Posts by jimmyjames

he feels it's a mockery since black people were still slaves when the country gained its independence.. i wanted to hear what other people think of that.

that's the first person i've ever heard mention it, but i never thought about that.

I didn't participate in or even read the other racial threads. If you are tired of it, it's because you won't stop reading about it and obviously can't since you clicked on this thread when you were already sick of the topic.

8

Independence Day and African Americans

by jimmyjames in

jw
friends

a black friend of mine will not celebrate the 4th of july.

he feels it's a mockery since black people were still slaves when the country gained its independence.. i wanted to hear what other people think of that.

that's the first person i've ever heard mention it, but i never thought about that.

jimmyjames

A black friend of mine will not celebrate the 4th of July. He feels it's a mockery since black people were still slaves when the country gained its independence.

I wanted to hear what other people think of that. That's the first person I've ever heard mention it, but I never thought about that.

7

janet jackson

by orbison in

jw
friends

well, janet jackson is on larry king live july 2, and cnn asked for questions via email.

so i asked,,,,what is your current standing with the jw's, are you d/f or d/a, and how can you account for your association with mother (which she has publically acknowledged),,.

prob wont use but will tune in to see.

jimmyjames

Orbison:

As far as I remember, JJ (he he) was never baptized. One of the many JW kids who just go cuz their parents brought them, and then never went back once they got their independence.

20

This hit a little too close to home

by mommy in

jw
friends

the following appeared in the newspaper this morning:.

a 17-year-old highlands school student was in jail thursday on charges that he had developed a hit list, naming several fellow students he supposedly planned to kill.

highlands police say they arrested andrew douglas quintero, a junior, without incident on wednesday and charged him with 10 misdemeanor counts of communicating threats.. in an interview thursday, highlands school principal jack brooks indicated he wasn't sure whether the student intended to carry out the threats, but said he wasn't taking any chances.. "whether this was done out of humor or it was an expression of anger, i had no idea," brooks said.

jimmyjames

Here's the reason there's been an increase in school violence:

When Columbine happened, there was a huge amount of media coverage and articles written on it. All kinds of kids that were feeling depressed, suicidal or angry saw what happened. These two guys had not only gotten revenge on their tormentors, they had (in a sense) gotten away with it by offing themselves before they could be caught and punished. Not only that, but while before they were unpopular in the school, now they were on the cover of national magazines and everyone knew their name.

I think kids saw this quite a bit differently than adults did. It's obvious that suicidal, bullied kids would identify with the two killers rather than the killing victims. They saw a way that they could not only express their anger, get revenge, but also (probably one of the biggest motivators) finally become important, known. Anyone who desperately needs to feel important will do it even if they have to become hated or disliked in the process. If they did what these guys did, they might finally get some attention.

These increases in school shootings happened after the massive media coverage of Columbine, not because any musical artist came out recently advocating shooting your schoolmates.

Music definitely influences peoples attitudes and outlook. However, I refuse to believe that it motivates people to go out and shoot each other.

Even if music did motivate people to shoot each other, it would be obvious to anyone after Columbine that kids were a lot more influenced by things they saw other kids doing. The reason they blame music is because it's an easy scapegoat to avoid dealing with the real problem: that people (parents mostly, but not in every case) need to be involved in kids' lives.

Thinker:
That second post of yours was excellent. And right on the point.

SF Jim:
I'm sorry, I didn't mean it was just the specificity (is that a word? lol) of the crimes, but that combined with making actual threats. I still think that there's a major difference between that and the generality of song lyrics.
I definitely agree that it isn't any more moral or tolerable for someone to spread hate to a group in song lyrics than individuals to spread hate verbally. What I'm saying is, the latter is punishable, the former just shouldn't be listened to.

20

This hit a little too close to home

by mommy in

jw
friends

the following appeared in the newspaper this morning:.

a 17-year-old highlands school student was in jail thursday on charges that he had developed a hit list, naming several fellow students he supposedly planned to kill.

highlands police say they arrested andrew douglas quintero, a junior, without incident on wednesday and charged him with 10 misdemeanor counts of communicating threats.. in an interview thursday, highlands school principal jack brooks indicated he wasn't sure whether the student intended to carry out the threats, but said he wasn't taking any chances.. "whether this was done out of humor or it was an expression of anger, i had no idea," brooks said.

jimmyjames

Jim,

I find it hypocritically ironic that if one writes these threats down on paper, it's considered a crime. But, if one puts it to "music", then it's considered "artistic license".

It's not writing it down that's the problem. It's that it's directed to a specific named individual or individuals. The violent lyrics of songs are written in the liner notes of CDs all the time. The lyrics are general, not directed at a specific person. (That doesn't necessarily make them any less or more moral, of course). If a song makes actual threats to a certain person, or defames a certain person, they can be sued and punished just as if it were an actual remark in real life.

It's okay to sing that politicians are swindlers, but something else (libelous and punishable) to say that politician so-and-so is a swindler.

20

This hit a little too close to home

by mommy in

jw
friends

the following appeared in the newspaper this morning:.

a 17-year-old highlands school student was in jail thursday on charges that he had developed a hit list, naming several fellow students he supposedly planned to kill.

highlands police say they arrested andrew douglas quintero, a junior, without incident on wednesday and charged him with 10 misdemeanor counts of communicating threats.. in an interview thursday, highlands school principal jack brooks indicated he wasn't sure whether the student intended to carry out the threats, but said he wasn't taking any chances.. "whether this was done out of humor or it was an expression of anger, i had no idea," brooks said.

jimmyjames

SF Jim,

I'm having a hard time understanding what it is you're saying. What I'm getting is that it's hypocritical for the faculty to punish kids for carrying out something that's expressed in music they listen to, while also defending their right to listen to that music. (Correct me if that' snot what you meant).

I don't think it's comparable. First, I don't think all the faculty of all schools DO want to defend that right- a lot of them might feel the same as you. Second, it's one thing to let your hate for a group be known, and quite another to make threats to individuals or come up with a plan to act on that hate. Anyone is free to hate anyone they want to, but acting on it and singling individuals out is something that deserves punishment.

25

I Look Death in the Eye

by COMF in

jw
friends

i have always had trouble breathing.

in track i was great for a quick burst of speed in the 50 yard dash, but couldn't move enough air in and out to keep myself going for the longer runs like the 330. i had sleep apnea really bad, with the classic symptoms where i stopped breathing for a while and then suddenly snorted myself awake gasping for breath.

for most of my life, surgery wasn't an option due to my jw lifestyle and employment choices (cleaning business = no insurance).

jimmyjames

: In writing this, I fear I've failed to effectively capture the dispair, the hopelessness, the sense of irrelevance that washed through me

Not at all, COMF. Let me tell you something: That post was an amazing window into what happened, and to be honest, I couldn't stop reading it. You had a great opportunity to experience feelings and insights that everyone has had in passing but rarely delved very deeply into or marinated in for very long. I think life is really about those small moments of total cosmic clarity and understanding that happen few and far between during the hum-drum reality of day-to-day life from the time we're born until we go.

I'm glad you made it through your ordeal COMF, and thank you for sharing it with the board. I hope one day I'll be half the writer you are.

Jim

32

Need to vent... advice is welcome

by SlayerLayer in

jw
friends

when i was 13, all of the other kids in my congregation were taking home school, getting them out of the "bad association" in public school.

they talked me into it too.. of course, at 13 trying to get me to actually do the schooling was a feat that no one could master.. i worked for a brother in the cong.

full time, and never finished the schooling.. so...flash forward.

jimmyjames

Slayer,

About a year and a half ago, a 23 year-old girl I used to work with told me that she never graduated high school. She had a little girl and had to stay home when she wasn't at work because her husband worked full time. I encouraged her to get her GED but she was politely pessimistic about it, with her time constraints and everything.

I quit that job a little over a year ago. I talked to her recently and to my shock she not only got her GED, but she's only got one year left at the community college! She's going to get her A.A. before I do!

Another guy from that same store (who's 33) went to the same junior college and now he's attending UNLV.

I still have a year and a half before I get my A.S. It's difficult because I carry mail so I have to take all my classes at night. I'm managing to schedule it so I can go to school full time, but even if my job only allowed me to take 1 class per semester, I'd still do it. It might take 4 or 5 years to get an associates that way, but 4 or 5 years is going to come and go anyway, I might as well be working towards a degree during it.

Schedules are extremely flexible at community colleges. Taking one class per semester, you'd only have to attend school for 2-4 hours one or two days a week, and usually you can pick day or night.

If you want it, go for it.