• On Life and Love

    Jesus Camp: interesting.

    See, now I went to a Christian camp when I was a kid. I learned a few catchy songs about Moses and got to ride a horse for the only time in my life. The camp wasn’t anything like the “[tag]Jesus Camp[/tag]” making waves right now. Better yet, here’s a bit of video footage for you (courtesy of Andrea). I’ve heard that children can’t possibly make “valid” decisions regarding religion at that age. I think that children can make religious/spiritual choices, even at so young an age. Those choices are perfectly valid, even if they later change as they grow. I also don’t invalidate everyone’s spiritual choices just because they…

  • On Life and Love

    “Blood” ain’t what makes me dance

    Summer‘s “Of one blood or, the hidden self” grabbed and held my attention since I saw it yesterday. Using [tag]Schwarzenegger[/tag]’s recent fiasco with a released tape of his racial comments regarding California state Assemblywoman [tag]Bonnie Garcia[/tag], Summer hits on some crucial points regarding the use of one’s “blood” as an explanation and reason for behavior associated with a particular race. For instance, Schwarzeneggar said during this recorded meeting: “I mean Cuban, Puerto-Rican, they are all very hot,” the governor says on the recording. “They have the, you know, part of the black blood in them and part of the Latino blood in them that together makes it.” (BlackNews.com, “Schwarzenegger Apologizes…

  • On Life and Love

    Me, a counterculturist?

    While in Charlotte this past weekend, I revealed to the Gang that I don’t really watch television. I mean, there are four shows I watch irregularly (Doctor Who, Lost, The 4400, and The Pretender), but I don’t watch them with commercials. I don’t know what movies are out unless I hear via blog or word-of-mouth, and I’m not really interested in knowing. I don’t see the latest commercials. I’ve never watched an episode of CSI. I don’t even really know what televisions shows are out and popular, aside from… well, CSI. It was impressive how many times someone said, “Have you seen the latest [some product] commercial?” or asked if…

  • On Life and Love

    Racism: how much of a bitch should I be?

    I’m never sure how vicious to be when I encounter racism and have the ability to put a stop to it. For instance, last night, during a game at my apartment, Tookie suggested someone break a bottle and use it as a weapon. The excited response from Gimpy Phil was, “Nigger knife!” Um, what? This shit ain’t happening in my damn house. The moment passed just quickly enough that I wasn’t sure I should go back and harp on it. I was on edge for the rest of the evening, though, ready to jump in and tell some folks to take that shit elsewhere if they said anything else like…

  • On Life and Love

    Take a vote

    Prometheus 6 recently posted a poll: “What is Black folks’ most pressing need?“. Intrigued, I checked it out and found a great discussion taking place that I want to think aloud about. Of the options, the one I most agree with is, “Develop or increase control of our lives”. Like Temple 3 suggests in his comment: I believe that economic freedom, physical safety and spiritual/cultural continuity requires discipline. I selected “Develop or Increase Control Over Our Lives.” I chose this option because self-control is the cornerstone of these three imperatives. He honestly hit the nail right on the head for me. It is discipline and self-control that lead to personal…