America The Broke...And Her People R Killing themselves becuz of it...

What is Really Going On?

Being an American used to fill ur head with pride,

Now it's filling people's heads with lead.

The Switchboard of Miami has recorded more than 500 foreclosure-related calls this year.

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As more and more people continue to lose their homes, or suffer financial devastation-Americans are doing what they deem to be honorable:

killing themselves and family.

• Pamela Ross shot herself as sheriffs came to evict her and husband from her home.
• Karthik Rajaram, shot and killed his family-then himself, because it was more honorable to kill his family then to leave them with his debt.
• Addie Polk, 90, shot herself and is recovering as she was being evicted.
• Roland Gore shot his wife, their dog, set their home afire (which was in foreclosure) and then killed himself.
• Carlene Balderama delayed her and hubby's foreclosure for 3.5 yrs. she hid foreclosure docs from her husband. She shredded docs, attempted to get refinanced and was unsuccessful. She then sent a letter to their mortgage co. saying by the time they get her letter, she'll be dead. Balderama killed herslf with her husband's rife-leaving the insurance policy on the table.

When will these stories become real enuf for the Govt., to pay attention to?
How long must the American dream..be an American nightmare?
source

check out Bria's Own Words

And on that note...

How Did This Not Show Up On My Radar??

Rev. Jeff Witcher (below)
Lord, Please provide literal rain for your people in GA. The heat is driving pastors cuckoo for cocoa puffs and thus results in the whooping on their wives, and are becoming public disgraces-this is NOT YOUR WILL!! I'm praying for the latter rain-sooner, than later in Jesus name-amen!

Alpharetta pastor resigns after assault charges dropped source

The pastor of one of Alpharetta's largest and oldest churches resigned Sunday, nearly a month after his arrest involving a domestic dispute.

The Rev. Jeff Witcher stepped down as senior pastor of First Alpharetta Baptist Church during a meeting with church members Sunday. Witcher's resignation follows a Nov. 12 altercation with his wife, which resulted in him being arrested and charged with simple assault and obstruction of a 911 call.

"I am so deeply sorry," Witcher said in a letter posted on the church's Web site. "I accept full responsibility for my actions." Read Witcher's letter

A disconnected 911 call brought police to the Witcher home around 1 a.m. on Nov. 12. Shelley Witcher told police her husband pulled her hair, told her to leave the house, and held a shotgun at the bedside, though he never pointed it at her.

The charges were dropped on Nov. 20, pending Witcher's participation in court-ordered counseling as part of an intervention program. If Witcher successfully completes the program, the arrest will be wiped from his record within four six months.

First Alpharetta spokesman Jonathan Wilson said Witcher and his family have the church's full support.

"We as a church have forgiven Pastor Witcher, and now pray that God will be able to restore him and continue to work in and through him," Wilson said.

Witcher will retain his salary for an undisclosed time, and a search committee has been formed to name his successor, Wilson said. Until then, three church ministers and guest speakers will fill the pulpit.

***

I'm not willing to call Jeff a shyster/pervert just yet. Loose cannon, perhaps, but not a shyster or pervert.

Let me say this...i have NO IDEA what set him off, but he should've jumped in the car and went for a ride, a coupla rides, or several rides around the block,, to his mama's house, his boys' house...anywhere, until he was back to himself again. Pulling a woman's hair (will get you hurt), add an attempted eviction to the equation, along with a shotgun and it could've proved fatal for J.W. as well, ok??-at least that's true in my neck of the woods!

Having said that, I must give this some man credit- why you ask??

• He didn't turn into a fugitive *clearing throat* as another well known GA "pastor"
• He accepted responsibility and has accepted counseling
• He confessed his sins
• Again he accepted responsibility and blamed NO ONE for his actions-not once did he blame his wife.
• Most importantly, the man STEPPED DOWN as pastor of First Baptist Church-Alpharetta.
• I'm sorry, I gots to give the man some credit...he may have acted a behind last month, but I'm glad he thought of the church and not himself while in the midst of this situation.

I pray that forgiveness and healing goes forth in the Witchers' household in Jesus' name, and that this too shall pass.

Juanie B Comes Outta Hiding...

Bring In The New Year with Juanie B on the cover of Essence Magazine
source

Well, well look who's come out of hiding!
Juanie B herself.
You know it's time to make the rounds since Part I of her story will be in Essence Magazine this week, and Part II (because we never tire of Juanie B) will be in the January 2008 issue of Essence Magazine, and guess who has the cover?? Your royal profitess, that's who!

I don't want to ruin the article but did you know:

• After the marital drama went down, Juanie"lost her $2.5 million home with the prayer room that gave her a quiet place to soothe her spirit... she cried for two days? Wow. She was traumatized!
• Her estate in a Duluth, GA country club was headed for foreclosure. Profitess couldn't see that coming?!
  
• And, always out to make a buck Juanie B is having Valentine's Day conference on Domestic Violence...i'm sure she's going to take the women to yet "another level" --I mean it's their "destiny" isn't it. Tell me, how many levels in Christ are there, when there's only ONE ANOINTING?? I'm just asking.

If I read the article, it'll be because I was chillin' at Hair Styles By Thomas, or the Dr's office cuz I'm not giving one slug, drachma, lyre, dollar, euro, peso, pound, loony, escudo, franc, shilling, or deutsch mark to Essence Magazine, because I know they've negotiated a financial deal with Profitess Bind'em.
She's not making money off of me. She won't be buying Jimmy Choo shoes with a solid gold heel, engraved initials with a diamond-encrusted insole courtesy of me.



It's going to be interesting to hear what she says, and then to hear of Weaks' reaction or non reaction.

Stay tuned for another episode of "Hot Mess in the Body of Christ"...at a church near you.

KeKe DoesPlay-Play

KEKE WYATT'S 'GHETTO ROSE' BLOOMS: Singer discusses 'the incident' (not!) and new disc that's 'coming soon.'
source

*After a very successful 2000 collabo with R&B star Avant on the track "My First Love," singer Keke Wyatt, then just 16 years old, was on the rise in the music industry.

Fresh from that hit, she released her 2001 debut album “Soul Sister,” which churned out the single and was certified Gold.

Wyatt was on the fast track of stardom, but the brakes compressed after a Christmas Day incident that she’s almost become more known for than her soulful voice.

The “incident,” as she refers to it, was a domestic dispute Wyatt had with her husband Rahmat Morton where she stabbed him five times with a steak knife on December 25, 2001. Morton did not press charges; the police charges were eventually dropped, and Wyatt served no time for the episode.

With not much further detail, Wyatt explained that today her husband is still “in her life” – which seems appropriate since she penned the Pussycat Dolls hit “Stickwitu.”

Nevertheless, with that behind her, Wyatt started to take a break from recording and then channeled her vigorous passion and energy into her music, creating her latest album offering, “Ghetto Rose,” which as far as we can tell, has gone from being on TVT Record’s October release schedule to “Coming Soon” according her MySpace Page.

“After I took the time off to get Keke straight, I had a deal with Cash Money [Records] and I was with them for about two years,” she said explaining her studio hiatus, “but that didn’t work out well for the simple fact of [Hurricane Katrina]. It put a damper on everything and everybody over there and I felt I didn’t have time to wait.”

Clearly a woman of action, Wyatt shopped her wares at the afore mentioned TVT Records and scored a deal with the indie label. That was over a year ago, but Wyatt explained that in addition to prepping music for the disc, she had to prepare herself.
“After the ‘Christmas incident’ I had to get myself together emotionally and spiritually,” she said. “I had to make sure I was OK before I could come back out and get back in this grind. It’s rough and people have their comments and their way of thinking, so you just want to make sure you’re prepared for that.”

Which leads to Wyatt’s latest fight: seems the songstress has taken issue with an Essence.com reporter/interview over an August interview, claiming she was misquoted in the story in regard to her take on race, skin color and the N-word. [Listen to Wyatt’s side of the story on the EUR(pod)cast http://www.eurweb.com/story/eur37064.cfm]

“They always will take a story and turn it all around and make it completely different than what it was. I know that, so I had to take some time off,” she said and resolved not to open herself up in interviews anymore.

Fortunately, the singer did talk to EUR’s Lee Bailey to share her side, refocus and talk more about the new album. She said that the Christmas incident and the Essence.com qualms are not what are really important right now.


“At the end of the day, all I really want is for people to buy my album. That’s what I want,” she said. “It doesn’t matter what color I am. It doesn’t matter how I look. None of that matters. At the end of the day, if you love good music, if you enjoy R&B – that’s what I sing and that’s what I do best.


“Ghetto Rose” - the title track from the new project - is available digitally at iTunes. It's also created a modicum of interest, and received quite good reviews. Wyatt describes the sophomore album as focusing on relationship issues, and includes her take on things that she’s experienced as well as what some around her have dealt with.


“It has a lot to do with things I’ve seen my best friends go through. I just want to be able to help girls that might be in the same situation that I was in. I want to help them get out of whatever they might be going through. This album really hits home on a lot of situations in relationships. I have make up, breakup – you name it, it’s in there. It’s real life. It’s real R&B.”


Wyatt’s real life appears to have enough material for a number of discs as she’s admitted to being bumped around in life, the music industry, and the media. But the singer said that she will continue to fight her battles to make sure her fans get what they want.


“I love music and I have so many fans out there that bought ‘Soul Sister’, that love my music and love me for who I am – as far as they know, and love me for my music and my voice, so I fight for them,” she said. “I’m a fan of other artists and I want music from them, though I know they go through hard times. I have over 500,000 people out there that love Keke Wyatt, so that’s why I fight so hard. I go through the crap that I go through for my fans. It’s worth it.”


Though concerned about how she’s handled by the media and viewed by the public, Wyatt is determined to share her talent with the new “Ghetto Rose” album, even though she’s realized that everything’s not always so rosy.


“I’m very happy about my album coming out. And I love touring, I love meeting people, I love singing to people. I’m looking forward to it so much,” she said. “I love my fans very much and I thank them for being supportive and patient with me through all this time.”


To get the latest on Keke Wyatt and to hear "Ghetto Rose," visit her site at www.kekewyattmusic.com.

UPDATE: After inquiring, we were contacted by TVT spkesperson Joe Wiggans who told us the CD's release date has been pushed back to the first of the year.

***
I can't believe she could sing that powerful at the age of 16.
I still have her cd, and EVERY SONG on it is tight.
Good to see her back on the scene, and I pray that all is well with her and hubby!

What Is It Going To Take In Order to Wake Up, Black Man?!

I hold great respect and admiration for a blogger named Lynn of http://www.hicktownpress.com/. Her no nonsense approach to life, oftentimes causes me to think, check myself and at times laugh in the face of trial and tribulation. On this day, Lynn has posted her views on an issue that is near and dear to my heart. They are words of frustration, that ends with a question mark, and it seems as if MEN DO NOT HAVE THE ANSWER. I didn't say a man do not have the answer, but is it fair for one man or a couple of good men, to put the world on his/their shoulders? Men, you claim your "man" title when you want to do wrong ("I'm a MAN", "this is what MEN" do blah blahblah)...HOW ABOUT CLAIMING YOUR "MAN" TITLE WHILE YOU "MAN-UP??" HOW ABOUT CLAIMING YOUR "MAN " TITLE while you're striving to make change in the midst of adversity, and not giving up WHEN ATTENTION IS NO LONGER ON YOU????

Family, please read Lynn's words. And may they fit in your life, where they may-Ivent:


Thousands of Philadelphia Men Turn Out in an Effort To Curtail Continued Black on Black Genocide source

October 23, 2007
By Lynn Green

Thousands of black men turned out Sunday to support a volunteer effort aimed at reducing violence in this crime-plagued city, lining up for several blocks to register.
Volunteers who join street patrols as part of the “Call to Action: 10,000 Men, It’s a New Day” campaign will not carry weapons or make arrests but will instead be trained in conflict resolution, organizers said.
“Nobody else is going to magically come into this community and get it done,” said real estate developer Abdur-Rahim Islam, a lead organizer.
Mayor John F. Street, music producer Kenny Gamble and other black community activists joined Police Chief Sylvester Johnson at Temple University for the kickoff rally.
Acknowledging that police alone can’t quell a run of violence, Johnson called for 10,000 volunteers last month to help make the streets safer. Philadelphia endures a reputation as one of America’s deadliest cities, with about a slaying a day and many more non-fatal shootings.
source
You know what? Something is strange when black men have to be begged to stop killing each other in the streets like dogs. We can’t put this one on the mythical “white man”. The “white man” is not controlling our brains with a remote control (sorry, conspiracy theorists). No, we are doing this to ourselves.
Check the statistics on Philly:
The City of Brotherly Love has also been called one of America’s deadliest cities. There have been more than 320 murders this year alone and more than 80 percent of the murders involve handguns. And most involve young black men. source
Apparently if you give a modern day slave (confused, self hating black man) a gun, he will not stop until he finds another black man to murder. It’s the wild west in too many cities.
I have a question for the black male bloggers who lurk this site. WHERE ARE YOU in this? Why haven’t you said one word about the responsibility that black men have in discontinuing this self styled genocide? This is insanity at its height and every black blogger out there needs to put this situation on blast.
Hey Jay-Z, where are you, dude? You cerainly had no problem doing a public service announcement to beg blacks to never say a negative word about Jews, but where is the public service towards the confused black slaves in Philadelphia, Baltimore, Los Angeles and Chicago who are adding to the literal destruction of our youth? You sorry hypocrite!
Hey Nas, you say you want to make a social statement by coming out with a CD called “Nigger”. Well I have a statement for you, bitch. Yes, I just called you a female dog. If you can call your own people a nigger I can call you a female dog. If you truly want to make a statement, how about going to Philadelphia and talking to the youth there about discontinuing their genocide on one another, instead of encouraging them to continue calling each other niggers while they blow each others’ brains out.
One more thing. What’s up with this crazy statement:
As organizers point out, a community can not rely on the police alone to stop violence and illegal activity. But don’t stop with 10,000 black men!
Get 10,000 black women involved and 10,000 whites and Hispanics and so on.
source
Back up. Black women are TIRED. What do you mean, get 10,000 black women involved? Black women aren’t the ones roaming the streets like rabid wolves killing folks. No, this one is on black men solely. YOU man-up, act like you have some balls, and deal with this. Leave black women out of this one. Mammy days of solving all black men’s problems are over. We need some real men to step up to the plate and solve this problem. Allow black women to be feminine for a minute. Stop trying to turn us into men. It’s time for you to move to the front. We are not your savior and we are not your mamma.
I’ve had it up to my ears with a certain segment of the black community. Always looking to black women to fix problems. Naw…the days of shucking, jiving, scratching where you don’t itch and buck dancing are over. Black women are TIRED of carrying you as you jigaboo, kill your own people and chase white women. YOU SOLVE THIS ONE, BLACK MEN!
Do I sound like I’m angry? Well, I am LIVID