Friday, February 13, 2009

Racism, part 1

I am an anti-racist. I despise racism, almost to a fault. I look Caucasian, and typically refer to myself as "white", but I'm mostly Cherokee, with Irish and German and other Anglo blood as well. My wife is Hispanic (Mexican), but as some people say, "she doesn't look Mexican".

Now when I say my anti-racism is almost to a fault, it's because I go almost literally full-circle and lap myself (yeah, I talk in my own language sometimes). But the truth is, I so despise racism that my comments sometimes sound "racist". For example, I take offense when people say that this person is the "first black man or woman" to do "this or that". Or the first Hispanic to do "this or that". It may be "historic", but I personally don't find it "significant". If you voted for Obama, I hope you did it because you felt he was the best candidate, not because he could have been the first black president. (More on Obama in future posts) I was confused by all of the emotion by the black community on Obama's election. Black Republicans were bawling and screaming in joy.

Granted, my ancestors were never enslaved (we only had our land stolen, were slaughtered over greed of resources; and were given a few square miles of unsustainable land as reparations), so I suppose I find it difficult to relate. But slavery was abolished nearly 150 years ago. I don't think any living black man's great-grandparents were slaves. I know blacks were mistreated throughout the 60's, but so were Hispanics, Native Americans, and Japanese. Why is "black" such a bigger deal?

I grew up in a diverse neighborhood with Mexicans, whites, blacks, Asians, Middle Easterners, and other races I probably didn't even know their heritage. I probably didn't realize there was a difference in race until I was in my later elementary years. The fact is, it NEVER mattered to me. When you point out differences, it only draws attention to it. I had hoped my kids would grow up not recognizing a difference in race. However, the attention thrust upon racism with Obama's campaign forced the issue into our dinner conversations. I'm married to a Hispanic, so my kids are actually "mixed". Their best friends are the son and daughters of OUR close friends, who are also mixed (he's black, she's Puerto Rican), and they actually asked us the other week, "Is **** black?" And I had to get into the whole "everyone is a person; the color of their skin doesn't matter" speech. Another pair of their friends are the sons of yet another mixed couple (he's Mexican, she's black), and my son called one of them "brown" and the other "white" the other day. I was mortified.

My point in this post is that as long as we keep pointing out differences in race, sex, religion, age, or any other discriminatory characteristics, the more the younger generations notice. I believe it was the great Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. that said (and I may be paraphrasing), don't set out to be the best or the first BLACK PERSON to do something; set out to be the best PERSON to do something. If you want to be the greatest quarterback to ever play football, then don't set out to be the best BLACK quarterback; you're shortchanging yourself. Be the best PERSON you can be, not the best at your race. Don't celebrate Obama's election as president because he's the first black president; celebrate the fact that you feel the best person for the job won.

Friday, February 6, 2009

Beware the Circuit City scam

So several people I know are raving about the "great" deals they're getting at Circuit City. I went last week to check it out for some home theater equipment and possibly a new TV. There are signs everywhere of "25% off of all TVs!" and "Everything MUST go!" and "20-50% off all items!" Looked like some potential there. I got caught up in the hype and spent some bucks on some stuff. Feeling like I got incredible bargains, I went home proud and smug. Upon researching several of the items when I got home, I found the exact same prices - EXACTLY THE SAME DISCOUNTED PRICES - on Amazon. So what they've done is marked everything back UP to the MSRP, then "discounted" them for clearance. While I didn't get ripped off (they were still good prices, especially on my wall speakers, and I still think they made a mistake on the Onkyo theater system I got for under $200), I didn't get any better of a deal than I would have with some frugal online shopping. Plus I avoided any shipping charges.

Bottom line, don't get caught up in the frenzy. Know the price beforehand of what you're buying before you plunk it down. My wife saw a Circuit City salesman at breakfast this morning and he told her everything went down another 10% today. So we went and checked it out. Everything worth anything is still only at 20% off (like tv's and Blu-ray players), same as you get on Amazon. Some examples of what I'm talking about in knowing the price: a 1TB My Book drive was discounted at 30% off to $231. I bought the exact same product on Amazon for $130 2 months ago. A pair of Skull Candy earbuds was discounted to $23. I bought a pair at Target last year for $15, not even on sale. Now some things I DID get a deal on were DVD's (Blue Harvest for $7!!), DDR for Wii ($48, regularly $70), and a cordless laser mouse ($40).

Just be cautious and don't let your eyes get too big for your wallet. The really good deals there are still few and far between.

Thursday, February 5, 2009

NFL players file grievances against the Texans

Texans face fines

So ESPN reported on this story about some Texans players being "forced" to participate in one-on-one drills during preseason workouts where offensive linemen work against defensive linemen. Grievances have been filed by the players via the NFLPA saying that these drills were required and that they suffered injuries as a result of them. At least one player says that their career has been jeopardized as a result of the practices and is suing the team.

Are these players just being wusses and looking for an easy payday, or are their complaints legit? As a fan of Kubiak and the team, I think the complaints are pathetic. But I'd be interested to hear some non-Texans-fans readers' opinions on the subject.

Phelps and the Bong

Why all the fuss over Michael Phelps and this bong photo?

First, a disclaimer. I'm a rocker yet for my entire life have hung around people who smoke, dip, and snort. None of the hard stuff in my circles - that would call for an intervention. But (and for whatever reason no one believes me), I've never EVER tried an illegal substance. I'm a drinker and a former tobacco smoker (I still partake in the regular cigar and social cigarette), but I've never even tried the mildest of illegal substance, marijuana included. No holier-than-thou attitudes here, but I just haven't had a desire to try anything. Having said that, I still think that pot should be legalized. It's less addictive and less dangerous than alcohol, which IS legal. And don't even get me started on how much money the US government could rake in on taxes on legal marijuana.

But really, has Phelps done anything beyond what the typical 23-year old would do? "Role models" slip up all the time. What should be watched carefully is how the person reacts to the media. **don't even get me started on the media - posts on that will inevitably come to light** My problem is the crucifixion that this Olympic superstar is facing. Don't throw stones in glass houses. He's still a stud, he'll still make millions, he'll win more medals. Before you criticize someone, look at yourself. And piss off, media. You're cashing in on something that happened over 3 months ago. It's pathetic.

OK, I'll stop now before the media rants begin...

Pearl Jam and the Red States

So the word in the underground is that Pearl Jam, for the last 4 years, has largely avoided the "red states". Now that a Democrat is in office, will they start hitting those states again? They haven't been to Texas (George Bush's home state) since 2003. For the previous 2 elections, they were strong supporters of Ralph Nader, but were oddly quiet during the most recent campaign season. Whether they supported Nader again, or Obama, they - Eddie Vedder in particular - must be happy that Bush is history.

Please, Eddie, Stone, Mike, Jeff, Matt, and Boom. Please come back to Texas. Over the past 5 years, I've gone to 6 shows. And I've had to be in the Democrat-heavy Northeast for EVERY EFFING SHOW. Come back to the red states again. We miss you.

American Idol

So I love the show. Shut up. Call me ghey if you want to; it actually produces legitimate talent.

But here's my complaint. Do I really need to see some 16-year-old who's voice hasn't changed yet belting out tunes in a singing competition? The show is wildly successful. They could do damn near whatever they want and still be number one in the ratings. So change your age limits to your biggest TV market goal: 18-34. Hell, even abolish upper limits. I know 40-year-olds that can sing better than these 16-, 17-, and 18-year old prepubescents. When they stretched the age limit to 29, they got Constantine Maroulis and Bo Bice. Skip the upper age limit and give us 30-somethings a go. I can sing better than 90% of those contestants (although I'm admittedly a somewhat experienced amateur musician), and am better-looking than at least 75% of the dudes. Oh, and I don't sing like a girl, either.

12-year-olds might watch the show, but they don't buy the products your sponsors are selling. They beg their parents; their parents say no. Stretch the limits, watch the sponsors' sales soar. At this point, work on the legitimacy of the competition. The older competitors are clobbering the teens.

Gas prices

Can someone please tell me how in the hell I keep reading about oil prices dropping yet the prices at the pump keep creeping back up?

By the way, PROPS TO YOU, AMERICA! After seeing oil skyrocket to $4/gallon this summer, we proved to the rest of the world that we won't succumb to jacked-up prices. My dad, who works in the oil and gas industry internationally, has said the goal of OPEC and the oil industry in general is to get America up to paying prices for gas that they pay overseas. In most countries, gas is the $US equivalent of $7/gallon or more. The international industry wants the US paying those kinds of prices. When they jacked us up to $4/gallon in 2008, we responded with a big middle finger and said, "sorry, we'll find another way". Consumption in the US plummeted, and the market responded. Suddenly, by November, there was such a huge surplus that OPEC had to call for emergency production cuts to keep prices from tanking. So now here we sit, right around $2/gallon nationally. We bottomed out around $1.60 (man, I was hoping to see prices less than a dollar again!), and are slowly creeping back up.

I'm no economic expert, but I love the fact that the US responded and said, "we'll carpool, we'll skip vacations, we'll take the subway/train/bus, but we ain't paying no $4 a gallon for gas". So thanks, America. Now bail out on your summer vacations again so I can keep sub-$1/gallon prices in my realistic wishlist again.