An Enemy to Islam

I was called an 'Enemy to Islam.  This was from my continuously disparaging remarks about the faith.  My response is this: my remarks are not against the 'ideal' of Islam: the imaginary image that the believers hold so dear to the Creator and His chosen prophets; however, my charge is against this artificial construct, which parades around behind the veil of humanism.  My charge is against the Arabization, the cultural imposition, of a language and the trace it leaves from the psychological dent.  Islam, as an imaginary ideal, represents the best of any culture.  In other words, it calls one to bring out the best in his custume: it calls the Jew to be the best Jew, the Black-American to be the best Black-American, the Mexican and Asian to be the best their presented state.  It doesn't mean to re-present, mis-re-present, disfigure, displace, dismember these ideas in the name of Mohammedanism. 

Re: The Conspiracy of Shakespeare

I just read an essay on a young girls experience with two different readings of Shakespeare; one reading glorified the historical, literary icon who may have contributed more than any other person to the establishment of the Center; secondly, there is the reading that recognizes Prospero as the colonizer to Caliban.  I, too, had this same experience.  I can't recall my first Shakespearean class even though I recieved an above average mark; however, when I encounter Shakespeare through a Post-Colonial lens it open'd my eyes to a much broader scope.  Not only was the reading different, it was one I felt more connected with.  In other words, understanding Caliban represented as a deformed, marginalized figure.  It actually gave me more of an appreciation, not for Shakespeare, but for his work.  In all actuality, I may have more of an affinity toward Christopher Marlow than Shakespeare.  I makes me recall the essence of Mis-education of the Negro by Dr. Woodson.  Does a traditional reading of Shakespeare contribute to the Mis-education of Black America?  With the diversity in culture, there has to be a type of hybridity in contextual readings.  To give a text one reading, would be to give the world one culture.

Re: Reference Point

Lately, I mean for the last few months, I've been spending time reflecting on reference points.  What does a person reference, what helps her/him determine, many of the decisions she/he makes?  Being an advid reader, it has allowed me exposure to many different and new ideas and concepts.  I mean, when i recommended my daughter to study law, it wasn't to join the firm, it had more to do with, 1.) studying English Literature, I read many of the young men studied law, not to be lawyers, but to take over the family estate.  That was the first time I had read anything like that; 2.) When you look at two of the most iconic figures in Black history, you can't dismiss they were both lawyers:  Barack Obama and Reginald Lewis.  These were my reference points.  If someone was to open a business, I would assume he/she would know the stories of Dell, Wal-mart, and a host of others.  In essence, I'm still getting at the joy-reason-of reading.  To be exposed to concepts or ideas that one may not find amongst the common minds.

Re: A Genuine Concern

When I speak about a genuine concern, I'm talking about the desire to want someone to shine. The desire for one to achieve excellence. People are always there to wish a person good luck, to offer prayers, and maybe even give monetary assistance; however, we never find those that can actually make a person's journey easy. To see a lawyer walk a young law student right through the LSAT; to see a professor aid and assist an English major on through pass the GRE. There exist a myth that it has to be a struggle. A deep idea that one may appreciate the journey more if she does it on her on.

Re: Those Missed Moments

Due to various reasons, we miss those crucial lessons in life. We neglectfully lose the bricks that allow a whole development. When we write a sentence, we struggle to find the better word; however, we know it's there. The present pop-culture is the acceptance of mediocrity. I don't see the genuine concern for one's brother or sister. I don't mean the feeding of the homeless; the religious serve that purpose while they're working to save the soul. I'm referring to the call to one for excellence; that human concern that doesn't destroy the dynamics in a young, or old, mind.

Re: The Loneliness of the Journey

I may have pondered - meditated - on this subject before. The struggle with loneliness, isolation, learning to be in the company of self. A relearning. It is not difficult the pursuing of one's dream. The difficulty lies in....

Re: Re-examine

How do we interpret, "There should be a band among you...?" Where this calls the group to a moral obligation, what about the call beyond common sense to a good sense? Before the collective can orient itself, the individual has to come to define the influences that impress the multiple selfs that exist in his domain. It is fair to know the universal principles that govern nature; however, in what epoch do we use as a model; or, do we define our own. Do we study history or make it? Similar to the body, we must recognize the symtoms of those inherent germs that can contribut to a greater disease....