"ooh I'm lovin' it"

If that previous post was just a bit too much to think about...enjoy! lol

R.I.P. Reality

This week we lost another popular person to what appears to be either a drug over-dose or suicide. R.I.P. DJ AM.

This latest death exemplifies a tragic pattern of behavior in our society. Whereas most people have to deal with the ups and downs of life with a sober mind, more and more people are retreating to stimulants in order to forget or ignore the valleys. R.I.P. Reality.

Sadly, this is not a new trend. Alcoholism was very prevalent in the 50's and 60's though it was diagnosed less often. While alcoholism had a proverbial effect on the families of it's addicts, the new trend of pill-popping appears to primarily affect only the participants. The result of this trend is that while Alcoholism created dysfunctional families, conventional drug abuse has completely ended family structures. Obviously the death of a patriarch or matriarch leaves a family dis-jointed in a much more drastic way than the drunk behavior of a parent or sibling (all this assuming the absence of death by DWI, or alcohol poisoning). While these are all bad things, the distinction is that as long as you are alive you will have to eventually deal with the valleys of life...which is the point in this blog entry.

Life's extreme highs cannot be adequately enjoyed unless they are accompanied by lows. This is the precise reason why addicts never really enjoy anything like their first high. The more time you spend high, the less high you get and the more mundane all of your experiences become. But what is a good time without a bad time. The reality is that bad things have to happen. The beauty of humanity is that our response to bad things and how we process bad information will determine how much of an effect bad things have on us. Our sober response to bad things will have a greater affect on how we feel than any drug or narcotic. There's no greater feeling than turning a negative situation into a positive opportunity. Imagine if Jesus' disciples had chosen to drown away His memory in the narcotic choice of the day instead of processing their feelings and relaying His message. The result would've been the mundane remembrance of an eternity changing event as opposed to the birth of the most popular Faith on this planet. If Civil Rights Activists had seen the death of Martin Luther King Jr. as defeat instead of using it as a catalyst for further change, the result would've been the mundane remembrance of a man who tried to change things instead of greatest social change in American History.

I'm not really trying to preach, but I do think that there is a disturbing trend in society to run away from our problems instead of processing and responding to life's harsh realities. I'm sure that Michael Jackson often missed how amazingly blessed he was because he had drowned away some negative memory with a pain-killer. The sad truth about narcotics is that they don't just wash-over bad feelings, they also wash over good feelings. The plain truth about reality is that human beings enjoy good times much more when we are sober than when we are "high."

I'm free. You?

Downloading some Real Talk

I really respect this brother's perspective and his ability to articulate how downloading positively and negatively affects artists, musicians and entertainers (yes there is a difference...i.e Maxwell, Travis Barker, Rihanna respectively).

I especially dig the analogy he made between homemade mixtapes and downloaded compilations.

Unicorns, Big Foot, and Death Panels....

So Health Care Reform is essential to the revitalization of our economy as well as the development of the disadvantaged. Many (either wealthy or ignorant...or both) right-wingers would have you believe that Obama's Plan for efficiency involves killing off the elderly. Many ignorant people in middle America are screaming about this issue right now at Town Hall Meetings across the country. The concept of Death Panels is insane and another ploy to steer the country away from progress using fear.

Truth is, as developed as America is, we have an extremely primitive Health Care System that leaves far too many people sick, dying, and uncared for. We are the disconnect causing the Global Health Care Initiative's gap.

peep the vid for a funny take on the lies being spread:

Death Panel Advisors - watch more funny videos

What's wrong with this picture Microsoft?

So Microsoft thought that it was a bad idea to have a black man featured in their Polish ads so they photo-shopped him out. Very bad idea.

See what Microsoft failed to realize is that Black is cool...all over the planet. This is just a testament to the archaic, unintelligent, and idiotic mentality that fuels their primitive technology. People all over the planet worship the sun in efforts to look ethnic. But Microsoft wouldn't understand this concept, which explains why they're ten years behind Apple in the technology gap.

Advertising Indexes across the planet support the fact that "Black" sells. Black people may be the most dense consumer base, but we also produce the biggest Endorsement Returns. For example, Tiger Woods sells more product than Jack Nicklaus, Jay-Z sells more product than Garth Brooks and Bruce Springsteen combined. Michael Jordan sells more product than Dale Earnhardt Jr and Tom Brady combined...and he's retired. So what does all of this mean? It means that removing a black man from an ad was bad for business, even in Poland. It also means that removing a black man from an ad in Poland wasn't a business decision. It wasn't even a socio-economic decision; it was a socio-racial decision.

It tells a bigger story of the deep-rooted hatred and racism that exists as part of a corporate culture, even when the leader of the free world is a black man. To this I say...hey, I use a Mac anyway. Screw you Microsoft; you're not cool enough to identify with a black man.

R.I.P. Ted Kennedy

Ted Kennedy may be one of the most important factors in the election of President Barack Obama (along with him being the best man for the job). When faced with mounting pressure from his friends, the Clintons, Ted Kennedy stood by his convictions and did the right thing. In response to what he felt were racially-tinged remarks by Bill Clinton and the growing negative tone of Hillary Clinton's campaign, he endorsed the black guy that no one thought could win. While he is not without flaw (The car crash in Martha's Vineyard that he didn't report although his female passenger died, sex on a motorboat caught by paparazzi, etc) he has been a consistent champion of civil liberties and the model representative for his state of Massachusetts.

Let's take a moment of silence for a man who lived by conviction and compassion that yielded consistent results.

but this is by far his best video ever...

Iknow I've posted this before but I watch it like every week now...so here it is again.

Gnarls Barkley - Who's Gonna Save My Soul from Chris Milk on Vimeo.

...and another one!

Chemical Brothers ft. The Flaming Lips - "The Golden Path" [HD] from Chris Milk on Vimeo.

another Chris Milk moment

This song is amazing! The video is captivating as well.

Audioslave - "Doesn't Remind Me" [HD] from Chris Milk on Vimeo.

Classic Material for all you "change the world" buffs

I'm a really big fan of Chris Milk so don't be surprised if you see me post 5 or 6 more of his videos...in the next 15 minutes.

U2 & Green Day "The Saints Are Coming" from Chris Milk on Vimeo.

Weezer "Pork and Beans"

Not really anthemic for the counter-culture revolutionary that I am but its a good video with a familiar message. It's old but it's right on time.

Weezer Pork and Beans from Jenny Ko on Vimeo.

Sen. John McCain - where are they now

John McCain is surprising many by still being alive. I mean let's face it, many of us weren't really worried about John McCain being President, we were more concerned with him dying and having another hillbilly imbecile in office (too many similarities between Bush and Palin to mention here).

So John McCain is still alive and having town hall meetings. He even went to one where he was mistaken for Ted Kennedy. Funny thing is, John McCain comes from a history of war heroes while the Kennedy's made their fortune off of bootlegging and tobacco fraud. Not too many similarities there.

Anyway, check out the geriatric Senator from Arizona "stayin alive!"

Don't Call me fat

This is funny but he sounds so similar to J Smooth, the best v-blogger out.

BluePrint 3 Marketing Machine

The below link may be one of a few things:

1. Hip-Hop Culture is the most dominant cultural force in the world

2. Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly are incredibly stupid and thus, subject to helping promote BP3

3. Julie Greenwald, Eric Wong, and the Marketing Team are doing an incredible job at Atlantic Records

4."all the above" (Maino Voice)


I'm gonna go ahead and pick choice 4.

Disconnected Life Lessons

The below video clip is an exampled of "disconnected life lessons."

Stephon Marbury has learned alot in his life as an athlete and businessman, but he learned many of these lessons as a boy. Boys don't process information the same way that men do. The result is the incoherent ramblings of a boy/man having very public nervous breakdowns because he has had a sudden revelation of how real life is when you become a man.

I pray for Stephon Marbury because he is a good guy. He's also a smart guy. But his response to the current pressures on his life and his thought process (smoking weed on camera during a contract year?) are severely flawed.

I call it a "disconnected life lesson" because his business acumen and skill as a player were developed while he was still a very young guy. There was no gradual growth for this guy. His talent thrust him in a place where he had to make grown man decisions. That's the place of the disconnect: when you don't know how to process thoughts and decisions appropriately, but you have no choice but to do so.

peep the vid and throw one up for him.