TUESDAY THOUGHTS: CURRENT EVENTS written 12/4/2009

I admit it. 

I tuned in to hear what Chris Brown had to say. 

There are two sides to every story. 

Stories these days, though, seem to have undergone extreme makeovers, because the sides keep expanding daily.

People have been holding vigils and flexing Uncle Sam's muscle, but the Italian legal system said "guilty", and a young woman may spend over 20 years behind bars. 

We weren't there. 

We didn't see the evidence. 

It's funny that heinous crimes are always committed by people who at least two people think are nice, sweet, and wouldn't hurt a fly.

I live in Washington, DC, and don't know WHAT to say about the Salahi's, except that, had I decided to show up uninvited at a State dinner, I'm sure I would have been face-up on the White House lawn with guns pointed at me, looking like Eddie Murphy in that scene from "Trading Places".

I'm saddened about Tiger Woods. 

I don't think some people volunteer to be role models, we just tag them on our own. 

It's true. We really do hold others in higher esteem and to higher standards, even though it's not always fair. 

God is no respecter of persons, but we sure are.
I'm more saddened by the vicious way that many people respond to the mistakes that others make. 

I'm saddened that many people seem to delight in the downfall of ANYONE. 

Most of us, though scrutinized at times, don't have our affairs broadcast worldwide. 

Most of us would probably die if just a FEW people got wind of ONE of our secrets, let alone everyone who happens to own a television or computer. 

Most of us forget while we're making fun and offering our two cents, that "what goes around comes around" is a saying that is not entirely accurate. 

What goes around usually comes back around like a pit bull on crack--with extra teeth, and mud in its paws.

Sometimes your opinion is your only connection to a thing, and it's all you have a right to possess. 

We are quick to say that something is not our business. Why, then do others insist on making something relevant to you? 

We regular Joe's and Joanne's have obviously communicated that we really care about certain things, and there are plenty of people eagerly prepared to satisfy our curiosity, and our insatiable need to know. 

What I think about recent events doesn't really matter, nor will it make a difference. 

My life won't change, and I have no stake in the outcome. 

I do, just like every other person who hasn't been living under a rock in the last few days, have a few random thoughts about it.

*Money can do a lot, except buy a good name.

*It's amazing how distracted we can be. Thousands of young people are about to go to Afghanistan, and we're focused on a fire hydrant in Florida.

*Fire hydrants are still our friends. Ask someone whose house burned to the ground because of a faulty one, and see how important hydrants are.

*Text messages can be saved and traced. Phone messages, too. Your trusty computer, and its friend the internet, are like big 'ol tattoo parlors. You can cover what you wrote or posted, erase it, or even shut it down, but it's still there.

*When you know that people are watching you, you don't have to give them a show.

*Being human is not an excuse, it is a fact. You don't have to prove your humanity, or defend your right to be human by humiliating yourself. 

We need merely to look at another individual and know that they are human. 

*Engage in bad behavior, and thinking that the only person you really hurt is you, is giant error. 

*If one wishes to make a spectacle of themselves, they should have at it, but don't play the human card. You did what you did because you wanted to, had the opportunity, and thought you could get away with it.

 

*We're all capable of a lot of craziness, but the difference in whether we engage or not is integrity--or fear. Both are useful every now and then.

*Whatever stops you from doing something stupid, more power to it.

I don't encourage shady behavior, but I would recommend if one is going to delve in dishonesty, at least be GOOD at it! 

Some people are just not cut out to be criminals, and they might as well quit trying to fit in. 

Some folks just plain tell on themselves. 

Had there been a domestic squabble in the privacy of their home, and they'd torn up every piece of property they owned, we wouldn't have known about a thing. 

Who knows how long trouble has occupied the spare room in their paradise? But, they brought trouble outside on the front lawn. 

Noise attracted the attention of a neighbor. 

The fire hydrant made it the neighborhood's business. 

Dial 911, and it becomes the police department's business. 

His name made the accident 'news' because we "know" him--or we'd like to think we do. 

He was Black folks' reason to start watching a game many of us, at one time, considered as pointless, dull and boring as plain oatmeal. 

Who knew golf had anything to do with mathematical equations and physics? 

Who knew it could actually be fun, and join the rest of the sports as a ticket out of the inner city?

Our compassion and vicarious living, through his accomplishments on the green, caused us to sit up and listen when we heard the first reports. 

 "Oh, Lawd! Please let him be alright!" we cried. 

Our "family" has had enough death in the last few months. 

We couldn't bear another tragedy so close to Christmas. 

We were all praying he wasn't banged up in a hospital somewhere. 

Your life takes on creepy new meaning when you're famous for any reason, and people are in your pockets.

His right to privacy crumbled, when other people's names came into play, and their questionable reputations were at stake. 

We were all like everybody's distraught mother, who runs toward their injured child, and asks if they're okay, and hugs and kisses, and thanks Jesus---until they find out HOW the kid REALLY got hurt. "Mama can't beat you NOW, but as soon as you're feeling a little better Baby, get the switch 'cause I told you, wherever you act up, that's where you're gonna get it..."

When you lie with a straight, angelic face, and there's legitimate proof somewhere, it's not smart to arrogantly stick to your story, and try to maintain your rep by publicly demonizing and ignoring the folk who know the truth. 

Continuing to be evasive, and THEN leaving even MORE proof of your indiscretions in plain view (or on other people's voice mail), causes you to lose sympathy points.

What makes deceitful people think that they can trust OTHER deceitful people when the jig is up? 

What makes people think that news hounds are just going to "drop it" when the story gets juicier? 

No one cares about the public interest or journalistic integrity! Folk are just sick, childish and nosy! People LOVE this kind of drama! 

Was the Monica/Bill story not high profile enough to let people know that NO ONE is exempt from the probing eyes of those who want nothing more than to see you fall-- in the interest of a good story?

Many have been WAITING for America's golfer to trip, ever since he walked his articulate, caramel self into historically forbidden territory, and got his first green jacket. 

Ironically, the origin of the jacket's color has less to do with fashion and accomplishment, and more to do with being seen by inquiring minds. 

No. The news is not a racial issue that needs the presence of Jesse and Al, or the resurrection of Johnnie Cochran, but it IS amazing how many talented people who "make it" tend to forget that just because you're finally in the game, you still have to play by the rules. You therefore, have to KNOW the rules--the unwritten ones-- that have made black people in the public eye feel unfairly responsible for the way every other black person on the planet is regarded.

Sitting on the shoulder of so many notables, is the spirit of a great-great-great-great grandmother whispering, "When you make it, Baby, you have to act right. You have to be twice as good. Know when to turn it on, and when to turn it off. Stand up straight, and be polite. You represent your people. Don't embarrass us."

It's a huge mistake to believe oneself above the law. In America, the penalties and sentences are still not evenly distributed. 

Money may be able to stop some people from talking, but the conversation will continue. 

God help us when the seedy, sleazy news sources are the most accurate ones.

 

There are people who are determined to see you sweating bullets, crying, and profusely apologizing while they dance around singing "I told you so". Depending on their level of vindictiveness, it makes them less reluctant to "just drop" a matter--especially if their aim has always been to destroy your seemingly shining reputation. What you DON'T do, is help them.

It's tragic when we assist in our own downfall, and hand our heads on a platter to those who hate us. 

The word of God is true, and technology has ensured that what you do in the dark WILL not only come to light, but in REAL time. 

'Delete' and 'disappear' are not synonyms. When your hands are not clean, you can't assume that the person you're being deceitful with will protect you. 

This was a case of someone expecting another person to regard, and cover them more than they regarded themselves.

Getting caught has always had a way of producing remorse. 

It may also be a relief for him. 

In usual tree fashion, THAT tree wasn't moving. Thank God it only stopped him, and didn't kill him. He's living today to explain himself to his wife and family--as opposed to being beautifully laid out in a church somewhere. 

Dead people can't defend themselves against public and media speculation and scrutiny. So there is a bright side. He's alive to pick himself up, and dust himself off, and try again--just like the rest of us when WE screw up.

Mercy and grace are priceless. 

We are so quick to mete out justice, but often demand understanding for ourselves. 

Shutting up doesn't seem to be the choice for some, but it should be. 

I'm not sure what counts for news these days, but it seems the conversation will continue until the day folks die--'cause you KNOW you can't hear of a deceased famous person's demise without being REPEATEDLY reminded of the WORST thing they ever did in their lives.

How quickly we forget when our own humiliated behinds were frying on a hot seat. 

In the light of another person's suffering, self inflicted or otherwise, we really should thank God with all of the enthusiasm we can muster--especially since some of our OWN skeletons still have meat on their bones, the stink from them is seeping under the closet door, and the lock on the door is weak.

At the beginning, before the story unraveled, someone suggested prayer. 

I think that's what we should just keep doing.