Last week a group of college republicans at UC Berkeley had a bake sale to represent their views on affirmative action. In their view, affirmative action gives special treatment to African-Americans, Latinos, Native Americans and Women. To highlight this "injustice", the college republicans sold cupcakes to African-American students for 25 cents, to Latinos for 50 cents and to White students for $2 (or some variation of this). The implicit argument of this bake sale is that it replicates the system of allowing African-Americans into universities when there are better white student applicants, again the idea of special treatment. The fundamental problem with this bake sale is that it fails to take the history of our country into consideration.
If you were to hold a bakesale that truly reflects the history of race and ethnicity in the United States, you would have to do this: Let's say the bake sale is going to last for 4 hours. For 3 hours and 59 minutes you would give the cupcakes away free to all the white students, and then you would give the cake mixer machines and batter to the white students' white friends, so they could make free cupcakes for their white friends. Very quickly the white students would become the presidents of all the cupcake associations, they would become the CEOs of all the cupcake companies, and the principles of all the cupcake schools. A bunch of white kids with a bunch of cupcakes and a bunch of cupcake power. You would then force the black students to make cupcakes for 3 hours and 59 minutes in the hot sun, while being whipped and occasionally hung for asking for a cupcake. After 3 hours and 59 minutes of laboring in the cupcake fields, for 40 seconds you would sell the African-American students cupcakes at $500,000 each, forcing them to take out loans to pay for the cupcakes from white student cupcake bankers. For the last 20 seconds, someone with sense of history and justice would step in and say, okay, for the last 3 hours, 59 minutes, and 40 seconds, black students have paid a severe price and have received no cupcakes. This person would say, "I can see that the white students have all the cupcakes and the means to make cupcakes and now occupy all of the important cupcake positions. To attempt to give black students the opportunity to make and enjoy some cupcakes, we'll give you some of the shitty cake mixer machines and batter." And with the fucked up cake mixers and batters, the black students would go out and make hellof good cupcakes.
At the end of 4 hours, the African-American students would be busting their ass to make cupcakes, trying to compete with all the white kids who already have hellof cupcakes.
And if you get all in twist about the words "with a sense of history and justice," consider the Civil Rights Movement. Just consider the Civil Rights Movement for a moment, the greatest form of Affirmative Action our country has seen. Think of all the African-American women and men who put themselves in harms way to change an oppressive system. Think of the leaders of the Civil Rights movement who were assassinated, jailed, and beaten. I don't think the college republicans who hosted this bake sale would argue that the Civil Rights Movement was a mistake, that things were better under Jim Crow, when the KKK was running around hanging African-Americans. I think the college republicans would say "yes, the Civil Rights movement was a good, necessary thing." But then they will say but that's in the past, today Obama is the President, everything's cool.
Nope. Look at the numbers: the percent of African-Americans on death row, the percent of African-Americans not going to college, the percent of African-Americans with less wealth than whites, the percent of African-Americans stopped by police. This is not because African-Americans are bad people. These numbers are the result of our history. The brutal history of enslaving African-Americans, and then "freeing" them into separate but equal, water fountains, backs of buses, violence and murder has fundamentally shaped neighborhoods today, shaped the population of political, business and educational leaders.
Changes have been made and things are better now than when African-Americans were slaves. But the history of brutality and oppression, hundreds of years of this, has left us with a situation today where affirmative action must be taken to rectify a disgraceful past. And it is a disgraceful past. And it is all of our responsibility to work towards greater equality. It is not about guilt, it is about equality. It is about justice.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Done Got Old!!!
My god. This is an order: Go to iTunes and buy Junior Kimbrough's "First Recordings." Six songs, $6. This shit is amazing. I can't even describe how good this shit is. This is the best blues music I have ever heard. On Junior's wikipedia someone is quoted as saying he is "the beginning and end of music," and I swear to god this person is right. The song keeps ending, and I have to keep starting it again. It's so bluesy and so beautiful. I just apologize to all of you for not knowing, not telling you about Junior Kimbrough before. I am terribly sorry. And to those of you have known all along, why have you not shared this with me! That is okay, you are forgiven. We are imperfect, but sometimes the music is not.
Here:
Meet Me in the City
On First Recordings, he has a song called, "Done Got Old." at one point he sings, "I can't do the things I used to do, I'm an old man...I can't love like I used to, now things done changed, I done got old."
with love love love love love love love,
Anthony
Here:
Meet Me in the City
On First Recordings, he has a song called, "Done Got Old." at one point he sings, "I can't do the things I used to do, I'm an old man...I can't love like I used to, now things done changed, I done got old."
with love love love love love love love,
Anthony
Monday, September 26, 2011
more music from the streets: Burnt
In my last post, I talked about my experience hearing a great, young musician at the Downtown Berkeley BART station. On Sunday, I was walking in North Beach and I came across this band, Burnt. I shot a quick video. My apologies for the camera lens rotation towards the end. I'm still learning. It's kindof funny.
Burnt
You can find out more about them here:
http://www.reverbnation.com/burntmusic
with sincere love for white guys who love and play reggae (this is not always the easiest form of love to allow yourself to feel, but in my case, it is a form of self-love),
Anthony
Burnt
You can find out more about them here:
http://www.reverbnation.com/burntmusic
with sincere love for white guys who love and play reggae (this is not always the easiest form of love to allow yourself to feel, but in my case, it is a form of self-love),
Anthony
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Aerin Monroe
I was at the Downtown Berkeley BART station on Friday looking forward to the ride home after work, taking the escalator down from the street to the first level of the station. I was standing, allowing the escalator to do the work, and I had my earphones in. When I got to the bottom of the escalator I see in front of me a guy playing the guitar and singing. There are very often musicians of some type playing in this spot right in front of the escalator, and I usually make a quick effort to listen. So I popped out my standard issue iPhone earphones and gave this guy a shot. I'm not totally sure, but even before removing my earphones, I may have heard something from this guy that compelled me to remove the earphones. I don't know. In any case, I listened to the song he was playing, just him singing and playing an acoustic guitar. He was sitting on a chair and he had his black, soft guitar bag in front of him with a few burned cds and quite a few dollar bills. He was African-American, looked about 20 years old, and had kindof a reaggae vibe in terms of his clothing and cap, with one little lock of hair peeping out. His song was folksy. It sounded like this:
Fuck. This guy is good. So I stood about five feet away in my bright yellow, button down work shirt, people filing by to get from the escalator to the bart gates and the stairs down to the tracks. So I'm like okay, this is really fucking good. But what about song #2? Is this guy a one hit wonder or can he come up with the goods again. And his second song was great, totally great. I stood and listened to the whole song, maybe four minutes. After he finished, I went over to him, dropped a $10 bill in his guitar case and picked up a burned cd. I said something like:
"Good shit, man. Are you gigging?"
He was real cool and said, "well yeah, but nothing big, just coffee shops and open mics and shit. Not really trying to play the Warfield or anything." and he laughed.
And I said, "Why not?" and I smiled, then I said, "keep playin' man." and I left.
I'm so happy I stopped to listen. I'm now in the process of trying to bring his music to the world. But that's not really off the ground yet; I'll keep you posted.
with so much fucking love for people who go out to bart stations and play music, it's still the right thing to do,
Anthony
Fuck. This guy is good. So I stood about five feet away in my bright yellow, button down work shirt, people filing by to get from the escalator to the bart gates and the stairs down to the tracks. So I'm like okay, this is really fucking good. But what about song #2? Is this guy a one hit wonder or can he come up with the goods again. And his second song was great, totally great. I stood and listened to the whole song, maybe four minutes. After he finished, I went over to him, dropped a $10 bill in his guitar case and picked up a burned cd. I said something like:
"Good shit, man. Are you gigging?"
He was real cool and said, "well yeah, but nothing big, just coffee shops and open mics and shit. Not really trying to play the Warfield or anything." and he laughed.
And I said, "Why not?" and I smiled, then I said, "keep playin' man." and I left.
I'm so happy I stopped to listen. I'm now in the process of trying to bring his music to the world. But that's not really off the ground yet; I'll keep you posted.
with so much fucking love for people who go out to bart stations and play music, it's still the right thing to do,
Anthony
Thursday, September 22, 2011
ducks in a row
I included the following in my weekly update email to the grad students in Psychology. I sent out the email this afternoon:
"Hi all,
In my unrelenting campaign to provide on-campus, off-campus, and, now, theoretical and English language resources, I would like to call into question the phrase, “get all my ducks in a row”. I hear this often in my position as a bureaucratic representative of the University. Many students, faculty and staff come into my office and say, “I need to start getting all my ducks in a row” or, “I need to get all my ducks in a row.” I guess my first question is who has all these ducks? Where do they live? Are they kept underground with the other secret animals? Do these ducks have post-it notes, posted to their green feathers with items from a to-do list? How long have you had your ducks? Is it hard for you to get your ducks in a row (it seems like if you have ducks, it shouldn’t be that hard to get them in a row, but maybe it is! I have no idea)? Do your ducks tend to line up in curvy fashion? And, here, I’m just curious, is there like a Mother Duck with a row of little ducklings?
I have no problem with the phrase, “get all my ducks in a row” per se. However, I have recognized that certain phrases get used by people in academia to signify some deeper intelligence. Take for example the graduate student who hears her professor say, “I need to get all my ducks in a row.” Now this graduate student immediately attributes certain positive qualities to this phrase. She will think, “Since my extremely successful and esteemed professor has used this colloquial phrase to indicate she is trying to take some set of necessary steps that will lead to some hoped for outcome, I too should use this colloquial phrase when I find myself in a similar situation. Using this phrase will make me sound smart.” My question is, is the phrase “get all my ducks in a row,” an inherently sophisticated and erudite collection of words?
No, I don’t think so. Any writing instructor worth her weight in salt of the earth will tell you to avoid using clichés and try to be original with language. Therefore, I would like to offer some alternatives to “getting all your ducks in a row”. How ‘bout, “I need to gather all my buffaloes in a line,” or if you want to stick with the feathered friends angle, “I need to get all my pigeons in their boxes” or “I’ve got to get all my pelicans in a floating column” or if you want to leave the animal kingdom behind “I need to put all my laundry in the washing machine and then take it out and put it in the dryer and then take it out and fold all the clothes and put them in the proper drawer.” That might be too long.
Of course, the rejoinder to my “argument” might be: this is how language works. People use the phrase, “I need to get all my ducks in a row” because there is a common understanding of what it means. If you were to go into your faculty advisor’s office and say, “I need to gather all my buffaloes in a line,” you might encounter some confusion, at best. I do not recommend using the buffalo phrase as a substitute without first pointing out the arbitrary nature of “ducks in a row” and clarifying your desire to offer something original and fresh.
“I need to get all my ducks in a row” is an arbitrary use of language. My point is that the same idea could be communicated in a different and possibly more original manner. HOWEVER, if you like the phrase, “I need to get all my ducks in a row,” by all means, keep using it! It’s kindof cute thinking of the little ducks and you scurrying around to make them line up and the ducks waddling in whatever direction they like. No negative judgment here, just a desire to offer up other possibilities."
with lots of Bon Iver love,
Anthony
"Hi all,
In my unrelenting campaign to provide on-campus, off-campus, and, now, theoretical and English language resources, I would like to call into question the phrase, “get all my ducks in a row”. I hear this often in my position as a bureaucratic representative of the University. Many students, faculty and staff come into my office and say, “I need to start getting all my ducks in a row” or, “I need to get all my ducks in a row.” I guess my first question is who has all these ducks? Where do they live? Are they kept underground with the other secret animals? Do these ducks have post-it notes, posted to their green feathers with items from a to-do list? How long have you had your ducks? Is it hard for you to get your ducks in a row (it seems like if you have ducks, it shouldn’t be that hard to get them in a row, but maybe it is! I have no idea)? Do your ducks tend to line up in curvy fashion? And, here, I’m just curious, is there like a Mother Duck with a row of little ducklings?
I have no problem with the phrase, “get all my ducks in a row” per se. However, I have recognized that certain phrases get used by people in academia to signify some deeper intelligence. Take for example the graduate student who hears her professor say, “I need to get all my ducks in a row.” Now this graduate student immediately attributes certain positive qualities to this phrase. She will think, “Since my extremely successful and esteemed professor has used this colloquial phrase to indicate she is trying to take some set of necessary steps that will lead to some hoped for outcome, I too should use this colloquial phrase when I find myself in a similar situation. Using this phrase will make me sound smart.” My question is, is the phrase “get all my ducks in a row,” an inherently sophisticated and erudite collection of words?
No, I don’t think so. Any writing instructor worth her weight in salt of the earth will tell you to avoid using clichés and try to be original with language. Therefore, I would like to offer some alternatives to “getting all your ducks in a row”. How ‘bout, “I need to gather all my buffaloes in a line,” or if you want to stick with the feathered friends angle, “I need to get all my pigeons in their boxes” or “I’ve got to get all my pelicans in a floating column” or if you want to leave the animal kingdom behind “I need to put all my laundry in the washing machine and then take it out and put it in the dryer and then take it out and fold all the clothes and put them in the proper drawer.” That might be too long.
Of course, the rejoinder to my “argument” might be: this is how language works. People use the phrase, “I need to get all my ducks in a row” because there is a common understanding of what it means. If you were to go into your faculty advisor’s office and say, “I need to gather all my buffaloes in a line,” you might encounter some confusion, at best. I do not recommend using the buffalo phrase as a substitute without first pointing out the arbitrary nature of “ducks in a row” and clarifying your desire to offer something original and fresh.
“I need to get all my ducks in a row” is an arbitrary use of language. My point is that the same idea could be communicated in a different and possibly more original manner. HOWEVER, if you like the phrase, “I need to get all my ducks in a row,” by all means, keep using it! It’s kindof cute thinking of the little ducks and you scurrying around to make them line up and the ducks waddling in whatever direction they like. No negative judgment here, just a desire to offer up other possibilities."
with lots of Bon Iver love,
Anthony
Sunday, September 18, 2011
fucked up Elvis song
This is me fucking up a great Elvis song. (But maybe that's the right thing to do?)
Mem 3 (Elvis) by tonyleonardmusicquestion
Mem 3 (Elvis) by tonyleonardmusicquestion
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Nick and the mems
I have decided to call my musical outputs "mems". This is a combination of the word "memo", discussed in the last post, and the word "meme" (pronounced meem), which is a sticky thing in culture, like a youtube video that goes viral. The "memo" portion implies something more basic, down to earth, a small part of a large organization. The "meme" implies a possibility that this music will spread and make people happy all over the world.
Mem 2
-----------------------------------
Every week on Thursday, I send an email with events and other info to the grad students in Psychology. The following is the introduction to an email I sent today (has nothing to do with mems):
"Hi all,
In my ongoing effort to provide you with both on-campus and off-campus resources, this week I would like to highlight Nick. Nick cuts hair. He is a genius. I first started getting my hair cut by Nick maybe three years ago, and it was obvious from the first snip that he had raw talent. I will ask you now to do a little exercise to help demonstrate my point: a) take your pointer finger and middle finger and put them together; b) then take your thumb and begin moving your two fingers and thumb up and down as fast as you can, this should look a bit like a little mouth chewing rapidly; c) now imagine that your fingers are actually in the holes of a pair of scissors and, at this grate rate of speed, you are cutting someone else’s hair. This is what Nick is capable of.
Nick just moved across the street to a new Salon, “La Tour”, at 2941 College Ave., near Ashby (not far from campus). The best way to reach him is by phone 510-848-8828. Getting your hair cut with Nick is not inexpensive. It’s around $50. I realize this is a bit steep for grad students. Honestly, it’s a bit steep for staff. But if you space it out, say one hair cut a year, then maybe it gets more affordable. Remember that old adage, you get what you pay for. Well in this case, you get a damn fine haircut, that’s what you get (when you pay for it). And if $50 is just too much, well maybe you can wait for a special occasion, like Commencement.
Nick is a family man, he has a wife and two kids, and he is a great guy. He’s always got an interesting perspective on things. He was born in China but moved here when he was young. I think the genius haircutting gene runs in his family. But I get the impression his talents surpass those of his other family members in the business, and there may be a little jealousy. You can ask him more about that.
Now, some may observe that my hair currently does not have that “you spent $50 on a haircut” look. True. But this is no fault of Nick’s. I haven’t been to see him in a while. But when the time comes, you can bet your bottom dollar that I will be returning to his comfortable chair to bear witness and watch the sculptor create.
Best,
Tony"
with additional love,
Anthony
Mem 2
-----------------------------------
Every week on Thursday, I send an email with events and other info to the grad students in Psychology. The following is the introduction to an email I sent today (has nothing to do with mems):
"Hi all,
In my ongoing effort to provide you with both on-campus and off-campus resources, this week I would like to highlight Nick. Nick cuts hair. He is a genius. I first started getting my hair cut by Nick maybe three years ago, and it was obvious from the first snip that he had raw talent. I will ask you now to do a little exercise to help demonstrate my point: a) take your pointer finger and middle finger and put them together; b) then take your thumb and begin moving your two fingers and thumb up and down as fast as you can, this should look a bit like a little mouth chewing rapidly; c) now imagine that your fingers are actually in the holes of a pair of scissors and, at this grate rate of speed, you are cutting someone else’s hair. This is what Nick is capable of.
Nick just moved across the street to a new Salon, “La Tour”, at 2941 College Ave., near Ashby (not far from campus). The best way to reach him is by phone 510-848-8828. Getting your hair cut with Nick is not inexpensive. It’s around $50. I realize this is a bit steep for grad students. Honestly, it’s a bit steep for staff. But if you space it out, say one hair cut a year, then maybe it gets more affordable. Remember that old adage, you get what you pay for. Well in this case, you get a damn fine haircut, that’s what you get (when you pay for it). And if $50 is just too much, well maybe you can wait for a special occasion, like Commencement.
Nick is a family man, he has a wife and two kids, and he is a great guy. He’s always got an interesting perspective on things. He was born in China but moved here when he was young. I think the genius haircutting gene runs in his family. But I get the impression his talents surpass those of his other family members in the business, and there may be a little jealousy. You can ask him more about that.
Now, some may observe that my hair currently does not have that “you spent $50 on a haircut” look. True. But this is no fault of Nick’s. I haven’t been to see him in a while. But when the time comes, you can bet your bottom dollar that I will be returning to his comfortable chair to bear witness and watch the sculptor create.
Best,
Tony"
with additional love,
Anthony
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Inchoate
I have it. I finally found the right perspective, the right way to view, the right way to think about my musical output. I can see from the correct place and interpret correctly. I am a beginner. I am learning how to play the guitar and sing. What an epiphany! So the musical outputs I publish are the sounds of a beginner learning to sing and play the guitar. One could question the use of the word "learning" as no one is "teaching" and learning implies getting better. I have to assume that by playing and singing I will get a little better over time. It is in this brilliant new light, from this brilliant new perspective that I offer yet another recording from my iPhone. It bears no title, simply the words given to it by my iPhone, "Memo-1". What perfect language! So completely apropos! It's not even a song, only a memo, just a brief note of little to no consequence in the organization of music.
In the memo below, I am riffing, if one were to be so generous, off of one of my favorite tunes, Stir It Up by Bob Marley and The Wailers. Peep the guitar solo at the end (oh shit, he didn't. yes he did.):
Memo-1
The word inchoate comes to mind. Inchoate (from the Oxford English Dictionary): "Just begun, incipient; in an initial or early stage; hence elementary, imperfect, underdeveloped, immature."
I'd like to highlight "elementary, imperfect, underdeveloped, immature." I like how the OED ends the definition with a period. Nice emphasis, like you really suck, boom! period. Done.
I provide you fair reader/listener with a subaltern sample of my inchoate musical transgressions. There may be some pain involved, you may feel pain and embarrassment listening to these inchoate transgressions. It may hurt to hear someone you love in the throws of shame. But are we not a species that takes great pleasure in pain? Are not the things that hurt us the things that we love, sometimes become desperate for, the most? Do we watch the train wreck?
Yes, we watch the train wreck and the bodies squished in the steel, and we listen to the music of a broken Ferris wheel, screeching to a halt (chocolate malts!). Thanks to George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr., graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, bridge-builder.
I wanted to mention a couple other things tonight, totally unrelated.
1. I love Cal Bears Football. I have since I was born. Both of my parents graduated from Cal. My father taught me the love of Cal Bear Football (and Basketball) when I was still a babe in arms. I remember being four years old, sitting on a Cal blanket in the pre-game afternoon sun on the sloping lawn just west of the Faculty Club. Growing up a Cal Football fan has taught me a great deal about failure and disappointment, in many, many different varieties. But we do have The Play, and for that I am forever grateful.
2. I love the San Francisco Baseball Giants. I have to admit my love was renewed last September and October when the pure magic transpired and the Giants actually won the World Series. These are the halcyon days of San Francisco. But I am not a bandwagon jumper in the absolute. Robby Thompson was my favorite baseball player when I was 8 years old, playing for the Albany Little League Senators, in our black uniforms with yellow trim. I think I had a small, good-luck, stuffed-animal lobster. I think I took it to my games. I was good at bunting.
Love you all,
Anthony
ps - The Good Shit (If I joined AA and someone prodded me to choose a higher power, Peter Tosh's guitar solo at the end of this song would be it.)
In the memo below, I am riffing, if one were to be so generous, off of one of my favorite tunes, Stir It Up by Bob Marley and The Wailers. Peep the guitar solo at the end (oh shit, he didn't. yes he did.):
Memo-1
The word inchoate comes to mind. Inchoate (from the Oxford English Dictionary): "Just begun, incipient; in an initial or early stage; hence elementary, imperfect, underdeveloped, immature."
I'd like to highlight "elementary, imperfect, underdeveloped, immature." I like how the OED ends the definition with a period. Nice emphasis, like you really suck, boom! period. Done.
I provide you fair reader/listener with a subaltern sample of my inchoate musical transgressions. There may be some pain involved, you may feel pain and embarrassment listening to these inchoate transgressions. It may hurt to hear someone you love in the throws of shame. But are we not a species that takes great pleasure in pain? Are not the things that hurt us the things that we love, sometimes become desperate for, the most? Do we watch the train wreck?
Yes, we watch the train wreck and the bodies squished in the steel, and we listen to the music of a broken Ferris wheel, screeching to a halt (chocolate malts!). Thanks to George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr., graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, bridge-builder.
I wanted to mention a couple other things tonight, totally unrelated.
1. I love Cal Bears Football. I have since I was born. Both of my parents graduated from Cal. My father taught me the love of Cal Bear Football (and Basketball) when I was still a babe in arms. I remember being four years old, sitting on a Cal blanket in the pre-game afternoon sun on the sloping lawn just west of the Faculty Club. Growing up a Cal Football fan has taught me a great deal about failure and disappointment, in many, many different varieties. But we do have The Play, and for that I am forever grateful.
2. I love the San Francisco Baseball Giants. I have to admit my love was renewed last September and October when the pure magic transpired and the Giants actually won the World Series. These are the halcyon days of San Francisco. But I am not a bandwagon jumper in the absolute. Robby Thompson was my favorite baseball player when I was 8 years old, playing for the Albany Little League Senators, in our black uniforms with yellow trim. I think I had a small, good-luck, stuffed-animal lobster. I think I took it to my games. I was good at bunting.
Love you all,
Anthony
ps - The Good Shit (If I joined AA and someone prodded me to choose a higher power, Peter Tosh's guitar solo at the end of this song would be it.)
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