Thursday, July 2, 2009

The life of Neda Agha-Soltan

Ah, now most people will wonder who the heck is this woman? I know I did at first. That was before I watched a video of her dying moments. She was a 27 year old Iranian woman who studied Islamic philosophy. She was a talented singer. She also was upset at the results of the election in Iran. For two weeks there have been cries of a rigged election, and Mousivir's people have been in the streets protesting against their government. The Ayatollah, who called the election and declared Ahkmadinajahed the winner, also called for the oppression of the people's protests. He warned there would be blood.................................and so there was...........Neda's for one.

She attended a demonstration and was in her car to go home. There was a traffic jam so she got out of her car and was immediately shot to death, without provocation, by a member of the police force.

She fell back onto the street, stunned. Several men came to her aid and she turns her eyes to see something off to the side. Seconds later blood begins to pour out of her mouth, nose, and even pools into her eye. She was gone.

Do we even realize how precious the freedom to disagree with your government is? We've had it all our lives. None of us living here remembers the tyranny of Great Britain. People have come to the states from all over the world to a country where they feel safe. Safe from what? Government rulers. Those above you telling you where to live, where to work, where your doctor is, where your school is. Telling you what you are allowed to read, watch, and listen to.

Remember Neda. Her death is at our back door and it's getting ready to knock. The Great Nanny State is rising to take care of us all as It sees fit. It might sound like good change in the beginning, but you haven't paid the price for it yet. Ask immigrants how big a price you have to pay.

We are going to have our own Neda's soon. People who will finally wake up and refuse to lose anymore control over their country. Refuse to work to subsidize a multitude of programs for which half the country uses but doesn't pay for. Americans are going to stand up one day soon and resist.....and there will be blood......Freedom always requires it. Freedom is always worth it.

The United States of America-Government For the People-By the People

Time for the People to quit complaining, shaking their heads and wondering what's going to happen next. We need to kick out most members of Congress and get new leaders who work for us, not big corporations, special interest groups, or worse, for themselves. We need men and women of real integrity and honesty in office that will put a stop to the spending, programs, and personal interests.

Because the fiddler will come to play, and he will demand his pay......and we don't have the money to pay.......we will start to get hungry, healthcare will be a clinic with long lines and little medicine, jobs will be a thing of the past, inflation will be out of control because of all the money in circulation with no gold to back it, gas will be over $7.00 a gallon, milk even higher. Finally, because of high taxes, you can't keep a roof over your head, and your family is suffering from an out of control rogue government who forgot who they worked for..........Then Neda, and thousands like her will descend on Washington, D.C. to demand change. The National Guard will be called out to put a stop to civil unrest.....and another Neda will be lying in the street, bleeding and dying.

OR, we could go to the polls, having already researched and learned all we could about the candidates. Then we could vote for the ones who most closely value those things we do. Vote for candidates whose ideas are feasible, in the budget, and not something just a few people want. Give most of the power back to the states where it belongs. Oh, and let's make sure they are actually qualified for the office they wish to represent.

It's almost time to act....get ready.

The People Mourn for Michael Jackson

It's been one week since the death of Michael Jackson. Many ordinary people have expressed their grief over his death and the impact he had on their life. Many celebrities have gone on record expressing their heartfelt grief, while also recalling the last time he was with them personally. Even politicians have weighed in on the matter. It's been said that "Michael Jackson was a black man that WE shared with the rest of the world."

Are you freaking kidding me?

Okay, first, let me say that I loved "Thriller." It was a great album, and with the 1980's advent of MTV, his videos were amazing. We hadn't seen Michael since the Jackson 5 days and he was all grown up, and although some of his dance moves were rather risque for the times, he was extremely talented. I think almost everyone has a favorite Michael Jackson song.

But, then there was the weird face transformation. Now stars can be excentric, but who actually completely changes their face to look like someone else? And not just anyone, but the one person they admired most, namely, Diana Ross. Then there was the skin bleaching. He may have been born a black man, but there was nothing black about him when he died. He was whiter than me. He may have had a condition called vitiligo, but still there was alot of bleaching going on. Look at him in 1983, then look at him twenty years later, and he was a freak of his formal self.

Now, although it will take a month for toxicology reports to come in, most everyone agrees that Jackson was an addict. Painkillers, sedatives, antidepressants, he took them all. He was deeply in debt, he'd nearly lost his beloved Neverland Ranch, his reputation was in the toilet and had been for years. At best he was totally weird, at worst, he was a pedophile.

While he was acquitted in a court of law of child abuse charges, he was convicted in the court of public opinion. There were no new records, no concerts, no political affiliations for Jackson. Did you see him in the last ten years do anything but walk down a street or sit in a car with a mask or veil over his face?

What about his three children? Their mother completely disappeared after the daughter was born, and the third child, a son called "Blanket" or Prince Michael II, does not even have a mother named on his birth certificate.

So, I say all this to wonder, outloud, what are the people mourning? Is it who he was in the 1980's, a talented young man? Or is it the young boy who had an overbearing father who terrorized him and took advantage of the talent his children were born with? It can't possibly be the Michael Jackson who existed in the decade preceding his death. The same public who are now mourning him, would not have bought tickets to his concerts or bought his music. Are our memories so short, that no matter what you do, you will be remembered fondly if enough people say you were great? Is it because he was black and therefore, no wrongs can be charged permanently to him in the Age of Obama?

He was preparing for a comeback. He had concerts booked in Europe hoping to redeem his reputation, and no doubt, earn some money. But he never got the chance. Last Thursday, he stepped out into eternity. Never again will he sing or dance here, but he did face an Almighty God. He was judged in the only "court" that really matters. He will now spend all of eternity at his final destination, which is up to God, and not anyone else.

Was he ready to meet God last Thursday? Are you ready to meet him today?