Robert Harper Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 (edited) some background: Amiri Baraka(1934- 2014) was a poet, playwright, University teacher and cultural critic who burst onto the American scene with an off-Broadway play The Dutchman- a searing look at racial tensions in a NYC subway. He was writing at that time under the name LeRoi Jones. After the assassination of Malcolm X in 1965, Baraka changed his name from LeRoi Jones to Amiri Baraka. In subsequent years he headed a Harlem Renaissance movement bringing together scholars, artists, and students in his search for the expression of the American Black experience. In essays written in the 1960's he spoke of the effects the assassinations of JFK, RFK, MLK had on him and his change of view about what constitutes a classless society because of them. A native of Newark, New Jersey he was offered the first appointment as the State’s Poet Laureate in 2002, a term of two years with a stipend of $10,000 and, following the attacks of 9/11, he published his poem Somebody Blew up America. Some facts: George Bush said, mistakenly, that 130 Israeli nationals died on 9/11, in a speech following the attacks. In a listing of nationalities, official reports include 18 from Colombia, 13 from Ecuador, 24 from Canada, 11 from Germany, 47 from Dominican Republic, 41 from India, 24 from Japan, 28 South Korea, 67 United Kingdom. Possibly as a result of a text message from the Israeli messaging company Odigo, a statistically almost impossible 3 Israelis died in the Twin Towers, and two more on the planes. Israeli Haaretz reported (2004) that "Odigo, the instant messaging service, says that two of its workers received messages two hours before the Twin Towers attack on September 11 predicting the attack would happen..." Other coincidences are that Bush cousin Jim Pierce was supposed to be at a meeting on the 105th floor of WTC2, but the meeting is moved across the street at the last minute. Also not at work that day in the towers were owner Larry Silverstein, who usually had breakfast at the Windows on the World restaurant, nor his son or daughter, who had offices on the 88th floor of the North Tower. The New York Observer said that the Silverstein children were "running late." One Israeli company in the towers, the Zim-American Israeli Shipping Co., broke its lease and moved out of the WTC 2 weeks before the attacks. Zim is 49% owned by the Israeli government. (On a note of grace within this rubbish:One of the American Jews who died in the towers was Abe Zelmanowitz, an Orthodox Jew who worked as a computer programmer on the 27th floor. He refused to leave the side of his friend, Ed Beyea, a devout Catholic, who was a quadriplegic and confined to a wheelchair). Some responses: In poetry of such scope and density and allusion to real world figures, Baraka's work was reminiscent of the Cantos of Pound or Peter Dale Scott's Minding the Darkness, or Ginsberg's Howl. Such didn't stop the ADL for latching onto 12 words as "anti-semitic" and demanding Baraka's removel as Poet Laureate. The Governor James McGreevey (himself under investigation for campaign finance abuses involving the father of Ken of the Ken & Barbie MidEast Diplomatic Corps), lead the way. In the previous year, the father felon of Ken had brought an Israeli man Gordon Cipel and introduced him to McGreevey. McGreevey promptly hired him as his "Homeland Security" director and after an uproar ( zero experience, a foreign National) the Gov shifted him to another job. Within a year Cipel was preparing to file a sexual harassment lawsuit against McGreevey at the same time investigators were breathing down his neck. In a cringe worthy moment in the history of a State filled with them, McGreevey hauled his wife and his parents on stage for a TV press conference where he announced he wished to live as "a Gay man" and would resign a 60 days. Baraka (unlike the NY Times, say, which "disavowed" and "apologized for" a POLITICAL CARTOON - of a dog faced Netanyahu leading a blind Trump to enlightenment about Israel's violations of International Law. Matter of fact, they stopped ALL political cartoons - buying into the "anti-semitic trope" nonsense. Jonathan Swift wouldn't be able to find work today- with the self righteous Puritans telling everyone else what to do and who hates who. Baraka - to his everlasting credit- told them to go to Hades. The New Jersey legislature then voted to ABOLISH the honor of a Poet Laureate. Years later when asked if he regretted anything from this experience, he said : No — I have regrets that they didn't pay me my money — cheap criminals. I have regrets about that," Baraka said. "But I don't have regrets about writing the poem. Because the poem was true." the poem / the author recital 2009: They say its some terrorist, some barbaric A Rab, in Afghanistan It wasn't our American terrorists It wasn't the Klan or the Skin heads Or the them that blows up n Churches, or reincarnates us on Death Row It wasn't Trent Lott Or David Duke or Giuliani Or Schundler, Helms retiring It wasn't The gonorrhea in costume The white sheet diseases That have murdered black people Terrorized reason and sanity Most of humanity, as they pleases They say (who say?) Who do the saying Who is them paying Who tell the lies Who in disguise Who had the slaves Who got the bux out the Bucks Who got fat from plantations Who genocided Indians Tried to waste the Black nation Who live on Wall Street The first plantation Who cut your nuts off Who rape your ma Who lynched your pa Who got the tar, who got the feathers Who had the match, who set the fires Who killed and hired Who say they God & still be the Devil Who the biggest only Who the most goodest Who do Jesus resemble Who created everything Who the smartest Who the greatest Who the richest Who say you ugly and they the goodlookingest Who define art Who define science Who made the bombs Who made the guns Who bought the slaves, who sold them Who called you them names Who say Dahmer wasn't insane Who? Who? Who? Who stole Puerto Rico Who stole the Indies, the Philipines, Manhattan Australia & The Hebrides Who forced opium on the Chinese Who own them buildings Who got the money Who think you funny Who locked you up Who own the papers Who owned the slave ship Who run the army Who the fake president Who the ruler Who the banker Who? Who? Who? Who own the mine Who twist your mind Who got bread Who need peace Who you think need war Who own the oil Who do no toil Who own the soil Who is not a n Who is so great ain't nobody bigger Who own this city Who own the air Who own the water Who own your crib Who rob and steal and cheat and murder and make lies the truth Who call you uncouth Who live in the biggest house Who do the biggest crime Who go on vacation anytime Who killed the most niggers Who killed the most Jews Who killed the most Italians Who killed the most Irish Who killed the most Africans Who killed the most Japanese Who killed the most Latinos Who? Who? Who? Who own the ocean Who own the airplanes Who own the malls Who own television Who own radio Who own what ain't even known to be owned Who own the owners that ain't the real owners Who own the suburbs Who suck the cities Who make the laws Who made Bush president Who believe the confederate flag need to be flying Who talk about democracy and be lying Who the Beast in Revelations Who 666 Who know who decide Jesus get crucified Who the Devil on the real side Who got rich from Armenian genocide Who the biggest terrorist Who change the bible Who killed the most people Who do the most evil Who don't worry about survival Who have the colonies Who stole the most land Who rule the world Who say they good but only do evil Who the biggest executioner Who? Who? Who? Who own the oil Who want more oil Who told you what you think that later you find out a lie Who? Who? Who? Who found Bin Laden, maybe they Satan Who pay the CIA, Who knew the bomb was gonna blow Who know why the terrorists Learned to fly in Florida, San Diego Who know why Five Israelis was filming the explosion And cracking they sides at the notion Who need fossil fuel when the sun ain't goin' nowhere Who make the credit cards Who get the biggest tax cut Who walked out of the Conference Against Racism Who killed Malcolm, Kennedy & his Brother Who killed Dr King, Who would want such a thing? Are they linked to the murder of Lincoln? Who invaded Grenada Who made money from apartheid Who keep the Irish a colony Who overthrow Chile and Nicaragua later Who killed David Sibeko, Chris Hani, the same ones who killed Biko, Cabral, Neruda, Allende, Che Guevara, Sandino, Who killed Kabila, the ones who wasted Lumumba, Mondlane, Betty Shabazz, Die, Princess Di, Ralph Featherstone, Little Bobby Who locked up Mandela, Dhoruba, Geronimo, Assata, Mumia, Garvey, Dashiell Hammett, Alphaeus Hutton Who killed Huey Newton, Fred Hampton, Medgar Evers, Mikey Smith, Walter Rodney, Was it the ones who tried to poison Fidel Who tried to keep the Vietnamese Oppressed Who put a price on Lenin's head Who put the Jews in ovens, and who helped them do it Who said "America First" and ok'd the yellow stars Who killed Rosa Luxembourg, Liebneckt Who murdered the Rosenbergs And all the good people iced, tortured, assassinated, vanished Who got rich from Algeria, Libya, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Saudi, Kuwait, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Palestine, Who cut off peoples hands in the Congo Who invented Aids Who put the germs In the Indians' blankets Who thought up "The Trail of Tears" Who blew up the Maine & started the Spanish American War Who got Sharon back in Power Who backed Batista, Hitler, Bilbo, Chiang kai Chek Who decided Affirmative Action had to go Reconstruction, The New Deal, The New Frontier, The Great Society, Who do Tom Ass Clarence Work for Who doo doo come out the Colon's mouth Who know what kind of Skeeza is a Condoleeza Who pay Connelly to be a wooden negro Who give Genius Awards to Homo Locus Subsidere Who overthrew Nkrumah, Bishop, Who poison Robeson, who try to put DuBois in Jail Who frame Rap Jamil al Amin, Who frame the Rosenbergs, Garvey, The Scottsboro Boys, The Hollywood Ten Who set the Reichstag Fire Who knew the World Trade Center was gonna get bombed Who told 4000 Israeli workers at the Twin Towers To stay home that day Why did Sharon stay away? Who? Who? Who? Explosion of Owl the newspaper say The devil face cd be seen ho make money from war Who make dough from fear and lies Who want the world like it is Who want the world to be ruled by imperialism and national oppression and terror violence, and hunger and poverty. Who is the ruler of Hell? Who is the most powerful Who you know ever Seen God? But everybody seen The Devil Like an Owl exploding In your life in your brain in your self Like an Owl who know the devil All night, all day if you listen, Like an Owl Exploding in fire. We hear the questions rise In terrible flame like the whistle of a crazy dog Like the acid vomit of the fire of Hell Who and Who and WHO who who Whoooo and Whooooooooooooooooooooo! Amiri Baraka "Somebody Blew Up America" Edited August 9, 2019 by Robert Harper spelling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W. Niederhut Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 The Garden State should pay Baraka's family his $20,000 plus interest. Would they really prefer a Poet Laureate who doesn't tell it like it is, or was? (William Carlos Williams probably turned over in his grave when the New Jersey legislature voted to rescind Baraka's honorarium.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Brancato Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 Incredible poem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Andrews Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 Wait -- why hasn't anybody seen God? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 I am AGHAST that this sort of anti-Semitic claptrap would be tolerated by the Administrators of this forum and endorsed by any thinking person. The Poet Laureate of New Jersey (an oxymoron if there ever was one) was axed for his anti-Semitic diatribes, not for revealing any Dark Truths. At least a handful of literary reviewers had the courage to point out that his magnum opus is not only anti-Semitic, but (1) exceedingly bad poetry, if it qualifies as poetry at all; (2) largely unintelligible and incoherent; and (3) rife with falsehoods to the extent it is intelligible. If I were a practicing psychiatrist accountable to a state licensing board, I don't believe I would be endorsing views such as this on a public forum. No wonder this entire site seems to be fading into well-deserved oblivion. Whatever has happened over the past year, it isn't pretty. Whoooo and Whooooooooooooooooooooo, I wash my hands of you people. ADIOS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Andrews Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 (edited) The very concept of not seeing God, or only His hinder parts, is Old Testament in origin. Mustn't confuse distrust of Zionism with anti-Semitism. We see the Devil every day, but we must not see him in everyone. Then the Devil wins, and afterward throws away your soul among many others in some Native American casino in Hell. Edited August 8, 2019 by David Andrews Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Harper Posted August 8, 2019 Author Share Posted August 8, 2019 (edited) If the only result of sharing Mr. Baraka’s poem was the removal of Mr Payette’s aggressively juvenile comments on this Forum, it will have served a valuable purpose. ”Adios” was surely the most embraced word we heard from him. Recently, we had to confront his disputationem intermisit and his foot-stomping pronouncement of how “real conspiracies” work - along with his dismissal of the site and its contributors. In that hit and run post, he used the worn-out metaphor of a “soap opera” as his critical referent; this time, the overused - and misused smear - “anti-semitic” as his cri de coeur. I guess he missed Baraka's focus on the powerful, on the military-industrial complex, on colonialism and racism and the mendacity of government criminals and their accomplices. Finally, we see he subscribes to the Mike Pompeo/ADL version of Merriam's dictionary, that "anti Israel equals anti Jewish" which is as stupid and as vile as any smear in our culture.Maybe he should read some Norman Finklestein or Noam Chomsky before he pontificates on that topic again. Those who express thoughts not in sync with Mr Payette’s own ideology cause him to be appalled and shell shocked (AGHAST!); while his (vast?) literary knowledge gives him license to dismiss as “claptrap” the powerful combinations of words put together by Mr Baraka in his artful response to the horror of 9/11. Let's hope that Mr Payette isn't trying to teach literature to the young in his spare time. Senator Moynihan’s dictum that one is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts, applies to the use of history in art as well as in political dialogue. Mr Payette's diatribe does one thing useful I guess - he allows us a peek into the similar sensibilities of the NJ legislators who pay lip service to art and then smash it when they see it. Edited August 8, 2019 by Robert Harper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Brancato Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 Here here - I’m with you Robert. Question - how many Israelis worked in the twin towers but stayed home on 9/11? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W. Niederhut Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 Yes, in our "social construction of reality," as the late, great Peter Berger described it, poets are often the guys who annoyingly call attention to the construction defects. As for Lance Pay-out, I hope that his reports of the demise of this forum (yesterday) have been greatly exaggerated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Harper Posted August 8, 2019 Author Share Posted August 8, 2019 (edited) Somehow out of the estimated 4,000 Israeli nationals who were in harms way, according to the Israeli foreign ministry, almost all managed not to be in the towers or anywhere near the carnage. Given an over-representation of Israelis in the financial services companies which leased space on the Twin Towers (including Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, American Express, Kidder Peabody, Duetsche Bank, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Bank of New York, Wachovia, Morgan Stanley) officials expected the Israeli toll to be catastrophic, from 400 to 500 or more. Odigo also had an app that could forward messages to a particular ethnic group . Edited August 8, 2019 by Robert Harper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Harper Posted August 8, 2019 Author Share Posted August 8, 2019 4 minutes ago, Paul Brancato said: deleted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W. Niederhut Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 One of my favorite politicians in America claimed that he got, "the Jew call" on 9/11-- warning him to stay away from the World Trade Center. Lest I be accused by Lance Pay-out, again, of "Anti-Semitism," it was Al Franken. As an aside, I read an interview of Al Franken in the Harvard Alumni Magazine a few years ago in which Franken discussed the death of his friend, Senator Paul Wellstone. Franken said that Dick Cheney had directly threatened Wellstone about his opposition to the Iraq War shortly before Wellstone's plane mysteriously crashed in Minnesota. At the time, Wellstone was a shoe-in for re-election to the U.S. Senate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Brancato Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 Snopes isn’t buying the ‘4000 Jews didn’t show up for work’ theory. As for Al Franken, he wrote the line but never spoke it. Taken out of context from his 2003 book. I’m upset now. I’m no Israeli apologist, I just believe in fact checking. Honestly, those of you on this thread who are peddling these theories have been had, and need to realize that. What is super unfortunate about this is the possibility that members of this forum who are rightly concerned with what happened on 9/11 are now living proof of why these rumors circulate. Who is going to believe a conspiracy theorist when they espouse demonstrably false information? So the predictable result is that 9/11 conspiracy theorists will be dismissed and not taken seriously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cory Santos Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 I think the above comments are truly embarrassing to the community and anti-Semitic. This is a JFK research community, or so I thought although, lately, it is mostly bashing of President Trump for everything. Now it has really gone into the depths. I cannot believe I am agreeing with Lance, but, by transposing JFK research into now 911 and showing a willingness to believe anything that is repeated without any evidentiary basis is simply sad and Lance's umbrella discussion on psychology regarding some conspiracy mindsets is actually proven correct by the above. Perhaps we will soon see moon landing was faked, etc. comments going on in this forum by some. In other words, you have literally just proven Lance's analysis correct by the above comments. Congratulations. If you have real evidence, prove it. If not, quite repeating clear anti-Semitic comments that have been clearly proven false by multiple sources. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W. Tracy Parnell Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 8 minutes ago, Cory Santos said: I think the above comments are truly embarrassing to the community and anti-Semitic. This is a JFK research community, or so I thought although, lately, it is mostly bashing of President Trump for everything. Now it has really gone into the depths. I cannot believe I am agreeing with Lance, but, by transposing JFK research into now 911 and showing a willingness to believe anything that is repeated without any evidentiary basis is simply sad and Lance's umbrella discussion on psychology regarding some conspiracy mindsets is actually proven correct by the above. Perhaps we will soon see moon landing was faked, etc. comments going on in this forum by some. In other words, you have literally just proven Lance's analysis correct by the above comments. Congratulations. If you have real evidence, prove it. If not, quite repeating clear anti-Semitic comments that have been clearly proven false by multiple sources. Good for you Cory. Certainly very anti-Semitic and unneeded comments. Unfortunately, the JFK research community was infiltrated years ago by members of the extreme left-wing who tend to be anti-Semitic. Exceptions like yourself who are honestly investigating to learn the truth and who do not buy into other popular conspiracies like the ones you mention and may not want to hear politicians on the right blamed for all of the world's ills are increasingly becoming the minority. And to be clear, just about any conspiracy theory you can imagine has been promoted here or on other conspiracy forums. I'll use Jack White as an example since he is not longer with us. Jack thought that jet contrails were actually chemicals dumped on the American people by the government as a means to control the population. To be fair, I'm not sure Jack was necessarily on the left politically-he was all over the place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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