Color is for televison and Race is something runners do.

It's been said that America doesn't make anything anymore. That we are a nation of consumers. Some say as high as 80% of jobs are service based. Well, there's one thing that we are still producing and producing well. Racism (and the dirty little secret is, we'll never stop). We are not born racist. In fact, we are taught racism, sadly, at an early age. Depending on where you live in this country, it's easy to learn and hard to overcome, if at all. So what can we do? It will never truly go away and reducing it seems even harder because we can't discuss it. As soon as you bring it up, or make a statement that is unpopular, you are labeled a racist. Until we can have open, dyadic, and even painful communication on this issue, it will continue to fester and rear it's ugly head from time to time. 

As a child, two of my early friends were named Raymond and Eric. We did everything together. At times it seemed like we were inseparable. It wasn't until I was exposed to other friends and family that I learned that they were somehow different. One was black and the other was Hispanic. The questions weren't always with ill intent, but could be as simple as referring to them as your black friend or your Mexican friend (even though he was born in America). It wasn't just my two friends that became the subject of color, it was my music choices or the sports teams I watched. I would hear things like, he's a pretty good basketball player for being colored or that Michael Jackson is talented for a black man. As a child, sometimes that went over my head, other times it didn't and as I got older I was exposed to the fact that racism was a part of who we are as a nation and that it was never going away...

The eyes of the Nation are upon Ferguson Missouri this week. The facts of the case are still not clear. All we know is a white cop shot a black man. Without any other further information, that alone is a dangerous spark, that could light an even bigger fire. Throw in the demographics of the area, the make up of the police force, and before the ambulance could arrive on scene, you knew there was going to be trouble. We are now entering our second week of this sad scene playing out and instead of learning from it, we are creating more racists & mistrust on both sides of the issue, mainly because there has been a lack of communication and leadership. Sadly, these types events aren't new and are typically handled poorly, like in Ferguson. Once the spark is lit, everybody raises their fear levels, abandons logic and thinking, and the "leaders" tend to lead from behind, instead of taking charge. With each passing hour the facts of the case become less and less important because new issues are spawning off left and right. By the time the situation is resolved, the key players are often forgotten, resolution is foggy at best, and growth from the situation is limited or non existent. All we have done is lower the bar for the next event.

What if we could remove that level of fear and hate? What if we could have factual reporting, instead of the commentary we have now, disguised as news?  Leaders that weren't afraid to fail, because they were more concerned with leading? If the people involved were honest from the outset and the facts were made public so that the people of the area could feel a since of resolution? What if there was no color involved in the principle players?  It sounds crazy, but it's not impossible.

Our melting pot of a nation will help with this over the next couple of decades as the white race becomes the minority in the country (I suspect we'll see a spike in racism before that happens) around 2043. With color being less of an issue, education will be the next deciding factor in the effort to minimise racism. The more we can weed this logic out of the minds of our citizenship, the sooner we can act as human beings toward one another. For this to be successful, we will need to communicate clearly, loudly, and even alone when others will not join in. It may be painful, scary, and fall upon deaf ears, but the message has to be held strong and weakness in it's delivery can not be an option. Next, we need to take the news reporting away from the entertainment industry. News needs to be factual, truthful, and brutally honest. Too many channels, on both sides, blend their news with opinion, and for the less educated and lazy, this is a deadly combination. When a situation does arise, whomever is in charge needs to stand tall and lead. This is what you are paid to do and if you don't feel like you are up to it, turn it over to someone who can ASAP. A strong leader can help calm the public, preserve the integrity of the issue at hand, and overcome all obstacles in front of them. Even if the situation is clear at first or unbearable to process amongst the public, it's the person in charge that has the ability and obligation to take us through until the situation is resolved.

As individuals it's time for us to stop being scared and start being honest. Ask questions, interact with people we don't know or are taught to be afraid of. Ask questions, even if they seem stupid or wrong because this will present an opportunity for education. Never end ones personal education through ones life because we don't have all the answers. Ask for forgiveness when wrong and listen to/thank those who take the time to point it out to us. Seek out knowledge on your own, don't wait for it to be packaged and delivered to you via one news source. Be prepared to walk away from those who are truly ignorant and refuse to evolve. Racism will never die, but we have the opportunity to reduce it to a small percentage of the population that will not be able to affect the greater good of humanity.  We owe that to ourselves, our children, our planet, and to all of those who came before us that were not afraid to be heard or even die so that a more perfect union could be formed.

Society needs Golf: It's not just for rich, white assholes.

Recently I watched an episode of Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel and one of the stories was the rapid decline of golf. A golf course is closing about every other day and recently, big box store Dick's fired somewhere between 500-700 golf pro's nationwide due to declining sales. Now I'm sure 90% of you just said I don't give a f**k & it couldn't happen to a nicer group of rich assholes. That is the predominant stereotype and in many cases it's true, but allow me to explain why golf is beyond that and what it's decline says about us as a society.

First of all, golf is really hard. The old joke is why did they name it golf? Because F**k was already taken...It's something you never master and have to practice daily if you want to be in the upper 1%. In fact, if you can break 100 in a round of 18 holes, you are automatically in the the upper 10% of players. It's nice to have a challenge that isn't solved by swiping your thumbs or googling the answer. Not only is golf physically demanding (more on that later) but it's mentally taxing as well. Hogan once said that he hit two good shots per round and the rest he managed (He won 9 majors).  As we continue to make life easier and easier, whether it's via an app or a service provider, golf will supply us with all the challenges we need in a social/athletic setting. This will sharpen the mind for when challenges arise in more critical situations.

Second, it's a fantastic form of exercise. It's not all riding in a cart and drinking to excess. Even if you do, you still are walking a couple of miles per round. Ball striking takes energy and if you warm up before, you'll hit more balls than you will on the course. Anyone that tells you a round of golf is a: easy and b: not exercise has never played it and is full of shit. Add in the weather elements and a round of golf can be very taxing, yet a much needed physical demand on the body. Had a bad day at work? Want to kill your spouse? Just got cut off on the freeway? Hit a bucket of balls before you act, then, if you have the energy, go for it. If you think we don't need that, spend 15 minutes in a Wal-Mart and check out all the fat asses in motorized scooters buying cheese balls by the pound.

Golf is the only honest sport in all of sports. There is no cheating in golf and it's the only sport in which you call a penalty on yourself. All of the other sports teach you to cheat in one form or another, at minimum, bend the rules to your advantage. Not in golf. When executed properly, golf builds within us a set of values and morals that transcend the sport and instantly fit into our daily lives. If you play with someone who cheats, they are not vested in the sport of golf and should be immediately killed and buried on the course, as notice to all.

Tying in to the theme of honesty and integrity is the educational aspect of golf. Not only does it require physical skill, but intellectual as well. Many problem solving skills are required to navigate the course, whether it be the terrain, wind, elements, or other surroundings. You must be able to harness your math skills to determine the proper club to use, wind factor, or what the terrain's affect will have on your shot. The hardest part of golf is to solve all of these equations in a matter of seconds, then allow them to recess into the back of your mind and execute the shot required. It's a perfect balance of Einstein and Happy Gilmore that will produce the results desired during a round. Most of the time you will not execute the shot to perfection, it's how you respond mentally that will determine the next physical outcome.

Socially golf adapts to many aspects of life. You can play it alone and challenge yourself and the course. You can play with a group or on a team. Golf, via a handicap system, allows all skill levels to play together and compete across age, gender, and level of play. If you don't like playing stroke play, there are many forms of golf, such as team scrambles, that allow you all the benefits of golf, without the burden of the outcome resting solely on your shoulders. You don't even have to keep score, play a full round, or join a club. You can practice at home, in a hallway, or at a local driving range. The time, options, and outcomes are limitless, allowing you to be in full control.

Golf can be expensive, if you let it. You don't need state of the art equipment in the beginning and used sets are found almost everywhere. Public courses and driving ranges offer inexpensive alternative to high end clubs. Team scrambles and charity events allow a golfer to experience many of the nicer courses in the area at a fraction of the cost (plus, you can write it off your taxes). Spending a couple of hours at a driving range is less expensive than going to a movie and allows you the opportunity to better yourself mentally and physically. It's up to you if you want to dress in plaids and flamboyant pants, that is not required, but part of the fun! That being said, wearing a wife beater & daisy dukes is a sign that you don't get a lot of things in life, golf just being one of them.

So what's the point? Open your mind. Here's an opportunity to better yourself physically and mentally. To experience an activity that doesn't require you to be 7' tall or run a 4.4-40...To compete on a level that you feel comfortable with or not at all...To meet new people, benefit a cause, or just kill some time, instead of somebody...To expose your children to a game that will benefit them in real life, not just on a diamond or field...To experience something that doesn't take place on a tablet or screen. Society as a whole would benefit if it took the core principles of golf to heart, instead of it's current stay of me first, win at all cost attitude. Most of all, there is the euphoria you will experience when that one shot goes in or works out they way you drew it up in your mind. There's not a drug around that can replicate that feeling and it may only happen once, or never at all, but the fact that it is out there, makes the chase worth the while...