If you spend more time on the internet than you do watching T.V.; if you get a major chunk of your media input from YouTube, you have no doubt heard of Internet sensation Antoine Dodson.
Dodson (up until recently) lived in the projects in Huntsville, Alabama called Lincoln Park. One night, while he was minding his own business hanging out on Facebook, he heard his sister scream. He ran to her room and saw her struggling with a bed intruder, a man who was trying to rape her. The rapist was scared away before he was able to carry out his sexual assault.
When news cameras arrived at Dodson’s doorstep, he was still angry, scared and worked up over the ordeal. He was very animated on camera and it was entertaining to watch. So entertaining that the Gregory Brothers, who are known for auto-tuning the news made a song of it and took it viral. At this point in time the Antoine Dodson Bed Intruder song has about 14.5 million views on YouTube. At one point, it was #3 on the iTunes popularity list.
Today I heard a little bit of the story that put a twist on things for me. Dodson’s sister has a 2-year old daughter. The daughter is aware of the trauma and tragedy and she is scared. She is scared for herself and she’s scared for her mom.
I am currently teaching a class about Victimology at Long Beach City College and we talked about sexual abuse just last Thursday. We watched a video by Marilyn Van Derbur called “Once Can Hurt a Lifetime” and we talked about all the ways sexual abuse impacts the survivor. Here’s what we came up with (click on image to enlarge):
Despite all these known consequences for sexual assault survivors, resources to help people are a very low priority on our list at voting time. The impact of lack of funding is evidenced by the closure of Sexual Assault Crisis Agency in Long Beach. For those who need support with overcoming the impact of sexual assault, a good place to start is RAINN (Rape Abuse and Incest National Network).
In class we also talked about some of the ways abusers wield power and control over others. Here’s our list (click on image to enlarge):
We discussed how gaining personal power was a positive step to avoid falling prey to victimizers. If you want help to strengthen your mind, visit icreatehabits.com for a free hypnosis MP3 titled Create The Life You Want. Or, visit Start a Master Mind Group.com to find out how to use group energy to strengthen and improve yourself as a person.
Every musical act has influences. The Beastie Boys and A Tribe Called Quest influenced each other. Punk bands from the U.K. influenced garage bands in Southern California and vice versa. Reggae and dub influenced each other.
What are your influences? That’s what we talked about in Helping and Listening Skills this week. We came up with a great list and I liked it so much I took a picture of it.
I asked the students to tell me about the things that influence them. What do they value? Why do they do what they do; love what they love? This is the list they came up with:
Parents
Environment
-Friends
-Neighborhood
-Peers
-Religion
Culture
Schools
Food/Nutrition
Media
Mental Illness
Life Experience
-Observation
Socio-Economic Status ($$$)
Books
Music
Relationships
Friendships
Family
-Uncles
-Aunts
-Brothers
-Sisters
-etc.
Role Model
-Coach
-Minister
-Teacher
Law
Government
Health
Medication/Drugs
Language
Sleep
Fashion
Freedom
Travel
Pets
Sex
Arts
-Pictures
-Painting
-Dance
Entertainment
Perception
The point I want to make in this class is that you cannot know any of these things about yourself or anyone else unless you first learn how to listen.
A great Master Mind group is one that’s committed to honoring and respecting each other and that includes listening unconditionally and without judgment. It is honoring a person to trust that they know what’s best for their own life.
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When you think about it, every musical act you know of is using the Master Mind principle whether they realize it or not. They are joining together as a team with a combined vision. You can use the same principle and make some truly rockin’ things happen in your life.
Do you have a creative project you want to complete? Do you want to find a purpose for your life?
If so, I invite you to come over to my brand new page called Start a Master Mind Group.com. I’m offering 4 freebies to get you started so you can get a sense of what the Master Mind is all about.
I was driving down PCH on Sunday, listening to some vintage tunes and remembering the “good old days” when all I needed to be happy was music and a drive in the car. In fact, I actually relived the feeling and felt appreciation for the fact that I live in Southern California. I decided to capture my summer drive down PCH on video for a few reasons.
One is: at this time there is no Devo Blockhead video except a few live videos with poor quality and one with just a picture of the album cover. The other is, I figured, “hey, I’m not the only teenager from the ’80s who cruised up and down PCH in the summer listening to things like Devo, maybe someone else will want to remember the feeling with me.”
PCH has changed so much since 1983, in fact, everything has. I have found that I can be happy if I accept and appreciate the changes or I can be miserable and uptight thinking that things should be different. On this Sunday, I just decided to go with the flow and make the best of my ride. If you need a little mental get-away, this video might help. By the way, post a comment if you’re one of those people who is soothed by getting in the car, listening to music and driving along the coast. Beep Beep.
When you think about it, every musical act you know of is using the Master Mind principle whether they realize it or not. They are joining together as a team with a combined vision. You can use the same principle and make some truly rockin’ things happen in your life.
Do you have a creative project you want to complete? Do you want to find a purpose for your life?
If so, I invite you to come over to my brand new page called Start a Master Mind Group.com. I’m offering 4 freebies to get you started so you can get a sense of what the Master Mind is all about.
The song of the week is brought to you by Michael Zampelli, former owner of Southern California punk rock icon, Zed Records. For almost 30 years, this mecca of punk and alternative music kept Southern California enthusiasts adequately supplied with unique, original and innovative music.
Currently, Zampelli manages a hockey fan message boards at www.letsgokings.com with thousands of subscribers. He takes photos for the LAist and the LA Derby Dolls. Each week he will contribute a song with a theme, a message and a beat. Enjoy and stay tuned.
The song of the week is brought to you by Michael Zampelli, former owner of Southern California punk rock icon, Zed Records. For almost 30 years, this mecca of punk and alternative music kept Southern California enthusiasts adequately supplied with unique, original and innovative music.
Currently, Zampelli manages a hockey fan message boards at www.letsgokings.com with thousands of subscribers. He takes photos for the LAist and the LA Derby Dolls. Each week he will contribute a song with a theme, a message and a beat. Enjoy and stay tuned.
The song of the week is brought to you by Michael Zampelli, former owner of Southern California punk rock icon, Zed Records. For almost 30 years, this mecca of punk and alternative music kept Southern California enthusiasts adequately supplied with unique, original and innovative music.
Currently, Zampelli manages a hockey fan message boards at www.letsgokings.com with thousands of subscribers. He takes photos for the LAist and the LA Derby Dolls. Each week he will contribute a song with a theme, a message and a beat. Enjoy and stay tuned.
The song of the week is brought to you by Michael Zampelli, former owner of Southern California punk rock icon, Zed Records. For almost 30 years, this mecca of punk and alternative music kept Southern California enthusiasts adequately supplied with unique, original and innovative music.
Currently, Zampelli manages a hockey fan message boards at www.letsgokings.com with thousands of subscribers. He takes photos for the LAist and the LA Derby Dolls. Each week he will contribute a song with a theme, a message and a beat. Enjoy and stay tuned.
The song of the week is brought to you by Michael Zampelli, former owner of Southern California punk rock icon, Zed Records. For almost 30 years, this mecca of punk and alternative music kept Southern California enthusiasts adequately supplied with unique, original and innovative music.
Currently, Zampelli manages a hockey fan message boards at www.letsgokings.com with thousands of subscribers. He takes photos for the LAist and the LA Derby Dolls. Each week he will contribute a song with a theme, a message and a beat. Enjoy and stay tuned.
The song of the week is brought to you by Michael Zampelli, former owner of Southern California punk rock icon, Zed Records. For almost 30 years, this mecca of punk and alternative music kept Southern California enthusiasts adequately supplied with unique, original and innovative music.
Currently, Zampelli manages a hockey fan message boards at www.letsgokings.com with thousands of subscribers. He takes photos for the LAist and the LA Derby Dolls. Each week he will contribute a song with a theme, a message and a beat. Enjoy and stay tuned.
