That question matters because vague stress can make everything feel worse than it is and, sometimes, easier to avoid than it should be. A practical plan replaces fog with facts. It tells you what comes in, what goes out, what obligations are fixed, and where the pressure points really are. That kind of clarity is valuable whether you are trying to improve daily habits or dealing with larger issues that make people explore options such as debt relief in Arizona. Either way, a real plan is built on what your life costs, not what you wish it cost.

Practical planning is powerful because it works with reality instead of against it.

Start With the Full Picture

The first step is not cutting spending. It is seeing the whole picture. Income, rent or mortgage, utilities, transportation, food, debt payments, insurance, subscriptions, and irregular costs all need to be visible. If something keeps getting paid, it belongs in the plan.

Many people underestimate the value of this stage because it feels basic. But clarity alone can lower stress. Uncertainty tends to make money problems feel shapeless and constant. Once the numbers are visible, your next steps stop being guesses.

The Social Security Administration’s money and retirement planning resources help people think beyond the immediate month, and Benefits.gov can be useful for identifying support options or programs that may reduce financial pressure in specific situations.

A Practical Plan Solves Actual Problems

One reason money plans fail is that they target the wrong issue. Someone may think they have a spending problem when the deeper problem is uneven income. Another person may think the answer is more discipline when fixed debt payments are the real strain. Someone else may blame groceries when convenience spending triggered by exhaustion is what keeps breaking the budget.

A practical plan asks where the real friction is. Are your essentials too high? Is your debt load too heavy? Is your income unstable? Are late fees and timing issues creating unnecessary damage? Is avoidance preventing good decisions? Once you know the real source of strain, your plan can become specific.

Generic advice is rarely enough because people do not all have the same financial bottleneck.

Make the Plan Simple Enough to Follow

Complexity is one of the biggest enemies of consistency. If your plan requires constant calculations, too many categories, or a level of attention you cannot realistically sustain, it probably will not last. A practical plan is simple enough to use on a tired Tuesday.

That may mean broad categories instead of tiny ones. It may mean one weekly review instead of constant tracking. It may mean automatic transfers instead of repeated decisions. The goal is not a perfect system. It is a repeatable one.

Simple systems often look almost too basic, but that is part of their strength. They survive low energy better.

Leave Room for the Irregular and the Human

Another reason rigid plans fall apart is that life is not perfectly monthly. Car repairs, gifts, school costs, medical expenses, and random household needs show up whether you plan for them or not. A practical plan anticipates that irregular costs are normal, not exceptional.

It also makes room for being human. If your plan treats every small pleasure like sabotage, you may rebel against it quickly. Practical planning is not about becoming joyless. It is about making sure comfort and convenience exist in a form your finances can handle.

A useful plan should reduce shame, not increase it.

Action Matters More Than Theory

Once the plan is clear, the next step is not endless analysis. It is choosing a few specific actions that directly improve the situation. Maybe that means canceling unused subscriptions, setting bill reminders, moving due dates, creating a small emergency cushion, cutting one consistently wasteful category, or negotiating a payment arrangement.

These actions do not need to be dramatic to matter. In fact, smaller actions often build better momentum because they are easier to repeat. Progress becomes visible, which makes the plan feel more real.

Review and Adjust, Do Not Abandon

A practical plan should be reviewed regularly, but review is not the same as self attack. The purpose is to notice what is working and what needs adjusting. Maybe a category was unrealistic. Maybe income changed. Maybe a habit improved enough that you can set a new target. Maybe stress made one week harder than expected.

Adjustment is part of practicality. If a plan only works under ideal conditions, it is not very practical at all. Real planning includes revision.

Practical Means Sustainable

The best money plan is not the one that looks the most disciplined on paper. It is the one that creates steadier outcomes over time. Practical plans build stability through visibility, simplicity, and realistic action. They do not rely on fantasy, guilt, or constant intensity.

If your money feels messy right now, that does not mean you need a genius solution. You may need a practical one. See the full picture. Identify the real pressure. Simplify the system. Take a few direct steps. Then keep adjusting as you learn. That is often how money gets calmer, and calm is where better decisions begin.

Staff Writer; Lee Jackson

Both races are crowded with progressive candidates, each trying to one-up the others in a bid to court the radical left. This showcase in socialism salesmanship offers a glimpse into the doctrine Democrats hope to impose on Americans — not only in California but across the country.

In last week’s gubernatorial debate, the candidates espoused visions of more government, more taxes and more spending — from “rehousing” the homeless at taxpayers’ expense to universal health care for illegal immigrants.

Tom Steyer, the billionaire candidate whose opponents have happily pointed out how he amassed his wealth investing in domestic fossil fuels, contorted himself into knots to defend raising taxes — including a proposed “Billionaire Tax.”

For Steyer, it seems the proposed one-time tax on all the assets, not just the income, of high-net-worth individuals is just the price he must pay to appease the eat-the-rich crowd.

Other top earners apparently are not so inclined. They are fleeing the state in droves, taking their resources — and the public revenue they support — with them.

The departures of high-profile figures like Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg have drawn headlines, but others are exiting more quietly. A recent Hoover Institute report estimates that nearly a third of the Billionaire Tax’s eligible base has already left the state.

The same study notes that the permanent loss of high-wealth individuals would decrease public revenue long term. Worse still, the amendment to the state’s constitution needed to make the tax legally possible opens the door to unlimited tax hikes, not only on the rich but also on the working class.

Some candidates have the sense to realize that running the wealthy out of town isn’t good for public coffers. But at least for former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, the answer is to simply open our borders to illegal immigrants.

“They are one of the only ways that our state has been growing in recent years,” she stated during a recent interview. The “sanctuary state,” she added, should marshal its resources to obstruct federal immigration authorities.

Some 400,000 illegal immigrants entered California between 2021 and 2023, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. The state’s population grew by less than 20,000 during the same period, indicating legal residents are getting out of there nearly as fast as illegals are taking up residence.

In the Los Angeles mayoral race, incumbent Karen Bass — a sympathizer of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, or “Comandante en Jefe,” as she called him — faces an even more crowded field. And while it might seem difficult to out-socialize someone with Bass’ record, she is being challenged by opponents from her left.

Not surprisingly, the candidates are running on more of the same — raising taxes so they can pay for more government initiatives they can’t afford. Somehow, Bass’ program that spent $300 million on hotel rooms for the homeless, only to have 40% return to the streets, seems reasonable compared to some of what the candidates have floated.

Noticeably absent in these debates is any mention of California’s $2.9 billion deficit. In the sprint to the left, the default answer is, raise taxes. It’s a cycle that feeds the welfare state. Tax hardworking families and redistribute it to social handout programs. The only problem is, soon there won’t be anyone left to tax. The budget hole is only growing.

It would be easy for conservatives to dismiss these races as another example of the Golden State’s sharp left turn into liberal orthodoxy. But California isn’t a state to mock; it’s one to study.

The left is committed to forcing this same radical agenda on Americans across the nation. California is a testing ground, but middle America is the target.

The question now isn’t whether California will learn from its mistakes and correct course. The question is whether voters will wake up and realize this socialist tax-and-spend agenda is knocking on our door — and whether we will fight to stop it.

Written by Ken Buck

Official website; https://x.com/BuckForColorado

For working families, balancing household upkeep with other financial priorities can be difficult. Bills, education costs, and daily expenses already stretch budgets, so maintenance tasks often get pushed aside. Over time, this pattern creates a cycle where minor concerns grow into larger problems, making it harder to catch up without added stress or financial strain.

This reality often forces families to make difficult decisions about where to allocate their limited resources. While immediate needs tend to take priority, delaying maintenance can quietly increase future expenses. Recognizing this balance early allows homeowners to approach responsibilities with more awareness and avoid unnecessary setbacks that come from prolonged neglect.

When Structural Damage Demands Immediate Attention

There are moments when ignoring a problem is no longer an option, especially when visible damage begins to affect the integrity of a home. Issues related to roof repair often start with subtle warning signs such as leaks, missing materials, or water stains that go unnoticed or are dismissed. However, once these signs appear, the situation can escalate quickly if not handled properly.

According to a roofing company owner, roof repair is one of the most critical areas where delay can increase costs and risk. When damage spreads, it can affect insulation, interior ceilings, and even electrical systems. Addressing roof repair early helps prevent additional complications that disrupt daily life and place a heavier financial burden on the household. Taking action at the right time keeps the problem contained and more manageable.

In many cases, homeowners underestimate how quickly structural concerns can worsen. What begins as a minor issue can expand into a more complex situation that requires more time and money to fix. Staying alert to early signs and responding promptly helps reduce the chance of larger disruptions that affect both the home and the people living in it.

The Financial Strain That Builds Over Time

When maintenance tasks are postponed, the financial consequences do not disappear. Instead, they accumulate quietly until they become unavoidable. Families may find themselves facing larger repair bills at the same time other expenses increase, which creates pressure that is difficult to manage without adjustments or sacrifices.

In many cases, households rely on savings or credit to address sudden issues, which can lead to long term financial setbacks. Interest payments, reduced savings, and unexpected costs all contribute to a cycle that becomes harder to break. Staying ahead of maintenance needs helps reduce this strain and keeps financial planning more predictable.

This pattern can also limit opportunities for future financial growth. Funds that could have been used for education, investment, or savings are redirected toward urgent repairs. By managing maintenance consistently, families can protect their financial progress and avoid setbacks that delay their long term goals.

The Impact on Household Stability and Comfort

A home should provide a sense of comfort and security, yet unresolved issues can slowly disrupt that environment. When problems are left unattended, they begin to affect daily routines, sleep quality, and overall peace of mind. Families may feel the pressure of living in a space that no longer meets their needs.

This kind of instability does not happen overnight. It develops gradually as small concerns are ignored and conditions worsen. Addressing issues early allows households to maintain a stable environment where daily life can continue without unnecessary disruptions or stress.

The emotional effect of these conditions can also build over time. Living with ongoing problems creates tension and uncertainty that affects how people interact within the home. Restoring stability through timely maintenance helps preserve not only the structure but also the sense of comfort that a home is meant to provide.

Why Consistent Maintenance Protects Long Term Value

Regular attention to a property does more than fix immediate concerns. It protects the long term value of the home and ensures that it remains a reliable asset. Families who stay consistent with maintenance are better positioned to avoid large scale problems that reduce property value or require major investments.

In addition, consistent upkeep supports long term financial planning. It allows homeowners to spread out costs rather than face sudden expenses that disrupt their budget. This approach provides a more stable path forward and helps maintain both the physical condition of the home and the financial health of the household.

Property value is closely tied to condition, and neglect can reduce both market appeal and resale potential. Keeping up with regular maintenance preserves the investment and gives homeowners more control over future decisions. This level of consistency supports long term stability and reinforces responsible ownership.

Keeping Homes Stable Through Responsible Decisions

Maintaining a home requires ongoing commitment, but the benefits are clear when problems are addressed early and consistently. Families who take a proactive approach are better able to manage costs, protect their living environment, and reduce unnecessary stress over time.

Making responsible decisions about home upkeep supports long term stability in ways that go beyond the structure itself. It reinforces financial discipline, preserves comfort, and ensures that the home remains a place of security rather than a source of pressure. By staying attentive to maintenance needs, households can avoid larger challenges and maintain a stronger foundation for the future.

These decisions also reflect a broader approach to stability within the household. Consistency, awareness, and timely action help families maintain control over their environment and finances. With the right approach, homeowners can reduce risk, protect their investment, and create a space that continues to support their needs over time.

Staff Writer; Carl Porter

Nana Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s mother and father, of the same spiritual faith and a similar generation as my mother and father, taught him the dignity and worth of work in its service to humanity, as my mother and father taught us, drawing from a long and honorable tradition of work. In his classic speech on this topic in Memphis, supporting the strike and demands for decent wages and working conditions of the sanitation workers, Dr. King reaffirms this position, saying to the striking workers and their supporters, that they are rightfully “demanding that this city will respect the dignity of labor”. And he noted that “So often we overlook the work and the significance of those who are not in professional jobs, of those who are not in the so-called big jobs. But…whenever you are engaged in work that serves humanity and is for the building of humanity, it has dignity, and it has worth”. Thus, in the best of our ethical sensibilities, thought and practice, all workers deserve respect, just pay, appropriate conditions of work, and the right to organize and assert their interests.

We stood and stand in active solidarity with the millions in this country and around the world who participated in marking May Day (International Workers’ Day) in demonstrations, deliberations and resolute commitment to continue the struggle against war, ICE, genocide, injustice, fascism and all forms of oppression. For at the heart of all these labor and other struggles must be, and is for us, the collective and collaborative commitment to achieving a shared and inclusive good for everyone, everywhere and the sustained well-being of the world and all in it.

What I want to do here, then, in uplifting and linking Mother’s Day and May Day is to center the legacy of labor struggles in our history, especially those led by Black women that form a core of  our larger struggle for freedom, justice and a shared and inclusive good and those that are caringly attentive to the overlooked, undervalued and vulnerable, as my mother and father taught. Let us first pay rightful homage to our ancient ancestors, the original world builders, working their will on the world to extract and share good from the earth – the early gatherers, farmers and fishermen and fisherwomen, herbalists and healthcare workers, the builders of houses and temples and all other workers who worked to bring a shared good in the world. We pay homage also to the workers who launched the first strike in recorded history at a worksite in ancient Egypt called Set Ma’at, the Place of Justice c. 1170 BCE. Indeed, artisans and ordinary workers stopped work, sat in, marched, petitioned and disrupted the regular order of things. They told the officials that they were not only striking because of the late wages and the hunger that this caused for them and their families, but also because “There is injustice in this place”. Their concern was beyond the essential need for wages and centered the issue of the dignity of the worker and the respect and just compensation due to them.

We pay rightful homage also to the women and men free of mind and heart who did not accept their status in enslavement and resisted being objects of labor, sex and entertainment by striking, breaking tools, destroying crops, escaping and returning to free others, and exercising the right and responsibility to revolt and be free. And we pay homage to the Black washerwomen or launderers who built a labor union, the Washing Society, and organized a strike in Atlanta, Georgia in 1881 to win higher and uniform wages; and to Nana Nannie Helen Burroughs, an educator and organizer, who founded the National Association of Wage Earners in 1921; and to Nana Rosina Corrothers Tucker, labor organizer, civil rights activist, and educator who worked as a union organizer for the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters and served as the first president of its International Ladies Auxiliary, 1938. Also, we pay homage to Nana Dorothy Bolden, founder of the National Domestic Workers Union of America in 1968; to Nana Clara Day who co-founded the Coalition of Labor Union Women in 1974; and to all other labor and life waymakers and bridges who carried us over and led us forward.

Finally, we pay homage to the labor leader and activist Nana Fahari Jeffers who with her husband, Ken Seaton-Msemaji, co-founded the United Domestic Workers of America in 1977. They were grounded in Kawaida philosophy and its organizing thought and practice and linked their work to the United Farm Workers movement given that both were primarily composed of women, people of color and immigrants and not rightly valued by the larger labor movement. Indeed, Nana Fahari said in being inducted into the San Diego County Women’s Hall of Fame, “It’s an honor as a woman and it’s an honor as an African-American woman. There are many women who make groundbreaking, enormous contributions to our community that we will never meet or hear of, and I want them to know that their work is valued and recognized and that it has made a difference”.

Here she reaffirms the dignity, centrality and sustaining character of Black women’s labor and our need to recognize and respect them, their work and their role in bringing good into the world. And I thought here of how my mother was both a domestic worker and a farmworker, and I remembered and rejoiced in the many other roles and responsibilities she joyfully assumed for our family and our community. And I reflected again about our moral obligation to seriously and joyfully honor and live the legacy of our foremothers and forefathers by continuing the sacred work and struggle for freedom, justice and a shared and inclusive good for all of us and for all the earth.

Written by Dr. Maulana Karenga

Official website; https://www.maulanakarenga.org/

Staff Writer; Lee Walker

This brother is a fitness trainer with 12 years of experience, focused on building strength, clarity, and real health within the Black community. Through his writing, Mr. Walker hopes to uplift younger Black men and men in general through honest conversations about fitness, financial pressure, fatherhood, discipline, mental wellness, and the importance of brotherhood.

Have questions? Reach me at LeeW@ThyBlackMan.com.

 The gaslighting and lies are at tsunami strength and energy levels; if we don’t think for ourselves, we will be permanently bamboozled and lobotomized into falling for their Bizzaro World okey-doke. For example, take the war in Iran, Trump is telling us the US is winning, the US and Israel have obliterated Iran’s war making capacities and crippled its ability to fight back. But the reality on the ground is, prior to the ceasefire, Iran was pounding Israel relentlessly, hitting Gulf state allies who host military bases in the region with devastating accuracy and inflicting massive infrastructural damage on all of them.

Trump and Netanyahu, in their arrogance and hubris, thought their sneak attacks and decapitations would render Iran fully discombobulated, in total disarray, that their attempted color revolution would topple the regime and they could install compliant compradors as their vassals.  The warmongers thought their initial attacks would be so devastating, Iran would collapse, crumble and capitulate.

Alas, they thought wrong! Iran circumvented the CIA and Mossad’s color revolution by disconnecting the country’s Internet and blocking the Starlink satellite signals the CIA and Mossad were sending to their provocateurs inside Iran. The protests immediately fell apart and fizzled. This enabled Iran to track, locate, arrest and neutralize them as they needed to do to preserve their national security and sovereignty.

Iran has ingeniously changed the rules of engagement and innovated modern warfare against a superior arrogant military force. By designing and manufacturing thousands of low-cost military drones and highly accurate supersonic missiles Iran has successfully neutralized the advantages the US and Israel presupposed they had! Iran has destroyed the GCC’s early detection radar and defense systems provided by the US; thus, rendering them defenseless against Iran’s blistering attacks!

Now the US can’t protect the GCC and they see Israel is America’s top priority which will not bode well for the US as this war rages on or when it finally ends. The Iranians have rendered US aircraft carriers totally ineffective due to their fear of Iranian missiles and drones! If Iran destroyed a US aircraft carrier in the region, it would be a devastating psychological blow to the US Empire. The US hypes their aircraft carriers as their invincible global projection of military force; if one or several were destroyed that would be catastrophic for the American Empire’s image.

 Trump is so desperate to extricate himself from this fiasco, he had to press for a ceasefire because of the immense pressure Iran has put on the global oil, LNG, petrochemical trade supply chains! The economic aspect has proven to be Iran’s trump card and they are playing it to the hilt! Iran has Trump over the proverbial barrel with his pants down around his ankles. Trump’s options are limited so in his frustration don’t be surprised if he resumes military action.

The fact Iran survived the massive assaults on its leadership, civilian infrastructure and Iran has fought back so valiantly totally surprised the Israeli and American aggressors who thought this war would be a wham- bam type operation. Iran’s lethal military and economic strategies have shaken Trump to his core. He is unable to rally NATO, Europe, Japan or any of his erstwhile allies to come to his aid. (One reason is his trade wars and tariffs against them have come back to bite him) This has also devasted his narcissistic psyche.

 The economic shock coupled with Iran’s uncompromising resilience have taken the bully’s heart. Now Trump is trying to find a way to extricate himself from his war of choice.  But Israel will not allow it! Israel is seething, the ceasefire is a major setback for them, even though they are being pounded relentlessly (and rightly so) by Iran, Hezbollah and the Houthis.

Soap operas began as radio programs that morphed into TV series with the advent of television in the 1940s. They were mostly watched by women because men were away at work in the factory or on the family farm plowing the fields.

Major soap manufacturers were the primary sponsors since women did all the household chores during this time.  The sponsors were companies like Procter & Gamble, Colgate-Palmolive, and Lever Brothers.

Soap operas explored themes like love, betrayal, sex, social issues, corruption among the elite and political class.

Modern day soaps have an intense focus on dysfunction, tearing down of traditional social norms (the concept of man and woman) with an obsessive focus on how “racist” America is.  In many ways today’s soaps are anti-America.

Listening to the hysterical freaking out by radical liberals over last week’s U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on the Voting Rights Act, you would think America is on “The Edge of Night.”

As I have written in previous columns, the international intelligence consensus, led by our CIA, about the Black community is that “they are very emotional…if you get them emotional, they will lose sight of their objectives.”

So, like clockwork, it was no surprise that after the U.S. Supreme Court released it’s 6-3 ruling in the Louisiana v. Callais case that radical Black liberal media appointed leaders and organizations lost their collective minds.

Democrat shills like Roland Martin, Joy Reid, Don Lemon, Laura Coasts, Whoopie Goldberg, Sunny Hostin, Jemele Hill, Barak Obama; and radical liberal organizations like the NAACP, The National Urban League, the Congressional Black Caucus, the Black Economic Alliance, the United Negro College Fund, the Thurgood Marshall Fund, the National Association of Black Journalists, the National Bar Association all claimed that white racist Republicans like Donald Trump were trying to put Blacks back in slavery.

The court did not, let me repeat, DID NOT overturn the 1965 Voting Rights Act!  They simply said that you cannot base the drawing of a congressional district with the sole intent of packing enough Black voters in a district so that it guarantees a Black will be elected.

Implicit in what these radical Black liberals are saying is that the only way for Blacks to win an election is for them to receive only Black votes.

In other words, whites will not vote for a Black candidate.  Nothing could be more anti-American.

There are currently four Black Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives:  Byron Donalds (FL), Wesley Hunt (TX), John James (MI), Burgess Owens (UT).  They each represent a majority white district.

And what radical liberals always seem to forget is that America voted twice for Barak Obama, each time with a majority of the white vote.

So where is the political racism?  I will wait for your answer…

The Supreme Court basically said that it is perfectly fine to gerrymander based on party affiliation (Democrat, Republican); but you cannot do it to guarantee an outcome based on race (majority-minority districts).

Can someone please tell me how this is devastating to the Black community?

Another question for my radical liberal sycophants, I have seen you all over the media ranting about how Republicans and conservatives have been chipping away at voting rights, affirmative action, and other liberal programs for decades; so why did you not do anything legislatively to protect these programs or update these programs for the 21^st century?

In Bill Clinton’s and Barak Obama’s first terms in office, Democrats controlled the House, Senate and the White House and you did nothing.  Were they also racists?

To the NAACP, The National Urban League, the Congressional Black Caucus, Black Economic Alliance, the National Association of Black Journalists, the Thurgood Marshall Fund, the United Negro College Fund, the National Bar Association, why were you not forward thinking enough to be proactive versus reactive?  Since radical liberal Black leadership “knew” Republicans were attempting to eradicate these programs why did they do nothing?

Herein lies the problems with the media appointed radical Black leaders in the Black community, they are worthless.  They are supposed to be the “talented tenth,”  “the boule,” “the bourgeoisie.”

How much of the blame for the Black community’s plight fall at the feet of these weak, radical, liberal organizations and their bought and paid for leadership?

The Supreme Court’s decision is going to force both Black and white, liberal and conservative, Democrat and Republican to work together in coalitions based on a shared agenda.

This is what these crazy radical Black liberals refuse talk about.  By getting rid of the minority districts, whites will pick up a considerable amount of Black voters that will necessitate dialogue and interaction.

Who would argue that this is a bad thing?

These white and Black elected officials will now have to build relationships with people under the new maps they would normally never have to engage with.

In majority white districts, elected officials could ignore their Black constituents; in majority Black districts elected officials could ignore their white constituents.

Under the new maps Black and white elected officials will be forced to interact with the new voters of their districts.

These once useful laws and programs from the 1960s began with the intent of creating equality and justice specifically for Blacks; but they have morphed into guaranteed outcomes (majority-minority districts, all but guaranteeing that a Black would win the election).

That is the singular issue the Supreme Court was addressing in its ruling last week.  Nothing more, nothing less.

The right to vote, still there.  The right to pick your representative based on your political values, still there. The right to guarantee that you have a Black representative, gone!

If you want a Black representative, build coalitions and meet at the ballot box.

According to Pew Research, “the number of Black eligible voters in the United States is projected to reach 34.4 million in November 2024 (the latest year data is available) after several years of modest growth. And Black eligible voters stand out for turnout rates that are higher than among Latino and Asian eligible voters.”

According to this same research, Blacks comprise 14% of all voters.  Half of Black eligible voters live in one of eight states. Texas has the largest number, with 2.9 million, followed by Georgia and Florida (2.6 million each). Rounding out the top eight are New York (2.4 million), California (2.0 million), North Carolina (1.8 million), and Maryland and Illinois (1.4 million each). Together, these states account for 52% of Black eligible voters in the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Regionally, more than half of Black eligible voters (57%) live in Southern states. The Midwest (17%) and Northeast (16%) have the next-highest shares of the nation’s Black eligible voters, while relatively few live in the West (10%).

Black eligible voters are more likely than eligible voters to be women (53% vs. 51%). They also tend to be younger than eligible voters overall: 60% of Black eligible voters are under the age of 50, compared with 52% of all U.S. eligible voters.

Only 64% of eligible Black voters actually voted in 2024.  This is the problem, not racism.

So as opposed to giving Blacks a reason to vote,  radical Black liberals keep trying to force Black voters to accept amnesty for illegals, boys in girl sports, homosexuality, no punishment for crimes, higher taxes and radical feminism.  Black voters continue to show they are not in agreement with these media appointed leaders, so an increasing number are now voting Republican.

As the soulful singer, Michael McDonald told me, “what a fool believes he sees; no wiseman has the power to reason away; ‘cause what seems to be is always better than nothing at all.”

Staff Writer; Raynard Jackson

This talented brother is a Pulitzer Award nominated columnist and founder and chairman of Black Americans for a Better Future (BAFBF), a federally registered 527 Super PAC established to get more Blacks involved in the Republican Party. BAFBF focuses on the Black entrepreneur. For more information about BAFBF, visit www.bafbf.org. You can follow Raynard on Twitter; RealRaynardJ; on Gettr: RaynardJackson.

Can also drop him an email at; RaynardJ@ThyBlackMan.com.

]]> https://thyblackman.com/2026/05/05/supreme-court-voting-rights-act-ruling-black-voters-analysis/feed/ 2 https://thyblackman.com/2026/05/04/democrats-aiding-iran-us-tensions-analysis/ https://thyblackman.com/2026/05/04/democrats-aiding-iran-us-tensions-analysis/#comments Tue, 05 May 2026 00:45:13 +0000 https://thyblackman.com/?p=139600 (ThyBlackMan.com) I know, this is quite the rhetorical question, but the response goes far deeper than just saying, “because they hate President Trump.” Last week, the SecWar and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff testified before both the House and Senate Armed Services Committees for the first time since the start of combat operations against Iran on February 28.

Watching the inquiries, or rather disconcerting assertions from the Democrat members, should cause us all a great deal of concern. For me, this is very personal, considering that I came on active duty at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma, as a new Field Artillery Second Lieutenant on October 30, 1983. It was just a week prior that 241 Marines, Sailors, and a Soldier lost their lives in the Beirut barracks bombing due to a truck bomb delivered by Hezbollah Islamic terrorists. Then, and now, Hezbollah has been a proxy army of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the number one state sponsor of Islamic terrorism in the world. As well, I recall the taking of the American embassy in Tehran and the hostage crisis that ensued, lasting for over 400 days. I was a student at the University of Tennessee, going through Army ROTC at the time.

Later, as a commander in Iraq, I had to contend with Iranian agents seeking to undermine our operations in our zone north of Baghdad near the town of Taji. And after my retirement, I served as an advisor to the Afghanistan Army, based in Kandahar, where Iranian weaponry and deadly explosive force penetrator (EFP) improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were being employed, as they were in Iraq. Those EFPs were responsible for the deaths and maiming of thousands of American troops.

So, when I hear these delusional leftists of the Democrat party ranting about a “war of choice,” it is highly disturbing. If these so-called elected representatives of the Democrat party who sit on the House and Senate Armed Services committees would rather play politics than confront the declared enemies of our Republic, they should be ashamed. But of course they are not. I find it quite comical that a man who once lied about serving in Vietnam, Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn), would be sitting on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Then again, there is no shame with these leftists. What we all must come to understand is that when it comes to the Democrat party, they may talk about a maniacal dictator being removed, Nicolas Maduro, or may talk about Iran not having a nuclear weapon, but in truth, they will do absolutely nothing about it.

I am sure you remember the Iranian small attack boats capturing two U.S. Navy Riverine Assault boats during the Obama administration, 12 January 2016. I was appalled that our troops were not given the order to sink that dinghy. Instead, they were paraded as propaganda, and John Kerry actually thanked the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps for “taking care” of our captured Sailors. The Obama administration hailed their release as an “unintended benefit of a new diplomatic relationship.” I see it, as the Iranians did, as a sign of weakness.

See, the real enemy to the Marxist leftists, aka the Democrat party, is their political opposition. And they will even fund organizations such as the KKK in order to make their point. As we now know, the Southern Poverty Law Center designated Moms for Liberty as a hate group while funneling funds to the Ku Klux Klan. By the way, the KKK was founded by the Democrat party.

But there is an interesting trend with the Democrat party that we must expose. Why are Democrats aiding and abetting Iran, a country whose leadership routinely calls for “Death to America?” And I can assure you that the demonic Iranian regime was watching the House and Senate Armed Services Committee hearings and was cheering when U.S. Democrat Rep. John Garamendi (CA-8) referred to Operation Epic Fury as a “quagmire.” Yes, two months in, and it is a quagmire? Rep. Garamendi should look at his own state of California before referring to anything as a “quagmire.”I, for one, am certainly glad that Garamendi was not around during the Anzio amphibious operation in Italy during World War II. And no, U.S. Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN-5), that is not World War 11.

Where was Garamendi’s absurd declaration when Joe Biden executed the greatest strategic military debacle in our history, the withdrawal from Afghanistan, where 13 American Marines, Sailors, and a Soldier unnecessarily lost their lives? That was a withdrawal of choice, and a horrific one. The Democrats were ranting about the $25B cost of the operation to this point. But where were their voices when we deserted over $80B of military equipment to be taken by the Taliban, who paraded it through the streets of Kabul, including flying Black Hawk helicopters?

Why did Democrats not speak out against the nearly $18B of funds that were released by the Obama and Biden administrations, well, Obama’s third term, to Iran? Did I mention the number one sponsor of Islamic terrorism? I am quite sure that Iran used those funds to improve the quality of life for the Iranian people, right? And that thing called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), aka the Iranian nuclear agreement, did not end Iran’s pursuit; it only pushed out the breakout time. And, just for your information, the JCPOA was unconstitutional because it was a treaty done unilaterally by Barry Soetoro and did not garner Senate approval. The Senate was bypassed.

This aiding and abetting of Iran is just another chapter in the treasonous nature of the Democrat party. They were the ones who stood in support of the North Vietnamese during the Vietnam War, ya know, the one where Sen. Blumenthal (D-CT) mistakenly said he served. It is the same Democrat party that embraces those who protest in support of an Islamic terrorist organization, also supported by Iran and Hamas. It is the Democrat party that has become so vile and vitriolic in its anti-Semitism that even lifelong leftist legal scholar Alan Dershowitz has said goodbye. It is the same Democrat party that gives a platform to deranged “influencers” like Hasan Piker and promotes a Marxist/Islamist such as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani as its new face. Not to mention is home to an Islamist terrorist supporter like U.S. Democrat Rep. Rashida Tlaib (MI-12).

Funny, where are the leftist female voices speaking out against the Iranian regime’s treatment of women? Nah, they would rather assail American women who disagree with dismembering babies in the womb, keeping biological males out of women’s private spaces and sports, and who support parental choice in education.

The Democrat party is aiding and abetting Iran because they chose to, and because they wish they had a country where they could impose their will as well. The freedom-loving citizens in Iran are subjected to the brutality of the theocratic Iranian clerics and their Praetorian guard because they cannot fight back. One need only look to the Democrat-controlled Virginia to see how they want to disarm their people, making such an achievable goal.

Let this be a warning: this is not about Donald Trump. It is about the Democrat party wanting totalitarian control and the imposition of tyranny just as they have in Iran.

Thomas Paine wrote: “The duty of a true Patriot is to protect his (her) Country from its government.”

Written by Allen West

Official website; https://x.com/AllenWest

The Main Street Depositor Protection Act is the latest example. The name sounds noble. The math is not.
Here is what the bill would change. The FDIC is the federal agency that pays you back if your bank closes its doors. Today, it covers up to $250,000 in each account. Most people never come close to that limit. Most small businesses do not either.

The bill would let the FDIC raise that limit as high as $5 million for business checking accounts that pay no interest. That is not a small bump. That is twenty times bigger.

Supporters say the change will help small community banks and the small businesses they serve. I wish that were true. It is not.

The current $250,000 limit already covers 99 out of every 100 bank accounts in this country. A study by JPMorgan Chase found that the typical small business keeps about $12,100 in its account on a normal day. The new limit would be more than 400 times higher than that.

So who really gains from a $5 million guarantee? Not the corner bakery. Not the family barbershop. Not the small farm down the road. The gain goes to the biggest depositors at the biggest banks. The bill even covers banks with more than $100 billion to their name. Fewer than one in 100 banks in America are that big. No honest person would call them “small.”

In other words, the bill takes the name of Main Street and hands the prize to Wall Street.

Here is the part that should worry every American. Insurance is not free. When the FDIC raises its guarantee, banks must pay more to fund it. When banks pay more, they lend less. When they lend less, the door closes hardest on the people who are already locked out.

Black-owned businesses are already turned down for loans 39 percent of the time. That is more than double the 18 percent rate for white-owned businesses.

Hispanic-owned businesses face a 29 percent denial rate. These are the dreamers most likely to hear “no” when they walk into a bank. A new cost on lending will make that “no” come faster and louder.

The economy runs on loans. When loans dry up, the trouble spreads. The Great Recession of 2008 began exactly that way. The people who pay the highest price are never the wealthiest. They are the families with the least cushion to fall back on.

The bill does offer a small shield to community banks under $10 billion. They would not pay the higher costs for ten years. That is a kind gesture. But the wider damage to the loan market will not wait ten years to arrive.

There is one more problem. Deposit insurance works in part because it has limits. Limits force big depositors to pay attention to where they put their money. That attention keeps banks honest. Take the limit away, and you take the watchdog away too. The taxpayer is left to clean up the mess.

The goal of helping Main Street is a good one. This bill is not the way to reach it.

If Congress wants to help small business, it should make loans easier and fairer to get. It should invest in the neighborhoods that banks have ignored for too long. It should knock down the doors that have stayed shut for Black and Hispanic business owners for generations.

And if big corporations want extra protection for their millions, they can pay for it themselves. The taxpayer should not be asked to insure the comfort of the rich while the dreams of working families go unfunded.

Read the name of a bill. Then read the math. The two should match. On the Main Street Depositor Protection Act, they do not.

Written by Ben Jealous

Official website; https://twitter.com/BenJealous

Showing up for working-class people requires President Trump to first, recognize and acknowledge the plight of American workers;

1) The most accurate and comprehensive March unemployment rate, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) economists is, actually 8.0%, and not his official or political rate of 4.3%

and

2) Working class Americans shifting their vote helped Mr. Trump immensely. They did this because they were disgusted with Democrats underreporting unemployment numbers, and at the same time allowing millions of economic immigrants into the country, who competed for available Jobs.

Now, unemployment, affordability (inflated prices) and Jobs, are issues, being weaponized by Democrats, and being used to defeat Republicans in the coming midterm elections. But American voters are not spoiling for a bitter fight, they just want effective, and doable solutions to the issues of Jobs and affordability. Mr. Trump, constant promotion of his notion, he is overseeing a great economy, is in no way a solution. Polls reflecting voters’ disenchantment with his handling of the economy will not and cannot be easily dismissed. A notion is an opinion, not an answer to the problems of high unemployment, and economic prosperity.

We know for sure, it is time for American voters to speak with one voice, when it comes to the real unemployment rate, if voters are going to get positive action, when it comes to the creation of millions of good paying Jobs. Competing and confusing views, as to what the real unemployment rate is, only serves the best interest of – and let us face facts – politicians, like President Trump, Senator Chuck Schumer, the Senate Minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, the House Minority leader, and Senator Elizabeth Warren, social media influencer, as it leads to ineptness, and slow or no action, when it comes to solutions, to the #1 issues of Jobs and the economy. As stated above, American voters want to see doable and effective solutions, which these politicians have yet to produce.

The Trump administration promotes the U-3 category rate from the Table of Alternative Measures of Labor Underutilization, as the most comprehensive and accurate rate of the nation’s monthly unemployment situation, which for March, our latest report month is 4.3%. The U-3 rate measures persons, who actively looked for a Job in the last four weeks. So, if you are unemployed, and have not actively looked for a Job in the past 4 weeks, “you are not considered by Trump to be unemployed.”

Additionally, the 4.3% is representative of another very important benchmark. Investopedia, a highly regarded financial educational web site, which states their experts offer more than 250 years plus of combined experience to ensure they are giving readers the most accurate information, states, “Unemployment of 5% or lower is often considered full employment in a real-world context.”

Essentially, President Donald J. Trump is telling Americans and its labor force of 170 million workers, that there is no compelling reason to be concerned about Joblessness. The U-3 category rate, 4.3%, implies, if these fully employed Americans, in his fully employed economy, wanted to switch Jobs in pursuit of a better Job; per President Donald Trump they could do this with relative ease, as there are enough Jobs being produced monthly in his economy, to allow them to do so.

Working-class people know for sure that is not true or accurate, because they are living and working in Trump’s Top 10%-20% $3.4 Trillion Tax Cut driven economy, to billionaires, millionaires and corporations. The Bureau of Labor Statistics showed 178,000 Jobs were created in March, however when you average Job creation out over the last 3 months in Trump’s erratic economy, we get a different story. January saw 160,000 Jobs created: February saw no Jobs created, as a matter of fact, there was 133,000 Jobs lost. Thus, the average number of Jobs created over the last 3 months is 68,000; woefully inadequate, when it comes to switching Jobs, when you consider the nation has a 170-million-person labor force.

Furthermore, we know for sure, President Trump’s action, in promoting the U-3 category rate as the most accurate and comprehensive rate does not line up with the Bureau of Labor Statistics economists conclusion, who declared in 1994, when the unemployment rates were adjusted, under the Clinton administration, the U-6 category rate of unemployment is the most accurate and comprehensive rate. That rate for March is 8.0%, almost two times the rate of Trump’s political rate of 4.3%. The 8.0% rate means, 8 out of every 100 workers cannot find a full time Job that pays a living wage, as these workers understand what a living wage is, in Trump’s poor economy. The African American rate is 2.7% higher at 10.7%.

We know for sure, the Trump administration, when they promote the U-3 category rate as being accurate and comprehensive, also does not line up with the international definition of unemployment, as established by the International Labor Organization (ILO). The ILO, the only tripartite United Nations Agency, since 1919, brings together international governments, employers and workers of 187 member states, to set labor standards, develop policies and devise programs promoting decent work for all women and men. Their definition of unemployment, not only measures those actively looking for work as stated in Trump’s measurement but workers who are underemployed. Trump does not count underemployed workers as part of his unemployment definition.

Underemployed workers are individuals who are working part-time but desire full-time employment. They may also include those whose skills and education exceed the requirements of their current jobs. For example, a college degreed person working as a door keeper. This group often faces financial instability due to insufficient hours and low wages. Trump’s U-3 category rate doesn’t count this group.

However, BLS economists in declaring the U-6 category rate in 1994, as being the most comprehensive and accurate unemployment rate does include underemployed workers and persons actively looking for work, just as the international definition does. Additionally, the U-6 rate goes beyond the ILO definition of unemployment and counts discouraged workers, who may not be actively seeking work. Common reasons for discouragement could include a lack of skills, age and prolonged unemployment, and the lack of available Jobs, as illustrated above in Trump’s economy. Click on https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/1995/10/art3full.pdf.

The U-6 category unemployment rate, which is the most accurate and comprehensive unemployment rate, better reflects the realities of and gives a fuller picture of the Job market, such as low Job creation numbers, that politicians may not want to discuss or deal with. So, they hide behind the lower U-3 rate category, while neglecting to tell voters the U-3 category rate is not comprehensive or is not the most accurate state of the United States monthly Job situation, which is unfair, and unjust to voters. Voters have a right to know the full story when it comes to our economy.

So, what is the long-term solution? End the Clinton era policy of underreporting/undercounting our unemployment rates. The solution to the nation’s Job, and growth problem, which by the way solves the affordability issue, is to move immediately away from the current 10-year, Top 10%-20% Tax Cut driven economy, which cost the nation $3.4 trillion, to a 10% 10-year $25,000 Bottom 70%-80% Tax Cut driven economy, which will only cost $1.7 trillion, which is half the cost of the One Big Beautiful Bill. It is an opportunity for the Trump’s Treasury Secretary to directly control $1 trillion, when it comes to spending on spurring the economy and economic growth. Click on TheFixThisTime.com for details.

We know for sure, you are going to get 4 times the spending on products, and services through a larger group of some 62 million consumers. The bottom 70%-80% spending will also be different, as they will spend the tax cut money on a wider array of products and services, whereas the top 10%-20% usually spend tax cut money on real estate and in the investment markets, which result in low Job creation numbers. We are observing these low Job numbers in real time based on the latest numbers of Jobs created in Trump’s Top 10%-20% Tax Cut driven economy.

A 10% Tax Cut to the Bottom 70%-80% of Americans, will produce surplus revenues. It is mathematically and empirically sound economics. Finally, we know for sure, if the Truth is told “good neighbors,” 5 major tax cuts, since 1986 to the Top 10%-20%, have not proven to be effective, when it comes to Job creation and long-term economic growth!

Staff Writer; James Davis

Mr. Davis is a Financial Analyst. His articles are about relating facts in a usable, truthful, and understandable way. That way, WE ALL WIN. James is, the author of three books, among them, “The Fix This Time,” Boost Your Retirement Income! Simultaneously Create Jobs and Spur Economic Growth (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MI3PD2M). Reach out to James @ his blog https://thefixthistime.com.

Question? Comment? One may use this email address; MrDavis@ThyBlackMan.com.