Since my previous entry was deleted, I will attempt to paraphrase my original posting. I have no clear intention for this posting other than to clearly express the mind gibberish that interrupts my thoughts and projects outwardly.
The first thing I would like to mention is the Troy Davis execution which some are referring to as a "legalized lynching," that took place this week on September 21, 2011 at 11:08 PM. (For those who are unfamiliar with the case go to http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20956-troy-davis-execution-highlights-witness-unreliability.html) The execution of Troy Davis created world wide shock and disappointment in the United States justice system or lack thereof. This case brought forth old wounds of racism and the controversy of capital punishment to the forefront of our consciousness as we watched the death of not only a life, but the hope of change. We would all like to live in a world (well, most of us) where evil doers are isolated from society and punished for their evil deeds; however, the definition of who is considered "evil" is a matter of opinion. If the definition of "evil" is dictated by those who have committed some of the greatest atrocities on earth, then that opinion might be questionable to say the least. In a country where the determining factor of who is sentenced to death is often skewed by race and socio-economic status, capital punishment has become a subject of contention. This weeks' execution of a man whose guilt was riddled with doubt caused the world to question how far the United States has actually come to resolving its issues of discrimination and inequality. Whether or not we will ever know the true guilt or innocence of Troy Davis is unclear but what is clear is that the amount of doubt far out weighed the amount of evidence against him. In a world with such uncertainty let us attempt to desire to exibhit more compassion than judgement and more forgiveness than condemnation.
In Loving Memory of Mark MacPhail and Troy Davis
Monday, September 26, 2011
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Radiography
Three radio stations are in constant rotation in my car radio and on my live stream Iphone radio: KPFK, a non profit, liberal radio station, KCLU, which is a local progressive radio station connected to NPR and KRLA, an ultra right-wing conservative radio station. You might be asking yourself why would a self proclaimed Liberal such as myself listen to right-wing conservative rhetoric, well it can be summed up in one phrase: "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer." Although, I strongly disagree with over 99.9% of every host on KRLA and I often find myself with deep seeded anger listening to their skewed, narrow, exclusionary views; it is nevertheless entertaining to say the least. It seems that the entire Radio station was created to discredit President Barrack Obama and the under represented minorities in this country and abroad. The sheer disrespect of our Nation's President is enough to scream treason. I often find myself completely tensing up in agonizing disgust, but I can not stop listening.
I felt compelled to write this particular post while listening to KRLA in the midst of their favorite topic of government"hand outs" and "entitlements" afforded to "the lazy" and "uneducated" in reference to Medicare, Medicaid, Planned Parenthood and even Social Security Benefits to name a few. In the middle of my eager listening and contempt, my rage was interrupted by a commercial break. Wanting to feed my desire for more contempt, I found myself slightly irritated by the commercial interruptions. It was then that I realized that the other two constant radio stations that I listen to (KPFK and KCLU) do not have commercial breaks as they are completely supported and contributed to by their listeners. The striking connection between "hand outs" and community powered media, in which the listener is privileged to receive non stop information, struck me. Here we have a conservative station who repeatedly criticizes government programs that help the less fortunate, dependent on other companies and products in order to stay on the air and are therefore reliant upon them; henceforth, creating bias. This media bias could be compared to the same bias we see between politics and its relationship to lobbying, which has created a huge distrust among United States citizens for our Government. Stagnated by differing ideologies, one of the "haves" and "have-nothings" these three radio stations are tiny microcosms of the entire populous in which the elite believe they did so on their own and anyone else, was too lazy and therefore deserves no assistance. The arrogance held by the elite conservative right, has neglected the fact that the United States has thrived as a result of receiving over 400 years of free labor, what country would not become a world power under such circumstances.
Perhaps, if it were possible to truly understand that in the end we are all one people, one race, one energy operating at the same time, we could realize that what we give, we get to keep. That if our fists are clinched, not only are we not open to give, but we are no longer open to receive. Let us begin to exist beyond the confines of our past and live knowing that the present moment is one in which all things have already been given and what was truly given, cannot be taken away. For there is more than enough to go around, in, out, up and down.
I felt compelled to write this particular post while listening to KRLA in the midst of their favorite topic of government"hand outs" and "entitlements" afforded to "the lazy" and "uneducated" in reference to Medicare, Medicaid, Planned Parenthood and even Social Security Benefits to name a few. In the middle of my eager listening and contempt, my rage was interrupted by a commercial break. Wanting to feed my desire for more contempt, I found myself slightly irritated by the commercial interruptions. It was then that I realized that the other two constant radio stations that I listen to (KPFK and KCLU) do not have commercial breaks as they are completely supported and contributed to by their listeners. The striking connection between "hand outs" and community powered media, in which the listener is privileged to receive non stop information, struck me. Here we have a conservative station who repeatedly criticizes government programs that help the less fortunate, dependent on other companies and products in order to stay on the air and are therefore reliant upon them; henceforth, creating bias. This media bias could be compared to the same bias we see between politics and its relationship to lobbying, which has created a huge distrust among United States citizens for our Government. Stagnated by differing ideologies, one of the "haves" and "have-nothings" these three radio stations are tiny microcosms of the entire populous in which the elite believe they did so on their own and anyone else, was too lazy and therefore deserves no assistance. The arrogance held by the elite conservative right, has neglected the fact that the United States has thrived as a result of receiving over 400 years of free labor, what country would not become a world power under such circumstances.
Perhaps, if it were possible to truly understand that in the end we are all one people, one race, one energy operating at the same time, we could realize that what we give, we get to keep. That if our fists are clinched, not only are we not open to give, but we are no longer open to receive. Let us begin to exist beyond the confines of our past and live knowing that the present moment is one in which all things have already been given and what was truly given, cannot be taken away. For there is more than enough to go around, in, out, up and down.
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