Raymond Writes

VOTING POWER By Raymond L. Carr Jr. Knowing our voting rights is important, especially when Black people fought and died for our right to vote. I remember when I became eligible to vote, my grandmother was so happy that I would be voting for the first time. All I knew about voting was, people before me marched and protested to vote. But, I didn't really understand the power of voting or how my vote counted. The first time I actually voted, I didn't know who to vote for, so if the name sounded familiar I voted for them. I knew nothing about the candidates, I knew nothing about the issues and to say I was uneducated to the voting process was an understatement. Unfortunately, too many people of color feel disenfranchised from the voting process. One reason people feel their vote doesn't count is because, some candidates turn into celebrities after they are elected, they stop taking phone calls and disappear until its time for reelection. This is the reason we have to keep our

SECOND CHANCE TOO By Raymond L. Carr Jr., Author and Blogger Lately, in the news it has been discussed that 17 year olds should not be treated as adults and the age for criminal responsibility should be raised to 18 years old (Raise the age Bill). However, Dr. Laurence Steinberg's scientific evidence and research on the 'Brain Science' has become the recognized expert for Juvenile/Youthful Offenders brain development, which the United States Supreme Court relied on in their ruling, that it was "Cruel and Unusual Punishment to sentence an youthful offender whose brain has not fully developed to 'Life Without the Possibility of Parole'. According to the Brain Science, research shows that a brain continues to mature even into his or her mid-twenties. Some believe the brain and the ability to make good decisions and judgments reached closer to 25 or 26 years of age. In California, legislatively raised their 'Juvenile/Youthful Offender' age to 25 years old,

Lately, in the news it has been discussed that 17 year olds should not be treated as adults and the age for criminal responsibility should be raised to 18 years old (Raise the age Bill). However, Dr. Laurence Steinberg's scientific evidence and research on the 'Brain Science' has become the recognized expert for Juvenile/Youthful Offenders brain development, which the United States Supreme Court relied on in their ruling, that it was "Cruel and Unusual Punishment to sentence an youthful offender whose brain has not fully developed to 'Life Without the Possibility of Parole'.  According to the Brain Science, research shows that a brain continues to mature even into his or her mid-twenties. Some believe the brain and the ability to make good decisions and judgments reached closer to 25 or 26 years of age. In California, legislatively raised their 'Juvenile/Youthful Offender' age to 25 years old, inline with the Brain Science and resentenced those 25 years

WHY SOME WOMEN CHOOSE MR. WRONG, WHEN LOOKING FOR MR. RIGHT? By: Raymond L. Carr Jr. >Why some women choose Mr. Wrong, when they are looking for Mr. Right? Women say they cannot find a good man, but when a man who has a stable job and willing to love them just as they are (which is not always easy) they find something to complain about him. These women's thoughts are, who he is not and what he does not have, instead of who he is and what he does have. >Women keep allowing men into their lives who are wrong for them because they are seeking the wrong qualities in a man, such as good looks, money and material things. Instead, of seeking what drives the man, they want to see what the man is driving. >Women do not seem to notice that they always choose the same type, over and over again - the wrong man, and it never works out. Women think they have found Mr. Right only to find out they were wrong again and Mr. Right was not so right after all. >They say, opposites attract,

# Why Do Sisters With An Education Intimidate Some Brothers? By: Raymond L. Carr Jr. >In a general conversation a sister asked me, "What is up with brothers being intimidated by sisters with education?" My mind began to race as to the many reasons, why sisters who have an education would intimidate some brothers. I could not help but to think how some brothers sometimes do not measure up and how brutal sisters can be when telling them the truth when they do not. >Brothers, who are intimidated by sisters who have an education, it can and will posses a problem in a relationship. Some brothers, can become resentful of sisters ability to pay bills and mange the household. In this macho attitude, feelings that he has lost control as the leader and breadwinner, which cause some to penalize their wife/girlfriend for her success. >Socially and Culturally, some brothers have been told that they are less than a man, if they do not make or have more than their wife/girlfriend.

#PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT For boys who play little league sports, they practice several times a week to get it right on game-day. However, when it comes to real life issues, boys are told to just do it like Nike and get it done without any practice or experience. If we were a fly on the wall, we would hear boys brag about their fathers saying, "My father is stronger, bigger, smarter than your father!" or "My father can beat your father up." And there is nothing more powerful for a boy to say to someone to win an argument by saying, "My father told me..." What a father tells his son is law, even if no one else think so. But what happens when there is no father to brag on or to inspire confidence and strength when faced with a threat? When there is no father operating in a boys life, they sometimes believe the stereotypical images that defines them as uneducated and criminals. Without a father to let a boy know, that being smart is a good thing, they sometimes