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Waterstar

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Everything posted by Waterstar

  1. For the sake of humanity AND every animal from ALL endangered species, PLEASE don't even make us think about this! Oh my goodness. Have you seen him dance?? :-/ Some of us would be lookin at this like, "Unt-uh, that right there don't come from OUR side!"
  2. I think that astrology is absolutely fascinating. I'm not even a serious student of astrology, yet the little that I know amazes me.
  3. I get along with pretty much all signs because my sun sign is a combination of them all.
  4. Friedrich Nietzsche, The Parable of the Madman (1882) Have you not heard of that madman who lit a lantern in the bright morning hours, ran to the market place, and cried incessantly: "I seek God! I seek God!" -- As many of those who did not believe in God were standing around just then, he provoked much laughter. Has he got lost? asked one. Did he lose his way like a child? asked another. Or is he hiding? Is he afraid of us? Has he gone on a voyage? emigrated? -- Thus they yelled and laughed. The madman jumped into their midst and pierced them with his eyes. "Whither is God?" he cried; "I will tell you. We have killed him -- you and I. All of us are his murderers. But how did we do this? How could we drink up the sea? Who gave us the sponge to wipe away the entire horizon? What were we doing when we unchained this earth from its sun? Whither is it moving now? Whither are we moving? Away from all suns? Are we not plunging continually? Backward, sideward, forward, in all directions? Is there still any up or down? Are we not straying, as through an infinite nothing? Do we not feel the breath of empty space? Has it not become colder? Is not night continually closing in on us? Do we not need to light lanterns in the morning? Do we hear nothing as yet of the noise of the gravediggers who are burying God? Do we smell nothing as yet of the divine decomposition? Gods, too, decompose. God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. "How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it? There has never been a greater deed; and whoever is born after us -- for the sake of this deed he will belong to a higher history than all history hitherto." Here the madman fell silent and looked again at his listeners; and they, too, were silent and stared at him in astonishment. At last he threw his lantern on the ground, and it broke into pieces and went out. "I have come too early," he said then; "my time is not yet. This tremendous event is still on its way, still wandering; it has not yet reached the ears of men. Lightning and thunder require time; the light of the stars requires time; deeds, though done, still require time to be seen and heard. This deed is still more distant from them than most distant stars -- and yet they have done it themselves. It has been related further that on the same day the madman forced his way into several churches and there struck up his requiem aeternam deo. Led out and called to account, he is said always to have replied nothing but: "What after all are these churches now if they are not the tombs and sepulchers of God?"
  5. I love Fela! You should also check out "Music is the Weapon".
  6. http://new.livestream.com/HistoricEbenezerBaptistChurch/events/3626492/videos/70107189
  7. http://www.ebony.com/news-views/respectability-politics-wont-save-your-black-life-405 Respectability Politics Won't Save Your Black Life Activist/journalist Goldie Taylor on how being 'good' has failed to protect Black people over and over again
  8. Open Mind Round Table with Malcolm X, James Farmer, Wyatt T. Walker, and Alan Morrison.
  9. Missed you, too~ True, it's sacreligious to call those acts "magic" in the very same way that human sacrifice is paganistic,bestial, and wicked....UNLESS, of course, it is at the very center of one's salvation. I, of course, digresss. :-) Perhaps such discussions exist because the definition or at least the perception of magic has changed over time. Things that are normal to some are called "paranormal" . Things that strike some as abnormal are "norms". I personally don't find it odd for a stranger to be able to describe one's personality so well by simply observing the stars, planets, and such. Nor do I find it odd for a stranger to have guides tell him or her details down to what the person that is being read was wearing when he or she did a certain thing. These things are natural to me. Will I go back and forth with anyone about why or why these things are not possible? Nah, not really my battle. However, I must admit that it is kind of interesting that some who go back and forth in some things with strong doubt interpret events in their sacred books literally. Don't mention anything about allegory... You done got da DEBIL in ya and the spirit of "unbelief" needs to be cast out of ya!
  10. Black on black violence/crime is quite profiitable. Perhaps this is why we do not hear too many complaints about it from the dominant culture until there is a need to distract, divide, and deflect. The counternarrative of black on black violence has been especially hot in conservative circles. Quite crafty obviously, because this counternarrative has been adopted by many who probably would otherwise actually be discussing the injustice of the Zimmerman trial and the injustice of black life in America. How easily we are distracted. What really is our logic behind those who have never cared about black people killing one another spending so much time, energy, and money to put the need for us to stop the black on black violence in the spotlight? Do we really think that they have grown a conscience and now want for us to stop disrespecting, assaulting, and killing one another? Do we have the clarity and the will to stay focused? If we engage in conversations about black on black violence as a post Zimmerman verdict sidebbar convo, hopefully it will not be in the form of a debate with those who have never cared about it in the first place.
  11. In light of the recent events, the question is raised in the black community often: "What has the Zimmerman trial taught you?" I am not trying to be funny here, yet to me, the previous question is comparable to the question "What has calculus taught you about subtraction?" The concept of subtraction was understood well before encountering calculus, so what exactly was calculus "supposed" to teach me about subtraction? At any rate, there are many of us to whom the concept of injustice seemed a bit unfamiliar until the Zimmerman verdict was announced. Perhaps in some cases this is because some of our people thought that we had "overcome". It is said that that if you want to know the ending of a thing, then you must know its beginning. Do we not know the origins of the criminal justice system? Do we not know the history of our relationship with justice according to the law of the land? Do we not realize that "evolved" and "completely different" are not synonymous? Do we not understand that having made "great strides" and having "arrived" are not identical? Evolutionary process: The Slave Code--> The Black Codes--> Jim Crow--> The Present. So where do we go from here? Of course there should be a federal investigation/civil suit for Zimmerman regarding the murder of Trayvon Martin. Do we not yet see that the issues that we face go beyond a violation of our civil rights to a violation of our human rights. The issue of civil rights is limited to concerns which are domestic. Ths issue of human rights concerns is not limited to concerns which are domestic.d However, is that all that there should be? Do we understand that the tragedy of the Trayvon Martin case is not an isolated event? Do we realize that what we are dealing with is systemic? On a larger level, where do we as a people go from here? Is now not the time to give mroe consideration to our being more autonomous? Why does this seem so farfetched to us when we clearly have the expertise to build and sustain our own on many levels? We constantly build for and sustain others. Why not build for and sustain ourselves? Many of our people just celebrated Independence Day. Whose independence? When we talk about black independence, the most resistance first comes from within,
  12. Greetings, Everyone. Hiya, Troy! Hi, Cynique. Hi and I concur, Delano. When we think about it though, Is "magic" not at the center of what is considered to be every "major" religion? It clearly is in Christianity. Events such as turning water into wine and walking on water are perfectly believable, but it has to be from a page out of a HOLY book, not a MAGIC book.
  13. Let it not be forgotten that "freedom and democracy" coexisted with the slaughtering of indigenous people and the slavery of African people here quite peaceably. Let is not be under-analyzed that in this democracy, the majority (those who possess/directly benefit from the possession of political and economic power) rules. How can such a system ever really work for those of a disenfranchised minority? As the article in another topic asks whether Pan-Africanism is myth or reality, we need to be asking ourselves whether democracy here is myth or reality. Perhaps a good step for black people would be an emphasis on our autonomy and interdependence. It's not that we can't build, because we build constantly.. It's just that we do it for everyone except ourselves.
  14. Greetings. The idea that people who are homosexual and wish to be married should be able to do so and have this marriage recognized in all aspects is becoming increasingly popular. Perceptions of gender/roles are changing rapidly, as are families and society in general in response to these changes in perceptions. (From Michel Martin's "Tell me More" show on npr.) When people debate gay marriage, some argue that it could lead to legalized polygamy. Host Michel Martin asks how, and if it would even matter. She speaks with Austin Nimocks of the Alliance Defense Fund and Jonathan Rauch of the Brookings Institution. http://www.npr.org/2012/05/31/154064922/would-gay-marriage-lead-to-legal-polygamy During this particular show, Michel Martin had two men on her show who had opposing views about the legalization of gay marriage. Nimocks was not in support of gay marriage while Brookings was in support of gay marriage. Though these men were clearly on different sides of the gay marriage debate, they were solidly united in the stance that they took against the legalization of polygamy. I listened for a solid argument against polygamy, yet heard none. My question then is, for those who support the legalization of gay marriage yet oppose the legalization of polygamy, what is the solid argument against the legalization of polygamy? Before you answer, consider this. In America, it is perfectly legal for a man to have 10 different women and children with each, yet it is illegal for him to marry and be legally responsible for all 10 of them.and the children that he has made with them? What are the solid arguments against that in this situation? One reason that some people push the legalization of gay marriage (by this I mean the full recognition of it) is that it can help to lift the burden re: adoptive/foster care. Can the same not be said about the legalization of polygamy?
  15. CYNIQUE SAID: You asked how the world was when I was young. I think the thing that dismays me most about the present is how morals and scruples and literacy have deteriorated so badly. Of course the argument can be made that this has always been the case, it's just more in the open now. All I can say is back in the day in the 1950s and early 60s, women didn't flaunt their pregnacies if they weren't married, didn't strut around wearing tight outfits to show off their baby bump. Elected officials didn't flagrantly violate the trust of taxpayers by embezzing public funds to finance the elaborate lifestyles which include sexual escapades with other women. Schools somehow manage to teach all but the most dense of kids how to read. Drug use wasn't rampant, adolescent girls weren't aggressive sexpots. Me and my contemporaries somehow managed to exist in this environment without being prudish or repressed. We were just more discreet, more considerate, and had a better set of values. We knew how to have fun. We danced and sang and partied and drank. The lyrics to our songs were clean and romantic, our dances were cool, not vulger, and nobody broke up parties with gun fire. When I was much younger, in the 1930s and 40s in the little town that I lived in, in the black community the village did indeed, raise the child. Elders were respected, we left our doors unlocked, had no fear walking the streets at night and trusted those in authority. But it wasn't all idyllic. Racism was there in different degrees, depending on what part of the country you lived in. Poverty was always a factor. But It was just a simpler more wholesome time. ------------------------------- Hiya, Cynique. Do you think that black people were more self-reliant and community-oriented when society was formally segregated?
  16. So cool and sagacious. Is piscean influence strong somewhere in your chart? I don't know much about the science of astrology, yet I would love to learn. I know that you suggest good books, but I think that I'd (and perhaps others here as well) be more enthused about reading yours. On another note, it's really refreshing to see how while some are not exactly sold on certain concepts/possibilities, they are not blindly dismissing them (which seems to often be the case with such things).
  17. Why is stuff so normal considered to be paranormal? It's kind of like how wearing suit, ties, and stockings in the blazing sun is normal while wearing little or no clothing in such heat is abnormal. I don't find anything "para"normal about one closing his eyes in sleep and seeing the events of things to come played out for him. Nor do I find anything "para" normal about one spinning without physically moving, leaving her body, floating, going to other realms. What is not normal about being able to hear things that are actually being said or thought without being in the physical presence of those who are saying them? What I do, however, find abnormal is that we continue to find these things abnormal or unbelievable. What is really abnormal? Being so far removed from those parts of us unlimited by flesh until we think that this physical realm is all there is an existence so unlimited or being in closer touch with those parts of us unlimited by flesh and thinking that there is much more to existence than this physical realm? It's almost as baffling as seeing how baffled some of the "greatest minds" (whatever the criteria for that is... ) in literature are to this day over these lines: "Beauty is truth, truth beauty- that is all ye know on earth, and all ye need to know."
  18. Farrakhan probably didn't kill Malcolm X just like OJ probably didn't kill Nicole Brown Simpson. Feel free to take this exactly as your logic so sees fit. I suspect that Malcolm X's assassination was the result of a collaborative effort between seemingly unlikely allies. I think that his blood is on the hands of many... and I definitely suspect that Farrakhan is in this bunch. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArEklsMTgDk Homeboy on some Scar from Lion King ish...
  19. Perhaps the question of whether Pan-Africanism is reality or myth depends heavily upon the interpretation of Pan-Africanism. If you ask 100 people what Pan-Africanism is, you just might get a plethora of dramatically different answers. While I do believe that solidarity is central to a working Pan-Africanism, I do not believe that this solidarity is synonymous with the absence of conflict. However, conflict need not stand in the way of solidarity. I will say this. We are attempting to answer the question of whether Pan-Africanism is reality or myth while the question of Pan-Europeanism as myth or reality is not even an issue worth debate on a subconscious level, because we are so used to the latter reality. How many people of European descent consider their uniting beyond geographical/cultural boundaries to achieve common goals as nothing more than a silly concept? Pan-Europeanism has been a reality for many centuries. Interestingly, we scoff at the idea of "panAfricanism", all while coexisting with the realities of countless examples of Pan-Europeanism in practice. Maybe it's because we're used to Pan-Europeanism. Have we not been trained to uphold it and resist Pan-Africanism?
  20. Hiya, Troy! I think that this movie was the best Tyler Perry movie that I've ever seen. The Madea character has its place, yet I was especially thrilled that it did not pop up in this movie, even in cameo form. The message was there without an overly preachy presentation. The HIV factor would have been a twist had the movie been almost anyone else's than Tyler Perry's. As it was said, if only some of us could shut off the left hemisphere for the duration of the movie... Still, I can appreciate how Perry consistently strives to use art as a tool to uplift/increase awareness.
  21. Greetings to those with whom I am familiar and to those with whom I am not My two cents: Because leaders are simply people, none of them are without their flaws. Hugo Chavez did many wonderful things that many will never hear about simply because he refused to be a puppet of imperialism. This made him a "ruthless dictator" to both those who knew better and those of us who did not know better yet allowed (and continue to allow) the mainstream media- the mouthpiece of the western agenda- to choose our friends, allies, enemies, even our more general likes and dislikes. It is my opinion that we are quick to parrot yet slow to research. Quick to accept the given yet slow to question it. Perhaps if this were not so, we would be more apt to question our conditioning, our pre-programmed biases...or at the very least, be aware of their origins.
  22. Hope you think that later is better than never for bday greetings. Happy belated bday and I wish you as many more as you want.
  23. HI, EVERYONE. I HAVE MISSED SEEING THE PERSONALITIES DISCUSS THINGS HERE, AS I HAVE MISSED DISCUSSING THINGS WITH THE PERSONALITIES HERE. I DIDN'T WANT TO MAKE A WHOLE NEW SUBJECT TO SAY THAT, SO I JUST SAID IT IN HERE. I AM SO GLAD TO BE OUT OF THAT WORKSHOP. (I THINK MANY OF THEM ARE CONDUCTED JUST TO SHOW US HOW GOOD WE ACTUALLY HAVE IT WITH OUR NORMAL SCHEDULES.) NOW I HAVE AN HOUR LEFT TO SEE WHAT YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN UP TO. :-) NOW LET ME READ WHAT YOU GUYS ARE SAYING IN HERE.
  24. A counselor who understands proverbs soon sets difficult matters aright. Anyone love proverbs? Please feel free to share some. :-) "Wretched is he who injures a poor man." "Baseness may obtain riches, yet crime never lands it wares on the shore. In the end only Maat lasts." "Do not be proud and arrogant with your knowledge. Consult and converse with the ignorant and the wise, for the limits of art are not reached. No artist ever possesses that perfection to which he should aspire. Good speech is more hidden than greenstone (emeralds), yet it is may be found among maids at the grindstones.." "It is better to pay for medicine than to pay for a funeral." "A man is the cock of this world; a woman is the hen." "When a journey turns out well, everyone claims to have come on his own, but if a journey should turn out badly, everyone remembers the person who induced him to make the trip." "Palm trees that come from the same soil yiield the same type of win. "Time longer than rope." "No load is ever too heavy for a horde of ants." "All you can do to the defiant, little boiling clay pot is stare att it. You dare not pick it up and smash it." "It is Mr. Old Man Monkey who marries Mrs. Old Woman Monkey." "Snake at your feet, stick in your hand." "A rag abandoned in one corner of the house will some day become useful." "He who studies history is prophetic." "When a child throws a stone into the marrketplace, his mother or kinsmen may be hit." "A palm tree that dislikes gourds must not produce palm wine." "No one can tell how and when water entered inside the coconut or pineapple. "A cow does not know the usefulness of its tow until it is cut off." "The white cock is not appreciated in its compound." "There is hope for the living dog; for a living dog is better than a dead lion."
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