Recycle This

In America so many arts have been lost through carelessness and laziness. For some odd reason (a couch and a television) we are satisfied with doing nothing. Americans constantly look for shortcuts and will even go out of their way to avoid work. An art, a timeless tradition, and a necessity for our future survival have been lost- recyling.
Okay, I’m sure that there is a handful of Americans who separate their plastics and papers, but the majority is content simply tossing everything in the trash. Many states even offer up a 5-cent bounty for returned cans, but that is only enough for homeless people and cheap ones (that’s partly me). Recycling is simple, thoughtless, and is essential to our future because contrary to popular belief our resources aren’t endless. We are a materialistic society, but there isn’t a magic tree that makes aluminum or newspaper.
All my life I have recycled. If my mother caught me throwing some plastic away it was pure trouble and you better believe that the compost pile was in full effect. Sad to say that is not the norm, but rather the norm is careless ability for Americans to dump all their waste in one can. In my hometown you’re required to recycle and if you don’t you’re not allowed to use the dumping facilities. Here in New Britain things are very different.
I’ve noticed that recycling is a small priority here in NB. When I go out on trash-day I see no yellow recycling bins out, rarely paper bags filled with newspapers, and it’s more likely that I’ll see a trash bag overflowing than separated materials. I not only think that the people of the community don’t care, but also the town officials. It is the city’s responsibility to make it a knowledgeable responsibility of New Britainites.
I will openly admit that I don’t recycle, but I have my reasons. Our beer cans always get back, our newspapers always end up bundled, but when you live with four people I can’t play dad. Also, New Britain hasn’t made it easy for me to recycle either. I’ve tirelessly searched for a phone number for the recycling center, but it seems hopeless. We need a society that stresses this importance. For the simple reason that “we” use up most of the world’s resources so shouldn’t we be responsible for giving a little of our waste back?

Professional Drug Users

Now I know that my blog has taken a little swing lately, but it is only corresponding with what has gone on in my life. Well I’m happy to announce that I’m not the only one in trouble for doing "stuff."
It seems that lately a lot of professional athletes have been getting themselves into some trouble. Athletes have been known to party, crash cars, and get stabbed, but it seems that more than a handful of them have been getting in trouble for drugs lately.
Charles Oakley, former NY Knicks forward, said "Almost 90% of NBA players smoke weed, and most of them smoke before games." Is this to say that professional athletes have a drug problem or does it make them more human? It’s funny to say that the NBA does drug tests but not for marijuana since the entire league would be eliminated.
In the last month there has been slew of athletes who’ve been suspended or arrested. A month ago former All-Pro lineman, Nate Newton, was arrested for having 213 pounds of marijuana. At the same time Los Angeles Clippers forward, Lamar Odom, was suspended for possession of marijuana. Terry Glenn, Patriots wide receiver, is currently suing the NFL because they won’t let him use a certain drug for medicinal reasons. And now Darrell Russell, Oakland Raiders DT, is looking at a one-year suspension for testing positive for Ecstasy.
All this is not good for the team, the leagues, or the game itself, but it makes you feel better. Forever these athletes got everything they wanted: women, cars, houses, and for most of their lives they’ve been able to get out of college.
How many times did a Storrs police officer arrest Kalid El Amin for possession of marijuana? Probably never, even though he was arrested in Hartford, but his local status got him out of trouble while your average Joe College would have been cuffed n’ stuffed.
So it is nice for me to see these guys get fined and suspended. They are human and like any human they make bad choices and have bad habits. For years this stuff is covered up, but thank you American media for enlightening the country on athletes and famous people’s problems. Anybody could realize that his or her life isn’t too bad when compared to that of Robert Downey Junior. These people are human and it great to see that like you and me they make mistakes.

Legalize it, no doubt! Pt. Deux

On September 11, 2000 a tragedy happened in my life- I got busted. It wasn’t the first time, but rather the first time in Connecticut and I wasn’t prepared for it. When the same trouble landed on me in Maine I get a $50 fine and slap on the wrist. A month after my arrest I became shocked from the punishment the judge handed down to me.
Community Service Labor Program (CLSP) is a name I’ll never forget since I owed 114 hrs. of community service and two months of drug education/rehabilitation. Rehabilitate what? This punishment was a shock, a disgrace, and a huge pain in the ass.
This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to punishment for the possession of marijuana. I got the same punishment for a meager amount, as would someone who got caught with 4 ounces, narcotics, or a combination of both. Hmm, intent so sell and the distribution of an addictive and harmful drug seemed far from what I was got in trouble for.
Of course there are states that are more relaxed on the subject (Oregon, California) and others who forbid the use (Utah) but punishment seems like no way to stop a problem. To me it seems as if people are making a huge deal out of something that’s not for the simple reason the most politicians, minus Clinton, have never experienced it. To them it’s an almighty "no no" or a taboo of some sort.
In most other countries it is legal or at least legal in parts and look at them. People are friendlier, maybe not to all Americans, but in general. I believe there may be some sort of correlation, but I’d rather go out on a Friday night knowing that there are a bunch of stoned drivers going 20 mph than a bunch of drunkards behind the wheel.

Legalize it, no doubt! PT. I

Coming from Maine I’ve noticed that there are many different things going on in other states. I hail from a state where life is easy, laidback, and as long as you mind your own business people will leave you alone. Well, after living in Connecticut for almost 4-years I’ve noticed many differences between the two states and the 150 miles that separated New Britain, CT and Wells, ME. There are big differences in the law here, how punishments are handed out, and how the court handles possession of illegal substances.
Maine is one of several states where medicinal marijuana so my position on the drug’s legalization is very strong? I am a person who believes that it should be legal no matter what since there are few differences between pot and the herbs in your spice rack. Okay, one makes you chicken taste good and the other makes you want to eat that chicken, but who cares.
Although I am a firm believer that drugs should be illegal since they can ruin lives and take lives. But marijuana is not a drug, there are no chemicals in it, and you would have to smoke 4 trash bags to die from marijuana. I understand that many people think pot is bad, it’s the gateway drug, it kills you brain and so on. Granted the pot is not good for some since it leads them to harmful substances, but it won’t put holes in you brain like E and there is no way to get chemically addicted to it like heroin.
So if states like Maine and California feel that people with Glaucoma or Cancer should smoke then good for them. Ask any stoner when the last time they were sick and it may have been never. Several weeks ago a man wasn’t allowed on a Delta flight because he was carrying 7 joints, 7 joints prescribed to him by the Federal Government. Now could it be that bad? The government allows us to smoke cigarettes and beer can be bought anywhere and those substances are not only addictive but are life threatening.
Montreal is only a few votes away from total legalization of pot and it will be legal in the U.S. in the next couple decades. Maybe if the cops weren’t so worried about Joey Pothead who harmlessly smokes pot then our gov. could focus on other problems in the U.S. Look next week for on my personal experiences with marijuana, the law, andwhere the government is headed.

Waste and Taste

Americans do so many things unethically that it would make people from other countries sick. One thing that we do with total disregard is consume, gas, clothes and especially food. The waste that takes place in our café alone could feed a town in a town of any third world country. There are some people who have decided to eat ethically, to eat healthily, and to go against the norms of American consumerism. You may call them bums, or scrubs, but this underground community is more popularly known as Freegans.
These people dig through the dumpsters of America’s restaurants, bagel shops, and supermarkets in search of free and healthy food that businessmen so flagrantly throw away. Most of these people, primarily 20-somethings, are not poor but rebellious. Rebelling against consumerism, intake, and improper waste. Most Freegans that I know are actually rich, but that wasteful upbringing has led them to this lifestyle. One Freegan said “I know it’s a not a huge difference, but I’m in the negative when it comes to waste.” In the negative while the rest of America, probably 99.9% is well into the positive.
When looking for food the Freegans pick packaged food out of trash bags and dumpsters. Bagels and donuts that are thrown out on a daily basis are part of their regular diet. My buddy who is an avid Freegan would even go to frat houses near his house after the weekend and grab all their cans. These cans wouldn’t be recycled or properly disposed of, but this Freegan made good use of the money and helped the environment.
Now I realize that not everybody can accept this mentality, it’s hard as all hell to eat from the garbage. I once grabbed a bag of bagel out a dumpster and handed them out at a small concert near my town. People were pumped about the eats, and yes I had a bite or two. You should see how some of these people eat in their respective Freegan Communities. Stir fry, sushi, all the goods, but out of the trash is what they munch on. In all reality it’s not eating other people’s garbage, but rather I feel it’s eating peoples’ waste. What’s the shame in that? I don’t see any but I do think people should be more conscious of what they carelessly throw away.

Hate in the Words of God
Whoever thought that God could hate, that the true giver of life and faith would be the same to encourage hate. Apparently some of America's finest, the Ku Klux Klan, seem to think that god has given them the right to hate. This blatant misuse of the Bible's words are evident in the writing of Jamey Keith. He claims that Satan and all his seed is the root of evil and that there is a God given right to hate.
This whole concept left me wondering what is really being thought in churches, in schools and by parents all across the nation. Keith quotes several pieces from the Bible itself, but his piece still doesn't prove why he can hate. The KKK hates Africans, Jews, Hispanics and a plethora of races and cultures, but they are not the seed of Satan. Is this what religion is teaching people now, how to hate? I guess that everybody gets something different out of religion, the faith in themselves to make it through the day or something to keep them morally clean, but when did hate ever fit into that equation?
The KKK claims that God is their hugest ally in the battle to “purify” the U.S. Although I’ll admit that there are many contradictions in the bible (despite my atheism I’ve read it 6 times) there is no part that says to hate people based on color and culture. The Bible even states that you must even love your enemies yet Keith states that your enemy may not be Satan, but maybe your fellow man.
It scares me how religion spawns many forms of evil. We are now in a so-called “religious war,” but what religion are we fighting for? It scares me how many wars have broken out over religion. Look at how many died during the Crusades and all the more recent religion oriented fights. Then I see people in religious cults or those who follow these evangelists around and it scares me. Religion has become a sad way to justify hate and bin Laden is a perfect example of this. What if the people of Islam had more faith in themselves instead of Allah, would they feel different towards us? I know that in a country like Afghanistan people have little to look up to and be happy about so Islam is the pure replacement for what they don’t have. I guess the whole point of this rant is that I’m shocked at how religion and faith can be the justification for hate, when there is no true justification for the feeling. Bin Laden, Jamey Keith, David Duke, David Horowitz, all you can take your faith, your beliefs and yourselves and jump off a cliff.

More Problems for White Suburbanites

If there is any thing in this world that bothers me it is a bigot. Although these people come in all shapes and forms the worst type of a bigot is the one who doesn't realize that they are. These closet racists make claims against a race with no factual evidence or even experience with that specific group.
Recently I read a blog written by one of my fellow students, a blog (sept 30) that left me sour. The writer made a basic claim that white people are smart and blacks are stupid and any AA( African American) who was smart was more white than black. Since when has color equalled intelligence? She even had the tenacity to call my professor an "oreo." Honestly, who says that? An oreo because of black on the outside and white on the inside. Now if this isn't a young racist then I truly wonder what one is.
The blog also stated that AA's usually segregate themselves from others. Hmm, I wonder why? Could it have been the fact that whites wouldn't let blacks in the same schools or use the same water fountains? A culture, race, group that has been through so much crap has to stick together because you never know when ignorance will prevail.
Last quick point: The article made references to "doo rags" and saying "snaps" and measuring intellegence by those means. Hey, I say "snaps," I say "yo," "phat," "no doubt" and does that change my intellegence level. I wear Ecko clothing and if the author could label it she'd label it "black clothing." I guess that seeing stuff like this really bothers me, knowing that that in a time when we have been more liberal and educated that pieces like this would never be thought about. Maybe if the author got out of her own little world and experienced people of other backgrounds then her feelings would change.