The Black Panthers V2
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Cue up Aretha Franklin Respect video Cold Open: Talking about the Black Panthers today. Not the movie that is STILL in theaters that has already made roughly 1.5 BILLION dollars. Seriously. Against a 210 million dollar budget. As if Disney needed even MORE money. Good God. Pretty soon we Americans will be living in the United States of Disney. Or perhaps the United States of Amazon. Not talking about the large cats that look so cuddly but could easily claw your face off of your skull and then pop what’s left of your skull like a grape in its powerful bad kitty jaws. Talking about the black nationalist, African American revolutionary group that kicked off in 1966 - the Black Panther Political Party that rose from the ashes of Malcom X and stood as a fierce, fighting example of Black Power during the Civil Rights turmoil of the 1960s. Talking about a very complicated, very polarizing group of freedom fighters and neighborhood protectors. Not an easy topic for a white dude to cover but I’m just dumb enough to give it a go! May Nimrod have mercy on my soul. The Black Panthers have a complex history. They fought for racial equality. They fought for a better future for black children. They fought the police. They fought the FBI. They fought other revolutionary groups. They fought each other. They did a LOT of fighting!!! And we’re gonna thoroughly suck their fight that was at times incredibly inspirational, at other times - at best - morally questionable, and almost always, controversial, today on Timesuck. PAUSE TIMESUCK INTRO I. Welcome! A. Happy Monday: Happy Monday Timesuckers! Work can FUCKING WAIT! Happy Black History Month my Melatonin-enhanced Meatsacks. Hail Nimrod and Lucifina. Praise Bojangles and Triple M! Thoughts go out to our Australia Suckers devastated by recent terrible flooding. Read that over 20,000 homes have been lost. Just devastating. Hope all you listeners over there are ok. B. Joe Dimeo Pre-Roll: Timesuck is brought to you again today by the Broaum (Bro-um (one syllable word!) podcast. Broaum is show about how it’s ok to be a dude but all dudes should be better dudes . Each week on Broaum, Joe and Ben pick a topic that they think dudes could use a little help with. And, based on what I’ve heard so far, this info is fantastic not just for dudes, but for all Meat Sacks. How to enjoy art. How to talk to women. How to build wealth. How to navigate discussions of different types of relationships. The guys are gonna be talking about how "your place is gross, how to fix it" this week. Joe and Ben will share ideas on how to make your place less disgusting. Practical tips like get white towels so you can bleach them when you forget them in the washer for two days and you dont have to spend your life smelling like a moldy towel. Joe asked me to share any cleaning tips I have and I don’t know that I have any. I’m a dirtbag. I need to listen to the next episode of Broaum! Lot of great topics honestly discussed. So give it a shot! Tune in each week for new topics, new discussions and new ways to continue seeking enlightenment through deadlifts. Broaum (Bro-um) it up! https://www.broaum.com/ for more info. Link in the episode description. Or push the button on the Timesuck web or app. C. Monthly Charity: Thanks to the Space Lizards monthly Patreon contributions that now allow us to give $1600 this month to the Cancer Research Institute! Hail Nimrod! The Cancer Research Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to harnessing the human body’s immune system's power to control and potentially cure all types of cancer. They fund the most innovative clinical and laboratory research around the world, support the next generation of the field's leaders, and serve as a trusted source of information on immunotherapy for cancer patients and their caregivers. Thanks to anyone who has recently purchased our Valentine’s Day themed Timesuck pins. Check them out in the Timesuck Shopify store along with the recent Meatsack sweatshirts and so many other fun, fun goodies. D. Tour Dates: Recording this in advance of Madison shows. Hoping they were amazing. Bringing the Happy Murder tour to Philly this week - get the Punchline! Shows in Salt Lake City next week. Some shows already sold out - hail Nimrod! And then the Stardome in Birmingham, the Punchline in Atlanta - that show is now sold out. Zanies in Nashville. Standup Live in Huntsville. Check out dancummins.tv for a full year of fun shows. More live Time Sucks coming up in Cleveland, Nashville, Spokane, San Francisco, Orlando, Phoenix, Denver, Grand Rapids, and Tacoma. E. Segue to Topic: Time now for the Black Panthers. PAUSE TIMESUCK INTERLUDE II. Intro/Establish Premiss: A. African American Life in 1960s America: To Understand the Black Panthers of the 1960s - to understand why this organization was ever thought up or formed in the first place - you have to understand what life was like for many black Americans in America in the1960s, particularly those living in urban areas. This is one of those Sucks where context is REAL important. Super, duper important. And before I head down the road of today’s Suck, know that I love your black meat sacks, our white meat sacks, and our law enforcement meat sacks. Probably gonna hit those notes several times today. Obviously, as a white man, I can’t personally speak to what it is like to live as a black American in this or any other era. ALTHOUGH - according to my 23 and Me results, I am in fact 0.3% Sudanese AND ALSO 0.1% percent Sub-Saharan African. So… Kidding not kidding! Not kidding about my genetic test results, kidding about how those results would enlighten me in any way whatsoever to the historical struggle of many black Americans. Before I dive into the meat of this episode, just know that I know that I’m white as fuck. I know I can’t personally relate to widespread racial discrimination on any level. Just found this story fascinating and wanted to Suck it and followed it where truth and logic took me. Hail Nimrod! Meat sacks of all color - including myself - all rationally, critically thinking empathetic meat sacks, can, I hope, at least understand what it’s like to struggle. I hope we all, AT LEAST, recognize that others are struggling and know how to empathize with them. We are all part of the human experience. Another important disclaimer before I go further! I’m VERY racist. I just want you to keep that in mind. When it comes to Polish people, many of you know that I have some pretty extreme prejudices. And they’re not widely accepted. But I’m not ready to accept them as humans yet. And that’s my right. And I’m done with this tired joke that I can’t seem to stay away from. No - real disclaimer now… - When it comes to issues that involve race, just like politics, religion, gender issues, etc - things have a tendency to leave the arena of logic and enter the realm of emotion real quick. It’s sensitive shit. And that is why I’m gonna throw out some numbers - little bit of math - to kick this Suck off. Numbers that make the case that life on average was unquestionably way fucking harder for black Americans than white Americans in the 1960s, as it still is overall today. That’s not opinion. That’s statistical fact that has been documented by numerous comprehensive, non partisan studies time and time again. And if you’re thinking, “Well I’m not black and life isn’t easy for me. I’m struggling! I worry about rent every month! And I know plenty of black people way better off than my poor ass, making way more money that me and my family ever have! I struggle far more in every meaningful way that they’re struggling! What the fuck, dude!?!” I get it! Your feelings are valid! Your struggle is real! Your hardships are very real! Hell yes they are. Not denying that ONE DAMN BIT. But this Suck isn’t about comparing one INDIVIDUAL life to another ISOLATED life. It’s about cultural trends. It’s about overall tendencies. On AVERAGE, members of every race but black are doing better than members of African descent in the United States because statistically, when it comes to average education level, average income, and average incarceration rate - no one has had a rougher go of it than black Americans. There are roughly a metric shit ton of stats that back this claim up. And these aren’t “liberal agenda” numbers taken from the “liberal media” for my more socially conservative listeners. Take a deep breath. Grab a stress ball and give it a squeeze. Yip, Yip, Yaw!!! The numbers I’ll be relaying to you today aren’t taken from White Guilt Dot Snowflake. They’re not taken from Social Justice Warrior Dot Cry Me A Fucking River. They’re taken from either the US Bureau of Labor, or the US Census Bureau, or the US Bureau of Justice. And if you think THOSE organizations were conspiratorially motivated in favor of the plight of black Americans back in the 60s? Or that they are today? Well then you’re just not a logical person! You might as well turn this off now because quite literally nothing I can say can make today’s tale appealing to you.