 a.m. and there were already hundreds of people waiting in line. I live in a majority black neighborhood, so most of the people in line were black.

I just smiled. I stopped. I looked at the line. I took it all in.

Never before, in my 15-year voting history, have I seen such a sight: Proud black people who could not wait to vote. I was nearly moved to tears.

Everyone was friendly. People were laughing and talking. There were no strangers in line. We were one family on a mission - to elect Obama. I don't want to assume that just because people are black that they're going to vote for Obama, but everyone around me was an Obama supporter.

I spoke with an 18-year-old who was voting for the first time. She did her part today in making history.

I talked with a 60-year-old who has voted the last 30 years.

"Today is different," he said.

Different in a good way, I thought.

I am only 33 years old and I never thought I would have the chance to vote for a black man for the president of the United States, so I cannot imagine how people my parents and grandparents age feel today.

I have always been proud of my race, my history filled with struggles, challenges and successes. But today, "proud" is too weak a word to describe how I feel. I'm walking a little taller. I'm smiling a little wider. No matter the outcome, today, I made history.

New Yorker cover goes too far

The editors said it's satire and they were making fun of the rumors that Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack Obama is Muslim.

Satire, mocking rumors or not, the New Yorker's cover of Obama and his wife, Michelle, depicted as terrorists, is insensitive and goes too far.

I'm not a subscriber to the New Yorker, but if I were, I could cancel my subscription. Call me sensitive, but I'm highly offended. The editors are feeding into the rumors and someone may look at that cover and truly believe that the Obamas are Muslims, when they are actually Christians.

Obama spokesman Bill Burton said, "The New Yorker may think...that their cover is a satirical lampoon of the caricature of Senator Obama's right-wing critics have tried to create. But most readers will see it as tasteless and offensive. And we agree."

The New York explains that the cover "combines a number of fantastical images about the Obamas and shows them for the obvious distortions they are."

In the magazine that hit newsstands Monday, the cover also shows the couple standing in the Oval Office bumping fists, which they made mainstream to white America, and burning the American flag in the fireplace.

The only thing right about the cover is that the Obamas are in the White House.

Jesse Jackson's comments make me question his reverendship

From now on, the Rev. Jesse Jackson will just be Jesse Jackson to me. No title needed.

After his unChristian-like comments about what he'd like to do to Sen. Barack Obama, I'm questioning Jackson's walk with God.

Jackson, after an interview on FOXNews, thought the microphones were off when he said to Reed Tuckson of the UnitedHealth Group that the Democratic presidential candidate's been talking down to blacks on the faith-based issues. Then Jackson said, "I want to cut his nuts off."

Is Jackson's hatred for Obama really so strong that he wants to mutilate him? Some may argue that Jackson's comments were just an expression, but what would move a supposed reverend to use such wrathful words?

Jackson apologized to Obama. But was Jackson sorry for his crassness or that he got caught? And even if Jackson truly wants to cut off Obama's privates, why would he say that with a mic pinned to his lapel? Jackson should be media savvy enough to know that just because the producer says you're not on the air, that unless you're out of the building, there's still a chance you could be heard by the public.

Jackson not only embarrassed himself, but his son, who publically chastised his father, using the senior's words against him. Jackson Jr. told his father to leave Obama alone and "keep hope alive."

Some politicos said that Jackson is jealous of Obama's success. Jackson ran an unsuccessful bid for president in 1988. Jackson may also feel left out because Obama hasn't asked Jackson, who endorsed the senator, to take a role in his campaign.

Whether Jackson is feeling slighted or not, there was no need for his comments. Hopefully Jackson's learned a simple lesson from his faux paux: If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.