Soul Singer Teddy Pendergrass Dies in Pa. at 59

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ABC.com

Soul Singer Teddy Pendergrass Dies in Pa. at 59
By PATRICK WALTERS Associated Press Writer
PHILADELPHIA January 14, 2010 (AP)
The Associated Press

Teddy Pendergrass, who became R&B's reigning sex symbol in the 1970s and '80s with his forceful, masculine voice and passionate love ballads and later became an inspirational figure after suffering a devastating car accident that left him paralyzed, died Wednesday at age 59.

The singer's son, Teddy Pendergrass II, said his father died at a hospital in suburban Philadelphia. The singer underwent colon cancer surgery eight months ago and had "a difficult recovery," his son said.

"To all his fans who loved his music, thank you," his son said. "He will live on through his music."

Pendergrass suffered a spinal cord injury and was paralyzed from the waist down in the 1982 car accident. He spent six months in a hospital but returned to recording the next year with the album "Love Language."

He returned to the stage at the Live Aid concert in 1985, performing from his wheelchair.

Pendergrass later founded the Teddy Pendergrass Alliance, an organization whose mission is to encourage and help people with spinal cord injuries achieve their maximum potential in education, employment, housing, productivity and independence, according to its Web site.

Pendergrass, who was born in Philadelphia on March 26, 1950, gained popularity first as a member of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes.

In 1971, the group signed a record deal with the legendary writer/producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. The group released it first single, "I Miss You," in 1972 and then released "If You Don't Know Me by Now," which was nominated for a Grammy Award.

Pendergrass quit the group in 1975 and embarked on a solo career in 1976. It was his solo hits that brought him his greatest fame. With songs such as "Love T.K.O.," "Close the Door" and "I Don't Love You Anymore," he came to define a new era of black male singers with his powerful, aggressive vocals that spoke to virility, not vulnerability.

His lyrics were never coarse, as those of later male R&B stars would be, but they had a sensual nature that bordered on erotic without being explicit.

Rest of obituary at link above.

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Republican Spokesman Pat Robertson Blames Haiti's Fight Against Slavery for Earthquake

Pat Robertson essentially stated that the Earthquake is just punishment for Haitians for their desire for Freedom. They basically deserved it, according to Robertson.

from Ta-Nehisi Coates:

Here's Pat Robertson equating an attempt by slaves to claim their freedom with "a pact with the devil:"

"Something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it," he said on Christian Broadcasting Network's "The 700 Club." "They were under the heal [heel] of the French. You know, Napoleon the third, or whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, we will serve you if you will get us free from the French. True story. And so, the devil said, okay it's a deal."

The Haitian Ambassador to the United States responds to the racist and ridiculous remarks of Pat Robertson.

The President of Haiti thanks America.

Rachel Maddow discusses the shared history of the United States and Haiti.

Sarah Palin Hired As Fox Analyst - More Proof That Ignorance is Rewarded In America

So if I want to be a political analyst on a major cable outlet, I simply have to show how uninformed I am about the World? That seems to be the standard in this Country. The dumber you are, the more you are rewarded. In most other parts of the World, it is cream that is supposed to rise to the top. But in the USA, Bullshit is often what gets pushed up. Amazing! And people wonder why the U.S. is in the political and social malaise that it's currently in today, unable to function effectively to deal with the problems it faces?

______________

See related commentary by Dr. Marvin King

Donate to Haiti Earthquake Relief Efforts

See the latest on the Haiti Disaster.

Comments from Pres. Obama

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Brokaw's Trip Across America

Former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw discusses his recent coast to coast trip across America on NPR. He talks about the economy and how the Country has changed over the last half century. Listen here.

Why Sarah Palin At Fox News Is Bad News

News that Sarah Palin will become a contributor and part-time columnist at Fox News did not surprise me. Mainly, it represents the further deterioration of two important institutions, the GOP and the American media.

For the GOP, it illustrates how bereft that party is of good ideas that its lodestar is an ideological weakling. And this is the view of Steve Schmidt. The McCain campaign strategist said as much in his 60 Minutes interview where he acknowledged that Palin didn’t even understand who her son would be fighting in Iraq.

Read the rest at The Loop.

McCain Says He "Wouldn’t Know" About The Vetting of Sarah Palin

He Wouldn't Know?

In an interview on the Today Show this week, Senator John McCain emphatically stated that he wouldn’t know whether Palin was checked out or not before he selected her. His comments were in response to pressing questions from Matt Lauer about the new book “Game Change” by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin, in which the true level of Palin’s incompetence is revealed…or I should say… confirmed. As many bloggers suspected, McCain knew little about Palin before selecting her as his VP and according to his advisers (who are now talking more freely)….she was chosen before being vetted.



Worse still…. Palin apparently knew little about basic history, or international affairs. We heard bits and pieces about her level of cluelessness during the 2008 General Election campaign, but those stories are finally being told officially by those who were in the McCain/Palin camp.

Palin apparently didn’t understand the Cold War, didn’t know that there were two Koreas or why they were split (What The ....?), didn’t know what the Federal Reserve was, and generally lacked basic knowledge about the World. This is in addition to the fact that she didn't know what the "Bush doctrine" was. The McCain camp had to constantly prepare Palin on general knowledge issues….(foreign policy, general history, etc) before public appearances. And according to Senior McCain advisor Steve Schmidt and others in the McCain camp, there was a belief that Palin was not qualified (ya think?). Some in the McCain camp even believed that she may have been mentally unstable. Wow!

How in the World is She Going to Be a Pundit/Analyst on Fox?

This should never be allowed to happen. Yes, McCain put the Country in peril…. We dodged a bullet for sure. But there should be a structure in place for this very scenario… where a Presidential candidate makes a ridiculous VP choice or where the number one person on the ticket is himself/herself incompetent. When Federal judges and Attorney Generals are nominated… they are rated by the American Bar Association as qualified, well qualified, etc. When top medical professionals are nominated for key positions, they are rated. Why is there no rating system for the most important position in the World? I mean, for any BS job that I apply for, there are several hurdles that I have to leap - interviews, tests, follow-up interviews, more tests…and that’s before I get anywhere close to getting a foot in the door. But a grossly unqualified person can get the most important job on the planet, with access to nukes, national secrets, and all sorts of other levers or power? That’s insane. Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates should be tested when they declare their intent to run. They should get a test with 100 questions…of mostly general knowledge material… (multiple choice, True/False, fill in the blank, and 1 essay) that would measure their basic aptitude in current events, civics & government, history, geography, and foreign affairs. Completed exams should be graded by an impartial panel of political scholars or by an international affairs organization or magazine…and the candidate should be given a grade (A- well qualified, B - qualified, C - qualified but questionable, etc). If such a system were in place, we would not have to worry about candidates like Sarah Palin or George W. Bush…. They would never be accepted as legitimate candidates. Neither would have done well on such a test…. Even a basic test with information that a Middle School or High School student should know, or information that might be found on a citizenship exam.

What is scarier still…. Is the fact that most Americans don’t care about this stuff. Most voters are just as uninformed about the World and the issues as someone like Palin…and would therefore have no problem voting for such a candidate. This is what bothers me the most. When you have a citizenry that is largely clueless, how will they be able to tell the difference between a Sarah Palin and an Olympia Snowe? They can’t. Many won’t know when she is saying something completely idiotic. I’m afraid this is only a big deal to political junkies who have a clue about what is going on…. The general public doesn’t care…they are much more concerned with what is happening on American Idol, or with the hot celebrity couple. That’s one of the reasons why the U.S. is screwed.

"A few years ago this guy would have been getting us coffee."

So says Bill Clinton to Ted Kennedy about then United States Senator and Presidential Candidate Barack Obama.

EDITED TO ADD THIS:

From yesterday's HARDBALL;

In an attempt to persuade Ted Kennedy not to support Obama, Clinton is supposed to have said that :

" A few years ago, this guy would have been getting us coffee. I guess the ONE-DROP RULE can still trump Harvard Law."

how come they left off the ONE-DROP RULE as part of the quote?


I wrote elsewhere that I wasn't surprised by this. How was I supposed to be surprised by this. Hell, I was one of the founders of the ClintonAttacksObama WIKI. I spent hours upon hours documenting the dog whistles and race-based rhetoric coming towards Barack Obama from the Clinton camp and their allies.

But, I believe this explains the endorsement.

Go back and playback the Kennedy endorsement video:

Teddy was ALL IN.

there was no hesitation; no doubt for him. every fiber of his being thought backing Obama was the right thing to do, and you could SEE it with Ted Kennedy.


We wrote extensively about the dogwhistles coming from Camp Clinton.

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