Life is a Highway

Life is a Highway
Source: Haiku Deck

Monday, February 29, 2016

The Blaze: Mary Ramirez: 'I’m Done Apologizing For Being White, And You Should Be Too'

Source:The Blaze- Multi-color, multi-racial, multi-ethnic America.
Source:The Daily Review 

"What problems are solved by raising entire generations of Americans to hate the color of their skin? 

I’ve often been told I have no right to write about race.

I’ve also been told that I pompously “think I have a right” to write about race just because I married a Mexican.

And you know what? Often I find myself second guessing nine-tenths of what I say because, undoubtedly I’ll say something that someone somewhere will scream about how I have no right to say for one simple fact:

I’m white.

Even as I sit here writing this, I’ve stopped and started at least a dozen times, thinking about the right way to put all this to mitigate the inevitable backlash.

But you know what? That’s actually the entire point." 

From The Blaze

I feel an accusation that I'm a racist coming in the near future, because I don't see all Caucasians as racists and bigots in general, or that we have some monopoly on racism and bigotry in general in this country. But we'll wait and see.

Just to give some of my own views about race in America, as it's called: 

It was African-American freedom fighter Rosa Parks who had the courage and was right to stand up for her own rights not as an African-American, but simply as an American citizen in refusing to give up her bus seat to a Caucasian-American, who said 'that the only race is the human race.

 Dr. Martin Luther King and his I Have a Dream speech: "I have a dream that one day my children will grow up and not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." I'm paraphrasing, but that is very close. The only thing I would add to that dream is that all children in America grow up and see that dream as the new reality or the new normal. In a society like that no one is judging people by race, but by character.

When I say I don't see race, I mean I don't judge people by race. Anyone can see the racial differences between Europeans, African-Asians, North Americans and everyone else. That is not the question. The question is do we judge people by the race and ethnicity that we see, or by the individual and their character and how they present themselves in life as an individual. And not just that, but I also don't identify by race and certainly not by color. 

Not all African-Americans have black skin. Not all Caucasians have white skin and if you look at the color of white in reality like a white t-shirt, no one has that complexion anyway. Asians whether their ancestors come from Central Asia, South Asia, or the Far-East, obviously don't have yellow skin.

So if we're going to have a conversation about race in America are we going to talk about race, or is this about color? Two different things. And to say that some people have white blood, some people have black blood and some people have brown blood. the only blood I've ever seen is red. So that's not a way to talk about race either. Barack Obama doesn't have black or white blood, but only red blood. He's not black or white, but brown. He's got Irish and American-Indian ancestry on his mother's side and Kenyan blood on his father's side. He's both an African and European-American, as well as an American-Indian. He celebrates St. Patrick's Day, because he's Irish on his mother's side. 

So are we talking about race, or color, or both? And when it comes to mix-race people, well they might not have one color in their complexion, but a combination of colors. Depending on the person.

When it comes to apologizing about being Caucasian or anything else, why should anyone do that? Should everyone speak out against bigots in their racial and ethnic communities when they make ignorant statements about other ethnicities and races? Of course they should if they know what that person said is bigoted. But this idea that anyone should apologize for being how they were born regardless of how they were born, their complexion, how their hair looks and how their face is shaped, etc, of course not. 

Why should individuals apologize for how they were born? It is one thing to denounce your own bigotry and say you were wrong about that and are now sorry for it.  But it's another to apologize for how you were born. Which is something that none of us can obviously control. We aren't born bigots. That is something that people have to learn and then accept.

Thursday, February 25, 2016

Young Americans For Liberty: George Carlin- On Individualism

Source:Young Americans For Liberty- the great comedian George Carlin.
Source:The Daily Review

"George Carlin — American Comedian born on May 12, 1937, died on June 22, 2008

George Denis Patrick Carlin was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, actor, and author. Carlin was noted for his black comedy and his thoughts on politics, the English language, psychology, religion, and various taboo subjects. Carlin and his "Seven dirty words" comedy routine were central to the 1978 U.S. Supreme Court case F.C.C. v. Pacifica Foundation, in which a 54 decision affirmed the government's power to regulate indecent material on the public airwaves... 

From Quotes Gram 

"George Carlin describes his process of organizing his life experiences into his comedy routines.

ABOUT THE PALEY CENTER:
In an era of rapid change in media and technology, the not-for-profit Paley Center for Media explores the evolving ways in which we create, consume, and connect through media. With locations in New York and Los Angeles, and the foremost public archive of television and radio programming, the Paley Center produces and curates programs, forums, and educational activities that engage the general public, industry professionals, and the creative community in an ongoing conversation about the impact of media on our lives. The Paley Center for Media is a hub of innovation and connection for entrepreneurs, investors, and consumers with its finger on the pulse of the next big thing in media go to the Paley Center to learn more." 

Source:Paley Center- comedian George Carlin in 2008.

From the Paley Center 

George Carlin, I believe was the most individualists of individualists. Perhaps not the father of individualism, but perhaps the president of it. A man who didn't play team sports, because always wanted to be himself. Imagine if we had a culture of individualists instead of a culture of faddists. Who believe there worthless or something if they don't have the latest i-phone or i-pad, or whatever the current thing is that people have to have, or you might see them inline to jump off a bridge. Because their current device is a week old instead of just buying it brand new today. George Carlin and myself, aren't against technology. I don't think he's as popular as he's today without it and I'm not doing what I'm doing without it. But he was against cloning and faddism.

People are exactly that. We all at start out in life as ourselves and what we do with that is up to us. A faddist and unfortunately I know plenty of them goes with the current trend. Whatever is considered cool or awesome. They vote for politicians, because that person is cool, or shares the same phone and watches the same programs as they do. Individualists vote for people based on who they think would be the best person for the office that they're voting on. Individuals make individual decisions. What's best for them and what they believe and what they want to do. They don't camp out at stores so they're one of the five people to have the latest whatever as soon as it goes on sale. They buy a new phone or whatever the thing is when they need one. And buy what is best for them.

If you noticed George Carlin was an individualist comedian as well. He was well-read and well-informed on the news and talked and made fun of things and people based on what he thought was important and what interest him. Not about whatever the popular subject was at the time. And was so good at what he did that he brought people to him and actually got him to think. He might be the only comedian who could get Millennial's who are interested in current affairs to put their i-phone down for more than five-minutes. Scratch that, maybe he could only do it for a minute, but in today's society that would still be impressive. Because Carlin could get people to think about things they've never thought about before and think about things they have thought about, but look at them differently. Like when it comes to politicians and blaming the voters who voted for them. And is someone who can't be replaced and is still missed.

Friday, February 19, 2016

The American Thinker: Don Feder: All Aboard Starship Bernie Sanders!

Source:The Daily Review- U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (Democratic Socialist, Socialist Republic of Vermont)
Source:The Daily Review

Perhaps the first time ever I read a post on The American Thinker where it looked like there was some real thinking involved in the writer's piece. Anytime a Socialist politician running for high office and in this case not the highest office in the country, but the highest office in the world in President of the United States, anytime that politician promises free stuff from government, ask that person how much is this free stuff going to cost you. Anyone who pays taxes in America pays for the government they receive. And in some cases we pay for the government we don't receive. If you're fortunate to never be unemployed in America, you'll never receive the Unemployment Insurance that you pay for. And that is just one example.

The weakness that Socialists in America have and why they've never caught on for the most part at least in high office, is because they're so big centralized government-centric. And again everything that government does it has to charge it's taxpayers for the cost. Or borrow the money from another country which we pay in interest relates. The old cliche 'money doesn't grow on trees', should have been the first thing that anyone ever read when studying either economics, government, or political philosophy, especially socialism. I guess today's Millennial's who are at least technically studying economics were too busy camping out at the Apple Store the night before so they could say they were one of the first five people to buy the latest i-phone and be able to post that on Facebook. And over slept that night and missed the money doesn't grow on trees economic lesson.

Millennial's, especially need to at least try to understand this. Spend one day not hyped up on Red Bull, coffee, or alcohol and focus during one government and economics lesson. Because they need to know that all of the promises that Socialist presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, now what seventeen-trillion-dollars in counting, or is it thirty-trillion-dollars, hell lets make it hundred-trillion-dollars, I have a hard time keeping up with Socialists when it comes to taxes and government. They need to know that if for some reason Bernie were to ever become President of the United States, which might only happen if all of Hillary Clinton's voters are kidnapped, or deported by Donald Trump, that everything that Bernie is promising will come with a huge cost in taxes. Nothing free about government.
Source:Fox News

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Big Think: John Cleese- 'Political Correctness Can Lead to an Orwellian Nightmare'

Source:Big Think- 1984 from George Orwell.
Source:The Daily Review 

"John Cleese says political correctness has gone too far, especially on America's college campuses, where he will no longer go to perform. The very essence of his trade — comedy — is criticism and that not infrequently means hurt feelings. But protecting everyone from negative emotion all the time is not only impractical (one can't control the feelings of another), but also improper in a free society. Cleese, having worked with psychiatrist Robin Skynner, says there may even be something more sinister behind the insistence to always be politically correct." 

From the Big Think

If you're familiar with the book Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell plots a situation where a country is run by a special elite, or Board of Experts, that would decide what is best and appropriate for everyone else in the country. Including the most private and personal of activities like how we think and what we say. Well, if you're familiar with the political correctness movement you know that is what the people in this movement want to do when it comes to thought and speech in this country. And would like to decide what is appropriate for everyone else when it comes to how we think and speak in this country.

Anyone familiar with comedy knows that it is about as non-partisan an institution as you'll ever see. It doesn't target groups, but people who do and say funny things and things that could be embarrassing for them. Stupid things and activities that famous people could be involved in. 

Comedy generally speaking is not about race. Except for comedians who make it about race and take the idea that making fun of Caucasians or minorities, is perfectly acceptable, but when you make fun of the other you're a bigot. 

My other issue with political correctness and why I can't take it seriously and don't bother to struggle to do so is the hypocrisy of it. Making fun of Caucasians, especially Anglo-Saxon, Southern Protestants, is perfectly okay (according to the Far-Left) but if you make a hip-hop joke, you're a bigot, in their view.

Free speech and comedy go together like chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream. Perfectly, but free speech and fascism/political correctness, are like hot dogs with peanut butter. Mustard with apple pie. I hate fascism and like mustard, but not with apple pie. Salesman need to go where the customers are and comedians need to go where the jokes are. You can't restrict a salesman when they pick customers, because it might offend other customers. And you can't restrict comedians, because one group or groups of people can't handle legitimate criticism, or having their short-comings made fun of. If you want to have a successful business and a comedy industry that thrives and makes people with sense of humors laugh.

For the oversensitive Americans amongst us regardless of race or ethnicity, comedy is probably not for you. And you should stick with your coffee houses and French poetry readings and reality TV. And when you want comedy, listen to some Far-Left comedian bashing rich people especially rich Caucasian men and claiming how much they're destroying the country. And leave comedy in general for people who like to laugh and don't give a damn about who is getting made fun of as long as the jokes are funny and in good taste. Making fun of someone's real short-comings  and especially doing it in a critical informative way, is not bigoted. But informative and a way of educating people.

To suggest one group of Americans or groups of Americans, are off limits when it comes to comedy, even though we live in a liberal democracy and liberal democratic republic, with a liberal guarantee of free speech, is to suggest one group of Americans, or group of Americans are somehow perfect in an imperfect world. But not only that, it also suggest that you might live in the wrong country. That liberal democracy is too hard for you and you need to live a place where people tell you what to think and what to say. Because you can't think for yourself and don't believe anyone else can either. Perhaps the country in Nineteen Eighty-Four, would be a good country for you. And leave America for people who love individual freedom including free speech and are smart enough to handle it.

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Bernardo Santos Carmo: Judy Garland With Frank Sinatra & Dean Martin (1962)

Source:Bernardo Santos Carmo- The Chairman of The Board Frank Sinatra & Judy Garland in 1962.
Source:The Daily Review 

"Judy, Frank and Dean Martin in this memorable 1962 show." 

From Bernardo Santos Carmo

You're going to have a harder time finding three better singers and really performers when you're talking about Judy, Frank and Dean, performing together on the same show, then Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. That is how big Judy Garland was and the amount of star power that she had that she could bring in those two great performers. The two top stars in the Rat Pack that she was friends with and worked with. 

I emphasize performers here, because Judy, Frank and Dean, were more than singers. They were all great singers as well, but they were entertainers. Dean Martin, an accomplished singer, actor and comedian. Frank Sinatra, the Chairman of the Board, The Voice, perhaps the singer of all-time, as well as an accomplished actor and someone with the comedic wit and timing of a great comedian. Judy Garland, accomplished singer and actress, who also had a great comedic wit and timing. You put these three together and also throw in that they're friends and you have a great show.