Page 5 - Florida Sentinel 3-29-19

Editorial/Column
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He Had Mirrors On The Ceiling
I was 17-years-old when I first set foot inside of the infamous Manilla nightclub. Nicknamed "The Thriller," and situated within a too small building located on the not-so- tourist-friendly stretch of 7th Avenue. It was a place where you were just as likely to leave in need of stitches to close a fresh razor wound as you would a breath of fresh air after escaping a packed, smoked-filled environment that allowed for standing
room only.
As rough as the Manilla's
reputation was, though, the one thing it had going for it, that made it the place to be every Friday night in spite of the conditions, was a jamming D.J. who had a knack for singing... His name was Floyd Joy Rivers.
When I think about it, re- ferring to him as a "DJ" really doesn't do his reputation jus- tice. Floyd was more like an entertainer who also hap- pened to be highly skilled at spinning records.
There was a reason why his name often appeared on ad- vertisements and on the mar- quees outside of the clubs he was scheduled to work. He wasasmuchofadrawasany performer a promoter could
pay to make an appearance. This is mainly due to the fact that everyone knew what they were going to get when Floyd Joy was behind the wheels of steel... a guaranteed
blast of epic proportions. What made Floyd so spe- cial was his gift of, somehow, being able to always play the perfect music for any occasion. Old school, new school, R&B, jazz, reggae, gospel --- it didn't matter the function or what people wanted to hear, Floyd seemed to know exactly what needed to come through the speakers to get people moving. And, once he got everyone on the dance floor, that's when Floyd took his show to the next level. You would hear his smooth baritone speak into the microphone and before you knew it, he would have the entire crowd singing along to his classic, expletive filled, an- them word-for-word; a ca- dence so wild and X-rated in scope that it would be impos- sible for me to print a single verse of it here without being
censored.
When news first reached
me that this man, correction, this legend had died, I was stunned. It was hard to fathom the idea that someone so iconic in the Bay Area was no
longer with us.
I mean, this was Floyd
Joy, a man whose name be- came synonymous with having a good time.
Just like the Bronx had Kool Herc and Houston had DJ Screw, Tampa had Floyd Joy, the life of the party, the king of the turntables, a true Master of Ceremonies.
Even though he's gone, I'm thankful that his spirit still lives on with all of the DJs he inspired over the years who each embody a little of his style, including Doc D., M$M, DJ REDD, Rated R., Tampa Tony and Rock-It- Rod. As long as men like these are around to turn up an event, the essence of Floyd's legacy will continue to exist.
While I'm sure many will attend his funeral Saturday to pay their respects, I don't think it should be a time for mourning. In life, Floyd made it his mission to make sure that the joy in his name was felt whenever he was present and you have to imagine that he wouldn't want that happi- ness to stop in his absence.
Instead of crying, let's cel- ebrate all of the great times he helped to create and take com- fort in the fact that he's prob- ably somewhere smiling.
R.I.P. Mr. Floyd Joy Rivers. You made this expe- rience on Earth worth living during some hard times and, for that alone, you will forever be missed.
Reality On Ice is © by the Florida Sentinel Bul- letin Publishing Com- pany. You can contact Mr. Barr at: cbar- ronice@gmail.com.
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Robbing Peter To Pay For A Wall
e don’t know about you, but we are deeply concerned
about the 2020 budget submitted by President Don- ald Trump, last week. Trump cut more than a trillion dollars from safety-net programs in order to budget $12 billion for building a wall along the United States and Mexican border.
These cuts are in addition to cuts made previously to pro- grams and departments such as the $8 billion quietly cut from the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Depart- ment in 2018.
Among the cuts were a $12.9 billion from the military, which included cuts to a pilot training module for MacDill Air Force Base; $100 million for much needed water treatment plant improvements at Camp Lejeune; an air traffic control tower at Fort Benning; a maintenance hangar at Travis Air Force Base; a drone hangar at Kunsan Air Force Base, in South Korea; and cuts that affect the Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station in North Carolina.
There are also $80 million in cuts to the Transportation Security Programs (TSA); the Environmental Protection Agency, (EPA); and cuts to the Homeland Security Agency (HSA) for disaster preparedness.
However, the most inhumane cuts were a $40 billion cut from Medicaid and an $845 billion cut to Medicare, both pro- grams that provide health care for the elderly, children, and parents in poverty with pre-existing conditions. The cuts will negatively impact the millions of Americans who are cur- rently battling cancer, mental health conditions and HIV.
Moreover, Medicare and Medicaid patients will not be able to be treated with the latest emerging and most effective therapies which insurance companies will not pay for.
Therefore, the reason you should be concerned about it is because the Government Accounting Office (GAO) issued a report that created doubt about the wall Trump is willing to build at the expense of America’s most vulnerable citizens.
GAO concerns are: the Department of Homeland Security will be spending money so quickly that they risk not having enough money to finish the wall; they won’t be able to meet key deadlines; the wall might not work as well as projected; the government has not prepared the required complete analysis to verify the wall can be built efficiently; the cost is under estimated at $12.9 billion and could cost more than $21.6 billion, nearly twice what Trump asked for; and the issue of acquiring privately owned land along the border could create a deficit because of legal fees and payments to land owners.
Finally, the annual budget deficit will be $1.1 trillion per year through the year 2022. How will we pay for it instead of Mexico? Right now we know we will pay for it with higher travel air fares, by jeopardizing our children’s education, an inadequately funded military and Homeland Security Agency and sicker Americans. By the time they start the wall, the cost could rise even higher.
Now you know the truth.
The Super Successful You
“An important brick to building a successful you is believing in yourself.”
Empowered Greetings. This year is your year to be super successful in business and in life, beyond what you can imagine or see with your natural eyes. It’s true, if you believe it. Whatever you have accomplished in your life up to now, was only the beginning.
Ears have not heard and eyes have not seen the power of success that is harnessed on the inside of you. You have to believe that you are a success- ful individual, with successful relationships and that you en- gage in successful business en- deavors that will soar to super
successful heights. Do you be- lieve?
If you believe in your suc- cess, then strive to maintain an unquenchable thirst to be suc- cessful when naysayers, haters and life situations try to stop the successful you from rising to the top.
Super successful people are like eagles, they soar above the storms. No matter what you face this week, this month or this year, believe that the super successful you will be unleashed to receive super successful results in 2019. My life and business theme for this year is “Making Money Moves.”
Well in order to make money move, you must main-
tain successful thoughts about money and its ability to move toward you. What you believe will ultimately determine what you will achieve. So again, I ask do you believe in you? Do you believe in your success? If so, act like and walk in your place of endless success.
If you want to achieve super success and don’t know where to start, call me now. As a Life and Business Success Coach, I can help.
About Selphenia Selphenia is a Life and Business Success Coach to Christian Women Entrepre- neurs. She enjoys empower- ing, educating and elevating others with success strategies to win in life, business and ministry, through motiva- tional keynote speeches, semi-
nars and trainings.
Get connected. Join
Selphenia on Social Media for some daily motivation.
Facebook: Selphenia Nichols Success Coach To Women; Instagram: Selphenia; and Twitter: queenodsuccess1.
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FRIDAY, MARCH 29, 2019 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 5-A