Jesse Watch

I am fascinated by the antics of Jesse Jackson. He appears in public to be some sort of moral pillar, a crusading everyman, yet, he seems to pick his causes when the time and media suit him.

Just a month or so ago, he was protesting the violence in the black neighborhoods of Chicago - the guns, the gangs, the shootings, etc. He staged a press conference to decry the horrors of that area, saying he wanted it stopped.

Then he disappeared...

Now, as of last night, his new cause is the shitty way Wall Street is treating homeowners. WHAT? Yes, Jesse says that since Wall Street sets "the sub-prime and sub-prime lending fees" that many indigent homeowners are being forced out of their homes and into the streets while the fat cats on Wall Street are taking these properties. Ironically, the gentleman reporting the story last night on Fox News Chicago was African-American and he stated that Jackson doesn't know what he's talking about. Wall Street doesn't set the interest rates or sell loans for homes. That's banks and financial institutions. When he brought this up, Jackson simply iterated his decision to march on Wall Street in the coming days and also to march on La Salle Street in Chicago where the Board of Trade is located.

Seems to me Jesse needs a new cause to keep his ugly mug in front of a camera, to make it look to the black public that he is doing something for them. Nothing could be further from the truth. Jesse Jackson never met a camera or media outlet that he didn't like.

I would like to know how much money he makes in a year, and how much he donates to these causes he champions every third week. Does he donate money to the homeless? Does he give to these neighborhoods that he supposedly wants to protect? Does he help build shelter for the needy? Does he give food to the hungry? Does he give a single penny to any cause at all? I'm sure he funnels money back into his Rainbow/Push foundation, but I think that's called money laundering, isn't it?

I sincerely doubt Jesse gives two shits about anyone in a poor neighborhood while he lives in his McMansion, but when a news camera is in the immediate vicinity, you can rest assured that Mighty Jesse will have some reason to be filmed for television.

If you truly want to help these people, Jesse, roll up your sleeves and get in the dirt with them. Bankroll something instead of showing up for a self-serving press conference and then disappearing when the on-air light goes dim. Stop marching and going home when the march is over, or moving on to the next news outlet. Give some of your "hard earned" money. Open your church to these victims. It makes me sick that you get everyone in a lather, then, when the camera stops rolling, you pack up and vanish into the night. You really accomplish nothing with your blowhard tactics and non-adherence to your own words.

My father said once that if Jesse Jackson were to be assassinated, he would instantly be come a martyr in the black community. I believe that there are many African-Americans with at least a shred of dignity that would not feel this way. They see Jackson for what he is: a self-serving, self-aggrandizing, do-nothing, straw man.

I eagerly await Jesse's next cause...