To Whom It May Concern: My name is Carnell Lamont Oliver. I write to initiate a national conversation on reparations for Black Americans, framed around the upcoming 14th Amendment case, expected in February or April 2026. The question before us is clear: what does justice and equity look like for descendants of enslaved Africans in the United States, and how […]
Manifesto for the Establishment of a Department of American Freedmen Affairs
A Strategy for Fiscal Discipline: PBBA and Procedural Reform
To Whom It May Concern, My name is Carnell Lamont Oliver, a resident of Jacksonville, Florida, writing to urge serious consideration of a coordinated strategy to restore fiscal responsibility and functional governance at the federal level and to consider the Principles-Based Balanced Budget Amendment (PBBA). The Principles-Based Balanced Budget Amendment (PBBA) offers a constitutionally sound framework to address chronic deficits. Sponsored in the […]
Restoring Fair Representation in the U.S. House of Representatives
The U.S. House of Representatives has been capped at 435 members since 1929. This permanent limit is not just outdated—it is likely unconstitutional. Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution requires that representatives be apportioned “according to their respective Numbers” based on the decennial census. Historically, Congress expanded the House after each census to maintain proportional representation. Freezing membership at […]
Fear Not 2.0 — The Stoics’ Advice
My first son surprised himself… how impressed he was with his father (me), when he noticed I had a Critical Theory reading list on my bookshelf (back when I lived at the church): Horkheimer, Marcuse, Habermas. It was one of those, “Wait, my parent actually knows about something I think is important “ epiphanies. Ben was leading a Marxist […]
Fear Not 2.0 — Courage of the Creche, Installment 1
It sounds sort of Catholic, but maybe Mary is their guardian angel? Or that could be Gabriel? …And she’s just a companion on the same, desperate road…
Allegations of Racial Disparities and Neglect at Riverview Medical Center
A Black patient is raising serious concerns about his recent hospitalization at Hackensack Meridian Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, New Jersey, alleging that he experienced inadequate care, premature discharge, poor communication, and treatment that left him feeling marginalized and medically unsafe. The patient, admitted after collapsing on a tennis court, reports that in six days of hospitalization, he was […]
Fear Not 2.O — The Church When the Nation Become Idolatrous (part 2)
When someone talks about moving abroad to get away from Trump’s America, I think of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was studying at Union Seminary in New York City in 1930-31, and could have remained in the U.S. In fact, Union professors and other church leaders implored him to stay. But he knew he needed to return because of the gathering storm […]
Fear Not 2.0 — The Uplift of Fellow Travelers
Last Tuesday was a good day for those opposing this Administration – people who cannot stomach MAGA policies, actions and goals… neighbors who reject President Trump’s leadership team and methods. The election made something important visible: it turns out we are not alone (even though this stretch of political history often leave us feeling we are). In the face of […]
Fear Not 2.0—March With The Church!
Desperation sets in when we are hoping for, but not seeing ANYONE or ANYTHING that can prevent the President from grabbing power that isn’t his. No one can convince Trump not to break the norms or the laws that get in his way. And the most obvious centers of power to hold Trump in check – Congress and the Supreme […]
A Great America is Destroyed from Within Not Without
Dear Mr. President, Five years ago I blogged: A Great Civilization Is Not Conquered From Without Until It Has Destroyed Itself From Within (W. Durant). This was while watching Apocalypto. If Trump the GOP, and MAGA want “America to be Great Again”, 1st stop the bleeding within… https://renaldocmckenzie.blogspot.com/2020/09/a-great-civilization-is-not-conquered.html “A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has destroyed […]