Happy President's Day...
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A Message About Tonight...
I was born in Utah. I was raised in Utah. I moved out of Utah, but only by 7 miles. Really, it was the Utah part of Idaho. I graduated from Utah State University. Pretty much, all this Utah influence means that, yes, I am a Jazz fan.
I'll wait for you to finish laughing.
Anyway. The after beating the Clippers last night, the Jazz are riding a 9 game winning streak. Tonight, the Lakers come to Utah.
I hate the Lakers.
Not so much them personally, I just think that I hate the media love affair with the Lakers. Also, I hate people who cheer for them even though they have absolutely no ties to Los Angeles. I hate the fact that Kobe Bryant plays injured and everyone talks about how tough he is.
Which brings me to the point of this post.
The Lakers last game was in L.A. against the Spurs. Kobe didn't play. Tonight will be their last game before the All-Star break. And there are rumblings about Kobe coming out tonight to play against the Jazz.
Why is this news?
Now, a personal message directed to Kobe Bryant:
Dear Kobe,
Don't do it. What do you need to prove? You're team is in first place in the West. There will not be anyone who catches up to you. It's just not going to happen. So you don't need to step onto the floor tonight. Rest your weary body.
-BUT-
If you do decide to step on the floor tonight, be warned. I will hunt you down. I will be like a ghost. You will not see me coming. Because everyone knows that the scariest thing that a professional athlete has to deal with is a 5'10" History B.A. who doesn't own a firearm, or have any large friends who are willing to go to jail, or any money to buy a hit-man.
Long story short, I hate the Lakers. I hate Kobe Bryant.
Go Jazz!
Remembering Orangeburg...
I'll try to keep a Semester's worth of paper writing down and just hit the main points.
On February 8, 1968 Delano Middleton, Samuel Hammond Jr., and Henry Smith were shot and killed on the campus of South Carolina State University. 27 others were injured. All but two of the students were shot from the rear or the side. The shooting was done by members of the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division. Students were shot by law officials.
There was only one arrest made in connection with the Orangeburg Masscre. Cleveland Sellers, a representative of SNCC who was on campus trying to establish a Black Awareness group, was arrested and charged with arson, inciting a riot, assault and battery with intent to kill, destruction of personal property, damaging real property, housebreaking and grand larceny. His bail was set at $50,000, a staggering amount for the time.
Similar events, most notably the Kent State Shootings, came about after and evoked national attention, while Orangeburg was largely forgotten. One major reason: the students at Kent State were white. South Carolina State was a black university. The victims were black. In 1968, coming on the heals of the cry for Black Power, the shootings of black college students was ignored by the general public.
Every February 8 from 1969 onward, South Carolina State College (now University) has held a memorial for the slain students. This event should not be forgotten. Hammond, Middleton, and Smith are not as recognizable as Martin Luther King or Malcom X, but their story should still be told. There is an awesome documentary call "Scarred Justice: the Orangeburg Massacre 1968." My dad texted me the other day and said that it was being shown on UEN in conjunction with Black History Month. I have a copy if you want to read it. Jack Bass and Jack Nelson wrote the book on the massacre, called simply, The Orangeburg Massacre. I highly recommend it.
Sorry for the long post. Hopefully this little post will get stuck in the tubes of the interwebs so that there is my little take on Orangeburg. Thanks for making it this far. Until Wednesday...
I Know It's Not Much...
I'm coming for you...
So, if you're like me and grew up all sorts of angsty while listening to Nirvana loudly in your bedroom planning your escape from your upstairs bedroom window because your parents didn't 'get' you, then this is for you.
I present to you, The Polyphonic Spree covering Lithium.
Lithium - The Polyphonic Spree
Best...Cover...Ever...
I Live...
But only because I don't post. So, a quick update, then a question for all two of you (three on a good day) that read this blog thing.
First of all, school is school. I should be graduating in December, assuming that I can pass all of my classes and the stupid Computer Literacy tests that USU requires. My classes are pretty cool, at least if you're a history nerd like myself.
Work is going well. I'm really enjoying working at a place where people straight up crap themselves a bit less. The people I work with are rad-tastic, but that's not taking anything away from those poor souls who(m?) I left behind.
Baby T. is getting big. She likes to talk and thinks that she can walk. C. has taught her the names of her first Disney princesses.
For those who care, the beard is coming back. I'm a fan. Plus, now that I work somewhere that I can dress up for Halloween, I can incorporate the beard into a costume. Excellent.
So, now for something that has been on my mind a lot lately. Really, it's a question to all of you. I'm talking about "theTwitter." Basically, I am pondering to tweet or not to tweet. One of the reasons that I am thinking about it is because, while I can't always post to this blog, it feels like I can always find time to update my status on theFacebook. From what I understand, theTwitter is pretty much just theFacebook statuses. Statusi. Whatever.
So, now I turn it over to you, and I do want your feedback. Do I Tweet? Would you care? Would anybody? What say you?
Lemme know...