the dreaming tree

taking back sunday

well, one of my favorite bands is “taking some time to re-evaluate what we’re doing.” we all know what that means…taking back sunday as we know it, is over. and i’m sad. they only put out one album, but oh! what an album it is. if you’re into punk music at all, and even if you aren’t, you need to check out this band…they’re like a hardcore dashboard. taking back sunday

but i’m happy, too. cause tomorrow i’m going to see one of my other favorite bands, thursday. they’re along the same lines as tbs. i highly recommend them as well. april is hopefully coming, too. this will be her first show at vino’s, and the first time she has been to a harder band’s show. it should be an experience, eh?

one more thing: i bought a jeff buckley concert dvd which is INCREDIBLE! and it was only $12.99. i scored a big one there. woo hoo! that’s all.

manifesto…section one, paragraph one

i will no longer purchase a cd that will cost me over ten dollars, not including shipping and handling costs, if applicable. however, in the case of the following artists, for new releases only, i will make the cutoff fourteen dollars : dave matthews, caedmon’s call, u2, ben folds, nickel creek, taking back sunday, thursday and derek webb. amendments will be allowed, but only by a two-thirds majority vote.

something i should have mentioned in the “black” post. some of the coolest people i’ve ever known are black. i respect and admire many black people; i’m not trying to stereotype the entire race. i was just upset a bit at the attitudes of many supporters of affirmative action. i think it’s a decent concept, but needs to be used in moderation. and maybe not at all anymore. i don’t know. i’m not a bigot, that’s what i know. and i support equal opportunities, which unfortunately affirmative action undercuts many times. what i’m for is people making their own way. i think society will be more accepting of someone that does make it himself than someone helped along. one black guy they interviewed mentioned that the misuse of affirmative action shed a bad light on blacks, hindering them at times by babying them. it’s almost degrading in itself, saying “you can’t make it alone, so we’re gonna help you out.” anyway, those are my thoughts.

ya’ll don’t know what it’s like, being male, middle-class and white

i mean seriously, affirmative action can kiss my ass. white people get screwed over it, all in the name of helping the poor, oppressed black man. now before you come to crucify me, i do acknowledge that racism is a serious and very real issue. however, in today’s world, we have taken such great pains to support the black citizens that this time the white man is being shoved aside. i watched an entire story on dateline devoted to this debate, and tom brokaw kept referring to reverse discrimination, which is when a white person has been adversly affected…guess what? that’s discrimination PERIOD. that just pisses me off when people hold to a double standard. i mean come on, there really isn’t such a thing as minorities anymore. at my high school, i was the minority! at least 70% black, i would say. i will say that a large amount of the less, um, “academic” group were indeed black. and many that were in advanced courses were white. this is a simple matter of attitude. for those blacks that have motivation, talent or whatever, they can achieve high goals and fit in quite nicely without any struggle whatsoever. the ones that lag behind are, for the most part i believe, told their whole life that “you’re black, therefore you will be relegated to this level of society, and it’s the white man’s fault.” all i want is for that culture to take responsibility for their place in society. i don’t believe they have the right to blame prejudice or racial tension on being held back anymore. maybe for a small percentage of cases, but for the most part, it’s their own damn fault. succeed if you will, but don’t expect welfare (in the broad sense of the word). thank you. i will now go back to regularly scheduled thoughts. or something.

so, this is for the two or three of you that might care…or might have cared in the past. i have increasingly less time to even get online, much less type a blog. i’ve got a new job in construction and, well, let’s just say i’m glad i’m going to college so i don’t have to do this my whole life. cause it sucks…hard. never have i been yelled at more about shoveling some rocks, or the way to pick up trash or wheel a wheelbarrow. and it drains me so bad, i don’t have any energy left by quitting time. there’s really nothing exciting to report, either, but that’s what’s going on. i still haven’t seen X2…and i’d like to check out finding nemo and bruce almighty. on a further note, i never have liked sammy sosa that much. the end.