Humanity, Oscars and the Real Stars

A quesion was raised about the worth of the Oscars. My response is opposed to the downsided nature people might feel:

I do respect the choices of the Academy even if I do not agree with some (esp. when there is a lot of talent to choose from). I view them more wholisitcally, globally, and evolutionarily. They have come a long way, and many of the alcalades were down to earth and simple thanks to the people that matter most: Family, friends and humanity. Some touched the core of my being and grabbed my heart out of my chest. I notice the positive: the lowly, rise above mediocrity inspite of just being a human. There are some things that move me to tears.

I saw the dissappointed look from Mickey Rooney when the Poor me Pimp song won. It is clear the world has changed since the hay day of the Wizard of Oz, but Judy Garland commited suicide for a reason. This was the year of reality. We can only hide from it so long because at some point we are affected by it. I now know someone from every walk of life and am learning that I cannot be the judge of much, especially if I don't understand.

To know that the red carpet can help pave the way to Tolerance makes me proud to have been born in Los Angeles. And, if you knew what the red carpet covers, there is a practical reason they have to lay that down. It is to keep the long gowns clean from the literal filfth that lay beneath it. The very street beneath the feet of the Kodak Theatre is home to the homeless. Unsanitary conditions are finally being addressed this year thanks to the LA Times pushing the issue to pull a task force together. It is complicated: from the mentally ill to the criminally bent to the families who were one paycheck away from such descent.

To hear a member of the SAG acknowledge that Blacks no longer sit in the back, makes me proud to be of this generation, and yet we still have a long way to go. I actually wish I had more color. I am waiting to see Mogan Freedman receive his over due recognition from the Academy.

Though I have not yet seen Brokeback Mt., I was moved to know that a modest author from a modest publisher could tell a story that may have just moved a mountain toward Tolerance is an unbelieveable step for mankind. My heart goes out to all people in love.

Jimmy Kimmel and other comedians are trying to help. Oddly enough sex between heterosexuals has had to go through bad taste comedy to settle into mainstream values. Though it's not comfortable for those involved to be poked at for fun, it is what politicians know well now since Will Roger days. There has to be a place protected from political correctness.

Our God is an Awsome God, and we should act accordingly. I know I will be falling on my knees before him in thanks that I am not stoned to death. I am fortunate to happen to be born with my skin color and religion and in America. God is merciful and understanding. And somewhere in heaven there is room for a sense of humor. Many don't get that here, maybe they won't get it there either.

I know some people are anti-Hollywood because of the glitz and glamour and "the way they push the envelope" on societies. But I saw a lot of ordinary human beings, humbled to tell real stories that stir extrordinary emotions. I did not see jealousy from their colleagues who did not take home the trophies. I saw deep admiration and felt it in my core.

Competitors out there: Just remember, you can catch more flies with honey than you can vinegar. Please keep striving to attain your own dreams. I am grateful for the last image of those who have gone before us: Richard Pryor. And I thanked God that but for His Grace I do not have Lou Gherig's disease. And Richard handled it with grace that I'm not sure I would have. I will remember the unbearable glimpse of his unthinkable suffering; I thanked God he made me, and many of us, laugh for years.

You want to break into show biz; give show biz a break. Be thankful they help our economy with all the jobs they create, and be appreciative of all the philanthropic good they do.

There is enough bad or darkness everywhere. I beg of you who read this do not add to the darkness; step into the light and be part of what shines. In time that will be what matters most, no matter how small your light can beam. Every little beam counts. Numbers of stars or grains of sands, we are all in God's hand. We cannot fathom the heaven that holds so many. One day when we have the technology to literally read the writing on the walls, God will wave his hand over it to edit out the bad and show us movies of each of our precious lives and what they meant for eternity.