Cobb: The Press Kit

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August 07, 2005

The Press Kit

Michael David Cobb Bowen is the blogger and political cartoonist 'Cobb'. He writes from the perspective of a moderate conservative Republican representing the 'Old School' of African American culture and values. In his 15 year career of writing as a poet and essayist he has been called the Ralph Ellison of his generation.

Bowen was raised in middle-class black Los Angeles the oldest of five children by Catholic and Episcopalian parents who worked civil service jobs and engaged in grass roots political activism. He attented Catholic schools and went on to pursue his degree in Computer Science after a distinguished highschool career and a series of odd- including union jobs.

In college he was twice elected National Finance Officer of the National Society of Black Engineers. He went on to work for the Xerox Systems Group, Pilot Executive Software, Arbor Software and his own consultancies. He is currently a Data Architect for a major US consultancy specializing in Business Intelligence and Sarb-Ox compliant systems.

He is a free-lance writer of note in internet circles. Never far from issues of race, politics and culture he has written extensively in public online spaces since 1993 from The Well to Cafe Utne where he was host of the Society Conference. He is the author of many controversial websites including Boohab's Factotum and the Race Man's Home Companion.

Today, he is a Large Mammal and member of the Bear Flag League of conservative California bloggers. His current projects include Vision Circle, a black progressive group blog and XRepublic, a model for a virtual parliament. Most notably, he is the founder of The Conservative Brotherhood whose 15 blogging authors have become the defacto voice of the Black Conservatism online.

(and then Charlie Rose says: Welcome!)

Other interesting facts:

Bowen was an original member of the Young Simbas and still celebrates Kwanzaa.

Bowen is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, the frat of Thurgood Marshall, MLK and others of great distinction.

Bowen has an insider's acquaintance with the black upper-middle and upper class and their organizations such as the Links and the Boule, as well as the black private school cliques of late 70s Los Angeles.

Bowen considers himself a Hayekian, a pragmatist, an economic Chicagoan, and a solid geopolitical neoconservative. He is a civil libertarian that supports civil unions for gays but not 'gay marriage'.

Bowen maintains strong ties to the black progressive political tradition and is trying to influence it and reconcile the strengths of black nationalism and black consciousness with what he calls the "politics of social power". He is a strong integrationist and remains weakly positive on Affirmative Action.

Posted by mbowen at August 7, 2005 12:28 PM

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Comments

Mike, I have to tell you a funny parallel story to yours about about the 70's gangs and your fight. You were groping for a name, it was Baby Pookie. Baby Pookie for a time was probably the most prolific graffiti vandal along the Crenshaw Strip, and that's when some of the crips put a "baby" in front of their name.

Pookie had a partner named Smitty. My older brother and a cousin from Alabama who stayed with us this particular summer were out in the neighborhood, sitting on a bus stop near 54th and West Bl. Up come Pookie and Smitty, telling them to move off "their" bench. My older brother was a classic LA Big Brother, who knew the rules of the city. Words were exchanged, then blows. BigBrotherBrown vs. Smitty, while pookie and my cousin watched.

Later, my brother and cousin come home, still mad about what had just happened. His knuckles on his right hand were swollen from striking smitty in the mouth.

Not five minutes after they got home and were replaying the story for me, who should come walking down our block but Smitty and another dude from the neighborhood, supposedly looking for my brother. As soon as my brother spotted him, he burst out the door ready for some more. (I always thought it was a bad idea to let him know where we lived, but nothing ever happened.) The dude who was with Smitty was actually a long time friend of my brother's, and knew he didn't want any (my brother was known as a fighter). He then tried to console Smitty, telling him that he picked on the wrong dude. As bad as my brother's hand looked, Smitty's mouth was blown up.

How did it end? Smitty asked him if he wanted to join the crips. My brother declined.

Posted by: brotherbrown at August 9, 2005 02:28 PM