if you can't read it, it says "ive got a masters in oral persuasion"

so right after i saw this guy some cat stepped on my sneakers. he didnt say excuse me or sorry but he decided to start insulting me. we exchanged some words and it lead to "ill see you when i see you"
personally im over fighting and all that jazz.
definitely reminded me of this clip from Do the Right Thing
yall know the clip

these sneakers are dedicated to my boy Lee "avers" matasi RIP. they are put out by eS skate company courtesy of Rick McCrank. you can buy them at antisocial

PEACE ONE DAY is a concept created by Jeremy Gilley, an actor turned film maker, who in the late 1990's felt overwhelmed by what he saw going on, on our planet.

Everywhere Jeremy looked, he was met with visions of conflict, destruction, fighting, oppression and misery. He began to question the fundamental nature of humanity and the issue of peace.

In 1999, Jeremy founded Peace One Day, a non-profit organisation and began to enthusiastically campaign for a day of Global Peace. He wanted the world to have ONE DAY, that was recognised globally every year, by all nations, as a day of cease fire, a day of PEACE. 

In 2001 Peace One Day's efforts were rewarded when the United Nations unanimously adopted the first-ever day of global ceasefire and non-violence on 21 September annually - Peace Day.

Every year since the United Nations officially created Sept 21st as Peace Day, thousands of people around the world have shown their support . In large and small ways, ordinary folks have committed to adding their individual positive energy to the global peace energy of the day. 

In 2007 according to the United Nations, over 100 million people were active on Peace Day, in 192 countries.

There were life-saving initiatives in 14 countries, and over 80 activities in Afghanistan alone where 1.4 million children were vaccinated against polio. 

PEACE ONE DAY held on the 21st Sept every year, is a truly wonderful idea, because you and I and everyone we know can get involved. We can make it happen.. 

FOR ONE DAY, if we all come together, we could create Peace on the whole entire planet..  imagine it.. peace everywhere..

We are a global community and together we have immense power. A positive power that many of us may have forgotten we possess.  We can realise once again, our united power and by supporting PEACE ONE DAY  on Sept 21st  we have a chance to see it in action.

We can all contribute to peace, no matter how big or small on Sept 21st 2008.  It is an opportunity to unite,  as an entire community and commit to PEACE for ONE DAY.  

Sports giant Puma have got involved promoting football games around the world on Sept 21st 2008.  All around the globe celebrations and events are happening. 

The days catch phrase is 'What will you be doing on sept 21st?' 

Its a good  question.. Dont you think?   What will you be doing? 

Check out the website,  watch the video clips Ive linked to this article and visit the various information sites & global event listings Ive linked to. (highlighted words throughout on the site)

Its a great opportunity to connect to something you really care about on a global scale.. there are so many fun ways to show your support... here's a list to give you some inspiration..

* Create an event in your neighbourhood or workplace

* Have free story tellings from the childrens book  peace one day in the park.

* Decide to volunteer at a worthy cause for one day

* Organise a BBQ with friends in the name of peace one day

* Get some T-shirts made up for your friends and wear them proudly from now and until sept 21st

* Arrange a free concert if you are a musician

* If you are wealthy, create a scholarship for peace studies

* Give away free hugs in your city centre

* Create a petition in support of peace, get loads of people to sign it then send it to your local MP

There are so many ways to support the day.  Be creative, Be unique, Be Involved!

 Check out peace One Day's website for more ideas on how you can be involved. 

Http://www.peaceoneday.org

Until next time,

Mysticmiss

DVDs I have ordered online and await with eager anticipation are:

Alien Quadrilogy

(9 disc complete box set)

...oh my god, oh my god, oh my god...

*

Titanic

(Special edition 2 disc set)

Another favourite of mine that I haven't had the pleasure of seeing in a long time.  Looking forward to reviewing this one.

*

From Beyond 

(Director's Cut)

Still not available in the UK, this classic gory horror is now fully uncensored with newly restored footage - result!

 *

Dr Strangelove 

(The Reel Collection edition)

This will form Part Six of my Kubrick Project

* 

Terminator 2: Judgement Day 

(Extreme DVD edition)

One of my all time favourite movies in a deluxe package...hubba hubba...

* 

Do The Right Thing 

(Criterion Collection edition)

The Criterion Collection never fails to impress with superb packaging and stellar image / sound quality - and this film is a classic.

As always I will be posting reviews of each, with additional brief opinions of their DVD editions.

I am amazed, astounded, and in awe of what WordPress is able to do....and for free. WordPress is the online software I used to create this website/blog.

I remember creating my first website with Microsoft's FrontPage. When working on it, I thought I was going to die. It was supposed to be "easy"....as was claimed by one of those insane descriptions made by those who no doubt who grew up playing video games, rather than someon like me who had a hard time learning how to type on a manual typewriter. Even after all that agony, I thought the final FrontPage website looked awful and modifying type and other details that were my obsession in print was impossible. It was also never updated because I couldn't ever remember what I did in between times of working on it. The snarky emails I received pointing out my errors didn't increase my love for the program.

Then I've slepped along with various content management programs. All useful, but somewhat costly and taxing, and I seldom liked the typography, but was never sure how to change it.

Years pass and the magic (or so it seems, no evil interest in witchcraft or any such things intended) and WordPress appeared. It simply organizes things; catagorizes, remembers and makes it look wonderful.

But it isn't WordPress alone that makes this transformation of my info, such as it is and to whoever it is useful, possible. The partner hero is www.lynda.com and the extraordinary instructor of WordPress in the Lynda program Maria Langer. As someone who struggles to teach, I admire beyond words her clear, measured and understandable instruction of this fabulous program. Thank you--you've opened up worlds for me and I trust for many church folks.

YOU can do this. You can create blogs, websites like this. And it's free.

I get so upset with the folks who advertise that they will do for you for huge amounts of money. Little children are starving. That is reality. In our world of connected communications we can't say we didn't know. So why are you spending huge amounts of money to create websites when you can do one for free and send the money you've been spending on website maintenance you could do to a group like World Vision (www.worldvision.org) or some other charity?

Spend $25 on lynda.com; learn WordPress; get your message out there. Send the money saved to a group who feeds hungry kids. And someday, when Jesus divides those who cared about hungry people from those who don't (Matt. 25:31-46) you'll be on the right side.

 "People of character do the right thing, not because they think it will change the world, but because they refuse to be changed by the world."  -Michael Josephson, Radio Commentator

CLIP FROM "DO THE RIGHT THING"  *******Do you remember this movie?  I loved it!  It's one of Spike Lee's best.  I abhor racism, so some of the scenes were a little tough for me and I did cry, but it's a great film.  Eventually, they did do the right thing, but only after a tragic wake up call.  Check it out if you haven't seen it.  Also, American History X is an amazing film that's a REAL eye-opener.  It hits close to home for me because my sisters and I went to school with skinheads and one of my sisters was attacked by one.  Not a great moment in history for me.  :( ******* 

WORD OF THE DAY

CAREER

 • \kuh-REER\ • verb

: to go at top speed especially in a headlong manner

Example Sentence:

The nervous passengers gripped their seats and exchanged anxious looks as the bus careered down the icy road.

Did you know?

Chances are you're very familiar with the noun "career" meaning "a profession followed as a permanent occupation." What you may not know is that the word "career" got its start in the world of medieval tournaments. Jousting required knights to ride at full speed in short bursts, and 16th-century English speakers used the noun "career" (from Middle French "carriere") to refer to such gallops as well as to the courses knights rode. By the mid-17th century, the verb had acquired its general "go fast" meaning, and by the 19th century the noun had developed the workaday use that is common today. (In case you're wondering, "career" is not related to "careen," which also means "to move at high speed"; "careen" has nautical origins, tracing to the Latin word for "hull.")

MATT & RILEY'S STREET LUGE CRASH  *******I'm sitting here hoping my boys NEVER take up any sport this dangerous.  Sure, there's a dangerous element to almost all sports (minus table tennis and curling!), but I just hope they choose ones that don't run the risk of snapping their bodies in half.  I'm just sayin'...!  ;) *******

For the person who has everything, and that's most of us, World Vision has a wonderful way through this catalog and online that you can give a fishing kit, a bicycle, a sewing machine, farm animals and other necessities to people around the world for whom these are truly life changing gifts.

Warning: careful reading of this gift catalog, though needs are presented in a positive, upbeat, non-victim exploiting way, is incredibly convicting as we look at our Christmas wishes and dreams when so many have so little. I love it that World Vision gives us a chance to share in these ways—I know many people want to, but don’t know how to give in these ways.

This is my very first entry on this here blog, but I personally feel that the question is still relevant. Anyways, click here for my brief movie review of Spike Lee's 'Do The Right Thing'.

Racial charged Bed-Stuy Brooklyn, implications of gentification fuel a already explosive situation.

IF you can keep your head when all about you 
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings 
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
' Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,
if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!                                       If  |  Rudyard Kipling

Last night, I dreamed I won the lottery.  I waited the obligatory 180 days before coming forward to claim my prize during which time I met with my lawyers and a team of accountants.  For some reason, I was being interviewed on TV.  The interviewer asked if I thought my life would change.  I realized then, how fortunate I was, that even a shit load of cash would not affect my life in the least. 

I have always lived life on the road less travelled. Being different and having cognition around being different makes for a life that is not full of surprise visits from family and friends. You can go whole, entire weekends without ever parting your lips to utter a single word. The phone never rings and there is never anyone to call.  I have never owned nor have I ever needed a day planner.  People abruptly stop talking when you happen by or worse, they're talking about you just as you enter in and you have heard every word they've said.

So the upside is now that I have all this money, I can pay my bills, move back to Manhattan and afford to live there and live the remainder of my days confident I will not be harassed or set upon by anyone calling themselves family or friend.

Living a life of principle based on reason is not the broad and spacious road.  The world rewards its own; those whose greatest hope and highest aspiration is to be different, just like everybody else.  There is safety in numbers, in not only thinking with the group, but like the group.  While you may not be the most popular you're not on the outside. You belong to the fratority where it's safe. And let's not forget the biggest benefit of all--the "fun" factor. Yep, yep, yep, it's fun to be mean.                                                          

                                                         Popularity is people liking you...

You get to keep your job.  Keeping your job means you get to pay your bills.  Paying your bills means you get to create more bills, acquire stuff, send the kids to camp, keep in touch with mom and dad, lunch with your siblings. Own a dog. It's good to fit in.  It's smart, too. People like you. 

                                                            Happiness is you liking you

You're not the Dixie Chicks, so you don't receive death threats.  People don't yell out at your concerts "Shut up and sing!"  They don't run a steamroller over your CD's. You're not James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner, so your badly beaten and shot bodies are not discovered in a ditch on the side of a dirt road in rural Mississippi.  You're not Tim Russert, so you don't suddenly drop dead of a heart attack because of too much passion and too much joy, and too much overworked.  (What a fortunate man he was.  Why aren't there ever any decent, principled people like him anywhere I always am)? 

No.  Your greatest ambition is to get invited to lunch with Mean People.

I stumbled across this blog post during blogroll this morning.  It was just the reaffirmation I needed and I was filled with gratitude.  This is you, too.  So don't keep it to yourself.   Go ahead.  Share the Moodz.

Courage is:

• Following your conscience instead of "following the crowd."
• Refusing to take part in hurtful or disrespectful behaviors.
• Sacrificing personal gain for the benefit of others.
• Speaking your mind even though others don't agree.
• Taking complete responsibility for your actions...and your mistakes.
• Following the rules - and insisting that others do the same.
• Challenging the status quo in search of better ways.
• Doing what you know is right - regardless of the risks and potential consequences

Source:  http://drlill.com/

These questions are my constant companions. Sometimes its an enjoyable experience pondering on these questions while other times its a totally frustrating and even heartbreaking experience.

Having been blessed in life with a certain financial success, I figured  inner joy and contentment would be one of the rewards from the fruits of the  hard labour that got me to this point..  

To date, this is the greatest illusion I have been living with.  Money does not automatically bring inner contentment.

Please do yourself a great favour, if like me you were under the illusion that all you needed to do was sort out finanical security and the rest would fall into place.. I beg you , wash this from your memories, its simply not true, it is not the case. 

The same issues of what to do with your life/ what brings you lasting joy and contentment will remain no matter how large your bank balance. 

True, financial freedom gives you a little breathing space. Instead of running about working like a crazy woman with no time to ponder life questions, it gives you the time ask the deeper more difficult questions i mentioned at the beginning of this post.. and the time to listen to the ...nothingness,  to realise perhaps like me, that you have no clue of these very significant answers, that they illude you completely.  

I have been on this journey for a couple of years. To begin with, when I sold the business and stopped working, I decided to travel again. Afterall it had been my love and my primary passion for most of my life. I  thought that now I could now travel as long as I wanted without needing to stop and work to top up my funds I would be eternally  joyous.

The realisation that dissatisfaction had crept into my reality was quite a shocking one. So is this it? Is this all my life amounts to? Travelling about the globe? Is there there not more to me, is there not a greater purpose for me being here? Is there not someting significant I meant to be doing with my life? And if the answer is YES to this question.. then what is it? how do i find it? how will I know it?  

To help find these answers, my partner and I decided to try and stop in one place and create a life for ourselves.. and this is where i am at in the present moment.

I have sat with these questions for sometime now and still they remain unanswered. I decided to write a list of the 'things' that I wanted to have in my life, things I wanted to try, to experience and to learn and begun to structure them into my life.  Perhaps my answers would come this way.  

This structure seems to be bringing a certain sense of satisfaction.  I know the comfort I am feeling  is still not  exactly what its all about. But it is a start.  A great start!

Hence my reason for sharing this wth you. If for any reason you or someone you know have also been feeling this sense of dissatisfaction in your life, maybe my list  will inspire you to make a list, or maybe you can just try some of the things I have been doing and see if they work for you. 

It takes work and effort to be joyous, it takes discipline to put things in ones life that give it meaning and purpose. It takes will power to sit quietly to listen to the soul and hear its messages of your purpose in this life time. 

I wish you well.  I would love some feedback,  to hear your thoughts.

until next time

much love and light

mysticmiss

Image details: Warner Home Video Celebrates The Release Of "Dirty Harry" - Arrivals served by picapp.com

Rappers aren't the only ones in the entertainment indsutry who have beef. When it comes to making a movie that are based on history, the people behind the scenes often take creative license and change things to suit their needs. Spike Lee recently accused film legend Clint Eastwood of following this pattern and he criticized Eastwood for the lack of African-Americans in Eastwood’s films including his Iwo Jimma flick Flag of Our Fathers. “That was his version. The negro version did not exist,” said Lee in an interview with newspaper The Guardian.

Eastwood, who has never been one to hold back his feelings, quickly responded to the Do the Right Thing director’s comments and questioned whether Lee was sure about his history. “Yes, there was a small detachment of black troops on Iwo Jimma as part of a munitions company, but they didn’t raise the flag. The story is Flags of Our Fathers, the famous flag-raising picture, and they didn’t do that. If  I go ahead and put an Afrincan-American actor in there, people’s go, ‘This guy’s lost his mind.’ I mean, it’s not accurate,” said Eastwood.

This isn’t the first time Lee has had a war of words with Eastwood. Lee criticized Eastwood’s biopic of jazz legend Charlie Parker called Bird. “He was complaining when I did Bird. Why would a white guy be doing that? I was the only guy who made it, that’s why. He could have gone ahead and made it. Instead he was making something else,” said Eastwood.

Ironically, Eastwood’s next project is The Human Factor, is a story about Nelson Mandela and how he used the country’s victory in the 1995 Rugby World Cup to foster national unity.

Lee’s comments angered Eastwood so much that the Dirty Harry actor commented, “A guy like him should shut his face.”

I know Eastwood is old, but I still think he might be able to kick the pint-sized Lee's ass.

As we were rounding the corner to exit the store, I held my hands up in a furtive plea and said, "Here's to hoping that someone we know walks in right now and can give us a lift!" Well low and behold, as soon as we made it to the doors, one of Matthew's classmates walked right into us. Not only is he a friend of Matthew's but get this, he's also a LOCKSMITH! Get out of here! You've got to be kidding me! No way!

Long story short, after going home to get his tools and driving back to the store, he was able to get Matthew's truck open in less than 10 seconds and after a too-long hiatus at Wal-mart, we finally made it home. I say all of this not to embarass my husband, but to show that yes, God does listen to us, even on the little things, and sometimes He even gives us what we ask for- and more! I did ask for a friend to rescue us, but didn't expect that it would be a friend who was also a locksmith. I believe that part could have been due to the fact that I didn't lose my cool and didn't make Matthew feel bad for doing this two days in a row- I partnered with him in figuring out how to fix the problem, even if that meant a long walk in a heatwave in flip flops. And sometimes, when we do the right thing in trying circumstances, we're rewarded.

More to come later on crafting, inexpensive groceries and a few new websites I've been checking out. And if you haven't done so already, please check out my new blog ManMadeMarket. I've posted several profiles of Etsy shops that have items for men (and sometimes women) and it's turning into a fun way to find handmade gifts and items for the guys in my life!

Now, right from your computer desk, you can be part of the new wave of people who are making great things happen. 

Your signature is an incredibly powerful tool you can use to make change happen. You CAN make a huge difference .

Does the state of our world make you feel sick in the stomach? Does it make you afraid, does the terrible injustice happening all around our globe make you angry?

Do you see whats going on in your world and hate it, yet feel a deep sense of helplessness...a sense that there is nothing you can really do to make a difference?  Think again folks! 

I have for some time now really felt very bad with what is happening on my planet and in my global community. Governments not taking care of the little people and persercuting those people who do, corporations stepping on whoever they choose to achieve their goals and ruining our beautiful planet along the way.

I felt bad, but helpless at the same time. How can I help? What can I do that will make the slightest bit of difference?

I have to admit, I am just not one of those people who will give up everything and go fight these guys head on.  Its just not who i am.  Did that make me a coward, did it make me someone who didnt really care enough?

No I recently realised, this is certainly not the case at all !! We can all help. There is a way for everyone to help, and it only takes a few mintues of your time and costs nothing. 

I have discovered online activism. With the modern technology of computers and internets we can all get involved in the wellbeing of our world.  We simply find a cause that is close to our hearts and go online and sign petitions.

Its simple, easy ,takes a few minutes  and REALLY makes a difference.

It is the most amazing feeling to be apart of the change, to be one of the people voicing their opinions as a mass group through petitions demanding change to governments and corporations.

To see how powerful our signatures can be, to realise that governments and corporations do listen when enough people demand change. It is very satisfying to feel I am making a difference.

If like me you feel you want to be apart of change in our world, then please consider becoming an onlone activist. it doesnt take much of your time. If yo have 5 mintues great, if you have 20 even better.

You really can make a difference, your signature is very very  valuable.. and your support is greatly appreciated by those who are fighting for human rights, for animal welfare, for environmental issues, for child protection, for freedom of speech, for care for the aged, for those suffering domestic violence and many many other worthy causes.

I will as often as i can, write posts on issues close to my heart and put links to sites where your signatures will be greatly appreciated. 

Todays links are for two wonderful groups. One lobbies for human righs around the globe and the other lobbies to save our planet. Click on the link and scroll down the page and see if there is a cause that is close to your heart and use that powerful tool you have.. your signature. 

until next time

mysticmiss

Amnesty International      http://www.amnesty.org/en/how-you-can-help

"Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights for all.

Our supporters are outraged by human rights abuses but inspired by hope for a better world - so we work to improve human rights through campaigning and international solidarity.

We have more than 2.2 million members and subscribers in more than 150 countries and regions and we coordinate this support to act for justice on a wide range of issues."

   Greenpeace          http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/getinvolved

"It was a group of thoughtful, committed citizens that came together in 1971 to create Greenpeace.  Since that time, Greenpeace has indeed changed the world, and we continue to make the world a better place. Our committed activists and supporters have come together to ban commercial whaling, convince the world’s leaders to stop nuclear testing, protect Antarctica, and so much more. Today, we have grown into an international organization with offices in more than 30 countries, though our spirit and our mission remain the same.

Our fight to save the planet has grown more serious – the threat of global warming, destruction of ancient forests, deterioration of our oceans, and the threat of a nuclear disaster loom large. Greenpeace is actively working to address these and other threats. "

In this age of mechanical reproduction mass consumption, the marketing tool of the "gimmick" has proliferated with varying degrees of success. Perhaps out of any of the venues in the entertainment industry, it is in the music world that one witnesses the exaggerated ebbs and flows of a talent that achieves success then demise through a gimmick. Case in point, Avril Lavigne and her rocker style neck tie atop wifebeater. While it is unclear to me if audiences grew tiresome of the tie or Avril chose to hang up her tie to be a Ford model, in either case the gimmick brought her two, maybe three if you want to include "Happy Ending," hit singles.

By nature, gimmicks provide temporary means to attract attention. Just like KFC disposable wetnaps, they are meant to be used as much as possible, only to be thrown away seconds later. What started as a conversation about my lip gloss that was poppin' turned into a discussion of the Jabbawookeez's win on Randy Jackson Presents America's Best Dance Crew.

The mixed group of Filipino, Vietnamese, and Chinese boys from San Diego performed to the top in front of JC Chasez, Lil Mama, judge from So You Think You Can Dance, and America with their synchronized moves and most importantly, their masked personas. Time and again, the members of the crew would be asked about their gimmick of featureless white masks. Each time, a member would state that wearing the masks is a means to erase individual identity and place focus on the movements of the bodies of the group. While admirable for the group to create a successful gimmick with the good intention to place focus on their dance, one begs to question the implications of white-faced Asian boys winning over non-masked Asian co-ed dance group. It also begs to question how ready Americans really are to see such faces on and how much praise America's Best Dance Crew should be given for their diversity and their positive spotlight on the Asian American community.

In adopting the polar opposite of blackface, the Jabbawockeez used whiteface as a mechanism to attract a wider variety of viewers and voters. The dance crew certainly erased all individual identity as they intended to do. However, more so than allowing their dance moves to pop out, their white, featureless faces allowed the group to erase the facial features of race and to be less threatening to the general public, subsequently gaining enough votes to win the competition. While one can only guess how conscious the members of the Jabbawockeez were in adoption of the blank masks, I think it's quite telling that it is only after the declaration of their win did their masks come off.

Jabbawockeez' last performance as winners to Kanye West's "Stronger":

"Left hand demons exposed when my soul speaks trueness"
---Kinetik "We Gangsta" on Run 'Em Out's Fresh cd---

Mannnnnnnnnn, Small Eyez is that newness to me. Live from the ATL, these cats are nice with it. Go listen to em asap right HERE. My favorites are "Do The Bright Thing", "Cruise Control", "Blink" and they nice with it. I'm bout to work on the connectivity get a beat placement maybe??? Stay tuned......

Where do you start when talking about music in movies?

For my wife, the conversation begins and probably ends with the use of the song, "Layla" by Derek and the Dominoes by Martin Scorcese in Goodfellas.

WARNING: Spoiler, if you haven't seen the movie.

For me, the conversation probably begins and ends with the use of this song, "Now We Are Free" by Lisa Gerrard by Ridley Scott in Gladiator:

Although I have to give a "shout-out" to the use of "Fight the Power" by Public Enemy by Spike Lee in Do The Right Thing at the very start, especially with Rosie Perez with the boxing gloves:

And also probably the best theme music ever with "Battle Without Honor or Humanity" by Tomoyasu Hotei by Quentin Tarantino in Kill Bill, Vol. 1:

Okay, I'll stop, because believe me, I could go on all night. What's your favorite use of a song in a movie?

Cast & Credits

Written and Directed by Spike Lee. MPAA: Rated R. Runtime: 120 min.

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I watched Do The Right Thing with my college girlfriend in an empty theater in the Mountain View Shoreline theaters in the late 1980s.  The opening scene was Rosie Perez dancing to Public Enemy.  It was an exciting start of a story of rising tensions between an Italian pizzeria owner and his African American customers.  Do The Right Thing tackled issues of African American relations with Italian Americans, asked why Korean American businesses proliferated in black neighborhoods instead of African American businesses, asked whether Italian businesses in African American neighborhoods had a responsibility to represent black culture in their stores, showed the antagonistic relationship between the police and the African American community.   Most of the characters in the neighborhood are likable, but none of them are perfect.  Sal, the owner of the pizzeria,  is a well meaning man who doesn't really understand the customers who he serves.   Mookie is one of Sal's employees, a young African American pizza delivery man with a nagging Puerto Rican wife who complains that he neglects her and their son.   One of the sad things that the movie highlights is that despite the diversity of the neighborhood, the groups of African Americans, Hispanics, Koreans, and Italians seemed destined to clash.  When members of one group start having friendly relations with another group, as when one of Sal's sons befriends Mookie, or when Mookie's sister shows affection towards Sal, the prejudices of others always threaten to tear those relationships apart.   The movie ends with a quote from Malcolm X and a quote from Martin Luther King Jr.   From my viewpoint, it seems that the movie is trying to say that both King's and Malcom's philosophies have some validity in the racial climate depicted in the movie.  Do The Right Thing asks important questions, and I like how he doesn't attempt to answer those questions, but challenges viewers to find solutions on their own.

Jungle Fever tackles the issues surrounding interracial romances.  I watched it one day while renting out a video from the library.   Flipper, a successful African American architect, has an affair with his Italian American secretary Angie, and it elicits deep anger in both their African American and Italian American communities.   When I first watched the movie, I heard that the movie was a criticism of interracial relationships as signified by the troubled relationship between Flipper and Angie, but there is a side story where a bookish Italian American man developes tender feelings for an intellectual African American woman that hints of other possiblities.  I think the movie is less a condemnation of interracial couples than a critique of sexual stereotypes among the races.   In one scene, for instance, a group of African American women talk about the sense of rivalry with white women for African American men.  As much a movie about race, Jungle Fever is a movie about class, specifically the relationship between the working class Italian neighborhoods of New York and the professional class African American classes.   It's not as focused as Do The Right Thing, as Jungle Fever gets caught up in a subplot about a pastor's family trying to react to a son's drug problem. 

My favorite Spike Lee movie is Malcolm X.  It has a marvelous actor, Denzel Washington, who is riveting playing Malcolm X.   And the issues of institutional American racism  flow naturally from following Malcolm X's life.  Until I watched this movie, I always had mixed feelings about Malcolm X.   With this movie, I gained a greater appreciation of the circumstances that shaped Malcolm X's life and appreciated the change that Malcolm underwent after he took his pilgrimage to Mecca.  What this movie most conveys is the degradation of the black community under racist laws and attitudes, and the price that people like Malcolm paid in his young life.  His father was killed for standing up to the Klu Klux Klan, his mother broke down from the strain of trying to raise her family alone.  Malcolm was a gifted student, but his teachers dissuaded him from doing anything except menial work.   As his life slowly descends into thievery, gambling and prison, it's understandable to see why the Black Muslims would have appeal for Malcolm.   In following the trajectory of Malcolm Xs life, the soundtrack follows the history of African American music from swing to Billy Holiday to Ella Fitzgerald to Motown to Sam Cook.  My favorite scene was the end scene, where Nelson Mandela appears to a class to extol the virtues of Malcolm X and we hear Ossie Davis give his eulogy. 

When Crash won an Oscar for best picture a few years ago, it really annoyed me.  Not because it wasn't a good movie.  It's just that it didn't explore racism as well as any of the Spike Lee movies that I watched, and those movies didn't even get nominated for Oscars.  I appreciate the depth of Spike Lee's movies.   As an Asian American, I've learned a lot from a filmmaker who makes full use of his knowledge of African American politics, culture and the arts.    Recently I watched Inside Man, a conventional and entertaining thriller.  Hopefully, Spike Lee will continue to tackle ambitious subjects.   Our American society will benefit from it.

Today via email I received a link to an ESPN story from a fan of this blog and almost ditched it in the trash.  It came from a male that I have always suspected might watch too much sports on TV - and, I was skeptical that it was something worth looking at, let alone blogging about.   He hinted that it was really inspiring, so I thought maybe it was some professional baseball player "scratching" for luck in the bottom of the 7th.  A little sports entertainment is always good, so I took a peep.

To my surprise, it was not a "scratcher" - it was something amazing that should be available to the world beyond ESPN - the world of Oprah.   The link to the video is provided below. I won't spoil the story for you, but I do want to point out that I think it could be the start of "It's a Wonderful Life - the Summer Sequel."  It's got a crippled youngster and a lesson for all mankind.  

This story is NOT about saving someone's life. . .it's NOT about feeding the starving masses. . .it's about automatically thinking about what is the right thing to do in the moment - even if it could cause you to lose.

So, take a look at the video.  Show it to your children.  Keep a box of tissues handy.  It has served as a reminder that I can make difference in another human being's life just by doing something unexpected - the best type of kindness. 

Take a look - and, be changed.

http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/videopage?videoId=3380875