Being the first today and yesterday

I was born in 1963. Where I grew up I was taught by family, teachers, and books. I knew prejudice existed but I learned that people perpetuate it. I can remember right outside a college campus not being served because our family wanted to enjoy a meal together in honor of our first family member entering college. We were however, still black. Yes it was illegal and yes the family member, a student was with us. We watched as others were seated after we had been waiting patiently. My mother insisted we be seated. When told to wait until something came available in a very offensive tone, she quietly showed her badge. The tone changed but the intent to harm was still there. We were seated and then left as it seemed evident we could not trust that we would get a quality meal. Yes this occurred in a very affluent area in NJ.

One would have to know my family to understand what drives me.  You see, in a quiet way my family has managed to be first in a great many things.  I always wanted to be first at something. I learned that to even have a shot at being first you had to be good. Good at what you did but better as a person. You had to understand that people examine you. Your actions could ruin everything for the next person. 

My mom was one of the first black females to enter the Camden County Sheriff Department. Her brother was the first Black licensed polygraph examiner for the state of NJ.  While I can go on and on concerning their public service and achievements,  the point is they taught me to be good not first. I saw them and wanted to be like them. 

Wanting to be the first must be for the right reasons. I hoped I could be the first someone of color or the first human to accomplish something. I hoped there would be an instant where my color would not matter to those who held the opportunity in their hands. I hoped that at some time and place my character would be considered. That is Martin’s real dream. That it does not matter what any of us are, but what matters most is that we were the best choice. I say this to wake people up to the fact that there is a shift that has occurred.

The shift is that we allow celebrity or popularity to influence us. Voting is not a horse race where you pick the winner. It is where you pick who you want to win. Not knowing the difference can result in a life time of shoveling the crap they leave behind.

We see publically that the first is always heralded. It is seen as a triumph that we are moving forward. Do we really see where we are? Do we see that it is time, long overdue time to have the best and not just the first? It is time we embrace character above all. 

People may be blinded by the opportunity to have the first person of gender, color, or religion to reach a level that has not yet been attained. Where are we when it relates to being the first person of honor to serve having not yet arrived?

I look at candidates to see if they have kept their promises and used ethical practices to encourage support. No one is perfect but I am not blinded by their crafted messages and stances. As being the first Black man elected to office in my town I did not make that the reason I should be elected. It was not part of my platform. I simply wanted to be the best choice.

No one agrees on everything that an official does. It is the fact that they are entrusted to represent those who voted for them and those who did not. All the constituents are to be heard and considered equally. I encourage debate because it gives officials information regarding what is important to each person, adult and child affected by the choices those in office make.

It is my intention to learn the truth and spread the truth. It is to educate voters. I believe that education is the singularly most important factor of life. Poverty can be overcome by what we learn. Poverty can be avoided by what we learn. Fitness and nutrition can be determined by what we learn. Learning is not just words it is applying what we believe. Learning does not take place without a teacher, even if it is we that teach our selves.

Being first remains something to be honored not expected or something to which one is entitled. For those who say it’s about time, I am willing to wait for the best. Many times we delay the arrival of the best because we stay in our places too long or treat our place as a possession instead of a moment when we are responsible. The responsibility is to be passed on to those taught and prepared.  Responsibly is nothing without accountability. Laws are what establish boundaries. These boundaries are a matter of choice. The choice to remain in the boundaries is a matter of honor. Enforcing law without bias is among the highest of responsibilities.

November is months away and  2016 is a little while away. We have time to see if we are experiencing a well-crafted message or the real heart of a person. We see opposition mounting but must remember that just because an opponent brings things to light it does not mean it is untrue.

Those who have place themselves above the law still want and need your votes. If you do not believe you could have avoided prosecution if you were them do not give them your vote. Celebrity does not make one above the law. Years of service are easily tarnished by bad choices.  Some do whatever they want because they have never been caught. Many have been jailed for far less that those who have stolen billions while in office. When those next to them cannot say a word because they have done the same thing justice does not apply and law is not enforced.

I take little stock in those who play at being regular when on the average day there is nothing regular about their lives, their friends, or their crimes.  We live in a world where the superficial gets media saturation and lives of celebrities matter more to some than the policies created impacting our lives. 

We The People must wake up. We still have the power of the vote for now. We must understand that education is what is being voted on by those who are not regular. Their kids are not regular. They and their kids are not affected by the legislation they pass. Saying we have a problem with police, public education, and what amounts to modern day bribery is not enough.  We must elect those who will do something beyond talking or making our woes a political point. Actions speak louder than words and until someone goes to jail for the billions they took, is charged with lying to the public or using their influence solely for the benefit of campaign contribution we must look for other candidates.  I hope we all find someone with honor.

I think being first is still an honor. Being a representative of another human being is a responsibility that comes with high ethical and moral standards. It has fallen to us, the voters to ensure the standard is established and maintained. Pleading guilty and resigning takes qualities that would have prevented the charges in the first place.  Those are honor, courage, and discipline. It takes more courage to admit when one is wrong as one must face the possible loss caused by poor choices.

Public servant VS Politician there is a difference.

I am not claiming to offer a new solution to our government systems. It is an age old solution that was always intended to work for us. The us who are more educated and aware. The us who are more astute. The us who are the 99%.  The purpose of public education as defined by Thomas Jefferson was to educate the masses so that they could learn to govern themselves.  Where are we on our education?  Where is public education? What are we learning and what are we allowing to be taught? 

Consider 4.5 Billion dollars spent on the "Let's move" campaign, yet public education remains unfunded. There is something wrong here. Recess is replaced with test prep and we are out of 4.5 Billon dollars. Does legislation to fully fund public education exist? Yes it does. Brown Vs Board of Education is the decision.  It is the commitment to enforce the decision that is the problem. The issue becomes what we teach. Do we want kids to learn in a way that makes them smarter or just able to pass a test?  I contend that someone wants them to just follow. They want them to follow tradition, follow dictates, and not to question what is tradition. They don't want any free thinking candidates. They don't want a public educated enough to govern themselves.

In Jefferson's vision Candidates have to be those willing to work for the people. An educated public governing themselves  can identify those who use money to set up smoke screens and spins on their arrogance and sense of entitlement. The educated public should NO LONGER accept the corrupted or those appearing to be corrupted.The misdeeds have to be remembered so that they do not get a second chance to deceive the public. Promises are not broken by those who have no intention on following through because it is a LIE from the very beginning. Promises of jobs that don't exist, honor that does not exist, and a connection to the community that does not exist has HURT EVERY AMERICAN CITY. 

WE SHOULD HAVE learned something from living in cities that have leadership that dictates rather than LISTENS , ran by those who move residents out of their way instead of making a way for residents to live. Let it be known how much power our vote has to damage or build our livelihoods, lifestyle, and financial footing. 

We SHOULD NEVER ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN AGAIN. NONE OF THEM act alone and those who have made careers enabling the looting of pensions, public education funds, and the paying of cronies need to be removed from office by OUR VOTES. It must be by our votes because they will never prosecute each other. Still not one ethics charge by the NJ legislators. Yes some may criticize to save their own careers but won't actually file a charge. Just as Christie lied to get elected they are disingenuous in their lightly worded criticism and failure to act on behalf of the people of NJ as sworn by oath to do so. 

A lawyer's cunning should not dictate whether a Career Politician goes to jail. A judge they appointed should not determine if they go to jail. Lawmakers should not be able to sit in silence while obvious conflicts abound. If the top 1% are in office or contributing to the campaigns of those in office where is the voice of the 99% ?  Most people do not know there are over 130 candidates running for President of the United States.  The media will tell you that only 2 parties are running. The major party conventions and campaigns using our dollars will be televised. We will be herded to vote for one or the other.  There is another choice.

CHOOSE a leader from among you, not one who they choose to push you out of your homes, your jobs, your schools and out of your city. OWN your VOTES don't let them own you. We have worked years in NJ and in other states across this country to make you all aware of their lies. There is nothing lower than a person who would take from someone who has so little when they have so much. That is greed. They want it all. They will not stop unless they are stopped by the people. There is NOTHING worse than DOING NOTHING because people will always break the rules but failing to enforce the rules undermines all success and every honest effort ever made.

 Time has proven those who can be trusted with the faith of the community. Many others have lied, and sold their lives to those who dictate to the community not listen to what its CURRENT RESIDENTS NEED. They have worked on preparing the way for those who will come to take the place of those still here. VOTE to save your cities, your jobs, your homes, and your schools. Your votes must be taken seriously. The future is at stake.

Please examine those who want to be in charge and ask why. What have they done in  Careers that span decades. Those decades of being in office have led us here under their leadership. It is not fair to blame one man when many have contributed to power, money, and the selfishness which has overtaken them. 

Polished career politicians are skilled in speech and drawing on emotions. They are polished in presentation. Many have even made careers of getting people elected.  It is a skill not a process, just like fixing a car or rendering medical treatment. All of which we see the effects of poor skills eventually.

For a single man or a small group in any community to be able to pick office holders is criminal. Those are Office Holders because they work for him not the ENTIRE community.  There should be no such thing as waiting ones turn to run for office. There should not be the ability to promise someone an elected office. These things should not be, but if they are, we must wonder how it is accomplished. How is it that a person or group can ensure someone gets into office? Is it just support? Is it voter suppression? Is it name recognition?

It is time we the VOTERS determine who serves by looking at who serves US. Wanting to be in charge in no longer good enough for the 99% of  us. We have too much information available to us to settle for a polished presentation. We have too much at stake to blindly accept the narrative. They are skilled. They have been doing this for generations. They hope that we keep doing what has  given them the power for generations. They want us to be creatures of habit and tradition. They want us to keep complaining and NOT ACT.

I define education as the transfer of knowledge from one vessel to another. We educated each other by word, deed, and example. We transfer our standing idle and our willingness to fight to those who witness us doing what we chose to do in the face of corruption, tyranny, bullying, and the breaking of sworn oaths.  We are the solution we seek. We  determine how long we suffer injustice. This is America. The very right to write these words came through the establishment of a nation of people who would one day learn to govern themselves by public education.  Yes I am blessed to have been educated by Public education. We are all educated by each other. Nothing is more public than that.  

Maybe that 4.5 Billion dollars could have been spent to ensure all Americans use the same voting machines. Maybe the reports of tampering and election fraud should have been a priority. Maybe residency requirements should be enforced. Maybe prosecution and penalty for conflict of interest should actually be as harsh as drug offenses.  All these things are a matter of education. That which we are taught, permit, and for which we accept excuses.  

Never forget that the mere appearance of impropriety is enough to level a charge against a public official. The defense that one is targeted may indicate that one is singled out for the same things others have gotten away with. One can not save ones self with the defense that "they did it too" when sworn to report such activity. Maybe there is honor among thieves and don't snitch goes higher than we know. In any event, it is time to consider those who have our interest at heart. Not just around election time.  We must think out side the box or be buried in the box they have smooth talked us into.