bet they wanna be rappers

It is apparent for me that we have some serious problems in our community. I mean serious, for any time a young man walking home from school can be beaten to death, in day light, while folks watch and think nothing of it, and even video it without considering that said person may need help, or what they are watching is not right, is a true indication that something is amiss in our beliefs and world view.

I have noticed that there is a difference in general behavior when I look and my parents, myself and the present generation. As a father with a 17 year old son, I am proud to have been a part in raising a fine and responsible young man. An honor student, an athlete and a gentlemen is what best describes my son, yet although he has made it to the 12th grade, I still worry and pray that he continues on his path of success with the next pointy of entry being graduation.

Often we fail to see the difference between blame and problem solving in such matters. Fo9r we get defensive and tend to see ourselves in the problems that we are confronted with. Whether it is that we are single parents, or our environments, we forget that the issue is not blame or deflecting blame but solving the problem. It is not difficult for me to discern what the differences are. I can reduce them to one simple area – media influences. My folks didn’t have to deal with television at all and the music, well let us say it was not as graphic and vivid as it was in my day. In contrast, I grew up with 4 channels on television and they went off before midnight, and the music, albeit it was the beginning of hip hop – the lyrical content was mild compared to today.

It is no wonder that we have folks feeling and displaying penchants that evince appropriate behavior as beating someone to death or watching someone getting beat to death without the consideration of helping. I won’t blame this all on parents, for objectively; I know they can’t control the media influences that bombard their children each day of their formative years. And I know folk will say media, or movies or music cannot make a person do something – I agree, but they can impact the way folks think and define personal standards of behavior. For example, I would assert that most African American males currently would have desires to be professional athletes, producers, Dj’s and rappers because of what they see. Not the jobs per say, but rather the fame and avarice and wealth associated with the aforementioned. Especially the music. I bet if I went down the playlist of any top urban radio station – I will see the likes of idiots inclusive of Gucci Mane, Jeezy, Lil Wayne, Jay-Z and Plies. Songs that contain lyrics espousing staying strapped, shooting folk, fucking ever girl in the world, and having pockets full of money and following ones owns rules.

So understand where I am coming from, and feel my pain as a parent for although Derrion Albert was not my blood, he was my son and I have no problem pointing fingers at the folks above for five to one, the folks who did the beating probably know all the lyrics to your songs more than the formula for slope/intercept and even worse, want to be rappers. The new KKK strikes again so let us bow our head in silence for we still dont know that we are both the hunted and the prey.

Take your place

Preface: slapzz- no Euclid wasnt- key word you know. I was taught pythagoras was responsible for a therom that was in use 900 years before his birth - see pyramids

Where was he born? Egypt, where did he die? egypt. Egypt aint in Greece, its Africa, so south white africans aint africans - represent folk. Hellinestic is what they say, but these the same folk that refuted the moors, who taught europeans for more than 300 years the world was round - they selected to belive it was flat.

Point of order: 1] “Full scale brain cell warfare I ejaculate”….SBM see today’s song by me.

2] Good look to all at the funeral. Bernie Mack, love u folk, but you wasn’t no Isaac Hayes. So to Denzel Washington, Wesley Snipes, Maurice White (EWF), Bootsy Collins, Chuck D, Jesse Jackson, Doug E. Fresh, Chick Chorea, Kirk Whalum (home boy), Robert Johnson, Tom Cruise, Al Sharpton, Richard Roundtree and the rest at his funeral – good look. Veronica I love you, yo pops was my pops too. After all he told me I would be the next music great out of Memphis, and he aint write or read music....You heard it here first, soon to come, The Issac hayes International Airport. And thanks SJP for the Brilliant Blogger award - im flattered.

A man stopped by my shop yesterday. He asked if he could spit some of his spoken word to us, and that he would accept what ever he had to offer if we had it. I offered him a glass of vino, and a seat. My folk, one of my loyal customers was out there with me with his daughter. Chi and his daughter play on most days together. We talked, told us he was from NYC, been in ATL for 3 days. Had no job. And we talked. Told him he was great. He accepted fellowship and cried, and cried. I said men cry, you spirit breathes tears when greatness is around the corner, so have faith.

But as he cried, we talked. My folk and me boosted his belief in self; I even gave him one of my books. He said we were rare. I said I aint steak and he laughed. But he made me think. I have often wondered where the break down in stable community responsibility went a stray. Likewise, I have wondered why the urge for men to be men, and women to be women has evaporated to.

I know that I may be part of the problem and I can accept blame for this on a personal and individual level, the query is how we get more folks to do the same? It is easy to point fingers, but only those that point the fingers at themselves have the right and authority to express to others what they see as neglectful and irresponsible. The consternation occurs because most blame all on others and never look at themselves. For the future, tomorrow, or the next turn is uncertain, as it is for us all, but some neglect taking charge of what they should decide to do next. Like the child afraid to leave the crib, and ends up 30 years of age with an Escalade but living with his Mom. Or the girlfriend once past, who say they are over with their past relationship but always ask for something, or the man who spends with others but not within his own neighborhood for excuses yet untold. Which makes folk wonder, where do we go from here, or is our future as a collective union completely dilapidated?

And this revisited by me during the week of the celebration of the birth of Marcus Garvey. I remember when I stole a book of quotes by him from the AUC library when I was in college. That same day stole Thomas Wentworth Higginson’s Black Rebellion: Five Slave Revolts & a book called Elements of Photo electro-chemistry. The two quotes that stuck out from that book to me then as a sophomore at Morehouse were:

"A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots."

and

"I do not speak carelessly or recklessly but with a definite object of helping the people, especially those of my race, to know, to understand, and to realize themselves."

It seems that the obvious lessons of history are now going untold, for it may be more eaiser to look at a movie, or music video and get more pleasure than the attempt in self instruction. Even worse, sometimes I hold my head down for it seems like many of us forget that once upon a time in America that we were sold off as slaves and had no choice. And even worse, that we now u have a choice, but select to enslave ourselves with the feculent: Clubs over libraries, Malls over our neighbors front porch and strip clubs over the classroom. Yes we all attend to our selfish and personal desires as opposed the well being and good of all. We keep to ourselves as opposed to share, we ask and take as opposed to give and offer with the knowing that the goodness we provide to others will be returned ten fold to ourselves. Yes I take pride in knowing that if you are hungry, I will feed you, or that if you are cold, I will give you clothes if u need them.

Now I aint talking about everybody, nor am I hating as I have been told many times before, but yes, I am a hatter. I hate to see suffering endured that is unnecessary, and hate to see people avoid the extension of lending a helping hand. It as if we have forgot our past, or as if we forgot what it means to express freedom, or as if it is easier to want what we see others have, without the desire to work for the same. Yep, I hate that. But I try my best to take control, to take charge and take my place in my world that I have earned and value and do so without hesitation. Just why is it many are afraid, or would prefer to charge animosity towards others, when they fail to see the real world and accept it? When they don’t acknowledge the energy they put out? When they become the weak and the lame? I say to you mane, take your place and live free – take your place and live free. Take your place and stop blaming others for your mistakes. Take your place. I will take mine and lay down for you to walk on my back to get to yours. vote

The scorn of Lady Macbeth

remember muzk u hear is jones here mane, all live impromptu funktry muzk

Addendum: They done raised the price of the AJC to 75 cents. Bought one for 50 cents tuesday from the machine-dang.

It has been said that love is a many splendid thing. This can be no truer than with respect to the love a parent has for their child. But sometimes we can be so selfish that we place our desires and even misery over ourselves to the point where we could care less about the wants, needs, and desires of our children. Which means selfishness and hate can be more powerful and of value for some than love.

I heard a popular female radio commentator say on the air, that she used to tell her child that her father did not want to see them and that he did not love them. In the same sentence she said that told the child that because it made her feel better and gave her the fortitude to justify her keeping the child from seeing and bonding with her father. And the reason, because she did not like him and that their relationship did not work out. It was during the weekend of Father’s day when I heard this. At the end; she said she regretted it for as her child got older and learned, she despised her and that, she sawthe hurt she had caused "her baby."

It made me think. I mean not to use myself, but I have been told by a woman that she would take our child, and the reason she gave was that it would hurt both of us. She smiled when she said this. I ignored it saying no woman would use a child as a pawn and desire to hurt their child, using a child’s love with their father as a weapon. I must add at that time, I did fill out legitimization papers, for if such a day came I would be ready; so if I had to fill for custody, I would be prepared and it would be joint custody, for no matter how I feel about the other, her love and parental rights toward our child would be just as important and equally respected and valued in my eyes.

I often wondered how any person; any parent would deny a child the love of the other parent. It is some of the dumbest and most selfish shit I have ever heard. Up there with weapons of mass destruction and reminds of William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth.

All Lady Macbeth cared about was herself and the idea of being Queen, but at the same time, she despised her husband for his kindness as king. In her heart, he was not evil enough, as she was to be King. She even called him a coward for being just and kind and loving and stated that she had no pity and would even kill her own baby as it suckled at her breast, if she needed to please herself.

So is it true? Is there any justification for a woman to use a child to get back at a person for a failed relationship? Especially if the requirements of love and provision are provided for the child? I would suspect in some case the said woman may even be provided for by the father, but still may lack consideration for the child desire and love of that parent.

I would suggest that a person that does not has no love or concern for their child, especially if the child is not being abused or neglected. That if they did, they would desire for their child’s happiness to come first, in particular if the child had a strong bond with the father. But I also feel that women who grow up in homes with the father present would not do such, for they would have learned the value and love that a father or any parent would give under optimal circumstance. I also feel that women that do not have such in the home do not see the importance of a man in the lives of children and may even be the type to say they don’t need a man. I think that such is what is wrong with our communities and leads young women to think their value is only in their looks and sex, or worse, that they can only make a living by turning tricks or stripping in front of some rapper.

Yep, we men do neglect our fatherly responsibility at times and that’s something I have written about a lot. But not all of us. So ladies you tell me, why is it that some folks cannot live with the reality that a relationship is over, or why is it that the selfishness of an individual can over ride the love a child may have for each parent. Is scorn that much of value that, one would scar a child just to hurt another and make themselves feel good?

Denouement

I first came across the word denouement in a 7^th grade honors English class. It was really part of a program in the Memphis Public Schools called CLUE (Creative Learning in a Unique Environment). Don’t know why they asked me to be in it, by the 8^th grade I got kicked out for playing paper football and reading comic books, but I think what got them was when I did a Book Report on Valley of the Dolls – any who.

The word is a French word meaning "unwinding," and supposedly refers to the outcome or result of a complex situation or sequence of events, an aftermath or resolution that usually occurs near the final stages of the plot of a novel and normally occurs or starts after the climax is over. For me, it occurs only after all the conflicts have been resolved.

I wanted to use this word to describe my present sentiments about me and mine, my community that is for it is almost reflective of a tragic story, like The Princess De Cleves by Madame de Lafayette or Rameau's Nephew by Denis Diderot or even my own A Matter of Attention, which is about a writer who tries to figure about what it is about writing that he loves so much when he makes no money from it. Such to the extent that he feels he has to select the Love of his life (Margarita) or his writing, which to him is more loving than any woman could be.

The way I see, many of us have lost our ways, whether it is the person who is too lazy to work hard for a small few and select to sell drugs for quick profits or the woman that wants to take off her clothes for men for a green piece of paper. Whether it is a teacher in our school system that spend more time on what she or he will wear and in Lennox Mall than the Library. Or even those that cannot abide by the adage of doing unto others as they would like other to do unto themselves. Regardless, we have a problem for in reality many of us fail to realize that a bird in the hand is better than two in the bush.

We have lost our way, and I aint no preacher nor am I a prognosticator, but just a regular man who cannot compass when we started to loose our way. It is as if the fortitude for lying is more acceptable than being honest and telling the truth. Or that fake images mean more than evincing a sever depiction for other to know or learn about us. I mean in music and movies, this is so vivid. We admire the oleaginous flow of a TI or as Lil Wayne but yet do not take them to task for glorifying infidelity, personal responsibility and having the common sense and decency to evaluate the impact of their messages under the guise of the beat being funky or they just making money. We don’t tolerate the same irresponsibility of George Bush, but we can from folks who in action are just as foul and dangerous to our understanding of communal value. No wonder the family and lack of respect for such is rampant. We expect our mates to love our children as we do after a failed relationship yet will not do the same, for if they are not our children we hold disdain. We expect for people to love us unconditionally yet we cant or don’t love ourselves enough to know or understand love. I see why the Native Americans could not come to agreements or treaties with the white men of the era for they did not practice what the preached and were dishonest. We say family is important but the truth is it is not. especially for us men who place running the streets over calling or being with or kids, or those women who would prefer to place their feelings over their children and use them as pawns.

So, I guess I will close and say. We need to look at how we contribute to dissonance in chaos in our own minds and hearts and stop blaming other for what we do and don’t practice ourselves. In this novel, the one we all are involved in, is at its Denouement, and one of a very crappy E Lynn Jerome Dickey Tyree Novel if you asked me – my 2 cents

PS: Bags are in. you Like?

side bar: KG deserves a ring.

can u dig it

I lied. Looks like the enthusiasm of hustler genes revisited conglomerated in my being will have me talk about something a little bit more, meaning I’m finna (i'm country) talk about loot again, and its accumulation there of, in ways that impose upon thinking and personal communal responsibility. And communal responsibility being that which shows no harm, that which elevates and drop that hammer of beneficence on a (I wont say).

And as I said before, me and mine, folk that is, is a tight set. I mean especially the Memphis Cats, Morehouse Alum, or fellow pay your own self folk. Whether they be white black, Jew, Christian or what have you. See we are protective, and basically know that we are few in number as the knights of Templar or the Dogon Priest that protected the temples (libraries) of Timbuktu.

We extend our selves in life to extend the olive branch first as opposed to extending a weapon of calamity such as the Axe (my preference followed by hammers). As such we are protective of one another as bonded by our personal obligation to our community, family being first.

With that said, my folk from the crib and who attended Morehouse with me stopped by my shop. Heard from him recently when he left a comment on my post GIVING WINGS TO ANGELS. We greeted, drank, chiefed and talked.

First I never realized how many folks watched the WIRE, and how one video clip that he described to me of a cat executing jones in his store, could get folks so upset. Me never seen the show. Second, never new how much love so many folk had for folk here. He said I was like “Malcolm X King Jr.” and that I was a rare breed and that kats from the crib and especially Morehouse wasn’t gone be with Petsmart no more but that they were “T-smart” now. He peeped the spot and said I was like the dope man and had the corner on lock and that cat’s aint on thinking like this. He also dropped 200 plus on food and clothes and in particular an 85$ hand-made studded collar.

As we talked, before he left the convo went something like this.

Folk: “Jones, you hit it mane, this the lick. You got the perfect place and you got the corner on lock, you like the Omar of the dog world.”

Me: “Straight, good look folk – Bald fist dap.”

Folk: Jones, you the Omar of the dog world, except you got no comp.”

Me: Laughing.

Folk: Jones, we got your back, let the haters hate; they don’t know how we get down. You got me to hit them books. I’ve been in business for myself for 9 yrs now.”

Me: “I see like that Black range Rover.”

Folk: For real though Jones, cause I live in Marietta, I’m coming back, and you serving free wine, don’t need no Liquor License for that. A head of the game folk.

Me: Brain cells jones.”

Folk: I’m coming back, hold it down, Omar – can you dig it?”

Me: Stood up, put gat in back of my pants, Bald fist dap. “Alright Love, good look folk.”

Folk: “high post bruh, higher than most”

Me: “Think about it, Special Ed.”

He made me smiled. So fellows, represent. If I succeed u succeed. If I fail, you fail. Let’s hold hands, talk to each other and put it on the table. Let’s hold down the fort and make certain that we all eat, that we all provide and that we all give. Let’s handle ours first, in our homes in our schools, PTA’s and take control of what is really real – and aint talking reality TV, lottery tickets or the NBA finals (but ‘m down with that too).

And I aint just talking to the African American men, You white men (in the case of buelah man a self professed redneck-lol), Asians, Africans, Caribbean’s or what have you. Let us represent as men folk. Let us show government and big business America is not one spelled with three Ks in substitution of the C, but a stalwart for family, family rule, and that neighborhoods rock – dude.

watermelon man

Bridges aside, I have more pressing things on my mind and as usual they focus on my community. I’m not gonna say that we killing our own over peanuts, but it may turn out to be such if and when the assailants are caught. Yesterday here in the metro Atlanta area, a man was shot to death early while selling watermelons from the back of a truck in Chamblee.

Juan Morales was killed on his 39th birthday and lived in a rural area of Georgia were he served as the pastor of a church. They say this married father of one, was accosted by two men who asked about the prices of his watermelons. All it too was one shot. Police say four men in a silver Cadillac tried to rob them and that one of the men pulled out a gun and shot Morales.

I do not know about you, but over watermelons? Or over the price of watermelons? Is it that bad that folks are s lazy that they would rather rob and kill that put in a god 40 hrs a week? I feel sorry for this mans family and his friends and even more so for our community. I just hope when they find them, they are not Black and are not from New Orleans, because we have seen an unfortunate rash of criminal activity in the Atlanta area from the hands of transplanted folk from the boot- mostly African American males. Thanks Mr. President for saying you love the black folks displaced by Katrina. How can I belive thes when you spend more money rebuilding Iraq than you do for them?