His Eye Is On the Sparrow and His Ears Are Ringing
Please refer to the monstrosity by clicking here.
I’m a proud supporter of new artists who appear to be true singers; Vocalists that can take that microphone and make the ABCs sound like a musical masterpiece. Granted, everyone has bad days. In Keyshia Cole’s defense, the impromptu musical piece she attempted at Bishop Noel Jones’ church appears to be unscripted, unrehearsed and off-the-cuff. I’ve heard Ms. Cole sing live before and I don’t think I’ve heard a misstep of this magnitude. So the question remains, why? Why did she think she could pull this off? More important, hollering at the top of your lungs doesn’t make a gospel song any more powerful – it simply makes you louder and sometimes, more conspicuously “out of order.” Lesson learned. Stick to singing that sweet hook and leave the gospel to folks who have been blowin’ for Jesus on the regular. I have to admit that had I been in the congregation I would’ve been moved to lay hands – right across her mouth! Let the church say, “Amen.”
Basophobic
Basophobia is the fear of falling. It is said that the fear of falling is the ONLY fear that we are born with. All other fears are learned. Following in the vein of yesterday’s discussion on Rant and Fix, I was surprised to see that many of us share the same problem. The inability to motivate ourselves to be the person we know we should be. We all posed it in different ways – procrastination, laziness or the choking feeling that everyone will recognize us as a fraud if we take on the challenge to be who we want to be – whether that be professionally, personally or emotionally. My personal struggle has a deep-seated root in my fear of instability. Leaving home at an early age caused me to seek stability through employment and to carefully select my moves. In essence, I will stick with a dead-end job to insure I can pay my bills and be comfortable. Unfortunately, it has stifled my first passion – writing. When I left Washington, DC to return to NYC four years ago, I vowed to concentrate on writing my book and putting those creative juices out there. Instead, I returned to NYC, took to what I knew best – corporate America – and have since put my dream of writing on a back burner. Sure, there’s this little respite I call my cathartic writing, but seriously folks, I’m only fooling myself if I think that blogging is doing anything to satisfy my true dream. As I spoke to Al and KrisAlmighty last night the admonition was the same – write that book. Truth be told, I’m scared. I consider the art of writing equivalent to that of a singing. There are some great voices out there, but very few make it to the big time. Here’s another strange fact. I’m not looking for the BIG time. I’m looking to be able to do what I have a passion for. So the commitment is that I will begin to map out a plan. I will not talk about it, I will be about it. I will write. If it happens that my writing is the equivalent of Karaoke, I will at least have closed that chapter. I must overcome my basophobia. In the end, Donnie McClurkin said it best, “We fall down, but we get up…”
Darfur vs. VA Tech
The area known as Darfur in western Sudan is said to have been the site of more than 450,000 deaths in the past four years. Finally, when the slaughter became so abhorrent that the international community felt that they had to intervene, the United Nations resolution 1706 was put into place and over 17,000 troops were sent to Darfur to help stop the killing. Recently, I was asked why I didn’t post a big blog post to highlight the 33 people who died last week on the Virginia Tech campus. Let me be clear, I am saddened and horrified that someone committed such an atrocity, but I also am disgusted with the hypocrisy of Americans – primarily we in the minority community – who were so incensed with the students who lost their lives, but never saw the need to draw attention to the genocide of a people – our brothers and sisters in Africa. Murder is horrific on any scale, but to ignore the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of people, killed over several years and spend countless hours analyzing how a single shooter killed 32 people in a matter of a couple of hours puzzles me.
For complete information on Darfur go here
On Blast
Besides the fact that the Virginia Tech incident occurred on U.S. soil, what reason is there for the virtual media silence following the Darfur genocide vs. the media frenzy that took place following the VA Tech incident?
Keep passin’ the open windows…
11 comments:
1. The VT shootings involved rich white kids.
2. The incident involved a school shooting, which the country has been particularly sensative to, since Columbine.
3. The VT shootings involved rich white kids.
People are of the nature, if I can't see/feel/touch it, it doesn't exist. We must remember, that most media outlets are run by Whites so, they are more sensitive to their own plight. Think of it this way, We all have seen a dead deer on the side of the road, right? How much attention do you give this 300+ lbs of meat laying there dead? Now, put a 170 lbs human being there and watch the reaction. This VT incident hit home because they, Whites, can visialize themselves in this situation. It is the same with our Gov't. They knew all about these killings in Darfur, Haiti, Africa, Rowanda and other countries but, those people are all non-white so, they can't see/feel or them.
That is a real simple question to answer...
1. Most people couldn't tell you where Darfur is.
2. The people of Darfur are people of color.
3. Darfur has nothing the US government or Dick 'Oil Tycoon' Cheney needs.
OK so now that we have established that "rich white kids" aren't worthy of mourning would someone like to remind me of the color of the skin of the individuals who are slaughtering the innocents in Darfur.
Anyone?
Those "rich white kids" didn't kill anyone. One of them might have found a cure for AIDS someday.
Those responsible for the slaughter in Darfur and many other African countries are black.
Further, NON-STOP media coverage of Katrina made people go into action to help our fellow countrymen.
Get your minds right. No person is more valuable than the other. We are all priceless human beings. And anyone who dismisses the loss of life of "rich white kids" is just as bad as those who dismissed the lives of the "poor black people" who died in Katrina.
And what makes you think all of those kids were "rich"? Some were BLACK and some were there on scholarship.
My password isn't working....
Caspar608
I believe there are several reasons as to the glaring coverage disparity:
First, Americans aren’t very aware of current events outside of our own. We are so focused in our own little world and the needs and wants of our country – the richest country in the world – that we virtually ignore anything that doesn’t directly affect us. We’re more likely to seek celebrity news than important news from around the globe.
Second, many African nations – as Reddmann correctly stated – don’t stand to offer the US anything of value, so we are not likely to use our resources to protect them or get involved in their conflicts.
Last, yes it is unfortunate, but sometimes the lives of the more affluent are given more value in our country than those that are poverty-stricken.
I don’t think the race issue has as much to play here as the class issue. As Caspar mentioned there were folks of color killed at VA Tech.
Damn I hate to be the diplomat, but to a certain extent everyone is right.
Let me be clear though...being more invested in people who look like you isn't unique to white people. I've had some surprising conversations with black folks who have said they don't give a fuck about what happened in VA. As if not caring about a white human life offsets the fact that others didn't give a fuck about us.
I've read other Blogs that pointed to the 3000+ deaths of US soldiers---many of whom are the same age as those killed in VA. It's a valid question. For me it is simply easy to ignore the stories that are not served up for my consumption... The media does indeed put forth stories that are important to the powers that be at their companies...but their bottom line is also money. If we don't feel that they are providing accurate coverage, we need to say that or change the channel. That doesn't make it right...it's just the reality.
There have been thousands of Iraqis killed in this war...many innocent, do we talk about them? What about the folks killed in earthquakes and life changing natural disasters all over the world? We could really do this all day. People talk and think about things that touch them personally.
I think about American soldiers everyday. The difference between them and the kids in VA (and this is not about assigning value to life)is that the kids in VA are not at war. They were at school. Every time I think about that....how they simply went to school, it breaks my heart.
Sorry to sound the like the semi-Marxist I am...but much of this is tied economy. I think Leniere points this out. The bottom line counts, not humanity. If humanity mattered it would be a different world. Race, sexuality, gender...they are all tied to this, and how they matter is connected to a system that is only concerned with the bottom line at it's essence....
You have been posting some heavy stuff lately. You know, things are only real to people when it happens to them or they think I could have.
Get over yourself C. Nobody said that rich white kids weren't worth mourning. The question asked why we thought the Darfur media coverage was lacking, in comparison to the VT shootings.
And, BTW, it took a LONG TIME for anyone to do anything about Katrina. A LONG TIME!
Don't get it twisted... when issues concern whites, everybody listens and takes action. When the issues concern blacks, there seems to be a lack of concern, even from our own race. Case in point, Sickle Cell Anemia.
How many blacks know how many other blacks are cursed with this crippling decease? Can we name any black celebs who have embraced this cause? I can only name one, and she only does it because she has it.
Don't try and turn this into a hate issue. I grew up with rich white kids. It was them who accepted me, when blacks wouldn't, because (because I'm African).
Ya'll love to put the kids on blast, don't you? Jeez!
Get over myself? You don't even know me enough to tell me to get over myself. The innocent kids who got up and went to school in VT were just that INNOCENT. As are the people who are slaughtered in Africa. As were the poor black, latino and white folks who lost everything in Katrina. Yes, it took too DAMN long for a country as rich as ours to respond to a natural disaster - but media coverage was in FULL EFFECT for everyone to see how disgraceful it was that things were going down the way it was.....
Your blase stance that attempts to dismiss the opinions of others is part of the problem, not part of the solution. Get your mind right.
Black on black crime is - survey says - WRONG. I don't care what your class or economic position is. Its been going on in AFRICA forever - would you like to dispute that fact? I didn't just answer a question, I responded to the comments of other bloggers as well.
ANd its unfortunate that black people didn't treat you as nicely as the rich white kids. Like I said, Black on Black crime is wrong.
Clinton sent the military into SOMALIA....anyone recall what happened?
Don't be mad because I have an opinion.
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