Cut the Bull: TRUTH Minista Paul Scott in Mayoral Debate

There will be a forum involving the Durham mayoral candidates at the downtown Durham Co. Public Library this Monday Oct.29th at 7PM. TRUTH Minista Paul Scott will make a rare appearence, along with the other candidates Mayor Bill Bell and Councilman Thomas Stith.
Please come out and show your support.

Cut the Bull: Durham's Mayoral Wrestlemania

As the "candidate non grata" in Durham's mayoral
election I have a few quick observations based on the
Wrestlemania-like performances of Mayor Bell and Councilman
Stith.

There is an old African proverb that says "when two
elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers." In
Durham, the elephants are Bell and Stith and the grass
is the citizens of Durham, especially the children.

I sit back and observe this fighting and I ask myself,
"Weren't these guys playing on the same team?"
It's like Jake Delhomme and Steve Smith getting in a
slugfest on the field after losing a game while the
fans are screaming that we need a new team.

Maybe, tomorrow's headline should be " Bell and Stith
Clobber Each Other with Fiddles, while Durham Burns."

Alas, in the end, this election fued is just like professional
"wrasslin.'" As much as Nature Boy Ric Flair and the American
Dream Dusty Rhodes would yell at each other and smash each
others heads with chairs, at the end of the day it was just a
show to dupe the gullible fans into buying more wrestling tickets
or in this case, getting the people of Durham to vote for them...

Cut the Bull: TRUTH Minista at People's Forum 10/21

I will be on the panel with the other Durham mayoral election candidates at the "People's Forum" to be held at Ebenezer Misionary Baptist Church, Sunday 10/21 at 4PM

Sorry, Sarah: Blackface Still Ain't Funny

I never watched Comedy Central's the Sarah Silverman Show until today. Somehow, a show featuring a white chick who kinda reminds me of a cross between Mary Hartman and Pippy Longstocking doesn't seem all that funny to me. But I was curious about the "Black Face" episode so I bit the bullet and suffered through it.

For the millions of people who actually have lives, let me hip you to what happened. Seems that Sarah felt that she was the victim of a hate crime because she wasn't allowed to join a tennis club because she was Jewish. When a black waiter overhears her moanin' , he starts cryin' about how hard it is being black and challenges Silverman to walk a mile in his shoes. So after a friend hooks her up with some charcoal makeup she begins her adventure thinking that she looks like Queen Latifah. (Yeah, I know Latifah is light skinned but I suppose that was part of the humor.)

Now, maybe I'm still a little upset about the whole Jena 6 thing or the video being circulated on the net with the 16 year old black girl getting pommelled by the big white security guard has me a overly sensitive, but I did not find the show amusing.

Not only was the whole Aunt Jemima thing over the top but it trivialized our experience as black people in this country.

Now, I know that a lot of white folks are reading this sayin' ,

"It was only a TV show. You neg.., I mean, colore...I mean...well, what ever you call yourselves these days are just soooo sensitive!"

Yeah, so sue me!

I don't remember too many Jewish people rappin' along with Public Enemy after the Professor Griff /Washington Times interview or moonwalkin' to Michael Jackson's banned song "They Don't Really Care about Us." Also, while many people are up in arms about Halle Berry's recent nose joke, I haven't heard too many people taking Silverman to task.

Black people will no longer allow our culture to be belittled by Hollywood or anyone else. We are facing some real Funky issues in 2007 and we will not allow anyone to make a mockery out of our historical suffering.

So, You think that hate crimes are funny?

Ask Megan Williams who was recently tortured by a gang of white folks in West Va...

I doubt if she will find it amusing.

Min. Paul Scott's blog is http://www.nowarningshotsfired.com/ He can be reached at (919) 451-8283 info@nowarningshotsfired.com

To watch the clips click http://sarahsilverman.comedycentral.com/videos.jhtml?cat=season_2

NWSF Bullet: Books Not Bullets

By now, I'm sure that you have heard about rapper TI getting arrested before the BET Hip Hop Awards, last Saturday. Seems TI or TIP was busted trying to buy some machine guns via his bodyguard.

Not sure why TI needed the extra ammo...

Maybe he was going to avenge the torture of Megan Williams, the sister from W.VA.

Or...Maybe he was going to go down to Jena, Louisiana to bust Mychal Bell out of the slammer...

Naw, in all likelihood, he was just stocking up to prove how gangsta he is just incase Ludacris decides to diss him on his next CD...

While the Black Panther Party "blackenized" Mao Tse Tung's "Politics grows out of the barrel of a gun" ideology, and Malcom X talked about the "Ballot or the Bullet" Hip Hop artists have at least gotten the gun and bullets parts right...

One of America's biggest fears has been that the thugz on the streets would one day become politically minded. What would happen if Snoop Dog woke up one morning and started telling his young homies that CRIP stands for "Community Revolution In Progress" or if The Game started quoting Marcus Garvey and said that the red that the Bloods wear stands for the blood of their African ancestors that was spilled for their FREEDOM?

Would they still have the same access that they do, now to go on TV and promote the genocide of a young black generation?

Probably not. They would probably be reduced to cameo appearences on "Dancing With the Stars."

What is more feared TI with a gun or TI with Robert William's book, "Negroes With Guns?"

Back in the late 80's Public Enemy used to rap aboout "Fightin' the Power", but today's youth have no idea what "the power" is much lest how to fight it....

I can see the "powers that be" sitting back in their war rooms smokin' big cigars and sayin'

"Yeah, let's take the books out tha hood and replace them with guns!"

It is said that a fool and his money are soon parted. So, I guess a similiar saying would be "a fool and a gun will shoot innocent bystanders."

No wonder the school system doesn't teach black children about their history...

Maybe we need to start a "Books not Bullets" Campaign ?

TRUTH Minista on Cathy Harris Show 10/16

I am scheduled to be a guest on the Cathy Harris Show Tuesday October 16th at 6PM

You can listen online at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thecathyharrisshow

Cut the Bull: Street Manifesto

As a write in candidate for Durham Mayor, I am releasing my platform in the form of a "Street Manifesto"

Street Manifesto

We want all the people in Durham to have an equal role in charting the city's new direction and not just the privileged few.

We want an end to crime.

However, we realize that as long as there is poverty, hunger and unemployment, there will be crime. So,the city should do more to eliminate the root causes of crime. Locking up young black males and deporting Latinos is not a solution to crime.

We want an end to violence.

However, the city is not doing enough to promote peace and unity.

We want an end to the drug dealing on city streets.

However, young black males are not the ones responsible for bringing the drugs into this country. Unfortunately, it is more convenient to point the finger at the youth instead of those who are really responsible for the death and destruction on the streets of Durham.

We want an end to the stereotyping of black and Latino youth as criminals and gang members.

We understand that the criminalization of black and Latino youth has been overly hyped by the media and many jobs are created as the result of sending our youth to prison.

We want an end to youth idleness.

The city must do more to provide positive activities for our young people.

We want an end to the attempted division of the black and Latino communities.

The problem in this country is not too many "illegal aliens" but too many greedy, rich people with "out of space" ideas that don't match the current demographic makeup of America. There are enough resources to go around.

We want the faith community to become more involved in solving Durham's problems.

Church should be more than a once a week happy hour.

We want an end to homelessness.

The city should be involved in renovating abandoned buildings and turning them into homes for the homeless.

We need to take the power out of the hands of the traditional politicians and PACs (Political Action Committees) and put it in the hands of the people.

Control of Durham neighborhoods must rest in the hands of the masses and not the classes.

NWSF Bullet: Eyebrows Don't Lie ?

I went to a forum today organized by Karen Daniels, mother of Erick Daniels who was convicted in 2001 for a robbery that his mom says that he didn't commit. Daniels was 15 at the time.

Now I know some of ya'll are saying that a mother always thinks her child is innocent. Even if there was surveillance film of a dude with his face in the camera lip syncing old Michael Jackson jams with an arm full of stolen jewelry, many a mom would still be up in court all loud and unruly shoutin'

"NOT MY BABY!"

But that's what mothers should do. If they aren't out advocatin' for their kids who will? Some overworked, underpaid public defender who spends his court time daydreamin' about old Baywatch episodes?

What made today's forum so interesting was not just the teary-eyed testimony of the mom, but also that of reporters Demorris Lee and Mosi Secret as well as Attny. Carlos Mahoney.

Seems like some real funky "Law and Order" type stuff went down with the case.

I was sittin' in the back of the room but from what I could make out:

Demorris Lee got arrested for "harassing" the alleged victim by calling her for an interview, Ms. Daniels got threatened by the judge for makin' funny faces in court and somebody swiped Secret's camera man's pictures of the crime scene....

See, real funky stuff!

According to Atty. Mahoney the court seemed to feel that if Daniels didn't actually rob the lady, hey, he must of done something else illegal in his lifetime.

"Hey aren't those Durham guys all gangbangers, anyway."

For my two cents, I think that the case should be reopened. Should a young man be forced to spend most of his teen years and a good part of his young adult life in jail because somebody recognized his "eyebrows."

(Personally, I always thought that Groucho Marx was responsible for the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa, but that's just me)

As I take a good look at the kid's eyebrows in a picture in the Independent newspaper...

You know, they look a lot like mine did at that age......

To read Mosi Secret's story go to:

http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A121382

NWSF Bullet: TRUTH Minista on DC Radio

I'm scheduled to be a guest on Todd B's Talk Show on Washington DC's WPGC 95.5 FM to discuss Hip Hop vs America vs Hip Hop at around 6:30 AM this Saturday 10/6.

You can listen online at http://www.wpgc955.com

Cut the Bull: Politicians Bling Blingin' More than Rappers

Cut the Bull:Politicians "Bling Blingin'" More than than Rappers

Call me politically naive, but I just can't see politicians raising all this money for their campaigns when you have all of these poor, hungry families in Durham. The local media are reporting today, that Councilman Thomas Stith has raised a whoppin' $107,885 for his campaign . Now I know that I have never been the caviar eatin', champaign sippin' fund raiser type and I still drink my kool aid out of a mayonnaise jar but am I the only one who sees something wrong with this picture?

With all the money that the politicians are raising, couldn't this go towards actually solving the poverty problems in Durham?

Personally, I am not accepting any campaign donations.

Here's a novel idea, instead of giving money to my campaign, why not take that money and buy a homeless person something to eat?

So, I guess my campaign motto should be, "Ask not what Durham can do for you but what you can do for Durham.