So I live in the Bay Area, California. Around Oakland. There is this bay area rap scene we have. I guess one of the biggest underground rap in the us, but not really my thing. It's this whole "MOB" thing you know. But I guess everyones 'trip' through life is their own. I am noone to judge who someone was born into, in a sense. Anyway a common thing for one 'click' of the scene is to give praise to the life of some teen named "Berger". Berger was murdered. Everyone shouts out to him, not just rappers. Just anyone in the Oakland area who is on that whole gangsta/mob shit scene you know. The only reason I bring this up is because there's no way all these people really know him. It's sad that just because one popular rapper brought him up, he became a "theme" for all that violence you know. I don't get it. It's sad the way the way the order is right now. The only reason people can actually find violence and neglect of human relationhips cool is because the've never goten the chance to feel what life is about, meaningful relationships. I pray that if and when the world is at EXTREME arrest, the youth and adults alike come together and try to give it another shot. Flip the script, give society a taste of a different type of medicine. This time we'll keep in mind the journey isn't supposed to be fast, easy or simple. We'll have some knowledge from experience, and new ideas from the youth. Putting brothers and sisters together, young and mature together. I know that I can't be the only one who's down, it would be such a beautiful thing. Honestly.
I hear ya. I live in Berkeley but I can see Oakland from my house (Sarah Palin joke sorry). But the sad thing about Oakland is that it is kind of like an asshole magnet. Have you ever seen the lot at a Raiders home game. I've heard a story about James Brown going on stage in Oakland and proclaiming he will never play in Oakland again because of the crowds bullshit. During the Oscar Grant thing local Churches and Ministers begged for people to remain clear headed and not fuck shit up. It didn't happen. The sad thing about it is that people came from all over the Bay Area just to riot. Most of the bullshit that happens in Oakland during prostests aren't even people from Oakland. People will jump on a train just to fuck shit up in Oakland then go home. It's not their neighborhood they are fucking up. It doesn't matter what the reason is either. The Riots around the Mehserle trial had nothing to do with Oscar Grant or the Police. I had someone on this site accuse me of taking the cops side on this one and that I didn't support the rioters for "Standing up to the uniformed thugs that have their foot on the throats of people every day." The thing is I saw the store windows drop but nobody fucked with the cop cars. There are a million issues that need to be addressed in the Oakland situation. One of the most important issues at least to me is the lack of access to healthy food. In West Oakland there are 65 Liquor Stores and no Grocery Stores. I am of the firm belief that the quality of an individual, the quality of a community, and the quality of a society are directly related to the quality of the food that is available. If you sustain yourself only on food you can get at the Liquor Store that is not a good thing. Well I'm just rambling now so I'll go. Stay Brown, Rev J
