#OWS and Jay-Z: Friend or Foe?

November 12th, 2011 | By Sonnie

Your single was .99 / Mine was 4 bucks  Jay Z

 

That lyric was my very first introduction to real capitalism.  I couldn’t put my finger on its name or explain the ins and outs of a market but I knew that one phrase carried the power of success.  If you had a product of superior quality, it can be sold at a higher price.

Now I question, What is the price of Jay-Z?  I feel like typing down every conservative principle and money making lyric ever written into the life and times of Sean Carter but that doesn’t provide me with the answers I need.    Instead it breaks my heart to the very core.  I always thought it would be him.  I always felt he would be the one to tell the Black Community, hell, the whole Country how you change a dollar into 15 cents without crying or taking it from someone else. 

I was wrong.

Jay-Z is coming out with new shirts that read #OccupyAllStreets to show his support of the leeches and bloodsuckers he so eloquently points out in his lyrics.  No question if they are #FriendorFoe.  No question if they have actually put in the work to say #thesestreetsaremine.  None of the questions I’ve been asking since the first time I heard “Imaginary Player” and shaped my perspective of spending money around Jay-Z’s philosophy of real and fake.

Will the real Jay-Z please stand up?

Are you the pampered college kid who mommy and daddy gave everything and you still think it’s not enough or are you the man that “tightened my belt before I begged for help”?  Are you a man that lets others provide your needs or are you the man that said “put me anywhere on God’s green earth, I’ll triple my worth”.  Where is the man that said, “It’s nobody’s fault, I made the the decisions I made/ This is the life I chose or rather the life that chose me”?

That man is still alive and well and that’s why #OccupyWallStreet won’t receive any profits from Jay’s new line of shirts.  He knows it takes money to produce and he should expect a profit on the money he’s invested.  Now all I can see is Hank Reardon being told, just don’t tell the world you want to make money.  Tough.  Jay-Z’s entire reputation will be on the line because of this economic maneuver. 

Only two options remain.  Give in and pay #OccupyWallStreet and let them eat cake while he continues to build an empire or keep the money for himself, his company, employees, stock holders, and family and risk the 99% sticking a stake in his capitalist heart.  If he gives in and pays money, he has shitted on every lyric he’s ever written about not backing down and holding true to his principles.  If he sticks to his guns, he’ll see it’s not about color, loving Hip Hop, or the legacy that is Jay-Z.  It’s either you’re with us or against us.

Herman, Hypocrisy, and Distraction

November 10th, 2011 | By Sonnie

The Founders gave three qualifications for Presidency of the United States of America; natural born citizen, 35 years old and a 14 year residency in the United States.  Nothing more, nothing less.  There is no mention of a so-called path to the Presidency because no such path existed, as per their intention.  As a country, we learned the hard way and added a constitutional amendment to limit the number of terms of the Presidency. 

Fast forward to Herman Cain and the hypocrisy of America.  This is not an endorsement of Herman Cain nor is it a dismisal of the charges being waged against the Presidential candidate.  Here’s to President Obama and those “teachable moments”  he loves so much.

Let’s say you had three groups.  Just for fun, we can name them #REP, #TEA and #OWS.  #Tea loves everything about America and believes its the best country in the world.  #Ows believes America is the cause of all the evil in the world and only through its destruction will peace rise. #REP view on America changes to fit their agenda.  Just Sayin! The groups carry different philosophies and therefore view the world through very different lenses.

Insert Herman Cain!  

#REP loses its mind.  Who in the hell does he think he is?  He didn’t ask our permission or rally for our support.  He didn’t spend the last two and a half years campaigning into our good graces. 

#OWS calls him a traitor.  Who in the hell does he think he is?  A black man that doesn’t represent the Democratic Party?  How can he sell out his own people and their wants and needs.

#TEA pays attention.  Who in the hell is this man and why haven’t I heard of him before?  He’s a regular guy that’s accomplished the American Dream, got knocked down by cancer and beat it, and lays his heart on his sleeve when he talks about the problems of this country.

Insert the Hypocrisy!

#REP  Straight Up Hypocrites.  You want conservatives to believe you represent self-reliance and the premise that any man can pull himself up by his boot straps and forge his own path, even to the White House.  You want conservatives to believe we can trust you with the future of our country because you believe the American People and their ingenuity is the answer to restoring our economy.  Then when an average American citizen arrives to challenge your authority, who’s worked his way from the bottom up, you dismiss him as unqualified or unprepared.

#OWS  Straight Up Hypocrites.  You want the banks to pay for squashing the little guy and making it impossible for the average American to rise above their station in life. (Sorry but I got a chill up my spine writing that.)    You want the rich, like Herman Cain, to pay for the lack of opportunity available in the US.  An average American, like Herman Cain, comes along and presents a direct contridiction to your complaints and you brand him an Uncle Tom or House Nigger.

 #TEA stayed focused on economy and solutions and Herman Cain’s poll numbers started to rise.

Insert Distraction!

This article was intended to take a shot at Establishment Republicans on the Right and Over Zealous Libs on the left but the real lesson is for the American People. 

Because we stick to our notion of them verses us, we get caught up in the hypocrisy.  Can a man or woman be born into modest means and still rise to the level of Presidency in America?  I think our incumbent President proves that.  But can a man keep his soul, refuse normal party politics, and still capture the heart of America?  Can Tucker “Idiot’ Carlson decide who is qualified or does that power still remain with the American People?  Can Toure pronounce Cain unacceptable because of a black sexual stereotype and blond women?  Are these the parameters that limit our thinking process when it comes to politics?

Andrew Breitbart said it best.  If you can’t sell freedom, than you suck.  How does bickering amongst Conservatives and Establishment Republicans help us sell freedom to the American People?  How does continously pointing out and raging against a biased and aloof media help us convince the American people this county is their country, holds their future, and needs to be restored, not destroyed. 

I say, squash the politics for a moment and bring it back to the individual.  The single man that decided he wanted more, hustled and worked to accomplish unimaginable heights of success, and then decided to thank the country that provided him with the opportunity by becoming a public servant. (Not by writing a check.)   He fits the criteria set by our founders, embodies the dream of our forefathers, and proves the exception can indeed be the rule.   Take away the name.  Take away the political affiliation.  Take away the color.  And just look at the story of an average American citizen. 

It’s no longer us verses them.  It’s the dream we have as college students for ourselves #OWS, the dream parents have for their children #TEA, and future our founders wished for us when they gave us three simple qualifications #REP.   At age 35, a man born in America with the ideals of America breed into him over a 14 year span is qualified to be President.  Not because Carlson said so or Toure approves but because this country teaches us about ourselves by the obstacles we overcome to acheive blessings we never thought possible. 

Now that’s how you sell Herman Cain to the American People.  Yes, there will still be those of us who question 9-9-9 but at least the conversation will be on substance and not hypocrisy and distraction.