You have made yourself very clear, Bonnie. We understand and can imagine how that lack of acceptance has held African-American Americans way down for a long time. If you look around today though, you can see so many people who have been able to just plain stepped over the insults and the pain they caused. A black family in the White House, and such a family. I know Barack will do well with our myriad of national problems, but I can hardly wait to see what Michele will do as First Lady. Yeah, America! At least I SURE hope so.

I sure do remember segregation. In fact, Martha Squire and I were probably among the very first ‘civil righters’. Martha and I were both young brides living in Houston, Texas where our newly commissioned Air Force Officers we taking advanced training before they went off into the wide blue yonder. Martha and I were both from California, young and sorta naieve (sp). No kids yet, so at least once a week we would take the bus to downtown Houston to shop and buzz around. First time, we got on the bus, we walked to the back of the bus because it was empty. Suddenly the bus stopped and the bus driver came back and told us we would have to move up front. Well, that got our backs up and we told him we didn’t want to move up front — not really sure what the problem was. Well, that bus driver informed us that nobody was goin noplace until we moved up to the ‘white’ seats. Of course we had to move. That same day we went traipsing around downtown Houston, wandered into store after store and noticed that there were two drinking fountains — one clean and the other a mess. We were pretty shocked. We also noticed the restroom arrangements. Well, now we got it and proceeded to go into every store we could and drink out of the ‘black’ drinking fountain — much distain coming from the ‘white’ shoppers passing by. Martha and I, we made that a mission, so at least twice a week, Martha and I would go down to the bus stop, walk to the back of the bus, etc., etc. After several weeks, we began to see the pained faces of the bus drivers as they drove up to our stop — “Damn, there they are again” those faces said. We never got up enough nerve to go into the ‘black’ restrooms. I wish we had. But we drove a lotta bus drivers and Houston shoppers a bit crazy that summer. It was the summer of 1952.

I was not a Hillary supporter, but was for Obama from the start. Saw a KQED thingi on Alexander Hamillton — for one thing, what a guy, but also, he and his character sure sounded a lot like Barack Obama. I did not realize how much Hamilton did to shape our nation. Thanx Alexander. I’m for Obama largely because I think he is an exceptional person, probably one of those people who are born to be great and will perform greatly as our president. God help us if we don’t elect him. If we don’t, then we deserve every slucky decline we get, but let me get back to the positive. I see Barack has a person capable of going to the right people for the right information he needs on home and abroad issues. He’s not afraid to hear another point of view, especially if the point-of-viewer better knows the issue than he.. I think he is a guy who knows what he knows and knows what he doesn’t know or who might know an issue better. AND, he will go there. He showed a sensible balance to his thinking in his acceptance speech, going down the list of issues such as abortion, saying, we may not be able to agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on decreasing the number of unwanted pregnancies. Said a similar thing about guns. I am thrilled to have the Obamas. They will make a great first family. PLEASE MR. & MRS. AMERICA, vote them in. One other point, I am impressed that Obama did not stay away from selecting another strong, intelligent person like Joe Biden as his running mate. Most presidential candidates shy away from selecting someone as strong or stronger than they are. Obama showed his mettle to me in that he did not shy away from such a person, but chose a humdinger, just like he is. . I am as thrilled with Biden as I am Obama. In fact, my first choice for prez was Biden, but seems most American don’t have enough sense to elect someone like that. Great leadership for our limping, almost crippled nation. GO BARACK, GO JOE! YEAH TEAM! And God help America in our vote.

I watched Mrs. Palin speak several times just to see who she was. I DON’T LIKE HER! Not totally sure why, but she seems to have a confidence about herself that is based on an idealistic, self-righteous misconception about life, self, duty. AWKKK! Don’t think Ms. Palin is real and it scares me half to death to think that it could be possible for her to become president. The lady strikes me as a real ‘ball buster.” Sorry, Ms. Palin, but I don like U. Next!

Howdy, y’all. A restful Labor Day to U. Teenage pregnancy, or any pregnancy where the Mom n the Dad don’t want to or are unable to care for the baby is bad news for almost everyone involved, including the society. Abortion makes me uncomfortable, but like Margaret Mead, seems like it is a necessary evil — so, keep abortion legal. HOWEVER, let’s start talking about making babies you are not prepared to care for. Let’s start talking about it a lot. Just think what we have done with ‘smoking’ in this country (although I think the no-smoke group gets a bit too crazy). How many teen girls want to be fat — for that matter fat is now just about a sin for everyone. A good, continuous conversation on the impropriety and disapproval of unwanted pregnancies, especially teen age pregnancies, could go a long way to making the problem something lessen by giving everyone the idea that an unwanted pregnancy isn’t good for anyone; abortions can be painful and emotionally hard on the unwanting parents, especially the girls/Moms. Let’s all start talking about — we all know where babies come from and it is not proper or cool to get pregnant with a child you cannot care for. If we value life, we will be more responsible, no matter our age — and, you know what, AS A SOCIETY WE ‘EXPECT’ OUR PEOPLE TO BE RESPONSIBLE WHEN IT COMES TO SEXUAL CONDUCT. Way past t ime we start putting expectations on all kinds of behaviour that leads to destructive lives. Way past time we start saying, “NO”, to a lot of things. NO, no, no America. If we want to survive and thrive, we MUST become accountable and responsible for our lives and our behaviour. It would help if we could improve our television stories as well. Has anyone see that new sitcom — Kim and ?????, where a divorcing daughter moves back into her mother’s house. Mom has a boyfriend and their behaviour — at least in a couple of scenes I happened to see — is RIDICULOUS!, not the least bil real or funny. Who behaves that way and has a successful, happy or contented life????? I also say, let the kids go out and buy their own condoms ur whatever. If they are going to indulge in adult behaviour, they are going to have to assume adult responsibilities. YUK!

Good questions, Maggi.

Bakersfield, I finished high school in Bakersfield, married a Bakersfield guy and our daughter was born there.

I’m a little dubious of this “organic” stuff. Do my best to “eat well”, organically and otherwise, especially otherwise, but think some of this organic stuff is fraught with chicanery. YO DER!

Chips, where in Maine are you? My son was born in Presquie Isle, Maine. We were Air Force.

Barack would be a shiny new Lexus family car; McCain would be driving a rusty ole pickup truck. Not saying McCain is rusty or old, just what he would be driving — a down to earth guy.

Dear Lily,I have an idea of what Tallulah was like, but Shirley Temple was a pretty nice person. I ran into her once on a street in San Francisco. She initiated a smile between us when she came up with one of those big beautiful smiles she was so noted for. I rented some of those movies to show my grandsun a few years ago. Gooness gravy, those were awful movies; no real storyline, just Shirley with her big smile, singing and dancing, but the country loved her. She was a very small person, maybe 4’ something.

Joan is right, I feel the same way about Michelle Obama. She is a strong, smart woman with solid opinons, but putting her thoughts in the forefront could lose us what I see as, a potentially great president. Not fair, decent or good, but that’s the way our country is right now. It’s good to acknowledge reality so you can work with it.. Incidentally, CNN is doing a Special on “Black In America” sometime in July. It may be a wakeup to many Americans who have no idea the life many blacks live. A friend of mine’s daughter married a black man from Kenya. My friend lives in Ross, one of the wealthiest communities in America. It’s small Marin community of about 5500 people, lovely little place, but most of Marin is pretty smashing in general. ( Im sitting here looking out my nice new clean office windows to see trees aplenty, swaying gently in a cool summer day and a mother deer and her babe nibbling in our yard. Fortunately we don’t have flowers there so I can afford to be sanguine.) Anyway, my friend’s daughter, husband and their 2 boys visit often, sometimes stay for short periods of time. On several occasions, in this very small town, he was stopped by the Ross police asking what he was doing there. The man is a Professor of Archeology and studied with a renowned archeologist in Africa whose name alludes me just now. I ‘m white.

Oh, Kate, this is a really sad man. Must not have been very nice married to such a person. Unfortunately, a good part of our society is operating on the ‘me’ first and only premise. Not sure that is going to work.

Dear Ladies of the music. I agree. One of the big reasons I go to any church is to S I N G!

Heavens, Frank, you is being zo fussy. :):):)