Hate Crimes: My Manifesto on “Haters”

♥ You’ll Probably Hate This…♥

“If you are talentless, without ambition, morbidly obese, illiterate, or foul smelling: You do NOT have Haters! Some people just don’t like you.” — Carmelita Wingate. Longtime friend, from Twitter in 2009.

DETROIT (JSC) — I sit here at this desk as a 32-year-old Black man from inner-city Detroit. I have a small number of people I call my true friends. I have an even smaller contingent of people I call family. I have acquaintances, confidants, Frat brothers, Sorors, and people who are just fans who are along for the ride (thank you for the support by the way). I also have people who don’t like me, care for me, despise me, or even waste a nanosecond of their time thinking about me. This too is just fine with me. The one thing I do not have, will not have, and never have had are “Haters”. Not one. Nobody. I mean, I’ve had people who didn’t support me or what I was doing. I’ve had countless people who didn’t like me. Hell, when I was in Lansing six years ago, there was a cat that I’d never met running around Lansing claiming that I was bisexual and he had seen me in a club with a man. When I confronted him about it, his ass suddenly bailed off the other end of the phone and hid behind his girlfriend. TRUE STORY! I get it. MFers are not going to like me, and guess what: I’M FINE WITH THAT! Hell, I’m an acquired taste as it is. Not everyone is gonna get it. But here’s my issue, part of the problem with this country as a whole, and the black community in particular, is that we are too busy worrying about people who don’t like us. We crave their approval and use it as some sick & twisted motivator. It’s time to face facts: You don’t have “haters.” As the above quote says: “Some people just don’t like you!” Let’s Go.

The Future of Jay Scott Confidential…

♣ It’s Been A Long Time… ♣

“The best thing about the future is that it comes only one day at a time.”

— Abraham Lincoln

DETROIT (JSC) — Prior to starting this, I looked at the time stamp of the last post I put up on this site. Obviously, it has been a minute since I’ve been here, but it’s not because I’ve just given up on the whole blogging game. If you have even bothered to read the “About” section of this thing — and judging from the number of hits that page has gotten, you clearly haven’t — I said very clearly that “this blog will be my outlet to write in lieu of me having a regular full-time gig.” Well, in August, that dream was realized as I became a contributor to theGrio.com, which is NBC’s African-American news site. The story of how this whole thing came together is forthcoming, but I finally had a second to address what will be the future of this site. This was my original outlet. My true baby. I’ve been blogging like a mad man since 2003 on Xanga, when I was the furthest thing from being a professional journalist.  For the chosen few of you who pay regular attention to this blog, I thank you. Let’s go on a journey back to the last day I hit you with some bloggage: July 12. Let’s Go.

Summer Madness: Detroit’s Dangerous Dog Days of Summer…

♦ It’s About That Time of Year, again (unfortunately) ♦

“Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.”

— Isaac Asimov

DETROIT (JSC) — Almost two years ago (7/21/2009 to be exact), I wrote a blog on here called “Killa Season“. No, it wasn’t a blog about my hatred of everything Dipset. It dealt with what was, at the time, the re-coronation of Detroit as the murder capital of the United States. This was two years ago, not exactly an eternity, but in Detroit, it can be. This predated the horrific incident last year where 17-year-old Southeastern High senior Jerean Blake was murdered by a man twice his age for “looking at him funny”, then about 36 hours later, when the police came looking for the shooter, they raided the home that was harboring him and accidentally killed 7-year-old Ayana Jones in the process of capturing him. In typical Detroit fashion, the people were more outraged at the accidental police killing than they were about the senseless street crime that killed an innocent teen. Detroit’s a city with a checkered history in terms of crime and violence, and some of the most senseless acts of foolishness occur when the seemingly endless winter breaks and the heat comes rolling in. Detroit does have a “Killa Season”. It’s called Summer. Let’s Go.

Case Study: What We Learned From Casey Anthony…

♠ Justice isn’t just blind; It’s Confused. ♠

“Justice has nothing to do with what goes on in a courtroom; Justice is what comes out of a courtroom”

— Clarence Darrow

DETROIT (JSC) — I can tell you exactly where I was on the morning of October 3, 1995. I was sitting in an economics class at Renaissance High School. The entire room was packed and the TV was locked on Channel 4 (WDIV, the Detroit NBC affiliate) as we had gotten word that the jury, after just four hours of deliberation, had returned with a verdict in the murder trial of NFL Hall of Fame running back O.J. Simpson. The entire room (composed almost entirely of black students and faculty) let out a very loud cheer as it was announced that Simpson, accused of murdering his ex-wife and her boyfriend a year earlier, was not guilty on all charges. The incredulous disbelief on the faces of white people around the country was priceless. I admit it. It was funny. But those incredulous looks had nothing on the O_o!!?? look I had on my face at 2:19 p.m. Eastern Time today when I heard the words “Not Guilty” uttered three times in regards to Casey Anthony. And unlike that cool October morning 16 years ago, there was no color line in the stunned shock. Let’s Go.

Father Knows Best: Why Dad Deserves His Day…(JSC, 6/20/2010)

This was originally posted on June 20, 2010, ie last Father’s Day. It was written as a tribute to my dad (and all other MEN who either are fathers or play that role), but it was also a very pointed message toward Single Mothers who almost arrogantly insist that they be “honored” or “recognized” on Father’s Day, as well as insinuate that they can do both roles. Speaking as a man who had a Father in his home, you can’t. The year that has passed has only strengthened my stance on this matter, BTW. Here you go.

♣ The Toughest Jobs are often the most Thankless…♣ “There’s so much negative imagery of black fatherhood. I’ve got tons of friends that are doing the right thing by their kids, and doing the right thing as a father — and how come that’s not as newsworthy?” — Will Smith (No Relation…sadly) SOUTHFIELD, Mich. — It’s a warm and quiet early summer evening on the northwest side of Detroit. It’s the rare quiet and peaceful neighborhood in the c … Read More

via Jay Scott Confidential

Father Knows Best: Why Dad Deserves His Day…(JSC, 6/20/2010)

This was originally posted on June 20, 2010, ie last Father’s Day. It was written as a tribute to my dad (and all other MEN who either are fathers or play that role), but it was also a very pointed message toward Single Mothers who almost arrogantly insist that they be “honored” or “recognized” on Father’s Day, as well as insinuate that they can do both roles. Speaking as a man who had a Father in his home, you can’t. The year that has passed has only strengthened my stance on this matter, BTW. Here you go.

♣ The Toughest Jobs are often the most Thankless…♣ "There's so much negative imagery of black fatherhood. I've got tons of friends that are doing the right thing by their kids, and doing the right thing as a father — and how come that's not as newsworthy?" — Will Smith (No Relation…sadly) SOUTHFIELD, Mich. — It's a warm and quiet early summer evening on the northwest side of Detroit. It's the rare quiet and peaceful neighborhood in the c … Read More

via Jay Scott Confidential

No Apologies: My Take on the Black Class War…

♣ Discrimination is a hellhound that gnaws at Negroes in every waking moment of their lives to remind them that the lie of their inferiority is accepted as truth in the society dominating them. ♣

— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

DETROIT (JSC) — In the 5½ months I was largely AWOL from this blog, a whole lot of stuff happened. I can’t even go through an entire rewind of it all. I could go into the tomfoolery that was Donald Trump demanding to see the President’s birth certificate (never mind that anyone with half a brain and a 10th grade education, had seen it three years ago). I could go into the subsequent killing of terror mastermind Osama bin Laden after he was on the run, and I use that term loosely, for 10 years. I could go the sports route and talk about the NFL lockout, which threatens to torpedo part or all of the 2011 NFL season. Hell, I could always go to an oldie but goodie and talk about Detroit. But one story that really jumped out at me that I didn’t get a chance to touch on back in March is the shit storm that jumped off when Jalen Rose, and later Jimmy King (of University of Michigan “Fab Five” fame), singled out all black players recruited by and playing at Duke, particularly Grant Hill, as being “Uncle Toms”. Rose and King got very chesty about this, until the backlash punched them in the face. The full quote asserted that apparently there was something inherently unfair about a school choosing to recruit black players who can not only play, but are model citizens and strong students. The Nerve of Duke! Far be it from me to ever defend Duke basketball, but if I ran a program, I’d do the same thing. Well, the “Uncle Tom” alarm has been sounded again with the barbs being thrown at a familiar target. I’m here to say: Enough is Enough! Let’s Go.

Mastering Destiny: The Road to Redemption…

♠ Redemption comes to those who wait, forgiveness is the key. ♠

— Tom Petty

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. (JSC) — I often bristle when I hear people, most of them under the age of 30, say with their chest puffed out and head held arrogantly high: “I live life with no regrets!” Immediately, I think two things to myself. First: You must not have a lot of friends and your family must secretly hate the ground you walk on. Secondarily: You’re either a ruthless motherfucker, or you are just a posturing asshole. For most of the last decade, I have lived with the festering, angering, mind-blowing regret and guilt over having wasted six of my life at Michigan State University being an abject knucklehead and waste of space. My screwing around during my first 2½ years in East Lansing basically set me back nearly a full 10 years. I have always regretted pissing away those early years at MSU. It gnaws at my soul that because I thought that my shit smelled like the finest spring water with a twist of lemon, I missed out on numerous opportunities while my peers cashed in. I thought that I blew my chance to do what I always wanted to do with my life: Be a working journalist. When I graduated from Michigan State on May 2, 2003, I had no idea where I was headed and what the next eight years would bring. Those next eight years are what will make tomorrow afternoon all the better. The word of the day is: Redemption. Let’s Go.

Jay Scott Confidential’s 2010 Year In Review

This is not an official “blog” per se, but the people at WordPress put this little ditty together outlining how this blog did. Apparently March 5 was a great day last year. I’m sure my mom would appreciate that since that is her birthday. I have done some great numbers considering school and work kept me off of here for 2 months. The first quarter of 2011 will be tight quarters considering I am finishing my Master’s, but let’s make this happen! Thanks for the love in 2010, and let’s see if I can’t load up 15 747s this year!

JS2

Goal Tending: The 2011 Game Plan of Success…

♣ Who Needs Resolutions? ♣

“If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.”

— Albert Einstein

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. — So here we are. It’s December 31. The FINAL day of the year. Where the f— did 2010 go? I know what you are thinking: “Great! This asshole is going to give us a rundown of everything that he thought happened in 2010 and will give us his take. Ugh, I’m tired of that shit!” Well, much to your delight, I too hate those GAWD-awful “Year In Review” piles of feces that start cropping up shortly after you’ve just finished eating Thanksgiving dinner. So no, this is not some ridiculous 2010 Year in Review blog. Nor is it a blathering piece on New Year’s Resolutions. I despise those too. No one ever sticks to the damn things. You vow to quit smoking. You vow to lose weight. You vow to quit swearing. By Jan. 15, you’re sitting in your car outside of Mickey D’s eating a McRib, smoking a square, and saying “Fuck it”. This blog, the final one of 2010, will not speak of any of that nonsense. It will lay out what I plan to do in 2011. I am not making resolutions, I am setting goals. Resolutions are for dreamers. Goals are for those who are trying to get things done. Let’s Go.