"When you get inside the N-Zone..."
"...act like you've been there before."
May I rant?
When Obeezy clinched his historic victory and the roars and cheers deafened the masses, I was waking up from a 2 hour nap.
My cynical mind had already decided he was going to win, that history had already been made, and that it was now merely just a matter of setting up a photo op that didn't expose all that bullet-proofing on stage.
I strolled out of my sanctum intothe my living room to find a bunch of visitors intruders people sitting around clenching their brews, and chanting that one's name. I took a quick gander at the screen to see a genuinely surprised President Elect holding back tears of joy and maintaining composure like he always had, and hopefully, always will.
Then I panned back to the drunk cheering squad bouncing off the walls, ceilings, furniture and floors.
I took of my glasses, massaged my tear ducts in shame before I snapped my headphones on and walked over, around, and out the door onto the front porch to actually listen to the speech.
I have to admit that halfway through the speech, I had gotten distracted by the deluge of phone calls, voicemails, emails and texts. My phone had also grown weary and it's vibration was less than enthusiastic by the time I decided to call Soukeyna.
I needed to hear a sensible voice that would restore the glee the people keep stealing from me. (Sidebar: Thank you Soukie)
Let me tell you about this theft.
There is a deeply ingrained culture of defeatism and underdog worship in these States, United as they may or may not be. Unfortunately, like most other negative facets of day to day life that would stunt social development, this affliction is rampant amongst those with more melanin.
When you infuse those points of perception into a people pursuing freedom and emancipation in a capitalist playground...well, you just gave the emo kid a razor and some depressing death metal and left him/her to her own devises.
It's really cultural suicide.
My main concern with Obama, that I have tried to hide in my back pocket, remains that people were and are not ready for this man, and for the change he can bring, and that their unreadinesses will foil his otherwise flawless bringings.
Those same drunks that had populated my foyer the night that Kenyan won, had been in my house the day prior as I walked in from work. They were doing the same thing, except this time, they were discussing polls and Senator McCain...and whatshername. As a joke, I decided to ask: "If Obama wasn't black, why would you vote for him?"
Nervous laughs and cricket chirps reigned until finally one of the 12 college educated, dark skinned, "microwave pundits" spoke. He made valid points and went so far as to draw shortcomings of the man. Then, after a gloriously laudable answer, he said "But regardless, I'm only voting for dude coz he black."
My heart sunk to the tune of Deja Vu. There would be celebration. Loads of it. There would be unnecessary shows of pride. Gratuitous amounts of them. Then there would be silence after people realized that they cheered before the movie was over. Then there would be more celebration after the inauguration. Then all cameras would slowly zoom into the White House and we would all watch and wait for the first presidential f*ckup. Sensationalist peons and pawns that we are.
There would be a boost in spending, but a decrease in productivity, an inflated interest in politics, but an even more staggering increase in political subjectivity...There would be more of what we want, and less of what we need.
Obama's victory was a cause for celebration, but it was more than anything a call for action. This is the iron when it's hot, and this is when we strike; these are the chickens hatching, and this is when we count. For anyone who's ever asked "What's next?" Well, you're next.
Obama leads, we follow. We don't just sit back and watch him run the distance. He is not a sled dog. He's a leader. Love him or hate him on your own free time, but for now, we all have work to do.
The thing about doors being kicked open, is that they very quickly bounce back unless it's held open. The President has shown that he will his do his job. The people need to show that they can do theirs. The President has proven that he will do his part to break down social, political, international and intra-national divides, we need to prove we can do the rest.
There was a group email proclaming "We won!" in my Inbox that day at about 11:10pm. 20 minutes later, there were about 20 replies reciprocating the emotion in increasingly outlandish manners. I stared at my phone's screen as number 21 came in, then stretched away the nap I had just taken, and prepared to confront the people in my living room who were babbling the same victorious chants.
Phone in hand, I stood in front of the screen on an imaginary soapbox and read to them the reply I sent out to the Victory email:
"We've scored the winning touchdown, but the game is not yet over."
Then I proceeded back into my office, and got straight back to work.
"...act like you've been there before."May I rant?
When Obeezy clinched his historic victory and the roars and cheers deafened the masses, I was waking up from a 2 hour nap.
My cynical mind had already decided he was going to win, that history had already been made, and that it was now merely just a matter of setting up a photo op that didn't expose all that bullet-proofing on stage.
I strolled out of my sanctum into
Then I panned back to the drunk cheering squad bouncing off the walls, ceilings, furniture and floors.
I took of my glasses, massaged my tear ducts in shame before I snapped my headphones on and walked over, around, and out the door onto the front porch to actually listen to the speech.
I have to admit that halfway through the speech, I had gotten distracted by the deluge of phone calls, voicemails, emails and texts. My phone had also grown weary and it's vibration was less than enthusiastic by the time I decided to call Soukeyna.
I needed to hear a sensible voice that would restore the glee the people keep stealing from me. (Sidebar: Thank you Soukie)
Let me tell you about this theft.
There is a deeply ingrained culture of defeatism and underdog worship in these States, United as they may or may not be. Unfortunately, like most other negative facets of day to day life that would stunt social development, this affliction is rampant amongst those with more melanin.
When you infuse those points of perception into a people pursuing freedom and emancipation in a capitalist playground...well, you just gave the emo kid a razor and some depressing death metal and left him/her to her own devises.
It's really cultural suicide.
My main concern with Obama, that I have tried to hide in my back pocket, remains that people were and are not ready for this man, and for the change he can bring, and that their unreadinesses will foil his otherwise flawless bringings.
Those same drunks that had populated my foyer the night that Kenyan won, had been in my house the day prior as I walked in from work. They were doing the same thing, except this time, they were discussing polls and Senator McCain...and whatshername. As a joke, I decided to ask: "If Obama wasn't black, why would you vote for him?"
Nervous laughs and cricket chirps reigned until finally one of the 12 college educated, dark skinned, "microwave pundits" spoke. He made valid points and went so far as to draw shortcomings of the man. Then, after a gloriously laudable answer, he said "But regardless, I'm only voting for dude coz he black."
My heart sunk to the tune of Deja Vu. There would be celebration. Loads of it. There would be unnecessary shows of pride. Gratuitous amounts of them. Then there would be silence after people realized that they cheered before the movie was over. Then there would be more celebration after the inauguration. Then all cameras would slowly zoom into the White House and we would all watch and wait for the first presidential f*ckup. Sensationalist peons and pawns that we are.
There would be a boost in spending, but a decrease in productivity, an inflated interest in politics, but an even more staggering increase in political subjectivity...There would be more of what we want, and less of what we need.
Obama's victory was a cause for celebration, but it was more than anything a call for action. This is the iron when it's hot, and this is when we strike; these are the chickens hatching, and this is when we count. For anyone who's ever asked "What's next?" Well, you're next.
Obama leads, we follow. We don't just sit back and watch him run the distance. He is not a sled dog. He's a leader. Love him or hate him on your own free time, but for now, we all have work to do.
The thing about doors being kicked open, is that they very quickly bounce back unless it's held open. The President has shown that he will his do his job. The people need to show that they can do theirs. The President has proven that he will do his part to break down social, political, international and intra-national divides, we need to prove we can do the rest.
There was a group email proclaming "We won!" in my Inbox that day at about 11:10pm. 20 minutes later, there were about 20 replies reciprocating the emotion in increasingly outlandish manners. I stared at my phone's screen as number 21 came in, then stretched away the nap I had just taken, and prepared to confront the people in my living room who were babbling the same victorious chants.
Phone in hand, I stood in front of the screen on an imaginary soapbox and read to them the reply I sent out to the Victory email:
"We've scored the winning touchdown, but the game is not yet over."
Then I proceeded back into my office, and got straight back to work.
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