The Down-Side Of Clever

I use the picture of the bat and ball, something which some of you may not know about and many of us remember, as a symbol of the way people throw out dumb commentsas if they were playing paddle ball.

"I made a mistake" is a weak link line. Apparently it's another way of trying to say that saying something stupid is as simple as writing 2 +2=3 instead of writing a 4. It's important that individuals be taken to task for the things that they say especially since the other side of these blatant irreverent statements are attached to hurt. John Mayer's March Playboy interview just follows in a long line of verbal fuck-ups that should not go unchecked.

I am appalled that someone so young would "go there" and keep the ignorance ball rolling. It's just not that easy to apologize and expect that everyone is going to accept it and move on. Life doesn't have a delete key or undo button, like a computer. I am more than sure that so many of these ignoramuses would push it were it possible. Since that option isn't available, they use the apology as a verbal delete key and quite simply I don't feel it. It's like saying "I can say and do what I want as long as I follow up with an apology." A valuable lesson here: You can't take back the things you say.

More and more people who claim to be reasonably intelligent seem to be more ignorant. I believe as a musician that you don't waste the blessing of creativity by blabbing on a non-creative, non substantive level, slinging hurt along the way. It takes away from talent and the creativity that should be used to bring people together.

I have one question and one question only. WHY DOES ANYONE SAY SOMETHING THAT THEY WILL POTENTIALLY HAVE TO APOLOGIZE FOR? I figure, if you take the time to apologize and understand what you said after you said it, you have plenty of time to understand what you are going to say before you say it.

Since, I am part of the last generation to know slavery and understand the undeniable human stain of the past transgressions in this country; I wonder why someone would continue to push this envelope? The emotional heartbreak of black people in this country has an indelible wound. To make ignorant statements with regards to race and blow it off shows a blatant disregard in the human scheme of things. There are so many who say that people need to get over slavery and the negative history that has taken place in this country. How can anyone move forward on any level when people continue to make tactless comments in an effort to "cleverly" push their careers or their own PR bus?

Now when Kanye West made his tactless comment at the MTV awards show, I wasn't feeling that one either. To me, tactless, ignorant, hurtful remarks can come from anybody. Tactless doesn't equal clever, no more than two plus two equals three. If you think that you have to work that hard at being clever, well, then-----you were never clever to begin with.