S-Curl Accident

For almost 4 decades, Monday Night Football has been a staple of American television. With an average viewership of 9 million households every week, MNF is a slice of modern Americana. This Monday, ESPN will broadcast the most important game in the 36-year history of Monday night Football. This week 3 divisional match-up between the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints isn’t important because it pits two undefeated teams against one and other. It is important because it marks the re-opening of the Louisiana Superdome, just over a year after the horrendous tragedy of Hurricane Katrina.

There is no doubt that this is a great opportunity for America to stand up and show its resilience and will to rebuild in the face of tragedy (remember that in the weeks following Katrina, there were many calling for the structure to be demolished). This is also an opportunity to show that the city of New Orleans has a long way to go as far as rebuilding. The MNF broadcast is high in production value and has gone beyond simply being sport, it is entertainment. However the scale of it audience demands that they use this opportunity as a forum for ‘edutainment’.

This weeks broadcast of Monday Night Football is an important showcase for the city of New Orleans. However, one has the right to be sceptical about whether the NFL and ESPN will present it with a level of perspective. New Orleans is rich in its musical culture, and yet who do they have performing at halftime? Green Day and U2: two bands from San Diego and Dublin, respectively. Why not have artists who represent the rich cultural mosaic of New Orleans’ musical heritage? Why not have Wynton Marsalis or Fats Domio or the Neville Brothers?

The NFL and ESPN are using this game to show that New Orleans is back, but it begs the question: one year after Hurricane Katrina, is the city really back? Is it even on the right track to being back? How many citizens want to return to their homes but can’t because they haven’t rebuilt the social infrastructure? They haven’t rebuilt the schools, the hospitals, the churches and most importantly the peoples’ homes. It is estimated that only approximately 170,000 of the 434,000 residents of New Orleans have returned to their homes.

We all remember the dreadful sights, and the stories that came from within the Superdome a year ago. We recall seeing the roof of the structure ripped open, the washrooms overflowing with human excrement. All of that can be repaired, cleaned up, painted over and washed away (at the price tag of 187 million, no less). But what about the people? We should not wash our collective memory clean of the people who bore the brunt of this tragedy. The memory should still be fresh in our mind of the 2 elderly people who died inside the Superdome because there were no designated medical staff and no established sick bay to accommodate the vulnerable. We remember the man who jumped from the balcony because the squalid conditions in the Superdome triggered post traumatic memories of the war. We recall the tens of thousands who sought refuge in the Superdome as a shelter of last resort, but were helpless to find that there was no water purification equipment on site, no chemical toilets, no anti-biotics, no anti-diarrhoeals, no electricity. The people who carried on for 4 days without food water or basic amenities should not be forgotten, because these are the people who are struggling to get their lives back together today.

One of the most memorable moments of MNF was when the tragic murder of John Lennon was announced live on the air-this had nothing to do with football, but rather with the climate of current events. The broadcast of this game between the Falcons and the Saints has nothing to do with two undefeated teams but rather with the soul of an entire city that was abandoned and deeply scarred a year ago. As a society, we should not be fooled; the healing process is moving along very slowly. America needs to be reminded of that.

The NFL has a wonderful ‘socialist’ revenue-sharing system that has enabled the Saints to rebuild their home. Who or what is enabling the tens of thousands of Katrina evacuees to rebuild their homes, and their schools, and their hospitals, and their churches, and their businesses? A year on, there is no portable water, no electricity no plan to rebuild parts of the 9^th ward and St. Bernard Parrish. Public town housing areas such as the Lafeyette housing project that weren’t even affected by Katrina has seen its residents locked out and boarded up by the city, because it is prime real estate for the ‘new’ New Orleans. This is the human toll, which has seen people rendered homeless unable to return to their houses and seen their city turn its back on them.

The people of Houston, who generously opened their hearts and homes to the New Orleans evacuees, have lost their patience and are calling for the New Orleans evacuees to leave their city and return home, I only assume that an unbalanced, superficial portrait of a rebuilt, refurbished Superdome as a symbol for the city will mislead Houstonians to thinking that the entire city of New Orleans is rebuilt as well.

Ostensibly, the NFL announced that the Saints have sold out its entire home schedule for the first time in franchise history. This coming barely a year after the largest natural (and partially man-made) disaster in American history. If you believe that they truly sold out the home season, what does this say about our society and the importance that it places on sports? Make no mistake, its great that the Superdome is rebuilt and that football is back in New Orleans. God knows that the people of that beleaguered city need something to lift their spirits. Just as it was important that Mardi Gras went on as scheduled 5 months after the storm. Last year’s nomadic 3-13 team only played 4 of their 8 games in the state of Louisiana and that didn’t help much. The Saints belong in New Orleans. Culture is very important to New Orleans, but we shouldn’t forget about the real priorities, which are the people. Sports and entertainment pale in their significance when measured up against the incredible human toll of a tragedy like Hurricane Katrina. It is of the utmost importance that Monday’s broadcast of the game between the Atlanta Falcons and the New Orleans Saints clearly underscores this point.

# posted by Chief @ 5:17 p.m. 0 comments

Tom Wolfe-I Am Charlotte Simmons

This year I’ve been trying to read a lot more, and I’ve found a great love for books. I used to stick pretty strictly to non-fiction and biographies and what not, but this year I’ve read quite a few novels and I’ve gained a greater appreciation for story telling. Apparently, Tom Wolfe is one of the great writers of our time. I saw documentary on Marshall McLuhan that he hosted and I liked what he had to say. I’ve never had the pleasure reading Wolfe, so I thought I’d start with his latest: I am Charlotte Simmons (all 676 pages of it).
This book is basically a detailed survey of what life is like on the campus of an elite, big time American university (think Duke). Even though I’m a recent graduate of a big-time Canadian University, movies like Animal House, Van Wilder and Old School have assured me that it is a completely different reality from anything I experienced.
The difference between those movies and this book is that those movies are hilarious and celebrate the supposed best 4-7 years of your life. I Am Charlotte Simmons took another view; that the moral decay on the modern University campus is indicative of the greater erosion of societal values. That’s fair enough; I don’t think that Wolfe came to any earth-shattering conclusions. It is pretty common knowledge that college students binge drink, swear profusely, have promiscuous sex, experiment with drugs, cheat on schoolwork, listen to objectionable (?) music and crave popularity or some combination of any or all of the above. But 676 pages of it? Ironically, the best part about reading the book is that Wolfe has an incredible talent for description, and his descriptive, literary techniques stretch the book out farther then it needs to be. But also keep the reader’s interest and keeps the reader’ eyes glued to the page. He also challenges the reader with his impressive vocabulary and idiosyncratic word choice.
One beef I had with I Am Charlotte Simmons is that it is supposed too be very accurate, based on research that Wolfe did at a handful of American Universities (Stanford, Michigan, UNC, Penn), but one of his markers of moral decay is rap music. He continually brings up this preposterous caricature of a fictional rapper named Dr. Dis who everybody on campus listens to. And the even more preposterous lyric that recurs no fewer than 6 times: ‘Suck on my testiculls like a popsicle.’ I mean c’mon there is some very bad Hip Hop out there, and I’m sure that Wolfe could have used a real-life example. But the truth is that as bad as rap music can be sometimes no rapper that is that obscene is as ubiquitous as Dr. Dis was in the book. I think it just underscores the fraudulent perception that rap music is the reason for moral decay in our society. I also thought it was kind of weird since Wolfe freely employed real life examples of Britney Spears, Ben Harper, Dave Mathews and OAR throughout the book. Had he replaced Dr. Dis with someone like Ludacris the reaction would have been ‘hey Ludacris’ lyrics really aren’t that offensive.’ Had he replaced Dr. Dis with an equally obscene rapper like Necro the reaction would have been ‘c’mon nobody listens to Necro.’ Is it an example of Wolfe’s inability to hide his conservative bias or is it simply that he (like most middle aged white adults) is out of touch with youth culture when it comes to music?
Anyways, the book was just okay, some parts were as cheesy as a harlequin novel and some parts were such an enthralling read that you couldn’t put the book down. By the time I realised that it wasn’t a great book I was already 400 pages in and I had to finish it. I wasn’t going to wait a year and a half for the movie to come out. (They are making a movie out of the book due for release in 2007.) The truth is that a movie of this book will be a fucking disaster (but hey Wolfe got 5 million for the rights to the book).
Books are almost without fail superior to the movie adaptations (Da Vinci Code anyone? Edit: I read the book but won’t even bother with the movie). And a movie of I am Charlotte Simmons will be whack as hell and entirely ineffective. I’m assuming that it will be marketed as a warning to incoming naïve college freshman about the ‘realities’ of university life. But the truth is that the movie won’t even be for 17-19 year olds, it will really be for parents to get worried about what really goes on when they ship junior off to university. It will be as sappy as a teen movie but will have too many ‘mature themes’ that an R rating will keep its intended audience 17-18 year olds out of the theatre. And 19-22 year old will be too broke and disinterested to bother going to see it. I think that I should have skipped Charlotte Simmons and gone straight to the Electric Kool Aid and Acid Test.

Here’s a boring interview with Tom Wolfe and John Stewart on the Daily Show.

Sam Smith-The Jordan Rules

I won't get to in depth about this book because unless you are an armchair jock like myself you won't find it too interesting. This is a great book about what really went on with the 1991 NBA Champ Chicago Bulls. Beyond all the glory and champagne, Smith does a great job of describing what really happens behind the curtains of the production that is pro basketball. The reader learns that although Jordan is the greatest player of all time, his competitiveness drives him so far as to insult his teamates and even punch Will Perdue in the face in the middle of a practice. Sports is one of my hobbies so its always great to learn about what happens in the locker room and what drives pro athletes. This book garnered major national attention when it was released and was a huge hurdle for the Bulls in the 1992 season, it was great to read it and get the backstory. All first hand accounts so you know it was legit. And Michael Jordan punched Will Perdue in the face!!!!

I've heard a lot about Mumia and his case (thanks to RATM). But the truth is I didn't know much about the man himself and I wanted to learn about him from his own words. For those of you who don't know Mumia is a journalist who is on death row for a crime that he most likely didn't commit. The claims are that he made so many political enemies due to his association with the Black Panther Party and MOVE that he was framed through COINTELPRO. He's been on death row for over 25 years and his appeal for a fair trial has become an international cause. But that's not what Death Blossoms is about.
Death Blossoms is a collection of short essays about race, politics, the media, poverty injustice in America, faith, family, redemption and introspection. These vignettes are truly an amazing read. Its incredible how someone who is about to be sne t to death can write with such lucidity and an honesty that a free man could never write with.
Mumia's writtings really makes you think about the world around you and how you conceptualize it. Even the title Death Blossoms speaks to this: that out of imminent death his thoughts have bloomed into something truly beautiful. He writes his prose with poetic language that is neither pretentious, nor verbose. Here's an excerpt that I enjoyed:

# posted by Chief @ 11:44 p.m. 0 comments