Nov 19

Are We Witnessing The Crash Landing Of The Mothership?

I think saying “its all up to George” may be a cop out. It’s never only up to one person when a group or organization is involved. Hell, even Steve Jobs got fired from his own company and the President of the USA can’t just do what he wants to do. So if the shows are fucked up and raggedy and if the Mothership is cruising for a crash landing ain’t it up to all of us whether we are riding or watching to do or say something?20130816_224346

I mean c’mon, the shows are horrible! The music is goodish but the show is terrible if a “show” exists at all. This may work on the jamband circuit playing for white kids and hippies (and from the shows I have been to that’s who is buying most of the tickets). People who don’t dance on beat so if the groove is chaotic it don’t matter to them. People who just want to wear colored wigs, get wasted, party and say they were felt-up or smoked weed at a  George Clinton “P-Funk” show.

For some of us this is like church. It is sacred. P-Funk once had integrity. Within all the foolishness and silliness there was an integrity. What is left now? A bunch of people jumping around and screaming on stage? Some of us know what a tight groove feels like and when an instrument hits that certain funk spot. When singing is orchestrated and practiced and rehearsed and sound checked to get that special blend that moves you. (And at the least so you can understand and recognize the song and what the hell is being sung).

I don’t get it, or maybe I do. Or maybe I ain’t suppose to. And before you attack me cause I hurt your feelings being critical about the band you love so much let me say I know I am just a fan with a website and a Facebook page with a few followers. A fan who has followed this band for 35+ years and have been to hundreds of shows and have stood by it and will continue to stand by this band for the rest of my life. I love every member of this band even the ones and parts I don’t like.

I’m going to the shows and its getting worse and worse. And I’m not the only one who feels this way I just may be the one who is going to be vocal about it. Unlike the days of Myspace and “The One Nation” discussion board folks can’t anonymously post critical opinion and most people shy away from doing that with their name on it. But fuck it, I cant go out like that.

If the Mothership is crash landing and if it is to be believed Mr Clinton is in control and knows what he is doing and its up to him if the P-Funk legacy goes out like a junkie in a back alley thats a story I aint buying and even if its true I will not accept.

How can this organization expect respect with what they are doing? I believe this band has the talent to sell out stadiums still, but talent and resources are simply being squandered. I believe the industry wants desperately for P-funk to return to greatness but fuck, some kind of internal effort has to be demonstrated first. I believe if effort was put in to improve the show, or even have a show or be some kind of entertainment the demand from fans, venues, industry people, writers, reviews, etc would greatly improve.

But fuck, when the band comes out on stage like they just woke up with no fanfare, no introduction even no fuckin “are you ready,” I mean at least turn off the lights and let the crowd get excited in anticipation while the band comes on stage. Let alone wearing some kind of costumes or dress as if it is a band and not some people from the crowd who decided to walk on stage.

The Sir Nose Flashlight part means nothing anymore. Set that shit up with some dialogue. Mr Payne is one of the best voices I’ve ever heard why ain’t he setting up the scenario? Where is the Bop Gun? Even the homemade one made out of foil? I love Carlos doing his thing but in context it means nothing if the story line ain’t set up and exploited.

Is it me? Am i missing something? A leader is also a motivator and not the one who is suppose to do it all. At least inspire or delegate someone to do it. Simple ass things that don’t require money or a special producer, just simple effort! Is George Clinton anti-effort? Does he say don’t nobody do shit? No costumes, no fanfare. Is it his idea to have the perception of a band that doesn’t care?

And just because he is George Clinton does that mean he can scream shout singing and we suppose to say its ok? He is older (not old), his voice is shot and it is not pleasant hear. That doesn’t make him a bad person or mean that I dont like him, that’s a fact. He misses  the beat and rhythms at times and are we suppose to feel blessed to suffer through this because of his legacy? I don’t think so. I don’t worship the preacher i worship the philosophy, the establishment and the tradition. If the preacher is fucking up it don’t mean we got to kick him out the church it just means he gotta step to the side and lead from another position. Give the man some help for God sake!!!

Old School Funkfest at The Greek: And then came “George Clinton and Friends.” LOL I have to admit I’m sort of glad the name  “Parliament Funkadelic” was not on the ticket. I love the band and the legacy and all the musicians and am and will be down with P-Funk for the rest of my life. But what the fuck.

Not only did George Clinton and friends not start with any fanfare or introduction, it was like they started on accident! I thought they were sound checking and the next thing I know Mr Clinton is on stage screaming Atomic Dog. Now I done seen this band over 100 times and I didn’t even know what was going on so I know the crowd was completely lost. Opening like this deflated me, and they lost me. I would bet most of the crowd didnt even know the man in the suit hollering was the rainbow haired guy they came to see. I bet they didn’t even know what song was being played until about 2 minutes into it.

The crowd sang the hell out of knee deep until they lost interest. You cant play a 20 minute knee deep that dont sound like the radio version with this crowd. It was about this time that the crowd started to hit the exits.

Let alone the release of new music. The proclaimed Masters of Funk ain’t released a funk record in about 2 decades and the recent release “The Naz” featuring Sly Stone delivering a rap he “borrowed” 40 years ago over a loop ain’t worthy of a “FU” let alone “Funk” an forget “Funkadelic.”

 

 

 

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Oct 16

It’s Too Easy To Say Our Political Leaders Don’t Care About Us

1377190_606444662750523_1102601397_nMaybe, ok not even maybe I have a lot of faith in people and that the individual when presented with an opportunity to do “good” for the most will always do that good. There will always be a few individuals who are “evil” and skewed towards destruction but for the most part people are good. The way I test that is to poll all the people I know and have known and how many of them were truly skewed towards “evil” (ignorance is something else, I’m talking deliberately intending to do harm).

Now having said that i believe its our system of government that has been corrupted and causes good people to use not so good means to get results for the people who elected them. its like you have to know how to “cheat” or play the game to get the legislation or funding to support the needs of your district or state or whatever.

So I cant say that our politicians “don’t give a fuck.” I truly find that hard to believe cause I’ve met very very very few people in my lifetime who really didn’t give a fuck about others. Factor in the fact these people were elected to office shows they at least have some kind of appeal to somebody. I mean is it realistic to think our leaders really don’t care? They just used the phrase “self interest” on CNN and even factoring in that how many of our elected officials got to where they are not giving a fuck with only a self interest?

Its too easy to say they all are fucked up and dont give a fuck. That makes it much easier to rationalize and makes the issue much easier to handle. People like Ted Cruz who I may very much disagree with I believe is out for his ideas and fighting for what he believes in. And just because it is opposite of what I may believe I dont think he doesnt give a fuck about me. I believe he may give too much of a fuck! LOL His passion is real, and him and Bachman and Blackburn and Palin , well maybe not Palin are in it cause they believe it is best for everybody.

 

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Jul 27

Young Black Males Acting Out In Public

Lower and less is my tolerance for young black males acting out in public in that “nigga” way. Its one thing to be loud and obnoxious, which I have no problem with and its another to put that disrespecting thing on it. More and more I have the urge to engage this behavior when it happens around me. As I attempted today. And if they or the people around heard me or not, is not the most point. The main thing is that I did it and am ready not to look or back away from it anymore. That’s how I’m gonna seek justice for Trayvon Martin, and I don’t need no sign or any revised legislation.IMAG1498

Looking (like) is one thing, acting out is another. its not the dress or the look, its the behavior.

Nobody said it was specific to black males. and that’s part of the problem also. people being so sensitive of any criticism of black males or black people period. so defensive of a culture that is literally self destructing.

Some open and honest observations are needed to identify the real issues before its too late.

Yes, i feel you. but i haven’t heard any bashing of black people. i hardly hear ANY criticism about black people period! I’m all for solutions, but the issues and problems need to be identified also and i do not see any black leaders actively publicly doing that. black people saying whats “wrong” with black people and saying lets fix it. i love positive energy and i really love how black people come together when they come together. but somebody has to identify and aggressively attack the problems and issues. this includes the media, black leaders, white leaders, etc. i cant remember the last time i heard a leader criticize black people. at least some of the burden has to lie on us also.

I feel feel feel you. but i am not a people person. LOL i am not a save the world person either. my motivation to be active is because of and specific to young black males. like my mother use to tell me, she don’t care how anybody else’s kids act! LOL maybe because i have a son trying to be caught up in that mess or maybe i feel as a black man im obligated to speak to the younger black males because i can be an example of a black man to them. i don’t have anything against other people’s kids my focus comes from within and is specific. and the numbers and data show that young black males are in a class of their own when it comes to crime and punishment that no other group is experiencing now.

And i agree that all cultures of kids smoke weed and wear the clothes, BUT its different for a certain group of black males that actually live the life. these other kids are not killing each other at alarming rates. the other groups are not filling the prisons. and I’m not talking about all black males and im not talking about the black males who wear the clothes but DON’T live the life. there is style and then there is a line when it goes too far.

Yes i agree and i use the word “attack” being a bit sensational. engage may be a better word. maybe even address instead of attack. but i feel this way also, regardless of the laws, crimes are being committed. STOP creating the crime! are black males not doing the crimes and being falsely accused? zero tolerance within the community and family for committing any crime!

 

 

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Jul 27

Me & Being Black

IMAG2797Every time the police stopped me for smoking weed or doing petty stuff when I was young they let me go. Every time I have ever dealt with authorities I have been treated with respect. Cause though I am black as the day is long they and people can see that I am NOT a “nigga.” Its about manners, articulation, posture and basically how I present myself by showing respect and then looking into peoples eyes and expecting that same respect. I am NOT for legislation, pleading or anything that extends this earned respect I have to everybody or people who don’t deserve it.

I will NOT defend those in the black community who do not show respect or “deserve” to be defended.

m tired of seeing the victim card being played in this situation and its about time somebody was harsh on “our” people.

i have the right as we all exercise everyday who we give respect to and who we dont. its unavoidable as everybody must make judgements of situations and people based on their experiences. so this is purely personal. im also tired of certain parts of the black community being labeled victims and or crying victimization. im not denying that they are or not im tired of excuses for unlawful, disrespectful and criminal behavior for any reason. there are parts of any community who do not want your or my compassion or understanding cause that would make them have to return that respect and they are not able. we are all not going to make it, some of our children are lost and unsavable even by jesus and are out to take as many others with them as they can. i do not see utilizing resources on this part of the population. what i just said is my personal assessment and how i handle and veiw things, everybody has their own perspective but this is mine.

what lie? if you are inferring that im suggesting that racism, racial profiling and the such does not exist, im not and never have. ii know it exists. what I AM saying is that in my experience it aint JUST cause of a person’s skin color there are other factors. now there are folks who hate and discriminate soley on color, but they are a very small percentage and we will never be rid of them. but for the most part i feel that the widespread generalized racism some people seem to preach about DOES NOT occur to a degree only because of ones race. white people aint dumb or hateful its they may be just not exposed to black culture and ive been told many times i dont fit the image they had of black people (be it via media or whatever). if dress or approach them as an example of that stereotype how else are they suppose to react? but if i approach them with posture, stance, looking them respectfully in the eyes while enunciating my words and speaking “proper” english my skin color takes a back seat.

this is how i was raised “yes mam, no sir” to every adult, white or black. i was taught how to talk proper english by my parents. i remember my father making me come in the house from playing football once cause i used the word “y’all.” i was taught how to shake hands and greet everybody from the grocery clerk to the mail man. i was taught not to fear doctors or police. i was not taught color, but i was taught how to act and behave. i was educated and the idea of dropping out of high school NEVER once ever entered my mind. i had these things and im not ashamed cause many people dont have them. and that may be an issue. those of “us” who have assimilated and are a functioning part of the “white mans” world are often looked upon as Toms or sellouts. i bet there are many many of us who drive our cars and have never been harrassed but we are silent cause its not cool or maybe feels like bragging. i wish the many like me would stand up and combat the image of gangsta and pants saggin. it has to be hard for a young black man to go against this “im hard and tough” image but somehow i wish it can be shown there are lots and lots of us who live in the same neighborhoods as everybody else but dont go thru that bullshit cause we got our shit together.

Again, im not saying there are not instances of hate or racial wrongdoings. Or that there are not racist and hateful people. We will always have that. But its not the norm and maybe it shouldnt be preached to be the norm. But i dont think thats the real problem. Its a distraction from the real issue of poverty, education, etc

 

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Jul 27

Russian Sunshine Inspired

IMAG2710Inspired by my Russian Sunshine’s post regarding her newly discover ability to make bread in her slowcooker:

We are close, not in distance but where it counts, in our cosmic conscious awareness, our spirits intermingle travelling throughout the cosmos exchanging energy with souls and the universal deity exposing ourselves yet absorbing all the knowledge and passion every universe has to offer…
Opening up our hearts and minds to receiving gifts the universe has prepared for our conscious awakening as individual physical creatures the become one eternal light being…

We will go on forever my butter blossom as my love and passion for you is infinite like time with the ability to travel through space and matter like neutrinos yet carrying the energy of a trillion gamma ray bursts…

Our entanglement spans all time and space popping in and out of existence dancing to vibrating strings at the quantum level for we are before matter, we are pre-sub atomic particle, we are faster than the higgs boson, quicker than any quark, ahead of time- but in time to the harmony that is the rhythm and groove of all there is…

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Jun 19

Me & The Mail Room

IMAG2175Many many times I’ve been told “no one else has ever asked that” “no one else has ever did that” “no one else has ever etc etc” so when the people in the mail room here told me that no one has ever asked for e-mail tracking of UPS packages and that in her 5 years of working there she had never even heard of such a thing it not only didn’t phase me it energized me into action. I got the number to UPS technical support and they said call them back with someone from the mail room logged in to the system. Now i knew i had to be gentle in even suggesting such a thing so when the girl stepped up and volunteered to call tech support I was not only excited i was touched. This ain’t a silicon valley start-up I’m talking about here these people have been doing certain things a certain way for decades. I mean no one in this huge post of duty in all these years ever even asked for email tracking of UPS and would actually have a label printed, then stuck on the shipping form, photocopied, physically routed and then stored in a bin! It took 4 minutes for the tech guy to walk them through the steps to do this as she took notes and shared with her coworkers how to do it. Being the one to initiate this completely made my day and of course the tracking emails will make my job much easier and if other people in the office start using it theirs will be easier too! Like a little kid I ran and told my boss and oh yeah this is going on my resume.

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May 20

Heaven Is Harmony & Conscious Freedom

IMG_20130520_122129Sept 19, 2009

To get to the point when you are living life according to self developed “rules” and understandings. To have love for everything with confidence and no fears according to your own moral code. Not having to answer to anything in any universe for what one believes, be it in life or at death.

I have grown to be free to place my faith in whatever I want and shape it however I want answering to nothing and there is an euphoric freedom in this. I believe conscious freedom is the most grand attainable thing. To find harmony with everything based on one’s own beliefs and not following or bowing down to anything is the heaven many people seek.

A life or an act like that is not in harmony with everything around it, causes a friction to some degree.

To be in harmony with everything around you living according to your own inherent personal moral code without fear of any kind of ultimate judgement.

To live under no one’s or any God’s understanding of how you should live but your own. You don’t have to go to a book or anykind of spiritual leader for guidance or answers. It becomes all but natural and is revealed in your every act, right down to the way you move. Its a confidence that everyone can see. There is no guilt or worry cause you are not trying to live up to an external standard.

You place yourself and everything around you at the same level or higher than what a lot of people call God. Everything becomes “God” and a part of God and you treat everything with that kind of reverence, and you are in harmony with it all. Achieving this understanding during one’s life is heaven on earth for this harmony protects you from “evil” as the things around you will come to your rescue when you need them. Harmony also means taking care of your physical body: eating healthy, being active physically and mentally. Always continuing to learn as life and your environment changes, etc…

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May 02

More Of My Personal Atheism

I was bitter about religion and how believers treated me back when I realized I didn’t believe in God and EVERYONE around me did. I was totally convinced everyone around me was “wrong” for believing in imaginary things that no one ever saw- but I was the one crazy one. Being ridiculed and told to be quiet and that i was silly for just asking questions and having such an outlandish belief that there might not be a God. I remember how it wasnt easy stating publicly that I was an atheist on my first webpages (I can actually visualize the moment i did it). I was uncomfortable wondering how family, friends, co workers etc  would react to it. This was a time when I could be called bitter and angry at religion and the people who believed. I see now it was because I felt I could not express my own belief freely, and I resented that. Note: It was significant that I was very independent and living alone when I went public with my atheism.img4

Over time (years) as the people around me accepted my athiesm I grew more confident and I posted the “Atheist Walking” video- maybe the first real atheist video ever on YouTube. This video started an atheist revolution on YouTube that grew into other many mediums. It was during this time that I found fellowship and like minded people to express and share with. My bitterness and anger began to slowly go away to the point now where I’m just occasionally mildly irritated and frustrated by folks! LOL

And in fact, I have posted many videos denounincing angry atheists! They are some mean spirited and disrespectful folks and I didn’t agree with that. These people have went thru horrible things with their familes and communities and maybe had a “right” to be angry and bitter. I was living alone when I came out, but there are young people dependant on family who were thrown out and disowned. There are many stories of cruelty and pressure put on non-believers by the society around them and they reltaliated with anger and aggression once they found they had others who shared the same experience. So after 100,000 or so video views I became content and passive. I was relaxed cause I made my point and began to focus on the next step of my atheistic activism. And that was to find a compelling and “logical” reason why mankind should not believe in God. To identify specific reasons and the costs involved in holding these primitive beliefs.

So over the years, to make a long story shorter, I came to the personal conclusion that the current major religions, the bible and God simply don’t answer enough of todays modern questions adequately. “Have faith” and “put it in Gods hands” simply doesn’t work today. In a society and culture that has detailed scientific answers to almost everything at our fingertips, a 2000 year old book with generalized vague ideas leaves mankind only half full.
It’s not enough anymore to “control” Man’s behavior with the threat of judgement and heaven or hell. Mankind needs deeper modern reasoning and understanding of a ideal or goal to have faith in. Believing a God created us and we will go to a heaven is very detrimental to the human experience. This life is all we got and to survive, I mean really survive over millions of years  we must go beyond this thinking and make long range strategies. And to make these strategies our best bet presently is in the accumulated knowledges of research, science and experiment. We need to know how things really work and not that “God does it.” One of the things that use to make me really mad was the idea that there are things Man is not supposed to know, things that only God can know. That and the idea that Man and life is weak, flawed, imperfect and we are “sheep” and only God can be perfect. This institutionalized widespread teaching cripples us as a species. Teaching our children not to go beyond the knowledge of God is an ultimate sin to me. And I was sure to let my children know that.

I truly believe if we had the faith in ourselves that we have in God 97% of our problems would go away. We would act and think differently, more so we would act and not pray. We would cherish life much more deeply knowing this is it and there is no heaven and that we won’t see loved ones again.  I believe we must develop and have faith in things that have a scientific basis that proves to assist humanity in it long range survival. We must cherish the Earth- Sun ecosystem cause life as we know it survives no where else in the universe. This is it and we are all we have. And we are all we need! WE MAKE MIRACLES, NOT GOD!!! But we are not taught that, we are taught the exact opposite in fact!!!

The killings and bombings and shootings will continue until we reach a new “higher” level of understanding about Mankind’s role (and thereby every individuals role) in the universe. Im not sure what this understanding will be but I know the Bible and a God in the sky no longer seems to satisfy us. The people doing these acts are not complete lunatics or even evil, some are mentally imbalanced sure, but the thrust is they have been pushed to a breaking point which I believe is they feel they cannot be part of the overall functioning system. These are people who feel lost, abandoned and even threatened by the natural workings of our socio-economic system.

My idea is that the goal of life is survival, simply put to continue. And mankind is at the forefront of life as we know it at this point. Mankind has a responsibility to life, because we have consciousness to grow and nurture life. NOT GOD!! US!! And I dont see this happening with the core of the world believing the earth is temporary and that being with a God and in heaven is the ultimate goal.

Side Note: You mentioned something earlier about me and black people. I’m not sure what you meant but I will say this. Black people are stuck in that “God is everything” way of thinking. (Im speaking in general and statistics on religious beliefs back me up). Black people love Jesus and not science. And yes, there will be a few exceptions to what i said, but how many black people do you know who could tell you what the Large Hardron Collider is? And yeah, there may not be many other kind of people who could, but of the ones who can tell you about the God particle the overwhelming majority of them aint black and believe Jesus was God.

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