by B.J. on 12/14/2002 10:35:00 AM 0 comments Print this post

Lion Ding

Well, the COSTUMES, ACTORS/SINGERS, COSTUME and SET DESIGNERS, did a job FABULOSO. All you need to win an AWARD are those aforementioned elements. You don't need an actual story or creative/different way of presenting it. I came away somewhat DISAPPOINTED, as I expected it to keep me AWAKE for more than 1/4 of the show given its MANY ACCOLADES and AVID WATCHERS.

 

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by B.J. on 12/12/2002 06:13:00 AM 0 comments Print this post

Guilt Trip: In Response to Bowling for Columbine

America is a very fast-paced, intense, individualized society. We don't have to time to care about the impoverished, therefore we are IGNORANT of our surroundings. When we're ignorant, we FEAR what we DON'T KNOW because it disrupts our SECURITY. And the INSTANT panacea to feed our insecurities materializes to something like BUYING GUNS. We're very IMPULSIVE, and so as a result we DON'T THINK THINGS out like we should be. For example, we DIDN'T EVEN really KNOW the culprits to the 9/11 mess, but the moment the Twin Towers fell, we kept hearing "Muslim Extremists", "Osama" being associated with "evil." For the sake of the public's SECURITY, we painted Osama as the ENEMY WITHOUT knowing anything.

And so since we don't have the time to spare on THINKING, we rely on the MEDIA. The American media, in their own INTEREST and INDIVIDUALISM, in turn, reports the "JUICY" stories which happen to be the CAR CHASES, the MURDERS, the BURGLARIES. RISKS are blown way out of proportion as people are still more likely to die from Maryjane than from something as abstract and unknown as cell phone radiation. Unlike the Canadian media, they don't really report POSITIVE, REASSURING things because it won't get them their RATINGS. They FEAR they won't get RATINGS because our AMERICAN brains take in information only PERTAINING to US. To keep us watching the media has STRICKEN this FEAR into us by telling us that we are INADEQUATE without the piece of information. That is true, but the information is NOT put in proper PERSPECTIVE. That is, for something POSITIVE to be the center of any AMERICAN NEWS, it needs to be a super important DISCOVERY or ACCOMPLISHMENT, whereas the most mundane of HIGH-SPEED CHASES will crash the 6 o clock news. In DEFENSE to this overflow of NEGATIVITY, we somehow FILTER out the NEGATIVES and focus on the GOOD stuff.

As INDIVIDUALS in AMERICAN SOCIETY, we don't TOLERATE NEGATIVE THINGS because we don't have HINDSIGHT to guide us. Like Matt Stone, South Park dude, said in the movie about the Columbine killers and their general feelings toward school, 'the kids are labeled fags, and they're fags for life.' Its as if the Columbine kids couldn't do a thing about their PERCEIVED INADEQUACY. They didn't have the HINDSIGHT to get thru it and thus went on a killing spree WITH GUNS, the INSTANT, IMPULSIVE answer. They didn't THINK.

IRONICALLY, on the other hand, we READILY ACCEPT BAD THINGS from a SOCIAL PERSPECTIVE because we feel it doesn't have an impact on our INDIVIDUAL SELF. As Americans, we've been taught to look out for ourselves in this DOG-EAT-DOG world. So basically, we're IGNORING society. And by IGNORING we don't know things. Then, we get scared of things we DON'T really know about. Most of us automatically get scared of BIG BLACK GUYS because we only see them on TV playing basketball, telling jokes, singing, or getting arrested. We WON'T get scared of WHITE GUYS because there's a variety of them being portrayed on TV, doing various things, and we FEEL that we've gotten to know them. The thing is that if you PERSONALLY knew a BIG BLACK GUY you wouldn't see him/her in the same light as you would see any other black guy.

So basically OUR IGNORANCE of SOCIAL ISSUES has bit us back in the ASS and we're all killing each other in RECORD numbers. According to the movie, we've got 11,000+ deaths related to handguns compared to other industrialized nations who when combined average about 100 handgun-related deaths per year. We're still NOT a DANGEROUS, VIOLENT nation, just an extremely CARELESS and IGNORANT one. We're LOCKED into FEAR of some POOR guy stealing our stuff and killing us. So LOST are we in FINDING the BIG STORIES and in FEARING the UNKNOWN that we can't SEE HOW DANGEROUS GUNS ARE. Kids can lock into them. People can lose control. A cock of the gun and you just might be drinking your food out of a straw, son. Granted, there are a lot of responsible gunowners, but the risks outweight the good as the only purpose for GUNS is to kill or maim.

The best solution to the GUN PROBLEM comes from CHRIS ROCK who says to TAKE AWAY the AMMUNITION. People will still hold onto their guns with every last part of their body, but WITHOUT AMMUNITION guns are useless. Think about it. . .guns can be passed down from generation to generation. We can never really wipe out all the GUNS in the world, BUT we can stop AMMUNITION because people will be hardpressed to find. Or at least make BULLETS cost $5000. : )

But the problem with AMERICA lies DEEPER into the trenches of the "GHETTO". Poor kids are everywhere, but kids HERE are pressured to take more DRASTIC measures because they are told to live in rundown places in the RICHEST country, they NEVER ARE and NEVER WILL BE, pay the bills, and finally, do math homework. . .If only the Suburban kids THOUGHT of the poor kids.

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by B.J. on 12/09/2002 05:04:00 AM 0 comments Print this post

Chicago Dopes

If you have nothing nice to say, then keep your mouth closed. Fair enough, but then I wouldn't be able to tell the truth so on that note. . .

Chicago sports teams suck. . .

. . .in basketball. . .

The BULLS are losing because they're YOUNG, which breeds INEXPERIENCE. But this is the second year for the would-be STAR players TYSON CHANDLER and EDDY CURRY, who both came straight out of high school. They haven't progressed much since last year because they don't play any DEFENSE or REBOUND the ball, the stuff that all other NBA tall dudes do.

The incumbent leader of the team, JALEN ROSE, does nothing to buffer this disaster as he keeps hogging the ball and jacking up shots, even though he does make a good amount of shots and has no one to pass to. He should be the LEADER, something he hasn't since he came over last year.

These guys started off the year talking all this TRASH about how great we are. . .

. . .in football. . .

After a 13 wins out of 16 last season and 2 wins to begin the season, the BEARS have just lost every game. Their managment and coaching is disgusting because they run the exact same play in key situations so that the other teams can already plan on stopping it. When they're not playing football, they cut loose the important components of the team as they let a potential ALL-STAR player stroll gingerly to another team.

They TOO, like the BULLS came out of the tunnel running tall and strong. . .

AND EVERYTHING !

Everyone just about lost interest in hockey, no one cares about baseball, and some don't even know there's a soccer team in Chicago. So the moral of the story is KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT UNTIL YOU CAN BACK IT UP. Chicago's known for it's friendly, optimistic fans, who guard their optimism. So, here's my rant to neutralize that optimism in hope that some Chicago team STARTS WINNING.

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Christmas Du-Ma-ma

by B.J. on 12/09/2002 04:05:00 AM 0 comments Print this post

I wonder how I'd be without my middle-class welfare. . .

A) Would I fold to the super stress and become a dope dealer ?

OR

B) Would I have quite a story to tell about overcoming scrappy beginnings ?

I always THINK A, but have the gut FEELING it's B. It's a hypothetical question with no right answers. I take things as they are thrown to me, I guess. My "whatever" hippie, AP US teacher once told me NOT to WORRY about what "would" happen because these hypothetical situations can go on and on. Basically it means that "ifs" are not going to make anything happen in this world. But this particular "if" of how I'd react without middle-class welfare is IMPORTANT because it shows just how disadvantaged low-class people are. Take our INCOMPETENT president for example. . .you think he'd be running the country without his daddy being president ? Least with liberalism, we'd have a much more equal playing field. . .and a much smarter person would be president.

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by B.J. on 12/05/2002 06:27:00 PM 0 comments Print this post

Avoid the Greyhound as Much as Possible !

. . .except that I CAN'T ! I really don't want to hassle anyone for a ride because I'd feel like a SLEAZE BAG (yeah I know some of you are saying "too late").

In my latest adventure, a freakin' BUM decided to sit next to me even though there were empty spaces elsewhere. I took that as a PERSONAL affront and decided to make this fucker pay by flipping my headphones opposite my ears and CRANKING the volume on that sucker. To NO Avail. Then, I tried FARTING uncontrollably; no response. Failing at this attack, I decided to keep switching the lights ON and OFF. All this activity got me tired, but I only got 2 hours because the dude frickin' smelled like an APPLE that was RAPED by COW CRAP. And when I woke up the last time, my bag that I think was ZIPPED, magically UNZIPPED. So, in conclusion, all I ended up with was an earache and bitter memories by letting this bum sit next to me. Next time, if I get a seat by MYSELF I'll REMEMBER to: at least sit in the aisle rather than by the window, or put a bunch of tissues on the aisle chair, or put fake vomit, or bring a bag, or look like the dirtiest piece of shit on this world, or look like a Bruce-Lee, composed, erect, and quick serial killer.

 

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by B.J. on 12/03/2002 10:02:00 AM 0 comments Print this post

Holistic Grading

I love SC's style of GRADING because I don't have any DEFINITIVE knowledge of how I'm doing --- that is they give me COMMENTS instead of USELESS LETTERS and NUMBERS to define myself by. At least they hold that off until the end of a quarter. Without that DEFINITIVE knowledge of how poorly or great I'm doing, I JUST KEEP PRODUCING MY BEST WORK, something I NEVER EVER really tried, much less did, in HIGH SCHOOL. I always made sure that I just got at least a 'B or even just PASSED. This new terrific style of grading really helps you focus on LEARNING, instead of grades. I guess this is why this is considered the most PROGRESSIVE UC. . .Wahoooooooooo.

Maybe I'm saying all this because I'm just growing up. . .or. . .that I got a 90/100 on my TERM PAPER for Aquatic Toxicology, a class full of JUNIORS/SENIORS. . .cause if I fucked up on that term paper or test, maybe I'd be highlighting the FUCK UPS of this school. . .

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by B.J. on 12/01/2002 11:00:00 PM 0 comments Print this post

Red, White, Black, Yellow, BLUE UC-SANTA CRUZ.

Note: Read in context of hearsay and Asian Bias

There's an odd trend here between MINORITIES and COLLEGES/DORMS here at Santa Cruz. In general the kids at OAKES, the minority-dominated college seem to be bored at this school, whereas the kids here at COWELL, MY white-dominated college (the WHITEST college on campus out of 10) generally like and enjoy this school. I think minorities don't like this school as much as whites because they generally enjoy things that are big and extravagant --- things they perceive, whether subconscious or not, that are AMERICAN and PRACTICAL. This school isn't EXTRAVAGANT at least, it's more of a place to "Be at one with yourself" and all those other bullshit discover yourself phrases.

As mostly the first-generation sons and daughters of immigrant parents or simply "minorified", they generally look to achieve big things to establish themselves as AMERICANS. For the most part, these minority kids at OAKES build security within themselves by surrounding themselves with OTHER minorities, not that they don't have WHITE friends. Generally, in direct contrast, the WHITE KIDS here at COWELL seem to be the easy-going upper-class surfboarders with moderate expectations and goals. They don't care much for race, and are not as inclined to "being" AMERICAN and/or PRACTICAL because they already have their own at the top of the order, and feel a different, more SOCIALLY-CONSCIOUS role.

The KIDS WHO GO to UC-Santa Cruz either: didn't get into a better college, genuinely enjoy the camraderie and setting this place provides, or both. Minorities, aiming for the AMERICAN and PRACTICAL, probably PRIMARILY chose it because they didn't get into a better college, which I am guilty of. However, I enjoy the easygoing atmosphere as much as the next tree-hugger. And yes tree-hugging. . .this is a VERY POLITICALLY ACTIVE school. In general, we don't see very many MINORITY politicians, probably because the MINORITIES are too busy being PRACTICAL and SCIENTIFIC, which more than likely translates to conservative, traditional ideals. They tend towards the UCLAs because it's the "BIG", popular school and the IRVINES because it's convenient/PRACTICAL. I think that this idea of TRADITION is best embodied in the fact that FRATS and SORORITIES, which are hella hella SCARCE here, are ASIAN-dominated.

However, MINORITIES bunching up really does build some sense of SECURITY. I'm guilty of the same shit, as I hung all four-years of high school with one FILIPINO gang, whom I couldn't really find a clicking point with. But I still consider them friends probably because I could relate better to them than to any other race. I've noticed that it's not as comfortable making inferences with white people as it is with people of my heritage. It really really felt like home AUTOMATICALLY when I talked with the people at OAKES, and it took 3 months here in my SUPER-WHITE dorms to realize that. I'm not saying that I don't or won't enjoy the company of my WHITE friends, becuase I really do because I see them as people, just that it has been AUTOMATIC with minorities REGARDLESS of any commonalities.

Then there's the WHITEWASHED MINORITIES group that prides themselves on being DIFFERENT and ignores all other minorities. That's all good, just as long as they don't isolate and ignore me just BECAUSE I am a minority. They seem to deliberately deny that they are any trace of anything. Whatever, there aren't that much people that fall into this category anyway.

Without much attention to race, the WHITE guys here are either: political activists or surfers. Either way, they are all easy-going and don't pay as much attention to race because it doesn't play as profound an effect in their lives as it does a minority. They aren't seeking the MATERIALISTIC or GREAT ACCOMPLISHMENTS because their background makes it OK for them to do so. They know they'll just end up being "other white guys," whereas with MINORITIES, it's like a PASS/FAIL thing for life. According to our own standards, and sometimes standards placed on us by other people, we have no room for error or we've failed in life because we didn't make a big splash (make money or become famous). We create these STUPID goals because we feel the need to ESTABLISH ourselves as AMERICANS. Once we realize that we're PEOPLE, we could do ANYTHING in life, we don't have to define ourselves by our ACHIEVEMENTS and WEALTH, only then, can we really start going over to the COWELL COLLEGES all over the nation.

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