[Mike]

I've seen this same phenomenon, and I cannot (even as a black man) tell you why this is. It may be that you're generalizing and relying on a sample size that is too small to be relevant. But let's suppose you're right. Why do blacks gravitate toward 'fruity' pops? Here are some possible reasons:

1) They may not like caffeine. Dark pops such as Coke and Pepsi and teas tend to have more caffeine than Sunkist, Sprite, 7-up, Nehi and what have you.
2) Acne and sweating out of pop due to strenuous activity can affect their appearances.
3) Urban legends about certain pops (especially Mountain Dew - or Mountain Don't, as I call it).
4) Familiarity due to blacks' inability to afford healthier beverages (ones that actually contain fruit juice) with Flavor-Aid, Wylers, Kool-Aid and other sugar-water beverages.

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Name : Mike, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 23, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Ed. Admin. and Law School Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Mike]

Why is it that the whites who wrote Jarrett back cannot make a point without being offensive or judgmental when the discussion teeters on race? Why do they have to say things like white people do not blame others for their problems (which is false)and that black people bring the majority of their problems on themselves? From what high horse do these men speak? White people are no more moral or 'righteous' than any other race on this planet. White people have children out of wedlock and 'baby-mama/daddy drama,' (watch Maury Povich and you'll see) but Muffy and Buffy's parents can afford abortions and to raise unplanned children so that at most they have to deal with the stigma of an unwed birth, but not the logistics of providing for it. There are more white women on welfare than black/hispanic women, but the face of welfare is portrayed as Black. So of course conceited white people such as those who responded will think the way they do. The answer to Jarrett's question is that white people enjoy an unconscious joy that only becomes evident when compared to other oppressed groups. It's a sense of relief and contentment that certain things will not happen to them because of who they are and not what they do or do not do. There's also comfort in knowing that the white race being so vast and diverse, they can divorce themselves from unpleasant/negative aspects of that race. That's where poor white trash, rednecks, and hillbillies come from. That's not true for blacks and other minorities who all get painted by the broadest brush. I hope this answers your question, J.

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Name : Mike, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 23, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Ed. Admin. and Law School Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Mike]

I don't think you are a sellout. I think you align yourself with what your faith and morals suggest to you is right. Republicans tend to be more conservative and traditional than Democrats and liberals, and they have a strong religious basis toward many of the platforms they present. What likely puts you at odds with most black people in the United States who are Democrats is the Republican intolerance of civil rights and issues concerning historically oppressed minority groups. The rollback of the gains achieved during the 1960s civil rights movement and policies such as Reaganomics, the War on Drugs, dispassionate welfare reform and questionable influence of gunmakers/supporters, crooked CEOs and an unchecked military make it difficult for blacks to be onboard Republican platforms.

That is not to say the Democratic party is the lesser of two evils, because it tends to promote lifestyles and agendas that seem extremely unconventional and without much moral/Biblical adherence. Lightning rod issues such as abortion, birth control/sex ed, civil rights for homosexuals and euthanasia (assisted suicide) for those who wish to die generate much controversy.

I consider myself a moderate/independent, but I vote mostly Democratic because I think the party platform is more in tune with the intent of the Constitution. People give the Founding Fathers and the U.S. government more credit than they deserve when they insist that Godly principles and a Christian way of life is the way the country has always operated. This is not the case. The Bible says that I am the Lord thy God, and thou shall have no other gods before me. Yet the Constitution grants citizens of this country freedom of speech and religion, which applies to everyone, from Christians like myself to atheists and devil worshippers alike. That is not giving God his exclusive and special place as the lord of lords and king of kings. The Bible also says Vengeance is mine, thus saith the Lord, but capital punishment is still on the books in this country and pushed primarily by Republicans. But if the government has to meet the needs of the most people, and seeing as how America is extremely diverse in religious belief, ethnicity and heritage, I think the Democratic approach is the best way to go. I hope this helps you to understand, but keep doing what you're doing because a black point of view is sorely needed on that side of the fence.

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Name : Mike, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 23, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Ed. Admin. and Law School Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Mike]

Brother man, no moths were drawn to your candle of enlightenment. You are not thinking 'Never Ignorant Getting Goals Accomplished' when you say, 'Who dat nigga trying to talk to my girl' or 'What the f--- is that nigga looking at,' or when you say, 'Nigga please,' or any other nigga reference. It is not a term of endearment. It's a term that reduces value of black life and black existence. A nigger/nigga/nigro means more than an ignorant person. It underlines all the stereotypes about black folks and rolls them into one five- or six-letter word. That is not to say black people hold the patent on ignorance, or that white people cannot be ignorant. But the word doesn't stick to them the way it sticks to us. Until the word is no longer instantly synonymous with black people, it should be avoided and retired from our vocabularies, lest someone wrongfully equate the two.

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Name : Mike, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 23, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Ed. Admin. and Law School Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Mike]

For the same reason somebody won't yell 'hooray' at your funeral: it's insensitive and dishonorable behavior. People with disabilities do not have life very easy. Many of us complain about bad hair days, acne, cold sores, broken nails or chipped teeth, but imagine if you had spina bifida or multiple sclerosis to deal with every day until a cure was found. These are some extraordinary people who must be very tough mentally to put up with their daily struggles and difficulties.

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Name : Mike, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 23, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Ed. Admin. and Law School Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Mike]

I think waiting is the hardest thing for me as a black male to do. Everyone, including members of the culture, have expectations and views about black males' sexuality that take it as a given that black males are at the mercy of their urges. Throw in the sexual consequences of slavery, and some people make it seem like black males are not expected to wait for marriage, that they should be pimps and players. I wish there were some reinforcement for the choices I have made. There's not much in the way of Christian books directed at black males, who face different issues than white males. It's hard, but I will persevere.

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Name : Mike, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 23, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Ed. Admin. and Law School Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Mike]

I don't appreciate J-Lo using the N-word in her song because it is such a negative term that no one should be using. I'm not going to crucify her for singing a lyric that was given to her by black people (JA-Rule wrote the song), but it shows a casualness about the word and its connotations that I don't think she or anyone should enjoy. Blacks and Puerto Ricans have a lot in common culturally and racially, but you don't see Lil' Mo or Mya using the slur 'spic' in their songs or any other derogatory terms that refer to Hispanics. The N-word unfortunately is used by a lot of races, and a lot of times as a word of commiseration or relating to someone you are cool with. "My niggas" means my boys or my girls, people who are just like me, understand me, can relate to me and ain't no better than me. Nothing wrong with this message, but a better word can and should be used to sum up these feelings.

I know where J-Lo's heart and intent were at when she said what she said, and I know what Ja-Rule was doing when he wrote it. It's not malicious or mean-spirited. However, the ugly history and legacy of that word could be discontinued if we'd just stop using it and stopped condoning its widespread acceptance.

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Name : Mike, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 23, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Ed. Admin. and Law School Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Mike]

This is a phenomenom I have observed as well. All I can tell you is that it is cool or hip to do it - why I don't know. I suppose it is 'driving like you're white' if you have both hands on the wheel at ten and two, with your seat properly inclined,as opposed to driving almost from the backseat. It's like flossing or relaxing in your car, windows down, sound system booming. The message being sent is that I am in a bad-ass ride and am straight chillin' while I drive. The same message is being sent by white people with long hair in a convertible - they want their hair to blow around and be seen. My seats don't recline on my pickup, and if they did, I would not be in the backseat trying to drive (it's not very safe, and none of these drivers are wearing seat belts), and I think that driver's ed programs should work hard to discourage these behaviors. All it would take would be a 25-mph crash to turn your average player into yuk-mouth because he could'nt reach the brake quick enough and was not properly restrained. Yeah, you'll get attention then, but not the kind you want.

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Name : Mike, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 23, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Ed. Admin. and Law School Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Mike]

Why do you want to use the 'N' word? What justifiable situation can you envision existing that would require the use that adjective over thousands of others? Your life experience will not robbed of its richness if you are denied the use of one word. I don't think that you are looking for an opportunity to use the word in a hateful context (at least I hope so), but as a rule, I think black people and especially white people would do well to leave that word unsaid. It is a very dangerous and very controversial word because of the baggage attached to it, and it's also one of those words that don't require much context to be offensive. In and of itself, the word is trouble. My advice to you is not to touch it, because even in circles of provincial acceptance, you never know how someone is going to take something.

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Name : Mike, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 23, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Ed. Admin. and Law School Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Mike]

Blacks are not lazy. You don't say a word about slang and phonetic words used by white people (fuggedaboutit, youse, gnarly, tubular, hooch, as if, you are so dead, etc.), but when black people use deviations from the English language, the country gets up in arms. Apparently, there is a double standard in this country that says blacks cannot afford to do silly, care-free things that help define their culture, but white folks can act as silly as they want. After reading what you wrote, I'm starting to believe that is true. Where I'm from, ignorance is ignorance, and broken English is broken English. If you have a problem with the way some (not all) black folks speak, then you should also have a problem with the way some white folks speak when they break the laws of grammar and punctuation. Sounds like you want total assimilation with the dominant culture and view your way of communicating as the only one worth using. Some people find Seinfeld funny because his New York accent and Jewish mannerisms (oye, aaah), but people like Cedric the Entertainer or the Wayans Brothers are looked down upon. I'm not saying I like their particular brand of humor or dialect, but I don't understand how you can find limitless fault with one dialect but not another. How can you begin to over-generalize your findings all the way across black America when you have maybe encountered 1 percent of all blacks in this country? That's a pretty small sample size for reaching the conclusion you've supposedly reached. My point is that you can log some serious hours watching African Americans and hanging around them, but you don't go home to an African-American home and spend the night. You are not immersed into a culture of inferiority day and night where you are told that you won't amount to anything by both blacks and whites. Your cultural identity isn't questioned when you make strides toward success and achievement. No matter how close you are situated to blacks, you're not black. How can you suggest that we made it and somehow lost it? You're really not in a credible position to make the statements you are trying to make. I agree Ebonics should not be formally taught to black children in an educational system, but I do not see it as bringing down the race. The factors that led to Ebonics should be looked at more closely than the dialect itself - it is a symptom of shoddy education, poverty, inequality and rejection from mainstream society.

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Name : Mike, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 23, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Ed. Admin. and Law School Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

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