Here's the full story..I say we really don't need anyone trying to fabricate or create incidents of racism there are enough real cases still around! Ms Sherrod's comments were totally taken out of context! I think I'd take the job back if offered, but then I'd seek litigation against the U.S.D.A.! Yeah, that's right, I think I'd sue 'em!

*In a move that screams "we jumped the gun," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says he will reconsider his department's decision to fire a black employee over racially tinged remarks after learning more about what she said.

Vilsack issued a short statement early this morning regarding Shirley Sherrod, who until Tuesday was the Agriculture Department's director of rural development in Georgia. She said she was pressured to resign because of her comments that she didn't give a white farmer as much help as she could have 24 years ago.

Sherrod has maintained that her remarks, delivered in March at a local NAACP banquet in Georgia, were part of a larger story about learning from her mistakes and racial reconciliation, not racism, and they were taken out of context by a conservative blogger who posted only part of her speech.

Vilsack's statement this morning came after the NAACP posted the full video of Sherrod's comments last night.

"I am of course willing and will conduct a thorough review and consider additional facts to ensure to the American people we are providing services in a fair and equitable manner," Vilsack said.

The Obama administration's move this morning to reconsider her employment was a complete reversal from hours earlier, when a White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said President Barack Obama had been briefed on Sherrod's resignation after the fact and stood by the Agriculture Department's handling of it.

But as the story gained traction on Tuesday - reaching a peak when Sherrod's full, unedited statement was released - growing calls for the administration to reconsider the decision put pressure on Vilsack, who stressed that the decision to ask for her resignation was his alone.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack The NAACP, which initially condemned Sherrod's remarks and supported her ouster, later said she should keep her job. The civil rights group said it and millions of others were "snookered" by the conservative website that posted partial video of her speech on Monday.

The white farming family that was the subject of the story also stood by Sherrod and said she should stay.

"We probably wouldn't have (our farm) today if it hadn't been for her leading us in the right direction," said Eloise Spooner, the wife of farmer Roger Spooner of Iron City, Ga. "I wish she could get her job back because she was good to us, I tell you."

After the Spooners defended Sherrod on all three network newscasts Tuesday evening, and as Sherrod reached out to media to plead her own case, the administration faced criticism that officials nervous about racial perceptions overreacted to her comments and made her a political sacrifice amid dueling allegations of racism between the NAACP and the tea party movement.

Remember Whitney back in the day?

from EURweb

*The National Enquirer cites sources who say Whitney Houston spends over $300,000 a year on drugs - and friends believe she's back in a downward spiral that will soon take her life.

Her entourage recruited a drug dealer who sold her $6,000 worth of cocaine during a tour stop in Europe in June - this, according to "an eyewitness to the deal," the tabloid reports.

The same source adds that Whitney, 46, was high as a kite during her interview with Oprah Winfrey, despite telling the talk show host that she was drug-free.

The Enquirer says their own "in-depth investigation" has discovered that Whitney has spent an average of $6,300 a week on drugs - or a staggering $327,600 a year.

"Whitney is a dead woman walking! With the amount of drugs she's buying, she won't be able to live long. She'll be dead in months," her friend Marlon David, a party promoter, told The Enquirer.

"A friend of mine... is a drug dealer who deals in cocaine. One of Whitney's people called him and said, 'Whitney wants to party,'" David told The Enquirer exclusively.

The Grammy-winning singer's sobriety came into question almost as soon as she kicked off her "Nothing But Love" comeback tour in February in South Korea. Throughout the trek, Whitney was seen in multiple YouTube clips struggling hard to hit notes.

from EURweb

*Unfortunately for Wesley Snipes he's going to have to serve three years in federal prison because he lost his appeal on a conviction of tax evasion.

The action actor was first found guilty in 2008 of dodging more than $15 million in taxes on income earned during the peak of his career.

Snipes' lawyers tried to convince the court that his tax advisers, who also received jail terms, had convinced him there were no laws binding him to pay tax and that the sentence was "unreasonable."

Even a letter from Denzel Washington to the District Court judge who upheld it, could not be persuaded.

"Wesley is like a mighty oak tree," Washington wrote, "Many who know him have witnessed the fruit of his labours. I have sat in his shade and even been protected by his presence."

A number of other showbusiness friends, including actors, a costume designer and even a daytime TV judge, also provided glowing character references. But their appeal fell on deaf ears, reports The Daily Mail.

Snipes, 47, was convicted of three counts of failing to file tax returns from 1999 to 2001, but was acquitted of felony fraud and conspiracy charges.

After years of political wrangling over the issue, Orange County commissioners agreed Tuesday to install cameras at 10 dangerous intersections designed to catch red-light runners and send them a $158 fine in the mail.

By a 5-0 vote, commissioners approved the cameras, expected to be operational as early as fall.

Orlando, Apopka, Ocoee and other Florida cities already have the traffic-control devices to boost safety, and, some say, revenues.

But County Mayor Rich Crotty has tapped the brakes on the idea for the past few years. Crotty said he feared that ticketed drivers would sue Orange since the state had not given clear permission to cities and counties to use the cameras.

Florida lawmakers resolved that concern when they passed a law legalizing traffic cameras statewide that took effect this month.

"It's been awhile getting here," Crotty said right before the vote.

The 10 intersections approved, all in unincorporated areas of the county, are: Central Florida Parkway and John Young Parkway; Clarcona-Ocoee Road and Pine Hills Road; Chickasaw Trail and Lake Underhill Road; Lancaster Road and Winegard Road; Dean Road and University Boulevard; John Young Parkway and Oak Ridge Road; Old Winter Garden Road and Hiawassee Road; Lake Underhill Road and Dean Road; Americana Boulevard and Texas Avenue; and Texas Avenue and Oak Ridge Road.

The county plans to study the intersections to determine which direction to aim the cameras and also to let residents know about the cameras' impending installation.

I can only imagine what was said in this morning's one on one meeting in the Oval office with President Obama and Gen McChrystal! I wish I could've been a fly on the wall!

-- President Obama fired Gen. Stanley McChrystal as his top commander in Afghanistan and will replace him with Gen. David Petraeus,

McChrystal was pushed out over his disrespectful remarks about administration officials, including President Obama in a Rolling Stone magazine interview.

Last week, there was concern about Petraeus when he slumped at the witness table while testifying at a Senate hearing about the war in Afghanistan. He recovered quickly and a spokesman said the general likely was dehydrated and jet-lagged from his travels.

He HAD TO GO!

Leandria Johnson has "leaped into her destiny." Crowned the season three winner of BET's SUNDAY BEST, the 27-year-old Orlando native discovered literally what it means to gain from losing.

The praise and worship leader came to the New Orleans auditions with nothing but the clothes on her back, but left with the title "Sunday Best," keys to a 2010 Ford SHO and a future overflowing with professional possibilities.

Viewers voting online, by text, or phone sealed her fate as the third woman to win the title in the three year run of the show, while many followers commented online they wanted her opponent to break the all female winning streak. The man to beat was 79-year-old Elder Goldwire McClendon of Philadelphia, PA.

Christians have seen Leandria Johnson's type before in the pages of scripture. Her journey to Sunday Best unfolded like the familiar biblical account of the woman with the "issue" of blood who desperately pressed her way through a crowd just to touch the hem of Christ's garment. In an interview Johnson testified that her issue was losing her home to foreclosure a day before she auditioned.

Despite this unfortunate news, Johnson decided to pray and press her way to the New Orleans Convention Center to compete for a chance at having a better life. Wearing flip flops and gym socks and an outfit she'd pulled together from clothing she'd blindly tossed in a bag, Johnson was almost eliminated because she did not look the part according to show Judge Erica Campbell.

After putting her spin on a congregational hymn belting "This is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it," the judges lauded her with a standing ovation, unanimously convinced that she possessed vocal star power.

Show judge Yolanda Adams told Johnson about her powerful voice, "I feel the pain of you, but I feel the victory of you [sic]."

The emotional dichotomy Adams' words capture was clearly reflected in Johnson's song choices during the finale. She performed a trio of songs including "I Love the Lord," "He Was There," and "In the Midst of It All," which happens to be a Yolanda Adams classic and is the singer's personal banner.

There was a time when the vocalist didn't want to live she confessed in a one-on-one conversation with Burrell, but she believes God kept her "in the midst of it all."

Thankful she's still here, Johnson, also a mother of three, encouraged other struggling young women to never give up.

"It's never over and always remember you can do all things through Christ which strengthens you," she said. A living testament to those words Leandria Johnson has a new song, "I Shall Leap Into My Destiny" an inspirational single she performed after being newly branded "Sunday Best."

*As if a concert by funk bassist extraordinaire Larry Graham wasn't enough of an experience, music icon Prince surprised everyone at B.B. King's Blues Club in NYC Wednesday night by taking the stage out of nowhere and jamming with Graham (original bassist of Sly & the Family Stone) and Graham Central Station.

Bad news for Maxwell fans hoping to see him on the second part of his summer tour - you'll have to wait until next year.

The singer has announced he is pulling out of his U.S. tour with Jill Scott and Erykah Badu citing "scheduling conflicts."

According to his camp, Maxwell will play all of his dates up to and including sold out concerts at New York's Madison Square Garden on June 25 and 26, but he has postponed the entire second leg of the trek.

He was due to perform 11 shows between June 28 and July 15, in such cities as Nashville, Tennessee and Boston, but the gigs will now take place sometime in 2011.

Now for the drama: There are rumors that Maxwell's so-called "scheduling conflicts" is really a cover for a major disagreement he's supposedly having with Jill Scott and Erykah Badu over time slots in the lineup.

Scott's publicist has already slammed the reports, telling Billboard.com, "Jill has enjoyed every moment on stage with Maxwell, whom she calls a consummate gentleman and tour mate. She looks forward to sharing the rest of the tour with all of the supportive followers."

And Maxwell's reps at Shore Fire Media just continue to blame the cancellation on "scheduling difficulties" without going into further detail.

The publicity firm also stated: "Due to scheduling conflicts with the venues, Maxwell's additional tour dates with Melanie Fiona (scheduled to begin June 28 in Greensboro, N.C.) have been postponed to 2011. Refunds have been provided to ticket buyers. New dates will be announced later this year."

*The mother of "Precious" star Gabourey Sidibe has taken her singing from New York City subway platforms to the stage of NBC's "America's Got Talent."

Alice Tan Ridley, whose booming voice has entertained subway commuters for two decades, managed to impress all three judges on last night's broadcast with a rendition of Etta James' classic, "At Last."

"Millions of people must have gone back and forth on that subway over 20 years, how come nobody signed you?" judge Sharon Osbourne questioned.

Ridley, whose audition was actually taped in May, gave her "America's Got Talent" experience a thumbs up.

"I was pleased with my performance, and I think that I did well, actually," she explained.

Ridley's performance earned her a trip to the next round in Las Vegas.

*One of Tiger Woods' mistresses is now claiming that he fathered her secret love child.

Porn star and escort Devon James tells RadarOnline.com that the golfer is the father of her son, who was born in early 2001, before Woods and Elin Nordegren were married. A source said James told him he was the father in 2006, when she claims they reconnected.

"She says Tiger is the father of her child," one source told RadarOnline.com. "And she's insistent about it."

James claimed to have had a two-and-a-half year affair with Tiger after he paid her and another woman $2,000 each for a "two-girl party." Yet it wasn't until a chance encounter with Woods, six years later, that the Florida woman told Woods that she believed her son was his, according to the source.

Tiger has not taken or been asked to take a paternity test, the Web site reported.