Sorry Japan, You Just Got Roasted.

Japan. Overpopulation, typhoons, nuclear reactor disasters, atomic bomb catastrophe. Cramped hotels, people living on people, rejoicing in pollution and land slides, an island that abides by self destruction, a volcano eruption, children and slaves, whipped by sixteen hour days of study...it's cruddy, soaked in the bloody and muddy, gray skies, rainy days, and dead samurais. It's not bigotry it's imagery, painted by Panadas, rice, bamboo trees, and bad days with chemistry, it's misery.

Anime poisons, more Americans than a Blowfish Roll, comatose Ginger, shit's taken it's toll. Bunch of awkward kids, and two armed squids, shitting from their mouth, wasting time at Lids, with broke out faces, permanently sealed behind parent's places, tentacles reaching into spaces grasping for Yu Gi Oh cases, but finding dead air, bouncing foreheads off LG screens and the PlayStation's glare.

God must hate Japan, and I just can't blame him, he showed a old man there the path and he claimed that God shamed him, maimed him, the emotional wreck, cried out that Judo had trained him, but life had defamed his once noble craft, so you do the math, one steel sword and one pissed off Jap, he bent over sharp with his face in his lap, would have beheaded himself if he had crafted the trap. A small island of insanity, twisted vanity and strange talent, wait for the day a unicycle is valiant, and when a balancing act is worth the practice, anywhere else but the Fallen Circus of Axis.

For Better or Worse.

Truth is the most hidden, the most forbidden essence of all. Smells can be remembered, triggering waves of the past and all that came, or didn't, or may have twice, moments and conversations, connections and missed opportunities, or the right things to say, at the wrong times, at the most crucial hour and vulnerable breaths; death, and all that it opens, or closes waits...brakes busted, gears churning, a slide from the cliff into the inevitable, or the depths, of fear and love, opposing one another inside a bitter and dismal tango, where underdogs are real, losing battles most of the percent, only to make the one victory shine brighter than endless defeat, and impatient ascent.

Descent, into the cloudless days of gray and doubt, rhymes broken and found, strength sacrificed to be profound, to exist, or falsely claim being through sacrificial words, shunned feeling lost in the abyss of communication, a nation, divided by lines and the imagination of men assumed to be greater than those equal, living and working for different goals and tribulation, all to fall and rot in an unseen shadow, and fear of numb tranquility, forced confrontation, ground into the dirt and the common, where we will all lay together.

We shiver, we grasp, sometimes for air, or the secondary comfort of cotton lumps, remembering the people who broke the falls and supported the toll of life, a pillow cannot find you in your darkest days. Lay beside her, dine her, but do not love, as you may fright her, and all the comfort of clouds above will decide one day to shrug, a fall back to reality, but never beyond thyself and all the foundation missing from the first nail. Pale Ale, for a moment of clarity, and a morning of confusion, a gasp and sweat, last nights dream, a forgotten illusion, of what could have been or what could be, the aching rest of a full night of sleep.

Lost in an abortion, is the distortion, of reality, truth is fleeting from peers and sons, of those promised guidance by those whom are shunned. One day a prince, the next day a beggar, youth flutters away then dances in front, children someday, but tomorrow's a front, a game, a play, a feeling lost and found again, with every wrong emotion, or move, today's wife could be tomorrow's nightmare, and yesterday's love could be thy neighbor's bore, a whore, or the innocent girl next door, blossomed into perfection and left for dead twenty years or more, down the road where walkers are run over, by fast pace cars, of loud hums and rich bums, worried about the pedal without ever enjoying the ride.

Spit from beneath the wheels of the perceived stars are the scars, of those who tread lightly and patiently await, a fate which may never arrive. They trudge through the snow, and the bitter road, through chilling winds and endless loss, surviving on will, hope, and love, or warmth, or simply a sign from above, a wink or nod, praying to be told it is not all in vain. They walk over broken wills, and those who settled for fragmented rock, who lied then died, beaten to death by their own thoughts and failures, but if they just keep walking, they could discover comfort beyond their wildest dreams. They may be shot dead a step before the summit, only exclaiming and just for a moment, that it can be done.

The man on the road promises a safe arrival, and asks you to throw away your Bible, or whatever it is you grip closest to your heart, and for a safe return you will be showered in paper, when stacked high enough is like stone, shattering bone, severing the brain from the heart, and dreams from an eternal nightmare. You may only live once, and you may life forever, but you can never be certain, so drag on, walk alone if you must, but never be afraid to let another carry your forward, even if the last let you down, because easy paths are just an illusion, for the weak to be drawn in and finished quick. Break the line, do not fall before it, we all define, ourselves, and our steps will always stray from one another, and if they didn't, every step would lose it's meaning.

Never falter at the word of another, it's not a race but a trail, be aware, have the tortoise for dinner, and for breakfast, the hare, this leg's sinner could be the next one's saint...but walk on, you never know what awaits. You can only see what has failed but when you look down below, it is your feet you see...do you see?

It was once flat and had an end, and then it was round and you'd come back again, explanations of it all, through the thicket and the barriers, climb over the wall, never stop, never. Never itself it debated and proven, but the more you see, the more you see it's all woven, powers that be and powers unseen may stop your constant defeat in a moment, and inside the depths of the eyes of another, a story itself frozen forever, enthralled without meaning, it's a moment of truth, though the person holding that truth may run from their own, and on this day, you will know there was not one defeat, not one speck of remorse, and you will live forever, for better or worse.

The Question of Syria

Since 2001, "terror" has been used as a precursor for the United States to attack and invade countries in the Middle East, whom have been seen as agents working against our "national interests", since the 70's, well before the War on Terror. One of the main reasons people question the actual story of 9/11 is because of how this event has been used to propagate multiple military actions against nations and leaders whom the CIA and Security Council have identified as threats to the U.S. decades before the attacks on September 11th. In this very moment, leaders are debating whether or not to go to war with Syria over the accusations that Assad's military has used Sarin nerve gas against it's citizenry. It's important in a situation like this to peel away the cover and war rhetoric and really dig into what is actually going on, and what happens behind the closed doors of government.

In case you didn't already know, the people at the top of our government don't go to war over emotional issues, or the strict defense of human rights. The entire showcase of "America, the Crusader of Justice and Democracy" is absurd, it's language used for those who have no idea what goes on in the global arena, for the mom and pops who are constantly terrified for the security of their children and are afraid of what the world will do to them. The government plays off of this fear, and let's you know, "Yes, the world is a dark and scary place, and you need us to protect you from it."

In the world from a realist perspective, war, trade, air-strikes, and humanitarian aid is all dispensed in some symbiotic fashion. We, along with every other world-power, will not take any action simply because it benefits another country. A thought up strategy may benefit another country, but the plan isn't executed unless there is some benefit to us, and "us" is not you and I as citizens, but "U.S. interests" a term used by many and understood by few. U.S. interests are things that spread American influence through the world. We aren't policing the world because it needs us to survive, it is seen as "in our interest" to do the things we do out of fear of other superpowers, like Russia and China, because it's assumed these nations will take actions and stick their influence somewhere if we don't.

If you need evidence of this, feel free to learn about the Cold War.

We stood idle during the genocide in Rwanda because there was no gain for U.S. interests by interfering. Most of the time when horrible things happen in Africa occur "we" do nothing, because private companies have already sucked the continent dry of it's national resources, and the governments or people themselves have nothing to offer us. Parasitic exploitation is in full circle.

The Middle East has been a focal point of U.S. interests since oil was discovered in the region in the 70's. When America spearheaded the oil boom it also led the industrial revolution in the early 19th century, but eventually, our oil fields began to run dry, and other countries were making discoveries. The Middle East as a whole is rich with oil, but these fields are separated by national lines. If the Ottoman Empire still existed today, it would be the economic focal point of the world, because all of these oil fields would be unified under one national identity. This would provide self sufficiency for the Ottomans, and directly threat the interests of the U.S. by creating a real trade rival. The natural reunification of the Middle East under Arab Nationalism may be seen as an impossibility from the outside (as we are always to believe the Middle East is full of nations who are modern day tribesman with blood vendettas against one another now and forever) but when looking at conventional maps through the past millennium and you will see this region unified more often than not.

Enter Saddam Hussein, more than a brutal dictator, more than a man once on the CIA payroll, supported to destroy Iran, was a Socialist, a member of the Ba'ath Party, and a pan-Arab Nationalist. This is to say, he was someone who wanted the reunification of Arab nations, not so much under peace, but by force. His expansionism into Kuwait caused Desert Storm, effectively shutting down his attempt to acquire territory before it gained any momentum. Decades later we went to war under false pretenses to topple the Iraqi government we helped shape decades before and had Saddam killed. He wasn't a huge threat to us, here at home, but he was a recognizable character, had the respect of his people through fear, had one of the most powerful militaries in the Middle East (we sold it to him) and held Pan-Arab Nationalism as one of his ideals, in other words, he got too close to the Sun.

Let's move onto Muammar Gaddafi, killed without so much of a peep from the American people, was a dictator, but he was also a socialist and an Arab-Nationalist like Saddam. He wasn't a threat to American people, but he was a recognizable name once again, who made himself and his country rich through oil, and another man who called for the region to unite regardless of if the means were peaceful, a man, seen as a leader in the eyes of many in the Middle East.

This is important when looking at Syria. The Iraq War was a strategic disaster. It has been the focal point of public opinion of the War on Terror, and almost brought the war down, as it should have. Bush ordered an invasion, without any real understanding of the Iraq people, and how the country was unified through fear of it's leader, but not commonality. The reason why the occupation of Iraq lasted so long is because the people there wanted their own interests, not the interests of America, Halliburton, or other private companies, to be put first. The profit of private industry exploded in Iraq before any notion of Democracy even hit the table. Insurgents have fought back, suicide bombers have constantly attacked civilians, the entire country is a mess. It doesn't matter to our interests that Iraq is a mess, because it is not a nuclear country, and therefor, destabilized, poses no major threat.

While Saddam and Gaddafi may not have been benevolent leaders who championed human rights, they were able to consolidate power in their countries, generating relative stability and infrastructure inside a region, that seriously lacks these two elements. It could be argued that the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were just an opportunity to get boots on the ground in the region, as we have witnessed government after government destabilized and overthrown, not at all in the best interests of the Middle Eastern people. Political unrest or full-blown upheaval in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, Lebanon, Jordan, Oman, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Bahrain, Libya, and Kuwait.

In the case of Libya, rebels seemingly came out of nowhere in 2011 and created unrest in the country. Gaddafi claimed these rebels were foreign influence trying to purposefully destabilize the country. He said it was "Al-Qaeda" and was mocked on national television in the U.S. for this. These claims were a show of his mental instability and how "bizarre" he is. Both sides of this conflict ignored international law, and tortured one another, wiped out civilians, using them as pawns. Regardless of the politics, eventually the country was successfully destabilized and our government used "atrocities" against mankind as a precursor for air strikes. Gaddafi is dead, and without official U.S. intervention he would have outlasted and eventually defeated the  rebels. This time unlike Iraq, we killed the leader we wanted to quickly, and didn't get the bad PR for U.S. casualties, but we did begin the discussion of chemical weapons. Gaddafi never used them, but our news organizations at home started planting the seed and drilled the idea of "concerns of chemical weapons" over and over into the minds of U.S. citizens.

Jump to Syria , and Al-Bashir Assad, a Socialist member of the Ba'ath Party in Syria. Al-Assad's father ruled Syria before him as an Arab-Nationalist, and the President before his father, Shukri al-Quwatli was also an Arab-Nationalist. The country has been destabilized through a bloody Civil War over the past two years, where well over 100,000 people have died. The U.S. government has provided weapons to rebels just like we did in Libya, and like we did in Afghanistan in the 1980's. The rebels have failed to kill Assad or win the war, and now we are to believe it is time for U.S. intervention, because Sarin nerve gas has been used on civilians in the area. Obama and others have been debating whether or not to officially support Syrian rebels for quite sometime, but have been scared off by Russia's tough talk (it is in their interests for Syria not to be attacked as the only Russian naval base in the Mediterranean is in Syria). We contemplated assassinating Assad when the conflict began because protesters were being killed and stood down. As the violence has escalated, the pundits and war-hawks of corporate news channels have debated whether or not to intervene in Syria through the entire conflict.

Here are some more things to think about on Syria. Al-Assad, like Gaddafi, has claimed the rebels are trained and influenced by Al-Qaeda. A pretty strange claim, as it gets ignored and completely overlooked by our media. All of the the governments thrown into chaos have come from what corporate news called "The Arab Spring". All of the rebels involved in the Spring are just as violent as their predecessors, and adhere to the idea of Sharia Law, a sect of Islam, where government and religion are conjoined. A sect of government that routinely causes human rights abuses. Once again, the people of the region have not benefited, but the theme of "divide and conquer" has well been put into place.

Why would Bashir Al-Assad use Sarin gas on civilians only a few days after the UN Security Council sent people to look for chemical weapons? Knowing Obama has long wanted to have a way into Syria, why would he use chemical weapons, months after Obama claimed this would be a "red-line" drawn for us to intervene? It makes absolutely no sense from a strategic standpoint. The man has been fighting off rebels for two years, to hold onto the nation given to him after his father's death, and he does the only thing that would guarantee U.S. interference?

If we struck now and killed Assad, we would damage our relations with Russia, show the entire Arab community it is us, not them, that control their destiny, we would spend millions if not more money we as hard working Americans don't have, and we would hand Syria over to murderers. That's right, beyond the rhetoric of Assad, is the brutal truth of those whom oppose him.

 http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/05/world/middleeast/brutality-of-syrian-rebels-pose-dilemma-in-west.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Just like in Libya, both sides of this war are ignoring international laws of war, like most in the Middle East tend to do, and we are supposed to support a side? We are supposed to put our own credibility on the line after it has been so damaged, to pick a side in the matter? The article below shows, that we don't even know whom is using chemical weapons.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/may/6/syrian-rebels-used-sarin-nerve-gas-not-assads-regi/

It would make a lot more sense for rebels to release the gas and blame it on Assad, knowing this would cause U.S. intervention and the eventual fall of the Assad regime, wouldn't it? You have to wonder what the end game is for every side to be able to play in this game.

For some reason, big Whigs have decided destabilizing and throwing the entire Middle-East into chaos is in the U.S. best interests. My guess would be so puppet dictators like Mohammad Mossadegh and President Mubarak, can be re-established in the region with renewed support for U.S. interests to directly oppose Iran's influence in the region, and oppose any chance of Arabs and Persians of uniting under an common regional identity. You see, there was a revolution in Iran in 1979, and those who determine "our interests" really, really took this personal, and there has seemingly been some sort of vendetta on the Middle East since. I don't see any of this to be coincidence, because it isn't, just like it isn't a coincidence that Syria borders Iran, and opposes Israel.

It's all in our best interests, to have blood on our hands, more blood on our hands, more countries thrown into chaos, and more Israeli operations completed without them having to spend a dime or go to war directly with their enemies. It's all in our interests to ensure Israeli dominance economically and militarily over the region permanently. Here's some more food for thought. John McCain seems to be pretty intent on going to war...now.

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2013/09/20139414329291833.html

Play, Damn You. Play the Game.

The essence of life is life itself. Wallowing is wasting, and waste will swallow, all of the fiber, until you are hollow. Stay hungry, but never starve.

To realize the game, it's purpose, you must first play. Let the winners and losers sort themselves out when the curtains close, and until they collapse, hand yourself over. Do not look through the hole, climb the fence, do not watch, dance on the field. You cannot win, you cannot lose if you never try, if you never pick up the ball, if you never lace up the glove. Someday there will be no end, if the game is played perfectly it will never end, it will passionately move forward, and both sides will pause, just for a moment to realize their part, and that they do not oppose one another, but instead, that they breathe life into one another, and in this moment, rivals will pray that they can fight forever.

For the essence of life is life itself, there may be a beginning, and could be an end, but just like any game, it's what happens between that defines the time. Get on the stage, jump off the cliff, close your eyes and let go of the fear, of the doubt, let yourself feel. You will hear the air, it will brush against your skin, it soothes.Sometimes it is the unseen that fills you with life, that carries you. Let yourself love the game, and you will stop caring about winning or losing, you will know what it's like to run free.

Life is only a string of short moments, and at the end, everyone will talk about the winners, of the performances, of the failures and successes, this is why funerals are so dull. They are times to reflect on life, and mourn the lost, but the lost themselves are never present, and for good reason, it is a waste of time, of life. They have moved on to another game, players don't enjoy the press conference, it's a formality, it's fake, the questions are determined, the answers are expected, dull words of the heavenly lights, which caught a glimpse of heroes and heartbreak, of love and struggle, of grit, and everything beautiful that cannot be repeated and will never be captured in whole. Play damn you, get out there and leave your heart on the field. What are you saving it for?

Jason Reynard, B.A. Political Science, Comparative Politics, former Political Consultant.

About a month ago, I promised I would stop ranting about politics, having said that, let's move on.

It dawned on me last night, as I was polishing off a few Rogue Dead Guy Ale's (product placement) that a majority of people have no idea what is going on around them in Government, part of me is jealous, and the other part I think, finally had the "ah-ha!" moment I've been waiting for.

A pretty large majority of people in this country will not read what I'm about to say, but I never started doing this to please other people, I selfishly began writing, because I enjoy it. So, fuck em'. There is another large sect of people in this country who will be turned off to any knowledge I have to offer simply because of my language, well to be more appropriate, fuck them too, and still, the rest of the make-up of people will not take the time to read, because it's inconvenient, and certainly fuck them, most of all, with a six-foot rubber fist. These people are worthless, and every sect of their imagination has been projected to them by another person's mind or another person's imagery. They are in a sense, dead already, as they refuse the exercise the very essence of what makes us human, internal thought, and our creative connection to the next plain. Yes, the next plain, the place we cannot understand, a world where Deja Vu, gut instinct, love, dreams, the afterlife, the true machinery of the Universe, and all other things that both don't exist and do at the same time whirl above and below, taunting us with every decision we make without acknowledging what is beyond the physical.

So, back to the physical, and what we know, or at least, what we perceive to know. It is 2013, and we are in the middle of one of the most turbulent times in human History, with updates across the world at our fingertips in an instant, we can see these times unfolding before our eyes, and yet we choose to look away. The truth of existence is beating on the front door of America, and those who need to step up to the plate, hide behind the sofa, while serpents control our destiny and run it into the ground. People like John McCain, Nancy Pelosi, George Bush, Diane Feinstein, Barack Obama, Michael Bloomberg, Dick Cheney, Joe Biden, Sean Hannity, Al Sharpton, and so many other of our perceived "leaders" do nothing more than pit us, human beings, against each other on false political front lines. They make us hate each other, they tell us what to think, they tell us 'their side" of the story as opposed to ever giving us the straight answer, the truth, the real story. They invoke Hitler when talking about their rivals, they invoke Martin Luther King Jr. when talking about themselves, they do nothing, absolutely nothing more than play off our deepest human emotions, to make us destroy one another. It's worked, this country is collapsing from the inside.

The entire Middle East is in upheaval, North Korea, one of the world's worst Despotism states is developing nuclear weapons, Europe is collapsing. Riots all over the world, people are tired of being controlled, they know we as a people, are destined to be something more. Be a part of this, pay attention, you cannot tread water lazily when the tides of History cascade. You have no choice other than to be a part of it, you must know what part you want to play. Change, real change, is coming, for better or worse.

Pay close attention to what I'm going to say, because I don't care what you think about me for saying it, the American Government is preparing to kill you. I don't know why, and I don't know exactly what we are on the precipice of, because we have never seen anything like this in human History, it has never happened.

"THIS KID IS FUCKING INSANE". No, I'm seriously not, this is the most important part, so don't just hang up on me, read this.

I've harped on this for a while, it is now legal for President Obama to order the assassination of American citizens without judge or jury. Here is an article about it, you can find hundreds more.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/05/us-targeted-killings-eric-holder_n_1320515.html

This Executive Order was passed without any lawmaking body that represents us as a Democracy having any say in the matter. They always use terrorism as an excuse, just like they use it as an excuse to tap our phones, to save all of our personal data, to access our emails, our passwords, our accounts. It's all in the name of Terrorism. Some bullshit word, some bullshit war that invokes fear in it's very name.

Guantanamo Bay, we don't know who is even there. There are human beings being held without trial, many of whom are not terrorists, but we are afraid to release them, because after torturing them, we fear if released, we have actively turned them into terrorists. http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/aug/12/john-grisham-guantanamo-bay-us-wrong

In case you didn't know, it's legal for any American, now to be detained indefinitely without trial, with jury, only if they are "suspected of terror". Pretty fucking vague.

Yes, I realize that people are not just being assassinated, or disappeared around the country, but realize, the legal precedent has been set, and carrying out such crimes is now, not an offense that can impeach a President, this is not now just a philosophical debate about safety, it has grown teeth legally.

America has the world's largest prison population. China, Communist Dictatorship, Russia, Communist pseudo-Dictatorship, North Korea, all of these enemies and nations we see as being constant Human Rights deniers...we have a prison population larger than all of them combined. 25% of the world's prisoners are in America.  On top of this, over 800,000 people go missing in America every year, every year. Something is seriously, seriously wrong with this country. An estimated 750,000 are adults, not children. It's beyond comprehension.

Now, let's use some good old fashioned imagery of what our police forces look like these days.

                                                                                                                                                                   I think you get the idea. This is not a Police force, there is a word for this in the world of Political Science, it's called paramilitary. But hey guys, it's for your own safety, from terrorism. 9/11 happened twelve years ago, Osama Bin Laden is dead, Saddam doesn't have nukes, but for your safety, we are going to arm our police forces tooth and nail to protect you. We are going to spy on your phone calls, detain people without trial, assassinate people without trial, because it's for your safety.

What else has happened for our safety here recently? The Department of Homeland Security has purchased 1.6 BILLION rounds of ammunition in the past year, hollow points, in case you don't know, these bullets are called "cop killers" because upon impact they explode and bits of shrapnel spread into the tissue, causing massive bleeding that is extremely, extremely difficult to stop. 1.6 billion rounds, not for the military, for Homeland Security, who the fuck at home are we securing? That's enough ammunition to kill every American citizen...three times. Acknowledge what is happening, let it sink in a bit.

Do you really think Government leaders want to ban assault weapons in the United States solely because of school shootings? They don't seem to have much of a problem distributing fully-automatic rifles freely among our police forces, along with domestic tanks. This is what you do to set up for warfare, not protect the citizenry against a dozen underfed Saudi Arabians with box cutters, or one manically depressed nut-job with a semi-automatic, ya dig?

You looked around your neighborhood recently? Notice cameras on intersections that didn't used to be there? Did you remember voting for that? Don't worry, we have you under constant surveillance for your own safety. Good luck not getting shot, teased, or the shit beat out of you if you attempt to film cops doing anything, from routine traffic stops to killing the neighbors dog, or illegal searches and seizures. Though you can see them filming you, taking pictures for facial recognition at demonstrations and protests of any sort. Is a harmless video really "interrupting police business"? No. Not at all. They are keeping people from filming this because it's terrifying, it's intimidating, and it's going on with a large majority of people not knowing its happening. It's the world's greatest magic trick, the overnight transformation of America into a militarized Police State.

So, here we are in the real world, never really free, always clinging on to some job we hate, to scrape by, and never become the people we were destined to, completely tuned in to television and tuned out to the greater beyond, never asking ourselves important questions like "What's my purpose?" "What happens when I die?" just standing idly by with the one life we get, not having any real choice in what we do with it. Work 5 days for two off, too tired to do anything exciting, too broke to go anywhere for a long time, a quarter of every dollar we make goes towards killing people over seas, and buying our police enough weaponry to completely and legally destroy us.

It doesn't matter if you think this is real or not, if you think this is with bad intent or not, the only thing missing for an absolute massacre in this country is the order. The cameras are set up, the weapons and machinery are distributed, the new law enforcement agencies have been introduced, the laws are in place, the precedent has been set. The Boston Bombing was a national televised showcase of what our government can do to any major city in the snap of a finger. The guns and ammunition are there, and the tanks. If we are the enemy, our digital correspondence is already tapped, our phones are accessed and all digital print archived. Good luck trying to start a resistance against this form of government, hiding from the drones and helicopters and cameras, you can't even stage a protest without everyone getting shot with rubber bullets or maced, good fucking luck leading a revolution to resist oppression, it's been stamped out before it ever began, right under our noses.

Hey, don't worry, I'm sure our legislators will do the right thing, the ones who steal money from us and legally get away with insider trading, the ones who get paid kick-backs, and suck up to each other like this is all some big game, some big "haha" over a glass of Chardonnay paid for by the constituents, the ones who just got their homes repossessed, whose fathers just got thrown in prison, the lowly jobless who can't take care of their families or afford to educate their children to do better. Said I wasn't going to rant about politics anymore, I guess I didn't really lie all that much, because I'm not talking about politics, I'm talking about some sort of domestic war that for some reason, our government is preparing to fight inside this country. Ask yourself who the "enemy" is?

Passion.

Passion will carry you further than any human emotion; there is love, there is hate, there is fear, but passion will let you hover above all of these things. Passion is a sustained moment of perfection, where you will float above doubt and critique, where you lose the fear to care, and take a leap.

We sacrifice passion for what is deemed necessary, what is deemed normal, what is depicted as acceptable, passion will plow through it all...doubt, sadness, and sometimes madness. When you sacrifice all for passion, you will reach immortality. The money will not matter, you will hold disdain of fame, you will only want to be alone, with your passion. It is an essence, a sense, unattained by so many who will never know the hunt has begun.

It can destroy and create love, it will force you to rise above the clouds of mundane existence, and it will channel you to something better, something never before seen by the crowds of onlookers, who drown in the wonderment of what has made you different than they. You will not care if they see, as you exist, and feel that existence, and how beautiful it can be, when you dedicate yourself not in part, but whole. You will not care about their thoughts, about their judgement, nor their ridicule, for you have found passion, something nobody but yourself will understand, something you will never have to explain, it WILL NOT be contained and cannot be simply obtained. It is a fire within, that will never stop burning, the endless yearning to outsiders discerning, the closet human contact can be to divine gears churning. 

For it is passion, it is life, and for those that do not seek, and do not sacrifice, they will never find, the core of life.

The Rant to End All Rants.

America is in a state of confusion, where the backwards moves us forward, and rallies for "change" have quickly transformed into the progression of hope's suffocation. Hope, trampled by blood-lust and frenzied masses, as they celebrate the demise of invisible foes and conjured enemies. Hope, dangling above the starved by the depraved, a teasing game with a ball of yarn, just to watch the cat do flips for nothing in return. Hope, sealed behind the guise of a classified envelope, revenge for the written word, once burned in stacks by people, now the words order the burning, all sealed behind doors of laughter and purposeful ignorance, chosen stupidity, only a more innocent and less cowardly version of aversion.

If you don't understand the imagery in it's entirety, don't be alarmed, for you are human, and this part of your brain has actively been eviscerated since your conception. As an update on the country, people are rallying all around the country at this moment to "avenge" the death of Trayvon Martin, wide rallies in various cities all call for George Zimmerman, to be prosecuted, executed, electrocuted, anything to satisfy their thirst for vengeance. This fire has been fueled by the President, by The Justice Department, by corporate media. There have been no calls for peace, for reconciliation, or even directions to READ by definition what "Murder 1" is, and how without clear, premeditated intent to murder beyond a reasonable doubt, it cannot be.

Of course, as a writer, I must recuse myself to a degree, because many people don't understand what "corporate media" even is, and still think the petty jokes about "FOXNEWS" illegitimacy are not jokes reserved for the media as a whole. The fact is CNN, MSNBC, FOX, ABC, are all misguided bastards of information, with intent to gain ratings, not to inform the public of truth, especially a public who loudly rejects truth at every turn, a public who cannot see but two inches beyond it's own face, a public who will gladly mock, then intimidate, then threaten an opposing view until finally, after the damage is done, that opposing view is proven correct, then the public will fade into the background like cowards, ignoring their own actions without ever acknowledging how wrong they were. Who would want to tell an unapologetic tank full of sharks they are in captivity, when all they want is to be fed? This is the reality of our time.

While Obama and his goons desperately try to damage the legal system like they have destroyed the main legal foundation of this country for years, a petty attempt to muster racial tensions, as ignorant whites and blacks alike call into their stupid talk-radio show hosts, and share their infantile views on the case...the House voted today to NOT curtail the wide domestic NSA spying programs across the nation. While hundreds of people killed one another over the past two months, black, white, Latino, and everything in between without a pip from any major media outlet, Obama got away free with his corrupt and politically slanted IRS, and the Department of Justice got away with outing major news sources from the one major news outlet that actually does it's own research, The Associated Press. It doesn't do it's research very well, but unlike FOX, CNN, and the likes, at least it gathers it's own information.

I've taken a walk from all of this, from the constant onslaught of corruption and shit in this nation to focus on myself and what makes me happy, because as a political writer, happiness is impossible. Every day I read a news article, I only learn of the new position my government puts me in as it rapes me, and how I cannot abort the bastard rape-child I bear within. It's infuriating. 25% of every hour I bust my ass to barely get by, is stolen by the government and wasted, I'm forcefully taking part in so many things I disagree with to my bone. I am tired of it. I'm tired of trying to make people realize how bad things really are. I thought those three cases would be enough to expose how much of a liar and crook Obama is, and just like the snake he is, he wiggled out of it, by helping turn George Zimmerman into the national scapegoat. President Obama doesn't care if a race war broke out in Florida because of the case, he hasn't once asked others to respect the law or asked for George and his family's safety, not once has he asked anyone to be rational, because as I've repeated so many ways over the years, he doesn't care, as long as he's off the hook.

Did you know Obama is half black? Did you know he is half white? Did you know he doesn't give a flying fuck about 100% of blacks and 100% of whites?

I've stopped writing about politics and social issues for the most part because to be honest, most people don't get it, either their egos are too big or their senses too dull, of their intelligence too low to comprehend simple ideals or morals I attempt to bring to the table. Those who do care enough to read and comment only seem to do so for the sake of argument, to jerk off their own egos, not to actually meet at agreements, but to see who can turn a discussion into a childish poop-throwing competition faster. Money is the thing most people care about these days. A President is seen as good if the country generates money under him, and that is endlessly dangerous. We sell our souls collectively these days. Work jobs we hate, temper the mundane, the boring, the average, the false sense of normal because it's better than the unknown alternative. Someone is seen as "doing good for themselves" if their job pays well, doesn't matter what kind of person they are or what the job is, just if it pays well.

Newsflash: This world will someday be turned upside down, and all of that false wealth will show it's true value, nothing. If you have sacrificed yourself, integrity, your own good for a piece of paper, you have sold everything for nothing. That day will come so much sooner than you expect it to.

It was recently brought to my attention how many of my "peers" wonder "what I am doing?" as if I am just flushing myself down the toilet. I've spent the last year dedicating myself to boxing, overcoming injuries, fears, gaps of knowledge and athleticism to compete. Pipe dreams to some. If I went in the ring tomorrow and knocked out the Middleweight champion of the world, everyone would know what I've done, there would be praise, everyone would want to know me, to talk to me. Kids would want my autograph, girls would want my hand, and the world would be upside down from the exterior. The only difference to me in this scenario would be that I just got paid a fat purse.

Outside of that I would have studied film, sparred tough opponents to ready myself, pushed myself physically every day because of my hunger to be a competitor and my want to get better, nursed injuries, wiped away blood, lost nights of sleep to aches and pains, fought off my want to drink or smoke or eat things I shouldn't, constantly battled with myself to find a self-discipline that is inhuman. These are only a fraction of it, it takes so much more work than anyone on the outside can comprehend, and that's what I've spent trying to perfect the past year. I've been actively digging into my own soul to see what I am made of, what levels of pain I can take, how far I can push myself before I fall, if I have the mental toughness to will myself forward when every cell in my body is screaming for me to stop, to rest, to sleep, to relax. I've learned that I have ability to get hit, that I can deflect punches that would injure most, to sustain punches that would injure most, and most importantly, have the courage to keep pressing forward. Boxing has never been about money for me, it's always been about learning who I am. To the outside, if it doesn't make money it doesn't make sense, and that's fine, but to someone like me, those on the outside are weak.

Recently, I've been focusing my energy on stand-up comedy as I've been nursing a shoulder injury, once again, it doesn't pay me anything, but I enjoy it. Like boxing, there are technical aspects those on the outside don't often see, and just like boxing, it takes something most people don't have or try to develop, courage. Go in front of 50 people tomorrow and try to make suicide, war, drug overdoses, real hard hitting social issues funny, go make them laugh. See how it makes you feel standing up their with nothing but a microphone and some nerve. If I had my own HBO special, and toured the country as a comedian, I could brag at my ten year reunion about how far I've come, about how I have all my debts paid off. So many people I know would be happy if I did a bit about them in my act, or offered them a flight and free tickets to one of my shows, once again I'd be "successful" just like if I was champion of the world.

I'm done with the politics, or at least telling you about it, because soon enough they will beat on my door and arrest me for it, that's where I picture this country going. Because outside of the ring and off the stage, I don't see much bravery these days. Between the high taxes, the mandates, the surveillance of emails, phone communication, the satellite imagery than can see your backyard, the invasive search and seizures without warrants, the police brutality, the gun laws, free speech laws, drone programs, illegal wars, news companies turned commercial, refugee whistle-blowers, imprisoned whistle-blowers, CCTV expansion, drug tests, tobacco tests, mental evaluations, all spread gracefully over a land with the world's largest prison population, I don't see much freedom either.

The land of the free and home of the brave? I'll tell you what I've been doing, digging into the depths of who I am as a being, both in this world and beyond, I've been studying the geopolitical arena, following trends, mapping out what I see as a full global economic collapse, taking punches, making jokes, chasing girls, developing a destructive right hand, tweaking social commentary, reading, exploring reality, REAL reality, I stop and look at trees and stars and the Moon, I've been smelling the roses, and working tough jobs for bad pay, all with a degree, and a chip on my shoulder, and an imagination that carries me from one project to another. I've been hanging out on the big playground, living, trying to find my way, writing poetry, a book, a joke, just for a smile, a conversation, an agreement, or a connection to someone I want to know more about, because my life it boring. I'm playing, surviving, uncovering, learning. I am rich, and I am so, so disappointed that people keep trying to bring me down with their petty dimes.