Tuesday, October 18, 2011

metal monday in the mission...Walken, Witch Mountain, & Premonition 13

so as i sat at work tuesday morning, moderately hungover and wishing for additional cups of coffee, i was still trying to process exactly what to say about monday night's show.  with so much brutal brilliance berating the venue, it's surprising that the elbo room's structural integrity held...but on to the recap...

i sauntered up to the elbo room at about half past 9, feeling accomplished (i washed AND folded a load of laundry...on a weeknight?!?!  hells yeah!) and ready for some beer(s).  i was stoked to be seeing one of my favorite bands (Walken...as if you had to ask) on what would otherwise be a lame ass monday night.  the dude working the door commented on my Walken t shirt on my way in...not really sure if he was talking shit or simply stating the obvious, but either way beer = sandeep's top priority, so what the fuck ever.  with beer in hand i grabbed a quick seat on the periphery and took in the scene.  many of the usual sf metal show regulars were about as members of Hornss, Hazzard's Cure, Black Cobra, and a slew of other local metal greats came together with nerdy fans (ME!!!) and scenesters (cooler, non-socially hopeless, significantly less nerdy metal heads) for the purpose of badass-ness.

considering that i was at a Walken show, i had no doubt that i was going to enjoy myself, but i was particularly curious about Witch Mountain.  i'd missed the band a couple of times in the past, but had heard nothing but badass reviews, so i was pretty stoked.  Premonition 13, being one of Wino Wienrich's bands would undoubtedly be fucking sweet, so all in all, i was revved up for a killer show.
anyone who's ever read insanehinduramblings knows i fucking love Walken.  i can't completely put my finger on what it is, but something about the way they put together their music makes it exactly what i want/need to hear.  their combination of sludgy riffs, mathematical rhythmic accuracy, disturbingly brutal musical talent, and the desire to tear this shit out of every stage they set foot upon ensures that i will avoid missing a Walken show at all costs, while verbally berating folks who can't make it or don't want to come. Walken's set monday night surpassed even my high expectations.  leading off with two newer songs, Walken set the evening's tone with blistering riffs, mournful growls, and the aggressive, meticulously well organized chaos that manifests as Zach Farwell's incredible percussion skills. 

other than the newer unreleased stuff Walken's set highlighted some of the strongest tracks off of their full length from november 2009.  while the set was totally badass, and i'll never get tired of hearing "Thunder Paws" performed live, i couldn't help but wish that the band might consider playing something older...maybe off the silk screened EP...?  (translation: sandeep wants to hear "Bitch Wizard"...cuz it's fucking awesome!!!) in conversation with various members of Walken post set, it sounds like the band will be taking a break from shows in order to get some new songs written.  yes, it will be a total bummer short term wise, but looking long term, that decision will only yield crushingly awesome results.  best wishes for your performance hiatus Walken, we'll be foaming at the mouth for a show when y'all are ready!

Sean, Shane, and Zack in the background...3/4 of the mighty Walken!!!

Shane, Max, and another failed attempt at photographing Zack...Walken!!!  bow down!!!

second to the stage was portland's Witch Mountain.  as a band with a female lead vocalist, it can sometimes be tough for metal audiences to get past that fact.  either we're too testosterone fueled and assume a woman can't thrown down the way a guy could, or we're totally enamored with the fact that it's a woman in a metal band and as a result just spend their set swooning.  Witch Mountain crushed either reaction before they started as lead vocalist Uta Plotkin's sound check caused a hush to fall over the assembled headbangers.  just to let y'all know, i've been having a hard time trying to fully articulate Witch Mountain's sound.  they definitely fall into the epic sludgy doom category (with riffs that reminded me a bit of Brainoil), but those vocals take me in another direction...like say if Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler passed on John Michael "Ozzy" Osborne and instead recruited Ella Fitzgerald to sing for Black Sabbath.  needless to say, i spent most of Witch Mountain's set flitting back and forth between complete awe of what i was experiencing, and rocking the fuck out.  if you ever get the chance to see this band or buy their album, DO IT.

Witch Mountain sound checking and obliterating all other sounds at the elbo room.


Witch Mountain...providing utter destruction in the best possible formats.


closing out the show was Premonition 13, Wino's most recent full band project after his acoustic solo album.  personally, i have a hard time not enjoying  Wino's work.  granted,  drony, sludgy, gravelly voiced, skull crushing awesomeness is kinda my thing, so how could i ever not enjoy a Wino production?  with Premonition 13, Wino definitely summons up that recipe for traditional Wino sauce that we all love, and then kicks it into high gear.  despite the delightfully chorused guitars and tube driven fuzz, Premonition 13's riffs represent a little more Thin Lizzy or Steppenwolf influence to Wino's traditional Sabbath/Pentagram styled sounds.  don't get me wrong, Premonition 13 still screams with those classic doom tones, but they're backed up with a little more attack.  during the set i overheard someone shout "it's never a bad day to see Wino", which is totally true.  despite the fact that monday night had turned to tuesday morning and i knew i'd need to be up in less than five hours for work, fuck it, Wino's on stage.

ah Wino...the definition of badass.


as i began my short trek home, i found myself still reeling from the show...so much gut ripping awesomeness...my brain still rattling between my ears...i should have stopped at three drinks...no more Walken shows for a while, bummer...i wonder if i could do some sort of random stream of consciousness section when i blog about this...somebody's pooping on the sidewalk...keep it gloomy y'all!

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Walken, Aerial Ruin, Saturn's Return - thee parkside

hey guys, feel like a show review?  too bad, that's what you're getting.  i know what you're thinking, "...(sigh)...a review of another Walken show. let me guess, sandeep loved it.  surprise surprise, what an asshole."  well put.  i guess my burden is to make this a scintillating piece of reading then.  'ear me now (that was an ali g impression):



"i love it...this is like,'metal heads get old and mellow out' night at the bar..." i overheard some random chick saying to her dudeman as they were standing by me during Aerial Ruin's set.  she kinda wasn't kidding.  seriously, if you are into metal, live in sf, and have a significant other who's into lighter shit and you were at this show, you probably got laid like crazy saturday night/sunday morning, your patner thankful for some chill, acoustic-y indie-ish rock and you satisfied by some badass metal.  

as i was pulling up and finding a spot to lock up my bike outside thee parkside i heard music already seeping out the doors.  in my experience, Walken has always had badass bands with the on the bill, so i hurried through my lock up and headed in as quickly as i could.  Saturn's Return was up and laying down some mellowed out...indie (hard) rock?  definite essences of metal showed through with sweep picked guitar parts and the occasional double bass, laying down a sound that sound more akin to Built to Spill rocking out with Alice in Chains than annoying dumb homogenous arcade fire style stuff.  all in all, from the three songs i heard, they were pretty badass, but cill...a little perplexing for the first band at a show headlined by my favorite local metal band.


second onstage was Aerial Ruin.  i first heard about this band when i went to see Cuttthroats 9 at el rio a while back.  i was chatting with Will Carroll post show and asked him if there was any possibility of an Old Grandad doing a show.  he replied that a show would probably happen eventually, but at the moment he was busy with many other bands (at the time Death Angel being the most time consuming!!), and fellow Old Grandad member Erik Moggridge had moved to Portland and was touring with a solo acoustic project.  i wish i could say i looked it up the next day, but in all honesty, let's fast forward to a couple of weeks ago when i google the acts opening for Walken.  when i looked into Aerial Ruin, i found what looked like a rather stereotypical long haired, battle vest wearing, bearded, sludge and/or death and/or thrash and/or power metal looking dude sitting behind an acoustic guitar playing some pretty haunting technical riffs alongside almost folksy vocals.  needless to say, i was curious about what it would be like live...

Erik Moggdrige...aka Aerial Ruin

...and live, it was pretty badass...seriously.  it was an interesting juxtaposition, a dude wearing a Lesbian t shirt (the same Lesbian t shirt i have!!!) growling out song titles only to cut into riffs and vocals reminiscent of At the Gates' acoustic work and Neutral Milk Hotel simultaneously.  Aerial Ruin went electric for the last few songs featuring hypnotic guitar doubling between Moggridge and Eric Peterson (of Saturn Returns that night, but also Night After Night and Lost Goat).  All in all, Aerial Ruin's set was fun and despite expecting the usual distorted guitars that usually accompany Walken's opening acts, i really fucking enjoyed Aerial Ruin's show.  the album is well worth picking up, offering an interesting view one metal head's perspective of acoustic rock.  after listening to the album it was easy to see that i probably would have been much more into Aerial Ruin's set were i more in the mood for something a little more laid back...but saturday night i was ready to rock the fuck out to some Walken!

as Walken prepared to start heir set and close out the show, frontman Shane Bergman (also of Hazzard's Cure) joked that the audience could take out their earplugs.  thankfully, i never wear earplugs, and why would i?  put a fucking barrier between myself and the soul crushing awesomeness that is Walken live??!!  fuck no!  if you've ever read a blog post where i've mentioned this band, you know i can't be impartial on this front.  these guys seem to play music that exactly fits my definition of 'kickass tunes'.  now i don't mean to sound totally arrogant, but i like to think i have pretty fucking good taste in music (if i was being honest i'd say i have the best fucking taste in music on the planet, i just haven't discovered all the bands that fit into it yet, but in an attempt to show at least one measly iota of humility, i'll say i have 'pretty fucking good taste' in music), that being the case, it would follow that bands i think are totally fucking amazing are not only extremely talented, but are also folks whom you should think are totally fucking awesome...TOTALLY FUCKING MINDBEDINGLY AWESOME.  i for one, think Walken is one of the most amazing bands i've come across in the last five years, so following the simple syllogism i just set up...well, you get the point, you love Walken too, now read on.

Sean, Shane, Zack (in the back!), and Max..WALKEN!!!  \m/

i've constantly had the pleasure of being able to ask the members of Walken when their next album is coming out. totally awesome for me, though possibly a pain in the ass tot he membership of Walken, but i can't help it.  ever since my first Walken show, i've been hearing songs announced as "new songs" sometimes without lyrics or titles...and they've all absolutely destroyed...just totally fucking DESTROYED!  at first i would constantly come home from shows with 'Thunder Paws' stuck in my head for days, salivating rabidly over the prospect of having a copy (thankfully we got that album back in november of '09!). it's addictive fucking music folks, and staurday's show dished up even more...some new tracks that are starting to feel a little familiar (in the most headbangingly awesome way possible) and others that were brand fucking new.  the new material continues along the path the band has already set, with crunchy, groovy riffs heavily percussive yet melodic bass, gut shattering drums, and unrelenting growled vocals...though many of the new tracks seemed to be instrumentals...maybe lyrics are in the works...?  the new songs are fucking brilliant and show the band reaching new heights in their collective musical growth...but i would kill to hear them play 'Bitch Wizard' live again (it's been a while!)!

Sean, Shane and Zack, killin' it on stage as Walken destroyed...

Zack n' Max, takin' no prisoners with Walken saturday night


members of Walken are of course involved in various other projects, Zack and Max also forming two thirds of Grayceon and Shane joining various other badass local doomsters in Hazzard's Cure, both of which are awesome bands that i look forward to seeing as often as possible, but Walken, Walken inspires something distinct.  badass would be a good word for, but unfortunately badass in now way expresses the immensity of pure fucking awesome that Walken represents.  they're playing again in september if not before, i'll post details as soon as i hear 'em, BE THERE. (i'll twitter at ya' about it...follow me, i'm sandeeppbhuta)

Sean and Shane, shreddin' chords and vocal chords...Walkenroll!

...and Walken delivers one badass encore.



so yeah, an interesting mix this saturday night, in the end, undoubtedly a badass show....phew, and we're done!  perfect timing!  better grab my bike and get on my way to bottom of the hill for the Orange Goblin/Gates of Slumber/ Naam show...keep it gloomy y'all.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

throwback to high school...

what can i say, badass tunage has been a key part of my existence since well before my formative years.  i've been helping a lot of younger folks around me prep for the stress of finals recently,  and in doing so i'm constantly reminded of how much my music helped make all of this waaaaay more bearable when i was a kid.  so, if you're grinding that finals axe and need a playlist of badass study aides, download these tunes, youtube these tunes, do what you gotta do (all selections stem from sandeep's teenage pre-mp3 music collection):


Pantera - By Demons be Driven
Sepultura - Propaganda
Voodoo Glow Skulls - Human Piñata
White Zombie - Thunder Kiss '65
Metallica - Harvester of Sorrow
Slayer -Silent Scream
Megadeth -Symphony of Destruction
KISS - Strutter
The Misfits - Angelfuck
Led Zeppelin - Bring it On Home
Motley Crüe - Shout at the Devil
Black Label Society - 13 Years of Grief
Bobby Pickett and the Crypt Kicker Five - Monster Mash
Van Halen - Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
Slipknot - Purity
Rush - Limelight
Cream - White Room
Jimi Hendrix and the Band of Gypsys - Machine Gun
Black Sabbath - Snowblind

yeah, some of it's metal.  yeah some of it's not.  it all fucking rocks though, so don't bitch.  study hard, bang your fucking heads, and keep it gloomy y'all.

Monday, May 30, 2011

um...hey!

holy shit...it's been a while! i know, i know. you're sitting there, in front of a computer, curing my lazy ass for denying you pertinent information on the music you should be acquiring as you chuck out all that bullshit you thought you liked. sorry, i'm back, so continue destroying all non-metal music, and keep it tuned here...insanehinduramblings is getting re-envisioned.

so the flow of things is gonna change a little. as opposed to simply offering up reviews of badass albums and shows, i'm gonna give y'all some insights through a chronicle of one slightly off kilter eccentric metal head growing up, doing the adult thang and headbanging til i snap my neck doing so. so what does that mean for the blog you ask? basically, you'll get regular musings, show reviews, album reviews, show suggestions (all probably shorter than the reviews posted previously), and insight into the way metal has enriched my life and will yours as well...as soon as you quit being such a pussy. posts will be full of listening recommendations and disparaging comments about most other forms of music and folks who's political ignorance is so great that they require instant death and a Cannibal Corpse style postmortem skull fuck. it'll be awesome and everything you need...aside from the many badass downloads available at Illogical Contraption (...wait, you don't read Illogical Contraption?! why the fuck are you wasting your time on this pitiful joke of a blog?! do not pass go, just head over to Illogical Contraption and forfeit your life).

alright, well let's start my blog's zombified return to unlife with a quick recap of 2011. 2011 has been pretty shit kickingly awesome...nuff said. they year began with a new years party at guerrero gallery where some douchy whiny hipster band got totally blown away and musically mauled by Grayceon who brought some real talent to the party. since then, waves of awesome musical brutality have been ebbing and flowing like no other. Red Fang has shattered skulls with two SF appearances in less than a month, Walken has resumed regular (almost monthly!!) black masses (aka shows) in SF, Lesbian came through on tour to brutalize us with tunes from a new album, YOB decimated locals at the great american music hall in support of Neurosis, Unsane has laid waste to both thee parkside and el rio, Hightower pressed 'Tower to the People' on vinyl, germany's Nocturnal raised Satan in the united states for the first time ever at submission art gallery in the mission, Black Cobra (featured in shitty cell phone pictures below) continues to kick the shit outta every local audience they play for, and the 45 minute set of all new material Saviours played on their sf stop of the 'Eternally High' tour showed the band reaching soul shreddingly awesome new musical heights.

Jason of Black Cobra

Rafael of Black Cobra


a couple of new promoters of darkness to keep an ear out for would be the bone marrow guzzling brilliance of Hazzard's Cure (featuring Shane from Walken, Chris from Floating Goat, and a couple other folks that i'm pretty sure used to play for Orb of Confusion [who fucking owned] before they broke up), Pins of Light (featuring Jake from Hightower), Serpent Crown (female fronted awesomeness with Will Carrol [of a buzillion bay area metal bands, but most prominently Death Angel] pounding beats on his signature 'Hail Satan' drum kit), Pegataur (another loud ass, gut ripping bay area heavy metal two piece), Huntress (a collection of california badasses who's unrelenting, thrashy, sexy female fronted power metal stylings leave one seething for more), Hot Fog (who's tasty NWOBHM style goodness helps keep smiles on metalhead's faces), and Night After Night (i'm pretty sure they have the same drummer as Hot Fog, but they rarely play shows and are struggling to get an album recorded and released, so all i know of them is from rumors at shows, blog chatter, and random downloads from Illogical Contraption...but seriously, download this fucking Night After Night album...it owns!!).

wonderin' where to find me rockin' out  next?  shit, after reading this post i would be too.  well you're super fucking lucky, 'cuz next up for sandeep is Walken (dude, these guys are the shit...see previous posts if you have questions) next saturday the 4th at thee parkside.  come check out some awesome local shred slayed by some brutally talented folks      

so there you have it folks. insanehinduramblings is back with plans to be bloodier than ever. keep it gloomy y'all.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

non-metal...

preface: what's up metal freaks? sorry, this is totally not what you're looking for, but this IS a long ass super political rant from yours truly as i've pondered race this Martin Luther King Day. read it if you feel like it, it's more for me than for you (self therapy maybe?), but if it starts getting a little old, feel free to scroll down and look for the bold SKIP TO THE END for my main point. oh, and in case you're wondering, yes, my capitalization choices are intentional.


ps...this is kind of a condensation of thoughts i've had since an intensive conversation on the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. six years ago with one Andrew Farjo. much love brother. - sandeep \m/



still dreamin'?


days off are fucking awesome, no doubt about that. this day off has always been one to fill me with mixed emotions. no, it's not because it wasn't until the year 2000 that all 50 states finally adopted Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and no, it's not just cuz i get a little choked up when i hear the 'Dream' speech. as i've grown and my socio-political awareness has expanded and cemented itself, this day has regularly been a day of confusion and frustration as i view the reality of our so called 'civil society' in juxtaposition with the words "I have a dream..." wrapped up in blasphemous red white and blue. sadly, i was unable to understand the annual farce perpetrated upon Dr. King's memory until close to the end of my college career.


growing up, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. day was all about the all school assembly on the friday before the holiday. music teachers would conduct students in choruses of 'We Shall Overcome', an administrator offer a quick recount of Dr. King's presence in history and rattle off that famous conclusion section of the 'Dream' speech, culminating with:


I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”


it's this desire for character examination that has me sitting behind my keyboard today. i must admit, i struggle to see a coincidence between the fact that a failed assassination attempt on a pro-immigration, a pro-diversity public figure came just one week before the holiday honoring one of the greatest civil rights leaders our nation will ever known. i also struggle with the fact that arizona was one of the last states to accept the federal holiday and the sitting senior senator (and former presidential candidate) was one of the strongest voices in opposition to the congressional creation of the federal holiday, but I digress. the character of this nation as it relates to the other is rotten to the core. by 'the other' i'm not suggesting Hegel's interpretation of the concept, but the so-called 'american dream's' interpretation of otherness: those who do not strive for unnecessary wealth, those who reject the two car garage, the white picket fence, and saying the pledge of allegiance every morning in a sterile classroom in the suburbs. in Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville observed that it is assimilation, not diversity that is the true American value. those who seek to live intentionally, to celebrate the traditions of their ancestors, and celebrate their cultural heritage (and of course their supporters) are 'the others' of the american diaspora, an otherness our dominant culture most easily recognizes by the color of one's skin.


the defamation of this otherness is the true hallmark of the american dream. students across the country today are enjoying a day off, but how many of them are aware of Dr. King's work outside of the poetic words delivered at the national mall on august 28th, 1963? Dr. King has been easily demonized by many in our country. he was called anti-american due to his opposition to the Vietnam War, a Marxist due to his willingness to utilize non-violent civil disobedience in order to force business owners, transportation agencies, and public officials to recognize the institutionalized abuse of African Americans that had become part of the post-Emancipation Proclamation political status quo, yet all many seem to remember Dr. King for is the dream he spoke of on the 28th. that makes sense though. it's easier this way. turn Dr. King and his legacy into a big fluffy teddy bear who has a cute little dream of white kids and black kids playing in a sandbox together at every public park across the nation. the white corporate media and their partners in our political spectrum discovered exactly how to use Dr. King's legacy to prove de Tocqueville's point. absorb this dream into the american dream, then go sell it at walmart. it's okay to be black, just act more white. it's cool if your grandma makes tamales for dinner, just make sure she has a green card and you always speak english in public. live the dream of unity, but never forget that “unity” is defined in this country as conforming to the ideals and actions of a white privilege dominated political 'centrism'.


...“I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action"; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a "more convenient season." Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection.



I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that law and order exist for the purpose of establishing justice and that when they fail in this purpose they become the dangerously structured dams that block the flow of social progress. I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that the present tension in the South is a necessary phase of the transition from an obnoxious negative peace, in which the Negro passively accepted his unjust plight, to a substantive and positive peace, in which all men will respect the dignity and worth of human personality. Actually, we who engage in nonviolent direct action are not the creators of tension. We merely bring to the surface the hidden tension that is already alive. We bring it out in the open, where it can be seen and dealt with. Like a boil that can never be cured so long as it is covered up but must be opened with all its ugliness to the natural medicines of air and light, injustice must be exposed, with all the tension its exposure creates, to the light of human conscience and the air of national opinion before it can be cured.” - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., 'Letter from a Birmingham Jail'



in 2007, black male inmates outnumbered white male inmates in the us prison system at a rate of 7 to 1, black females outnumbered white females at a rate of 3 to 1, latino male inmates outnumbered white male inmates at a rate of 3 to 1, and latinas outnumber white females in the prison population at a rate of 2 to 1 (as reported by the us dept. of justice in the prison population statistics report submitted to the GAO april, 2008).



in his annual report on the state of the dept. of defense in 2008, defense secretary robert gates was quick to note that the population of African Americans and people of Latin American descent serving in the military were mere percentage points above figures from the 2005 us census illustrating the overall racial composition of the country. in the same report, mr. gates was eager to de-emphasize the point that a clear majority of people of color serving in the military (to the tune of almost 68%) served in the lower echelons of the military command structure (mainly serving as NCOs) as well as the over representation of military recruiters in low income communities of color.



the harvard graduate school of education (partnered with the harvard university Civil Rights Project) published a joint study in 2001discovering that African-American students were three times as likely to be labeled 'mentally retarded', 'emotionally disturbed', or identified as having a 'specific learning disability' then their white counterparts. it was also noted that special education environments serving African American students were much more physically restrictive, opposed to mainstreaming and job training programs, and generally segregated from the regular education student population than similar classrooms in serving predominantly white student bodies. all of these facts are an outrageous continuing reality in our country today. realities which are constantly and ignorantly rejected, as thought of even lukewarm acceptance of the truth that american institutions deny people of color equal opportunities on a daily basis is a fact too uncomfortable for the dominant culture in our country to accept. it's important not to just see this indifference to fact as political convenience, but to call it out for what it truly is: racism. racism delivered through hegemonic warfare if we wanna' get fancy.

“This is the violence of institutions; indifference and inaction and slow decay. This is the violence that afflicts the poor, that poisons relations between men because their skin has different colors. This is the slow destruction of a child by hunger, and schools without books and homes without heat in the winter.

This is the breaking of a man's spirit by denying him the chance to stand as a father and as a man among other men.” -Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, 'On the Mindless Menace of Violence', delivered at the City Club of Cleveland in reaction to the assassination or Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.



throughout my life i've heard the arguments. “i'm not racist! i have brown friends!” “affirmative action is racist against whites!” simple arguments from simple minded folks eager to maintain their ignorance to the realities of the ways in which american institutions are set up to promote and secure white privilege in the social status quo as it has been secure in north america since well before 1776. it doesn't require lynch mobs, hate speech, or even loosely made positive comments about the actions of hate groups past or present to be 'a racist' when simple complicity and silence in regard to white privilege is a far more pervasive, much more dangerous reality in our country today.



“True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it is not haphazard and superficial. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring. A true revolution of values will soon look uneasily on the glaring contrast of poverty and wealth. With righteous indignation, it will look across the seas and see individual capitalists of the West investing huge sums of money in Asia, Africa and South America, only to take the profits out with no concern for the social betterment of the countries, and say: "This is not just." It will look at our alliance with the landed gentry of Latin America and say: "This is not just." The Western arrogance of feeling that it has everything to teach others and nothing to learn from them is not just. A true revolution of values will lay hands on the world order and say of war: "This way of settling differences is not just." This business of burning human beings with napalm, of filling our nation's homes with orphans and widows, of injecting poisonous drugs of hate into veins of people normally humane, of sending men home from dark and bloody battlefields physically handicapped and psychologically deranged, cannot be reconciled with wisdom, justice and love. A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.

America, the richest and most powerful nation in the world, can well lead the way in this revolution of values. There is nothing, except a tragic death wish, to prevent us from reordering our priorities, so that the pursuit of peace will take precedence over the pursuit of war.” -Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 'Beyond Veitnam: A Time to Break the Silence'



SKIP TO THE END:

so seriously, what the fuck is this? sandeep rambles on for like ten pages of random, disorganized crazy liberal ranting with no care for MLA format calling everybody racists and bitchin' and moanin' about all these 'evils' he sees around every corner? well, yeah, kinda. in all honesty, i put on some Rage Against the Machine and sat down with my fourth cup of coffee of the day at around 12:45 to write a quick facebook status update that would express that feeling i get when thinking about race in america. that mix of nausea and roller coaster like stomach summersaults and the shakes that overcomes me when i think critically about these united states and the role race continues to play in our country's development (or attempts at development). it's now 2:46, and i haven't even gotten to the treatment of muslims and anyone who even looked slightly mid eastern or muslim and the severe need to build Cordoba House at 45-51 Park Place, Manhattan, New York City. in other words, it's time for sandeep to get to the fucking point. well here it is: race is real. there can be no such thing as a colorblind society, there are too many colors out there for that to work. until WE, as people living side by side for a finite amount of time on this beautiful mass of earth, can acknowledge our inherent differences culturally, socially, politically, and overall historically and how those differences have contributed to our respective statuses in life a substantive, positive peace will continue to elude us.



some people have said (and continue to say) that the election of Barak Obama as President of the United States is evidence of the fulfillment of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream. i take comfort in the words of Dr. Cornell West who says that “...those are people who don't understand the difference between 'a' realization of Dr. King's dream and 'the' realization of Dr. King's dream.”



happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day everyone. enjoy the day off! :) -sandeep \m/