Have You Had Your IGNORANCE Today? (Pt. 1)

I took time and sat back the past 2 weeks with one thought on my mind... "How much ignorance does media spit at me?" Now given alot of people will look at this like "WHHHHAAAAAAAAA?!?!?!?!" But think about it, i can recall a day and time where i listened to the news and a kid, watch shows to learn, and listened to the radio for more than te newest dance song. Now true, people can argue that hip-hop has its ups and downs as far as what gets played on the radio, television has curved views(depending on the channel), the internet can be a TOTAL lie(depending on the source). Yet if you think about it look at how much these media outlets have changed. I remember hearing random bombs, explosions, and word scratches when listening to Master P on the radio("Im the captian of this mutha(scratches-BOOM) TANK"). 2 Lve Crew had the shortest song on the radio, "Me So Horny", and it got played MAYBE once a week(lol). I used to wonder what words they were bleeping out because a$$, fuck, bitch, ho, shit...ect, those words were unheard of on the radio. "Girl you look good won't you back that THANG up"(Juvenile - Back That A$$ Up) i coulda sworn that was the actual version... maybe that was just me. I never heard the DJ's cuss or even hint at it, never felt bad about making my mixtapes (literally TAPES), and never had to worry about moms looking at me like "WTH are you listening to?" Sadly i hear all of that now. This past weekend i was listening to a station (those of you in B'ham know which one i talking about) and they had a "post commercial comment" for some small time/local rappers where they were very blount about taking about where they were what they were smoking and drinking. I dont even have kids but i was shocked and disgusted. Not because it was out of line, even though it was, i was more shocked because it was 2pm on a sunday afternoon when i heard this. I mean REALLY?! Of all the things that get me heated about the media it's probably the local news channels ("that really grinds my gears").I can think of a day and time when i stopped watching the nws simply beacuse of all th bad news they seemed to have. For a week my Jr. year in highschool all i heard was bad news, the only good news they had was talking about Doo-Dah-Day (Dog parade for those who dont live hear). It actualy made me sad because it was around the time that we were planning to go to war IN Afghanistan and local deaths were rising. All i could wonder is, where is the silver lining? where is the upliftng moments for the people? The news is filled with statistics but they never give you the adverse side of it (ex. 4.7% of African Americans voted Tue, 13% of the nation is African American, is that 4.7% of the 13% OR 4.7% of the nation?). I know that all news isnt good news but if your follow up story to a murder is "free balloon day" dont be suprised if i no longer want to watch the news. Cable TV has run wild with the things they choose to say, and allow to be said on their station/channel/show. Given somebody pays to have these channels up and running but at what point do you stop and say "wow, ok maybe we are going a little too far." im mainly speaking of FOXNews, because they have such a skewed view its almost sad. Whats scarier is people believe it. I watch FOXNews almost daily just to see how skewed todays views are and i watch CNN/MSNBC for the opposite view. Yet the show(s) i have found to be the best are the ones who make fun of the actual truth (The Daily Show, The Colbert Rport). Alot of people avoid these shows because they think they are not actually being truthful about whats going on but they are in a very, VERY sarcastic way. I have always been a fan of Political Satire simply because you can see the truth and lies in that which we call our gov't. These shows/channels have much more power than i think we realize they can start a whole movement and can end a power shift. (ex. Glenn Beck's "Rally to Restore 'Honor' to the Nation"{Aug. 28th 2010} vs. John Stewart & Stephen Colbert's "Rally to Restore Sanity"{Oct. 30th 2010}). VS. Basically what i'm saying is, some media is good some is bad but reguardless something that can be seen/heard on a regular basis needs to be censored. Because one day what will your kids be hearing on the radio and seeing on tv. Ignorance is everywhere but just because its everywhere doesnt mean we have to boast it up.... Oh Yea this is just Pt1...... i got more for that azz stay tuned!

Google It.

I don't understand why people get so offended when they ask me to explain something to them in detail and I say "Google it." If I give you that answer, it's not because I want to be difficult and callous, but because of one of three reasons (usually a combination of all three, to be honest):

• I'm busy and don't have the time to give you an answer.
• You are not 5 years old. I don't have the energy nor do I want to use the energy to explain something to you in a way that you can understand. It's very tiring sometimes. And I trust that you're smart enough to find the meaning in things for yourself just like anyone else; you're just being lazy.
• I want you to learn to ask your own questions and seek your own answers. You have the first part down pat....let's work on the second half of that equation.

Before you call me a jerk ("I know."), please understand that I was raised this way. I was allowed and encouraged to pick up a book (pre-Google days) and read to find my own answers to my questions. My parents and teachers knew and understood that whatever was in said book could explain it better than they ever could; not because they were dumb, but because it forced me to rely on my OWN interpretation of facts rather than theirs. It made me feel empowered that I was capable of learning independently; and I enjoyed doing it. Probably the best tangible gift I ever received when I was younger was the full set of Encyclopedia Britannica that my grandmother bought for us. Between that and the dictionary, I learned at an early age that knowledge was right at my fingertips and I didn't have to depend on someone else as a source for it.

I fail to understand why, in the "Information Age", so many of us are NOT informed and are happy with that fact. It kills me to witness people who are fully aware of their ignorance, but have no desire to transcend. Get out of your own way! Literally, ANYTHING you want to know is probably 10 seconds away (depending on how fast you type). If that isn't convenience, I don't know what is. But honestly I believe that is the problem; it's a little too convenient. Having everything within arms reach has made us so lazy that we don't even care to utilize it because we don't really have to work for it. We are free to learn, think, and understand for ourselves like never before. Thus, the value of knowledge has decreased for many.


If you are over 20 and still saying things like...

"Favorite book? I don't read.....other than [insert rudimentary magazine here]. I'm 'bout my money!"

"I don't read/watch the news....nothing on there affects me or has anything to do with me."

"Political views: Apathetic"




....you should really re-evaluate your existence. What are you doing in life, besides going through the motions, if you have no thirst for knowledge to better yourself and those around you? "Apathetic" is not a political party or a point of view....it's the absence of both. It means you either know and don't care, or you don't know and don't care (the worse probably being the former). But suddenly you want to get upset when certain political decisions start to visibly affect your life....
Still think nothing in the news is for you?
We aren't in 6th grade anymore...we can't afford to not care.

The world is too big for us to remain content in our little rooms with no windows or doors, thinking that's all there is for us. Free yourself...

*steps off soapbox*

FREEDOM

I'm staring out the window wishing I was some place other than where I currently am. Staring at the trees sway in the wind. Watching the birds fly through the air and the squirrels jump from limb to limb. Everything outside looks so care free.

I use to sit in my room sometimes and say "I can't wait until I'm grown..."
Well I'm grown now and I'm staring out this window wondering "why I was in a hurry for this?"
Thats life you know. Sometimes its all great and going the way you want it to and there are days when you feel trapped.




So what is freedom?

Many people are under the belief that freedom is the ability to do whatever we want whenever we wan to do it. No questions. No restraint. I believed this at one point too but I realized that it's more to it than that. Yes, I'm free to do whatever I want but to what extent? If you look at it everyone has this freedom but the ones who understand the consequence behind every action tend to make better decisions.




Freedom is not reckless abandonment from responsibility. That's called ignorance and stupidity.
I seriously doubt that the slaves wanted to be free so that they could act a fool in society. I don't think all the Civil Rights protest and movement was so that we could sell crack to, lie to, cheat, steal and kill one another. It was so that we can be recognized as equals.
To be recognized as an equal you have to prove yourself as an equal by acting like an equal. Black people seem to struggle with this concept. Its not the white man's fault... It's your fault.
Stop blaming people for the situations you place yourself into. You have the power and freedom to get out of them and rise above

Freedom, to me, is more internal than anything. To me, its the ability TO DO. Having the ability to provide for your loved ones is freedom. Having the ability to love people who don't really love you or don't feel loved, is freedom. Lending a helping hand to someone in need is freedom.
We look at wealthy people as the most free people in the world cause they are able to do almost anything without restriction. I want to get wealthy on what I already have. So I try to love stronger, stay healthy and stay positive so I can be as free as a can. I don't want sickness or hate to place me in bondage.



In a sense we are all free. We just have to acknowledge what our freedom entitles us to and embrace it. Use it for the purpose of which we are intended to use it for. Be free to love, embrace and share to whomever you want to. Set people free with your love.

Build on what you have. It doesn't happen over night and you can't work with what you don't have.