Thu, 18 September 2008  Welcome to Show #41-08 Guardian angels, everybody's got one or at least believes, even our Jewish brothers and sisters! Blessed Ramadan to my Muslim listeners I told you so--more bank bailouts General Mills makes a profit on people's changing spending habits. Before long it may be "Brother can you spare a dime?" time again. Chinese disdain for breastfeeding and more babies die Rush Limbaugh's doesn't want his listeners to think for themselves and he ask what is the Black national anthem? What passes for news and entertainment is mostly insulting. When parents lead, kids won't ask to dress like TV stars -- The White Women Rant. A Pot I Love Stirring! -- The Newsweek Editor's Desk - "Something is clearly going on among white female voters in the country that is not going on in other groups." Sure enough, they've lost their minds! -- Sarah Palin's Lie - Commentary by Sunny James -- More of the McCain Lying Game, TIME -- Rolling Stone Gets to the Truth About Sarah -- In Boston, No Refuge from the Storm, Children At Risk in My Hometown, and Yours Too, Probably Boston Globe -- Ike Slams Galveston and the now BILLON Dollar Katrina Nightmare Just Keeps Rolling (1:11) -- On the Street 15, 16 and 17 year olds answer the question "What would they do if they were in Bristol Palin's shoes"? and "Is it all just politics"? (1:19) -- For the Musically Stuck in a Rut . . . Marvin Gaye sings the National Anthem. Take that Mr. Limbaugh (1:20) -- Sunny's Good Word - mendacity \men-ˈda-sə-tē\ (1:23) -- Where In the World is . . . Limerick, Ireland? And one more time for good measure, Washington DC, the taxation without representation capital of the United States See ya next time, Sunny Comments[0] |
Wed, 17 September 2008 
I’ve been wondering what it would take, what would motivate me to write. As much as I love the written word, finding the time to write something meaningful while managing the rest of my life seemed unbelievably difficult. But when John McCain put Sarah Plain on the Republican ticket for vice-president, that did it! For the last several weeks I’ve watched the news shows, read the dailies and weeklies, and stayed glued to the internet. All in the desire to give Gov. Sarah Palin a fair shake. I wanted to gather enough information to see if she warranted my voting for a Republican ticket that I wouldn’t even have thought of voting for before she was added to it. I kept looking, trying to find that piece of the political puzzle that would allow me to embrace the Republican ticket. Was some convincing nugget of information in the pages of Newsweek or the Christian Science Monitor? Maybe even the Anchorage Daily News would bring my Holy Grail-like quest to a successful end. But it just wasn’t to be. For me,
the most moving and damning coverage of Sarah Palin came from the You see,
I have the blessing and challenge of raising African American teenagers in the
age of MTV, BET, SMS, BFFs, iPods, STDs, AIDS and, the not quite as deadly, out
of control consumerism and instant gratification that would corrupt an entire 3rd
world country in six months. As I know, assumptions will follow--let me say
that I was married to my children’s father for 15 years. And their father continues to be an
unwavering force in their lives. Having
miscarried and then successfully had two kids, I know about being pregnant and
motherhood. The covert way that Gov Palin handled the pregnancy of her last
child, Trig, struck me as conniving and engineered. The only thing private
about motherhood is conception--unless of course that was recorded and posted
to YouTube. As the baby starts growing, it would take writers and props from Universal
Studios to orchestrate a woman's life as not to show the growing baby bump. But this
is what Gov. Palin did—hide her pregnancy. There is a public aspect to nearly
everything about pregnancy and mothering from birth, to managing a two year
old’s meltdown in the grocery store. Even the diagnosis and possible fear of
having a Down syndrome child seems to be shallow rationale for keeping her
pregnancy secret from her family and the voters of As a
woman and mother, like millions of others, I have struggled with the issue of
staying at home to raise children versus working outside the home. I won’t
rehash my commentary from last year that reflects on the confluence of my
wedding day, divorce and Mother’s Day, but for eight years I opted for the 24/7
job of motherhood. It was lonely, tiring and put my career in what I, to this
day, call “stalled” as I try to get back into the workforce in a meaningful
way. I look at my children today and know I did the right thing. I had to
prepare them for going into a world that doesn’t look kindly on African American
children or looks at them too long especially if shopping at the mall. My 17-year-old daughter and I have discussed sex, contraception, sexual orientation
and the proper use of a condom. This is the real world we live in. Initially,
the conversations may have been uncomfortable for both of my kids, but it was
just another piece of life’s puzzle that I had to help them sort out. My
daughter knows that premarital sex comes with risks and I’m glad that I
prepared her for making a decision should the situation present itself. It was while I was working at my first job, I heard for the first time the adage that Black folks had to come earlier and stay later just to stay on par with Whites. Not much has changed as I try to instill that principle in my children. The same adage holds true for the parent/child relationship whatever color you are. The closer my daughter gets to 18, the more that voice in my head wants to shout “whoopie.” But I push that voice back down with a loud “don’t shout too soon.” Kids make some of the dumbest mistakes imaginable. As a parent you can only hope that the mistakes are not life altering. Just as my own mother’s screaming admonitions of “you better not bring any babies in here” resonated for many years past my eighteenth, my tone with my children was ratcheted down a few notches but just as emphatic and the language was tempered by the confidence that I had spent many hours listening to and then talking with my kids everyday. It’s
easy at this point to adopt a holier-than-thou mind set. But the truth of the matter is that I really want to pose this question to Alaska's governor: “You’re the White, married with five kids,
governor of the largest state in the As I
read the Times article I tried to figure out exactly what was “fused” and
what’s the “new way” and whether it’s working for the governor? Things in the Palin household seemed pretty
disconnected to me. Until, of course, it was time for an appearance at the
Republican National Convention. This new age tableau that Gov. Palin is painting for Alaskans and her family includes choosing
to withhold the truth and a juggling act that’s not working. I continue to fight for my kids and even with my kids. My daughter will continue to be a little distant as she prepares to leave the nest for college next year. She hasn’t realized it yet but I know that’s what she doing. My son has just started down the puberty road. Man, do I still have some battles in front of me. All of that is the truth. And it’s out there talked about and argued over. In the
end, if Gov. Palin's family issues had been my neighbor's or best friend's, I
would say it sounds like something from “All My Children.” But still their
personal matters. But as someone who is
running for the second highest political office in these 'til the next time, Sunny Category: Sunny's Almost Daily Commentary -- posted at: 7:49 AM Comments[0] |
Tue, 19 August 2008  Welcome to Show #40-08 News and All the Other Stuff for Show #40-08-- Thanks to Daniel Greenberg, Sonja Livingston, Marta Lopez and my Romanian exchange student, pool guy -- Sunny, what did you do on your pretend, two day, summer vacation? I moved and almost passed out from heat exhaustion on the hottest day of the friggin' summer, damn it! Thanks for asking. -- Yes, summer is coming to an end and the children will go back to school. I actually have them camping out on the school house steps right now, so they won't miss a second of the new school year. -- Kind words from the ex--hell has surely frozen over. OK, it was a very nice moment, a very short moment, a very, very short moment. -- Visit my facebook page, oh yeah, PLEASE. News Items (21:34) -- Obama and the Sisters, can I get an "amen?" The Nation -- Rick Warren, wrong on so many levels. BTW, when do the Jews, Muslims, Baha'i and Buddhist get their turn at Obama and McCain? USA Today -- Frankford, Pennsylvania--Afraid, but fighting back. Some Other Black Communities Could Learn a Lesson Philadelphia Daily News -- U.S. Farmers Look at Immigrants Lives Christian Science Monitor -- Foreclosure Upside? The Boston Globe -- Summer Camp for Homeless Kids USA Today -- Mugabe, Day of the Crocodile Vanity Fair -- Hip-Hop Cash Kings. The Queens Step Out When? Forbes -- Black Models Just Aren't Good Enough Village Voice (1:16) -- For the Musically Stuck in a Rut . . . A Simple Song with Chuck D, D'Angelo and the too-soon-gone Isaac Hayes (1:17) -- Sunny's Good Word - indurate • \IN-duh-rut\ (1:18) -- Where In the World is . . . The Dead Sea? And one more time for good measure, Washington DC, the taxation without representation capital of the United States Sunny Comments[0] |
Thu, 17 July 2008 Welcome to Show #39-08 Thanks for listening everybody. Don't forget you can find The Sunny James Show on iTunes News and All the Other Stuff for #39-08 -- Great email from Dave No Last Name, thank you. -- What do crayons, markers, pencils and backpacks have to do with the the orange Paypal button at sunnyjames.net? Here's the deal . . . with two kids, it's about this time of year that I start to think about September and the kids going back to school. Invariably, I think about my own upbringing and how stressed out my mother seemed at the prospect of having to buy school supplies for me. She was a single mother all of my school-aged life. And it wasn't just the pencils and notebook paper but the new coat or shoes and socks that was needed. When I was married and a stay-at-home mother, no longer working a nine to five, but a 24/7, I took pleasure in being able to buy sufficient, no, probably an excess of school supplies for my children and they will tell you to this day about my fondness for buying them new socks and underwear for back to school. And since I've been divorced, more times than not I've felt some of what my own mother must of felt as she tried to provide all that I needed to go to school, warm and equipped with the tools to learn. I know I'm not alone in fantasizing about hitting the lottery. But right after buying the new house and car for me, I've always understood the lure and desire to give something back to hard working, just-needing-a-hand-up parents and kids. An accountant tells me the most efficient way to do that is through establishing a non-profit foundation. Well, folks I don't know when I'm going to hit the lottery, but I've come to the conclusion that waiting to give back, shouldn't wait any longer. So, here's my request. I'd like to make a donation of school supplies this September--for either one classroom or an entire grade at an elementary school here in the Nation's Capital (you've got to listen to the podcast to hear why I chose the elementary school level). If you can donate supplies send me an email to get the address or hit the Paypal button and specify Sunny's Place. Lot's of people are struggling right now and I include my self in that number, but there are people who are losing their homes, or don't know where the next meal is coming from or a young mother or father has to decide between providing a meal or school supplies come September. I believe that great times are ahead of me professionally and financially. God is going to continue to bless me but, all the more, that means I can't ignore others in need. So, if there was ever a time to hit the Paypal button, it's now. Thank you. News Items (14:34) -- Obama Takes the Show Around the Globe Christian Science Monitor -- Race Still the Great Divide The New York Times -- McCain in the Company of Lions & Tigers, Oh, my The Los Angeles Times -- The UK's Problems Sound Alot Like Ours The Guardian -- Generations Clash The Boston Globe and The New Yorker Cartoon Non-issue (my 2 cents) -- Miami Taxpayers Shouldn't Take it Anymore The Christian Science Monitor -- Doctors Hearts in Hand, An Apology from the AMA The Washington Post -- South Carolina is So Gay and Somebody is in So Much Trouble Newsweek -- What Do Volkswagen and U.S. Steel Have in Common? Slave Labor, of course Newsweek (57:42) -- For the Musically Stuck in a Rut . . . Brook Benton and Toots Theilman (59:40) -- Sunny's Good Word - veneration \ve-nə-rā-shən\ (59:58) Where In the World is . . . Lake Winnipesaukee? And one more time for good measure, Washington DC, the taxation without representation capital of the United States See ya next time,Sunny Comments[0] |
Wed, 25 June 2008  June 25th Update:
More opinion about my appearance at the Talkers Magazine New Media
Seminar and the Talk Radio & Race panel. The woman who wrote the
piece is a right leaning talk show host who totally missed the point
about how advertising dollars are spent or rather not spent on Black or
urban radio. That point was made clearly by myself and several
other panelist. Black radio wouldn't exist if it were not making somebody some money. But, while Black folks spend billions of dollars as consumers, urban radio doesn't garner the kind of quality advertising buys that other radio formats do. When the advertisers stop seeing Black, perhaps urban and talk radio can see more green. To suggest that I was taking a swipe at Talkers Magazine and the New Media Seminar is ludicrous. I was a guest of Michael Harrison and being a properly brought up child, I learned early on not insult my host. And in this instance, I certainly had no reason to. What the writer ignored, was that I said, if you walk through the lobby of the convention center, the only faces on the cardboard cutouts of the sponsored or syndicated on-air talent were white faces. That was just a fact. In addition, you could count on one hand the number of African-American women in attendance. I know because I made a point of meeting each of them. Black radio has always had an element of social consciousness about it. The issues haven't changed much, but the delivery system has. Syndicated radio has changed how, not just the Black community, but all communities get its news and information. BET failed at providing news to the Black community, NPR has taken several stabs at news delivered by a Black hosts but not necessarily Black news. There was Ed Gordon, then Tavis Smiley, who left NPR and is still as popular as ever and now Michel Martin's Tell Me More. I wish for the day when there is no such thing as "Black talk radio." I hope I can provide that kind of show for a radio station here in the Nation's Capital and even land my own syndication deal where I can be heard across the country. But let's be real, there are issues for us, about us, caused by us and imposed on us that don't get addressed on mainstream talk radio but should. My own show covers a wide range of issues that are not necessarily about the Black and minority communities but affect us profoundly and to a greater degree than the rest of the population. I look forward to the day when talk radio conversation and discussion about black people or issues does not become a commentary on "nappy headed hoes." Sunny Category: Show Notes (what the hell am I doing) -- posted at: 10:21 AM Comments[0] |
Tue, 17 June 2008  Welcome to Show #38-08 Thanks for listening everybody.My email addresses: thesunnyjamesshow@gmail.com. You can directly download this show from my website, www.sunnyjames.net OR www.thesunnyjamesshow.net. And of course, you can find The Sunny James Show on iTunes News and All the Other Stuff for #38-08 -- One more thank you to mykinkycreed.com -- Rant. Women and their underwear -- Sunny does NY in June--Absolute Perfection! The Talkers Magazine New Media Seminar. Let's just say Al Sharpton was a no show and I wasn't (I kept his seat warm) -- I Dare You . . . News Items (14:30) -- Obama's fightthesmears.com Boston Globe -- Republican Hatchet Man? The First Post -- It's Swift-Boat Time TIME -- Obama on the Cosby Bandwagon Chicago Sun Times -- Clinton & Obama Did a Good Thing The Christian Science Monitor -- America At It's Best--I Can Only Hope Economist -- The War for the White House Economist -- Women Voters Do It Any Way They Want Los Angeles Times -- Suburban Nightmares, Urban Dreams CNN.com -- Kids and Obesity, Look to the Parents TIME (59:43) -- For the Musically Stuck in a Rut . . . Girls in Their Summer Clothes by Bruce Springsteen (take that Miss Mozell) (1:00:10) -- Sunny's Good Word - DECOROUS • \DECK-er-us\
(1:00:23) -- Where In the World is . . . Nags Head? And one more time for good measure, Washington DC, the taxation without representation capital of the United States -- I Dare You--AGAIN! See ya next time, Sunny Comments[1] |
Sat, 17 May 2008 Welcome to Show #37-08 Thanks for listening everybody.My email addresses: thesunnyjamesshow@gmail.com. Also you can directly download this show from my website, www.sunnyjames.net OR www.thesunnyjamesshow.net. And of course, you can find me on iTunes now as The Sunny James Show News and All the Other Stuff for #37-08 -- Listener email and thank yous especially to mykinkycreed.com and an apology to a listener who got TMI. -- Rant. Make that a double cheeseburger and a prom dress to go or parents need to learn to say "NO" -- Sunny does NY in June News Items (15:10) -- Obama Prepares for Republican Scare Tactics. He Ain't Afraid of No Ghost Newsweek -- Taking Aim at First Ladies in Waiting Financial Times -- Red or Blue, The South Rethinks Its Allegiance The New York Times -- We Shall Overcome? Not Yet The Economist (you must read this) -- It's a Shrink Rapped Shame The Economist -- Skip the Grocery Store and Hit the Backyard Garden The Christian Science Monitor -- Cynthia Tucker's Take on the Hip-hop Lie Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Doing It Right, Education in Nassau County, New York The New York Times -- Getting it Wrong, Chicago's Gang and Gun Violence The Economist -- Making it Work, Chicago's Urban Prep and Renaissance Schools Fund The Economist -- Near Death Changes Doctor's Paradigm, Tanzania Reaps the Benefits San Francisco Chronicle -- Women Shine in Rwanda The Washington Post (59:00) On the Street - For the Littlest Obamas--Public or Private? (1:05:50) --
For the Musically Stuck in a Rut . . . The Roots' Rising Down Makes Hip-hop A Pleasure Again (1:07:00)
-- Sunny's Good Word - Appeasement (1:07:25) -- Where In the World is . . . Mount Kilimanjaro? And one more time for good measure, Washington DC, the taxation without representation capital of the United States See ya next time, Sunny Comments[0] |
Wed, 2 April 2008  Welcome to Show #36-08 Thanks for listening everybody.My new email address: sunny_james@verizon.net or the old address still works, theabw@verizon.net Also you can directly download this show from www.sunnyjames.net OR www.theabw.net And of course, you can find me on iTunes now as The Sunny James Show News and All the Other Stuff for #36-08 -- Many Thanks to Contributors and a Recap of The Talk Radio Seminar. This VIDEO link is of the Q & A portion of the Talking Heads Panel and my question to Rev. Al Sharpton regarding the civil rights "old guard" support of Barack Obama and Rev. Sharpton's answer. George Stephanopoulos is the panel moderator. The debate and dialog among the various hosts after my question is great to watch. This video clip plays on Windows Media Center, WinDVD and various other programs. -- 2005-2008, RIP Angry Black Woman and Why -- Sunny James on Sinclair Broadcasting for the 40th Anniversary of the Slaying of Martin Luther King, Jr.(Select "40 Years Later" from the video list) -- Just in case you missed it--I can't have that--here's the link to my most recent appearance on WWWT-FM here in the Nation's Capital March 19. -- Join the facebook group "I Support The Sunny James Show." News Items (21:14) -- Iraq War Kills Hope for Ohio Soldier. LA Times -- "Far Wright," Couldn't Have Said it Better Myself The New Republic -- Alice Walker on Obama, How Familiar, How Poetic Guardian -- Congressman Emanuel Cleaver Talks Crazy North of the Boarder. What an Awful Shade of Green. -- The Ghosts of Memphis. 40 Years Later, Would He Be Proud, Does it Matter? -- 20 Lives Gone Too Soon, Chicago's Student Bloodbath, -- News Orleans' Strange Fruit -- Economist's Bad News From California--Latino Families Becoming Like Black Families -- Chris Rock on the Cover of Rolling Stone (54:37) On the Street - Thick? (1:05:29) --
For the Musically Stuck in a Rut . . . Van Morrison's "I'll Be Your Lover Too" (1:06:23) -- Where In the World is . . . Puget Sound? And one more time for good measure, Washington DC, the taxation without representation capital of the United States (1:06:10) -- Sunny's Good Word - distaff See ya next time,Sunny Comments[0] |
Fri, 28 March 2008 Hello Everybody,This is NOT an edition of The Angry Black Woman Show with Sunny James. This is a March 19 guest appearance on WWWT-FM in Washington DC. It was a great opportunity to talk about Barack Obama's speech on race and politics. This was my 4th appearance. And yes, it runs WITHOUT commercials! Yeah! Please be sure to listen to the next show. I have lots to share with you including the reasons for changing the name of the show, thank yous, video from the Talk Radio Seminar, which I couldn't have attended without the help from listeners. And of course, another edition of The Sunny James Show. See ya next time, Sunny Comments[0] |
Wed, 20 February 2008 Welcome to Show #35-08 Thanks for listening everybody.My new email address: theabw@verizon.net Also you can directly download this show from www.sunnyjames.net OR www.theabw.net OR www.theangryblackwoman.net And of course, you can find me on iTunes News and All the Other Stuff for #35-08 -- Sunny James on FOX's American Crossroads Black and White -- Once again links to appearances on Tony Kornheiser's show on WWWT-FM here in the Nation's Capital. December 14 and December 21 -- You Know You Want to Listen, The Extended Play Version, Sunny on 3WT-FM, The David Burd & Jessica Doyle Show -- Join the facebook group "I Support Sunny James and the Angry Black Woman Show." Thanks again Daphnee! -- February Doldrums?--Hardly. Valentine's Day, the Potomac Primary, El Hajj Malik El-Shabazz Remembered on February 21, Black History Month -- Just click the button--I meant it. No, I need it! Please. -- It's Not Just About the White House. Think Supreme Court and The Case No One is Talking About -- A Real Wife, Every Woman Needs One, Obama's Got One -- Gender Stereotypes. You Bet -- Racial Progress? See Following Article -- Deadly Delay. Minorities Late Diagnoses -- IRS Helps Illegals. Who Knew? -- Whose Afraid of Head Scarves? -- Our, All Children Deserve Better -- Australia Gets the Apology Right -- The New Yorker's The Color of Politics. Yes There are Other Black Politicians Besides Obama. Can You Say Cory Booker? -- National Geographic Does the Black Pharaohs -- Oscar May for Ruby Dee --
For the Musically Stuck in a Rut . . . "My Way" by Aretha Franklin and Nina Simone -- Where In the World is . . . Victoria Lake And one more time for good measure, Washington DC, the taxation without representation capital of the United States -- Sunny's Good Word - eudaimonism See ya next time,Sunny Comments[1] |
Thu, 31 January 2008 Hello Everybody,This is NOT an edition of The Angry Black Woman Show with Sunny James. This is a recent guest appearance on WWWT-FM in Washington DC. It was a great opportunity to talk about race, politics, Obama and Clinton, gender, the Missing White Woman Syndrome and other fun stuff. This was my third appearance; I think they like me! Yes, it runs a bit long, with commercials. I'll be visiting you again soon with another edition of The Angry Black Woman Show. See ya next time, Sunny Comments[0] |
Wed, 9 January 2008  Welcome to Show #34-08 Thanks for listening everybody.Sunny's new email address: theabw@verizon.net Also you can directly download this show from www.sunnyjames.net OR www.theabw.net OR www.theangryblackwoman.net And of course, you can find me on iTunes Last minute lesson to be learned from the New Hampshire primary--If you cry they will come! We haven't come a long way, baby!? If you'd like to read one of the articles from the show, please drop me an email, at least for the next several days. A software problem should be corrected soon. News and All the Other Stuff for #34-08 -- As promised, here are the links to my holiday guest appearances on Tony Kornheiser's show on WWWT-FM here in the Nation's Capital. December 14 and December 21 -- Join the facebook group "I Support Sunny James and the Angry Black Woman Show." Thanks again Daphine! -- MediaMatters for America. A great media watchdog site -- Brown v. Board of Education--What's That Got to do With Obama? -- Charles Taylor Says It's OK to Start His War Crimes Trial Again -- Private Security Contractors Look to Africa for Mercenaries. Just Another Way to Brutalize the Dark Continent -- Preacher Says Black Women Should Be Anti-Abortion Rights -- Europe--So Lovely, So Beautiful, So Full of Hate -- Gay Muslims, Really? -- Sisterlock Makes Waves -- Wonder Woman by a Woman --
For the Musically Stuck in a Rut . . . Kenny Edmonds' "Playlist" -- Where In the World is . . . Washington DC, the taxation without representation capital of the United States -- Sunny's Good Word - limpid •
\LIM-pid\ See ya next time,Sunny Comments[0] |
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The Sunny James Show
A Small Voice In the Nation's Capital! News and issues that you don't get delivered to your front door or tune into at 6 or 11
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