Vibes And Pressure

I am the face in the mirror that u never want 2 c, I am the man on the dark side of the moon. I am that which u love 2 hate, the road that u tread, the abyss. I am called Scourge, the reflection of yr goodness. The stone the mason rejected.

I am the myth that excited yr fantasies, and the bogey man creeping at the edge of yr nightmares. I was clueless 2 yr civility, let loose in my corner of the world. I served no purpose 2 u, useless, occupying space bt not paying my way. I was a curiosity, something just as u r… bt not, less than… somehow. I was that upon which kingdoms were built, empires forged, the shoulders that yr giants needed 2 stand on.

I was yr fuel, the engine that drove yr success, the unnamed hand, the unknown warrior who won yr wars. I was the discarded armour of your defence, the sword that u beat into a ploughshare. I was the hewer of wood and the drawer of water. I was the heathen in need of yr deliverance. The fact of my existence proved 2 u the goodness of yrs, the truth of my origin revealed the fallacy and baseness of yr own, and even tho my reality made yrs possible, I needed 2 b kept in place, underfoot. I learned 2 b thankful 4 this, reverent, understanding that all this was part of the gr8r whole and assured of yr righteousness. I wanted 2 b u, bt clued 2 the fact that I cld never attain ascension in this life, comforted that my reward awaited me beyond. I was the darkness in u made manifest. My voice screamed yr name, even as I had no name of my own. The savagery with which u showed me what my place and purpose was, that was justified bcos this was the only way 2 bring me yr culture, yr sophistication and yr salvation.

Somehow, I desired more, even when I knew this was a dream unattainable. I knew my place was below yrs, bt questioned why yr blood was as red as mine. The old answers no longer held water, the foundations were found 2 b feet of clay, and the strength of yr words became mud. The strength I gave in yr servitude, the strength that u took 4 yrself, was slowly becoming my own. Yet I was bound in my physicality. I fought and raged, pleaded and reasoned, slowly freeing myself. I had overcome… bt u had other plans 4 me. Whereas 1ce I was broken, all alpha forcibly removed, I became… broke, the physical bounds replaced by the social, economic, the academic.

My miseducation and underdevelopment made me n2 the agent of my destruction, yr despise 4 me comparable only 2 my own self-hate, my fear holding me in my place while my love made me grateful 2 have a place at all. I sought out my status, my caste, my class. I was as nothing, educating my younger self in the art of nothing, yet as I wasted away, my woman strived, becoming superwoman, and did this as she carried twice the burden. The embers smoldered. I craved recognition, marched 4 it, sat 4 it, bled 4 it, was raped 4 it, starved 4 it. Even as I began 2 finally receive it, I tore down those whose light guided me 2 the new path. Yet I was still a prisoner 2 yr grand design, yr guiding hand bcoming ever more subversive. U handed me a new set of tools, and I, still believing in yr love, gladly accepted these gifts. My families imploded, my communities devolved n2 war zones.

Even as I had nowhere left 2 go, u still pushed. I pushed back, with bricks, sticks, slipping on yr spit. I pushed back, with the songs of my ancestors, spiritual songs forged in the night of my soul. I pushed with sounds dark and blue, with the horns of the Bird and the Monk. I slipped in yr spit and stood tall 2 spit rhymes. Beaten, I beat back with nyabinghi and 808’s. Divorced from my tongue, I took yrs and gave voice 2 soul, my darkness shining 2 all hidden corners. I enriched culture, redefined sophistication, gave salvation 2 yr expression. My contribution far outweighed my compensation, yet I’m still not given my recognition. I am that which u relocate with yr gentrification, yet I am still here The refused stone now the cornerstone. The embers lit with broken promises. The dream unattainable now a dream deferred.

I am the face u refuse 2 c, the screaming voice drowning out with yr platitudes. I am the bogeyman manifest, I am love. I am no longer the face in the mirror, I AM THE MIRROR. I am hope, I am faith, I am rage. I am Alpha and Omega. I am a million desolate souls, I am the streets. I am hip hop, I am rock and roll, the scream and the silence. I am the winter of yr discontent, I am the hand and the stone, hurtling 2 the glass house. Generations of breeding made me the superman I am still searching 4. The shine of my darkness will guide us all 2 the light. I am yr deliverance.

I am the hate that hate produced, I am… La Haine.

p.l.h.o.


Corrd the Seeker.

Initially, I felt exhilarated and excited by the idea that Londoners were finally standing up and "raging against the machine", then I felt confused by the apparent extreme indiscriminate way in which the rage was being directed. I couldn't help but think if these "rioters" were focusing on the monuments of oppression and the systems of suppression then I could try to see the validity of their right to fight.

I had always thought that if a day ever came where we could find the thing that gave us the justification so that we all finally stood up and waged war on the structures which have manipulated and orchestrated destruction, then i would see the very edifices that have been the physical manifestation of these symbols fall but instead what i saw was the fall of "Carpet Right"!!

I mean seriously we can only blame ourselves if the message is being somehow lost in translation and the young people coming up have no idea of who and what are the representative of the social inequality which we are all currently living in. Burning local people's businesses and homes just doesn't make sense and to me felt like a real sickness within the psyche running within these communities. Self harm and self hate seem to be apparent in these acts. They are no different to black on black crime.

But let's be clear. We are not the first place to see unhappy citizens raging and rioting for something, i think that in this case no one is quite sure of what that something is, because it's certainly not just about getting some trainers from JD sports.

I, for one, am not jumping on the condemnation wagon because i was not unhappy to see the images of unruly streets and burning buildings. I’m aware that some of us though were secretly wishing that those burning buildings were the buildings representing the halls of power or seats of manipulation or oppression that affect many. Its probably an unpopular opinion but i'm gonna voice it cause its true that this is what some people have expressed.

Now when we look at the context to which these events occurred i feel like there are a number of questions which have to be asked. We live in one of the most watched cities in the world we have innumerable amount of CCTV monitoring our streets and yet they claim they were unable to predict or work out where the rioters were and send the police or fire services to appropriate locations to stop even one of these outbreaks so tell me why the hell we are spending hundreds of millions on these nanny services??

I also have to wonder in the absence of threats from terrorist groups, is this yet another plot to submerge us in the pit of fear and "cold war" tactics? I was wondering if they had sent some undercovers/plain clothes into the midst of these communities to be the trigger for the initial events and being mammals which adhered to the group mentality without thought or conscience. Trust me these tactics are used across the world and after the chaos and the dust settles no-one quite knows who threw the first stone.

and finally as ever the media has their own agenda on what angle their working and what view of the end greater agenda they are pushing the masses too, maybe all those legislation are getting dusty or their a new one waiting in the wings or they just need some form of justification for doing some other bullshit. It will come out in the wash maybe 50 years from now.

All i know is i was embarrassed not only by the rioters but by those of us who allowed the fear to enter and push us to transform our views and way of being to accommodate the mass hysteria which was actually changing the very taste of the air. Lets take a moment to not let the hype creep in and have us acting like fools and pleading for the government to water-canon childrena and bring in the army. These are our communities and our children, our neighbours, our families, our friends, our people and we should have all got together and gone out in mass and stopped what was happening rather than calling those outside of our communities to deal with those who are not just their responsibility.

If we don't want them to decide how to govern us then we have to show them that we can govern ourselves.

Parents are not only responsible for their children, the community has a hand in raising them too. I remember the days when if you were caught on street acting up by someone who knew your parents then you knew you were going home for tough times!! But i acknowledge that right about now we are deeply fragmented community from many different backgrounds but it's time to take it to the old school and start building a new understanding and representation of community to reflect these changing times but with some solid old school principles!!

Stepping down from my soapbox now :)

Chatter Boxx

Yes Iyah

Just wanted 2 give the I dem a quick shout out, I an'I realise that y’all really busy right know, doing all that “powers that b” stuff and whatnot, and I kno it’s been a hectic period, what with summering in the South of France, Tuscany and wherever, but I just wanted 2 let y’all kno that we down here in the trenches r supporting the skism.

C, I kno that over the past few days, the opium box has been flashing images of the yout’ dem seemingly out of control, rampaging and looting. And I kno that, bcos u love us so much and that u r only concerned abt the welfare of the yout’, that u had 2 put dem on lock down. I kno that the water canons y’all wanna bring out, whilst reminding us eerily of what u had 2 do back in the day 2 those of us of a darker hue (well, we didn’t kno our place then) r only bcos u wanna show that if we don’t play nice that we’ll b reminded that we r all disposable and that, well, a little shower never did any harm anyway. I also kno the the baton rounds ( or rubber bullets), whist they have been known 2 kill, r only there 4 the protection of our young people.

But, this is the ting… I kinda did tell y’all that this was coming. I wrote well over a year ago in the blog "Meanderings" abt how off key tings were, yet still y’all never holla'd back. I an' I kno dat u r telling us we have no right 2 feel the frustration and angst , even tho down here it’s like the air itself is almost 2 heavy 2 breathe. Not bcos some1 may not have the tools 2 articulate a feeling, that does not make that feeling less valid. But it's all love...

Now I kno it’s looks really dumb 4 the rioters 2 b burning down their own hoods, manors or ends, and I guess that’s why we need 2 b under even greater control. Even tho these ruffians c no reflection of themselves in the monuments and infrastructure around them, they shd have more civic pride, regardless of how little of said infrastructure is there 4 mental, emotional and spiritual upliftment. That’s not the point now, is it? They shd try harder 2 assimilate, as our Dear Leader did declare that multiculturalism is dead. He spoke the New Truth, so we shd all fall in line. I even heard the Dear Leader say that po-po have the power 2 now remove any face coverings at any time 4 any reason. I kno that even tho y’all wanted this 4 a long time, bcos let’s face it, some of these Muslim women r really scary, the recent events have helped 2 get this popping. Don’t say the yout’ dem never contribute.

Y’all had the good graces 2 give us phones and social media, and these ungrateful yout’ just abuse yr beneficence, and then end up in court. I also kno that y’all have been bringing in magistrates from outside the local jurisdictions, even tho the point of magistrates is that they kno, relate 2 and understand the peeps that stand b4 them bcos they r locally based an' so they understand local issues, but I guess even tho I don’t get it, it’s in our best interest. I kno some parents lament that they have so much less power 2 discipline their children, and that the kids have so much power of choice, but y’all did that in the best interest of us all, so I think they shd play their position and chill, y’all got this…

I did say in my blog "1 is a Symbolic Representation of an Idea" abt how the unheard who feel the hand of po-po in their lives may just wanna express their plight, but y’all did outline 2 every1 that any expression shd only take the forms laid down by yr good selves, so I can’t tell u what happened 2 the yout’s... I guess they didn’t read that memo, but they probably need re-education.

However, pls 4give me but I had a concern, hence the letter. I kno that all of y’all r very well educated, and kno all abt social issues, urban planning, psychology, all dat. I kno y’all get all these reports, and kno us all better than we kno ourselves. So I just wondered… y’all knew this was gonna happen, and yet u did nothing. I kno it’s not my place 2 question, and again I appreciate the business of yr good selves, but I just wondered...

I kno that it’s all in I an’ I best interest, and I kno y’all r only motivated by love 4 us all.

Thank u so much 4 allowing me 2 write 2 u, and if u seek me out, and kick off my door 4 “inciting” anything u don’t approve of then it’s only 4 my own good. The Lady of Iron said in ‘81, “nothing, but nothing, justifies what happened”, and there is no need 4 disobedience in our society, after all the youth dem have nothing 2 complain abt, really. Then again, she did also say there is “no such thing as society. There is the individual, their families, and the State”.

Bye 4 now, it’s all love from the trenches as we await further guidance.

p.l.h.o.

Corrd the Seeker

Part of the reason that this (Vibes and Pressure) blog site exists is bcos of the love of harmony. Harmony is what unites I an’ I, strengthens the weak, turns discord and chaos in2 music. The gathering 2gether of voices can b a magnificent thing 2 behold, and this overstanding has, in part, given rise 2 the ideas and observations presented by the scribes who contribute to this site.

It is in harmony that the breadth of the power of expression can be seen, and the funny thing is that this power rests within I an’ I… yes, each and every 1 of us. The power itself is the contribution that each individual gives as a manifestation of their self-expression. As I delved in2 the concept of harmony I started 2 pree the expression of the individual.

2 give voice 2 a thing is not only to give it power, but also form. The expression of that form, the representation, is what allows others to know what that thing is and, in essence, who we are; yet that knowledge is based on the interpretation of the (re)presentation of the individual thru self-expression.

Self-identity is becoming an increasingly difficult thing 2 attain within our homogeneous environments, as mass shared culture, mores and values r becoming more prevalent due 2 the rise of the information age. Not that this (in and of itself) is a bad thing. But as the expressions used, more and more, r based on shared ideals, those expressions are merely reflections, or echoes, of concepts long since separated from their origins.

Yet all of us r capable of original expression, each of us has, and is, a voice as we make manifest our expression, which gives the expression of self form. The expression both informs and shapes that same self. 1 of the great struggles of our age is 4 each of us 2 b heard and understood. The only way that we can even know if this understanding takes place is thru the echoes of ourselves as shown 2 us by others. How we come across, what we mean 2 others, how much credence we r given, is measured thru our echoes. The power of the echo is not 2 b underestimated, as this incentivises us 2 redefine, and in that process, re-present ourselves, which in turn refines the voice. The voice, it can b said, becomes an echo of an echo.

But here’s the thing, even tho it’s the echoes around us that inform us, they r still just that, a facsimile of the self, and, in this age of ours, the types of expression used r based in shared cultures and cliches. So, even the expression of an individual idea is done via signs and signals used and understood within the confines of mass culture.

Now, thru the power of voice, and the echo of that voice, I an’ I finds form, and then refines and re-presents that voice (y’all remember that back in the day, the idea that brothers and sisters shd “represent” was a big ting!). Say that I had been involved in a family conflict, and those closest 2 me had then told me abt myself, as much as there may b much truth 2 what was said to me, that expression is based on a reflection coloured thru the prism of the individual who bounces that back 2 me , bearing in mind the original expression, my voice, has been spoken using tools acquired thru mass culture. The prism of the echo may b tainted by many things; our shared history, their own preconceptions of who they think I am (or should b), the echoes of others (multiple echoes, even from the same source, can distort each other) etc… And still, it is the acknowledgement of these echoes that helps refine and redefine the voice, and so give the individual form. Who I am becomes either what I desire it 2 b, or more likely what I’m shaped in2 being, based on the reflected distortions of my voice.

Some say that all tru knowledge is contained within, and we just have 2 relearn (as this is unlearned thru the process of our education and integration) how 2 access this inner repository. An overstanding of that fact means that no1 can truly, even with the best of both intentions and insight, tell u who u r. That overstanding can allow I an’ I 2 b free of the parameters of self set by the echo, and give I an’ I the freedom 2 find the voice.

Even in this free state, the voice may still not b truly of itself, as the tools used may still be those handed 2 us by our environment. Only by examining our own capacity 2 echo the voices of others can we comprehend how much of the tools used r inherent, and even then the process can b tricky. The thing that is most important is the recognition that the voice can become pure and distinct, even if this is then alien 2 all other voices around.

But then, if all voices become like this, no voice wld b alien, and it wld only b the fear of the power of the pure voice that wld motivate others 2 negate this.

As the times r a changing, it may b an idea 2 find that tru voice, its tru power, and as giving voice to a thing gives power and form, create 4 each of us that form, and that power.

Try 2 imagine, just 4 a moment, the sheer majesty of the harmony that such a thing cld make manifest.

Just imagine…

p.l.h.o


corrd the seeker62

The other day I read an article in the metro. In fact it was an interview of Grant Morrison; he is a popular comic book writer. Many of the statements that he made in his article were particularly resonant with me. To be quite honest article was quite strange (which says a lot about me) He spoke very candidly about being visited by inter dimensional aliens, about dabbling in magic and the occult, he spoke about Voodoo and advised readers not to get involved with it.

He said that he felt that it was too “Culturally specific" and felt that people shouldn't dabble with it as it was only suitable for people who lived in a certain context. He recognised that the Voodoo Gods were African Gods that had been warped into something people could use. It was a real indication (well to me at least) that things are changing energetically in the world. I thought that it was a very matter of fact interview. Now, increasingly the stuff of science fiction is becoming science fact and no one seems to be batting an eyelid. To me (at least) this is becoming more and more the case.

The other thing that he said was that magic works. I was thinking "wow! All of this in a daily newspaper" (and free one at that!)

On one level you could argue that technology is a form of magic. I remember when my mother first saw me using Skype. "Who are you talking to?" she asked gingerly. "Are they in the computer?" To a person who is not technologically minded the idea of speaking to someone through a computer screen is bordering on mysticism.

If you look at new smart phones (no free advertising here!) the technology works in a very intuitive way. The best technology is always simple to use even in its most complex intricacies. The interview also spoke of the Voodoo Gods as being scary and savage. (That's one thing that was consistent. The demonization of African tradition)

Yes there is definitely something afoot. You know this when you start getting multiple coincidences, on two or more levels. To me that shows that something has shifted. I don't exactly know what this shift is but it’s almost as if the split between the mental and material realms is starting to blur. That old cliché "be careful what you wish for" is starting to ring truer than it ever has been.

You may not believe what I am about to say but I am going to say anyway. Hopefully you will feel the truth in my words. The other day I was on the train and the door to the adjoining carriage was open so I decided to try an experiment. Like any self respecting metaphysical student I whole-heartedly believe in mind over matter. I sat in my seat and concentrated all of my non-existent telekinetic powers on the door and in my mind I chanted the mantra “close close……” and to my surprise the door started to close, so much so to the extent where I was like “What the f*ck” is going on here? Who’s messing with my head?”

I hear all you skeptics shouting out “Whatever! It was just the motion of the train that moved the door of the train not the power of your brain” and to some extent this may be the case but, that is not really the point. Call it a synchronicity or a coincidence but the timing was perfect and in was very meaning full and relevant to me.

Anyway just so I can prove my point to all you naysayers here’s a bit of timeless Hollywood wisdom….. Remember that part in the Matrix when the kid was bending the spoon and Neo tried but couldn’t do it?

“Do not try to bend the spoon that is impossible; instead only try to realize the truth”

“What truth”

“There is no spoon”

“There is no spoon?”

“Then you’ll see that it is not the spoon that bends, it is only yourself”

There you go, now how’s that for a water tight argument? And if that doesn’t convince you of my telekinetic ability, nothing will! ;)

Peace and Love

DM

What is the connection between creation and water? Because wat I am now coming to terms with is that ALL life comes from water. Before i never really overstood the concept of life, now i see it as not just something that is breathing, but something that has feelings and energy.
Water has feelings, memory and energy.
I just watched a documentary on water and it blew my mind. It is a russian documentary and is very well-produced. One of the researchers was later found out to be not quite all he says he is, but the rest of the people talking all seem to be on point, including nobel prize-winners, scientists etc... ie not just your usual internet spiritual crusaders.
This documentary really made me think about the water we drink(out of bottles and tap) If water has a sense of life about it... ie it has memory and feelings, how do u think it feels after travelling from a big"purification" plant via old taps with horrible right angles(water suppose to flow like a river) and then out of the tap in my flat. I would imagine that it feels pretty shit. Basically how you test how water feels is by freezing it and examining the crystals under microscope. But wat has even more more of an effect on the water than its journey, in fact what affects the energy-state of water more than any other factor....US. Yeah you and me (not the usa). There are so many examples given in the documentary of water changing its energy-state based on such small things like giving love and thanx. Even playing music to water can make it happy. The way you can tell if water is happyt or not is by how the crystals form when frozen quickly after receiving the emotional info. Crystals look pretty and symmetrical when happy and look horrible when they feel horrible. Anyway this "energy" that the water has is being killed off by these plastic bottles and pipes, however the water is not dead, so from now on i will be singing "sweet songs of melodies pure and true" and giving love and thanks b4 i drink my glass of water.
Anyway hope every1 out there doing good, just done a wicked show in holland... Bigups to Duketown!!
check out the documentary here...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-d20NrDX9Es&feature=related
Peace and Love
vibes and Pressure
Natty

So I’m sitting here staring at this census form, yeah i know its old news but why they keep ringing my door bell at crazy times to get me to fill it out!!!
Anyway i was thinking with all the crazy stuff going on in the world ‘they’ and when I say ‘they’ I mean the so called ‘powers that be’ whoever or whatever they might be, ‘they‘ want me to tell them a whole leap of information about who I am who I know and where I go!!
Now considering they spend much of their time watching what we're doing in CCTV heaven(hell) why do they now feel its ok to come ask me to my face for even more information about me. And when i don't promptly respond they knock on my front door on sunday evening to try catch me!!! If they wanna know about what services in the community they should go into those communities and come take a look cause I’m sure it aint hard to work out. But I thought there was no money for services and such so what are we having a say in? the fantasy world of services we might like if things were better.
But I guess it cause ‘were all in this together’ yeah right.


Basically were living in a time where most of us have disclosed so much personal information that I wonder whether its gotten to the point where getting a intrusive form like this in the post (or ringing my doorbell) even matters anymore. If they want to know anything about us they only need go online to access the vast amounts of information that we have left behind and the trail clearly leads right back to us, so now its gotten to the point where the feel its ok to just demand this information from us, apparently this form is compulsory and if its not completed then they wanna fine us. Now I’m thinking the fact your demanding this from me with a fine attached if I don’t give you what you want, there must be some dodgy reason behind a mass census bearing in mind I don’t really remember ever doing one before.

I don't get it! Is this is an experiment in social obedience? if you want to know how obedient a society is then you set up a form and tell people they have no choice but to complete it, cause for real who wants to give the government in these times more money they don’t really have.

They are marketing it as a opportunity for people to have a say in their communities on how money is spent on services and I’m like really?? Isn’t that the job of the person we vote as councillors or those we apparently vote into government to make those decision cause they have been doing it that way for as long as I remember but now all of a sudden they want our opinion. They didn’t listen when we said don’t go to war, they didn’t listen when we said don’t raise tuition fees, they didn’t listen when we said all these cuts and big society shit is all to line their pockets, they have even but now all of a sudden they wanna listen!

Ok, thanx 4 listening to me moan, but i needed to get that off my chest, they know where i live anyway so who cares wat i say right. Anyway on a positive note and a ps to all those waiting for the next album. we have completed recording half of it and have been recording now 4 about 4/5 weeks. so we shall have the other half dun by end of may. with a release to follow shortly. anyway take care 4 now.
Peace and Love
Vibes and pressure

I never ever thought I’d write anything like this. I was Facebook free for three years, even though I opened my account in 2007. Truth be told, I only opened the account to see my friends wedding pictures. I went to Antigua and had a wonderful time bar the loss of my phone and all my pictures (losing phones is a recurring theme in my life) so the lovely bride said to me
“Open an account on Facebook, I’ll put all the pictures on there!”
I thought nothing of it, being able to ogle all the pictures was great, but when I started getting emails about every last fart that my friends did, I started to take offence. (Yes I now know you can switch off that function but I didn’t at that time) The final straw was when I saw photos of myself in my beachwear from Antigua on the Internet. Now don’t get me wrong, I am not a prude nor were the pictures embarrassing or obscene. I just wondered if it was right to have your picture displayed to potentially the whole world without your consent.

Old-fashioned pictures would end up in a photo album and really now, who looks at photo albums? Let’s be honest, when someone gives you a musty old album to look through, we look at it to be polite, often before the end of it our eyes have glazed over and all the pictures have merged into one hazy mess, but pictures on Facebook? We over indulge in them and all their 10-megapixel glory.

So I deactivated my account and thought that was the end of it. Oh foolish pride. There I was walking tall thinking “Facebook, who needs that? I have real friends in the real world, I don’t want to be part of the matrix”
Famous last words. Many phrases come to my mind, kettle, pot, black or if you live in a glasshouse do not throw stones.

As it transpired I needed to contact someone in South Africa, so after a few cumbersome emails he’s like “Yeah contact me on Facebook” and he gave me his profile name. Upon reading the email I thought, “excuse me sir I don’t do Facebook” but as I had a good excuse I went to check it out. I thought my account had been deleted so I would need to open a new one, so you can imagine my horror when my old account reared its ugly undeleted head and smiled at me! All the pictures all there with unconfirmed friend requests from friends’ non-friends and randoms. At first I felt guilt towards all my friends, folks who I had abandoned and left in limbo having not accepted their requests to be my virtual digital buddy, I frantically started confirming people hoping that I hadn’t offended anyone. I promptly stopped when one my friends said to me in real life “look at you adding people like a madman” I thought about it. I’m sure nobody is really offended if I don’t add them, they don’t really care do they? (Actually I suppose they do. I have sent requests to at least two people that I really do know and they have ignored me, I am actually quite bitter)

So I closed the account again, or should I say deactivated it. Now here is one of the sinister things. The account is just deactivated, so it is still in cyber space but people can’t see it. As you try to close it asks you why you want to close it. I was thinking, why I want to close my account is none of your fucking business Mr Facebook. But it’s a question you have to answer so I put my reason as “other”
Its final twisted temptation before it becomes comatose is to show you pictures you are tagged in and say “so and so will miss you.” It’s like the monster in the movies that is left for dead after a long gruelling battle then suddenly springs back to life with its last dying breath and grabs you by the ankle.

Images of lovely memories almost made me give in, I stopped before I hit the deactivate button and looked at my friends pictures of fun in the sun, then when I realised I was being emotionally black mailed, I hit the deactivate button. “Be gone foul beast of social interaction!”

So fast forward to November 2010 and after meeting new people at home and abroad, coupled with the start of a period of unemployment and that darned Facebook iphone app,(I have since lost my iPhone) the devil made work for my idle hands. I found myself back on Facebook. I could hear my evil account saying, “Sucker, weakling, I knew you’d be back” It knew I’d be back but can honestly say I didn’t. Why else would it only allow you to deactivate it and not be able to delete.

Once again I started confirming all the waiting requests. I laughed when one of my real friends said “Its taken you three years to approve my request” I shuddered when one of my non-friends said “You are lucky, its taken him five years to approve mine” (I am still not 100% sure of who she is)

Being back on there has given me some positive things, it’s made me realise how much I enjoy writing again. It’s made me realise how funny and witty some people are, it’s made me realise how much technology has the ability to shape culture. I was in the supermarket and I over heard two young people talking, when I say young I mean anyone who is too young to remember life without mobile phones. They were talking about someone’s Facebook “Status” They spoke about the status as if it was a true reflection of the person’s inner being, I can’t remember the whole conversation but it was something like “She was really angry with him because she said so on her status”. Status=Reality=Scary.

I do find it strange when people update everything that they do. A old school friend of mine once put on her status “I’m going to take a bath now” after all the mockery (“is that your first one this year?”) her excuse was that she typed it by accident following a telephone conversation. I’m not sure which is more alarming, writing that by accident or writing it on purpose.

It got me thinking about how much people reveal about themselves knowingly and unknowingly on Facebook. With me being an armchair psychologist, I am quite careful about what I post, nothing too that is too militant. I don't wish to offend anyone and I don't think its the appropriate forum for a certain level of debate. My friends and non-friends must be thinking that I have too much time on my hands because at the moment I am in light-hearted comment overdrive. I don’t have a job at the present so I have a (tiny) excuse, however as I am a bit of a conspiracy theorist I can’t help thinking that there is something a bit sinister about a system that coaxes you reveal so much personal stuff, does it get stored somewhere? When big brother goes for lock-down mode will Facebook tell him who the "real revolutionaries" are?

Facebook highlights to the fact that we have at least three parts to our psyche, how we see ourselves, how we wish others to see us and how/who we really are. I suppose in an ideal world to those closest to you all three should be the same, but in everyday life things are different. How many of us go to work and project the image of a professional in a “role” then come home and smoke all the weed we can get our hands on! Facebook is definitely about how we want others to see us, so its quite interesting what people choose to reveal. I suppose it’s a social utility so for the most part people want to show their fun side, but there is also a lot of ignorance, and I find that people can also be overly critical, harsh an quite judgemental sometimes, often more so than they would be in real life. Everyone gets ten tons of courage when they’re behind a computer screen. For a supposed multi-cultural modern world we live in some of the racism I've seen on You Tube comments is appalling.


So I am going to enjoy my time back on Facebook and I am not going to be ashamed of it, hopefully I’ll get bored someday but until then, I’ll be adding people like its going out of fashion. I still admire those who have been able to resist, I think in a way that’s a small sign of strength of character… Anyway, I'm done now so I am going to check my Facebook page.......... I am a self –confessed Facebookaholic don’t judge me!

@me “Get off Facebook!”

Been thinking abt how Brother Clarence taught that it’s all mathematics. How the worlds' peoples r divided in2 percentages, y'all kno the figures (if not, check it out). How things can b looked at as equations, and that the slightest imbalance can bring un4eseen results. There is no gr8er example of that than Gaia herself, impulsive, impetuous, harsh, yet nurturing, sustaining, ever 4giving. Bear witness 2 what has been over the past few years. Indeed, heads need 2 take notice when an earthquake occurs of such magnitude that it shifts the earths’ figure axis, and human life is lost en masse in the blink of an eye.

But sometimes, the profound and incredible can b found in the most unlikely of places. I an’ I heard something that stayed with me, abt a street hustler known in his community as Basboosa. My man sold fruit and produce 2 makes ends meet, and also 2 hook up his Moms and siblings, even sending 1 on 2 higher education. Y’all kno how it goes tho, harassment by po-po is the norm, but that’s just the life of a hustler. These things occur on the regular the world over, the hand of the state slapping the unheard from time 2 time, just 2 keep it all in check. The balance is a delicate thing 2 maintain, after all. Mathematics.

The very temperature of the earth is yet another example, a few degrees this way or that wld have disastrous effects on all life. The sheer mechanics of what it takes 2 sustain life, from a universal perspective right down 2 the nitty gritty, is astounding, and fills any1 who tries 2 take it all in with fear and awe. The insignificance of the individual against the cosmos itself is, well, incalculable, so intelligent heads who have knowledge of these things sit back and observe the movements, attempting 2 gain insight in2 the Gr8 Mystery.

Been checking out the opium box, and I’m told of wave after wave of devastation, upheaval, unrest, and tragedy. I even heard the craziest thing, that the seat of European power, Brussels, exists in a country that 4 almost a year now, has no official government, and that if it wasn’t 4 the fact of the significance of Brussels in the Gr8 Order, Belgium wld cease 2 b what it is. On the real. And, it cld all fall down anyway, the fact that Brussels is the centre of Europe, and that it’s the glue that holds the country 2gether, notwithstanding. Yet, western ‘civilisation’ is the model 4 the world. A beacon, even.

Chaos theory, fractals, butterflies causing the banks 2 crash (not bankers or polytricksters, oh no!)… hmm. In all this awe and wonderment, all this terrifying circumstance and exciting unknowns, there r still individuals. I an’ I. All over the world, people looking out, hoping 2 kno what’s next, wanting something more, not only 4 themselves, but 4 their fam, wishing 2 just mayb catch a glimpse of a little respect, a little dignity, some faint acknowledgement. A life where the powers that b just offer that little bit of dignity, but 4 the unheard, the ability 2 gain this is as unattainable as the Gr8 Mystery.

Galileo famously said that mathematics is the language with which God wrote the universe.

So what can I an’ I do in the face of all that has been beheld? After all, the equation balances itself, right? All an individual can try 2 do is deal with what is in front of them. Do u. Handle yr business, kno yr role and play yr position. Code of the streets, feel me?

C, Basboosa, that’s all he tried 2 do, and the odd slap here and there, well its all part of the equation balancing itself out. Mathematics. Except, 1 day, after having his selling stock strewn in the streets, and getting literally bitch slapped by po-po, this hustler had enough. Phuc balance, phuc status quo. So he tried 2 link up with his local beaurocheat, just so he cld try get some kinda acknowledgement, mayb find a little dignity in all this. Dude cldn’t even get on the schedule, much less face time. So he took the only option he cld c, went back 2 that beaurocheats’ big yard, and lit himself on fire.

Years from now, only those who knew him and loved him will mourn his passing, will have a void that is irreplaceable, and cherish his existence. A son, a brother, a cousin, nephew, friend, fellow hustler, 1 of the unheard, is dead.

Yet in his final moments, he made a sound with a power so gr8, it brought down a government, and Tunisia is a whole different place, and all over the world a hustlers’ echo reverberates, moving hearts, inspiring minds, remolding political landscapes or just tearing shit up. All this from an echo that most don’t even kno whose voice it came from. In the face of the insurmountable, the insignificant performed the incredible, the profound. Bear witness.

Now there’s some mathematics 4 yo’ ass!

p.l.h.o.

Corrd the Seeker

Back when my pursuit of the arts of war was a more integral part of my existence, I used to come across articles written by a Grand Master who enthused that the universal purpose of life was 2 b happy. See it deh. Simple, succinct. Profound, even. But then, what is happiness, and is the pursuit of it really our purpose on this mortal coil? I mean, if I and I happiness comes at the expense of I and I, am I justified in this pursuit? It is after all my universal purpose from which I shdn’t b denied.

Even as I penetrate this, something’s off. Happiness can manifest in many ways; a debauched weekend, post coital bliss, familial contentment, or the benefits of an enlightened existence. Happiness itself is both elemental and conceptual. It can spring up on us by surprise in spite of ourselves, or can even b a state we will into existence. Every1 knows at least 1 person who has told themselves that they are happy with a particular situation enough times until the belief is held. Perception becomes reality, or rather desire becomes perception becomes reality. Cld even go as far as 2 say many of us have indulged ourselves thus.

Emerson came at the ting thus: “The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honourable, to be compassionate, to have to make some difference that you have lived and lived well”. That’s a good look right there… or is it? As much as this sounds like a universal truth, it’s somewhat subjective (like happiness!). It’s also dependent upon the context in which the statement is applied. If eugenics was acceptably applied (many revered 20th century leaders were believers in this, including the beloved Winston Churchill), wld the systemised culling of our own b neatly housed under this definition? And beyond that, Emerson’s’ statement implies that function and purpose r the same thing, in which case whatever your designated function, in whatever skism u r contracted 2 (yes, even the social contract, which is the dominant imposition), your practise of said function is the fulfilment of your purpose. Some heads hold this as absolute.

Uh…..yeah.

Now, depending on whatever principles you hold dear, either 1, or both, of the above perspectives contravenes moral rules in some way... not 2 get 2 deep on morality, perhaps a next time, but even if this is the foundation on which I and I can judge purpose, then that ground cld be a little shaky. More than a little as, according 2 greater minds, morality may well b of a transient nature.

Some of the ancients believed that the purpose of a thing was within the thing itself, and wld lead it 2 its final destination, or resting place. Now language being what it was, and concepts of existence being different from what we perceive now, purpose was something within, something integral, not just a quality, but that which exists in order for the thing itself 2 exist, and relative 2 the reality in which it exists.

This purpose thing still bugs me. Happiness. Usefulness. Honour. Love. Destruction. So many others, all wherein I and I can reside. But 2 what end? There it is. The rub, as they say. Peep this. I and I pree this, and the reality (if there is such a thing) or realness is that as much as the truths talked abt and many others promote (positive) purpose, all these things r still functionary. They r facilitated by other functions in order 2 allow other things to happen. In this they r higher, or deeper, functions, but they still exist in order to facilitate more specific things. If I’m happy, it allows me 2 affect those around me, enrich relationships, and so forth. 2 b utilitarian aids efficiency, promotes productivity, reh teh teh… Purpose within purpose? Nah b, function within function.

The ancients mighta been on 2 something. Purpose at creation, but actually not just of a thing, but the thing itself. The origin, the root. The place where the Vibe and the Pressure meet the Universe. Nature.

Yeah, I hear u, “Corrd, big hole yuh a miss, cause naturally, people function on the baser instinct, and then learn 2 function within the fam. Without the learning, chaos Iyah!”. Indeed. But remember, purpose is born of nature, on a core level, conception level. Not only born of, but that which it aspires 2, a true revolution, that eventually comes back 2 itself. The realness. Nature, as both beginning and end, facilitated by the functioning of purpose.

Nature. True nature, not 2 b confused with the baser instinct, which is reactionary and evolutionary, like that which is observed in the natural world. Man is different though, sentient, self aware, intellectual. Yet baser (natural) instinct is the simplest way in which man functions, and can’t b dismissed. If this natural self is the base, where does our nature take us? To what end?

I’ma drop it like this. Man’s true nature is 2 overstand his natural self.

Function (and purpose) becomes relative 2 nature, guiding I and I 2 a higher high. Alpha and Omega.

As the Universe realigns, its time 2 embrace yourself. Don’t b new 2 this, b true 2 this.

p.l.h.o.

Corrd the Seeker