Ubermensch

I e-mailed a tumblr post I stumbled on a little while back to some people I knew. I mainly forwarded it because it reminded me a great deal of something I was trying to write but I couldn't get out in the way I wanted. I thought the post was pretty decent and close to what I wanted to say.
The response back, although not shocking knowing some of my friends and their views on the world, was a bit disheartening. Maybe I missed something in the post or I read their replies incorrectly. So, I read everything again. Nope, I read everything correctly.
The key lines that stood out to me in the initial post were- "We should be Clarks. We should be looking for the good in people. Now of all times we should be helping people just because. We need to accept that everyone is going to have a different view on things (part of the reason Clark loves humankind is the sheer variety of it) and do our best to work together despite these differences. Rather than spending our days inside on the internet bitching about shit we wish we could change, we should be going outside and actually fucking changing it."
And in a response from a notoriously pessimistic friend- "(D)ude wants a better superman, go out and make a better world and stop bitching on the internets. " (Which I might adds is hilarious because the amount of epic rants I've heard from this guy...)
I realize they are both right and both frakkin' wrong.

Let me remind back to I want to say freshman year of college. This was my height of my "People are inherently evil" phase. I can actually remember having a discussion in one of my poli sci classes about how people are just terrible and they only do good to get something out of it, not "to be good for goodness sakes." Around this time I was talking to a close friend about my hate for then New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani while walking in Brooklyn. I said "If I had a gun, I would probably shoot him in the face." (Such a teenager thing to say, I know) My homeboy, either testing me or tired of hearing me whine about the situation, responded with "I can get you a gun. QUICKLY. You're not going to do it." My teenage brain quickly responded in anger that "YEAH. I WOULD...BITCH!" Naw, I didn't call my pal a bitch...that time.
But something in the back of my mind said "No. You won't." It had nothing to do with the fact that my friend wouldn't be an accesory to that type of crime and nothing to do with access to a gun. I could have easily got a cannon around that time. The "No. You won't" popped in my head because I knew that a)I was talking out my angry young arse b)me getting arrested for killing a mayor wouldn't solve the problem and c)I was (and am) better than that. It was simply an instantaneous response to me being angry at the situation of the world and someone testing my "manhood." My viewpoint on the world was screwing with my logic and grasp of reality and the feeling of being impotent just fueled my anger that much more. I was angry at the status quo, I was juvenile, I thought all human beings were horrible at their core and I figured I was powerless to change it.

Which brings us back to where I began. I was wrong then and didn't realize it.
My friend and the guy who wrote this post were both right. We should all go out and improve the world and stop bitching. But they were both wrong- my pal for doing what he wrote about people doing and also thinking the place isn't a potential place for change and this guy who wrote the post for who he chose to represent for the ideal we should choose.
Don't get me wrong- I love Supes. I think there is an inherent beauty in possessing that level of power and doing good with it- protecting the weak, stopping Brainiac, plucking scared cats out of trees. The only problem, which is the same problem with Batman (who the guy uses as the flip side argument) and other super-heroes, is that they aren't really changing things for the better. They are tools of the status quo. Many writers will make stories depicting them fighting people who are against the status quo but they are always the worst of us- doing it for money, domination or just sick terrorists who enjoy seeing the fear of others.
I think the ideal of Superman standing for truth and justice is important and if he really believed in that then he would be fighting for the little guy and going after the plutocracy that doesn't want anything to change except the threat to them, their money and their comfortable status.

We should do the best for our fellow humans and the world. We should fight injustice no matter what form it comes in. We should be open to other opinions. It's not easy but we should be the best people we can be. I'm not delusional. The world is corrupt and bad and some people aren't looking out for more than themselves and the ones they care about.
We NEED to be better than that.
The world is screwed up but we need to rise above that.
We need to be like the core of Superman's ideals but do more and change the world.
Ultimately, it's up to us to do it by whatever means we can.

Thought Experiment

Take a second and imagine yourself at like 8 or 10 years old. Imagine that this younger version is in the room with you. He or she is sitting there next to you or looking over your shoulder as you look at this screen. They are probably wearing something horrible, like high water overalls or something bright from Cross Colours if you are about my age. Gods.
Anyway, back to the experiment.
So this younger you is standing there looking at the same computer screen as you. You click to one of your social networking pages, like Facebook, Myspace or Friendster(you are really STILL using Friendster? C'mon, son...) You go through your profile info and your pictures. You slowly look back over the pictures you took of yourself and pictures that others have put up of you.

What does your younger self say?
What do they think?
Are they happy with your life choices?

Week of (Kinda) Silence

March 27- April 2, 2010 Decided to take the week off from television and the interwebz. Here are the rules and below that is what happened.
DVDs don't count
Only my e-mail could be checked
Only emergencies could be responded to, ie job replies, sick friends, etc.
Limited time even in a room with television


Day1-
Sent out last necessary e-mail, still receiving e-mail to my BlackBerry but I only check the subject line for the importance of it. I can hear the tv in the other room with my younger brother; he's a tv fiend.
Odd to be up this early and not on a computer. Women choose the last moment or odd times to make request. Foresee a small window of future drop-offs for family. I don't really like driving; feels like my arse is spreading the more time behind the wheel.
Random thought popping in my head- like taking my brother and cousins to movies
The blue light is turned off on this cable box to not mock me but I watched Dogtown and the Z-Boys on DVD again. Think the message might be adversity and being fearless breeds creativity.
Also read Death of Ivan Ilyich by Tolstoy, which was recommended by Mess. It was decent but seemed like a school syllabus book read by girls in an English class at a private school that requires them to wear uniforms with stockings.
It still feels like a bunker around here. This is definitely my bro's space.
Plus side of this week off is it makes Earth Hour that much easier; even my brother participated.

Day 2-
Harder to get up on day two. Realizing my bro blasts the tv. Radio stations plays the same craptastic music on repeat and Slacker Radio has miraculously appear on my BlackBerry. This gives me a solution to dealing with others watching tv in my presence and is only borderline cheating.
Skype mobile has also appeared for some reason on my BB. I'm confused by how to even use it on this thing.
Listening to Gorillaz radio now and it has finally clicked why I like Song 2 by Blur. I never made the connection that it was Damon Albarn singing it.
Time to drive to the mall. Green Acres is shitty- it only has one bookstore, a Borders Express.
Okay, I broke my internet rule but to be fair it was to QUICKLY look up a recipe for my mother who was busy. I made some double chocolate cookies

Day 3-
Raining outside today.
Do I do laundry? Grandmother has the tv on as I decide.
Shaq's mom wrote a book. She says she had a plan? What? bang a tall dude?
Hit the library, drive out to less shitty mall in Roosevelt Field.
Man, I hate Rihanna and Sean Paul's accents. His sound like some mishmash of Jamaican patois and a drunk Irish dude. This Carry Out song by Timbaland and Justin Timberlake is pretty decent- the lyrics are ehh but I still succumb to the Timbo effect. Bookstores are great but if you are broke you DEFINITELY like the library much more.

Day 4-
Flood time. Awesome. New neighbors are moving in today.
I woke up to usual- my brother bumping rap music and Law & Order on his tv. Is he playing Drake? No, that's TI. Good.
Walk the dog and I feel like I'm swimming in the street.
I finished a book I picked up yesterday. I realize I hate book series for two main reasons 1) the first book is a good book and I can't wait for the next one to be published or 2) it is a crappy book in series and I feel I wasted my time.
Listened to Sean Price aka Kimbo Price and had a flashback to the early '90s and Decepticons roaming the subways in Brooklyn. I like this Trap or Die joint by Jeezy, forgot about it but still a good listen.
I talked to a friend or should I say I listened to my friend. Just reaffirmed my women are crazy and men are dumb theory. Need to really write up that blog.

Day 5-
I was just texted by my friend that my Facebook was hacked. Fixed it and quickly got off the internet.
I need to get to the store for some art supplies soon. Wait. Oh yeah. I'm broke.
It's laundry time. I like this teenage girl's chunky headphones- they are black with a red number 6 inside a circle. I'm trying to remember where I have seen them before.
These notes I'm jotting down are like tweeting without Twitter. I do find myself missing the internet a bit.
Just revisited a variation of a story idea I had. Hey, the library has new yellow bags. They kinda remind me of the bank bags in the Jason Bourne movies but much cheaper.
Why are people surprised at flooding if you live by a shoreline? I was never shocked. This lady is whining like she was hit by Katrina.
Should I even do my taxes?
Another food question...why ask questions when the answer is always the same? I should look into male PMS. I might have that shit. Or maybe I'm just more irritable than I think I am.

Day 6-
Fell asleep at 8 pm woke at 12:30 am and then rose again at 6:35 am. I thought I set my alarm for 9:30 pm. Apparently not.
I turned on Z100 (NYC Top 40 station) and the morning show was on as I showered. They are having a discussion about Heathers and how people with that name were bitchy and/or slutty. I had to chuckle at this.
Holy Thursday is April 1st/April Fool's Day. I think there is a deeper meaning there with the catholic church's handling of abuse.
Yard work outdoors. I have that Justin Bieber song stuck in my head. Uh-oh. Do I have Bieber Fever?
I turn on Slacker for a cure and listen to NERD. Their music always makes me think about superheroes and Cali.
Missing vowels? Really, Gmail? That's the best you can do?
Should I get a haircut? The Rub is Saturday.
Grandmother had Marriage Ref on as I worked on something. I find I have to agree with my friends- it is funny. TV is still on with Leno now. Bobby Brown sweeps up on Jay's trivia contest- but he only beats K-Fed and Nicole Eggert so there is that qualifier....

Day 7-
Woke up and I am out of it. I had a dream about me trying to return a lost dog, going south and north, getting into a car accident and then arguing and fighting with 4 cops like I was a Watchmen/Matrix character.
As I walk this dog, I notice similarities between him and me- anger issues, bad teeth, rush for instant gratification, run into things blindly, sweet tooth, need haircuts constantly and constantly humping anything we could in the past.
Touching up a fake fight poster, Nope. I'm not going overboard but might be fear of failure kicking in.
I have to hit the library again. I like rocking my hat or hoodie but don't know if it's for comfort or protection or if it's a form of hiding.
Anyway, this has been a strange but enlightening week. Needed the break but now it's time for inane waste of time on the world wide web.
Why did we stop calling it that? Guess it is geeky but the internet is kinda geeky by it's mere existence.
Whatever. Peace.