Women's Rights

I was out dancing the other day. It was an exciting time especially after spending a miserable week working on some issues. So, when I dance, I try not to think of politics, or the miserable world out of that dance room.
Anyways, as it is a courtesy of the dance scene, women get to ask men to dance...Yay, great liberation for women. Now women can have the guts to approach a man...great significance for women movements everywhere. However, there has been the unspoken code that generally, if women get over their comforts of being pursued and ask a guy to dance, the least that a guy can do is politely say "no" as in, I don't want to dance with you, or they can suck it up and dance with the girl (no matter how terrible they might be). Remember that these are the ladies that endured the times you were "getting out" on the dance scene and stepping your way into the world of being a good dancer. There is the other response, that entails looking at the girl and making a face, and giving excuses of "I don't want to dance today", "eh I don't feel like for this song", or the classic "I am just watching for a while". Okay, so you don't want to dance with the girl...and that is fine. but do not give some miserable bullock of excuses. Oh and my favorite, you aks a guy to dance, and he looks at you and says, "This is Bachata"....at which point I look at them and think " No kidding Sherlock, and here I thought I was listening to Reggae. Thank you for correcting my hearing and telling me that I am actually asking you to dance Bachata." In truth, what the guy is actually saying is, "I don't want to dance with you, so here is my perfect excuse...I don't want to dance to this song" Unless off course they mean it, in which case its okay. But if after you leave they start dancing with someone else, then the guy is actually insulting your intelligence.
Anyways, as titled, this is about women's rights....but I had to preface by that to say that, I went to ask a particular acquaintance of mine and knowing that he had been dancing before, I thought I would ask him to dance. (I am becoming much more comfortable asking guys to dance, although there as some guys I will never ask again). Anyways, he gave me one of those bullocks answers and I looked at him thinking, "does he really think that I am stupid?"I off course called out his bluff. In which case he proceeds to tell me that he can refuse to dance with me just because he can and that women are equal to men and are treated as equals in all aspects. Women, according to him, should bare all the blunts that come with wanting to be equal with men. Now, since I know the guy, I know he does not treat his "women" as equal to men....hmmmm okay.
I don't blame him for what he said, but I did not hear the beginning of whatever he said, as I started arguing on "women's rights".
Now, it is true...no disputes that women in the West, especially in America have more rights than women in other parts of the world. But even then, not all women find this freedom. In fact if we want to be technical, the US is the only developed country that has not ratified the CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women).
oh, and while the ERA has been passed, it does not give women the rights that feminists strive for. Women are still underpaid. They are still expected to come at the end of the day and cook. They are the caretakers in most cases. The are in some cases expected to be domesticated.
I am sorry, but men and women are not equally treated, and they shouldn't. As they say, women are from Venus men are from Mars. As much we want to delude ourselves into thinking so...there are no equal rights whether it is gender or racial.
After all, women can dress as men without much of a thought on society's mockery while men dressing as women is a whole different can of worms.

Victory from Ashes

I have been listening, I have been well, paying attention. I have also been crying, and at times really really angry. Since I could not be angry at anyone else, sometimes, the anger would turn to God....Yes, I am not even from Haiti, but I was brokenhearted by the events. I kept wondering what the heck happened.
Anyways, on Monday, I am reading the papers and see these images of Haitians singing, praying, praising God. Take that Pat Robertson. How they could be praising God at a time like that, I can only imagine. I have only been in one instance that could be termed as that, and even then, prayer was the only way through...but I don't remember praising God for my circumstances like the Haitians in Port Au Prince.
There is something to learn from this.
I have friends who have worked hard to dispute the existence of God, or the need for faith. I mean, I think they are childish, and mostly throwing a tantrum. Then I realized that they are spoiled to. They have all the luxuries afforded to them, and they have all the time to debate the existence of God.
They claim they are searching for truth, but I wonder whose truth they are searching for. They distort religion, they distort faith. And their hearts have turned to bitterness, and then they claim to be looking for truth.
However, when all you can do it look up, then there is only one answer....the one who created us. Thats the one you look up to.

Qui Sait, Qui Sait....

Qui sait, qui sait ?
J'aurai peut-être un jour besoin de ça
D'une main douce et puissante

Qui sait, qui sait ?
D'un chemin plus sûr, où poser mes pas
Pour une guerre non-violente

Tout seul
J'irai pas plus haut, mais peut-être plus bas
Peut-être plus bas

Qui sait, qui sait ?
J'aurai sans doute besoin de toi, de toi
Si je ne suis plus le même

Apprends-moi
Que donner c'est recevoir en plus fort
Si je me fais attendre

Rappelle-moi
Que toutes les vies se valent encore
Les petites et les grandes

Qui sait, qui sait ?
J'aurai peut-être besoin de secours, un jour
Où je n'aurai plus personne
Qui sait, qui sait ?
Une douce phrase dans un matin sourd, qui court
Un petit feu pour les hommes

Who knows if one day
I will need your smile to color my day, my day
If I can't see any rainbow

Qui sait, qui sait ?
L'aube d'un regard qui ne juge pas, non pas
Mais qui partage les peines
Apprends-moi
Que donner c'est recevoir du soleil
Sans qu'on ne le demande

Rappelle-moi
Que toutes les vies se valent pareil
Les petites et les grandes

Oh qui sait, qui sait ?
Oh qui sait ce qu'on sera ?

Who Will be left when they come for you?

“They came first for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time there was no one left to speak up.”_ M. Niemoeller

No, I am not a communist, nor a socialist...but every time i read this quote, I wonder if people are not letting history repeat itself...stupidly off course. Today, we are so absolved with ourselves, and the idea of ourselves that we have let people die, and stood on the sidelines while innocent lives were lost.
today its the Muslims, the "poor", or the educated....if it is not one group it is the other.
We hate each other, and we encourage the hate. Sometimes I wonder, if we don't speak up now, if you don't speak up now...who will be left to speak for you?

Victorian England

I have been raised with impeccable manners. My family has strict rules of conduct, and all that, and its not wonder I find the Elizabethan and Victorian courts fascinating.
I was caught up in some reading of what a lady should and shouldn't do, and I was wondering how well I would fare in that. Its not like I am doing so well in following a familial etiquette.
Lady's had etiquette for everything....dinner table, dressing, riding, promenade, proper walking...
its no wonder the men cheated on them all the time

TANGO....yummm

So I have begun the journey of Tango again.
I am not a fan of American Tango, which is probably why I would prefer to have Argentine Tango instructors.
Argentine Tango is much more sensual, and well, it leaves room for creativity.
Anyways, I think it will be cool to see the extent of my patience...and how well I can follow.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!- African style

I just came off the phone from my family in Burundi. Now that is a load of family. I mean, I think I spend about three or four hours on the phone...trying to play tag with a language.
Between English, French,(little) Kirundi and Swahili, I was able to communicate. Thankfully so.
I found that we had really grown up, and I found that I missed my family. there is something about Celebrating the New Year...Bonne-annee...Happy new year!
Lovely fashion of food, beer, and more food, and laughter..>Dancing. I spend about the amount of time for the family to get happy. Seriously, Africans know how to party like its nobody's business
Anyways, after three hours, I managed to get them singing and dancing, and they were laughing loudly which made it impossible for me to speak to anyone in coherent terms.
If you are African, or maybe you don[t have to be, you remember the all night parties to the new year, and the whole shenanigans. People slept literally and figuratively on top of each other, on the lawns, or on the floors. then woke up and partied some more.
Children played, and laughed. This is where you made you life long friends.
I left too early I guess, because those friendships I made...can't remember jack.
so now I have new friends...go figure.
but all in all...Happy New year!