What I find amazing about this time of the year is how we get caught up in the commercialization of the holiday season. During these hard times I began to realize how this is the best time to get back to the basics of what this season really is about. Instead of buying gifts why don't you just bake something like cookies or cakes and pies. If you are not a baker you can do something nice like cut the grass or just spend the day with a relative especially someone who is older and can't get around as much. This year even though things may look bad doesn't mean it has to be bad. Count your blessings that you are with people who love and care about you. I have had quite the adventure these past few weeks with the economy so bad here in Asia I have lost thousands of dollars but I realized that even though I might have lost a lot of money, I have gained so much more... like a friend or two. In Korea (where I am at) today is my birthday and a friend called and wish me a happy birthday. He went on to explain to me that he didn't know how to celebrate a birthday because he never had one of his own. I explained to him that the fact that he has chosen to spend the day with me was the best gift in the world. I have learned a lot from being on the other side of the world but the most important thing that I have learned is that the best gift anyone could ever give me is the gift of time. This holiday season take some time and look outside yourself and do something special for someone else. Have a Happy, Safe and Blessed Holiday Season

This is from holytaco.com


The 7 Most Annoying People At Thanksgiving Dinner
November 24th, 2008 | 12:42

* annoying
* family members
* Lists
* relatives
* thanksgiving dinner



Thanksgiving is one of our greatest holidays. We eat until we feel like we're going to die and then we lay around and watch football. But you're also forced to see family members that can turn all the gluttony into a big downer. Here are the seven worst.

7. THE RELIGIOUS RELATIVE

­­­It's fine if you love Jesus. No one is saying you can't. But you have to understand that for the rest of us, Thanksgiving is the only Holiday we get where we don't have to hear about the man upstairs. Therefore, I don't give a shit that the shape of my mashed potatoes reminded you of a passage from Corinthians, I just want you to pass the salt. I may not know Jesus as well as you do, but if he's as cool as you say he is, then if he was invited over to somebody's house for dinner, he probably wouldn't spend the entire meal talking about how awesome he is. That sounds to me like an asshole.

Typical Conversation:
You: You know, I think if the Colts could get healthy, they could make a run this year.

Religious Relative: And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. James 5:15
You: Right. I'm pretty sure the Lord wasn't referring to someone having "turf toe."


6. THE PERSON WITH THE SECRET EVERYONE ALREADY KNOWS
You'll know this person is coming to your thanksgiving about three and a half minutes before they get there, because you're mother will pull you aside and say, "Ben is coming. Now, he's gay, but he hasn't come out to the family yet, so don't say anything about gay things. Everyone, did you hear that? Ben is coming and he's gay, but he hasn't come out yet!" Now, all anyone can think of when they look at Ben is "gay, gay, gay,gay" and because you don't want to bring any attention to the fact that he's got this secret, you end up bringing even more attention to it by striking up a conversation that is the direct opposite of it, which ends up awkwardly becoming about said secret.

Typical Conversation:

You: So, Ben, how about that new James Bond Movie. He's a good James Bond right? I mean, just the way he acts, not like how he looks or anything. Not that he acts a certain way or that you can tell something from how somebody acts, but just like- wow, that's a lot of gravy on your plate. I mean, I like gravy-


5. THE FANTASY FOOTBALL GUY
Football on Thanksgiving is a tradition, but your fantasy team is not. So when the entire room wants to change the channel because the Lions are losing by 42 points with six minutes left, it's super annoying when you respond with, "Wait, wait, I just have to see if Calvin Johnson gets fourteen more receiving yards." To make matters worse, this person insists on telling you the score to their fantasy game, and the picks they made early in the season that have or have not panned out, like they were in a Nazi prison camp and a guard made them choose which one of their children lived.

Typical Conversation:
Fantasy Guy: YES!

You: Is it a close game?

FG: No, it's 46-20. Kevin Smith lost two yards. I need him to not gain more than ten yards the rest of the game, the guy I'm playing has him. I took Matt Forte instead of him, I was thinking of taking smith, but at the last second, I had Forte in my draft que and I just pushed "draft."

You: Great. Um, you think we can change the channel? There's three minutes left and we were hoping to watch anything but this.

FG: Yeah yeah of course, there's just three minutes left though. I just gotta make sure I win this week. Sorry.
4. THE NEW BOYFRIEND/GIRLFRIEND THAT WON'T LAST
This person brought their boyfriend that they met three weeks ago when they were shit-faced drunk and letting people take body shots off their titties. Now everyone has to pretend like she and he are in a serious relationship, even though when he tells someone he's originally from Tuscon his "girlfriend" responds with "really, I thought you were from Fresno...Huh." And since now there's someone at the table that no one knows, everybody has to pretend like they have manners are care about what's going on in other people's lives. This leads to everyone at the table focusing on the fact that this dude they've never met before, and will never see again, is "in ad sales right now, but looking to maybe starting a club promotion business or something like that."

Typical Conversation:
You: I was thinking of buying a new Honda.

Cousin: Brian used to fix Hondas, right Brian?

Cousin's Boyfriend: Um, no. I know a guy who did, though.

Cousin: Really, I thought you did?

Cousin's Boyfriend: Nope.

(awkward silence)

Your Mom: Well, being a mechanic is a good job.

(more awkward silence)



3. THE OVERLY POLITICAL RELATIVE
You haven’t read the latest book by Ron Paul, and you have no idea what the trade deficit is, but that’s not going to stop the political freak from constantly quoting Ron Paul’s latest book about the trade deficit whenever there’s a two-second lull in the conversation. It doesn’t matter that your eyes glaze over like a ham when he starts spouting endless facts about civic policy and the economies of risk-management, he will not stop trying to get you to agree to a political stance that you have never heard of or couldn’t possibly care less about.

Typical Conversation:

You: Man, I can’t believe the holidays are already here.

Political Relative: You know what I can’t believe? I can’t believe that the S&P needs to increase by 33% just to get back to even over the next 12 months. And you know what else I can’t believe? The fact that Bernanke and Paulson have destroyed America as you and I know it. They’re the “experts”? Really? If they were so smart, then why didn’t they see this coming? Now we’re supposed to feel comfortable with these crooks in charge? Yes sir, you can kiss your nation goodbye forever.

You: Yeah, uhhh, time sure does fly.

Political Relative: And you know what won’t fly anymore pretty soon? Our bankrupt airlines. If you think Uncle Sam is going to keep bailing those mismanaged disasters forever you can think again.

You: I just want to eat some turkey.


2. THE SUPER OLD GRANDPARENT
We should all have some respect for our elders, but trying to have a conversation with your 96-year-old great grandmother is like talking to a junkie who just shot up. There’s a lot of mumbling and nodding off and when there is some conversation, it’s mostly just a series of repetitive stories from your childhood.

Typical Conversation:

You: Hey Grandma. Can I get you some stuffing? Are you thirsty?

Great Grandma: …zzzz…who? You remember when you used to come and visit us and you had such a good time? I remember that.

You: Yeah, that was fun.

Great Grandma: Remember when you used to come and…visit us in the summers? We had so much fun during those summers…zzzzz….hi! What grade are you in now?

You: I’m 33 and divorced, Grandma. I’m not in school anymore.

Great Grandma: Such a big boy! Look at you! I bet you study hard and get good marks. Are you going to come visit us this summer…

1. THE RECOVERING ALCOHOLIC

We get it. You don’t drink anymore. But we don’t need updates every five minutes that you “haven’t touched the stuff in six years, 48 days and 15 hours.” And you know what? I’m not an alcoholic. Just because one sip of booze would turn you into a raging alcohol monster who would drain the liquor cabinet and then start chugging Aqua Velva doesn’t mean the rest of the world can’t have a glass of wine. But the worst part about this guy is that he has absolutely nothing else to talk about.

Typical Conversation:
You: This turkey is delicious!

Recovering Alcoholic: Back when I was drinking, the only turkey I would have during the holidays was a bottle of Wild Turkey. And I would drink the whole thing by myself. I was so bad, back then. So bad.

You: Well, it’s great that you stopped.

Recovering Alcoholic: Whiskey, vodka, beer, sake, wine, rum, grain alcohol, bourbon, gin, you name it, I’ve drank it. But it’s been six years since a drop has passed these lips. Six loooooong years. It’s been great, but a day doesn’t go by when I’m not thinking about booze. It’s the first thing I think about when I wake up and it’s the last thing I think about before I go to sleep. I love booze. That’s why I had to give it up.

You: Well…good for you. So, how are your kids doing?

Recovering Alcoholic: It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I used to drink so much. Then I hit rock bottom and gave it up all together. I knew if I didn’t I wouldn’t be here today. But I used to love drinking. It was my life. You should probably quit drinking, too. I used to be like you, a glass of wine here and there and then all of a sudden I was stealing from my daughter's piggy bank just to go get a bottle of rot gut. That’s how it always happens.

I am not going to sit around and talk about how long it's been since my previous blog because basically the reason why I haven't done it is because I just didn't feel like it. So that is basically it no excuses just didn't have nothing really to talk about.
I will discuss the McCain-Obama debate which I personally saw as a draw between both candidates. McCain basically tried to make Obama out to be inexperienced while Obama was making McCain look like he was making bad decisions. I am personally tired of these candidates trying to make each other look bad but they never really talk about solutions. I am tired of hearing about Change, Reform, Maverick and Sarah Palin. The later I will discuss in depth in a moment. I personally can't wait for election day for this to finally be over. Our campaign season is ran by the media and the people spout off recycled comments made by so-called political pundits who don't really know no more than the next guy but because they have a show on FOX News then what they are saying must be the truth. Governor Palin is yet a real distraction in this election and Hillary Clinton this woman is not. She is nothing but a Hillary wannabe, who apparently has a hard time controlling her own house. The woman has a underage pregnant teen daughter at home and what I loved about the hypocrisy of the Right is they say it is none of our business because the State will not support her child, so this makes it a family matter but when this same group of people found out the Britney Spears's younger sister was pregnant the political pundits on FOX News was all over this information and even saying that Lynn Spears (Britney's mother) was a bad mother. What I don't understand is that how come Sarah Palin is not held to the same standard and ridicule? Britney Spears and her family aren't depending on the state to support her little sister's baby. The Right needs to get it right and not be so quick to judge. Maybe if Sarah Palin was teaching about birth control and safe sex to her teenage daughter the girl would not be in the mess she is in today. I just keep thinking to myself if this happened to and Obama girl the media would have been all over this and Michelle Obama would probably slapped the black off of one of those girls.

Well it has been a while and so much has happened in the past couple of months since my last blog. I think I got bored with the whole process of blogging, then out of the blue I was just typing in some information into the Yahoo! search engine and low and behold my blog pops up. So I figured I can do this at least a couple of times a month but anytime you do something and you it becomes a constant the you begin to feel like it is work. I don't want blogging to become a job for me.



Not to long ago I was teaching in class when one of my students named Sammy decided that he wanted to dance to the English lesson CD. Most of the time I will try to control Sammy but this time I decided to let him do his thing and boy did he ever. I will apologize in advance for the filming but this was impromptu and I could not pass this up with sharing it with the rest of the world. Normally I don't discuss my job or my experience to much because I feel like working in a different culture will be experienced differently by people and I don't want to give some one the wrong impression of what I go through here in Korea. I will say this that I believe that most people's experience has to do with their outlook on the situation. If you are looking for a bad time and you are thinking negatively then guess what? You will have a horrible time. If you think positively then your experience will be great or at least laughable.

Well anyway I hope you enjoy or if you have already watched enjoyed the video!

I was talking to a friend the other day and we got on the subject of love and how it is hard to say I love you because of past pain and hurt. During the conversation I realized that people who have a hard time expressing love also have a hard time with issues of trust. A lot of times we continue to look to the past to control our present and to dictate our future. When we do that I believe that we don't realize how we have given control of our being to some one or something else. My friend went on to tell me the story of their childhood and how their father and even people that portrayed themselves to be a friend had belittled and used this person for their own gain. What I discovered with this individual is that they are never happy with the things in their life because they are not happy with themselves. I came to the conclusion that I was and in some respects I have those tendencies. Being here in Korea and in this city I realized that I had to be taken out of my fast pace L A life and come to some place a little slower. I have this friend Jung Hyun and he always tells me to take things slow and appreciate the moment. I will be honest at first I thought this boy was a fool but, one day he took me into the downtown of the city that I am staying in and he just had me sit there on a bench in the town square for a good hour. What I discovered in that time was that the people were noisy but it was a different kind of noise... it was peaceful, something that I had never experienced before. But back to the my blog and the topic at hand. I was talking to this individual and they are always looking at what they don't have and not appreciating what they do. I went on to ask this individual the thing you don't have put it to the side and tell me five things you do have? The person named a couple a inanimate objects but then they went on to talk about their mother and a couple of friends. I then asked that person would they trade any of those people for that one thing they thought would make them happy.The individual said no! What I was trying to get across was that we must find contentment with what we have and not always focused on the next best thing because the at some point the next best thing will be the out dated thing and then we will be focused on the new next best thing. We tend to look at life like as a fairy tale... almost like a movie where everything is perfect but what we need to remember is that movies are made up... Life is full of bad times but there are a lot of good times as well and like I was trying to get across to the person that I was discussing these issues with, we must not let our past dictate our future. We learn from it so we don't make the same mistakes but we can never go back and change anything. The only thing we can do is try to make tomorrow better and the first step is through unconditional love. The love that does not judge and does not use but the love that is always there with a shoulder or a hand to help without expecting anything in return.

In the forty years since the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I spent my April 4Th (which for me was really April 5Th because I am in Korea) in solitude. I spent my time alone reflecting on the life and legacy of a man who dedicated his life to the meliorate of society. Dr. King struggle on the surface would look like a struggle for the equal rights of the Black American but if one would look deeper the civil rights struggle was a struggle for all Americans and I would argue that it was a struggle for all humans. Dr. King was not the first to believe in the principles of equality, fairness and justice. Mahatma Gandhi was before Dr. King (one to whom Dr. King drew his nonviolent beliefs from) but before Gandhi there was the story of a man who preached equality and justice. This man story is taught everyday and he was just a carpenters son. We have people today who believe in the principles of nonviolence and equality. Aung San Suu Kyi of Burma, Nelson Mandela of South Africa are just two who come to mind.

Most Americans like to think that Dr. King's Dream was about Black Americans being treated fairly. That is true but The Dream does not stop there, Dr. King's Dream was all inclusive... It was about the Native American who was displaced and sent to live on a reservation that has no running water in 2008. The Dream was about the Asian that came here with nothing and was sent to work on the rail system for almost nothing. The Dream was about the Hispanic who can only find a job picking fruit on the side of the freeway for only pennies a day. The Dream was about the woman being able to get the same pay for the same job as her male counterpart. The Dream just did not stop on shores of the Atlantic or the Pacific or the shores of Hawaii but that Dream was about the haves and the have nots. The Dream was a dream about true equality economically, educationally and socially for all people.

A friend of mine here in Korea told me a story about how his mother has just an elementary school education because she had to go to work. His father has a high school education. I told him that he was a success story because he was able to go to college and get an education. That was The Dream that Dr. King talked about, the betterment of a society and a people and the responsibility of those in the position to make a difference. We can sit around and be self indulgent or we can sit around a make a difference in our community. The definition of community according to Merriam-Webster: a group of people with a common characteristic or interest living together within a larger society. Dr. King knew this and he paid with his life. The Dream must stay alive and for that to happen we must do our part.

I recently saw the ignominious sermon of Reverend (Rev.) Jeremiah Wright. Living in South Korea I am pretty much out of the loop as to what is going on with our political process in America. I do find this both beneficial and detrimental; It is beneficial because I feel like I am not being brain washed by the media but it is also a detriment because I have to go dissect what is fact and what is fiction.

As far as Rev. Wright's sermon is concern and the delirium that came with it has truly amazed me. Why you ask? Well let me tell you why, Patrick Buchanan just days later penned his own missive in response to Senator (Sen.) Obama's reaction to Rev. Wright's Sermon. I will take this time to cut and pasted Mr. Buchanan's correspondence to Rev. Wright, Sen. Obama and Black America as a whole.

From Buchanan's March 21 column:

Barack says we need to have a conversation about race in America.

Fair enough. But this time, it has to be a two-way conversation. White America needs to be heard from, not just lectured to.

Now if you would look at every channel on television, listen to the radio or read a news paper, I think White America is heard loud and clear every day of our lives.

First, America has been the best country on earth for black folks. It was here that 600,000 black people, brought from Africa in slave ships, grew into a community of 40 million, were introduced to Christian salvation, and reached the greatest levels of freedom and prosperity blacks have ever known.

Wright ought to go down on his knees and thank God he is an American.

The effrontery of Mr Buchanan to say that we should be thankful and on our knees for two hundred years of slavery and one hundred years of Jim Crow Laws (segregationist laws.) I know that Mr. Buchanan is not alone in this thought process, which in my opinion is very disheartening. The next time I am in America I will be sure to thank Mr. Buchanan and those who think like for what they have done for me and people. The perturbing reality is Black Americans have reach the greatest levels of freedom and prosperity, but we still are not on the same plateau as our White counter parts.

Second, no people anywhere has done more to lift up blacks than white Americans. Untold trillions have been spent since the '60s on welfare, food stamps, rent supplements, Section 8 housing, Pell grants, student loans, legal services, Medicaid, Earned Income Tax Credits and poverty programs designed to bring the African-American community into the mainstream.

What Mr. Buchanan fails to realize is that the people who have benefited the most have been those who look like him. I am not saying that Black people have not benefited from these social programs but let us not forget even when we were treated as second class citizens we paid taxes and fought in wars defending this country and spreading it's brand democracy around the world. All of that to a country that treated us as if we were sub-human.

Governments, businesses and colleges have engaged in discrimination against white folks - with affirmative action, contract set-asides and quotas -- to advance black applicants over white applicants.

I love when individuals like Mr Buchanan will use Affirmative Action programs to make a point when in reality the people that benefited the most was his equally annoying sister Bay Buchanan, his daughters and all those White women who where treated just a little bit better than the Black people. The idea of Affirmative Action Programs was to give minority groups an equally footing in admissions to colleges and universities., it was also to help get these same minorities into the Government buildings as well as into the private sector that at one point would not allow us in the building other than to clean it!

What got me with his missive was that the mainstream media did not report this story and demonize Mr. Buchanan who at one time or another has run for the Republican Party's nomination for President of the United States. What this has shown me was the double standard that we live with in this country. I don't know if this is the main streams way of deflecting from the sins of the past by saying that Black people are racist also, but what we must remember for Black people to be racist it has to flow from the top down; That means racism is institutionalized.

The problem I think that has America up in arms is that Rev. Wright stood up and spoke the truth and America does not want to hear the truth. America lives in a black and white, good versus evil world and America is always good. What Rev. Wright preached about is no different than what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. preached about some forty years ago when he spoke against the Vietnam war. Dr. King is given a holiday and is constantly quoted by all sections of American society. America is to quick to attack those Americans who question our motives and will call us out on our errors in judgment. Abolitionist Fredrick Douglass once said, "A true patriot is a lover of his country. Rebukes and does not excuse it's sins." What we need to ask ourself and Mr. Buchanan needs to ask himself, are we and is he a true patriot?

I was reading some blog a while ago and the individual who will remain nameless was discussing how they are tired of being hurt by individuals. This person went on to say that they would not trust another person again because of this hurt and betrayal. I started thinking to myself how many times I felt the same way this individual felt when people are constantly hurting me or you or whomever. Then I realized the operative word is people, that's what they are and because of that neither they or I am perfect. People will let us down and we will let them down but at the end of the day we have see people for who they are and respect and forgive them. I am a firm believer that most people don't go out and hurt you intentionally. I was on a train with another person just yesterday as I took a tour of Korea and the person who was on the train with me started talking about how people that she has met in the last six months here have let her down. As I was sitting there listening to her I realized that what do expect for others to be what we want them to be and to act the way we would like for them to act. We must realized that in life situations are not going to go the way we would want but that does not mean that the situation did not go the way it should have gone. Both of these individuals made comments to the point that they were tired of people and that they wanted to be left alone. I have had many of days like that and at one point in my life that was my golden rule because all people where going to do was hurt you and some times they might but not taking a chance to get to know people and yes get to love people not for what you want them to be but for who they are... I am constantly telling my friends here in Korea that everything is a mind frame... so if you say that your life sucks well guess what it will... not trusting and not giving people a chance to hurt you can be a lonely place to be and I know that might sound strange but think about it... if you cut yourself off from people what happens then when you miss that one person who was meant to be there in your life. I commented on the former person that I discussed in this piece blog and I told them that I felt it was worth getting hurt a 100 times if I met that one person who was a true friend on that 101st time then all the other times hurt and pain would have been worth that one time of great joy. The only way in life to fail is not to try....

As I watch the election from the other side of the world, I personally cannot believe how so many people have begun to take this so personally. I have watched the media play favorites and the people follow like mindless sheep. What happened to the audacity of thinking for yourself and doing your own research of the candidates and what they stand for... Now to be honest with you Obama and Clinton are politicians and when this is all said and done they are going to be alright and will be friends. I find it funny how all of the political pundits where all saying that Clinton was going to have to drop out after she lost both Texas and Ohio. Once again she proved them all wrong, not only did she win Texas and Ohio but she took Rhode Island too. I am glad that this election has taken all of the twist and turns that it has taken. I believe it is good for our democracy that this election has gone on as long as it has... This is making both Clinton and Obama appreciate the American electoral process all that much more and also people who would normally not be involved in this right that our nation provides us are now involved. In February which was Black History Month Obama took all the contest and now it is March which is Women's History Month and now Clinton has won. I guess we are just trying to honor these two in their respective months.

As a card carrying Democrat I am just glad to see history being made. I also realize that it is important to make sure that John McCain is defeated in November. We cannot have four more years of Bush policies. They have endangered the safety and the reputation of America. McCain if need be will have us in Iraq for 100 years. This is a dangerous mentality! Oil is costing $104 a barrel while prior to Bush being in office it cost $24 a barrel. So in the span of seven years oil has jumped over 400 percent. This is amazing that Bush's friends in the oil industry have been getting richer and richer (while paying more taxes) and the middle class has shrunk. America is in the mist of a recession and it will only get worse. The best thing for the United States is to elect someone who will change direction of our nation and I personally believe that either Clinton or Obama is that person or they on a joint ticket are those people.

Black History Month

February is the Black History Month in America... Most people wonder why Black History gets the shortest month of the year well after much research I found the answer. Fredrick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln's birthdays are both in the month of February it was a way to honor to great Americans for there serve to the cause of equal right whatever the reason, so that is why we have ths shortest month of the year. I did not realize how important it is to have a month in which we celebrate the achievements of African Americans to society that has pretty much affected the whole world. Some will question why we even have a Black History Month and the answer to that question is that in American public school you don't hear about Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans or Asians and their contributions. The only Blacks you hear about is Martin Luther King Jr and his dream or Rosa Parks refusing to give up her sit and thats maybe two pages in the history books. Being here in Andong, South Korea has really helped me to realize the importance of knowing my history and being very proud of it... Marcus Garvey once said, " A people without the knowledge of their past history, origins and culture is like a tree without roots." The Koreans knowledge of Black people is that we all come from Africa and thus they are better than we are.. but once they find out that I am an American then everything changes, if I am with another foreigner who is from another Western nation who is Caucasian, I will get treated much better than my counterpart just because I am an American. If I say that I am Los Angeles (LA) I will get treated even better. I have a friend Helen (she is Black) who lives in the nearest big city (called Daegu, over 3 million people) we have discussed our experience being different than our Caucasian counter parts. For my part I am looked at differently than the others are here in Andong (most of these folks have never seen a Black person before.) I feel like I am carrying upon my shoulders the burden of the African American race thus I try to conduct myself with in the highest of moral standards ( I said I try I am not perfect.) The Koreans already have their preconceived notions about all Waegooks (foreigners.) I will have to admit most of the Waegooks are playing their roles in the stereotypes. The Koreans opinions of Black people are basically based on ignorance. I've made a couple of Korean friends here and we have been able to discuss these stereotypes and basically they are processed and manufactured from America. Thanks to Barack Obama and his candidacy for President people (this is not an endorsement) around the world are being able to see that we are more than what is exported from our coutry, we are not a one deminsional people who are all out to be sports figures or rap artist... (not to say that there is anything wrong with those professions) but we have other dreams and goals. I believe that one day we will become a nation where we won't be in need of Black History Month's, Hispanic History, Asian American History or Native American History but it will all be American History. The true stories will be told and there will not be groups of people who feel guilty but will hold their heads up high and say that without the bad as well as the good we would not be where we are today if we did not go through what we went through as a nation. If it had not been for the Dr. King's, the Ceaser Chavez's, yes the LBJ's or Susan B. Anthony's of this world and all that they have sacrificed for a better America. Black History Month symbolizes and recognizes those who believed in true heroism and one does not have to be famous or on the world stage, it can be anyone because there is no small roles is heroism and service the one of the greatest American tennis player Arthur Ashe said it best about heroism and service in a quote, "True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever the cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever the cost." I have a of 15 and 16 year olds and I am spending the month of February educated them on famous Black Americans and there contributions. It is important to remember the mistakes of the past so we won't repeat them in the future, but never hold on to the past with anger and unforgiveness because it will destroy your future.

What I learned about Koreans Men...

I normally don't like to use my blog to complain about work or my life here in Andong City. I will say this to those of you who don't like to hear about the discussion of the anatomy then I think you need to stop reading here..... Ok read at your own peril. In recent weeks I have come across some of the locals and they seem to have a fascination with the male penis... particularly those of us from the Western world. On three separate occasions Korean men have decided to tell me about the size of my anatomy and those who are of the same race as I am... They wanted to compare sizes. Now I am not trying to be mean or anything but come on who wants to sit around and discuss the size of ones penis with a virtual stranger. I was assuming that this was just something that they thought all foreigners like to do. One example was a couple of weeks ago this Korean was out with some friends and myself, as we were walking down the street this guy decides to share with my Home boy Danny (who is a White guy from Texas) and I that he knew Danny's penis was big, but he knew mine was enormous according to his knowledge of penis. Then just the other day a student of mine decided to pull down his pants so we (myself and the other four students in the room, two were girls by the way) could check him out. According to the little pervert he was trying to shock me and boy did he because if you saw what I did not see (Yea you read it right) then I guess you would begin to understand why they are so fascinated with the male anatomy of other races. I laugh along with the others in class because if he was trying to brag, boy that was really nothing to write home about. But seriously apparently according to some of the Korean males that I have spoken to porn is very thriving industry in this country and these guys are not ashamed to let you know that they watch it either. I was talking to my roommate about this subject because he has been around for some of these discussions with the locals and I realized this why there is no relationship in alot of this marriages... the addiction to porn has controlled this guys lives, This is to the detriment of the family in this culture. Addiction to porn and alcohol has begun to consume this culture. The men won't touch their wives because they are comparing their real life wives to some porn star whose body is not real due to all of the implants and plastic surgery. These same men while having sex with there wives (if they are having sex) are more than likely thinking about these porn characters... which by the way I will restate are not real. I know some will say why are you posting a blog about this and I will have to say that this is a serious issue and I predict that divorce will climb in this country because the women will get tired and realized that then don't have to settle for less than what they have been getting from the male population here in Korea.

The Legacy of Dr. King

In the almost 40 years since the death of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and on this day in America in which we celebrate the birth of one of the greatest Americans in the history of our nation, I come disheartened and some what disenchanted with the American public. We have seen many great strides in America since the death of Dr. King but reading and listening to the commentaries on the two leading candidates for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. Our nation is facing the most historical election in the history of our young democratic republic. The factions are coming out in full force to drive a wedge between both the Obama campaign and the Clinton campaign. We should be excited that these two individuals are puttting themselves out there and taking the scrutiny of being our next president. I truly believe that Dr. King would be proud that a Brotha and a Women are making history at the same time. I do believe he would be a little disappointed in how we are reacting as a electorate in what could be some wonderful days for the many groups in America who have been historically disenfranchised. African Americans are not the only group that has been persecuted in this nation, the Indians have seen genocide come upon their people and they are still dealing with the reprecussion today, Hispanics are yet another group that has gone through trails and tribulation, while those who are Gay, Lesbian, Transgender and Transexual have to constantly live in fear of having amendments added to our Constitution to exclude them from just having the basic fundemental rights that everyone else enjoys these are just a few and I could go on and on. The people must realize that we cannot buy into the media's version on the who we should support and who we can't. I am a democrat and I am supporting either Obama or Clinton ( because the Clinton's have been very good to the African American community and we must not forget that.) Just because you are supporting one does not mean we should resort to name calling against the other, because at the end of the day they are on the same side of the aisle in the United States Senate. Dr. King would not be pleased that we are spending our time fighting one another when we could be using our time in service for those who are less fortunate than we are (that is the reason why we celebrate the King Holiday)... All of the time that we spending attacking one candidate over another could be used to mentor some one at the Boys and Girls Club of America, or you can go to a local homeless shelter and give of your time or you can always go to the Red Cross and give blood. It is good to see people not being so apathetic about the direction of our nation but to go as low as name calling is a bit juvenile even for a teenager. We must remember that the Dream of Dr. King was for all Americans to respect one another no matter what your differences are... I understand that we might not agree with individuals political view points, religious view points, or even their lifestyles but we must repsect them and the only way that we can respect one another is through love... That was the message of Dr. King... He never focused on what we were, he always focused on what we could become... Because when you focus on what you are you never grow, but when the focus is on what you can be, then that is when you grow. Growth never happens by just saying you are going to do something. Growth happens by showing it in your actions. That is the message of the Dr. King and I think we have come along way but the journey is far from over.

Just because you deny something doesn't mean it doesn't exist...

I am learning many things about the Korean culture that I guess should not shock me. Over this past weekend and friend of mine and I went to a women's shelter in the city of Daegu to donate supplies. Now let me give you a little background on Daegu. Daegu is a city of about 3 million people, it also is the home of three United States military bases, Camp Walker being one of them. One thing that you find in cities this large is homelessness. The people in Korea (I guess I should not generalize), I will say the people of very conservative Andong like (most conservative places) like to think that their city, state, province or country is a utopia. No one is homeless, the divorce rate is minimal or nonexistant, the alcoholism is also at a minimum. The thing is just because you are in denial does not mean that it doesn't exist. The question that I got from a 100% of the Koreans about this shelter was it for foreigners. When I said no it was nothing but Koreans at this place. Every Korean was is shock and awe. These people could not believe that in their country there are homeless people. I thought to myself are these people serious? Are they in ignorant? Are they in denial? Now I don't usually use my blog to vent may anger or disappointment about any group of people. But come on, these people have to be kidding me! At first I attributed it to ignorance, because with at least ignorance people just don't know. Also with ignorance you can learn if you want too. But then I had my epiphany and I realized that these folks cannot attribute this to ignorance but to denial. I realized the people around here have a very codependent relationship to their social mores. They addicts suffering from denial. One of my coworkers told me that there where no gay people in Andong. No I almost peed my pants over that one. Now in this city of 165,000 people, there are no homosexuals? I don't know who these people are trying to fool but come on... They have this mentality of if I deny it maybe it will go away. My grandmother always said just because you say your ain't getting old doesn't mean you are ain't getting old. One thing the Koreans can learn from America is that we have this problem with denial. We said that AIDS and HIV was only a gay problem, we said that drugs was only a inner city problem that only effected the minority populations. But the sad reality of it all was that AIDS and HIV was an American problem because it effect every segment of our population as has the drug issue, because studies found that upwards of 65% of the drug epidemic was coming out of the suburbs which was mostly the populated with those who are more affluent. The reality of it all is that denial is more detrimental to a society than anything... Korea will go the way of most societies where they will be reactive instead of proactive. No matter where you live if anyone is in need we must do what we can to help and to imply that your society does not suffer from the ills of life is not ignorance but just down right stupidity!

And we wonder why America is lagging!

Okay I will admit that I was on the www.tvguide.com site and I saw their story on Britney Spears being in the mental ward. What really disturbs me is the comment section where all the people give their opinions. Most of these opinions are expressions of joy and glee at this 27 year old's misfortunes. What is wrong when we are happy because some one has had there children taken away. There is nothing joyous or fortunate when a child is taken from his or her mother and the audacity of some to think it is for the best these children are not being mistreated physically, emotionally or mentally. Believe me it is never for the best and the only people that get hurt are the children. We live in a society that thrives on the misfortunes of others. The sad thing is we always try to find some justification for our unwarranted joy that this sad situation might bring us. You know it is a sad state of affairs when we will waste precious moments on such a unfortunate situation. I commented to the few who had given their opinions about how disturbing that is on their part... some one else commented that Britney Spears brings all this on herself by doing buffoonish behavior in public... So my response is and was to that, is just because some one does ridiculous things does not mean we must be nimrods and follow right behind and egg them on. As I sit here in Asia and I see the news about how the U.S. dollar is weak and Asia is turning into a economic powerhouse... well if you want to know why... these people believe in educating themselves and their children why we are distracted by the Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan's, Paris Hilton's and Nicole Richie's of this world. When are we going to wake up?

Now on to other news. I am really happy that Barack Obama has won the Iowa caucus. I am supporting either him or Hillary, doesn't matter to me. The only problem that I have is the reasons why people in Iowa voted for Obama.

1. Change Because people are tired of the business as usual. Okay wake up Iowa nothing is going to really change. The United States office of the President is bigger than any one man... Plus the only way that one can have effective change is at the grass roots level (i.e. Civil Rights Movement, Women's Liberation Movement.) These where not government sanctioned movements.

2. They want an outsider... (He is a United States Senator, He is no outsider.)

3. Because Oprah supports him. Now if people vote for some one because of Oprah. I am through. Its one thing to buy a book but to vote because she says so is entirely different.

4. Because I don't like Hillary and the Clinton Dynasty... Hello Bill Clinton was from the lower class of Hope, Arkansas and She is from a middle class family from Chicago. A Dynasty is the Kennedy's or the Bush's. The Clinton's are no Dynasty and to lump them in with the Bush family is a total fallacy.

My thing is people need to think for themselves because seven years ago people didn't and again they made the same mistake again three years ago. So when we use the term like change, we use it too loosely. The Clinton's and Obama's come from the same cloth... They are new money and honestly there really is not much difference.