Thursday, March 8, 2012
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Cat Fight 1.8
Self-identity in the west is based largely upon material consumption /consumerism/and although this practice is somewhat universal there are some safe havens which associate identity with material non-conformity not individuality. Social climates which do not express identity in this manner are viewed as contradictions to the definition of freedom; as determined by the Western world.
The sight of monolithic cultural dress codes to the westerner often implies a lack of personal freedom, a cultural bondage so to speak. More recently we of the western hemisphere have begun to view the existence of said attire on our shores as an aggressive form of cultural and religious colonialism; not just polar opposite but a threat to Western values.
The sight of monolithic cultural dress codes to the westerner often implies a lack of personal freedom, a cultural bondage so to speak. More recently we of the western hemisphere have begun to view the existence of said attire on our shores as an aggressive form of cultural and religious colonialism; not just polar opposite but a threat to Western values.
The woman’s liberation movement in the United States as well as in Europe was often expressed in terms of material liberation. For example the most infamous symbol of the woman’s movement which served as the catalyst for female independence is the students burning of bras. Female liberation was promoted through public displays of defiance towards fashion impositions. In essence women demonstrated their intention to dress by their own social standards rather than those enforced by men, the results were often rather provocative. Women felt that in rebelling against a male dominated and opinionated society, which in their eyes where responsible for the conservative nature of their being, they were essentially liberating themselves.
Recently the western woman has been confronted with what she has interpreted as a demon from her own historical past manifested in a different cultural and religious setting. When the western woman sees the Islamic dress code on her streets she sees a woman that lacks liberty and self identity. A woman ill-equipped to express her self identity by choosing what she wishes to wear as well as how to wear it and this violates the western worlds uncanny ability to create conformity by will – rather than by force. Usually women of other cultures around the world are quickly swallowed up by western materialism because everybody knows at first glance no matter how pretty your beads are they would look better with Prada.
Some would argue that the disagreement the Western world has with the Veil or the Hijab is simply security based given that the women cannot be identified. This argument has some credibility in that visibility is a main factor in identifying criminals. When somebody robs a bank they often conceal their identity, no suspect, no case, therefore there is some merit to the western notion of a veiled woman having a greater chance of committing a crime and getting away with it. Another warranted fear is that a man could put a veil on and do whatever he pleased without need to identify himself. There are some legitimate security concerns that westerners have against the veil.
The problem with these fear based arguments is not that they lack logic but probability. Notably to date there has been no significant occurrence of veiled women using their religious garments as a means of concealing their identity during criminal activities in the west. Further more a woman who wears the veil often states that they will reveal their faces to female security or police officers if requested. Therefore if our fears are not security based then what are they based upon? Primarily the fear of the western world is based upon the assumption that a veiled woman is an oppressed one and their presence among us could negatively impact us rather then security.
Given that western concepts of female freedom and autonomy are so steeped in sexual liberation and that under Islam true freedom is only acquired through submission to God; manifested by women through modesty in dress these two material assumptions seem inherently conflictual. The Islamic woman believes wrongfully or rightly that through hiding her sexuality she is able to engage men as equals without the bother of sexual tension. Her belief system asserts; contrary to western values; that the covering of her sexuality is a vehicle to gain gender equality where as openly displaying sexuality is a barrier to equality.
However, there are problems within Islamic society which propel westerners into the obvious difficulty of concluding such positive assumptions regarding a Muslims woman’s dress given the evidence within the Islamic world of gender oppression. Many examples such as the Quran’s seemingly explicit support of physical reprimand by the husband (no matter what the situation or how lightly the punishment is enacted) seems barbaric and savage to western observers whose own culture dictates that this would be unacceptable under any circumstance. The existence of suggestions within the Quran which deem a woman’s testimony as less weighty than that of a man is difficult for the most adamant Islamic sympathizers to reconcile since one of the most cherished western principles is equality under the law. Connecting the dress code of a Muslim woman smothered in cloth to male physical violence supported by Quranic texts and legal domination by a society that considers a woman’s testimony less then a man’s is effortless.
Equally as discomforting as the existence of gender oppression in the Islamic world resulting in the veiled woman is that these woman do not see it as oppression. The war that women around the world have not yet won is the ability to adapt seemingly universal concepts of female liberation to culturally, religiously or individually influence woman’s differing concepts of said liberation. The woman that the west is comfortable mending is the one who is being oppressed but she whom the west has great difficulty dealing with is she whose concept of freedom differs distinctly from theirs' and would be defined by western standards as oppression. The interaction between the Muslim woman and the female liberation movement is quit a potent quagmire because even though they may have the same goals in liberation they are very differently defined.
The question that the west is being confronted with is, how does it deal with the woman who willingly chooses to conceal herself under a blanket of cloth? The obvious answer could be said to be nothing; that the veiled woman who freely chooses to engage in such practice should be accepted. Although this answer sounds liberal enough for news prints it is my belief that people of the west feel a great threat by women who veil themselves because perhaps they are no longer dealing with an oppressed woman asking for freedom but a liberated woman challenging core principles of western belief systems.
The challenge that the Muslim woman poses to the western woman is that she does not base her freedom on her sexuality. That female liberation should not be defined by female displays of public sexuality but by the covering of it; as we need not see the curves of a woman, the size of her waist or the size of her breast as a part of public scenery. It is hypocritical to say we stand for womens' rights and still legally inundate the internet and all forms of media with pornography and then scoff at the sight of a veiled woman.
Something happened inside of the western woman’s mind that eventually became problematic. Tossing away the material constraints of a male dominated society by flaunting sexuality was using sexuality as a flag for liberation. What this flag hoped to communicate was that women are liberated, proven by provocatively dressing anyway they desired, the ultimate display of autonomy because it possessed the effective shock value.
The problem was that woman got so enamored with their victory that they forgot the goal was not being able to dress anyway they desired but one of absolute gender equality. Through using sexuality as a means to express autonomy women have created another oppression, a hyper sexualized dress code in Hollywood, Music and general society.
Whether taking off clothes or putting clothes on – these actions are not determinates of either oppression or liberation but rather these conclusions exist solely in the mind of the woman. They should not be used as measures of liberation or oppression no matter how tempting it might be less our version of liberation becomes someone else’s oppression. Liberty exists solely in situations where individual freedom thrives but evidence of its existence resides only in the proof of divergent expression.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Loose Lips Sink Ships
To my surprise not even twenty minutes after spilling the milk – his girlfriend was on the phone, “hi Chris” she said in a slow sweet perky voice – leaving me unaware – that she was aware that the damage had been done. “What did you tell Karl?” she says slowly and calmly forcing her lips to conform to nice words – she is evidently conscious of every word she speaks, the tone, pitch and volume all projected to hide the emotion of anger – that anyone would have towards a person that undid months of secrete planning in a slip of the tong – as I had done to her. For example she would be at a table ten feet away in the middle of a conversation, slowly turn her head away from the person that she was talking to – look at me – smile briefly and more genuinely then could have been possible - given the situation– and then turned back as if her eyes had simply fanned the room and rejoined the conversation without incidence.
Dealing with everything that I have been going through with the perpetual unemployment, a household unit drowning in alcoholism, gym inferiority complexes, student loan payments and ever increasing credit card debt – something far more embarrassing happened. Despite my already depressed position– I became that guy – that tells the guy whose surprise party it is – that there is a party for him.
To answer your question a head of time – No – I didn’t do it out of malice or intent – but rather out of complete stupidity. I wish I could have simply said “I didn’t know that it was a – “secrete” or lied straight out and said “I never spoke to him at all” or imply that “it was the organizers fault (who happens to be his girlfriend) that she never told me ANYTHING about keeping it secrete.” Although all of those responses at the time seemed tempting – they were not adequate. I would have to face the music – and with that thought my phone rang instantly. I looked at the number on the phone but it was not familiar to me – I answered anyways – not concerned – placing the phone to my ear – and it was her.
When you get in trouble for doing something – sometimes its nice if you get hit for it – or cursed out – for in these cases the victim has given the victimizer peace of mind – they have enacted their punishment and all is well. This was not the case – she gave me no punishment – simply smile – after smile – after smile.
Dealing with everything that I have been going through with the perpetual unemployment, a household unit drowning in alcoholism, gym inferiority complexes, student loan payments and ever increasing credit card debt – something far more embarrassing happened. Despite my already depressed position– I became that guy – that tells the guy whose surprise party it is – that there is a party for him.
To answer your question a head of time – No – I didn’t do it out of malice or intent – but rather out of complete stupidity. I wish I could have simply said “I didn’t know that it was a – “secrete” or lied straight out and said “I never spoke to him at all” or imply that “it was the organizers fault (who happens to be his girlfriend) that she never told me ANYTHING about keeping it secrete.” Although all of those responses at the time seemed tempting – they were not adequate. I would have to face the music – and with that thought my phone rang instantly. I looked at the number on the phone but it was not familiar to me – I answered anyways – not concerned – placing the phone to my ear – and it was her.
When you get in trouble for doing something – sometimes its nice if you get hit for it – or cursed out – for in these cases the victim has given the victimizer peace of mind – they have enacted their punishment and all is well. This was not the case – she gave me no punishment – simply smile – after smile – after smile.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Haiti - destroying my misconceptions 1.6
I role off of the living room coach and flip to CNN – for what I expect to be – nothing in the area of what it turned out to be. Images flashed unyieldingly through my eyes of the carnage and destruction that the earthquake had left behind. The destruction that I saw I need not describe - one simply has to close their eyes for a moment and can immediately conjure up that face that stood out to you, that child, that mother, that father, that friend.
One such story was the narration of Reverend Pat Robinson over the occurrence of the earthquake of
Although my mind was mesmerized around a story of pain and tragedy – of suffering and defeat other stories were arising. Destroying my misconceptions of a cruel and selfish world – of weak and incapable human beings – would be the response of the world – and of the Haitian people in light of the tragedy. Even more prominent on my mind then the faces of the dead or dying – would be the faces of survivors and volunteers digging with bare hands through concrete slabs and rubble – for the possibility of finding loved ones still alive. Even more prominent then the words of a renegade reverend – would be the prayers pouring in from Churches, Mosques, Temples, Synagogues and people – which would give God the access needed to save lives. More impactful then the rivers of tears pouring out on the streets were those that despite having lost loved ones decided to honor them by singing and dancing. This week I witnessed
This is not to say that
I have a comment for you that disbelieve that can be phrased best in the once loathed words of a war mongering American President turned Haitian philanthropist – “you are either with us or against us” George W. Bush. The story of people who continue to hope and dream for a better tomorrow with blood, sweat and tears and a world willing to dream with them through actions and donations – into a great and glorious future – is the story that will stand the test of time; not the carnage – the insensitive or the selfish but the bright, the hopeful and the courageous.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Weights and Measurements 1.5
Weights and Measurements 1.5
The gym is a place of weights and measurements, distances and dimensions, securities and insecurities. The physical body is perhaps in no other place in society placed under such scrutiny as in the gym. I walk in and look at the long row of free weights starting from as low as 2.5 pounds all the way to 100 pounds or more. The lowest weights are the closest to the door and the heaviest weights are the farthest from the door as if they were in their own exclusive area. Those that can’t lift as much are confined to the area closest to the door unable to advance for fear of injury and embarrassment in the land of the VIPs.
I have always been a smaller built person that some people would call skinny but I would prefer to call it – having been blessed with one of the finest metabolisms the world has even seen. Seriously my metabolism was born in a small village in Kenya and used to deliver messages to neighboring countries on foot – as a form of charity after he got home from the war. Although my heart greatly appreciates his hard work and dedication – it doesn’t do much for my muscle build – which my pastor calls the “Marathon runner look” and goes on to say that – “there is no other reason to look like a Marathon runner then to be a marathon runner.” So I have been eating a lot of protein – eggs – peanut butter- milk – cheese and tuna not for the taste but simply to change the way my physical appearance compares with the competition. Also, so my pastor will stop picking on me.
Some people say that they go to the gym to get healthy – which can be effectively translated into what most civilized religions in the world call lying! If you are under 40 and in the gym chances are your primary motivation is not health – I mean in some ways I am there for my health too – but really what I fantasize about on the way to the gym is my transition into a bulky warrior beast of a caveman – not an impressed look on a doctors face after a check up. So health is a factor but it is not what gets me under the bench press in the morning.
Although there is this shallow motivation to change my physical appearance and to a lesser extent to improve my health – I think there is a larger factor that I am neglecting to mention. It is this over all feeling of wellbeing that you get when you make significant physical movements during the day. NO, I am not talking about clicking the remote, or the long walk from the front door to the car door, or from the parking spot to the office desk - I am talking about physical activity that makes you break a sweat – and if any of the above exercises do cause you to break a sweat you should seriously consider seeking medical attention. But really this over all feeling of goodness that seems to just sweep over your body – and lets you know that you can do anything else during the day – is the main reason I go to the gym.
It’s the New Year and it’s a good time to get into the gym – its one of those simple solutions – that I have been able to implement and it has been well worth it. It would also be an added benefit if I could one day beat up my pastor for telling me I look like a marathon runner – in a fit of carnal man beast aggression and if I can’t – then I will just convert to Hinduism.
The gym is a place of weights and measurements, distances and dimensions, securities and insecurities. The physical body is perhaps in no other place in society placed under such scrutiny as in the gym. I walk in and look at the long row of free weights starting from as low as 2.5 pounds all the way to 100 pounds or more. The lowest weights are the closest to the door and the heaviest weights are the farthest from the door as if they were in their own exclusive area. Those that can’t lift as much are confined to the area closest to the door unable to advance for fear of injury and embarrassment in the land of the VIPs.
I have always been a smaller built person that some people would call skinny but I would prefer to call it – having been blessed with one of the finest metabolisms the world has even seen. Seriously my metabolism was born in a small village in Kenya and used to deliver messages to neighboring countries on foot – as a form of charity after he got home from the war. Although my heart greatly appreciates his hard work and dedication – it doesn’t do much for my muscle build – which my pastor calls the “Marathon runner look” and goes on to say that – “there is no other reason to look like a Marathon runner then to be a marathon runner.” So I have been eating a lot of protein – eggs – peanut butter- milk – cheese and tuna not for the taste but simply to change the way my physical appearance compares with the competition. Also, so my pastor will stop picking on me.
Some people say that they go to the gym to get healthy – which can be effectively translated into what most civilized religions in the world call lying! If you are under 40 and in the gym chances are your primary motivation is not health – I mean in some ways I am there for my health too – but really what I fantasize about on the way to the gym is my transition into a bulky warrior beast of a caveman – not an impressed look on a doctors face after a check up. So health is a factor but it is not what gets me under the bench press in the morning.
Although there is this shallow motivation to change my physical appearance and to a lesser extent to improve my health – I think there is a larger factor that I am neglecting to mention. It is this over all feeling of wellbeing that you get when you make significant physical movements during the day. NO, I am not talking about clicking the remote, or the long walk from the front door to the car door, or from the parking spot to the office desk - I am talking about physical activity that makes you break a sweat – and if any of the above exercises do cause you to break a sweat you should seriously consider seeking medical attention. But really this over all feeling of goodness that seems to just sweep over your body – and lets you know that you can do anything else during the day – is the main reason I go to the gym.
It’s the New Year and it’s a good time to get into the gym – its one of those simple solutions – that I have been able to implement and it has been well worth it. It would also be an added benefit if I could one day beat up my pastor for telling me I look like a marathon runner – in a fit of carnal man beast aggression and if I can’t – then I will just convert to Hinduism.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Soulspedia 1.4
Soulspedia 1.4
Well those of you that don’t know me that well - might be surprised by this story. It’s a story that is often not told – because it congers up feelings of embarrassment in many of its victims – or those effected by its victims; the events that sometimes happen in house holds that we make sure the neighbors and family members might get peep shows at but never confront face to face; an ugly contradiction in the closet of our society that many people deal with in solemn silence; this cancerous limb is not a secrete but it is kept as one, like a horse hiding behind a pole; it is hopelessly concealed yet blatantly obvious.
Despite its many names only one name is truly fitting – Soulspedia. It is easy for our bodies too take vacations – these excursions are simply a number of miles away – but not so easy is it to escape our selves. We are hopelessly confined to our bodies – with hope of escape – seemingly only in death. Soulspedia is the word that I use to describe the process which we go through to escape ourselves – instead of Expedia which takes our bodies away – I want to talk about the things that we use to take our minds and souls on lavish vacations.
The ticket is pricey. It comes in the forms of many names coffee, alcohol, antidepressants, hash, pain, attention, weed, cocaine, heroin, acid, ecstasy, movies, love, shopping, video games, popularity, sex, entertainment, food and all the other words in the dictionary. The range and intensity of its use differs on the bases of the person but they find similarity in the promise that they facilitate escape of the mind and soul from the confines of self. The unyielding desire of the human being to float away from itself – to fix the unfixable – and remedy the Closter phobia of confinement.
The promise of that drink, that smoke, that drug or that companion, which propel human beings to choose the tool of their escape. Many might be concerned about the danger of the things we run too but it can be far more revealing to depict the isolation we run from. In social settings we quickly plummet into our escape pods – tiny glasses filled with magical elixirs – hiding our insecurities from ourselves for a nominal price. Music fills our ears at a level that makes conversation undesirable. Conversation is repulsive because it reminds us of ourselves and in these moments we wish to be recreated. Soulspedia creates that escape so that we no longer have to stay confined – during interviews with stars we do not watch them – we become them. We do not admire them but rather our new self – embodied in the smart, beautiful and funny people – we were never recognized for being. What we run from is the blatant obviousness of our imperfection.
I have been the first hand witness to the progression of a person from using a substance to forget who they are – to falling in love with their escape so much so - that they had no propensity to realize what they were running from. It no longer mattered and the result was a person that had not the ability to look at them selves in a state of sobriety longer then it took to get himself to the liquor store – and to throw it down the hatch. Like the coach of the loosing team that had infinite time outs – to postpone that defeat – they were too scared to face – not seeming to know that - next Sunday would be another game to win – that they could start over.
Well those of you that don’t know me that well - might be surprised by this story. It’s a story that is often not told – because it congers up feelings of embarrassment in many of its victims – or those effected by its victims; the events that sometimes happen in house holds that we make sure the neighbors and family members might get peep shows at but never confront face to face; an ugly contradiction in the closet of our society that many people deal with in solemn silence; this cancerous limb is not a secrete but it is kept as one, like a horse hiding behind a pole; it is hopelessly concealed yet blatantly obvious.
Despite its many names only one name is truly fitting – Soulspedia. It is easy for our bodies too take vacations – these excursions are simply a number of miles away – but not so easy is it to escape our selves. We are hopelessly confined to our bodies – with hope of escape – seemingly only in death. Soulspedia is the word that I use to describe the process which we go through to escape ourselves – instead of Expedia which takes our bodies away – I want to talk about the things that we use to take our minds and souls on lavish vacations.
The ticket is pricey. It comes in the forms of many names coffee, alcohol, antidepressants, hash, pain, attention, weed, cocaine, heroin, acid, ecstasy, movies, love, shopping, video games, popularity, sex, entertainment, food and all the other words in the dictionary. The range and intensity of its use differs on the bases of the person but they find similarity in the promise that they facilitate escape of the mind and soul from the confines of self. The unyielding desire of the human being to float away from itself – to fix the unfixable – and remedy the Closter phobia of confinement.
The promise of that drink, that smoke, that drug or that companion, which propel human beings to choose the tool of their escape. Many might be concerned about the danger of the things we run too but it can be far more revealing to depict the isolation we run from. In social settings we quickly plummet into our escape pods – tiny glasses filled with magical elixirs – hiding our insecurities from ourselves for a nominal price. Music fills our ears at a level that makes conversation undesirable. Conversation is repulsive because it reminds us of ourselves and in these moments we wish to be recreated. Soulspedia creates that escape so that we no longer have to stay confined – during interviews with stars we do not watch them – we become them. We do not admire them but rather our new self – embodied in the smart, beautiful and funny people – we were never recognized for being. What we run from is the blatant obviousness of our imperfection.
I have been the first hand witness to the progression of a person from using a substance to forget who they are – to falling in love with their escape so much so - that they had no propensity to realize what they were running from. It no longer mattered and the result was a person that had not the ability to look at them selves in a state of sobriety longer then it took to get himself to the liquor store – and to throw it down the hatch. Like the coach of the loosing team that had infinite time outs – to postpone that defeat – they were too scared to face – not seeming to know that - next Sunday would be another game to win – that they could start over.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Rebel with Too Many Causes
Rebel with Too Many Causes .3
Thanks to all the good feed back on my blog…its amazing how many people are entertained by my self destructive life style. Because I have been getting so much feed back on how people are so concerned about how I have been doing I have decided to write a blog entry about some of the positive things that have been going on in my life but they are few and far between.
But seriously there are some good things – for one - although no one has actually landed me a job yet I am surprised by the amount of people that have really tried to help and continue to help me try to get a job. Remember its not the people that want to be around you when your doing good that are your friends – it is the people that are there with you every step of the way through the worst of times that are truly your friends for life. Thankfully I have a lot of people around me that have shown their loyalty through this difficult time.
Other then these things my life is much the same. I surf the internet for political causes that I can get angry about and complain about them to anyone that is willing to listen. Its funny but I miss my University days were issues and debates were readily at hand – now that I have graduated I am forced to target innocent by standers.
The best I get is debating my pastor on why the Christian missionaries being killed in the Middle East are not really martyrs but the result of decades of Western oppression and domination – combined with the insensitivity of a pastor marching into territories where American soldiers were killing innocent people by the droves just a few weeks earlier to try to preach the gospel. Or debating on why honor killings are not actually apart of Sharia law – have nothing to do with the Islamic faith – and are both cultural and rare. I am always amazed at how much Christians and Muslims know about worst of each other.
One of the funnest things that I did was post an article about Israeli’s harvesting Palestinian organs to my fairly pro Israeli Church’s Facebook page. Now that I have the FBI’s attention maybe I will get more hits on my blog.
By the way to my critic (you know who you are) I am going to try my very best not to wake up in the morning and start drinking red wine. I have decided to push it back till at least mid afternoon – or just switch to white.
Thanks to all the good feed back on my blog…its amazing how many people are entertained by my self destructive life style. Because I have been getting so much feed back on how people are so concerned about how I have been doing I have decided to write a blog entry about some of the positive things that have been going on in my life but they are few and far between.
But seriously there are some good things – for one - although no one has actually landed me a job yet I am surprised by the amount of people that have really tried to help and continue to help me try to get a job. Remember its not the people that want to be around you when your doing good that are your friends – it is the people that are there with you every step of the way through the worst of times that are truly your friends for life. Thankfully I have a lot of people around me that have shown their loyalty through this difficult time.
Other then these things my life is much the same. I surf the internet for political causes that I can get angry about and complain about them to anyone that is willing to listen. Its funny but I miss my University days were issues and debates were readily at hand – now that I have graduated I am forced to target innocent by standers.
The best I get is debating my pastor on why the Christian missionaries being killed in the Middle East are not really martyrs but the result of decades of Western oppression and domination – combined with the insensitivity of a pastor marching into territories where American soldiers were killing innocent people by the droves just a few weeks earlier to try to preach the gospel. Or debating on why honor killings are not actually apart of Sharia law – have nothing to do with the Islamic faith – and are both cultural and rare. I am always amazed at how much Christians and Muslims know about worst of each other.
One of the funnest things that I did was post an article about Israeli’s harvesting Palestinian organs to my fairly pro Israeli Church’s Facebook page. Now that I have the FBI’s attention maybe I will get more hits on my blog.
By the way to my critic (you know who you are) I am going to try my very best not to wake up in the morning and start drinking red wine. I have decided to push it back till at least mid afternoon – or just switch to white.
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