Left and Found

 

When the Innocent are Deemed Guilty

 

9 Parts of Speech: NAP VIA CAP

NAPVIACAP

9 parts of speech

It is easy to remember them using this acronym (by Hamza Yusuf) 

N:     Noun
A:     Adjective
P:     Pronoun
V:     Verb
I:      Interjection
A:     Adverb
C:     Conjunction
A:     Article
P:     Preposition

the source for NAPVIACAP idea is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuQFoYavWyg&t=5566s

at hour and a half into the video 1:32:00

Title is: Ramadan Book Club, and discussing the new translation of Quran by Thomas Cleary

Ode to Punk Rock and (old) Hip Hop

Ode to Punk Rock & (old) Hip Hop

I remember delving into punk rock in the early 1980's when a co-worker at Magic Pan restaurant in New Orleans introduced me to "the Clash". Their music became mainstream later with songs like "Rock the Casbah". Like you, Punk rock for me also was an outlet of expression which helped me explore spaces and approaches outside the dominant culture. I really liked the political edge in the music, and the importance of the lyrics. For example in a speech class, I talked about another song by the Clash "Know your rights, all 3 of them". In some of the songs, the Clash (band from UK), mixed Spanish lyrics, like in the song "Spanish Bombs". This multi-cultural approach was very rare in those days.

Moving from New Orleans to Los Angeles in late 1980's, it seemed like gradually Punk Rock became more influential and moved into the mainstream. Mohawk type haircuts, hydrogen peroxide streaks in hair, sleeveless T-shirts and ear piercing became more common and then fashionable. Vietnam was fresh in the minds of Californians, so the mistrust in government and anti-war sentiments were still felt in the local culture. One demonstration of this was a bumper sticker a classmate displayed, "Question Authority". Those were the good old days. Especially after 9/11, the masses became increasingly docile, passive, apathetic and a-political. (Foucault talks about Disciplinarity and Docile bodies). In a complacent and obedient society, powerful, political and empowering music with balls, seems very rare now. And its impact is painfully missed.

In the early 1980's, on WTUL, an ad-free college radio of Tulane University in New Orleans, they started playing rap music with Run DMC's, "You Be illin'". It took 6 or 7 years for this genre to become mainstream. But the beginnings of rap music was passionate, heartfelt and powerful statements from the grassroots, on the status quo of America, including social issues, political impacts on daily life, racism, poverty, inequities, etc. It is a tragedy that rap and hip-hop mostly devolved into glorification of gangs, crime, narcissism, showing off, competition, violence, guns, drugs, pimps and "ho's".

In retrospect,  the Punk rock I was exposed to was political, leftist music predominantly from White musicians. Which later influenced the birth of a new genre of Music of the 1980's, called "New Wave". Today, Punk rock is no longer significantly popular. The other genre which started becoming popular also from the 1980's, rap / hip-hop, has been mostly music made by Black people. It has become mainstream and seems to be mostly serving the purpose of entertainment (and glamorizing the prison industrial complex). It rarely seems to make any meaningful statements, like it used to, 30 years ago. For example, Ice-T who used to sing about police brutality in 1992, now seems to be promoting thug life? Rap / Hip Hop misses countless opportunities to incorporate social and political content into the music. For example, among my frequent sources of inspirations are  amazing Black authors and researches  like Joy DeGruy, Cornell West, Alice Walker, and Black Panthers like professor Angela Davis of UC Santa Cruz. Resmaa Menakem's powerful line "Black bodies are not defective" can easily be incorporated in a good rap song.

But even popular musicians with million$ in resources, rarely employ, or get inspired by, or incorporate the work of famous Black (and other) researchers and authors. When uplifting and empowering ideas are incorporated in music, it ripples and has a moving effect which resonates and reverberates in the heart of society. For example the work of the rap artist "Immortal Technique" is a breath of fresh air. It can be said that a band like "Rage Against the Machine", draws from the elements of Punk Rock and Hip Hop. That amazing band is also painfully missed (since it broke up a few years ago). It was the voice of for example, social justice and the anti-war movement. Thank God for Music. In Urdu there's a saying: Music is Nourishment for the Soul. In addition, when music also packs a punch, it can not only move the body to dance, it can also empower a person with constructive energy, and  can light up a community to impact positive movements. In the meantime, music helps us relax and chill out