Americans Aren't Crazy, but This Guy in Colorado Sure Is

This dumb stuff never quits.  Not long ago I wrote about people arguing that Obama represents or could bring about white slavery if not kept under control.  I think its an absurd idea, and if you read what I said before, I hope you understood that.  Now there's some brand new dumb sh!t floating around in the world.  Actually, it's not floating.  It is fixed in place.  This, of course, means that it is a little harder for any particular community to distance itself from this idiocy. 

Apparently KDVR Denver reported on an Anti-Obama billboard in Wheat Ridge, Co. getting a little attention.  Obama is now being asked to prove that he's really American.  Well, I guess it isn't about him being american as much as it is about him being a Muslim who will surely bring us all to a a fiery death once he realizes his goals of jihad.  At least, I think that's the story at this point.  Maybe I'm wrong.  I hope so.

Oh, and the guy who posted this isn't too shy about the statement.  The billboard belongs to a car dealership.  The owner (Wolf) has already voiced his opinions in the presence of the media.  I guess this guy is trying to spend all of his money on billboards before Obama succeeds in his plan to establish white slavery and an Islamic state. 

Yes, these are tough times for us all. 

The Today Show is the New Soul Train?

It seems that in the decade that I have overslept, missing the Today Show, it has become a really wild show.  They've had all kinds of characters on the show.  Let me think...

Wasn't Sara Palin or Tina Fey (I get them confused all the time) on the show?  They had some drunk ewoks on the show this one time.  I think that they attacked the leg of one of the female hosts.  It was  a move that only my dog, Bobo, could be proud of.  The show has come such a long way since the mornings when the show provided the colorful backdrop to my daily preparations for school.  I hate mornings now, and I hated them then.  But, I can say that I enjoyed having the Today Show help start my day with nonsense (that would be followed by the nonsense we consider secondary education). 

All that silly stuff aside, I have something even funnier to show you.

My initial reaction after seeing the photos was something along the lines of, "Oh no! Don't do that in front of the kids!"  Now that I've thought about it, I can't see how well/badly she is dancing in these stills.  She probably dances better than anybody I know.  I mean, that kid looks like she is watching and taking notes.  The woman holding on in the back is probably confused because she realized moments ago that she just cant keep up.  So right now, I'm just going to congratulate KC on a job well done on TV and at her party.  Go on, girl!  Shake it like a salt shaker.

Experimenting with Light

I'm learning to speak strobe, and part of the process is failure.  I'll be practicing quite a bit with this lumopro flash for the next week or so.  I'll post some of the good and bad as they come.  Hopefully I'll produce something on the good side.  We'll see, wont we?

Rage is Befitting

Rage
Originally uploaded by misfiredpixels

So I've been presented with yet another idea that I don't quite understand. For those of you who know me, this shouldn't really surprise you. I'm a graduate student, so my job is to find as many ways to confuse myself when it comes to basic stuff that is just taken for granted. For example, instead of just accepting that people like to jog in short shorts on cold days, I want to know why. Right at the "why" is exactly where things get complicated.

Back to the subject, a number of friends have commented on this photo. I posted it as my icon on Facebook a few days back and a number of people have asked me questions about why I am so angry. Now, when I took this photo I wasn't particularly angry. I was having an OK day. But even if I were angry, whats wrong with that? Am I prohibited from expressing that anger in a theatrical manner for my own camera? Is that not better than directing that anger at the world?

Well, the problem is that I have been asked by a number of friends why I insist on being the Angry Black Man (ABM). Not only have I chosen to be angry (yes, I've chosen), but I've decided that it is appropriate to do so in a public forum. Facebook is about as public as it gets too.

But now I've been wondering why the ABM is such a problem. Why is it such a threat to people that I even call my friends? For those of you who think that I am talking about the racism that white people propagate without being able to help themselves, just stop. It has been Black friends making comments about my acting out and being an ABM in public. Of course I know that they make these statements in jest, but why does the ABM come to mind? Even if the people giving commentary are joking, there is a general understanding that I should not walk around making this face. Is it a warning of some sort? Are they worried that I am more likely to "fit the profile" of a mugger if I look this way? Will convenient stores refuse to sell me a bag of Doritos now? I admit that I am less likely to make friends making a face like this, but is there something particularly wrong with making oneself momentarily unavailable for social interaction? I don't really think that should be a problem.

As far as I'm concerned it's just nice to be able to just do, say and feel freely. I want my liberties, and I demand the opportunity to be happy or angry in public or private spaces. And if there really is something wrong with being angry in public, why don't I ever hear about the angry Chinese guy, the angry white guy, or the angry whoever else as a general problem in social life?

All this thinking is making me... well, angry.

Busetas for all!

Ok this isn't particularly funny for a lot of people in the world, but I came across a website offering cheap busetas for the public.  Now before I go any further, lets pronounce the word.  BU-SE-TA.  Buseta!  Now ask yourself what language allows us to have all the fun with the word?  Thats right, you multi-lingual readers!  Portuguese is the language that will allow us to have the most fun right now.  We're talking about cheap P*ssy transportation for all.

And yes, I know that I'm being immature, ridiculous, and many other words as well.

This webpage never got fully developed, but that's only because it was part of a student assignment.  A special someone that I know made this with a friend in class for homework.  She should know better.

Lets just hope that AT&T doesn't mess up the fun

Let me begin by saying that the iPhone is a pretty cool device.  AT&T, however, is a mess.  I will admit that I am an AT&T customer despite my belief that the company is sh!t.  I stay because I find security in this long-term relationship--even if it has been abusive.  But back to the topic at hand...

These German guys just came up with a great idea.  What if you could drive your car with your iPhone?  I mean, can't you do just about anything else with it?  It's about time that someone completed this project.  It is now possible to drive your car with your smartphone.  Now the iPhone has truly become the device of American society.

This is exciting enough to make me consider buying an iPhone.  Maybe some of next year's car models will come equipped with the proper hardware (Wifi and such) to make this work.  Then we would only have to hit the App Store to get rolling... assuming AT&T doesn't find a reason to mess up the show.

It's not like this is something as dangerous as MMS, using Google Voice, or any other demon that AT&T has worked so hard to keep from us.  I want to drive with my iPhone!

Obama and White Slavery

On All saints' day I checked out a bunch of photos of people in their great Halloween costumes on the Huffington Post, and I came across a couple of guys who made me laugh for the rest of the day.  They were two white guys protesting Obama's general existence.  The best part of their costumes were the signs that went something like this: Obama=soshalism=white slaveree.  Of course I think that most of the popular reactions to Obama's administration that I see in the media are pretty scary, but the claim that Obama represents a possible future of white slavery is just plain funny to me.  Lets assume that white Americans were enslaved for just a moment.  I've decided that such an event would not affect my life for the better.  First, I doubt I would be able to amass the necessary wealth to buy a plantation with a good number of white slaves.  Basically, I would have traded life as a poor Black man for a life as a poor Black man without any white slaves.  So if president Obama will bring about the American white slavery system, I think we should be asking who benefits from white slavery.  People like myself will not become the beneficiaries of said economic and social developments, but something tells me that a class of "freedmen" will become the owners of white slaves.

Yes.  I'm stating that if white slavery were to occur (and it won't happen), poor whites would become chattel property of a wealthier class that will predominantly consist of free whites.  That is not to say that there would be no Black slave owners, but I'm assuming that white slaves won't be cheap.  The folks who will be able to buy all the white folks are going to be the ones who already own people's souls through present relationships of social and economic debt.  Therefore, we're talking about a minority of the free population being the big white slave owning elite.  Middle-class families would probably not be able to economically support a whole family of white slaves.  These families might be able to afford a single slave, but there have to be hidden costs of white slave-holding.  Slave owners would have to consider the possibility of a single slave multiplying uncontrollably if not kept under meticulous control by responsible overseers.  The overall cost of this outdated mode of social and economic organization is just too much for most Americans to reap any of the ethically problematic benefits of the system. 

I'm basically saying that white slavery is an absurd idea.  But if it were to occur, it's nothing that Black Americans would need to be particularly happy about.  Most of us wouldn't have any slaves anyway.  If you want real answers, it would really make more sense to ask the guys running large corporations what they plan on doing with all their white slaves.  They should have more answers than I could dream of having.

Something in the Air

Something in the Air 2
Originally uploaded by misfiredpixels

So yesterday started off kind of rough. Fortunately, as the day progressed, things got better. By the time that night fell, I was on my way to a party--my party. A good talk, some drinks, and a couple McGangbangs later, I was able to muster a smile. Once the smiling started, I couldnt stop. I have to thank all the people who showed up at my birthday party last night to make that possible.

This has been a long week. I just leapt into the job market with my first application a week ago. Other than that, plans for the summer have be made now. I am just having a hard time understanding how things have gotten so busy all of a sudden. I guess I'll have to start taking more photos to keep myself happy. Something has to be done to deal with all this work/stress. If you have any suggestions, speak up.