Christopher's Thoughts

Thanks (again) Tomken

2012-02-25T00:58:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to say thank you to the teachers and students at Tomken Road Middle School for inviting me to speak for their Black History Month celebrations. The participation and discussions were great, from both students and teachers, and I know I learned a lot. The critical thought from the students was incredible and they even challenged my own thoughts and perceptions. Hats off to you.

I don't think we give enough credit to what our younger generations can teach us about inclusiveness, equality, and true multiculturalism.

Thanks again, Tomken.

Celebrate Human Race Month!

2012-02-24T00:36:00.001-05:00

I've decided to declare March Human Race Month, or HRM for short. Celebrate the history, culture, food, religion, society, politics, sports, dress, language, mannerisms, and bowel movements of the human race. This is a race-based initiative, and we will discriminate and exclude all those who do not belong to our race. This is our month, I don't want to be hearing those damn dolphins, pandas, koalas, lions and extra-terrestrials complaining and asking why they can't be included and why we can't talk about their struggle with patriarchy in the animal kingdom. They have PETA, WWF, and Area 51 championing their cause for the other 11 months of the year. We only get one damn frigging month to celebrate our humanness. One month a year that I can be proud to be human. One month a year that I can be who I really am and learn about, and be around, other humans. One month a year when a little human girl, can sit next to a little human boy, and will not be judged by the number of their Facebook friends or confusing "its" for "it's" on their tweets, but by the colour of their human blood. One month that I can remove the cloak of oppression, TMZ, Linsanity, and CNN, and say "gosh darn-it, I'm human and I'm proud!"

This plea has been brought to you by a human.

Heartbeat and World Citizen

2012-02-22T00:07:00.000-05:00

Listen to the lyrics.

SNL and Linsanity

2012-02-21T00:14:00.000-05:00

Here's my disclaimer before you watch this SNL clip on Mr. Lin:

This is something called "smart" humour. SNL did a really good job at touching on what's happening in the racialized media. Don't read the youtube comments and you'll probably have to watch the video a couple times to see the underlying message.

Guerrilla Intellectual

2012-02-20T22:25:00.000-05:00

As posted by A. Morgan on another forum:

"Black people are here in these [universities] as a part of the development of
black struggle, but only as a concession designed to incorporate us within the
structure. I use the term ‘guerrilla intellectual’ to come to grips with the initial
imbalance of power in the context of academic learning. Going beyond the
symbolism of the building, I’m thinking also of the books, the references, the
theoretical assumptions, and the entire ideological underpinnings of what we
have to learn in every single discipline. Once you understand the power that all
this represents, then you have to recognize that your struggle must be based on
an honest awareness of the initial disparity. And that’s how the guerrilla operates."

- Walter Anthony Rodney (W.A.R.)

"Walter Rodney Speaks: the Making of an African Intellectual". 1990. pp. 111-112

Kanye West Hates Disabled People

2012-02-18T16:14:00.001-05:00

Along with young White girls, a la Taylor Swift, it is proven that Kanye West hates and discriminates against those who suffer from epilepsy. (And maybe he and Daddy Blue Ivy didn't realize there were Black people in Paris before they wrote this song.) Here's the video evidence:

My Ode to Valentine's Day

2012-02-13T19:35:00.002-05:00

'Twas the night before Valentine's Day, when all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The paper hearts were hung by the bed posts with care,

In hopes that St. Valentine soon would be there;

The girls were nestled snug in their beds,

While visions of Beckham and Pitt danced in their heads;

And mamma in her snuggie, and I in my porn,

Had just settled down for a long cosmic horn,

When down from the yard arose such a clatter,

I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the stairs I flew like a flash,

Hoping my pinky toe wouldn't get mash.

The moon on the breast of the brown-coloured snow,

Gave the lustre of rust to objects below,

When, what to my bloodshot eyes should appear,

But a rasshole baby, with a big ass spear.

With the little old fart, so lively and quick,

I knew in a moment he must be a prick.

More rapid than SARS his courses they came,

And he whistled, and shouted, and called them hoes by name;

"Now, Pookie! now, Buffy! now, Ginger and Vixen!

On, Chardonnay! on Mercedes! on, Ginger and Blitzen!"

Happy Valentine's Day!

This ode is dedicated to all those poor boyfriends/husbands/baby daddys/FWB that just went out to Peoples and spent their paycheque trying to impress their lady friends for a made up corporate holiday. Sucks to be you. Good thing St. Patrick's Day is next month so you can drink some sense back into you.

Ultimate Tazer Ball

2012-02-10T13:06:00.002-05:00

I'd argue that this "sport" is less dangerous than football and hockey combined.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/story/2012/02/09/taser-ball-league.html

http://utblive.com/

Post-Multicultural Canada: The 2011 Census

2012-02-09T12:50:00.000-05:00

There are two things I firmly believe are more important to make political/social change than voting in this country. One is not paying taxes and the other is (filling out) the Census.

A few key points that have just come out of the 2011 Census:

Between 2006 and 2011, Canada had the fastest population growth of any other G8 country. That's a rate of 5.9%
The Canadian birthrate is only 1.6 children per couple. So it doesn't take a PhD to explain that immigration is what's keeping this country afloat.
7 out of 10 Canadians live in CMAs (Census Metropolitan Areas). I just like to call them cities.
That's a total of 23 million plus people out of the 33,476,688 total population that can call themselves urban dwellers
Oh, and we now live in a post-Multicultural society. Why? Because outside of language spoken at home, with this short-form Census, we no longer keep tabs on Canada's racial/multicultural makeup.

As a Cowardly Historian, better known as a CH, I argue switching to the short-form version is the end of Canadian multiculturalism. The Census is how governments, researchers, community and social programmes, know who exactly lives in this country and how we can - and should - manage our multicultural state (and spend what's left of tax payer dollars after fighter jets and ORNGE salaries). How can you argue a country is multicultural if you don't even know who and how many different cultures/races/colours/hyphenated nationalities live in Canada?

So can you really argue you are a part of a marginalized and Visible Minority group, worthy of equitable and favourable "affirmative action", if you have to go back to 2006 for any concrete evidence? I mean, I didn't personally know the 783,795 Black people that lived in Canada in 2006 who made up about 2.5% of the population, or the 30,435 Barbadians, so who am I to know if they all got on a boat last year and went back-to-Africa? Or better yet, what if in 2009 about 5 million Nigerians sneaked through the unprotected Arctic and decided to settle in Nunavut? Or the 10,066,290 Canadian-Canadians (I reckon they must be White folks), decided to say to hell with all these coloured folks, we're going to go colonize Antarctica or Pluto?

We will never know.

Why Academics are Cowards

2012-02-05T15:03:00.000-05:00

Yes, I'm a coward. Why? Because I'm an academic. I don't do anything productive, I don't stand for anything meaningful. I just sit in front of a computer/book/class and postulate about "why" the world is such a backwards place, but don't do anything to change it.

How many Canadian Prime Ministers in the past 50 years have been labeled as "true" academics as career professions? I'm talking about those political science, sociology, history, and economic professors and all those experts in the social sciences and humanities that actually do know how to run a country and society (and talk about it in papers and classrooms and universities and conferences all over the world), but choose not to and prefer the security - and salary - of tenure. (To be fair, some on this list were professors of law at some point in their careers.)

Harper: Economist
Martin: Business Man/Lawyer
Chretien: Lawyer
Campbell: Lawyer
Mulroney: Lawyer
Turner: Lawyer
Clarke: Journalist
Trudeau: Lawyer
Pearson: Lawyer

Okay, I know a lot of people will say right now: "so what about all those politicized student groups that demonstrate and protest in campuses all over the world?" My question is, what happens to those same politicized students after graduation? They go out and get a job. And a new group of bright-eyed and bushy tailed first years take on the same 4-5 year (undergraduate) fight, until it's their turn to realize that university is not the real world. It is the Ivory Tower of Cowards.

This makes me sound like a hypocrite, right? But really and truly, what am I doing to change the world? I write about Black people and criticize society and racism, I'm working on my dissertation, but if I don't toe the line of cowardice, this is all for naught. My dissertation committee, my department, and the university, will not approve my work, and I won't receive those three little letters on the back of my name and the two in front. If I speak too loud and outside the box, it's all for naught. I won't get the degree, the post-doc, the research funding (which has to be approved by what my school and our Government thinks is worthy of getting a few thousand dollars), and ultimately the tenure-track job as a professor.

So what do I do if I want to be a part of this academic club? I go back to my ancestral roots and say "yes massa".

And if I don't? I become a lawyer.

Racism is a Cancer

2012-02-03T17:10:00.001-05:00

Usually I don't care what rappers (or former rappers turned kiddie movie stars) have to say about anything in life, but I thought it was worth repeating what Ice Cube had to say on racism in an interview. (I was watching it on TV so I'm paraphrasing).

"Racism is a cancer of our nation."
"Racism is like a fart that's always in the air; sometimes you get a strong whiff of it, other times it's just a faint sniff. But it's always there."

"Black" History Month

2012-02-02T11:13:00.001-05:00

This is a small section from my dissertation that fits well with the beginning of Black History Month here in Canada. Think twice before the next time you call someone Black or a Black-Canadian. I personally prefer to be known as Christopher, but that's just me.

*****

Black is not an ethnicity. InCanada, the political and social construction, negative in its origins andambivalently ignorant in its usage, of “Black” and “Blackness” is a legislatedethnic identifier. According toStatistics Canada, “Black” is a “race”, an ethnicity, and a place oforigin. Cecil Foster contends that Blackethnicity is analogous to nation-state hyphenations such as Italian- andUkrainian-Canadian. Where one hyphen celebrates difference andmends the balkanizing effects of multiculturalism, the other perpetuatesfurther marginalization.

“Black” signifies an imagined history; a Black man isa social construct. He is as real as“race” is biological. He was, and is,created through ignorance, prejudice, and a means for class and socio-economicexploitation, which is justified through the hegemonic ideology of “White”“racial” superiority. A Black man, orwoman, is not a man who happens to be black in colour, but “Black” inexistence.

The idea of theBlack man, and the Black Self, was created as a means for White colonialadministrators, slave traders, slaveholders, and Eurocentric ideologists toexploit, dominate, and subjugate the colonized African andAfrican-American. The deracination ofthe African, and the subsequent misappropriation of his Black identity,manipulated and destroyed the Black man’s self worth. “Black” became a negative codifier andself-identifier; it consigned the Black man to a position of “racial” andsocial inferiority. “Black” is anideology that supports and justifies social inequality; it is the ideologicalmeans to subjugate and oppress.

A self-identified hyphenated Canadian enjoys the “freedomof self-determination”. However, few Canadian Blacks “have the choicethat allows them to be accepted and fully recognized as unchangeableunhyphenated Canadians”. The hyphen is subjective, imposed, and abarrier for acceptance in Canadian society. Black ethnicity and its hyphenated qualification on Canadian citizens,“deprives social mobility,” most notably when “skin colour is the maindeterminant of their identity and their social and ethical relations with otherCanadians and the [Canadian] state”. Canadian Blacks, codified as Black-Canadians, are denied the“existentialism of infinite multiculturalism”.

However, the hyphen is also a means to circumvent thenegative connotations of hyphenated Black ethnicity. Contrary to Foster’s argument, I contend thatBlacks embrace hyphenated nation-state identities to eschew the ideologicalinferiority of their “Blackness”. Theyembrace the cultural and historical validity of their ancestral home. Good Barbadian-Canadian values, for example,specifically the importance of education, are dialectical oppositions tosupposed Black-Canadian apathy and institutional barriers to academicsuccess. The hyphen creates picayune andfluid segmented identities. Throughco-ethnic transnational identity, and hyphenation, Black-Canadians manipulatetheir sense of Self, their I, and subsequently politicize their identities forincorporation within the dominant Canadian society. Canadian society must redefine its attitudestowards Blacks when confronted with heterogeneous and positive classificationsof people with black skin colour. Thehyphen creates positive cultural dialogue. Affixing the cultural virtues of nation-states challenges andsuccessfully negates the ideology of “Blackness”. The Caribbean or Africa will no longer beclassified as homogenous regions of destitute Black people. A West Indian-Canadian is not simply Black;he may be White, or of East or South Asian descent. An Arab-Canadian is no longer associated withterrorism, but historically rich Lebanese, Algerian, or Egyptian culture. Barriers and stereotypes are removed and thehyphen facilitates real cultural understanding. Positive hyphenation is moving beyond tolerance in Canadian society.

Theessentialization of “racial” origin is challenged by the ownership ofhyphenation. The hyphen divides but thedivisions create avenues for positive inter-ethnic relations. Through hyphenation, immigrants and VisibleMinorities are given the chance to redefine themselves within the concept ofinterculturalism – disposing myths and stereotypes and sharing their reality ofexistence. The hyphen wields power. Those who own its qualifiers decide itsmeanings and values. Practical outcomevalidates the hyphen’s negative or positive effect.

Hyphenation redefines identities. It is a politicized identity because Canadians are cognizant of theimplications of using different identities for purposes of social capital,networks, and most importantly for avenues of social mobility and inclusion. Canada is a nation built on hyphens – ahyphen-nation. Mobilizing Canadiancultural capital, or the latter hyphenated qualifier, is necessary for socialcohesion and national identity formation. Hyphenation for Visible Minorities, specifically functionalist Black Barbadians andWest Indians, is a tool for academic and political success, and an anti-racistand anti-discriminatory avenue for agency. Overarching transnational and hyphenated identity, acts as a unique formof collective cohesion with the dominant Canadian society. Each segmented identity is a socialtool. Hyphenation is not inherently positiveor negative; its value rests in its individual usage.

Second generationBarbadian-Canadians are not simply a marginalized and racialized immigrantgroup fighting for recognition and respect within the vertical silo ofMulticultural Canada. We are Canadians,raised as Canadians, by Canadian parents. Similar to countless immigrant stories, Barbadian-Canadian parents cameto this country to give their children the opportunities and privileges inwhich they themselves were denied as children or fought valiantly to procure. Racism and xenophobia were, and are, realbarriers to success in Canada; barriers first generation Barbadian-Canadiansstruggled to overcome in order for their children to succeed in a multicultural– but unequal – Canadian society. However, while second-generation Barbadian-Canadians manipulate their senseof self and attempt to purge the ideologically reified, and ever increasinglypicayune, derisive societal stereotype of “Black” and “Blackness”, racializedinstitutional structures continue to restrict their mobility and agency. This is experienced not only as Barbadian- orBlack Canadians, but simply as Canadians. Canadian society continues to negatively codify second generationCanadians, while Barbadian-Canadians attempt to eschew ideological debasement andbe treated as equal partners within the Canadian mosaic.

New Year, New Beginnings, and a New Normal

2012-01-24T00:15:00.000-05:00

A wise man once said life waits for no one. So after a brief hiatus, it's time to start putting my thoughts back on the internet.

Check out this story

2011-12-09T12:18:00.001-05:00

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/netherlands/8917621/Accident-jolts-paralympic-cyclist-back-to-her-feet.html

My Interview with Prince

2011-12-06T14:56:00.001-05:00

Yes, that's the Artist Formerly Known as Prince, Purple Rain Prince, Blouses Prince, I've got a perm and permanent movember stache Prince. This dude:

Last night I got a chance to see Prince in concert here in London at the JLC. It was my first "real" concert in an arena, and I'll admit that this man knows how to put on a show. Production and performance all top notch.

I got even luckier that I had a backstage media pass to give Prince his first interview in years. (Ya, who knew that people cared about christopherstuartheadseast, but Prince seemed to like my post on Skinny Shorts are Capri Pants).

So here's my brief interview with Prince. And in keeping with the style of my blog, I asked some pretty random questions and got some even more interesting answers:

Me: Thank you so much for giving me this interview, Mr. Prince. The ten people a day that read my blog will be so grateful for it.

Prince: The thanks is all mine, my good Canadian dreadlocked brother. And you can just call me what most of my friends do: The artist that was formerly a human, but who is now Jesus (TATWFAHBWINJ). Or just Jesus for short.

Me: Jesus. Gotcha. Ummm, so Jesus, what's your favourite food?

Prince: Pancakes.

Me: What's your shoe size?

Prince: I wear a ladies 6, but I can still buy my runners in the kid section at Foot Locker. You know what they say about men with small feet, eh? (As he gives a nod to his female guitarist who is sitting on his lap.)

Me: What?

Prince: They can fit into a great pair of leather high heels.

Me: Oddly enough, you do make a good point. So Jesus, if you weren't a world renowned musical star, what would you have done with your life?

Prince: I would've been a jockey and rode camels around the streets of Miami. If that didn't work out, I always thought about being a lingerie model. You've never seen me in a Victoria's Secret lace blouse.

Me: I'll take your word for it on that one. What's your favourite sport?

Prince: Basketball. Back in the '80s I got a scholarship to Duke to play, but I turned it down because I kept on sweating out my perm.

Me: Basketball? You don't look like the typical basketball player.

Prince: That's exactly what Charlie Murphy thought.

Me: Christmas is around the corner and I was wondering what are some of your favourite holiday traditions?

Prince: I really mellowed out a lot once we got to 2000. Shoot, I really didn't think I'd live to see the new millennium and that's why I wrote "1999" in 1982. But back in the day, me, Rick James, Madonna, Boy George, George Michael, Charlie Sheen and Mick Jagger, used to have some wicked Christmas parties. I remember one year while on tour in Colombia, I decided to have a white Christmas in LA. We each pitched in 50k dollars and got illegal immigrants to sprinkle cocaine from the ceiling while we sang Christmas carols. It wasn't purple rain, but it did the trick. Best Christmas ever!

Me: Wow. That sounded like one hell of a party.

Prince: Yes it was. It was then when I first came up with the idea of changing my name from Prince to the Artist Formerly Known as Prince. I honestly couldn't remember who I was after that night.

Me: Well, Jesus, I really appreciate you taking the time for this interview and I know the few fans of christopherstuartheadseast will be really excited to see it.

Prince: My pleasure my dreadlocked brother. Hey, how about a game of basketball and some pancakes?

I politely declined the offer and left.

One Night Man

2011-12-04T17:59:00.001-05:00

Depending on who you ask, this could be "White Girls Gone Bad - Pt. II".

http://vimeo.com/32551188

White Girls Gone Bad

2011-12-02T16:51:00.001-05:00

Old White women usually grab their purse when people like me walk by them on the street. I'd bet that 9 out of 10 people lock their car doors when a street kid approaches them at a stop light.

Me, on the other hand, is terrified when I walk through the mall on a Saturday afternoon and a group of Britney Spears look-a-likes come giggling past me.

Don't let the giggles fool you. Behind that pale skin, crystal (meth) blue eyes, and children of the corn blonde hair, lies a deep sinister evil. And I'm not talking about that Linda Blair from The Exorcist made up kind of evil.

I'm talking about real killers. Real cold hearted White women that would kill you (or their own child) without even thinking twice. I mean we talk about racial profiling and all that jazz, but I think it's time that the cops start pulling over people that look like Christina Aguilera and Taylor Swift.

Check some of these real life "White Girls Gone Bad" cases:

Amanda Knox

Ya, she looks like you'd buy some Girl Guide cookies from her, but whether she raped and killed her British roommate in Italy or not, this women is cold as ice.

Casey Anthony

Living in London, I live in fear of someone like her kidnapping me in broad daylight, killing me, stuffing me in a car, then leaving my dead body to rot while she's out drinking on Richmond Row. Well, while a jury this past summer said she didn't kill her child, why didn't she report her death to police? I guarantee that 10 out of 10 parents would rather let her babysit their kid before even letting me in their house.

Karla Homolka

The name and face pretty well speak for themselves. And she was 20 when she and Bernardo raped her own sister. She's now free living in the Caribbean under the alias Leanne Teale.

Think about it the next time you cross the street when you see a person like me coming and then remember who you left your kids with at daycare.

My Barbados Top Ten

2011-11-30T12:58:00.001-05:00

Today, November 30th, celebrates 45 years (1966-2011) of Barbadian independence. So to mark the occasion, here is my Barbados Top Ten. And as usual, this list should not be taking seriously, nor should it be used as a travel guide.

The Beaches:

Enough said.

Crop Over (the parties in general):

There aren't many places in the world where you can prance around half naked with paint and mud all over you in the middle of the night drinking in public. Shout out to Trinidad and Brazil.

Obadele Thompson:

Before Usain Bolt, he was the fastest man in world running 9.69 (w). Then he decided to go off and marry Marion Jones. Ah well.

The Diaspora:

You can literally find Bajans doing great things all over the world (even had some up in the Northwest Territories). Whether they were born and raised on the Island; expatriates or sojourners; one, two, or three generations removed; through pride and industry, Bajans and their descendants make their homeland proud.

Rihanna:

Whether you like her or not, she is the most famous and most recognizable person to have ever come out of Barbados. Fullstop. Period. Shoot, I was in Mwanza, Tanzania and had people with "what's my name?" ring tones. She needs to do a concert in East Africa.

Banks, Mount Gay, and Tiger Malt:

Not many places in the world that you could give a 10 year old 10 dollars to buy you a bottle of rum. Not only will he buy you a bottle of rum, but he can sit there and feel like a big man while he sips on a malt (or drink some of your rum).

Time Keeping:

"What time is it?" 6:30. "No, I asked, what the time was?" 6:30. "No, the time?!" 6:30.

If you understood that brief encounter with a tourist and a local, you know Barbados. If you're a female tourist out at a club and a man asks you the time, bend over and don't look back.

The English Language and Curse Words:

Bajans speak english. Yes, they do. But sometimes you just start to wonder: Wunna. Broughtupsy. Bubbi. Too sweet. Wukup. Busylickum. Guhblinya. Obeah. Licks. Hardears. Pooch.

Education:

Barbados still has one of the highest literacy rates in the world. Education is no joke.

The Atmosphere:

At the end of the day, Barbados really is Just Beyond Your Imagination.

I love the CFL

2011-11-29T13:17:00.001-05:00

Two old men fighting. Enough said.

Funniest part is how the laughter changes into gasps of horror.

Bubble Gum Riddim

2011-11-28T12:39:00.001-05:00

Riddim of the Day for all those "Bob Marley is Reggae Music" people out there. And an added shout out to those that think it's inherently all sexist and homophobic music for Black heathens by Black heathens.

Kampaign for Kwanzaa

2011-11-27T13:51:00.001-05:00

Time to dust off those dashikis, sew up that kente cloth, knit those tams, clean up those shaded thick-rim glasses, and pop in that Coming to America VHS. Why? Because Kwanzaa is less than a month away.

After doing complete and thorough research on the holiday using the world's most trusted information source - Wikipedia (next to Fox News and a parrow on Broad Street) - I've decided that Kwanzaa isn't just something that African-Americans should celebrate, but what everyone should.

Here's the breakdown of the Seven Principles of Kwanzaa:

Umoja (Unity): To strive for and to maintain unity in the family, community, nation, and race.
Kujichagulia (Self-Determination): To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves, and speak up and stand up for ourselves.
Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility): To build and maintain our community together and make our brothers' and sisters' problems our problems, and to solve them together.
Ujamaa (family): The belief in family and general communal understanding.
Nia (Purpose): To make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.
Kuumba (Creativity): To do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.
Imani (Faith): To believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders, and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.

Just like any religion or holiday, I'm not saying to follow Kwanzaa by the book, nor do I believe it should be considered a separate "Black" or African-American event. I really think if we followed the seven principles (or at least recognized them) over the Christmas season, and applied them to our own personal beliefs, it could go a long way.

Think about it: how many Christians recognize their Christianity by going to Church one night a year and then in that same night lie to their children that a pagan hobo broke in their house and gave them coal cause they were bad?

And for the record for those bad breed children out there, the way the world is going, coal ain't such a bad thing to get from Mr. Santa.

Blackie Lox Online

2011-11-25T12:13:00.001-05:00

Check out the blog:

http://blackielox.tumblr.com/

And the online press kit:

http://onesheet.com/BlackieLox/

Punch a Dog. Save a Life.

2011-11-24T12:10:00.001-05:00

Maybe I don't need to have that conversation with my dog to actually understand what she's thinking.

It's even funnier the second time you watch it. It's even funnier if you own a dog.

This is Canada

2011-11-23T11:06:00.001-05:00

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/charlie-angus/attawapiskat-emergency_b_1104370.html#s487209

Thought of the Day

2011-11-22T11:13:00.001-05:00

"Occupy some common sense." - The 99 and 1 percent.

I'm A Belieber

2011-11-21T11:32:00.001-05:00

Now sing it to this tune:

I know I've come down real hard on Justin Bieber and his religion - Belieberism - on my blog. I still think he's a packaged product plucked out of a town only known for their Shakespeare Festival. A far cry from him living up the swagger lifestyle in the US.

But after hearing about his whole paternity scandal and watching him on the American Music Awards last night, I need to give credit where credit is due. And I need to pat this boy wonder on his back.

Nope, not for his record sales, or his perfume, or his androgynous get up, or his First Choice haircut, but because this kid has hit a level that he can do no wrong. Direct comparison? Chris Brown.

Yes, I've compared him to the infamous made famous, bleach blonde, Michael Jackson wannabe, woman beater, and rising tattooed pop star, Chris Brown.

Think about it, how many regular people can be embroiled in a paternity suit with some random woman accusing you of fathering your mini-me, and you can still take your girlfriend to an awards show in front of millions of people?

Not only is Bieber accused, the man has no problem taking a paternity test to prove his innocence. Check it ladies: if your man is accused of fathering another woman's baby and he willingly goes in to have a paternity test to prove his innocence, that's his baby. Even if it's not his baby, he slept with her. Multiple times. Insert Maury Povich here.

So every time I think of Mr. Bieber now, I don't think of that young scraggly man-child unable to grow facial hair. No. I think of a proud Chris Brown wannabe just waiting for his chance to end up on Maury. Or marry a Kardashian. I belieb in him.

Reggae Music Does Not Equal Marijuana or Bob Marley

2011-11-18T15:34:00.001-05:00

I post music on here from time to time and listening to a new riddim (rhythm or instrumental beat) today had me thinking about how a lot of people perceive reggae music.

Listen to this first:

For those indie bands out there in garages all over North America, you don't need to get high or turn your goldie locks into dreadlocks. You don't need to sing about oppression or The Man or gun violence or money (well you can sing about cake soap and bleaching your skin, but you might want to do a little research on that one first a la Vybz Kartel and mental slavery).

Sing about your girlfriend or wife. Your mother or father. Make songs about how good you feel about being alive to a nice melody. Sing about the summer, winter, or the fact that you just got a new pair of shoes. Make a new Christmas song and dedicate it to that special someone in your life. Write a tune about your neighbourhood or the kraft dinner you had the night before. Sing about God, Jesus, Allah, Buddha, or whomever you pray to at night.

Basically I'm saying enjoy the music and don't fit a stereotype of what you think it should be and sound like.

Unhate This

2011-11-17T11:51:00.001-05:00

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062423/Benetton-Unhate-advert-Pope-kissing-imam-withdrawn-Vatican-calls-disrespectful.html

I vote that they should have a photo of Jesse Jackson kissing a KKK hoodrat. Now see if you can unhate that one.

People I'd like to have dinner with

2011-11-16T12:25:00.001-05:00

I guess you could say that this is a quasi follow-up to my "places I'd like to go now that it's cold" posts. These are just people I find interesting and they could be dead or alive or fictitious for that matter.

Malcolm X
Joseph Stalin
Mike Tyson
Hillary Clinton
Cassius Clay (before he became Muhammad Ali)
A nurse that worked on the Front in WWII
Anne Frank
Christopher Columbus
Colonel Sanders
Bussa
Napoleon Bonaparte
Toussaint L'Ouverture (Napoleon and Toussaint have to sit next to each other)
Queen Victoria
Denzel Washington
Smurfette (Only female smurf. I vote for some interesting stories)
Pierre Trudeau
Neil Armstrong
Precious from the movie Precious (I want to know what happens after the movie ends)
Charlie Sheen as Chris Taylor in Platoon
Tiger Woods
A tiger (a real one. I'd actually like to speak to a dog too. Not just any dog, but my dog)

Places I'd like to go now that it's cold - Part IV

2011-11-15T10:13:00.001-05:00

Mexico

Places I'd like to go now that it's cold - Part III

2011-11-12T12:28:00.001-05:00

Belize

Publication

2011-11-11T14:03:00.001-05:00

Check it out and read the book too.

https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=34105

Places I'd like to go now that it's cold - Part II

2011-11-09T12:39:00.001-05:00

Honduras

Places I'd like to go now that it's cold - Part I

2011-11-08T11:16:00.001-05:00

Miami

Christopher in the News

2011-10-27T11:18:00.000-04:00

I'm no Maya Angelou or Kevin O'Leary, but I can say that I'm featured in the same newspaper volume as the two of them. Photo and all, folks!

Check this out (scroll to page 13):

http://communications.uwo.ca/westernnews/downloads/wnews-pdf/2011/WN_Oct27_FA.pdf

Double Down & Double Up Your Waistline

2011-10-25T22:02:00.000-04:00

If you haven't heard, Black people (and some White people for that matter) love chicken. If you also hadn't heard, the vast majority of Barbadians or Bajans are Black. Thus with that piece of LSAT logic, I can rightfully deduce that Barbados loves chicken.

For those of you that have never been to Barbados, fast food chicken is king. Imagine Tim Hortons served coagulated cardiac arrest instead of liquid cocaine? That's what Chefette is to Bajans.

And what's greater than a Chefette grease trap hiding as a snack box with a big ol' side of sugar water with bubbles and food colouring? (For the record and for those health conscious folks, broasted chicken at Chefette is broasted in zero trans fat. Yes, broasted. How many people minus cardiac surgeons have even heard of the word?)

But back to the finger licking good point at hand. What is better than eating a broasted breast as the highlight of your meal? Wrapping both your hands around two broasted breasts smothered around bacon and cheese.

KFC's Double Down:

Double Down meet Barbados. Barbados meet Double Down. KFC meet massive profits. Barbados meet clogged arteries.

One DD (Daring Death) sandwich has 540 calories, 32g of fat, and 1380mg of sodium. For most people those numbers mean absolutely nothing. But when you compare that the recommended average daily sodium intake is 1500mg for people aged 9-50, you start to understand that the Double Downing could actually kill you.

This is not a public service announcement, and yes, I who climbed all the way to the top of Mount Kill-A-Man-Jaro was not able to finish one single DD sandwich. I admit it. Eating one of those sandwiches was like drinking a litre of sea water that was marinated in the ocean. I think the only thing saltier would be if someone invented a new brand of salt that was saltier than salt itself.

If you're a high school student or that 99% that's occupying cities all over the world because you don't have a job here's a suggestion: go to med school and become a cardiologist. Barbados will need plenty in the near future.

The End of Rihanna

2011-10-22T22:22:00.000-04:00

I knew Rihanna was a big deal, but I didn't know she had the ability to predict the future. Not many artists get the chance to videotape how their career will come crashing to an end. You heard it here first, folks.

Herman Cain & Morgan Freeman

2011-10-20T19:13:00.000-04:00

Astroturfing anyone? Like it or not, the dude has a point.

"If you don't have a job and you're not rich, blame yourself." At least he didn't say blame Jews.

And Mr. Freeman also has a real good point on how racism has gotten worse, not better, since Obama came to office.

Things I wouldn't do for a $1

2011-10-19T10:30:00.000-04:00

My list is pretty long, but I think this one ranks near the top.

In all fairness to my fellow Black superhero, I don't really know if it was a one dollar bet or just a guy that knows he can't die. Maybe he is a crackhead, maybe he's just a guy that wanted to jump off a house. I will not pass judgment on this man, because well, he has lived to tell the story.

Disclaimer: If you try this at home, you're an idiot.

Herman Cain

2011-10-17T00:04:00.001-04:00

If you've never heard of this man, read this article. And if you've watched the movie The Ides of March you might see the whole Black Democratic vs. Black Republican as a manipulated sham.

And word of the day: Astroturfing.

What White People Should Know About Black People

2011-10-16T14:20:00.000-04:00

We are people just like you.

We are fat. We are skinny. We like hot dogs. We watch CNN. We listen to country music. We play hockey. We drink beer. We love our children. We are smart. We are stupid. We are conscious. We are ignorant. We go to school. We have jobs. We are homeless. We are unemployed. We drive Audis. We ride bikes. We own dogs. We bowl. We have Blackberrys. We smoke. We suffer from mental illness. We have cancer. We like Obama. We hate Obama. We are conservatives. We are liberals. We love Black people. We are Christians. We are Muslims. We are Atheists. We kill White people. We kill Black people. We save people. We drop bombs. We save homes. We win. We lose.

So let's get back to basics and throw away all these theories about learning cultural difference to end racism. All we need to do is see people as people.

Ram It!

2011-10-12T00:56:00.002-04:00

This video goes out to all those capri pant - ahem - I mean skinny short wearing Leroys out there in the world. At the time, these guys thought this video and lyrics were the hottest things since sliced bread. Now? Hmmm, I'm not so sure.

Shoot, even my man Eriq cut his hair for ER

I say LeBron, Bosh, and Wade take this advice on how to win and ram it!

Disclaimer: This blog does not promote ramming of any kind. Day or night.

My Publication

2011-10-11T16:11:00.002-04:00

To continue with the work themed posts lately, here's a link to a book review I just got published over the weekend. If you want to learn a little bit about Black Canadian history from a book that I have officially reviewed and endorsed, check out Sarah-Jane Mathieu's North of the Color Line: Migration and Black Resistance in Canada, 1870-1955.

https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=32000

Crying Victory in Tahrir Square

2011-10-07T12:33:00.001-04:00

For those that think conscious and politicized music is dead, here's a voice for you:

Notes from the Gorilliphant Cage - Part IV

2011-10-05T12:27:00.000-04:00

§ Immigration from the West Indies (& Coloured Immigration General)Policy & Instructions. R76; Vol. 830, File 552-1-644 (Part 3)

§ Departmentof External Affairs, Canada. NumberedLetter to the Under-Secretary of State for External Affairs, Ottawa,Canada. From Office of the Commissionerfor Canada, Port-of-Spain, R.G.C. Smith. October 24^th, 1961.

o “The Emigration Problem for the West Indies”:

§ “On page 113 of the overseas edition of TheEconomist of the 14^th of October there is an interesting articleon this problem. In that the absurdityof trying to argue that the restrictions are not aimed at coloured immigrationis pointed out. I am quite sure thatthis is a correct criticism. Nobody willbe convinced that the proposed restrictions are not based on colour. To try to make it appear so is an insult tothe intelligence of the coloured people.”

§ “From my own experience here, I have found thatwhen talking of Canada’s immigration policy it has always been best toacknowledge the colour problem, to say that it is not Government policy toencourage or acquiesce to racialism in immigration or in anything else, butthat public opinion based on years of prejudice cannot be changed over night,that the unfortunate fact remains that in a period of unemployment if twopeople apply for a job, it will be the white man who will be chosen as ageneral rule, that it is to avoid pockets of coloured unemployment that we mustrestrain immigration.”

§ “Should the British restrictions come to pass,inevitably this will increase the pressures on us to allow more West Indiansinto Canada…We can expect, therefore, that whatever move the British take inthis field, almost regardless of whether the restrictions are real or token,this will develop pressures on Canada.

§ Immigration from the West Indies (& Coloured Immigration General)Policy & Instructions. R76; Vol. 830, File 552-1-644 (Part 4)

§ Globeand Mail, Nov. 5, 1963

o “Questions”:

o “In February, 1962, the Progressive ConservativeGovernment altered immigration regulations so that admission to Canada dependedmore on the skills offered by would-be immigrants than on their color orcountry of origin. It was admitted atthe time that the success of the change would depend on the administration ofthe regulations.”

o “In 1961, 1,249 persons came to Canada fromBritish and other West Indian Islands. In 1962, after the regulations were changed, the figure was 1,586. So far this year, 1,542 have arrived. These increases are disappointingly small andraise some questions which Mr. Favreau might ask.”

§ Departmentof External Affairs, Canada, Numbered Letter to the Under-Secretary of Statefor External Affairs, Ottawa Canada. From, Office of the High Commissioner for Canada (G.C. McInnes),Kingston, Jamaica, August 2^nd, 1963.

o “Jamaican Immigration to Canada”:

§ “West Indians have long been unhappy aboutCanadian immigration restrictions. Thisattitude may have been diminished by the new immigration regulations, but thefrequency with which the subject is raised with us here is ample evidence thatit is far from eliminated. This can bepartly explained by the time it takes for the effect of the changes to becomeclear. But many Jamaicans who wish to go to Canada do not meet therequirements of the new regulations, and Jamaicans in general are reluctant torecognize the deficiencies which make them unacceptable as immigrants.”

§ “Generallyspeaking, negro Jamaicans tend to attribute their inability to meet standardsaccepted in Canada and other countries to racial prejudice, and refuse torecognise that common Jamaican attributes, such as irresponsible parenthood andindolence, are not regarded with indifference elsewhere.”

§ Barbados –OVERPOPULATION AND UNEMPLOYMENT A MEANS FOR EMIGRATION

§ Reporton the October 25-27, 1963 Conference on “Commonwealth Partners in the WestIndies” sponsored by The Canadian Institute of International Affairs (FrederictonBranch) and the University of New Brunswick.

o “Two or three of the Canadian speakers insistedthat Canada’s immigration door should be opened wide so as to accept all WestIndian immigrants who wished to settle in this country. “

o Overpopulation andUnemployment:

o “All agreed that population pressure was verygreat in the islands, especially in Barbados where unemployment averaged closeto 15% of the labour force. Populationwas increasing so rapidly that a very high rate of economic growth was neededjust to provide enough jobs to keep pace with the increase.”

o Before CIA in Britain in first 6 months of 1962,she accepted 40,000 WI emigrants. Last 6months, only 4,000.

o After regulations relaxed a bit in Canada,Canada accepted 1400 WI IGs in 1962; however, “it was mentioned time and againthat Canada should relax its regulations even further”.

o “MostCanadian speakers felt that Canada still discriminated against West Indiansbecause of their colour; this was done not under any law or regulation but bythe immigration officer on the spot who for years had been working under theold regulations and so interpreted the new ones in light of his pastexperiences.”

o “A strongfeeling existed among many of the Canadian delegates that Canada still has twoimmigration standards, one for whites and another for blacks.”

§ Memorandumto A/Chief of Operations. From Head, Administration Section, February 28^th,1963.

o “Visit of Immigration Officers to Caribbean andSouth America”

o TotalNumber of Immigration Cases approved in Barbados: 15 cases of 19 persons

o TotalNumber of Immigration Cases refused in Barbados: 23 cases of 53 persons

o Jamaica:120 cases and 251 persons approved VS. 181 cases and 427 persons refused

§ CANADA’S NEW IMMIGRATION LEGISLATION, FEBRUARY 1^ST,1962

§ Memorandumto Cabinet. Re: Opening a Canadian Immigration Office in The West Indies. Fromthe Minister of Citizenship and Immigration (No specified date ofrevisions. First draft dated November1962)

o “Canada’snew Immigration Regulations which came into force on February 1, 1962, providedthat anyone in the world could apply to come to Canada without regard to hisrace or country of nationality, subject only to standards of health, character,education, training, etc.”

o Paragraph 11 of Memorandum dated October 16,1961:

§ “The newregulations assume that for all the countries of the world the CanadianImmigration authorities will be able to apply the new criteria of admissibilitysuccessfully. It should however bepointed out that in many of these countries we have no staff of our own: Inaddition, these tests must inevitably be subjective to a large extent, and thisfact places a heavy pressure on our overseas visa officers. It may well be necessary to open new officesin countries where no Canadian immigration officers presently are operative(e.g., West Indies, Spain, Japan): and to strengthen staff elsewhere, to assumethese new and difficult responsibilities.”

o “Thus far the most noticeable effect of the newImmigration Regulations has been in The West Indies. Applications from persons in the Caribbeanarea began to build up as soon as the new regulations were announced and inJune of this year an Immigration team was sent from Ottawa to the Caribbean toexamine 311 family units which had been tentatively selected on the basis of‘paper screening’.”

o Total of 3,025applications from The West Indies since the new immigration regulationscame into effect.

o Kingston, Jamaica being the logical site for anImmigration Office that would serve the West Indies (including Barbados). Was not finalized. Geographical, travel, and logistical issuestrying to serve the entire Caribbean. Traveling Immigration Missions thus served the Caribbean yearlyfollowing the new Regulations of 1962 up to and including 1966.

§ ForeignTrade Service. To Mr. D.A. Reid, Chiefof Operations, Immigration Branch, Department of Citizenship & Immigration,Ottawa. From Roy W. Blake, CanadianGovernment Trade Commissioner, Kingston, Jamaica. February 8^th, 1962.

o “The news about the revision of Canada’simmigration laws first appeared in the Jamaican press on Saturday, January 20^th,and naturally more emphasis was placed on the lifting of the colour bar than onthe necessity for skills. Today is ourfourteenth working day since then and we have now handed out over 1000 forms;in other words there is an average of 70 persons coming to our office each dayregarding emigration.”

o In the Letter of Refusal to those JA IGs, thesentence, “ ‘you do not come within the categories of persons being admitted toCanada’ has been particularly offensive to unsuccessful applicants in thisterritory. They understandably feel that‘category’ refers to colour, and if the use of the same sentence is continued,many will think that there has been no change in Canadian immigration policy.”

§ Immigration from the Caribbean Area. RG76; Volume, 820; File, 552-1-533

§ July14^th, 1966. Canada-WestIndies Conference – Follow-up action. Assistant Deputy Minister (Immigration). Director of Policy and Planning. July 14^th, 1966.

o “Ingeneral we are committed to dealing with West Indian immigrants on a completelynon-discriminatory basis. This meansthat special care must be taken to ensure that the criteria applied in Europeare applied by our selection teams visiting the Caribbean having regard tocharacteristic West Indian sensitivity towards real or imagined discrimination.”

o “Arising from the Conference and the publicitywhich has been given to our selection criteria we can expect an increasednumber of applications from the West Indies.”

§ CommonwealthCaribbean-Canada Conference, Ottawa, July 6-8, 1966. June 1^st, 1966.

o “Immigration to Canada from the CommonwealthCaribbean (Background paper prepared by Canada”:

§ “Immigrants from Commonwealth countries of theCaribbean are admissible to Canada under the broadest of the admissiblecategories provided for in Canadian immigration law. The Canadian Immigration Act and Regulationspermit the admission of immigrants from the Caribbean area in two separate streams.”

· Selected Immigrants: education, skills,training, or other special qualifications to “enable them to establishthemselves successfully in Canada”.

· Unsponsored Immigrants: spouses, sons ordaughters and their spouses and children if under 21 years of age, brother orsisters and if married with their spouses and children under 21 years of age,parents and grandparents, fiancé or fiancée, “unmarried orphan news or niecesunder 21 years of age”

o The paper states, “Aside from the admission of afew individuals under special authorities, there was little immigration fromthe Caribbean prior to 1955”. In 1955the beginning of the Domestic Scheme.

§ The previous statementis not true because Black WIs attempted to emigrate to Canada but the door wasfirmly closed and Canadian legislation, specifically that denying Black WestIndians were British Subjects, excluded them from migrating.

o “Allegations of Racial Discrimination”: Canada denies racist immigration policy

§ “Canadian immigration law makes no distinctionbetween the racial origins of immigrants. The degrees of relationship of persons admissible as sponsoredimmigrants do at present vary from country to country.”

§ “Normal and necessary criteria with respect tosuch matters as health, financial responsibility and absence of criminal recordare applied impartially to all applicants without distinction to race.”

o BarbadianImmigrants -1965:

§ Sponsored:327

§ Unsponsored:233

§ Total:560

§ Memorandumto Deputy Minister from Assistant Deputy Minister (Immigration). January 21, 1966.

o “Forthcoming Canada – West Indies Conference.”

§ States Canadian immigration law is not “raciallybiased” but admits that they do concentrate most of their immigration officesin the US and Europe.

§ Since 1962 they have varied the racial selectionof immigrants, but “have proceeded with some caution in order to avoid atoo-rapid rate of change which might result in adverse reaction by the Canadianpublic which in turn could weaken the whole concept of a universalnon-discriminatory policy.”

§ “Therepeated West Indian charge that Canadian immigration policies are raciallydiscriminatory is a convenient screen for their real objective, namely a preferredplace in our policies under which we would relax our selection standards andtake large numbers of their unskilled and surplus population. The West Indians must realize that this isout of the question.”

§ Canadians accusing WestIndians of using the very real fact of Canadian racialization of theirimmigration policy. CDN Gov saying thatWest Indians simply want Canada to take its unskilled surplus population. The Deputy Minister must stand down from hisdefensive stance and not turn and realize that there was substantial legal andlegislated evidence substantiating the West Indians claim of racialdiscrimination in Canadian immigration policy.

Notes from the Gorilliphant Cage - Part III

2011-10-04T21:34:00.000-04:00

§ BARBADIAN EMIGRATION TO CANADA

Immigration from the West Indies - Part 3 to follow (p.13)

§ Departmentof Citizenship and Immigration, Immigration Branch, IntradepartmentalCorrespondence; to Chief Operations Division, Ottawa; from A/Director, UnitedKingdom. February 28^th, 1955.

o “Emigrationfrom Barbados, B.W.I.”

o “The Barbados authorities propose to establish atraining scheme, in co-operation with the British authorities, with a view totransporting to the United Kingdom a number of female domestic workers who havebeen partly trained in household duties in Barbados; the final training wouldbe completed in the United Kingdom under the National Institute of HouseWorkers, and at the completion of this training, they would be consideredefficient for placement in British households and institutions, etc. fordomestic duties.”

o “It is anticipated that arrangements would bemade, as a start, to ship some 200 female domestic workers to the UnitedKingdom, and it was felt that they could be readily absorbed into thiscountry. The question was raised as towhether the Canadian government had any scheme comparable to the one nowproposed by the United Kingdom, and if not, would the Canadian governmentfavourably entertain a similar scheme.”

§ ColonialOffice, The Church House, Gt. Smith Street, London, S.W.1. Letter fromFrederick Hudd, Esq., C.B.E. February 24^th, 1955

o “I would like to emphasize that the BarbadosGovernment fully realize that other people also have their employment problemsand do not wish to suggest anything in the way of a mass migration, or indeedanything that would cause difficulties in Canada. However, they would welcome anything in theway of a controlled scheme, either for domestic workers or for any othercategory of emigrant and, naturally, we in the Colonial Office would be happyto see any such scheme inaugurated.”

§ ***PROPOSAL FOR CONTROLLED EMIGRATION FROMBARBADOS FOR SPECIFIED TYPES OF WORKER***

o “The vast majority of the inhabitants areracially negroid but British by three centuries of tradition and culture.”

o “The need for outlets for emigration fromBarbados is acute and the Island can produce a force of many hundreds ofdomestic servants, and a large number of semi-skilled or unskilled workers, aswell as a smaller number of other workers with a secondary education.”

o Refuting Climate Discrimination

o “Although Barbados is in the Tropics, its peoplehave shown themselves to be well able to withstand cold climates.”

o Controlled Emigration (Proposing the Domestic Scheme)

o “The Barbados Government fully realise thatother countries have their own population problems, including housing andemployment. They do not seek in any wayto promote a mass emigration which will cause difficulty in the countries towhich emigrants go. They do feelhowever, that their own problems could be alleviated if schemes could bearranged for the controlled emigration of different classes of persons. While they would not be unwilling for thiscontrolled emigration to be permanent, they would be equally willing for it tobe temporary and they would place no restrictions or obstacles in the way ofBarbadians wishing to return to their Island after a period of years.”

o Barbadian officialswilling to compromise with Canadian officials for the emigration of theirpeople. The proposal was logical andused an employment market that Canadians needed filled (Domestic Service) andused an equally good example of how this scheme worked in the UK for Barbadianfemale emigrants with the National Institute of House Workers (N.I.H).

o “It is requested that the Canadian Governmentshould give sympathetic consideration to the above proposals.”

§ A Damning andHypocritical Statement against Black Immigration

§ AReview of Immigration from the British West Indies. January 14^th, 1955.

o “While restrictive, our policy with respect toNegroes has never been one of absolute exclusion; for example, Negroes who areBritish subjects within the meaning of Regulation 20(1) have always beenadmissible to this country.

o “Argument Against an Immigration Agreement”:

§ “It isnot by accident that coloured British subjects other than the negligiblenumbers from the United Kingdom are excluded from Canada. It is from experience, generally speaking,that coloured people in the present state of the white man’s thinking are not atangible community asset, and as a result are more or less ostracized. They do not assimilate readily and prettymuch vegetate to a low standard of living. Despite what has been said to the contrary, many cannot adapt themselvesto our climatic conditions. To enterinto an agreement which would have the effect of increasing colouredimmigration to this country would be an act of misguided generosity since itwould not have the effect of bringing about a worthwhile solution to theproblem of coloured people and would quite likely intensify our own social andeconomic problem. I think that thebiggest single argument against increasing coloured immigration to this countryis the simple fact that the Canadian public is not prepared to accept them inany significant numbers.”

§ “Furthermore,our present programme is one of selective immigration and because it isselective it is regarded by many as being restrictive, thus we are vulnerableto charges of discrimination. Theestablishment of an agreement which would provide for a quota of Negroes wouldhave the effect of rendering our restrictive policy more obvious.”

§ The Canadian Governmentknew their policy towards Black WI immigration was discrimination, but wantedto keep the decision making arbitrary and obfuscated so that no one couldactually charge them with discrimination.

o “Considerations in Favour of an Agreement”

§ “Despite legislation forbidding discrimination,I believe it would be unrealistic to suggest that discrimination is not beingpracticed in Canada at the present time. I submit that a possible solution to this problem would be to admit suchcoloured persons who, because of their qualifications, are likely to becomeexceptional citizens and thus render the Negro more generally acceptable inCanada. This would be a long termprogramme, but one worthy of serious thought and one which adds weight to thesuggestion that Negro immigration to this country be increased.”

o “Considering both sides of the argument, Iconsider that the disadvantages outweigh the advantages and I would recommendthat no action be taken in this regard this year and the matter be reviewedagain when considering the 1956 immigration programme.”

§ BARBADOS

§ Letterfrom J.W. Pickersgill, to His Excellency Brigadier Sir Robert Duncan HarrisArundel, K.C.M.G., O.B.E., Governor of the Windward Islands, Government House,Barbados, British West Indies. December16^th, 1954.

o “At the present time, our immigration policyprovides only for the admission from Barbados of close relatives of legalresidents of Canada and persons whose circumstances have exceptionalmerit. I fear it would not be realisticfor me to hold out much hope of any fundamental change in the present policy inthe near future.”

§ Letterfrom the Governor at the Government House Barbados, November, 1954.

o Trying to sell theBritish kinship and loyalties of Barbadians and their loyalty to Canada topromote increased emigration to Canada.

o “It is understood that Canada is presently inneed of immigrants. The loyalty ofBarbadians to the British Crown is a historical fact and it is felt thatBarbadians could settle as workers, either permanently or temporarily, inCanada, a fellow member of the British Commonwealth of Nations, with profit toCanada and credit to themselves. Indeed,several Barbadians served with the Canadian forces during the last World Warwith credit, and many of these have elected to remain in Canada.”

o “I therefore request you to be so good as toadvise this Government on the possibilities of employment of Barbadians in thefields suggested in this letter (domestic servants), and in any others in whichthere is an unsatisfied demand for man-power.”

§ Negro Citizenship Association – RacistImmigration Policy

§ Memorandum:Brief Presented to the Prime Minister, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration,Members of the Government of Canada, by the Negro Citizenship Association,Tuesday April 27^th, 1954. Donald W. Moore (Director) and Norman Grizzle, D.C. (Secretary)

o “TheImmigration Act since 1923 seems to have been purposely written and revisedto deny equal immigration status to those areas of the Commonwealth wherecoloured peoples constitute a large part of the population. This is done by creating a rigid definitionof British subject: ‘British subjects bybirth or by naturalization in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand or theUnion of South Africa and citizens of Ireland’. This definition excludes from the category of ‘British subject’ thosewho are in all other senses British subjects, but who come from such areas asthe British West Indies, Bermuda, British Guiana, Ceylon, India, Pakistan,Africa, etc.”

o NCA refutes the Climate Theory saying, “Negroes have for a century and a half movedinto Canada from tropical areas, and have taken up life here with no greatproblems of adjustment to climate”. Alsocited examples of West Indians serving the British army in all parts of theworld with no problems.

o NCA refutes the Non-Assimilation claim: “The customs, habits, modes of life, ormethods of holding property in the West Indies are essentially the same as inCanada, and no change is necessary when these people become part of theCanadian way of life.”

o Conclusions:

o “The Negro Citizenship Association respectfullyrequests that the Government of Canada”:

§ “Amend the definition of ‘British Subject’ so asto include all those who are, for all other purposes, regarded as ‘British subjectsand citizens of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth.”

§ “Make provision in the Act of the entry of aBritish West Indian – without regard to racial origin – who has sufficientmeans to maintain himself until he has secured employment.”

§ “Delete the word ‘orphan’ from the regulationwhich provides for the entry of nephews and nieces under 21.”

§ “Make specific the term ‘persons of exceptionalmerit.’

§ “Set up an Immigration Office in an centrallylocated area of the British West Indies for the handling of prospectiveimmigrants.”

§ BARBADOS IMMIGRATION

§ SELECTION & PROCESSING – GENERAL SERIES– IMMIGRATION FROM BARBADOS. RG76; VOL 1241; FILE 5850-3-555

§ “Immigrationfrom Barbados”:

o “Background of Immigration Movement”:

§ “Until the coming into force of the 1962Immigration Regulations, admission from the West Indies was restricted to closerelatives sponsored by Canadian citizens or residents. The Department did seek special authority,however, in a fairly substantial number of cases of exceptional merit involvingWest Indians who were especially well suited.”

o “Household Services Workers”:

§ 1955 Domestic Workers Scheme:

· 75 from Jamaica and 25 from Barbados

· Extended to other WI countries and totaled 280by 1960

· Domestic quota increased to 42 by 1959, remainedat that level until the Domestic Scheme ended.

§ Following 1962 De-racialization ofCanadianimmigration, Domestic scheme was no longer needed.

· Domestic workers could now be accepted through theimmigrant stream as long as they met the selection criteria

· By October 1967 (Points System), “it was feltthat the special movement could no longer be justified as it would run counterto the principle of universality embodied in the Regulations. Consequently, the various governmentsconcerned were informed of our decision to end the special movement in 1968”.

o “Seasonal Workers”:

§ In 1960, West Indian Government asked Canada ifseasonal workers in the US could come to Canada as part of the annual “UnitedStates-Canada exchange programme”. Theywould harvest potatoes, apples, tobacco, and other crops.

§ Maintained until 1966, until prior to theCaribbean-Canada Conference it was decided that farm workers would comedirectly from the West Indies to Canada.

§ Programme continued in 1968, where 1,258 WestIndians came to Canada, 331 (26%) from Barbados.

o “Size of Movement”:

§ “There was a gradual increase in the number ofWest Indians admitted before 1955 and then the rate increased by more than 50percent and reached 8,387 for the West Indies in 1967. Of more significance, however, during thisperiod is the change in the racial content of the movement. In 1950, only 19 percent of the personsadmitted form the West Indies were Negroes while in 1963 the figure had jumpedto 70 percent.”

§ “With the coming into force of the newImmigration Regulations in 1962, West Indians have been admitted to Canada asunsponsored immigrants. Immigrationselection teams visited the Caribbean area once in 1963 and 1964 and twice in1965 and 1966. During 1967, severalteams went to specific areas in order to clear up the backlog before theestablishment of our two offices in the West Indies.”

o Before 1962, “there was no need and lessincentive for the Department to open an office in the Caribbean”. Then with the new Regulations in 1962, it wasneeded.

§ By 1967, two offices were opened. One in Kingston, Jamaica, and the other inPort-of-Spain, Trinidad, which covers Barbados.

§ Letterto J.B. Bissett, Director General, Foreign Service Region from R. Martineau,Chief, Western Hemisphere. January 29^th,1975.

o Barbadianemigrants to Canada in 1967: 1181.

Notes from the Gorilliphant Cage - Part II

2011-10-02T14:57:00.000-04:00

Specific Barbadian Emigration to Canada notes to follow:

§ Coloured Immigration: Policy & Instructions. R76;Vol. 830, File 552-1-644 (Part 1)

§ Racism in Canadian Immigration Practise, not just Policy. Why? Because no one could really define who,and of what “colour” specifically, should be excluded from the Caribbean.

§ P.C. 2856 and P.C. 2743 – Getthat info for your dissertation, Mr. C.S.Taylor

§ ImmigrationBranch – File No. 81066. Ottawa, August25^th, 1953:

o 4. The territories covered by the two TradeCommissioners concerned are as follows:

§ Port of Spain – Trinidad:

· “Trinidad, the Barbados, Windward and LeewardIslands, British, French and Dutch Guiana and the French West Indies.”

o BWIs must put their “racial origin” on theirCitizenship and Immigration form

o By August 1953, Trade Commissioners of Trinidad(Barbados) and Jamaica were relieved of “responsibility for administeringCanadian immigration regulations in the territory under their jurisdiction, inso far as it is at all possible.” TheImmigrant Branch Headquartres would receive the applications from theprospective migrants and make decisions and “advice direct (to applicant) as toadmissibility.

§ Letterfrom P.T. Baldwin, Chief, Admissions Division of the Department of Citizenshipand Immigration to Mr. R.R. Parlour, Asst. Canadian Trade Commissioner, Port ofSpain. August 17^th, 1953.

o Racial Discrimination inCanadian immigration policy and practice towards BWIs. Children of Canadian citizens, if not of thesame racial and national origin due to spouse, must be admitted throughimmigration. This is even if one parentis White Canadian.

o “[Name blanked out] is a Canadian citizen andtherefore admissible as a matter of right, but her children would have thecitizenship (and racial) status of her late husband and would therefore beseeking admission to Canada as immigrants. They would be admissible to or with wither mother, but difficulty mightarise when they are examined at the Canadian port of entry, if the mother doesnot have in her possession evidence of satisfactory arrangements for theirreception and support.”

§ Minutesof Meeting Held in Conference Room, East Block, Friday, June 19, 1953, 11:00am:

o Known and conflictingracism in Canadian immigration practise.

o “Some immigrant enquiries are received in theTrinidad Office by mail from residents of other British West Indian islands butthe bulk of the applications are over-the-counter-enquiries. A large percentage of these enquirers,although British subjects, are of coloured blood, and when these applicants areturned down by Immigration, it creates embarrassment for the Trade Commissionerwho must deal with the same people in his trade activities.”

o “In replyto a specific question, Mr. Fortier (Laval Fortier, Deputy Minister of theDepartment of Citizenship and Immigration) said that only close relatives of ‘coloured’British West Indians are admissible as immigrants to Canada. He admitted that the term ‘coloured’ has notbeen fully defined.” If it is not defined, it is an arbitrary exclusion of peopleon an undefined classification of race. There was no guideline to who could actually emigrate from the BWIsbecause ‘coloured’ was not a defined term. Exclusion based on an idea by an arbitrary law.

o Guesstimate that 250-300 White persons admittedeach year from the BWIs. What is White, really?

§ Notefrom the Canadian Embassy, Caracas, Venezuela to the Under-Secretary of Statefor External Affairs, Canada. June 1^st,1953.

o “Immigrant Entry to Canada of Coloured PersonsBearing British Passports”:

§ “We areunder the impression that the entry to Canada of British subjects who arecoloured is discouraged, but we are unable to find any reference to this in thevarious documents relating to immigration.”

§ Letterfrom (Sgd.) L.D. Wilgress to Laval Fortier, June 16^th, 1953:

o Trade Commissioner inTrinidad (who worked for Barbados as previously mentioned) unable to handleimmigration matters and having difficulty dealing with Coloured West Indians.

o “…there is, of course, a serious question ofpolicy in dealing with requests for immigration from many British West Indiansof coloured blood.”

§ Departmentof Trade and Commerce: Inter-Office Correspondence, Mr. M. B. Palmer to Mr. F.L. Casserly, May 22^nd, 1953.

o ImmigrationOffice Procedure (specifically on Black/Coloured West Indians):

o “The colour question and the Asiatic questionare difficult; but in our experience the former has never arisen in the case ofsponsored applicants – i.e. persons going to near relatives in Canada or tomarry. In regard to other (i.e. unsponsored) applicants the criterion of theDepartment of Citizenship and Immigration is not rigidly ethnic – perhapsnecessarily so because a rigidly ethnic criterion would be most difficult ifnot impossible to apply. Anapplicant who looks like a Latin American or an Israelite evidently passesmuster.”

o “The Department of Citizenship & Immigrationadvised us in their letter of November 30, 1949, file 185402, that a person ofpure Asiatic origin, irrespective of place of birth of residence, was Asiatic inan immigration sense, and that the racial origin of a partly Asiatic person wasdetermined by the father’s race.”

o “Perhaps Brazil will in the near future absorbappreciable numbers of these peoples. Ifthis should happen, the attractiveness of North America may weaken.”

§ Memorandum,to Mr. P. V. McLane from Mr. R.R. Parlour, May 6^th, 1953:

o Canadian trade officialsoften embarrassed at dealing with immigration issues in the BWIs. This is mainly due to the fact that whenColoured people (who are discouraged and not outwardly banned from emigrating)or Asiatic peoples (who are excluded from Canadian immigration) are refusedentry, but then are high ranking businessmen or political officials and thetrade commissioners must still deal with them on a business level. The backwardness of Canadian policy: we wantyour business, but we don’t you in our country, but please continue doingbusiness with us. This policy creates“bad public relations [and] hinders promotion [of] Canadian trade…[Theserejection decisions] require explanation”. It is “embarrassing”, “untenable”, and causes “serious damage [to]Canadian prestige”.

o “Thecolour question:”

§ “We realize that, as a rule, persons of colouredraces are not encouraged to enter Canada unless their background, or settlementarrangements in Canada are exceptionally favourable. However,it seems an unwritten policy of Canada not to mention this partial colour bar,and I find it difficult to advise prospective negro, or partly negro,immigrants whether they should go to the trouble of submitting applications,and then to explain why their application has been rejected.”

§ “This problem becomes much more difficult whenthe applicant is only 1/4 or 1/8 coloured, and especially if he comes from oneof the respected and wealthy families of the island. A trained immigration officer on the spotwould be in a much better position to decide on these borderline cases, andthen to explain to the applicants the basis for his decisions.”

§ Letterfrom Donald Moore of the Negro Citizenship Committee to Honourable WalterHarris, House of Commons, Ottawa, May 13^th, 1953.

o Moore Claimed that the reason Harris gave at apress conference on May 11^th, 1953, was that Black people weredenied entry to Canada because of the “difficulty to find employment”. He then gave an example of a Barbadian fromHalf Moon Forte, St. Lucy, who had a Canadian uncle who was his sponsor and hadbeen promised employment by the Canadian National Railways, but he was still deniedentry to Canada.

§ Excerptfrom the Annual Report – Work of the Office – 1952 – Port-of-Spain, Trinidad.

o “The amount of time devoted to attempts to soothruffled feathers in connection with Canadian immigration decisions seems fartoo much but appears unavoidable so long as we operate a policy of racialdiscrimination but do not admit it.”

§ Letterto the Under-Secretary of State for External Affairs, Canada, from C.W. Dier,Esq., Vice Consul, Caracas, Venezuela, May 7^th, 1952

o Barbadian annexation in the 1950s as a Canadian province?

o “Union of the British West Indies with Canada”:

o The unfathomable idea/rumor that Barbados andthe British West Indies would become a province of Canada. “Most Barbadians feel that the prospect ofthe British West Indies becoming another province of Canada is so remote thatthey can afford to be polite and cheerful about the idea, particularly when inconversation with Canadian tourists in possession of hard currency.”

o Mr. Hunte’s (George Hunte, associate editor ofBarbados’ Advocate) radio talk on his regular Saturday night program (onrediffusion): “His private view is that the entry of any or all the BritishWest Indies into the Canadian Confederation, now or in the future, iscompletely impossible because of the racial problems involved. He cites the Canadian Immigration Act asproof of prejudice in Canada against the black race, and feels that thecoloured majority of the Islands would never voluntarily agree to become aminority through union with another country.”

§ Memorandumto the Minister (from the Director), Ottawa, September 12^th, 1951(previously confidential).

o “Admissionof Coloured or Partly Coloured Persons”:

§ “It haslong been the policy of the Department to restrict the admission to Canada ofcoloured or partly-coloured persons. This policy has been based on unfavourable experience with respect tonegro settlements such as we have in Halifax, the generally depressedconditions of the negro in Canada and an understanding that the Canadian publicwas not willing to accept any significant group of negro immigrants.”

§ P.C. 2856

§ “With the implementation of P.C. 2856 on Jul 1,1950, we instituted an “open door” policy which was to be restrictive only inthe sense that immigrants would be carefully selected as to their suitabilityand desirability in the light of Canadian social and economicrequirements. Under this orderOrder-in-Council we continued to administer strictly the admission of colouredpersons.”

§ “Administratively the admission of negroes isnow restricted to the wife or husband and/or unmarried children under 21 yearsof age.”

§ “I do not feel that in the short run we canplace the negro on the same basis as other immigrants under the suitable anddesirable sections of P.C. 2856”

§ “AdministrativelyI believe we should coat the pill somewhat by being more specific in rejectingthese cases and as I stated at the 36^th meeting of DACI, rejectionswherever possible should be based on occupational grounds.”

§ Using the idea of a lackof employment for Blacks in Canada (lowering wages for everyone even thoughit’s the employers that pay them less because they are racist), people don’twant to work or soldiers don’t want to serve them, as an overarching excuse forinstitutionalized racism and personal bigotry.

§ Coloured Immigration: Policy & Instructions. R76; Vol.830, File 552-1-644 (Part 2)

§ Letterto the Deputy Minister at the Department of Citizenship and Immigration fromthe Director, December 9^th, 1958.

o Domestic quota from Barbados for 1959: 40 (totalof 200 for all West Indian islands – 100 from Jamaica, 30 from Trinidad, 15from St. Vincent, 15 from St. Lucia)

§ DeputyMinister to Director, September 12^th, 1958

o Immigration to Canada from B.W.I. – CalendarYear 1957 by race

§ Negro ethnic origin – 497 (43%)

§ British ethnic origin – 408 (35%)

§ Other ethnic origin – 257 (22%)

§ Total – 1162 BWI immigrants for 1957

§ ***Deputy Minister (letter signed by C.E.S.Smith – Acting Deputy Minister) to Director, March 10^th, 1958***

o Changing Racist immigration policy due to pressure from WestIndian officials and the fact that Canadian government cannot justify theirexclusionary practise. Arbitrary Racismwithout justification. West Indians atthe forefront push to breaking down this barrier and pressuring governmentofficials.

o “As you are aware it has been our long standingpractice to deal favourably with British subjects of white race from theBritish West Indies provided there are reasonable grounds for assuming theproposed immigrant will become satisfactorily established here and has eithersufficient funds for maintenance or evidence of satisfactory settlementarrangements.”

o Not encouraging emigrants outside of domestics,“graduate nurses, qualified stenographers, etc.’

o “We arecontinually being accused of discrimination against the coloured race in thisarea and our rebuttal has been that there is no racial discrimination and thatonly persons accepted are those clearly defined in the admissible classes andthose with exceptional merit. The factsdo not support the statement.”

o “In discussing immigration matters withrepresentatives of the British West Indies it is difficult to justify ouraction in extending favourable consideration to a person of white race when asimilar application made by a person of coloured race is refused.”

o “In viewof the above I am of the opinion we should revise our present practice andthat, regardless of race, all persons should be given equal treatment, that is,accept only those cases which come within the admissible classes or which haveexceptional merit.”

§ Memorandumfor: The Acting Minister – Ottawa, April 17^th, 1958. From Laval Fortier to C.E.S. Smith)

o “Please find attached a memorandum from theDirector of Immigration concerning the admission of person from the BritishWest Indies. I am inclined to agree withthe conclusion reached by Mr. Smith, but I must say that persons of white racewould generally be more readily acceptable to Canada and, therefore, would havebetter opportunities for establishments than the others.”

o Why? What’s the proof, logic, and reasoning forthis statement from the Deputy Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, LavalFortier?

§ Immigrationfrom the British West Indies since World War II

o Fiscal Year

o 1945-1946: Total 298

§ British: 193 (65%)

§ Negro: 66 (22%)

§ Others: 39 (13%)

o 1946-1947: Total 420

§ British: 274 (65%)

§ Negro: 89 (21%)

§ Others: 57 (11%)

o 1947-1948: Total 404

§ British: 285 (70%)

§ Negro: 72 (19%)

§ Others: 47 (11%)

o 1948-1949: Total 391

§ British: 220 (56%)

§ Negro: 108 (28%)

§ Others: 63 (16%)

o 1949-1950: Total 384

§ British: 224 (58%)

§ Negro: 105 (28%)

§ Others: 55 (14%)

o 1950-1951: Total 399

§ British: 255 (64%)

§ Negro: 69 (17%)

§ Others: 75 (19%)

o 1951-1952: Total 666

§ British: 414 (62%)

§ Negro: 65 (10%)

§ Others: 187 (28%)

o 1952-1953: Total 717

§ British: 434 (61%)

§ Negro: 80 (11%)

§ Others: 203 (28%)

o 1953-1954: Total 916

§ British: 560 (61%)

§ Negro: 112 (12%)

§ Others: 244 (27%)

o Calendar Year

o 1954: Total 849

§ British: 525 (64%)

§ Negro: 122 (14%)

§ Others: 202 (22%)

o 1955: Total 793

§ British: 325 (41%)

§ Negro: 262 (33%)

§ Others: 206 (26%)

o 1956: Total 1052

§ British: 380 (36%)

§ Negro: 416 (39%)

§ Others: 256 (25%)

o 1957: Total 1168

o 1958 (11 Months): Total 1085

o Totalfrom 1945-1957: 7289

§ British:4089 (56%)

§ Negro:1566 (21%)

§ Others:1634 (23%)

o TotalNegro Immigration from BWI from 1938-1955: 1,239

o TotalNegro Immigration from BWI from 1946-1960: 4,311 (11,588 Total WI IGs) (Seen in Part 3 of this folder in Archives)

o “The above figures indicate that only 21% of thetotal number were of negro ethnic origin; however, judging from our experiencein dealing with B.W.I applications, many of those claiming ‘British’ or ‘other’ethnic origin were in fact of mixed race. Some of them were of whit e origin in the paternal line, while others whoappeared to be otherwise suitable immigrants were given the benefit of thedoubt when their applications were reviewed.”

o “Generally speaking, the domestics, nurses,nurses’ aides, male psychiatric nurses and orderlies are the types of colouredimmigrants from the B.W.I. whose services are in demand in Canada.”

Notes from the Gorilliphant Cage - Part I

2011-09-28T21:54:00.001-04:00

Yes, Gorilliphant or Gorillaphant or any variation of Gorilla and Elephant. That's an Austin Clarkeism that I found going through many of his letters today in the archives here in Ottawa. Here are some good quips from the hybrid humanoid (everything is verbatim as written in his letters):

· Letters from Austin Clarke to John Harewood:MG31, H144, Vol 1

o Austin Clarke, November 5^th, 1973,5pm, The University of Texas at Austin, African and Afro-American Studies andResearch Center:

§ “…When you spend half hour doing that, you doeshave to conclude that the Souff (sic) more better than…that Norff (sic). When I look at Canada from this distance, Idoes have to laugh: Canada ain’ shite. That is all I have to say regarding Canadians and Canada.

o November 27^th, 1973:

§ “I have nothing more to do with black peopleorganization, and getting involved in them. I consider women like Dorothy and the girl at the Black EducationProject as dangerous human beings: I still think they operate from a Wessindiancaste-syndrome perspective, over-compensating; over-spelling, over-identifying,and both o’ them fucking late to the struggle even in a moral way. Dangerous-arse women, with no morals.”

§ Clarke on PM Barrow:

§ “Man, Barrow cool as shite, and I like he; withthem bow-legs, and that shiny-black jacket with the dark grey trousers and thered tie, and the dark glasses man, and his head down to the rass-hole ground,heavy and overloaded with ideas and torts and other jurisprudentialisms (sic)and heavy matters o’contracks and pleas. And not one (read this slow, and sweet, Harwood)… ‘not one rass-holefalse-oath-tekker’ coulda tetch my man.”

o February 9^th, 1974:

§ Clarke on African vs Black vs Barbadian:

§ “I is one man who godblindyou don’t give toomuch o’ going back there, or linking up too much with Africa, cau (sic) I feel,be-Christ, that them Africans don’t like me, and never did have a good bone intheir heart in regards o’ me, and people like me.”

§ “That kind of talk may surprise you, but istrue. I are not even a black man. I is a fucking Barbadian. Now, there might be certain ins and outsin-between me being a Barbadian that mel (sic) me also into a black man and aAfricanated brand of man, too; but that as it may. I can’t talk one African word: I ain’ knowWatusi, Yoruba, Gai, nor nothing so. Theonliest language I knows is Barbadian, and I trying like shite to speak andwrite that better than anybody else. Yuhsee muh?”

§ ***Gorilliphant***

o 10pm, March 10^th, 1976, St. Michael,Barbados, the West Indies:

§ “It is rather a cruel and sick attitude to theBarbadian who has spent some time abroad, and who has come home for whateverreason. I think the feeling is derivedfrom the history of the former colonial days whenthe (sic) only person who cameto Barbados, without having been born here was the white Englishman; andBarbadians who have a remarkable sense of recollection, becomes disappointed inthe depth of his psyche that the man who suddenly returns is not the white manthe man who appeared the first time on the scene. Barbadians are not disposed to exchanging theblack man for the white man. You shouldnot be surprise at this. It goes rightthrough the fabric of society. And youknow whether I have been successful in my fight against all kinds of racialismor not, that I could not put up with such a chronic sickness. The most depraved of this disease can be seenin the relationship of the brown-skin people to the black-skin people…Barbadosis sick.”

§ “Here only the vegetation is real. And we never like people to refer to us inthat metaphor, so far as our minds are concerned. But here in Barbados, Harewood, the only realthing is the fucking vegetation.”

White People Ain't Fair

2011-09-27T18:56:00.003-04:00

How many times has Wayne Simmonds made headline news in his entire career? I'm going to throw out a wild guess on this one and say zero. How many times has he made headline news in a week? Twice.

First the man got a banana thrown at him and took the high road. He played the Mandela/King card and turned the other cheek and moved on.

So now my man Simmonds is being accused of using a homophobic slur during a game to Mr. Sean Avery. Not only is he being accused, the man is being burned at the stake even before anyone can prove or knows what was actually said.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=376851

Say he called the man "gay" or reading lips he said "day" or "may" or "poopoo head" or "fag" or "donkeykong" or said that his ex-girlfriend is a ho (Avery's ex-girlfriend, Elisha Cuthbert, did play a ho in a movie), that's not the point of what's going on here.

It's the timing.

Why is Simmonds, the victim last week, now the evil villain this week? Why is the Black man, the victim of a blatant racist act by a fan (which by the way is much worse than what gets said in the moment between two guys trying to kill each other on the ice because it's premeditated), now pulled in by the media as the heartless asshole that deserved to be called names?

Why? Because they want to show that he - a Black man - is just as intolerant as the rest of the nigger- and faggot-hating society at large.

Why feel sorry for a man that apparently called another man something that no one can prove or has even admitted, when you can sweep the ugly stain of racism under the rug faster than you can peel and eat a banana? And what's the fastest way to do that? Bait a known NHL asshole - Avery (who was accused of assaulting a police officer) - to say that the Black Stain (BS stands for bullshit, btw) on the NHL called him gay.

This one is for you TSN and the NHL and media at large: pull the banana out your ass and see your own hangups and prejudices for what they are.

I wonder how many times people called Simmonds a nigger and its many derivatives on the ice. Do a story on that.

Travel Update

2011-09-27T17:35:00.001-04:00

Ok folks, I'm on the road again. This time I'm going to Harperland (Ottawa) for a few days to work in the National Archives here in Canada.

I plan to post some notes and photos from Harperland. Stay tuned.

Black People: Time to Step Up

2011-09-24T15:57:00.002-04:00

Watch the video and read the article:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/story/2011/09/23/toronto-london-taser-students.html

You know the "turn the other cheek" mantra? I say forget it. At what point can we stand around and let cops taser us in the head? Then get some bullshit response from the chief of police and mayor saying that was the right thing to do. And once again, right here in London.

I'll leave my thoughts to myself on this one.

Racism in the NHL

2011-09-23T12:15:00.003-04:00

Most people reading this blog probably care more about Mountain Man Moses and the Rugby World Cup than they do about an NHL pre-season game here in London, Ontario. But when a story like this makes headline news on CBC, it's a big deal.

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2011/09/22/sp-nhl-flyers-simmonds.html

Long story short, a banana was thrown at a Black player on the Philadelphia Flyers from the stands during the game last night. For those familiar with Euro football, things like that have been all too routine.

Am I surprised that it happened here in London? No. I live here and know this city is full of asinine ignorant fools two IQ points short of being monkeys themselves. And it's not the EOA and low class folks that I'm talking about. I'm talking about the dudes in the suits with the respectable jobs and degrees that can afford to watch an NHL game. I'm talking about that dude (gotta be a guy) that would bring a banana to a hockey game. I don't know how many people chase a beer with a banana.

Right off the bat, London should never get another game. Fullstop. I'm not punishing a whole city for what one fool did, but what thousands of fools didn't. You can't tell me that at least one person saw that guy throw something on the ice? Security didn't see it? Staff didn't see it? Give me a break. If no one is going to point the finger, I'll point it at everyone.

And if it was a Detroit fan? I'd tell Ndamukong Suh to sit out his next game with the Detroit Lions. We'll see how fast someone goes and starts pointing fingers.

And a Philadelphia fan? Shoot. Tell Vick he can't play this week and see how fast the whole of Philadelphia burns down London.

And why a banana? Why can't racists be a tad bit more creative? If you thought about buying a banana to throw at a Black guy, why couldn't you have thrown something that would really hurt us people to the core?

The next time a White Ass feels like being all big and bad, here's a list of a few things they should throw on the ice that'll really get their point across:

A bucket of fried chicken. We love our chicken.
A child support case. We hate supporting our many illegitimate children.
A half-burned copy of Roots. Nothing like disrespecting Kunta Kinte.
A book. It would take us a while to figure out exactly what it is.
A beat. We'd drop our sticks and start freestyling on the spot.
A gold chain. We get distracted by shiny things.
A football. We'd remember that nobody cares about hockey anyways.

$2399 Desktop Computer

2011-09-22T13:29:00.001-04:00

In 1996 you could buy a desktop computer for the price of a used car. It was so big you could probably drive it too.

Best Buy Flyer

Sexy and I Know It

2011-09-19T00:02:00.004-04:00

Not sure if you'll be seeing this music video on TV.

Ban Alcohol

2011-09-17T16:48:00.000-04:00

Yes, I may sound like an old man and this post may seem like a rant, but I'm very serious. I'm not saying to throw back to the Prohibition era, but we as an alcoholic society need to re-evaluate how we treat and consume alcohol.

No, I'm not sitting on a soapbox, but after seeing a drunk girl lying in the street outside my house and being taken home by two boys (that's pretty normal out here in North America's number 3 party school) and waking up to vomit and what looked like a blood trail outside my building, I figured it was a good time to put out a blog post.

I haven't done any scientific research to compare the numbers, but I have a strong feeling that alcohol affects more lives - directly and indirectly - than cigarettes and smoking.

The three biggest things we hear about with smoking is second hand smoke, cancer, and heart disease. We see the commercials with the lady smoking out of her throat and the cartons with the pictures of damaged teeth and lungs.

But what about alcohol?

Yes, there is a huge campaign against drunk driving and MADD is known to all those around the country. But I think we should take it to another level.

I think every time you pick up a bottle of rum or a case a beer, there should be a photo of a child mangled in a car accident caused by a drunk driver. Another of a child suffering from fetal alcohol syndrome. One of a woman beat by her alcoholic husband. One of a kid in a hospital bed getting his stomach pumped.

And for the university students, there should be a big ol' photo of a herpes sore. Yes, a photo of genitalia (male and female) and a real image of how alcohol can lower your inhibitions (and commonsense) and put you in a situation where the risk of getting an STI is astronomically magnified.

You can't see your lungs and how that puff of smoke is killing you from the inside, but you can see that growing pile of puss annually when you go pee for the rest of your life.

Yes, I may sound facetious, but what scares a young man? Something that's wrong with his lungs, or what's in his pants?

And who can look beyond the correlation between Western being one of the top party schools in North America, but also having the highest STI infection rate of all Canadian universities?

Drinking isn't as innocent as we as a society like to celebrate. We all can't be Bristol Palin and be celebrated for having unprotected sex while drunk and having an illegitimate child by a future porn star.

Rugby and Mountain Man Moses

2011-09-15T11:22:00.000-04:00

I'm a sport fan. Not only am I a sport man, but I'll watch any World Cup or international competition in any sport. The competition that comes out when representing one's country takes the game to a completely different level. Shoot, if there was a World Cup of walking children on a leash, I'd watch that too. On second thought, I'd probably be training children out the womb to compete at the highest level. I'd even lace their milk with performance enhancing drugs, feed them blended chicken hearts, and swap their baby formula for protein powder.

But there is one thing that goes above and beyond people - or babies - representing their respective countries. Just one thing: it's when beings compete for their species.

Insert the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand and Canada's - oops, I mean, Harry from Harry and the Hendersons' brother - Adam Kleeberger:

Resemblance? I think yes.

Yes, he carries a Canadian passport and lives in Canada. But Harry lived in a house with a family too. I'm all for supernatural beings swapping allegiances and doing their chosen country proud. China has Yao "Long Tall Alien" Ming. The US has LeBron "Neanderthal" James. West Germany had an entire female track team of Amazon women. So why can't Canada claim Adam "Triple M" Kleeberger? (The triple M stands for "Mountain Man Moses".

And to boot, he actually helps a Canadian team - other than hockey that only the fraction of the World plays or even cares about - win.

It ain't tiger, but I'll take a page from Mr. Sheen and say Mountain Man blood is the key to winning.

Canada's next game is Sunday at 4am on TSN vs France.

Nelson Mandela is Not Dead

2011-09-13T16:59:00.001-04:00

Got some rumours going around Twitter that Mandela died. I've gone back to a tried, tested, and true medium - the plain ol' internet - and found out that he's not. Don't believe everything you see on Twitter folks. Stick with the internet and Wikipedia.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/09/13/uk-safrica-mandela-idUKTRE78C6UF20110913

Where in the World is Lisa?: Zanzibar in Mourning

2011-09-12T12:42:00.000-04:00

Where in the World is Lisa?: Zanzibar in Mourning

9/11 Conundrum

2011-09-11T15:28:00.001-04:00

As I sit here watching a full slate of NFL games (a CFL one and some rugby World Cup to balance it all out) all commemorating the 10th anniversary of 9/11, I start to think:

Why do Americans say they care so much about their "heroes" - soldiers, firefighters, police officers - who die every single day fighting for their country and saving lives, but cry foul when they've got to raise taxes to pay for these "heroes" and a debt crisis which was due in part to spending billions of dollars for war?

And to boot, Americans love football more than they love their own country. How else could the average American taxpayer explain paying a few hundred dollars to watch a live professional football game (I'm not even including the NCAA where over 114,000 people watched Michigan play Notre Dame last night) or subscribe to TV packages and buy merchandise or play in fantasy leagues that drives the multi-billion dollar league and its multi-million dollar employees, while their "heroes" are lucky to get their education paid for while dodging bullets or those many volunteers that put their lives on the line to save others.

Last time I checked, I didn't see Bush or Obama or anyone on CNN saying that after 9/11 firefighters, police officers and soldiers should get an astronomical pay raise for what they've done for their country. If you can bailout greedy executives, why not give the money to people that actually do something for your country?

If that's not backwards, I don't know what is.

What We've Learned Since 9/11

2011-09-09T16:08:00.001-04:00

...not much.

It's been ten years and we're still afraid of our next door neighbours.
We (Canadians and the Western World as a whole) are more xenophobic than ever.
We hate the unknown and the Other.
Your name and colour can get you kicked off of a plane (if you're even allowed to get on one).
We still see an entire religion as terrorists.
Still dropping bombs on babies.
Still electing warmongers, bigots, and plain old idiots feeding fear to the masses (a al Harper).

It's ten years later and minus Facebook and Youtube and Obama, it might as well be 2002.

Epic Meal Time

2011-09-07T14:09:00.001-04:00

Taking healthy eating to a whole new level. Side effects: resurrection.

Lil Wayne - The Boogie Man

2011-09-05T15:03:00.000-04:00

Lil Wayne singing a love song is like getting the boogie man to sing you a lullaby - those two things just don't add up to make any sense.

So what's all the hype around his song "How to Love"?

I'm not calling the man a hypocrite, but watch his video and then get back to me. Lil Wayne is the boogie man portrayed in his video. Think about. The man just had two kids with two different women at the exact same time. If that's not a good example of how to start off your child(ren) life on a good note, I'm not too too sure what is.

I really hope he's not Miss Cleo in disguise, or maybe he's that obeah woman from Pirates of the Caribbean and showing us all the future of one of his kids.

Track and Field - The All Inclusive Sport

2011-09-04T15:43:00.000-04:00

As the Daegu Athletics World Championships come to a close on a world record note by the Jamaican men's 400m relay team, I would like to say a few things on why track & field - athletics to the rest of the world - is the best and most inclusive sport in the world.

Everyone - and country - in the world can compete.
Outside of war, on what other platform can countries express dominance?
Unlike sports like basketball or football, you don't need a certain body type to compete. You're short, you sprint. You're tall, you high jump. You're fat, you do hammer or shot put.
Athletics is the only sport that women and men are treated as complete equals. They do the same events and earn the same amount in prize money. Marion Jones was arguably the most popular track athlete - male or female - in the late '90s and early 2000s. Furthermore, she was prosecuted and went to jail as one of the highest profile athletes in the whole BALCO scandal.
In terms of equality, how many sports allow people with physical disabilities to compete with able-bodied athletes on a level playing field? See Oscar Pistorius.
Blind, mentally and physically handicapped, young, old, all levels of expertise, can compete.
It's free. Shoot, you don't even need shoes.
Outside of hamstring injuries, there are no long term debilitating effects of competing.
When's the last time you got a concussion running the 100m?
You get to travel the world and meet a whole lot of interesting and cool people.
The only place that you get to see "normal" Africans beating and dominating White people. All the while throwing that whole idea of dependency on the West on its head.
Eye candy for men and women.
Great way to get and stay in shape while having fun.
The vast majority of athletes competing do it because they love it. There's no money in track unless you're Usain Bolt. They are regular people that train harder than all professional athletes just to be able to represent their country on the world stage.
When you're disgraced, you're disgraced for life. There are no Michael Vicks in athletics. If so, Ben Johnson would be on a Canadian stamp.
Great way to get an education.
Teaches great discipline, structure, and hard work.
Unlike team sports, when you fail, you're the only one to blame. Can only point the finger at yourself. Teaches great character and mental toughness.
Everyone can run, jump, and throw.

Where (When) I'd Go in a Time Machine

2011-08-31T15:45:00.000-04:00

It's been recently proven that driving a DeLorean won't actually take anyone back to the future. But, all is not lost. There is currently at least one scientist out there in the world trying to dispute this fact and is about to launch an eco-friendly time traveling device in the near future. It even seats two.

On that note, I've thought of dates I'd like to go once I've signed up for my ride(s) in the Time Box.

2004:

To beat Zuckerberg up and claim Facebook as my own.

1996:

To watch the Atlanta 100m final.

1994:

Marry Patricia Lynn Mallette.

1988:

To tell Ben Johnson to come second in the 100m final. At the end of the day 9.79 doesn't mean much of anything anymore.

1986:

You ever heard of that expression, "You behave like you made yourself?" Enough said.

Early 1970s:

Buy a lifetime supply of gas.

Early 1970s:

Buy shares in any oil company.

1968:

Hit James Earl Ray with a big rock.

1965:

Tell Malcolm X to stay home.

1945:

Stop the US from dropping those bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Taking an innocent life doesn't save an innocent one.

1884:

Stop the Berlin Conference by showing Europeans that wanted colonization leads to unwanted immigration a couple centuries later (I'm looking directly at you France and Britain).

Early 1860s:

Fight in the US Civil War.

1834:

On a plantation in Barbados to celebrate Emancipation. Then teach Freed Blacks how to read and write and buy beach front real estate.

1791:

Fight in the Haitian Revolution, then fly in my combat helicopter from island to island, slave colony to slave colony, spreading revolution. Then I'd put an embargo on Europe and see how they like being underdeveloped for the rest of eternity.

1763:

Tell France to keep Guadeloupe instead of Canada. It'll pay off in the long run for Acadians and Quebecois.

1611:

Edit the King James version of the Bible. Throw in some real life prophesies like the world will not come to an end on May 21st, 2011.

15th Century:

Tell the Portuguese that oil will be worth more than African Slaves.

1095:

Videotape the Crusades then post them on youtube.

Year 30:

Create Christopherism.

Thesis Anxiety

2011-08-30T13:48:00.001-04:00

Another reason why I'm posting my work on my blog.

http://vimeo.com/16974973

A Bieberism

2011-08-29T12:22:00.000-04:00

A Bieberism: To say something foolish that clearly you know nothing about.

Scroll to 1:20.

Screw My PhD

2011-08-26T21:32:00.000-04:00

***Rant Warning***

This is a perfect follow-up to my last post on my possible non-PhD occupations. This may be old news to some, but I was just made aware of it. It has to do with a real life umpa lumpa (without Charlie) getting paid $32,000 to speak at Rutgers University. Yes, I said Rutgers. I didn't say the University of Fabutan or DeVry, but Rutgers. Ya, Rutgers ain't Princeton, but it's still a reputable university.

Prof Snooks

I'm not even going to ask why Snooki of Jersey Shore fame was invited to speak at Rutgers Inc. Or that she was paid more money than Toni Morrison We all know it has to do about money, publicity, and notoriety. I'm not a fool to think that. Nor, am I going to debate the Jersey Shore show or the fact that they make $100,000 per episode (13 episodes in a season, you do the math).

I'm just saying that I'm doing it all wrong. I could publish 32 books as Dr. Taylor, spend 32 years in academia and Rutgers would probably give me about $32.00 to speak in front of about 32 students that are getting marked for attendance. Yes, 32 dollars. Don't let the decimal point play tricks with your eyes.

The good news for me is that I go to THE University of Western Ontario. UWO is ranked in Playboy's top 10 party schools in the US (yes, UWO is so partylific that it made it on a US ranking. And it's ranked numero #4).

There is still hope for my $32,000 a speech quest.

First, I need to finish my PhD so I can have some kind of credibility and so that I can have an "interesting fact" on my IMDB page. "Did you know The Doctor is actually a doctor?"

Second, I need to forgo my African Gym mentality and start doing some curls for the girls in the gym. Add in some glorified grunts when I'm benching.

Third, I need to cut my locks and get myself a jheri curl a la Eriq La Salle from Coming to America.

Fourth, I need to fly to Regina and adopt myself a White baby (all famous people have inter-racial adoptions. Duh.)

Fifth, I need to adopt four more White babies.

Sixth, I need a sex tape with Rihanna. Or Beyonce. Or Lady Gaga. On second thought, cut the Lady Gaga sex tape. Gay rumors kill careers.

Seventh, I need to grow about 6 inches taller and change my last name to something that ends in -ozzi, -sito, or -uno.

And finally, I need to wake up every morning and convince myself that the world is a better place when we hold up idiots on pedestals.

If I Wasn't Doing my PhD

2011-08-24T11:24:00.002-04:00

Outside of having the time to work on my blog and troll youtube looking for honey badgers, doing a PhD isn't all that glamorous. So in light of that tidbit, here are some occupations that I'd be doing if I wasn't a PhD student:

Bus driver:

Maybe not a school bus, but I like driving. I could see myself driving across the Serengeti on a 16 hour haul with only pee break.

Hurling Player:

The coolest sport I've never heard of until recently. I've got Irish blood swimming around in me somewhere, so why not get back to my roots?

Garbage Man:

I get plenty of fresh air, work decent hours and get to ride outside of a truck. That's the life.

Obeah Man:

I don't know if I'd have such a cool looking get up, but where else could I cast spells like I should be in a Disney movie?

Honey Badger:

Ya, I know it's an animal. But you can't tell me that's not one of the coolest animals you've never heard of. Some kids wanted to grow up being half spider or half bat, so don't squash my dream of being full badger. DC Comics take note of your next superhero: HBMan.

Repo Man:

They legally steal cars. Enough said.

Jack Layton, 1950-2011

2011-08-22T10:46:00.000-04:00

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/story/2011/08/22/layton-obituary.html

The Incredible Honey Badger!

2011-08-21T19:14:00.000-04:00

In my next life I want to be a crazy nastyass honey badger. I am serious. I want to fight a cobra and lose, but win. I'd drink tiger blood for breakfast. If I could have a pet honey badger, I would name him Charlie Sheen. He's winning!

To: TMZ. Re: Rihanna

2011-08-20T18:30:00.000-04:00

When everyone was up in arms about Rihanna's "raunchy" outfit from Kadooment, someone forgot to post this photo:

I'm talking about the guy in the green.

Things Rich People Do (or Don't)

2011-08-19T10:41:00.000-04:00

When I'm talking about rich, I don't mean those people that say they have money and flaunt it. Going on cruises and buying their kids PS3s and their wives new handbags. Nope, I'm talking about slave owner rich. The guy that owns the land that the guy with money built his house on. The guy that keeps his money in Swiss banks and takes a yacht to work. Wealthy people. Dirty money, clean money, laundered with Tide money, it doesn't matter.

So what do rich people do or don't do?

They don't vote:

Why vote when you've got money? Most politicians scream about tax cuts and saving the "working families" money. Talks about public transit, public services, public healthcare are always in the news and usually what gets politicians elected. So why vote if you never ride the bus? Why vote if you end all your checkups by writing a cheque? Why vote when you've got a buddy like Warren Buffett who says he and his 10 million dollar plus a year cronies have so much money that they wouldn't mind being taxed more? Why vote when you own the politicians?

They don't watch the news:

Why watch the news when you create it and skew it to make you feel good like Rupert Murdoch?

They have a cure for HIV/AIDS:

Is it just me, or is Magic Johnson a poster boy for this revelation. The man was HIV/AIDS positive at a time when it was still a "gay" disease and ARVs were nothing like what they are now. Earvin had some magic.

They can be womanizers and women still would want to have their baby:

Insert Lil Wayne here. If I got two women pregnant at the same time and none were my actual girlfriend or wive, I'd be on an episode of Maury. The joke is, both women knew about it. Alicia Keys gets an honourable mention here for the female equivalent.

They don't care about you:

Do you really think Wall Street cares about Main Street? When you're worrying about rising gas prices, RF (rich folks) are glad BP turned the Gulf into an oil field cause they wanted the stocks to drop so they could buy them. You're driving your 1.4L Fiat trying to save the world one gas pump at a time, while RFs cruise around in their gas guzzling 5.5L V12 Maybachs.

The Universe is their backyard:

You thought your last all-inclusive vacation to Cuba was the vacation to end all vacations. RFs go to space. Enough said.

They know money buys happiness:

Unless that guy lying on a sewer grate on Bay Street trying to keep warm from that course of Indian food that passed through your body the night before is hiding the key to life in his old Tim Hortons cup, flying around the world in your G6 and eating baked Dodo bird (RFs are so rich that they eat animals we think are extinct) is the key to happiness. We sing about G6s while they own them.

They don't go to jail:

Minus Conrad Black, rich people don't go to jail. And if they do, a la Martha Stewart, prison is more summer camp kumbaya than Tom DuBois' anal rape nightmare. In rich prison you can drop your bar of Irish Spring or Protex and not worry about how you're going to poo for the next week and a half.

They don't die:

They just have their bodies cryogenically frozen to be revived by microwave at a later date.

LeBron Should Play in Somalia

2011-08-18T13:39:00.000-04:00

Now that NBA players left and right are signing contracts to play in Europe during the lockout (to make money - oops - I mean keep in shape), I've chosen a few places where I think these players would have the greatest impact on world issues and current affairs:

Somalia:

At least in Tanzania, you can buy a kilo of rice for about 50 cents. I'm no mathematician, but if the NBA really "Cares" and you're not getting paid anyways, LeBron James can save a lot of lives and win over some disgruntled Cleveland fans by donating some of his $14.5 million salary he made this past season. (For the record $1M could buy 2,000,000 kilos of rice.)

England:

With the past riots and the beloved failure of my SAW programme, I think someone like Ron Artest - ahem - Metta World Peace - could really send his message of peace, love, and rehabilitation to the disenfranchised youth. Just a few years ago he was causing riots in the stands and now he's changed his name. If MWP can't do it, no one can.

Israel/Palestine/Syria/Libya:

Basketball is already pretty popular in the Middle East and North Africa, so why not get your name out there and broker peace like what Didier Drogba did for his native Cote D'Ivoire? Young people care more about sport idols than they do for old senile archaic politicians. Next time someone decides to have a "Decision" on live TV, how about making it more than where you're going to bounce your balls around to make a bazillion dollars.

Norway:

The NBA wants further expansion in Europe. Start with Norway. After seeing disengaged UK youth, we've already forgotten about the senseless mass killing of Norwegian young future leaders not even a month ago. Dirk and Tony, Norway ain't that far from Germany and France.

Washington, D.C.:

For all these guys that preach Obama and how proud they were when he was elected, how about you send him out a lifesaver for the 2012 election? Hey Kobe and Dwight, who did y'all vote for?

Beat Your Kids (SAW)

2011-08-12T11:41:00.002-04:00

Obama, Harper and Cameron got it all wrong (maybe not Cameron cause he said straight up that one of the reasons for the unrest in the UK is cause of bad parenting). We don't need to spend millions of pounds or dollars on social programmes, prisons, behavioural drugs and the like to fix our social and political woes. What we need is this:

We need to get like Rick James and forget English as the international language and make it five fingers instead (just not to the face or with any kind of malice).

We as a society spend way too much time trying to figure out how to solve the world's problems and we forget how parents (and the school system and religion) used to raise law abiding citizens. They gave them one hard slap.

Here's my historical reasoning:

- Jesus was beat for the eternal sins and wrong doings of Christians until the end of time. (And crucified for that matter. Disclaimer: By no means am I saying to nail your children to a cross if they misbehave.)
- If Portuguese and Spanish parents in the 16th century gave their children a Slap-A-Week or "SAW" we would've of never had African slavery in the Americas.
- If mother and father Hitler gave their son a SAW, we would've never had the WWII and the Holocaust.
- Alexander Graham Bell was SAWed and he invented the telephone
- Bill Gates was SAWed and perfected a medium for me to write this blog
- Jim Balsille was SAWed and created BBM
- Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Gandhi, Mother Teresa, all given SAWs as children.

Whether you like him or not, David Cameron manned up and blamed bad parenting for a lot of the underage rioters in the streets. While I personally believe it is a much deeper issue of social inequality and limited economic opportunities of a disengaged youth (similar to the "Arab Spring") and one big ol' frig up system controlled by The (senile) Man, how else do you explain an 11 year old rioter?

When your 11 year old son leaves the house at midnight wearing a balaclava, hoodie, gloves, and a cricket bat in the middle of August and says "I'm going by Johnny to do homework", I think he's lying to you. Not only is he lying to you, you're the bigger idiot allowing your child to be even up that late. And when he comes home wearing 3 watches, a new pair of Jordans and smells like tear gas? Oye.

Underage smoking and drinking: SAW
Kids talking back in school: SAW
Bullying: SAW
Child Obesity: SAW (especially while they're eating)
Youth Crime and Violence: SAW
Scabicals: SAW
Skinny Shorts (Capri Pants): SAW
Bad politicians: SAW

If people worry about what young people are doing to the world now, imagine what will happen when they are the ones running it. Or worse yet, the ones taking care of an aging population.

Save a life and SAW your children. They'll be the ones to thank you in the future.

Insurrection of the Masses of the People

2011-08-10T11:01:00.000-04:00

Don't mind the quality, just watch the video. "The nature of the historical moment"

Obama: Worst President in US History?

2011-08-09T13:08:00.000-04:00

First off, I disagree with that statement. If you just want to look back from the second half of the 20th century, Nixon and Bush I & II rank pretty high up on the list.

But for anyone that's been following the Obama Administration for the past few years and the "shit-hit-the-fan debt ceiling crisis" you would think that Obama got the short end of the stick when it comes to US Presidential history.

It's like you're the poor janitor that just got hired and has to make sure the bathroom is spick and span after a salmonella outbreak at a Pizza Day at an elementary school. It's not your fault the kids got sick and could only make it to the bathroom but not the toilet, and now you've got to clean stomach blendered pepperonis, cheerios, milk, and pasta sauce off the ground. To make matters worse, you've only got one evening to clean up a week's worth of work before a probation performance review from the principal. If Pizza Day were next week, and the school didn't buy pizzas off the back of a truck, and you didn't promise in your interview that the school would never be dirty under your watch or they could fire you, you'd be home free. Only if.

So here we've got Obama on the possible brink of another Recession. (First off, how are we in another recession when we still haven't come out of the last?) He's come in from the bullpen down 15 runs and on the hook for the loss. He's that first round draft pick that gets caught picking his nose by the camera and then has to come in off the bench for the Raptors in garbage time down 45 points. Not his fault his team - the Bush economy, Wall Street, the Republican Party, - sucks, but he's going to be on the court at the final buzzer.

Obama's being tea bagged by the Tea Party and sodomized by the Senate while the lemon car of an economy he bought without a CarProof History Report is slowly dying in the driveway.

Ya, no one told Obama to run for President, or even take the job for that matter. And most would say that he knew what he was getting into. But how will history see him?

Will he be remembered as the first Black President of the United States of America? The one that beat all odds (I personally never thought I'd see an African-American President in my lifetime) and literally changed the face of history? The one that hunted down and killed history's most infamous terrorist? Or will he be remembered as the Black man that guided US economic supremacy as a superpower straight into the hands of Beijing?

History is a funny thing in that it isn't necessarily always the truth. History - and the truth - is subjective. Some may see Baby Bush as a War Hero, others may see him as an alcoholic terrorist with shits and giggles for brains. Some may see China as the next superduper power, others may see it as the world's greatest human rights disaster.

History is written by the victor, and if Obama loses this battle in his own backyard, the "Black" in "First Black President" may be the only thing that's remembered.

Rihanna Loud Concert Barbados

2011-08-07T22:25:00.001-04:00

I left Barbados before the Loud concert at Kensington Oval in Barbados this past Friday, but I did hear from close friends and relatives that it was a world class performance from a world class performer.

Whether you like Rihanna, Ri-Ri, Miss Fenty, or whomever you want to call her, you've got to give credit where credit is due. And for all the hating (I still don't like her as an artiste and she doesn't have any real singing talent), she's one of the most famous women in the world and comes from an island not much bigger than the size of a university campus (Barbados is 166 square miles for the record with a population of approximately 300,000).

You can't say she put Barbados on the map, because it's been on it since 1627. And I don't think it's a contest between her and Errol Barrow (Barbados' first Prime Minister) and a few hundred other prominent Bajans in history as to who is more important.

And let's be honest, people will be getting drunk off of Malibu rum long after Rihanna's career is done and she's hosting BET's 106 & Park with Chris Brown.

But I will say, she's one lucky woman and she's living a life that most people can only dream of.

I mean, who wouldn't want to go for a ride on a big pink tank?

Or wear fruit loop underwear instead of fruit of the looms?

Doesn't the thought of becoming a new instrument - a guitass 6:10 - sound appealing?

Or be a singing and dancing lawyer?

Or better yet, a Pilates instructor?

But all jokes aside, even though I don't like her, she's doing something big for Barbados. Huge.

(All photos from her Loud Concert in Barbados August 5th, 2011. I didn't take them, so I can't take credit.)

Rihanna at Kadooment Pics

2011-08-01T22:11:00.001-04:00

I'm no big Rihanna fan. I like her music, but don't really care for her as an artiste (I also don't care for people like Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber - studio created packages with no real talent).

But today at Kadooment I got to see Rihanna live and in colour. She was in the same band I jumped in (Baje International). She's here at home in Barbados for her Loud Tour concert on Friday which is the biggest thing since sliced bread to go down here. There's no Canadian equivalent to compare it to the hype and talk that surrounds it. Not even Canada winning hockey gold at the Olympics compares.

I've seen Rihanna in Barbados a few years ago at a party, but this was before Ri-Ri was sleeping in the last king bed in California as the only girl in the world and Chris Brown was still Christopher getting beat by his mother.

Enjoy the pics.

Don't even think that what she was wearing or doing was scandalous. I saw plenty of babies being conceived on the streets of Barbados today.

Kadooment

2011-08-01T20:56:00.001-04:00

Pics from Kadooment (like the Caribana parade, but bigger and 100 times better for those that don't know). The photos and video speak for themselves. If you ever have the opportunity to go to Barbados for Crop Over, you'll have an experience of a lifetime.

Starting the day with all my costume pieces.

Sky setting up for the rain that did come.

Baje International (the band I was in) getting ready to hit the road.

On the road.

Sky turned black and opened up, but it only added to the fun and cooled everyone off.

If you're afraid of crowds, this ain't the place for you.

Only the shorts left from my costume.

The end of the parade route.

Great time at Kadooment and in Barbados. Work hard, play harder.

10 to 10

2011-07-31T12:42:00.000-04:00

Pics from 10 to 10 (a party - concert - that runs from 10pm to 10am, we got there at 3am.) and a post-party swim workout at the sea.

Alison Hinds (for those that don't know, she's the first big Barbadian female artiste to come out of Barbados before Rihanna. She sang "Roll It".)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNsU1X1_ges

Some people like to go to God's House (Church) on Sunday mornings, I like to go to his backyard.