AUGUST - EPISODE VIII: SUMMER 2020

 WISDOM OF THE SAGES
EPISODE VIII: SUMMER 2020

Hello People of the World;

 

Here we are, still in the middle of all of this. The weather has broken and it has been cooler of late. We had some heat and some thunderstorms of late. Oh well. Who care about the weather now when we haven't even reached the middle of this yet?

 

As always: Stay safe. Stay home.

 

 All right, let’s get going:

 

1:[ If I were to cave in and start doing movie reactions, I think I would be commenting on how they are made and on boring stuff like tracking shots and lighting and character motive setup and how the script works and how setups pay off and basically ruining the movie for viewers. So, I tend to stay away...

 

2:[ Media Literacy Corner: On the Supreminal Message:

 

The overt message is the message in plain sight. The subliminal message is the unspoken message and most people seem to be on the look out for this. Which is fine. But people never look for the supreminal message. The Surpeminal message is the overt message that is everywhere. There is no escaping it. That is why most ads have become overly simplified because they are easily digestible and can be placed everywhere – like Geico ads.

 

But this works for other forms of visual media besides ads as well. An example is the soundtrack to Kubrick’s “2001” which is made up of classical overtures. If has become so familiar and widely recognized that we immediately associate that music, when we hear it, to the films. Little known is that while “2001” was in productions, Kubrick tasked Alex North to compose score for “2001”. Kubrick was using the classical music pieces as placeholders, as many directors do, however, once North completed his score, Kurbick was so enamored of the temporary track, he tossed North’s score in favor of the classical music.

 

In 2005, I think, North went ahead and released his unheard score to “2001” as a standalone album. Lately on YouTube, many have been editing the North score to clips from the film to sort of gauge how it would have been had Kubrick stuck with North’s work. However, audiences are so used to the classical score they immediately judge the North score as terrible. Which it is not. It’s different.

 

We are just so used to the classical score. This is an example of supreminal messaging. Where a counter or differing point becomes ugly to us.

 

Another example would be the Star Wars Special Editions. We are so used to the old version, never mind that George Lucas was tinkering with the first film even AFTER it was released, that when Lucas further tinkers with his films we get upset.

Another, more recent example would be the “She-Ra: Princess of Power” cartoons. Grown men were getting sooooo upset and MAD when the new cartoon, A CARTOON depicted She-Ra as a young adolesent girl rather than a grown woman. Which is hilarious because, no grown man or boy would watch “She-Ra” when it first came out.

 

But we get so used to thing that this is actually stifling innovation and change. The best example of the surpreminal message is that “Indians are Savages/Extinct”….

 

3:[ Movie Reviews:

“First Cow” – it was enjoyable. But why does the Chinese guy have to be the conniving one? And once again, in any historical period piece, all I see are the missing Native. Sure, Gary Farmer was in it, but was depicted as a foreign princess for some reason. The opening seemed like an excuse to have Cousin Maebe in it.

 

“Birds of Prey” – is probably the best DCEU film out there right now. It was fun, action-packed, and I liked the characters. Basic comic book fluff. Go see it….

 

4:[ I finally completed my video review of “Wind River”. Titled "Once Upon a Time on the Rez: A Northern Arapaho's Review of 'Wind River'." You can watch it by CLICKING HERE. It is an hour and five minutes long. I hope well worth it….

 

5:[ In quarantine, I have been in my element as an introvert and creative. People are stating that not to feel bad if they have not been creative during this time. My issue was that I never had time. To me, waiting on inspiration is the lazy man’s path. Anyways, during this time I actually finished my novel “A Rez Tale” and I am up to a fourth draft and have readers going through it and giving me critique and feedback. I hope to get it done and self-publishing it by December 5. Stay tuned….

 

6:[ With all the things going on there, I think I’m going to do my Spring course at UW Parkside online instead….

 

7:[ We CANNOT go back to “Normal”: With everything that is going on I am very tired and wary. I barely go out because idiots think they don’t need masks or worse, they think this thing is over, or they act like it’s over. We are barely through the FIRST WAVE. Even people whom I think are intelligent are acting like it’s done and going out like saps. The other thing that worries me is that the people I see in the store or around the neighborhood, I cannot trust that if things get worse, they would rather have me shot than listen to me. I cannot trust them to not think about my safety. That is a shitty place to be right now….

 

8:[ With the recent death of Charwick Boseman, what comes to mind is how excited the black and Latino kids were when they walked out of the theaters at ICON Showplace Theaters. “Black Panther” was and is such a big deal, people from the Black community were lining up to take pictures with the poster. ICON only had the Okoye character poster, but since a strong, black woman is such a powerful thing, they took pictures with it anyway. We can never understate the importance of that film nor Boseman’s portrayal in it….

 

That is it for this month.

 

I hope all is well with you. Take care. Mask up. This shit ain’t over yet. Not by a longshot.

 

As always, I invite you to comment, correct, or contradict anything I write here. I am open to a critical debate. Thanks for taking the time to check out what I write here and I will see you in a month.

 

Until next time, remember “I try to show the schemers how pathetic their attempts to control everything really are.”

 

 

 

2020 Ernest M Whiteman III

 

 

JULY - EPISODE SEVEN: SUMMER 2020

 WISDOM OF THE SAGES
EPISODE VII: SUMMER 2020

Hello People of the World;

 

Once again, due to the strangeness of the times, I completely forgot to post an episode for July. I am writing all of this on August 9^th. Still, it is a fun exercise in recalling all that happened during the past month.

 

So, summer is finally here with its heat and I have noticed that folks aren’t complaining as much about the weather. It might have something to do with that deadly virus going around. Maybe?

 

As always: Stay safe. Stay home.

 

 All right, let’s get going:

 

1:[ This virus continues to show us how equal we all really are: Especially in how we are reacting to it now. Many people are acting like it is all behind us while new cases and death happen every damn day. I mean, I see people, whom I always thought of ass smart out there like nothing has happened. It has also been turned into a stupid rights-identity issue. Jee-sus. We are all equal in our sheer ego and stupidity. Ego in that we think that somehow, as the hero of our own stories, this virus will not affect us since everyone else is outside now; and stupidity in thinking it is a rights issue and we bought into the idea that NOT wearing a mask is freedom. We deserve extinction…

 

2:[ “The Old Guard” Review – Switching gears. A pretty good movie. It is being touted as a superhero movie. It is ‘meh’ in that regard. It tries to build a foundation of canon, but in the end, it is just another conspiracy-action movie. I still enjoyed it but it could have gone stronger in the direction it was heading….

 

3:[ I applied for a Screenwriting fellowship. Since it begins August 13^th, I don’t think I got it. Took the chance. In the phone interview, I was called “bold” for submitting “Hamlet” as my writing sample. Still, it is the end of the month and I should have heard from them by now. So, I don’t think I got it….

 

4:[ I also applied for an artist’s residency at a Hyde Park gallery space. I don’t think I’ll get it. I am not one to give in to appropriating my own culture for my art and that boots me out of most art cliques….

 

5:[ I am working on a long-form video review of “Wind River”. I will post it to YouTube once it is done.

 

6:[ We cannot go back to “Normal” all after this…. Seriously…

 

 

That is it for this month.

 

 

As always, I invite you to comment, correct, or contradict anything I write here. I am open to a critical debate. Thanks for taking the time to check out what I write here and I will see you in a month.

 

Until next time, remember “I try to show the schemers how pathetic their attempts to control everything really are.”

 

 

2020 Ernest M Whiteman III

 

NOVEMBER - EPISODE ELEVEN: FALL 2015

WISDOM OF THE SAGES

EPISODE ELEVEN – FALL 2015

Hello People of the World;

I guess I still do not understand why people are always surprised that Fall happens. It recently snowed and every one acted like the world ended. Me? I took a little time to watch the first snowfall of fall 2015. Through the glare of the softball field lights, the fat flakes floated down and filled every space of the sky. It was a quiet, amazing thing to stop and watch for a few minutes.

On that note, let’s get this month’s edition started, shall we:

1 :[ I wish that my family from Wyoming can to see me more often here in Chicago. I must now admit that it has been here in Chicago that I made a home, a family, and where I found an identity away from the reservation. I make every effort to go back to the reservation but sometimes I wish I could show my family around Chicago. I think it would be fun….

2 :[ WHY HAMLET: Part Two – Many folks still cannot understand why I would try to make a full-text, full-length Hamlet movie using a Native American cast. I do my best to explain the reasoning behind it but some still seem disinterested and others plain do not get it. So, I made a video to explain it all….

3 :[ So, recently, when I went to see “He Named Me Malala” at the Landmark Century, I discovered a place nearby called Stan’s Donuts & Coffee. It was there that I had my own sort of “Ratatouille” moment when I bit into a glazed doughnut there. No, I did not flashback to my youth, but I did flash back to when I was living in Riverton, Wyoming and my sister Val and I, went to the “Daylight Doughnuts” after work to get a pack of fresh-made glazed doughnuts and a couple of cream-filled ones.

Now, this was at 4:30am and we just got off work. We used to work as Security Guard for the then-unified Tribal Housing and we had to work the graveyard shift – 9pm to 5am. It was rough. Everyone hated you and you never, ever were able to do enough. I have been threatened with beatings and once or twice had my life threatened. That is how it goes.

The job was made easier because my older brother Dalco and my older sister were on the job too. We would try to stay up after work and sometimes we would go to breakfast after. On this occasion, Val and I went to the Daylight Donuts on Main Street because they were one of those early-bake donut shops. They opened at 5am and we figured we should get a dozen and get a couple of cream-filled right out of the ovens. They were awesome.

So, I found Stan’s the other day and ordered a glazed and the taste and texture took me back to that early morning after shift on the rez….

4 :[ I am in a very strange headspace now days since I have been reading five very different books. I have been reading:

-The Revolution Will Not Be Funded, compiled by Incite! Women of Color Against Violence – Madonna Thunder Hawk essay is probably one of the best things I have read on non-profit exploitation of social justice causes. So, I have been seeing this type of exploitation in the world today. My eyes have been opened to how the opposition to social issues have been coming from all ends of the political spectrum, of how these causes can be co-opted by corporations as well as non-profit organizations, and that becoming a non-profit could actually be the death knell for your cause.

-A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms by George RR Martin takes place over a century before the events of “A Song of Ice and Fire” following Aegon V Targaryen when he was squiring for Sir Duncan the Tall and all of their adventures in Westoros and beyond. Duncan is not a real knight and is playing at being one. Yet, he is the one that is truly ACTING as a knight should because this world is filled with a lot of false, self-serving, or terrible knights. So, the ideas of chivalry and doing the right thing have been swirling around my head.

-Hamlet by William Shakespeare – the Cambridge edition, which is basically and actor’s notebook with staging and thematic questions and acting and writing exercises throughout. So, my head is filled with constantly breaking this play down for my movie.

-The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander discusses how the War on Drugs fuels a new way of keeping ex-convicts from voting and how the system is bent toward keeping and putting certain sectors of our society into prison and it opened my eyes in that this extends across the country. It has also awakened me to being more aware of my ways of enacting social justice in my art, my job, and in the films I make. So, there is that.

-Three Kingdoms by Luo Gunazhong – of course, I am constantly reading this and my head is filled with the honor of fighting for a cause, heroism, seeing the bad guys as not-really the bad guy and seeing how you have to make your choices and fight for a cause you believe in. So, that is constantly floating around my head.

So, my head is in a funny place right now. Thanks to books. Which is how it should be, right?

5 :[ Nature At Work: Dudes being Dudes: As an introvert, one of the things I enjoy most is People Watching. The main thing I have learned from this is this: dudes with always be dudes. No matter the race, religion or age. No matter who they are, they will always check out chicks. Look, I admit that I look at the ladies that pass me by, especially if I think they are attractive. It is human nature. It is not sexism or patriarchy to simply look at a lady who has some appeal. I however do not leer or make rude comments or harass. I don’t.

I find it funny at how many dudes will simply leer at a woman getting on the train. I usually look the lady in the face, sometimes, I will get a smile form them, and I will immediately look at the dudes nearby or sitting across from me. They just stare and stare, and NOT at her face. Then, they turn and see me looking at them. They act caught. I have to laugh.

Then, there are those idiot dudes who are not sitting in open seats because they are afraid to catch the Gay. Seriously, they will actually be in the way of everyone else on the train by simply standing in the aisle because they are too squeamish to sit down between two other dudes. I also hate it when dudes dump all their shit on the seat next to them just so no one sits next to them. It’s PUBLIC transportation, which means they all have the right to sit next to your stupid ass if the seat is open. Let them, or, SIT DOWN and make room! Sheesh!

6 :[ It has been surprising that I have been to the movie theater nearly 65 times this year. That is over one movie a week. Many were rescreens, special events, but thanks to cheap seats and matinees, I am able to see a lot more movies now on my meager income. On FB, I started a photo project of taking a picture of the ticket stub and writing up a quick review and recommendation. So, here are a few really quick reviews for your reading pleasure:

“Speck-Tree” Review: Meh. I really hate that they are taking the very good Craig Bond Series and swinging them back to Status Quo where all the stupid stuff happened.

“Spotlight” Review: Great. One of the best movies I saw this year. It is about the Boston Globe reporters that uncovered the Catholic Priest scandal. It is heart wrenching to see what tried to get in the way and block this story from getting out. Go see it.

“Until the End of the World” Review: Finally! I have always wanted to see this version on the big screen. I own the 3-hour cut on VHS. It has never been released to US DVD. This actually plays better as the “Epic Road Movie” as Wenders wanted. They added footage does not slow the film down at all, and it clocks in at nearly 5 hours! If you can see it, do it. It works well on the big screen though.

“Creed” Review: Very Good! This is simply a story set in the world of Rocky Balboa and is NOT another Rocky movie. Another great movie, as it is inspiring and fun. Stallone slips into that old persona easily and Michael B Jordan is great as Adonis Johnson. I was anticipating this and “Until the End of the World” the most this year. Yes, even more than Star Wars.

It has been a very good year so far. One more month of movies left for my Ticket Stub Photo Project!

7 :[ Why is November Native American Heritage Month, is it only because of Thanksgiving? The fact that I am a Native American for more than one month a year seems to be lost on the citizenry. The accurate history of the holiday is never taught in schools, neither is an accurate history of the country’s interaction with Native cultures. When I taught my Native American in Media class at UWP, I had to state upfront at the beginning of every semester, that my class was NOT a Native history class, that, that should have been the duty of their elementary and high schools to teach. But it never was. So, to the disappointment of my students, I never taught them history because I also know that they would only be interested during the course of the semester, then they can forget all about it. Which is why Native American Heritage celebrations are relegated to a month. So we can forget them for the rest of the year.

However, hypocritically, I will never advocate for the removal of Thanksgiving. It is a time for families to gather and to reflect and be thankful for everything they have. We should all take time to do that, more so on a daily basis. Native love gathering with family and do so whenever they can. So, no, do not change or end Thanksgiving, we should simple consider its history….

8 :[ This woman holds the train car hostage with her voice alone. Obvious is the mental anguish this woman has been through; her random shouted words, at no one in particular, at everyone in particular, give us the picture of having been evicted from her home. So, now, she is “dragging my refrigerator around”.

The car falls silent, tries to ignore her, he presence, her story. Yet, she speaks softly and earnestly to the people she interacts with, with whom she means to speak with, “oh, excuse me”, “thank you”; the mental anguish she went through, goes through now, we all try to ignore her, to pretend she is just another rider on this train. She then screams about witchcraft and Jesus. We try to ignore. Me, safe in my homeward trajectory, act like she is another person, some one normal who just has gone through something I cannot imagine, I should think of her as another human being. But, in my heart of hearts, I will not offer any help. No one on this train will. Should I? Do I have any right to force my egotistical charity on her? Or is this just my own reasoning not to help her?

She then gets up to get off at the next stop. You can feel the weight lifted off the rest of the people in the car. But, all the people getting on only slow her down, she has so much to drag behind her. They block her way. I can feel the giggling teenagers praying that she makes it off. When she finally is able to drag her carts and bags and homelessness off the train, the teens laugh out loud at her strangeness, recounting in mocking voices, all the things she shouted. While, those of us that know how the game goes, who are maybe closer to her situation than we dare to think, than those laughing teens cannot imagine, remain silent in her absence.

It is all we can give her. Those of us who know; our respect in our silence and her dignity in allowing her any space she needs on this train. – 11.12.2015, 9:45pm Brown Line north.

That will do it for this month.

As always, feel free to comment, correct, or contradict anything you read here. My ego is such that I think I can take it. I dare you. “Think you can take me? Well go ahead on. It’s your move.”

Until next month, remember “I try to show the schemers how pathetic their attempts to control everything really are.”

2015 Ernest M Whiteman III

JULY - EPISODE SEVEN: SUMMER 2015

WISDOM OF THE SAGES

EPISODE SEVEN – SUMMER 2015

Hello People of the World;

Well, well, what do you know, it’s summer and guess what happened? It got warmer! Scandal! Shock! GASP! It’s not supposed to get hot in the summer, it’s supposed to be the exact correct temperature for you and you alone! Doesn’t Nature get it yet? The weather happening is all about You!

Oh well. I guess you are going to have to do what you have done for all of your life and simply let the weather be the weather and live in it. Just try not to be surprised when the Earth turns again and it starts to gradually get cooler. Shoot, we still have August and September to get through before Fall, so, pace yourself when it comes to bitching about the weather. On that note, let’s get this month’s edition started, shall we:

1 :[ Singing My Name: Not in terms of Praise: Here is something I noticed that happens a lot. I have noticed that for almost every woman that I know, and that I some how make uncomfortable, that whenever I see them or they meet me, they immediately sort of sing my name upon seeing me. “ERN-eeeest!” It’s weird. I think I make them uncomfortable for some reason. Because discomfort is the only reason I can think of that they would do this….

2 :[ LOSING CONTEXT part One: Condensation of MEDIA

I have noticed that we tend to really condense our information now. Computers have turned learning into a symbol-recognition game, based on entertainment and nostalgia. Look at how we treat our great literary classics such as Hamlet: I saw this book titled “Srsly HAMLET” in the book store and found it a sort of easy reading thing where the drama is reduced to modern teen angst as told through cell phone text speak. We are creating our own form of NEWSPEAK…

3 :[ My losing thoughts lately, having trouble recalling recent things. Maybe this points to a larger problem, maybe? Not really, it is just that I have way too many thoughts flowing through my head and I have to stop sometimes to write it all out or else it will get washed downstream and become harder o recover. Which is why, I guess, that I changed up the format of WOS a little bit. Increasingly, I find myself less and less interested in what is going on in the world. Religion, politics, celebrity, sports, social causes have become repetitive and without any clear solutions to work towards. We will never evolve into a better society if we constantly leave it to future generations. It is all frightfully trite. But, if we just grow up and do stuff, we will find it easier that fighting it…

4 :[ I talk to myself constantly. I mean, I am not crazy or anything but I tend to give these long speeches to different people that I think or fantasize about having a discussion with, mostly the likes of Bill Maher, Jon Stewart, and others like that. I have these long diatribes on race, the economy, religion, Native American issues, and I find that I should either start writing them down or recording myself some how. But because I hate politics, I refuse to do so. Am I been hypocrite enough to sound off on such topics? Who would care to hear my thoughts on something like abortion? Really? That is another reason I do not record or write down these opines. I know, no one cares for my opinion because that is all they are, opinions….

5 :[ NERD RAGE RANTS: The Special Edition

After seeing a bunch of footage for movies come from the recent San Diego Comic Con I had many thoughts go through my head, such as, isn’t it supposed to be a comic book convention? Plus all these other crazy things that I will get out of my system now:

- SDCC Star Wars BTS Reel – I am not too enthused about the upcoming Star Wars Episode VII. The two teasers really did nothing for me. Lucasfilm showed a Behind-the-Scenes reel which really hyped the fact that… Practical Effects!!! THE TRIO!!! NO GEORGE LUCAS!! They really did everything possible to NOT MENTION creator George Lucas. Poor guy.

- When I first heard about Batman v. Superman, I was very excited as I am one fo the few people who enjoyed “Man of Steel” and I thought it would be a historic film to have those two on the big screen for the first time ever. But then, they cast Ben Affleck as Batman and the wind went right ourt of my sails. Look, Affleck is a shitty actor. I realize that Batman is not Macbeth, but it is the closes thing in comic book movie standards. Plus, every one keeps bandying about his “great” performances in “The Town”, “Argo” and “Gone Girl.” They keep saying we cannot judge Affleck by “Daredevil”.

I can ABSOLUTELY use Daredevil to make this assessment. BUT I CAN ALSO USE ALL HIS OTHER SHITTY ROLES HE PLAYED as evidence of his terrible skills. He was horrible in “Argo”, not suited for the role at all. (Michael Pena would have been a better fit but for Affleck’s ego.) and he played typified roles of a Bostonian meathead in “The Town” and a stupid meathead in “Gone Girl” so, they were NOT stretches for him as an actor. He is the same personality in ALL his roles. A gravelly voice cannot mask that. I have to laugh that Snyder did even try to force a Batman-voice on Affleck, instead used a voice modulator, which all the stupid fans thought was the greatest thing. Every time I heard “Bruce Wayne” talk, all I heard was “Hey lady, you fucked up my cabbage patch!”

Also, Affleck is NOT a great director. He is simply a competent director. He made three strong films. It is just that our standard of quality is so low right now that Affleck somehow gets called “great” because now days, movies are JUST entertainment.

I also notice in comments and reaction video no one ever calls Ben Affleck Bruce Wayne or Batman, which is clearly the problem for me. Past incarnations are typically called “Keaton’s Bruce/Batman”, Bale’s “Batman/Bruce” and so on, even “West’s Batman”. But here we are, whenever Affleck appears onscreen, every so-called geek nods their stupid head and says “Affleck”. He can never disappear into the role because he cannot act. He’s a personality. We even call the role fucking “BAT-Fleck” because we cannot distinguish him from his personality. HE can never truly be Bruce, or Batman. He will always be “Batfleck”. Have you noticed: All pictures of him in the AWESOME Batsuit cannot mask his stupid mouth-breathing face.

- I am so loving the hypocrisy of “A Ghostbusters with Women Reboot? Hollywood is out of ideas, it’s gonna suck, wait- Star Wars Episode VII, Ash vs. the EVIL DEAD, BATMAN v. Superman, Mark Hamill’s Joker is returning? Yes!” I guess you can reboot anything as long as it isn’t with women….

- Look, I get the reason for this new nostalgia. We are the X Generation. We are getting old; so it only stands to reason that we want things that remind us of our long-passed childhood. We do not want to face the simple fact: we are going to die. Yes, even us, the famed Generation X, will grow old and die. Oops. Sorry: should have wrote “SPOILERS”.

6 :[ Fan Opinions: Why is it that my negative opinion on something, such as the casting of Affleck as Batman is simply pushed aside as “well, that’s, like, your opinion man…”, “everyone is entitled to their opinion, man…”, “Your negative opinion is just an opinion, man, don’t judge it until you’ve seen it, uh, man….” But isn’t their POSITIVE opinion still just an opinion also and has as much validity as my negative one?

It is also funny to see how fickle these fans can be. Take the actor they cast for the Flash Movie. At first when the “Arrow” actor hated that they did not cast the TV Flash actor, fans were outraged. “He’s gonna suck” they screamed. Then, recently, the TV Flash Actor posted that he was okay with him, then fans where screaming, “He’ll crush it!” Stupid. Hypocrites….

7 :[ Something I have Noticed: BUYING INTO THEIR OWN HYPE

With the recent unnoticed kerfuffle with the Daily Show where Wyatt Cenac called out Jon Stewart’s racist caricatures and Stewart shouted him down and dismissed Cenac’s point of view on the caricatures he had planned to do. Then, from there, I see a lot of people defending Stewart and dismissing Cenac stating that Cenac should not be “the voice of his people” when they demand the same thing from rappers that behave like shitheads. Hypocrisy. But it also made me feel different towards Stewart. That he is just another one of the long line of comedians that jump behind the 1^st Amendment when they do not want to take responsibility for what comes out of their brains and mouths.

Then, when he shouts down Cenac in front of the writing staff of The Daily Shows, shows how little Stewart thinks of Cenac’s perspective. What Stewart is really afraid of, I think, is that he had an educated black man on staff that would call him out. “Educated” because who reading this even knows who “Kingfish” is? Funny how Liberals will defend the racism of people they agree with.

It also made me realize how much Stewart buys into his own hype that he is somehow the Most Trusted Liberal News Source and that, that he has people of color on staff shows that he is magically unlike all other white man in their relationship to people of color and is more enlightened when I suddenly realize, and see in society at large, how people of color in most kinds of relationships sort of become the “blackface” or “brownface” or “redface” for social issues they really want to talk about, especially in Stewart’s case.

This Buying of Your Own Hype is something I have been noticing a lot recent. Take for instance, this Food Reviewer I used to follow on YouTube, called Daym Drops. He got big when his review of Five Guys Burger and Fries was featured on “Live with Jimmy Kimmel” I believe. (?? It was one of the Jimmy's.) I subscribed because I enjoyed his personality and he made fun videos. Then, he started selling merch and doing game reviews and the like, which was no big deal. Then, he did a review of a Starbucks breakfast sandwich. As everyone knows, you do NOT go to Starbucks for a breakfast sandwich. But, when he took out the sandwich, he erupts into the very long, very loud bout of forced laughter. After which, I unsubscribed. He did not event try the sandwich but made a snap judgment because he thinks his fans want one and that they treat him as some sort of true source of food review info. It seemed forced and fake and definitely seemed like he was buying into his own hype.

We all do that as some point. Look at how I run the film festival. I got called out recently about how I do it. Of course, I have presence of mind to take the criticism but I did feel that I am buying into my own hype about being this paragon of virtue when it comes to being The Defender of Native American First-Voice. But, I also saw that I became the “redface” for those who want to look like they are doing the same. Still. I need to be careful about buying into my own hype. I mean, who else would try to do a feature-length, full-text adaptation of HAMLET but a director who bought his own hype.

I see it happening all over in the Native Arts world as well. We keep thinking we are so good that if we keep putting out war bonnets and warrior imagery that we are somehow “critiquing the stereotypes” when all we are doing is saying it is still okay for white people to wear headdresses as long as they pay for the privilege….

So that is it for this month. I really have not been sharing these or making them public. If you are reading this after looking for it, or you came upon it by chance, thank you! Feel free to comment, correct, or contradict anything you read here. I am a grown up, I can take it. I take responsibility for what I write. Unlike some….

Until next month, remember “I try to show the schemers how pathetic their attempts to control everything really are.”

2015 Ernest M Whiteman III

November - Autumn 2013

Hello People of the World;

BAM! Snow, suckas! Yep, the crazy weather went medieval on your asses and dropped some snow in your neighborhood. I guess the planet surprised you with that one. Then, just when you get used to the idea of an early winter. Then world changes its mind again. BAM! How-bout some rain, suckas!

I hope you are well and not too scared by the wacky weather out there. Today, as I type this, I was near struck by lightning as I walked home from a presentation. I was walking beside my apartment building when a white flash filled the sky. I smelled the buzz (if that makes sense) in that silence in between, then, KA-BOOM! Sorry this is late, again, but as it turns out every year, November gets very busy for me. I don’t know why.

Let’s get this edition started, shall we?

1:[ First Item of the Month: Gaining Trust

I find that meeting some one you trust is becoming a very rare thing in today’s world. I have met very few people I can really tell everything about myself to. Yeah, as much as I brag on about me, no one has really heard or knows everything about me. Recently though, I was giving trust in return. It is something very big, to gain that kind of trust. It is a big responsibility from someone whom you love to receive such a gift. That is when you know someone really loves you. I just hope that I prove out worthy of the type of trust that I have been recently bestowed….

2:[ My Truthfulness Stuffs:

My Useless Self: Ego and Talking About Myself

I have had the pleasure of running into an old friend that I have not seen in some time the other night at the film festival. It was great to see her again after this long while and though we had barely enough time to catch up, I always find that my ego gets the best of me and I talk about myself a bit too much. Of course, my friends are too polite to say anything and when I finally get around to asking “And how are you doing?” they reply with considerate grace.

I know. I get it. I have a big ego. Plain and simple. I guess most of you have figured that out, seeing that I write a monthly web log expressly dedicated to share my super, Mc Awesome thoughts with you. I don’t know. I just end up blathering on about how awesome I am. I always feel like I am being rude for going on and on about me when I talk to friends or acquaintances. But some times, I know, I have not seen some people for so long that I want to tell them as much as possible because I do not know when I will see them again. You see? I have told you before that I am an introvert. I do not go out much. So, whenever some one asks what I have been up to, I feel it rude not to give a complete answer.

Besides, I’m awesome. Right?

Updates from my other Truthfulness Projects:

+ NAMELESS: The Authentic and Magical Ledger Art of EW3

A Treatise on American Indian Art

“All you care about is money. This city deserves a better class of artist. And I’m going to give it to them.”

I really enjoy giving my sketches away. Just as a rule I keep a number of them, about 20 or (Out of 75 and growing) to run as my primary exhibition images. Plus, I only give away the images I have already scanned into electronic files, which is about 60 or so. Also, I give away drawing that some how reflects the person receiving it and that the drawing has to be good in my own judgment. The image may not make much sense to the person/people receiving it, but it makes sense to me.

For instance, I recently gave away an image of a Chinese opera mask depicting Guan Yu. His red, ruddy face is a representation of valor and high honor, which I think describes the ladies at Title VII to whom I gave the drawing.

All of the parameters of this project are there to circumvent the ideologies of the Native Art world and the expectations of art in general. From the materials used, to the images rendered, the use of cheap framing and even giving them away are all meant to peel away from this idea that art is a collectible coffee mug, that its only purpose is to be sent around and sold off to the highest bidders and that, that, some how gives the art credibility in our world. Which is a load of sh*t.

People always ask how I can actually give away these pieces. Simple. I can replace any of these drawings. Doing them is fun. To quote the great man, ‘It’s not about money. It’s about sending a message…’.

+ The Five Six SEVEN Hypocrisies of Native America:

(Because Seven is a sacred number):

Presenting the Three Things the Redskins can do to gain Native American Support:

1) Change their name to that of a great Native American leader: Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, Tecumseh, Red Cloud. So when you look at that sh*tty, cartoony Indian head, you will be reminded of our heroes. You will be seeing our leaders. And that will make it all right.

2) Give a shit-ton of money to the local Native American organization. In DC, I believe that would be the National Museum of the American Indian, lovingly called the NMAI because Natives luuuuvs us some acronym.

3) Most Importantly: Keep winning championships. This will make all the Natives in town wear your jerseys. Because nothing spells “Honoring Natives” like patting a huge silver trophy.

How do I know these will work for the Washington Redskins?

It works for the Chicago Blackhawks….

With this whole Washington Redskins Flap happening, I see that many people are taking up sides in this debate. Yet, I do not think many know what it is really about.

Well, it is not about money – because NFL teams change names all the time, shoot, they even move teams around: Browns – Ravens, Cardinals – Rams, Oilers – Titans, and so far, the NFL has not collapsed. You see? People support the home team, not the names.

It is not about Honoring Natives either, because you just have to look at those cartoony Indian heads to know, that isn’t honorable. That is just common sense.

It isn’t even about Native Americans having the right to represent them selves accurately. Because a shit-ton of Indian schools use Braves, Warriors, Chiefs, even Indians as their mascots and have some Indian kid dancing around in a headdress. So, no, it’s not about accurately portraying Native Americans.

In the end, it is about Power. The power they have over another race. You see? For so long the dense and depressing history of American colonialism has never been taught in schools. The whole Myth of Conquest that the Natives had to be destroyed for our great nation to flourish has been indoctrinated into every school kid that moves through any era of our Nation’s school programs. (Yes, even Native kids.) It shows that their history is the correct one, that their version of democracy works, that Manifest Destiny is the right destiny. An accurate history of the conflicts and genocides and the broken treaties has never ONCE entered the head of the American Student. Therefore, we all grow up with this idea that Indians are “Always the Enemy” and they must be put down, segregated or defeated wholly for our democracy to sprout. You see?

They will NEVER give up on the Redskins logo or name because that is their “reward” for their ancestor’s “defeat” of the Indians. That power to say, we “conquered” you and now you have NO say in this, is what is at the heart of this issue. So, how to change it? The biggest change in our histories has always come though confrontation. As uncomfortable as that sound, how scary it seems. It is how change, real change, has come about in our society. Not this silly drumming a thousand miles away….

 

+ No One Ever Sees Indians – Native Americans in Media:

I have had the opportunity to present my revamped Native Americans in Media presentation “No One Ever Sees Indians” at several locations in the past few weeks, mainly due to November being “Native American Heritage Month”.

The first place I presented was at a Wheaton College Seminar. It was the first time I had to do this and since there is an element of performance to it, I was a bit nervous. Now, this was the full-length version of the new presentation and it worked out very well. So much so, that some teachers told me afterwards that they would have to change up how they teach about Native cultures. Some still want to hold on to their authority by constantly asking how to give Natives their voice. So, I’ll take it one step at a time.

The next presentation was at the Midwest ECO Conference at UIC. Here, Community Psychology Doctoral Students were present and the workshop I was a part of was on open discussions on racism. I did a short 15-minute version of the presentation and got a good reaction. I had to cut a lot of what builds up the tension in the regular presentation but I was still able to get my points across. Still, some have to show off their authority and expertise by droning on endlessly about their choices for things.

This morning, I did another, even shorter version of the presentation at the Third Unitarian Church on the Westside. It was a group of elderly parishioners and they took the message very well. So, working out this presentation on various group can only help in my presentation of the idea that in media “No One Ever Sees Indians”….

NEXT MONTH’S TRUTHFULNESS:

Ego and _____?

Let me know what I should cover next in my series on Truthfulness.

3:[ More MOVIE TIME ADVENTURES:

+ Rifftrax Live: Night of the Living Dead: Bonnie and I took in the latest offering from the guys at Rifftrax, this time taking on the “Classic” Night of the Living Dead. It was hilarious. The fact that they take on such “classics” is to be admired. There are no sacred cows when it comes to riffing movies. It is not like movies are art or anything. Strangely enough, this “classic” touched off the whole Zombie Zeitgeist. Before this film, zombies were NOT the living dead. They were peoples rendered mindless through curses. The idea that the dead would rise, according to George Romero, came from the story of Anubus. In fact, the working title of the film was “The Night of Anubus” about the dead rising again. Plus, it does not have that now-trite ubiquity of the zombies eating brains. In this film, they ate flesh. Weird how a concept changes, but still great to watch Mike, Kevin and Bill rip it apart for all its eminence.

+ NT Live: Macbeth: I just saw this yesterday. (As of this typing.) I saw in the Music Box’s newsletter that they were screening the National Theater’s production of “Hamlet” and was very curious to see it. But I also saw that they were screening Kenneth Branagh’s performance and co-direction of “Macbeth”, which intrigued me. I am a fan of Branagh, as a filmmaker. He does or at least tries every genre there is: Shakepeare, mystery, horror, comedy, opera and in a few months political-action with the latest Jack Ryan movie entry.

So, seeing this, I was amazed to discover just HOW LITTLE both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are in the play titled “Macbeth”. I came in about 10 minutes late. But I watched as the witches prophesied for Macbeth and Banquo, then, Macbeth’s power play against the King and assuming the throne. Then, he disappears until the final act to be killed by Macduff. Sure, the sexy Alex Kingston as Lady Macbeth is there to have her nightmares, but she never once egged Macbeth to his deeds. SO, I do not know where the Evil Lady Macbeth Trope comes from. The Macbeths are just there to move the plot along.

I am sure they cut out a lot to make it fit the two and a half hour production. Of course, I also nodded off more than once whenever the Macbeths were not on screen, so maybe I missed something. Also, Branagh was just being Branagh saying Macbeth things. So, all in all not really worth the ticket I paid for, which was very pricey. Now, I am really not sure I want to see the National Theater Live presentation of “Hamlet”.

+ The Grandmaster and Citizen Kane are playing again soon in Chicago. The Grandmaster will be playing again at the Gene Siskel Center and I will be there to see the best film of 2013 that I have seen so far. Citizen Kane will be screening at the Music Box very soon and I will not miss a chance to see it on the big screen. Join me, won’t you?

4:[ Lately, in addition to my continual reading of “Three Kingdoms”, I have been reading a little tome called “Star Wars and History” (I know, even Char calls me a Geek.). It is about how much of history is reflected in the Star Wars movies. (Yeah, all of six them.) Some the first few chapters have been about the Rebellion and what is called “The People’s War” and how a smaller, less-technical force can overcome a larger Imperialistic force. For their historical examples, they used the American Revolution and the Vietnam War. They stressed the idea of a small force outfighting vastly superior numbers. Also, using a shared cause and guerrilla warfare to defeat your foe both on the field and ideologically was discussed at length using these two examples.

Of course, this is all told through a largely European lens. “It’s Star Wars” you might say, and rightly so. Sure, they mentioned the Viet Cong and the US’ impotence in stopping them, but through the usual liberal lens that pats itself on the back for recognizing that the US was the Empire in this instance and possibly many more instances in history. But never once was there mention of Geronimo’s War, Blackhawk’s War, Tecumseh’s War or even Joseph’s Flight. Not even a mention of Little Bighorn. So, history still has a lot of catching up to do, even in a galaxy far, far away….

5:[ Ah yes, settle in Dear Readers for more of:

Adventures at the Coffee Shop!

+ Is it a corporate rule or something that states that there has to be a f*cking, hipster mustachioed buffoon on staff? At my usual spot there is a barista there who is a magician, so I can kind of understand the whole “handlebar moustache” thing. So, I go to a meeting at a shop in Andersonville and lo and behold, another mustachioed barista behind the counter slinging coffee. Really? I hate that mustaches are becoming the next hipster-cool zeitgeist. That trend needs to be cut down before it grows. And why a handlebar? When I see them on dudes, I just know they are just judging sh*t they didn’t earn, when they should only be talking about slinkies and kazoos before they jump on their big-wheeled, olde-tyme bi-cycles and peddle off before crashing into a mountain of antique typewriters…. Or maybe I’m just generalizing….

+ I haven’t had the opportunity to go to the coffee shops as often as I would like and when I do it usually is the same places. However, I did go to a Caribou Coffee the other day before my trip out to Wheaton. I order a hot apple cider, which is just steamed apple juice, which for some reason, NO ONE can get right when I order. When I state I want a steamed apple juice they ask, “You mean a Hot Caramel Cider Something or Other?” “No, just a steamed apple juice. …Hot, HOT apple juice! Thank you.” Sheesh.

So there I was sitting at a window seat facing the order counter. I notice the very cute lady barista was giving me the eye. I would catch her look at me from time to time and I though wow, she very pretty in that Diane Franklin sort of way and would smile back, trying to play it real smoove. SO, I decide to get up and order a refill and when I do, I look out the window behind me to see that a car accident had happened and that was what she was looking at the whole time. When I get back to my seat, I have to think “yeah, that’s about right….”

6:[ I have come around to the Dry Brushing method of tooth care. I read an article on how dry brushing your teeth before you use toothpaste actually gets them cleaner than using toothpaste alone. It removes more plaque. So, I have a ton of tooth rituals. Rinsing in hot water, dry brush and flossing. I floss because I wear a bit a couple of times a week when I sleep. Yeah, I have a retainer. I’m a geek. It is a new, invisible type that needs more upkeep than my old, Old West retainer that my orthodontist screwed into the back of my bottom canines, which broke a year or so ago. I am sure I told you that story already. I wear a bit, it what I’m trying to say….

7:[ And now Wisdom of the Sages presents:

“An Ever-growing List of Things That MUST Stop!”

+ Electronic devices are now allowed to be on during take-off and landing according to this article. It seems that the FFA has relaxed the rules on when passengers can turn on their phones and stuff. Twenty years ago, talking on the phone was not even a remote possibility and people seemed content to take part of the miracle that is human flight without having to check their texts every ten seconds like they are important. How big a babies have we become now when we cannot be away from our f*cking binkies for 20 minutes….

+ My Fans: How do we get attached to pieces of junk? I have had a couple of fans in my place. One was a fan I owned when I was living back in Wyoming. The other, a large fan that Bonnie gave me when we separated. Recently, both have become broken through falls to the floor, breaking of blades and making the machines wobbly when turned on. Now, a sane man would have thrown them out. But I stuck them in my closet and hold on to the out of sheer sentimental value. The attachment to Wyoming and my life with Bonnie and the Girls are packed into those scraps of metal and plastic and I am loathed to throw them away. Can someone show up and take them out to the dumpster for me. I feel that I will just go back and grab them again.

+ Have you ever noticed that people on the trains just talk and talk and talk about f*cking nothing!? Me too! I was on the Red Line the other day heading out to one of my presentations and I guess there was a Bears Game happening. So the train filled up with tons of people in Bears gear. But none of them had anything really important or deep to say. They talked about shopping for something, or eating somewhere, or just sports in general. Some Bears Dudes began flirting with the cute Lions Fan, even delving into the 12-year-old handbook of yelling “LI-YONS SUCK! LI-YONS SUCK!” over and over to try and get a reaction from her. Plus, there was the usual job nonsense that can be taken care of when you get there, but nooooo, you have to sound important. But mostly, people tended to talk about are other people behind their backs. Why can’t people just shut up unless they have something to say? Or maybe I am just an unsocial ass….

8:[ A little note on Giving and Getting Directions: Last month, some time, a man and his grown son approached me on the street. Through the thick eastern European accent the father asked directions of the nearest “Walgreens”. His son stepped in to ask if there was one nearby. Now, we were on Western and Touhy. I told them, yes, one was right up the street, maybe two blocks. They thanked me and went on their way. I turned east on Touhy, heading home when I realized that I might have given them inaccurate directions. See, when they asked I immediately felt the pressure to get the directions right. I counted the stoplights in my head and used that but failed to realize that there are many side streets and off-center junctions that come in-between Western and that particular Walgreens. Man, I felt stupid for feeling rushed.

But about a week ago I found myself looking for the Ogilvie Transportation Center, on my way to Wheaton, to which I never traveled out of before. I found myself lost on Madison and walked north to Randolph but not seeing the station where it was shown on Google Maps. So, I stop a fellow and ask him where it was. He points down the street to the very obvious train tracks and said the station is on the next block, but if I am heading north, the station I want will be on the north side of the street. We were on the south side of Randolph Street. I thank him and proceed towards the station wondering where the north side entrance is. Only when I reach the junction do I realize that there is only ONE entrance on the south side of the street and yes, by entering there I did find my track and train but it made me wonder if we all feel a bit of pressure to answer queries about direction quickly or accurately?

9:[ From the “This Just In” Department: So today I was told about this phenomena of parents buying children’s picture books about Native Americans of late. They would come into the store asking about such books as one called “I am Iroquois” and others, usually last minute month of November projects that they would be freaking out about because they cannot find any kid’s books on Native. Most parents would just be content to buy a book that was felt was practically interchangeable whether it was Cherokee or Iroquois. One dad even stated as much to my friend.

That is annoying in itself, but here is the clincher: the project almost all of these parents were freaking out about is that they were buying the books to cut up for various projects: dioramas, mobiles, and popsicle stick figures. Cutting up the books. I’ll write that again: They were cutting up the books. Now, my friend who told me about this stated that this all happened in one evening with about four different groups of parents coming in, in a rush to find a children’s book on Native that they could cut up.

I am very aware that Native American history is not taught AT ALL in any school in American but this sort of brings the whole of Native culture down to something that is practically disposable….

10:[ Last Item of the Month: Ironically, it is NATIONAL ADOPTION MONTH! Yep, in addition to being National Moustache Month or “Movemeber” (F*cking, YUCK!) and Native American Heritage Month, it is also National Adoption Month.

So go out and find a cute, lost white woman who has stupidly dressed up like a cartoon Indian and adopt them. If we can forgive white dudes for doing it because they are famous, then surely we cannot be hypocritical and do the same for women. Because, adopting a famous white man for stupidly dressing likes an Indian? Apparently, that makes it okay, I guess….

That will do it for this month. Let me know what you think about any of the items that appear here on Wisdom of the Sages. Feel free to comment, correct or contradict what you read here. Because my opinion sure not be the last word. I hope this finds you, Dear Reader, doing well and safe from the harsh winds and rough weathers. I will work a bit harder in getting this out on time. We’ll see.

Until Next Time, “I try to show the schemers how pathetic their attempts to control everything really are.”

2013 Ernest M. Whiteman III