Some Random Thoughts

Quick post here...

• Thinking about my post on the proposed boycott of the Academy Awards, I should have mentioned actress Sharon Stone as someone that was robbed of an Oscar.  She most certainly should have won for her role as Ginger in the movie Casino (1995), because she was truly outstanding!  Well, at least she was nominated.

• I've read several articles about the Academy Awards proposed boycott, and I keep seeing this statement, or something very similar:  "Hollywood is a very liberal place.  The idea that it's racist is ridiculous."  The idea that someone would actually say that is ridiculous.

• This is the best news I've heard all day (granted, it's still early). University of Mizzou communications professor, Melissa Click has been charged with third-degree assault. 

Her despicable actions were caught on video during protests on the campus last year.  A journalism student was attempting to take photographs of the protest, but was met with resistance from several students.  The journalism student is first confronted by a woman that identifies herself as "Concerned Student 1950".  She was offensive, but Click's actions were sickening. On the video (7:11), the student asks to speak to her and she refuses, telling him that he needs to get out.  She goes on to grab his camera and call for other students to throw him out. I really believe she wanted the kid to get beaten up, because she called out, "Hey, who's going to help me get this reporter out of here. I need some muscle over here." That was unconscionable because she was aware of how emotionally charged the environment was and that a few of the guys seemed to be itching for a fight.  If that wasn't bad enough, she then mocks the journalism student for exercising his First Amendment rights.

Click represents all that is wrong with higher education today (not to mention the costs).  In a statement that she later released, Click apologized for her actions but added, she was only trying to protect the protesting students in their "justice campaign".  If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times, college students are not babies.  They don't need protection from another student that's not being violent or even rude. They don't need protection from ideas and opinions that they don't agree with. Between the safe spaces on college campuses and liberal professors who are teaching them to be intolerant and hyper-sensitive, I'm starting to wonder if I even want my son to go away to school.

• Shakespeare was right, all the world's a stage.  This is not a serious issue, but I've notice a trend over the past few years that at times can be entertaining...but not all the time.  I'm talking about how people, usually it's young people, just spontaneously start rapping.  When I first started noticing this, I'd be in a store and the person behind me would just start rapping a song (but it didn't really sound like a song).  I'd turn around because I thought they were talking to me...but they weren't, they were performing.  It would happen on the bus. Out of nowhere, someone would just break out rapping, loudly.  Even walking down the street.  I'm going in one direction and the person approaching is talking loudly. He'd be by himself, so I'd assume he was talking on the phone.  But no, as he got closer I'd realize he's rapping. To be honest, the first few times this happened, I was frightened because of what they were saying (rapping)...I was relieved when I realized they weren't threatening to kill me.  Now I'm seeing another trend developing. It's spontaneous dancing, and it's usually girls that I see doing this. Most often they're listening to music with their earbuds, which means that no one else can hear the music.  Sure enough, they suddenly break out with a hip-shaking dance move (I'm not talking about a quick wiggle here). Don't get me wrong, these public performers aren't hurting anyone. But it just got me to wondering when did we transition from quietly humming, whistling or tapping our feet when listening to music that we enjoy in public, to actually performing the song or a dance on the street?