Friday, 30 October 2009
Barry....
I use to get told off for dating outside of my colour when I was younger, beaten up and bottled once because of it and on one specific occasion, I recall when all the black guys in this club mocked my very very white boyfriend he did dance badly.. nohing to do with his colour, he loved Marc Almond he was a bad dancer and the black guys were bouncers, nobody looked good.... it really is one of those stories where you had to have been there....everyone but me looked like a twat.
Stop screaming..... ...It's a slow news week.......and I just miss Barry...
I miss her.......
Some not all.....just some....still miss home...
Thursday, 29 October 2009
Sting: Obama best person to handle world's 'mess'
"In many ways, he's sent from God," he joked in an interview, "because the world's a mess."
But Sting is serious in his belief that Obama is the best leader to navigate the world's problems. In an interview on Wednesday, the former Police frontman said that he spent some time with Obama and "found him to be very genuine, very present, clearly super-smart, and exactly what we need in the world."
"I can't think of anyone better qualified because of his background, his education, particularly in regard to Islam," he said.
Still, Sting acknowledged the president had a "difficult job" ahead of him.
The British singer, who released the seasonal album "On A Winter's Night" this week, said he's fascinated by American politics, Obama, and also by Obama's opponents on the right.
"It's aggressive and violent and full of fear," he said of the backlash against Obama. "They don't want change, they want things to feel the same because they feel safe there."
Sting, 58, said he's hopeful that the world's problems can be dealt with, but is frustrated that "we seem to be living in a currency of medieval ideas."
"My hope is that we can start talking about real issues and not caring about whether God cares about your hemline or your color," he said. "We are here to evolve as one family, and we can't be separate anymore."
Well lets be thankful it wasn't Bono eh?
Friday, 9 October 2009
Now what was I saying earlier??
If we think Obama is about peace, then why is there still a war continuing in Afghanistan? Ron’s right, Obama and the Bush legacy have made it into an acceptable defensive process toward a war against terror and how can we resist such tact? To vocalise your contempt for this campaign makes you no better than an extreme fundamentalist. Why is this reminding me of the cold war?
We need to stop being schmoozed by these leaders because before we know it, Tony Blair will be Prince of Europe and Obama crowned King of an International Government, a movement that will have no issue using weapons and force to create Western customised ‘peace’. As I suggested earlier we have to ask ourselves what are the motives behind this? And whom will it benefit in the end?
Now what thinks you of this prize?
Oh Bama......I guess it's something to tell the grand kids eh?
I swear I haven't got it in for Obama...and I’ll just have a short rant on this subject, because lets face it, I think we are all pretty much one minded about this award. I am not about to talk about and compare my much loved Mother Theresa and Martin Luther King, who without blinking deserved such distinction. I shan’t even mention the life threatening efforts of the nominated Morgan Tsvangirai. He battled that damn Mugabe for years watching people who opposed him disappear and be powerless to prevent it, then moving into a position not of death but sat beside the tyrant leader, in a some what unbelievable coalition.
No No…why would I highlight such obviousness. Because you and I know when we hear those names they instantly evoke the images of strength, bravery, pride, honour and heart swelling admiration we adorn to them because it is something we could not have possibly achieved, even with the life we have left.
I’ll not utter a sound.
But what I will say is, if after eleven days of being freshly in the White house you were told that you would be nominated for such an award, why didn’t you take the committee to one side and say no thanks lets put it off a couple of years? No? Well ok, alright, you probably thought to yourself, no fucking way will I win it…I’ve only been here a short while it couldn’t possibly be awarded to me? and if it did, then wouldn’t you think to yourself it’s because the international stage have obviously got some kind of hidden agenda in mind. Which if you think of race relations and religious connotations, those agendas become quite transparent, wafts of internationalism.
Surely an intelligent man like you would have turned around and said no, lets wait, who would respect me for having it? How could I respect myself? Because you do realise, without a shadow of a doubt, everybody thinks you are being awarded it for being the first black President don’t you? You haven’t done anything else, except talk about your intentions and I am not buying into the argument that the award is about ‘encouragement not achievement’ because if that were the case, then you still fall behind Doctors without borders or Aid workers to name but a few and where are their awards?
So when you pick up that award and give that speech, of which I can NOT wait to hear! When you get back home just ask yourself the one question, are you really worthy to stand in the same line up with those other achievers oops sorry encouragers and feel equal?
I would have respected you more if you had said no and handed it to Tsvangirai.
Adage :
Tsvangirai congratulates Obama http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/8299441.stm
I think that speaks volumes....
Wednesday, 7 October 2009
Iz it because I iz black? ummm well yes... but it's not just about me...
It’s that time again, where I turn off Classical FM and conveniently highlight my ancestry with the sound of Peter Tosh dub wafting out my cottage door. I could quite easily be perceived as a coconut sat on this white middle class Estate, I confess sometimes I do forget what my parents sacrificed in order for me to be sat here but I can assure you, living in the UK it’s a memory lapse that occurs infrequently. After all I am the only black living on this hill and I'm not the help !!
So try not to start any mass political debate about the blacks having a month to celebrate their heritage and don’t do that ‘us and them’ standardised argument.. ‘if there is a black month there should be a white month’. Do try to avoid the constant droning bitter grumblings of… ‘better not be government funded’!!….give that monotone moaning a rest. For this month serves not just as a celebration for the BHM culture but a reminder of the importance of how we....yes I said WE, as a country have changed, grown, educated ourselves about the integration of other cultures, improved and moved on more harmoniously now. Much more congruent, than that of the days of the Brixton riots, Bradford and the lovely stop, batter, arrest then search tactics of the police back in the day. We all need to see and have this benchmark. It’s no longer an ‘us and them’ society, *coughs* well not as much… if anything the lack of popular support for the BNP thankfully evidences that.
So for all those Windrush, Ugandan Asians, Bengali, Chinese, Indian and African next generation to name a select few. If it weren’t for the utter horrific hardships our parents and ancestors had to endure, when they were actually INVITED here, to help strengthen the UKs infrastructure in order to make their lives better, which in turn aided our parents lives to improve. Then we sure as hell wouldn’t be as thriving when we make the comparison to some of the countries they have left behind.
And to all the original inhabitants of the UK you need to celebrate this month along side the BHM. If you look at the history of the immigration here, you will see it is a partnership that overall has worked and as much as the UK gives me constant despair, I am actually really proud of our progress. It’s these celebrations that bring it home to me that there really are worse places you could be living. Not really surprising people are bashing down the door to get here, we all worked fucking hard to get this place so desirable.
So press the play button below, collect some soul food, sit back and for once instead of moaning about what we need to achieve, lets really feel good about just how much we have.
Spliffs optional of course....