RIP Madiba Mandela: "Terrorist" turned prisoner turned International Symbol of Peace

Nelson "Madiba" Mandela passed away at 95 years old. I started this the day after his death but am finishing it today after seeing the movie "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom" based on his phenomenal autobiography. As crazy as it sounds being overly sad at the death of someone almost a century old, it was very sad news for me when I heard it. My first memories of Mandela were learning of his election to the presidency of South Africa and the effect it had on his country and the world as a whole. As I learned more, the most amazing part of the man's story was his ability to forgive and truly push peace and reconciliation after being stripped of everything by the system of apartheid. But until recently (I'm grown now) I still never asked the question: what exactly was he imprisoned for? Not long before his death, I researched and learned that he was imprisoned for actions to sabotage that would be widely considered domestic terrorism against the establishment; such as bombing unmanned logistical targets to weaken government communication or resources. He started out pushing non-violent resistance but was pushed to take a more extreme position after repeated incidents of innocent Black South Africans (including women and children) being killed by Afrikaner soldiers. While in prison, the institution imprisoned and tortured his wife, Winnie, to the point where she took a more extreme position than he had; she was advocating all out war and murder of Black Africans who cooperated with the whites. By the time he was released, it was inevitable that all-white rule could not sustain much longer in South Africa. Violence was rampant, Black South Africans were looking for revenge and expected Madiba to be the military leader for the revenge effort beside his wife. But something unexpected happened in the hell that is prison, Mandela emerged championing forgiveness and reconciliation. This was not popular and drove him away from his wife; however he did what was difficult. And he did what was right. Gradually, the angry population, out of trust for Madiba, followed suit and have formed the much more unified nation. It was a lesson that the world could benefit from and he will always be seen as a foremost warrior for forgiveness and peace. He will never die in our hearts. If I could, I'd rename the Nobel Peace Prize after him. Rest in Peace Madiba.

Stop Me When I Start Lying: Did This Fucker Say Affluenza????

Yeah, you correctly read the picture above. A 16-year old rich kid got behind the wheel of a car drunk and ended up killing for people in Texas. What's his punishment you ask? Well, he's getting rehab and therapy because the judge bought that he had 'affluenza' meaning his parents are so wealthy and privileged that he couldn't be expected to know right from wrong....Are you fucking kidding me? U're telling me that professional experts are taking the witness stand and insisting that affluenza is a defense to keep killers out of prison? I thought the legal system claimed to enforce the law period rather than trying to psycho-analyze why the defendant doesn't know right from wrong. Where was this case for kids whose poor parents were working too much to teach their kids right from wrong? Or kids raising themselves because their parents weren't worth a damn? Is there such thing as poor-fluenza? How about Black-fluenza? This may be the most asinine modern legal ruling I've heard of in decades. I've contended for some time now that in the post-segregation era, money and social status serve as more of enabler or obstruction than race; this is another example. No matter how the judge justifies her decision, what will be taken away from this case for future legal precedent is that "affluenza" is a viable defense if the defendant is rich enough to qualify. That scares me. Like society needs another highly publicized example of how kids born with a silver spoon in their mouths can do whatever they want with whatever punishment their parents can afford (in this case, dad pays for $450K rehab sessions) while lower or even middle class Americans would have been looking at jail time, at least some. So judge, what you actually did by succumbing to the ridiculous 'affluenza' defense was you made the "condition" worse and allowed it to become ingrained in legal precedent going forward. I don't even know you, but I hate your guts. But you probably don't care about my opinion because I'm not rich enough anyway. Stop Me When I Start Lying...

Kanye West: A Study in Fearlessness, Creative Ambition, and Egomania

You remember the kid from Chicago that Dame and Jay found to produce for the rest of the Roc? The one back in the studio right after a car accident with his jaw half wired shut? The one striving to be successful rapping because everyone said he could only ever make it as a producer? Yeah, that's the Kanye West we fell in love with. If you haven't noticed, that kid is hard to recognize in the borderline 2013 version by the same name. He's a deliberate attention whore - in a relationship with a beautiful but talent-less attention whore famous for her sex life - who's wearing Confederate flags, calling himself a God, and vocally challenging everyone from fashion moguls to the Obamas. He seems constantly upset and at times seems to be losing his grip on reality. I never thought I'd say this: but I'm starting to understand him. Not saying I agree with him, or can even vouch for all of his bullshit, but I think I get it. He's acting out in a combination of anger and envy for those who possess the true power and freedom he wants; I read an interesting article referring to this as a Frantz Fanon complex (here's the article, http://ourlegaci.com/2013/12/02/kanyes-frantz-fanon-complex/). Just the way producing was not enough for him when he wanted to rap, hip hop culture itself is not enough for Kanye now. His experimental creativity agency DONDA, named for his deceased mother, is an embodiment of his desire to be an all-around creative genius without bounds;  we're talking music, fashion, art, cinema, marketing, technology, the works. He states that his calling is to leave a creative imprint on the world as significant as that of Walt Disney, Steve Jobs, or Michelangelo. He also thinks Kim Khardashian is the new Marilyn Monroe. That being said, he's on a crusade to increase his global profile to force the hand of those - especially in the fashion and footwear industries - who he believes seek to pigeonhole and marginalize his influence because they can't control him. He doesn't want to be Jay-Z or Russell Simmons running "urban" clothing labels, he wants to be the neo-Marc Jacobs or Ralph Lauren with the power to sell anywhere to anyone at any price as he feels. He's gotten his feet wet in the industry (designing shoes and clothes) just enough to encounter the glass ceiling stopping him from. His focus has switched to getting as much attention, money, and power as he can attain so that no one can ever deny him ANYTHING ever again. Hell, he doesn't care what anything thinks or listen to anyone (except Jay-Z sometimes) now, but he seeks the power that billionaires (or maybe secret societies) possess so that he can bring any idea of his to fruition without needing anyone. Even as rich and fearless as he is, he's already lost $13 million and can't afford to keep misfiring without backers. So to get there, he's frequently pushing whatever bounds exist to stay in the spotlight even when he's not making music; because his relevance is powerful. But that's where it can go off track. It goes as blasphemous as trying to make Confederate flags fashionable or bringing Jesus out on stage. Or something as fearless as wearing women's clothing or giving an album cover vile cover art of his darkest fantasy. Or as ego-maniacal and brash as taking to radio waves calling for fashion protests of those who denied him meetings to "stifle his influence" and claiming he and Kim should be getting all the fashion-related attention the Obamas get. I think he frequently misfires and goes way overboard. How the fuck you really gonna put Kim and Michelle Obama in the same sentence? Michelle is the first lady while the first time I saw Kim it's because she was just the pretty girl spit-shining Ray J's dick on a sextape. Oh word, people are supposed to get over their feeling towards the Confederate flag because you made a song called "New Slaves" and said it's ok? Really nigga?  But rather than dismissing him as a lunatic, I'm trying to see the bigger picture of what he's trying to achieve. He's a dreamer with all the passion imaginable to chase it and I"ll always admire that. He just has to refine his technique. For the record, I hope he creates the imprint he seeks to, I'd love to see what come out of it.