January 28, 2014

'Do what you love'? Yeah, right

http://www.tampabay.com/news/perspective/do-what-you-love-yeah-right/2162469

From the article:

"Do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life! Before succumbing to the intoxicating warmth of that promise, it's critical to ask, "Who, exactly, benefits from making work feel like nonwork?" "Why should workers feel as if they aren't working when they are?"

In masking the very exploitative mechanisms of labor that it fuels, DWYL is, in fact, the most perfect ideological tool of capitalism. If we acknowledged all of our work as work, we could set appropriate limits for it, demanding fair compensation and humane schedules that allow for family and leisure time.

And if we did that, more of us could get around to doing what it is we really love."

January 21, 2014

About MLK

The internet is full of things said about MLK, both good, and some not so good. Some conservatives co-opt him, forgetting that we remember how much they hated him.

http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/co-opting-king

Some on the more radical side slam him, saying that he was too nice, or that non violence was wrong

http://socialistworker.org/2012/12/14/legacy-of-martin-luther-king

None of these two dare condemn him outright, because that is the legacy of those whom history has vindicated. Both the folks who wore White Sheets and the folks who wore Malcolm X style bowties know that if they dare talk about MLK the way they way he did when he was alive, they will be exposed as the bigots and cowards they are.

But this day is NOT about them.

It is about the fact that, in a rare moment, someone was able to convince a lot of people to try NOT to do what comes naturally, which is to have a civil war, fight, and then leave nothing behind but a mess.

Yes, we do need a Malcolm X to tell people that he will play bad cop if they cannot listen to MLK's good cop.

Yes, we do need to remember that MLK was about fighting for all people, and not just the wealthy white so-called "liberals" who hoped to protect what privilege they had by giving black people the right to sit at a lunch counter, but did not want to address the fact that many of us, black, white, all colors beyond and between, could not AFFORD that lunch, or even get a job at that lunch counter.

But despite all of that, MLK represents the fact that we, as a nation, can sometimes listen to the right message, and pull back from the brink. That may seem small, but the news is of full of nations that might NEVER be able to do that.

For that matter, will we continue the work MLK did, of making all of us see a common humanity, common rights? Or will it be because we have all beat each other up so much even the vultures will find slim pickings.

MLK made the choice clear, the question is, is our vision clear enough to see that?

January 19, 2014

madonna comes under fire for using n word

http://wonderwall.msn.com/music/madonna-comes-under-fire-for-using-n-word-1792597.story?ocid=answw11

"Madonna has courted controversy once again after using a racial slur on her Instagram page. The pop superstar uploaded a snap of her teen son Rocco fighting in the boxing ring on the picture-sharing website on Friday alongside the caption, "No one messes with Dirty Soap! Mama said knock you out! #disn-----."

Ok. Ms. Ciccone, or whatever the hell you call yourself nowadays. Now, I know many defend you as some sort of goddess. Many feminists hate you, many worship you. However, let's be real frank; you made your career because you understood, as few people ever do, how the media operates. You made sure to stay relevant by making sure there was always a big juicy scandal to keep the cameras on you. This latest bit reminds me if when you tried to actually rap on "American life" aka your biggest flop. You tried to be Eminem and came out looking like Insane Clown Posse. Still, as someone who did make money by imitating Black Culture in your music, you have no right to wonder why this is wrong, or why people are getting on the internet yelling at you. How can someone that literally invented the media overexposure formula, the one that Beyoncé and Britney and Miley and Xtina and Gaga and Pink follow, be surprised when using the N word blows up in her face?

Granted, even if you left today (which you won't, I know) your image will be around for years to come, as hordes of women with one name try to become the next version of you. All the same, I am glad to see you hit 60, and I will know that one day, you will be just another has-been. It would be one thing if you had developed a sensitivity to complement your influence, but you never did, because despite all the money you pay the Kabbalah cult, you are just a "material girl" that justifies the worst, most selfish, most arrogant behavior, and does not even come up with any sort of insight for all that time in the gutter.

I pity your children. No wonder Lourdes started smoking at 15, she, like Rocco, had an idiot for a mother.

January 13, 2014

Rich people really do think they are superior

http://www.tampabay.com/news/perspective/rich-people-really-do-think-they-are-superior/2160470

This article shoecases some of the ugly facts in the way of meritocracy. If Mitt Romney and W. are examples of rich people being smart, heaven help us.

January 13, 2014

to all those men so "offended" by the feminists

Look here, I am male, and yes, I have had the occasional verbal sparring match with people on here. I use the term sparring match very deliberately, as when boxers spar, be they Gina Carano or Lennox Lewis, they do not intend to hurt or disrespect their sparring partner, but give and take in the hopes that they get stronger, more skilled, and more aware. That is what happens in DU when I argue, because for the most part, when someone of any gender shows they are just going the shriek at me and repeat the same damned points that are already in bad repute, I either walk away, or at worst, use the ignore function. That is what mature people do when they have a genuine disagreement that cannot be resolved.

Yet, I have had to see some people WHO CLAIM TO SPEAK FOR MEN,
note I say CLAIM, as in SELF-APPOINTED
which we all know means that they would not win an election,

some self appointed "men's rights types" cheer as people were harassed and left.

Look, if you cannot handle criticism on the internet, a place where no one (save perhaps the NSA) knows who you are, then frankly, you might want to consider if you should be on the internet. You should certainly not BULLY a bunch of women because you feel that somehow you got shafted.

And yes, I understand it can get confusing and frustrating out there, that is life. But it is not the level of BS your sisters, mothers, daughters, friends., and simple fellow humans that are female have to deal with. maybe if you really were a bunch of "nice guys" you might listen and learn something. If not, you have done something more productive with your time than watching Gilligan's island reruns.

I realize there is not much I can do. Heck, the MRA types who bragged about how they used sock puppets are probably here now, while certain others, sadly, are not. Rules only matter when people give a damn, and sadly, many men have been convinced that rules and courtesy do not matter to them. Chivalry is quite dead, yet many barbarians insist on women staying the role of fair damsels in their towers.

But I can say, as admittedly one male out of several million on the internet, several thousand on DU.

You do not speak for me,
and those you drove off
spoke for me far more than you ever will!

January 9, 2014

do not pour champagne over CC getting busted in NJ

let us not forget two things:

ONE: while the GOP faithful may hate CC, they hate us even more. They will choke down people they hate if they think they can get a dick cheney in to kill us, see George Bush I and II.

TWO: The rich hate us more than them, even if the current Dems seem to bend over backwards to kiis their ring.

January 3, 2014

a question about Cannabis and DUI

If we are going to regulate the stuff like alcohol, then it makes sense that someone driving while intoxicated gets a DUI. The problem is, can you test DUI cannabios the way you can DUI alcohol? There should be a method. On the other hand, when I hear people say they drive better stoned, that causes worry.

January 1, 2014

Civil rights vs Economic rights?

It'sno surprise that there are a number of fights between people who think that supporting one side of the leftist spectrum is tearing down another side. Mention Pope Francis, and some love what is called his "economic populism", while ignoring the fact the man is a homophobe. On the other hand, some people talk of civil rights, but then people say "well, where is the talk of getting the jobs we need?"

This is no accident. I do not knwo how many paid people there are trying to divide us again, or even how to tell the skilled liars from the people who have legitmate gripes, because they are used as fuel every election cycle, and then are discarded in favor of some mythical middle. This goes beyond who gets elected im 2016, or even 2014.

The truth is, if we do not want to lose, we need to cover ALL AREAS, not just the ones that we understand easiest, or relate to us most directly.

You can have all the civil rights you want, all the ones Rand Paul can throw at you, but if you do not have the security of beign able to earn a living, and a fair economy where the banks do not have a license to lie and rob, then all civil rights are worthless, because there is nothing you have that cannot be stolen from you from those at the top. You become the toy of every rich girl and boy who knows they can hire someone to kill you rather than worry about the courts.

You can have all the money you want, jobs set for life, all needs taken care of, but, if you have no civil rights, there is nothing the powers that be cannot take away from you. You become like some pampered pig waiting to get slaughtered, with the rest of the farm knowing they better not raise a peep to help you.

Our problem is thus, we are a mixture of different groups, many of whom, frankly, HATE each other. Note I did not say dislike, no I did not say don't care about, though that applies. We are often ready to throw blame at each other, because the manipulators know we really, really do not want to be thrown in with the people we hate. They offer us the Faustian deal of "why should you give a damned about them?, if not for them, you could have won."

And there is what we have to fight in 2014. To quote ben franklin, "if we do not hang together, we will all hang separately" In this case, if we are to survive, we have to offer protection of Civil rights (everyone's, including those people you do not understand or have empathy for), AND the right to an economy that is not just Piracy with pantsuits, Casinos without regulation! The good news is, we DO have prven miedicine that works, that works so well that the GOP has to devote billions to lying about both the New Deal and the Voting Rights act. The main enemy is, as always, ourselves.