jeff obafemi carr: the media scientist

a human being is dead half a world away, and in America, people are dancing in the streets. a history-making President gives a statement of resolve from the white house and his words are analyzed and dissected. a man and a woman from Podunk towns, each lacking in formal education, raise 3 children successfully. what do they have in common?

legacy.

the e-universe is ablaze with talk about Osama (Usama) Bin (ben) Laden’s Death or non-death (depending on who you speak with). there are those who are hailing this as one of the great moments in the history of Western Civilization. people immediately took to the streets in Washington, D.C. yesterday, dancing, pop-locking, hi-fiving, flag-waving, hugging, weeping, and celebrating once it was announced that a human being (The Bad Guy) had been assassinated by another group of human beings (The Good Guys). do i have a problem with that? politically, not really, because i understand geopolitics, nation-building, national security, and war. the death of Bin Laden is a measurable objective within that framework, and makers of war scored a top prize less than 24 hours ago, a crown jewel in the crown of nationalism that sits squarely atop the head of the United States of America, the supreme military complex of the world. do i have a problem with it spiritually? well, that’s a different matter altogether.

i can’t, in good conscience for myself, see myself whipping my mind and mouth into a frenzy of celebration at the snuffing out of a human life, however justifiable. maybe that’s because i’m not able to grasp the concept of taking something that i can’t give back. you can have retribution for money and property, but life? that’s up to God to decide. personally, i’m glad they caught Bin Laden, and i wish they’d have captured him alive. you ask “what kind of fucking American are you, buddy? if you’d have lost someone in the two towers, you’d want him dead, too! Why don’t you talk to someone who lost someone in the towers and you’d change your mind.” i have had conversation with people in those categories, and i can say definitively, that there is a flip side.

can you imagine the pain of losing someone so close because of the actions of another person? we may have all been in that situation before in some kind of way, so try and remember how you felt or how you really would feel. would you want the person at fault to be punished? in grief counseling, i’ve often found that people want the offender to feel what THEY are feeling: the sense of loss, the stripping of their power and their center, pain. a person can’t feel that when they’re dead. and when they believe that through death they live on, there is no sting or victory in dying. consider this: if Bin Laden had been captured alive and made to live out his years not in a mansion with the internet and piles of money and resources, but in a cell with no access to his minions, his money, and his mechanisms for moving his masses, then he’d have to die, slowly, knowing that there was no hope or honor at the end of his life’s journey.

with no body anyone has seen, conflicting reports over whether he was actually dead or alive, and a history of governmental cover-ups and secrecy, after the celebration has itself died down, how much closure is this actually going to bring to people?

as for our President, who tactfully handled the decision to advance this mission and the announcement of its success, did it really do anything to sway his naysayers closer to liking and supporting him? no, the naysayers are now pushing us toward the policies of President Bush as the reason for a successful kill (albeit after 2 terms of Presidency during which Bin Laden was a ghost in the darkness). the supporters of the President are all shouting, “Yeah! How about THAT!” in an attempt to prove that they were right in electing the first President of both White and Black descent to the Oval Office in American History.

now there is a debate that is doing exactly what: dividing us up all over again. and what do enemies of “freedom, justice, equality, our way of life, blah blah ad nauseum” want? to keep us divided and bickering with one another.

who really is winning in this scenario?

i refuse to fight and argue over this bullshit, and you know why? because of my Daddy and my Mama. you see, my father, whom i speak of often–rest his soul, was a remarkable man. he fought through circumstances (poverty, lack of formal education) to marry a wonderful woman, my mother (of the same background). together, they raised my brother (a PhD Dept Head of a prestigious university), my sister (a highly-respected Educational Consultant), and me (a Weaver of Dreams and Theater Founder) to be productive citizens. my father was retired Military and Deacon, while my mother is a Queen Mother of her adopted home city who is sought after daily for her wisdom and insights. in our family, they will be the stuff of legend. their legacy is secure.

President Obama–love him or hate him–has cemented his place in human history. they will speak of him through the end of time when referencing the early part of 21st Century America. Osama Bin Laden has also cemented his place in human history, even more so thanks to the US. you see, on one side of the world, the story will be told that a criminal mastermind terrorist was tracked down and killed for his crimes. on another side of the world, the story will be told that God spared a liberator to endure a decade of assault from evil forces who finally found him and performed a modern day lynching (execution, crucifixion) on a spiritual savior. either way you look at it, it’s undeniable that all of the individuals i’ve mentioned have done something to put their names into the mouths of people who will carry them forward in history, which leads me to the question i ask in the middle of all this debate and celebration:

what are YOU doing to create or cement YOUR legacy?

that’s why i have to think before i take to the streets celebrating other people. what will i be remembered for? that’s what guides me when i get up every day. will i be remembered as a voice of love or of hatred? will i be recalled as someone who brought joy into other people’s lives or will i be remembered for pain i inflicted? would i be considered an asset to my fellow man and woman, or a liability?

we all, being human, are created equal. some aspire to greatness, but i have this notion that we all can be great in our own way. i truly believe, based on my life experiences, that what you put into the universe does come back to you. ask yourself, as you think on these words, when your time comes–either from “natural causes” or an “accident,” will people dance and celebrate your life? or will they celebrate your death?

if you want people to celebrate the life you live, then put the energy into the universe you want to receive. if you keep getting back negativity, division, and “evil things,” take an assessment of what you’re putting out into the universe and what is giving you joy. i wouldn’t dare say that my perspective is “the right way,” because then i’ll be setting myself up for a fight i will not engage in. the way i choose to see things gives me peace, and so i’d recommend to anyone that living in peace feels a whole lot better than living in turmoil. life is short and meant for us to enjoy, even as we build our legacies.

that Dash (-) between “born” and “died” is all we’ve got to live on. let’s make it something good and be remembered for such. Obama and Osama have done their thing.

let’s do ours.