What Black Men Think... And America Too

A few nights ago I was unable to sleep, and the Documentary channel had on a piece called "What Black Men Think", I expected some controversial rants by rap stars and pundits about the fight of the oppressed african-americans.

Then as I watched I was reminded of a production I saw on CNBC about a week earlier called "America's Gun: The Rise of the AR-15".  In that, I expected lengthy information about the evils of firearms and the ways that assault rifles are responsible for that majority of crimes and deaths in the United States.  I was wrong.

And I was wrong about "What Black Men Think" as well.

(Links to information on both will be found at the bottom)

Janks Morton created the documentary piece on the views of black men in a way that was extremely informative... but let me cut to the chase for my readers:  what you think, probably isn't true.  In fact, he goes to great lengths to show that the majority of african-americans believe the same things, and they are wrong.

and, they are victims of hype.

His best example?  'are there more black men in college or jail?' - everyone thinks jail.  And why not?  we've been sold examples like this for decades, but the reality is that it's skewed.  In the film he asks many the same question, and everyone answered 'jail', but the numbers prove otherwise.

From there he goes on to tackle other beliefs, from the loss of family structure to unemployment and many others, and how they impact african-american history.  Each of the common beliefs shared by myself, many people I know, and many of those he interviewed were proven to be lies.

Who would tell us these lies?

I then remembered the CNBC piece on the AR15.  Since NBC has been long known as part of the 'liberal media' and I assumed a piece from their 'business news network' would tow the usual liberal line of dramatic gun control ideals.  And, it definitely did at times, accenting the damage done to human bodies at the Colorado theater shooting, and pointing out that the same model AR15 used there was in the possession of the killer at Sandy Hook.

But then the facts came in: long guns (rifles and shotguns) are responsible for 4% of crimes in the United States, and the AR15 was such a small portion of that 4% that and exact percentage of crimes that involved it or assault weapons in general couldn't (or maybe wouldn't be) given.

Americans have been lead to believe that the AR15 and other assault rifles deserve our attention, review, and legislation.  We have also been led to believe that every day black men are using assault rifles to commit crimes in their effort to be... whatever the image of gangsta black men is.

Lies.

We have all become the victims - the WILLING VICTIMS - of what sells.  We believe the drama, and the excuse it gives us to be lazy.

This may seem to be my opinion, but the facts are the facts, and the opinion shared by many of the leaders and pundits found in both films.  Watching Juan Williams and the ATF's Charles Houser kick out facts that would surprise us all about these two issues would embarrass most Americans.

To find out that most black men are simply wanting a quiet life and family, and that all but an unmeasurably small percentage of assault rifles are owned by law abiding citizens - this is NOT what we find juicy and dramatic.  It's much easier to assume that black men are all poor and have no role models, and are forced to live on welfare but can't get by because they have too many baby-mommas, so they start 'bangin' and carrying assault rifles and live a criminal life, right?  No one wants to believe that the larger percentage of black men want to finish high school, go to college, meet a nice girl, and never be involved in a cime... even one that involves a gun of any kind.

But, it's true.

The saddest part of our current reality is our arrogance and our ego, and the need we have to follow passion and drama in an attempt to excite our own lives.  And in this we have found leaders who are willing to sell us this crap to line their pockets.

Who's to blame?  Both pieces point out the leadership we follow who no longer goes out of it's way to solve problems, but instead goes out of it's way to create problems so they have something to solve.

We are the last world power, imagine where we would be if we didn't waste our time on issues that cannot be resolved.

In each piece, the facts remained: 'there will never be a world without racism' and 'there will never be a world without crazies who abuse guns'.

As I watched Shelby Steele make statements like "I lived through segregation, and let me tell you, racism is no longer an excuse as to why you can't make it in America, the only excuse left is yourself", he admits that there will always be discrimination, but that can impact anyone, as people can be discriminated against for their poverty or their wealth or any number of things.

And back to assault rifles, as Brian Sullivan points out that assault rifles have been the victim of discrimination and image.  The truth remains that the most commonly used tool for murder in America - is the blunt object.  But we can't outlaw all the blunt objects, so we give the evil looking assault rifle the bad rap, and get all excited.

I recently had a woman I know get very emotional about the gun issue, claiming there was no need for people to have "multiple magazine clips".  Sadly, anyone who knows the slightest about guns knows that her verbiage makes no sense whatsoever.  There is no such thing as a 'multiple magazine clip' - but, she had heard those words in a big dramatic portrayal, and she was going to be a part of it.  In the end, any magazine fed gun can have multiple magazines, just like a car can have multiple spare tires... and a clip is used to load magazines, they aren't really the same part.

With that, I was recently told of another person I know who went out of her way to do something she shouldn't have done, in an effort to do the right thing, and in the end it was because she was stopping someone who 'looked shady'.  I'm avoiding the details on purpose, but in the end, what made the person look shady to them?  They were poor and black.  Sad.  And worse, in hindsight, they were probably the better course of action which she stopped.  Very sad.

So many of us want to be the 'liberal' and fight the 'oppression' and do away with 'dangers' and the 'evils' of modern society.  But it's a rare few who want to take the time to find out the facts, and instead fight for the truth, no matter where it lies on party lines.

We have to stop being victims to the hype, and we have to accept the truth.  There will always be assholes who point the finger at the poor, other races, other faiths, and so on... and with that, always be assholes who will go out of their way to hurt others by extreme measures.

These are NOT excuses for each of us to stop expecting the best from others.  These are NOT reasons to pass 'laws' that tell others how to act and what to own.  These are NOT the way to see the world, when we can instead use our time moving forward instead of trying to micro-manage the now.

Because we have become a land that focuses on lies.





What Black Men Think:
http://whatblackmenthink.com/what-black-men-think/

trailer:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIecPA_Q_gA&feature=youtu.be

America's Gun: The Rise of the AR-15:
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/america-gun-rise-ar-15-tv-review-article-1.1326336