Peyton Manning

The myth of loyalty in sports must forever be erased from the dialog. No longer, is it acceptable to brandish loyalty on the back of the laborer while allowing companies to make decisions that further the flourishing of their bottom line. The bottom line in sports is to win, and that exceeds all claims of loyalty. Peyton Manning was a worker who services were no longer needed. Truthfully, we accept this reality even though we recognize the worth of the Indianapolis Colts was cemented on the strength of Manning's right arm. My only question is why will the Colts not experience the same criticism that a player would for making a decision that is best for them. The Culture of corporatism that pervades American life continues to leave the worker at a disadvantage. Unfortunately, we are blind to this reality because we are taught to simultaneously love and hates our athletes. We see their pay as unwarranted and ultimately undeserved. This brainwashing allows for us to side with ownership even when they show no qualities worth supporting. Peyton Manning at the end of the day was an employee, who in spite of his tremendous resume was let go in a move that benefits the company. Why can we not see that loyalty is one way street. The worker is expected to be loyal but cannot hope for that in return from his or her employer. We must challenge the corrupt constructs that confine the choices of the laborer. The ultimate limits of the laborer are exemplified in the story of Peyton Manning. Let's Get Free!

One of Many

There is no perfection in my pose. I simply embrace the pose of those who inspired me. I am cognizant of how in the rush to spread the message one can become enamored by the sound of one’s own voice. I humbly recognize that my voice is simply one of many in the symphony of resistance. I simply seek to voice my disdain for a system that stifles potential and relegates human life to that of nothing more than that of production machines. So, I speak, but never do I fall victim to the belief that I am the only one speaking or that my voice should be exalted above others. No, I seek to move with the collective because in reality collective liberation is all that matters. My freedom is connected with the freedom of the people. My pen and voice are simply two of the many weapons that I hope will one day free us all. Let’s Get Free!

I love being a consumer!

Damn, I love being a consumer. I love how I have been convinced that I can purchase my freedom at local malls. Seeing so many consume ignorance it is no wonder we continue to rock wardrobes of foolishness. Yet, those that critique our current love affair with consumerism or labeled out of touch. Touching the minds of the youth seems more difficult as time passes. As consciousness does not pass the litmus test of cool, cool has be co-opted and crafted as an embrace of an apathetic pose. And this popular pose poses no threat those that benefit from our unrecognized oppressive state. I simply state facts and wait for the day that revolution is not spoken of as a time in the past but will define the actions of our present. Let’s Get Free!

Student Debt

The reality is that student debt has become a prison that seeks to confine countless generations to an existence rooted in servitude. Granted, now what do we do with this truth? We must first recognize that a social system that has normalized debt and sanctioned corporate interest over the public is in need of drastic change. Granted, now what do we do with this truth? We organize and begin to create spaces for resistance not sanctioned by the system that is the cause of our conditions. Fundamentally, we must accept the reality that this system is designed for the rich, for their continued privilege and extravagance. So, the poor must abandon the idea that reason will change our condition. No longer can we subscribe to the notion that eventually, if we use the right language the architects of this flawed system will hear our plight and take pity on our condition. No, the interests of the poor are different and until we realize this we will continue to suffer. Revolution is not beautiful but its reality is necessary. Let’s Get Free

Revolutionary Rhetoric

I do not crave chaos I covet change and if chaos is the vehicle that will lead me to that destination then so be it. I have resigned myself to the belief that those that agitate for just conditions or who simply seek to highlight the current state of injustice will be forever be criminalized. Although, few seem to recognize the criminal conditions in which most live. So no, I cannot rest in the midst of complacency, because the cry for more has been forever etched into my soul. The cry for revolution may fall on deaf ears but that stark reality will not dampen my voice. My voice will forever be a weapon, illuminating a picture that may never come into focus but whose possibility is powerful nonetheless.

Lessons of Jesus

As a teacher there are times when I return home frustrated by feelings that my efforts are wasted. That my hard work is ignored. I am disappointed in the feelings that my sacrifice is lost on college students who do not recognize my "brilliance". However, I now see that at the depths of my arrogance lies a voice silently whispering a message. And as I turn down the noise of my bravado I hear the voice of the Lord saying, how does it feel? How does it feel to seemingly give so much and yet receive so little in return? How does it feel to care so much only to have that purpose ignored by others to consumed with their own issues? So now, I see that the path of dejection and pain was walked willingly by you. I apologize for believing that carrying the cross would be met with adulation and acclaim. That I deserved a greater fate than the one you suffered. I am sorry I ignored you, and at times ignore your enduring message everyday. Forgive me Father for I know not what I do. Or sadly, I know and yet continue to do it.

Life is Not a Romantic Comedy

It is crazy when you realize that your life is not a romantic comedy. That in order to find love that you are required to do more than to sit in the audience and wait for the one who will change your life. Truthfully, we must engage in this contact sport, and that takes a level of vulnerability that most are to afraid to embrace. So, instead we embrace shallow positions playing the game of love with no intention of committing to anything, other than our own ideas of what we deserve. However, I see now that most love stories fail because most are only concerned with the main character. Therefore, everyone else is relegated to the role of supporting actors for our fulfillment. So until we look at relational love as an opportunity to love someone else more than we love ourselves we will continue to miss out. And flock to the movies where we can view love stories we are to scared to chase in our own lives.

Journey

I am on a journey to find meaning. My struggle to escape the grips of the mundane that leave me unmotivated may resonate with many. I see now, that when lost we often return to familiar spaces even when those spaces no longer hold useful answers. I believe that my answers now reside over the horizons in the midst of new beginnings. As, I began to see that conformity is a prison that I must escape. I long to be free based on a definition of freedom still forming. I just now that freedom cannot be formed in the midst of a society constructed on enslavement. So, maybe my attempts to construct more in the midst of so much that is truly meaningless will prove fruitless but I still must try. Try to envision of life that connects me to more of the beauty that the blinders of constructed success have shielded me from. To get Free!

Can We?

Can we ever speak for anyone other than ourselves? Does the appropriation of the words of the voiceless by those that intend to lead them to the promise land simply reinforce their perceived powerlessness? For those that truly intend to help, they must work to create spaces and opportunities for those who have been convinced that their existence will forever be muted. There acceptance of their muted state is an indictment of those that profess to care about their plight. The plight of the weak cannot be alleviated until they are convinced of their strength.