Give Thanks to the Haters

Give thanks to the Haters
Virtues: respect, doubt, confidence, self-inflicting

Christmas is that time of the year to give thanks, spend time with your loved ones, and to reflect on the past and the future. We give thanks to faith, family, and friends that help us map our course through life. But I want to give thanks to a class of people that serves a useful purpose for society - the haters. I was trying to find a definition of the word 'hater' at urbandictonary.com, but some of the entries were a bit out there, so I will not define it in a statement, but in the following dialogue:

Give thanks to haters for ...
- without them, we wouldn't second-guess ourselves and question our judgment
- for doubting our abilities and reducing our confidence in ourselves
- for distracting us from the 'eye on the prize' with their 'hataration'
- making fun of Britney (though may be warranted), but for also trivializing public breakdowns such as the fate of Amy Winehouse
- for taking hip-hop culture to another level as deliberate acts of a 'beatdown' of a rap artist was put on YouTube
- above all, wasting our time procrastinating, thinking; helping us to avoid our fears, goals, and challenges because of the 'seed' that you have put in our mind - the seed of doubt, that grows with each passing of a thought such as 'maybe I can't do it', or 'maybe I shouldn't, because'.

Haters don't do much damage as we do to ourselves, but let's give thanks to them because without them, we wouldn't realize that our full potential is greater than what they could ever imagine and/or hate on.

See you in '08 Haters!

.:: d.b
http://desieb.blogspot.com

Utmost Positive Regard

Utmost Positive Regard
Virtues: Business, Lenders, Strategy, Knowledge

Power must be the most coveted attribute in this universe; people crave for it & will do just about anything to achieve it - lie, cheat, steal, manipulate, extort ... kill. In the world of business, power must mean a measure of influence - basically stating that the more influential that one is, the more power they have.

What is concerning to me is when people give TOO much power to those in high positions; catapulting such people to a level where almost anything they say is golden & coveted. Before, you point out the obvious, yes, I concur that in business, 'powerful' people are a valuable resource for intelligence as they can provide insight, scope, and perspective. However, powerful people should not be an irreverent source for validity - because at the end of the day a consultant, entrepreneur, investor, or producer only provides an opinion based on the information presented & their knowledge/experience.

They can not ensure success &/or failure (even though many try), they can only provide probability.

And any advice should be taken as such, and should NOT be taken as an affirmation. This is for the small percentage of the population that embodies the entrepreneurial spirit, whom are at the mercies of 'powerful' individuals because they have money & influence. I am in such a category as my squad has innovative ideas and concepts for the betterment of society, but we unfortunately have no capital.

You, the budding entrepreneur, should have done your research & homework to know that your idea is hot; to know that your idea is feasible, and to know that there is a market out there for your endeavor.

You don't need 'Evan McMoney Bags' to validate what you already know.

Ya digg?

.::
Peace,
d.b > www.vacantlot.org
::.

Venus and its attempt to engulf Mars

Stop saying 'mines' and start saying 'ours'
Virtues: Venus vs. Mars, relationships, comprimise

This is actually a line from a Lil' Kim song back in the day. The line surfaced in my head after a discussion with my girlfriend when she said, you need to stop thinking "I", and start thinking "WE". I had to stop & think about this for a sec as maybe she was inferencing that I am selfish, self-centered, and other 'self' absorbed attributes (of course she is wrong about that).
But on a larger scale, I think that when women say such things like 'think WE' it is more so a code for 'think like me', assimilate to my ideology.

Mars & Venus
It is true that men are from Mars & women are from Venus, and when the two planets meet, the goal of Venus is to engulf Mars, change its gravitational force, modify its outer appearance, and change its atmospheric behavior. More times than not, Mars is content with Venus & all of her many flaws, but Mars rarely tries to change them to assimilate to Mars' world; Mars has a better ability to understand that our differences make us unique & tolerance is easier than cohesion.
But enough of inter-planetary dynamics, women are very meticulous & calculated creatures. 'We' & 'ours' is the logical progression for any relationship as feelings of love & affection grows, BUT be cautious just as an amber light. Because 'WE' should not have to mean the end of YOU, and your mind, body, & soul.

Be careful of those bodysnatchers ...

-- d.b
http://www.vacantlot.org/

V~ick~ed

V~ick~ed
Virtues: Responsibility, control, logic

Its sort of wicked what happened to Michal Vick, but he is a victim of his own ignorance.

Michael Vick was on top of the world, he was an all-star Quarterback with the NFL's Atlanta Falcons, with the right team chemistry, Vick could have gone on to win several NFL championships as he is a unique quarterback that can throw, run, and get out of the 'pocket' (football term).

However, it is unfortunate that Vick felt the need to engage in Dog fights which resulted in a 23-month jail sentence conviction. As details emerged about Vick's dog fighting events that happened in his estate, it became apparent that Vick would do some jail time for his crimes, but I never thought he would have gotten so much time - 2 years is a lot for dog fighting. Dog fighting is inhumane, violent, and barbaric - I get that, but in the case of Michael Vick, does the 'punishment fit the crime'? Would someone without his status receive the same sentence? Probably not, and what is even more disturbing is that there have been sport celebrities that have committed more violent crimes against humanity that have received lesser & lenient sentences. For example, NHL hockey player Dany Heatley received 3 years probation for vehicular homicide after a drunk driving incident. In comparison, a drunk driving incident that results in death deserves 3 years probation (no jail time), but a victimless human crime results in 2 years in solitary confinement? Something doesn't seem right about that.

Now, I'm not excusing Vick's behavior because dog fighting is against the law, and he should be punished for his actions, but what is probably the most disturbing aspect of this story that is not receiving any light, is the fact that many sport athletes and celebrities foolishly spend their money and engage in activities that are problematic. I guess its the fact that many of these athlete's come from marginalized backgrounds, and when they are doused with a whole bunch of money; they simply act-out irresponsibly. It happened to Mike Tyson, which is really sad, because he had millions of dollars, but spent his money on foolish items and lavish luxuries; with no regard for 'saving for a rainy day'. And with Vick, he was making millions of dollars a year, and yet he felt the need to earn extra money with dog fighting; which was only pulling in thousands of dollars a year.

Its sad, because Vick had so much potential, but threw it all away because he simply didn't 'grow up'; which is the problem with most celebrities (i.e. Britney, and so on), and know the system is showing him that just as much as they can bring you up, they can bring you down.

Flipping, keeping the balance

image by ddotb.grandejunction.com

Flipping, keep the balance
Virtues: hustle, equilibrium, power, control

Flip - "To sell a product or service at a higher price than what was purchased for - for the purpose of making a profit"

The concept is simple: take something at a marginalized price, mark it up, profit. That is what your neighborhood drug dealer is doing while he pushes that 'weight'. Its what Sean John does when you buy that nice sweater for $80, is made for like under $5, and the country that the sweater is made in flips off the blood, sweat, and tears of their people in the name of globalization. But, the government still flips, they get their money, but unfortunately with each flip, there is one, or one group of people that will always suffer, always get 'flipped under'.

When I hear pleas wrapped in optimism about equality & fairness, I laugh. Because, flipping is all about balance, but more about controlling balance. Economics are structured in a fashion where the rich exploit & profit off of the poor, unfortunate, but fortunate at the same time ... ya digg? Unfortunate for the humane aspect, fortunate for the technological advances that society has made by exploiting cheap labor and parts. Corporations & the government are the big flippers in this world as they have made Africa poor, for the benefit of the West. As with anything almost in this universe is made up of matter, and matter is made up of molecules that constantly try to procure homeostasis: a relatively stable state of equilibrium or a tendency toward such a state between the different but interdependent elements or groups of elements of an organism, population, or group.

And that is what flipping does - it keeps stability, it allows those to stay in power to stay in power, and keep those that are marginalized, marginalized. So what would, uh, disrupt this equilibrium? Well, tell me if you have an answer, because any disruption is surely going to be met with opposition, of course from the flippers. I ask myself, would a disruption actually be a good thing? I mean, can a world exist where economies of scale (world economies) are equal? Can, or will Africa ever be on par with Europe/America?

Share your thoughts, peace.