Sorry MR. McCarthy!(Malcom X)

I just realized I didn't post this blog entry. It was in my documents, but I never submitted it. MY BAD!




 This is my second time reading the book, and I've picked up a lot of little things this time around. Or, I should say, things that had no affect on me when I read it originally were influential this time around. The first thing being Malcolm's interest in boxing throughout the book. Before he became a hustler, Malcolm listened to the fights on the radio in the train car, and cheered for Joe Lewis. After his renaissance, he became a friend of Muhammad Ali. One of my favorite stories is Mr.X eating ice cream with Ali in his hotel room after a fight. This time, however, I found it strange that Malcolm enjoyed boxing. I suppose the idea of two men often of the same race hitting each other in the head to the point of concussion for the pleasure of white men doesn't seem to me like Malcolm's sport of choice.

Beyond that, I'm not sure how I feel whether or not Malcolm X has had an influence on America as a whole.

 I remember being incredibly depressed when I first started this book in eighth grade. Around this time, Barack Obama was starting his first term as President. I wondered if this was real progress, or just a stunt to please the liberal masses. I wondered what Malcolm X would think. I know he wouldn't be pleased with the drone strikes. Would Barack Obama just be a pawn in Malcolm's eyes?

 I go through this book more frustrated than ever. I feel like every racial philosophy is too much of a blanket to be logical. There are so many variables in America to have ultimatums like Malcolm X had. I feel as if a manifesto for race relations is nearly impossible, because progress here can be so slow. 

I once had a teacher describe racial equality as a mountain range. There are high points and low points, and things aren't always getting better. Maybe that's what Malcolm X and Alex Haley are trying to say. All I can do is be a good, loving person. I can't control others.

King...still king?

 Eventually, names fade away from our discussions on society. Yes, perhaps we will bring up quotes from the people of the past, but their impact on the world is less direct than it used to be. This is the case for Dr. King. Except for one day out of the year, nobody says "What would Dr.King do?" And although nobody has quite replaced him, there aren't very many people alive to remember his living either. 

 I believe it was last year when the promiscuity of Dr.King and his sexual escapades were covered by the news. It's funny, I never thought we would stoop so low as a society. There are times when the thirst for scandal in this country makes me sick to my stomach. Whether or not the man was faithful in his marriage is not important to the words he spoke, and only adds fuel to the fire that is racism in America.

 That being said, I think we are improving, and I think a great deal of that improvement is thanks to Dr. King. Although he may not cross our minds these days as much as he did in the 70's, the ripple effect of his actions can still be seen in this country.

 So to answer the question, no. King is no longer "king". However, that's the way history works. Nobody wears the title of "most talked about." forever. But each revolutionary is a cog in the big machine of our evolvement. He may not be the most important, but we couldn't have gotten here without him.

Rosa sat,

so Martin could walk, 

so Barack could run

and our children could fly.

Music Review: Real Estate-Days

I like finding new music. It's one of my favorite things to do. I found a lot of bands and musicians that I really like this year (see F*cked Up, Youth Lagoon, Girls, Atlas Sound and Ty Segall.) However none compare to my 2011 finding of "Real Estate." 

Also! I have a new blog. Check it out

Coming off their self-titled debut album, "Days" was nowhere near the sophomore slump I had anticipated. In fact, it's a piece of music I don't think I could live without. 
 Much like their original album, "Days" sounds as if The Beach Boys had evolved their style to accompany a less lyric-based version of the indie-surf genre. Songs like Kinder Bluman are best enjoyed on a warm summer's morning while basking in the sun, which is pretty unique coming from a band that originated in New Jersey.
 This is a summer album, but I will listen to it at any time. In fact, I can't go much more than a week without listening to "It's real" or "Wonder years." 
  I, like most people, use music to process my own emotions. However, only a few albums can help me time travel. When I listen to 808's and heartbreak, I travel back to the winter of 8th grade. When Arcade Fire's The Suburbs comes on, I think about the first girl I ever loved.  All of the great experiences I had this summer, all of the people I met, and all of the places I went will be forever connected to this album. I know that people won't have the same experience with "Days" that I had, but it makes me so happy to listen to, and I highly recommend it.

Alone

 I was going to write about the difficulties of being an only child, and living in a neighborhood far away from most of my friends. I was going to write how those experiences often leave me bitter, but my time alone will benefit me in the long run.

 But then that shooting in Connecticut happened, and I got to thinking. I am far, far from alone. I am close with my parents, I am close with the friends that I have, and I have never lost anyone to gun violence, despite the fact that statistics say I should have by now. I do not know loneliness, for I have not experienced irreplaceable loss. Those people will never be able to truly relate to anybody ever again. 

 I am not a parent who has to close off a room to my house. I am not an ex-brother or an ex-sister. I am not going to have to take away christmas presents from under the tree. Tonight, I will say goodnight to my parents and go to sleep safe and warm. And for that, I am extraordinarily lucky, and cannot classify myself as alone.

I don't know this means nothing.

 I haven't had any moments in life that made me believe that there is a God. That isn't to say I don't believe in God, I just don't think he cares about what we do on Earth. I think he has bigger plans for us, beyond this life.
   But that's beside the point. The thing to come away from that paragraph is that I haven't had that "I believe" moment. And I probably never will. That being said, I have my pillars. The things that keep my grounded in this life, and the things that show me there's something after this. I have three of them. Two emotions and one belief that keep me a positive person.(Take note, these are things I ponder and that I have to work on on a daily basis. I don't claim to be an expert on these things, but they're what I strive to achieve, and what I believe in.)

I.Humor-I know not everybody thinks that I'm funny, and that's okay. I don't require it, I find my own jokes to be humorous, and that's enough. Sometimes, I feel like sharing that with people. If they accept it, that's cool. If they don't find it funny, their loss. But I need to make jokes to keep my sanity. I suppose that's kind of selfish, but I think the occasional ability to make people laugh is okay.

II. Compassion- Life can suck sometimes, but each one of us has the ability to make it better for ourselves and others. The quote I use the most in life is probably "Be the change you want to see in the world." which was said by Gandhi. If everyone respects each other we'll all be better off. A part of that respect is feeling compassion for others problems. If you don't feel compassion for them, who will feel it for you?

III. Reincarnation- There is a lot of suffering in the world by people who don't deserve it. I could not continue to live if I knew that suffering wasn't going to mean something after this life. That's not to say I don't strive to help those who are suffering because I think they will be rewarded later, it's just that the only way I can function is believing that there is something after this.

 I don't expect you to agree with all of these. I don't want you to. Stick to your own beliefs. But consider this. No God worth worshiping will punish you for expanding your horizons. Before you judge somebody's beliefs, at least try to understand them first. Except for NAMBLA. Those people are freaks.

My search to understand man's search for meaning.

I was really excited to read this book. I came away from "The Stranger" feeling pretty angry, and I was really happy when I found out that this book was written by a man who believes in purpose. That being said, I really struggled to get through reading book with any sense of hope. But I trudged on, hoping that things would work out. 

 It was about the third time I picked it up, that I remembered the quote from the preface. "To live is to suffer. To find meaning in that suffering is to have purpose." So, this book may not have a happy ending. But that's the point. There aren't always endings that give people hope, however that's not an indication that we're all spiraling through the Universe without meaning. It just means that some people are given really bad luck. 

That's where my beliefs come in. I'm reading about suffering in this book. I read about suffering everyday in the local news, in the national news, and in the global news. I've read about bad things happening to people my whole life. Yet, somehow, I've grown up on the west side of Chicago without a scratch. I've got a loving family, and I haven't ever had to visit my friends in the hospital. I'm really very lucky. 

 Considering all of that, I don't really suffer at all. I don't believe a God has chosen me to not suffer, I just feel that somehow I've been given a massive amount of luck. This book has reminded me to pay as much of that luck forward as I can. So that's what I'm going to do, because it's all I can do to find meaning.

Voltaire

Voltaire would not vote in the election, because he could not have the counsciousness to vote for either candidate. Mitt Romney is a liar and a thief, and he has no real plan to be president. He just wants the job. There are so many things in Romney's past that would trouble Voltaire, and make him fight against his campaign. Of the two major candidates, Colttaire definitely would not vote for Mitt Romney.

 The lesser of two evils, President Obama, would also not get Voltaire's vote. Not because he tells lies, or because he doesn't do what he says he will. He believes President Obama genuinley cares about this country. That being said, however, President Obama cares so much about this country that he is willing to take the easy way out to protect it. Because of all the drone strikes in the middle east, President Obama would lose Voltaire's vote.

 Voltaire has three choices this election. He can vote for a fraud, who doesn't deserve to be president. He can vote for a man who has given up on some of his morals in order to protect this country, but is the leader this country needs. Or, Voltaire could choose not to vote. I think Voltaire would choose the third option.