Cultural Propaganda

For the last few months we have been engaged in cultural propaganda. Our current society is what allows for cultural propaganda to be spewed by anyone who can type or even simply post a link on their social networking page. This cultural propaganda, even though some may considered it accurate, is becoming more destructive compared to being beneficial for our society as a whole.

Terms like racist, race-baiter, and words that can be used in different contexts have been turned into talking points. Talking points that are false and misleading. The use of a word is not the issue. The true issue is the cultural propaganda that is tossed like pamphlets from a drone when the sun rises. The cultural propaganda is not just about race, but gender, social class, religious views, and political stance.

It is important for the public to understand the rhetorical devices that are being used that allow cultural propaganda and corporate agendas that have been developed and deployed by those in power.

Young Black Americans are forced to see images of themselves on television and the internet in a way that is not positive. But this is no different for White Americans. Recent television programing is not created to challenge our thoughts- But rather reinforce our thoughts.

As we engage in cultural propaganda and support drilling, or oppose drilling, believe racism is real, or believe that it is fake we are engaged in cultural propaganda. Their agenda. An agenda that leads to more hate and separation than is healthy for a society that is supposed to be about freedom. That freedom is being crushed, stolen, and only for the elite.

Cultural propaganda has allowed for critical thinking to become something that is almost obsolete- like common sense. While we debate if sexting is real, or is global warming real, we fail to realize that we are being destroyed. We obey the lies, we follow the trends, we are told how we should act, how we should talk, and who we should worship with.

Cultural propaganda has allowed for poor people to believe that they are Republicans, and poor people to believe that Democrats want to change their lot in life. But these false assumptions and false allegiances have destroyed the fabric of our cultural.  

Another example of this in when those that do not belong, support, or understand said community believe that they can make assumptions about that community. They find views and positions that fit their already forced fed moral fabric that has either been engrained by family or often shaped by lack of experience.

Men deciding what is right for women, whites deciding what is right for blacks, and a government telling us what freedom is and how much freedom or privacy we should have are all elements of this cultural war.

This cultural war includes, incomes, race, beliefs and other interest. It would not be surprising if those that look at our current society in the future may equate our society to those that believed in human sacrifice. For what is a war? Nothing more than human sacrifices for beliefs structures that truly should not exist. We ship our children off to war, in some cases these children just want a source of income to provide for their family, or receive funds to attend college. There are some that follow family traditions.

Our recent wars cannot and should not be compared to the Civil War, World War I, and World War II. But they should be viewed as wars for resources and influence. A cultural war supported by cultural propaganda.

While our government conducts these wars for resources and control, they also conduct in the destruction of our freedom and liberties. These liberties are often intertwined and accompanied by cultural agendas with no regard to the influence that they will have on those that stand on the other side of the issue, or demand change or simply attention in order for change.

Of course there are those that will support the State, and believe whatever the State tells them. They will argue that the intellectual is being indoctrinated into a liberal way of thinking, or that their value structure is the only structure that should remain on this soil.

We cannot compare the democrats or republicans of today of those in the past. We cannot assume that the white culture or the black culture can be encompassed into one way of thinking. But should keep in mind that statistics are skewed to fit an agenda. Statistics are often the most damaging cultural agenda that is produced by man. They do not include all of the factors, but break the human experience down into mere numbers. Numbers can never explain the human experience, but only support the cultural propaganda.

There will be some that discredit this concept, or this frame of mind. But the cultural propaganda is here. It has been put in place by our government, the corporations, and our moral beliefs that are often illegitimate and hypocritical. 

Try to escape the cultural propaganda, the denial of freedom, and understand that no matter what, we are born with a set of rights. A right to be free as long as our actions do not cause harm to others. Our thoughts are starting to become crimes, our conversations and emails stored, whistle blowers are evil doers, and the cultural propaganda is blowing across our land.

Let us revolt with our minds, and buying power. Let us seek true knowledge and true understanding in order to make a change. Violence in some cases has been necessary but violence is not the key to the type of revolution that is needed. Freedom cannot become a reality if we are engaged in a political and cultural war of propaganda.       

  

Of course we have made strides towards some sort of imaginary equality, but we except this imaginary equality and allow for the cultural propaganda to feed into our thoughts and actions or inaction.  Obey at your own demise.      

Angry Black Man Syndrome (ABMS)

I have been told many times that I am an angry black man. But those that know me understand that this is not anger but passion. I am cut from a different cloth. There have been many that have told me “You are the whitest black man that I know”. I laugh and think to myself you really do not have a clue about who I really am. Is there a certain way that a black man should talk and dress? I mean, I do wear a belt and search for the correct size jeans.

I am often embarrassed when I see black men with their jeans down to their knees, staring at their Underroos with Sponge Bob Square Paints and the Wonder Twins. Yes I am frustrated when the hottest song on the radio is telling me that I should be single for the night. I mean come on; there is nothing wrong with arguing with your mate and then having hot passionate make-up sex.

I have been pulled over by the cops and racially profiled. I have tried my hardest to let some of the comments that I have heard pass right by like a speeding train and then move on with my life. But the more I heard these comments and evaluated the constant racial tension around me, I knew that it was time to do more with my life and use my talents as a writer to reach the world.

So, you can call me angry if I won’t stand for people not living up to their potential and crying poor me all the time. The excuses are old. The truth is just that the truth. There are some that will never understand the cultural differences and accept that there needs to be real conversation and an agenda developed to combat this racial tension. No matter where I have lived there has always been someone or something that has reminded me that before I am an American, I am black.

When I lived in California I was at my brother-in-laws weeding reception and his father-in-law asked me if I was from Oakland. I looked at him and his fuzzy blonde afro and replied no, I am from Pacifica California. I thought to myself “sorry for the disappointment and welcome to the family”, while his son was standing upside down drinking from a keg. Now explain that to the kids in Oakland!

Or better yet, the day that I moved into my first house and my new neighbor called her husband in fear because I was standing outside instructing the movers were to put my furniture. I can just imagine the conversation over the phone “honey you need to come home now, there is a black man outside his own house I think he is going to rob me and the alarm has not been set-up yet”.

But don’t worry; I get the same type of reaction from black people. Like, when I am standing outside smoking a cigarette and they ask for one and refuse to take one because it is not menthol. Or when we engage in a conversation and they are shocked and say “you speak proper”. I am sorry my house is not filled with Kool-Aid packets and my kids do not run around the neighborhood out of control.

I am not angry at the world and I have friends of all races. Any day around my home I can be the minority and the next the majority. That is the beauty of living in America. I might be a little louder than the next guy, or say something controversial, but why not? I mean, sometimes there are things that need to be addressed.

I do not see the world simply as black and white, but there are issues that can be directly tied to racism and a society that has not addressed the past. I see a bright future for our country. I see little children of all races playing together and eating lunch together at the same table. But as adults we have a responsibility to make it a better place, so these children will not grow up and be upset and understand that race is something that is important.

It was hard enough to explain to my son when he was a kindergartener that it was alright for a black man to marry a white woman. After his first week of kindergarten he came home confused and stated that he thought that a black man and a white woman should not be married. I thought that I would not have a conversation like this until he was at least a teenager. So for those to say that the world has totally moved forward and it is over- think again, because this mindset was taught to a child by their parents.

Even today Obama has tapped into his passion to express his concerns on the current struggles of our economy. They called it the new approach. But I guess since I am not the president and I am not wearing a suit and tie my approach is called anger.

Be a Mentor: Because Kids Need More Thank Just Milk and Cookies

Everyone needs someone in their life to help them reach their goals and often find those hidden skills that are tucked away deep down inside. A mentor is something that all of us can be, no matter what we do for a living. There is always someone out there that needs a little guidance and help. I have spent years helping people around me. I had a mentor that showed me the importance of music and also how damaging some negative music can be to our society. This individual was a father figure to me and unfortunately, is no longer here to see me showcase my skills to the rest of the world.

Becoming a mentor is one thing that we can do to make this a better world. There are always Big Brother and Big Sister programs that are searching for individuals that have the time to spend with the youth. This is a great program but some individuals do not have the time to attend this type of structured mentoring program. Some churches also have mentoring programs that can be helpful, but issues that I have with programs that are dependent on a belief structure is that those views are often forced fed to the individual that is being mentored.

Why is mentoring so important? We live in a world that is dependent on a particular skill set to earn a living. We live in a country that has lost control of our media, the same media that bombards our children with their agendas 24 hours a day. It is important for us to share the stories and experiences that we have been through so that our children do not make the same mistakes we might have made in the past. Helping someone achieve their goals is the best feeling in the world. It is important for us to help create a country that is filled with individuals that are bright and can avoid the mistakes of the past.

The youth look to adults to figure out how they should react in certain situations and they depend on us to teach them how to survive in a world that is forever changing. We all have something to share with another individual. Our educational structure is failing our children and it is up to the parents and the citizens of America to educate our children. There are children that are just roaming the streets while their parents are working two jobs and do not have the time to raise them anymore. Parents are sometimes consumed by the materialism themselves and have often allowed the glowing box to be a mentor for their children.

I am not suggesting that you gather up the little children in your neighborhood and feed them cookies and milk, but rather engage in conversation that will help them make the right decisions. The youth in America are asking for help. You can tell by the music that they listen to, the televisions shows that they enjoy and the increase in teen-pregnancies. We all complain about the world and how it is failing apart, but what are we doing to make it better?

Become a mentor to a person at work and show them how the business works. Mentor a family member that may be dealing with issues and needs another perspective on life. All of our experiences are only random acts if we do not learn from them and share them with others.