May 31, 2005
coffee
"It’s just like when you’ve got some coffee that’s too black, which means it’s too strong. What do you do? You integrate it with cream, you make it weak. But if you pour too much cream in it, you won’t even know you ever had coffee. It used to be hot, it becomes cool. It used to be strong, it becomes weak. It used to wake you up, now it puts you to sleep."
-- Malcolm x "Message to the Grass Roots," speech, Nov. 1963, Detroit
Posted by ali at 9:53 PM | TrackBack
May 30, 2005
life...
"Life... is like a box of chocolates. A cheap, thoughtless, perfunctory gift that nobody ever asks for. Unreturnable, because all you get back is another box of chocolates. You're stuck with this undefinable whipped-mint crap that you mindlessly wolf down when there's nothing else left to eat. Sure, once in a while, there's a peanut butter cup, or an English toffee. But they're gone too fast, the taste is fleeting. So you end up with nothing but broken bits, filled with hardened jelly and teeth-crunching nuts, and if you're desperate enough to eat those, all you've got left is a... is an empty box... filled with useless, brown paper wrappers."
--Smoking Man, The X Files
Posted by ali at 12:00 PM | TrackBack
May 29, 2005
fear
"melt the icy fingers of fear with the sunshine of hope."
-- unknown
Posted by ali at 12:16 AM | TrackBack
May 28, 2005
desiderata
Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.
-- Max Ehrmann (1872-1945)
Posted by ali at 3:14 PM | TrackBack
May 27, 2005
no such thing as a non-violent revolution
"I would like to make a few comments concerning the difference between the black revolution and the Negro revolution. There is a difference. When you study the historic nature of revolutions, the motive of a revolution, the objective of a revolution, and the result of a revolution and the methods used in a revolution you may change words, you may devise another program, you may change your goal and you may change your mind. Look at the American Revolution in 1776. That Revolution was for what? For land. Why did they want land? Independence. How was it carried out? Bloodshed! Number one it was based on land, the basis of independence, and the only way they could get it was bloodshed. The French revolution; what was it based on? The land less against the land lord. What was it for? Land! How did they get it? Bloodshed! Was not compromise, was no negotiation. I'm telling you you don't know what a revolution is, because when you find out what it is you'll get back in the alley, you'll get out of the way. The Russian revolution. What was it based on? Land! The land less against the land lord. How did they bring it about? Bloodshed! You haven't got a revolution that doesn't involve bloodshed! And you are afraid to bleed. I said you are afraid to bleed. Long as the white man send you to Korea, you bled. He sent you to Germany; you bled. He sent you to the south pacific to fight the Japanese; you bled. You bleed for white people, when it comes to saving your own churches being bombed and little black girls MURDERED!! you haven't got no blood. So I sight these various revolutions, brothers and sisters, to show you you don't have a peaceful revolution, you don't have a 'turn the other cheek' revolution; there is no such thing as a non violent revolution. Only kind of revolution that is non-violent is the Negro revolution. The only revolution based on loving your enemy is the Negro revolution. The only revolution in which the goal is a desegregated lunch counter, a desegregated theater, a desegregated park, and desegregated public toilet you can sit down next to white folks on the toilet. That’s no revolution. Revolution is based on land. Land is the basis of all independence. Land is the basis of freedom, justice, and equality. The white man knows what a revolution is. How do you think he'll react to you when you learn what a real revolution is? You don't know what a revolution is; if you did you wouldn't use that word. A revolution is bloody, revolution is hostile, revolution knows no compromise, revolution overturns and destroys anything that gets in its way."
- Malcolm X
Posted by ali at 8:32 PM | TrackBack
May 26, 2005
malcolm x misunderstood
there was were many malcolms: hustler, victim, anti-racist, minister, etc. as a result he is one of the most misunderstood historic figures.
a good example of this is the phrase "By Any Means Necessary". After malcolm's death the phrase began to appear next to a photograph of him standing by a window holding a machine gun. But the photo was originally taken as a warning against those Nation of Islam members who had threatened Malcolm's life. But placed next to a shotgun, it appeared to be a call to arms for the Black community.
in Context:
"We declare our right on this earth...to be a human being, to be respected as a human being, to be given the rights of a human being in this society, on this earth, in this day, which we intend to bring into existence by any means necessary."
Posted by ali at 7:15 PM | TrackBack
May 25, 2005
this blog is dedicated to malcolm X
"The righteous impact of civil rights leader Malcolm X is still felt throughout the corridors of every American town, even 40 years after his appalling murder in the Audubon Ballroom in New York. His tremendous strides and remarkable intellect educated and motivated hordes of individuals, enlightening them to make a difference and stand up for their basic human rights."
When asked: "Do you consider yourself militant?"
"I consider myself Malcolm!"
--Malcolm X