Friday, July 04, 2008

• With No Handlebars

  Currently Listening Fight With Tools By Flobots see related

  I just heard this song by the Flobots called "Handlebars". Confused the hell out of me. But the beat was catchy and, even though the rapper couldn't really sing, he could kinda spit. So I was intrigued and did my research. These guys are apparently some anti-establishment group similar to Rage Against The Machine, just a little toned down. I read the lyrics online. Still confused. Then my good friend Wikipedia came through for me with this quote from the lead MC:
  
  "The song is about the idea that we have so much incredible potential as human beings to be destructive or to be creative. And it's tragic to me that the appetite for military innovation is endless, but when it comes to taking on a project like ending world hunger, it's seen as outlandish. It's not treated with the same seriousness."
  
  We've proven time and time again that, as human beings, we are capable of practically anything. When we were told we couldn't fly, the Wright Brothers thought otherwise. When Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles were told that sight was required to play music, they turned a deaf ear. And when this nation was denied its independence, we took it anyway.
  
  So why is the very thought of a world free of hunger and homelessness unimaginable? Is it really that impossible? If we so chose to take on such a project, there's no doubt in my mind that we'd be able to accomplish it. Our potential as human beings is endless. We simply choose not to make such things among our top priorities. Instead, priority goes to developing things like the MacBook Air, ice-less ice skating rinks, and the most fuel-efficient car. Don't get me wrong, I don't have any problem with new innovations that make life easier. But why make such an effort to make our lives, which are already pretty easy, easier when others are struggling to live in the third world?
  
  I might be getting too worked up over this. I guess I do that a lot haha. But I just wanted to put this out there: we have more power in this world than we might know. The influence of a single person can affect the world if one so chooses to make the effort. Gandhi knew it. Mother Teresa knew it. Dr. King knew it. They had visions and dreams that defied what people understood as the norm and took action despite the struggle that inevitably followed. We all have endless potential. Whether or not we choose to take action, however, is entirely up to us.
  
  
  EDIT
  I'm part of a group that works towards ending poverty and homelessness in the Philippines. If you'd like to help, go to http://www.gawadkalinga.org
  
  Any donations would be much appreciated....Thanks!
  

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