Monday, June 28, 2010
Chris Brown's Tribute to MJ
Last night on the BET 2010 awards the world was blessed with what was without a doubt one of the, if not the best, Michael Jackson tribute performances. Who else could have gone out on that stage and leave everything they had on that stage, but Chris Brown. Personally, I was touched with his performance. Man In the Mirror is on of my favorite songs of all time and I could feel Chris' pain when he was singing, or attempting to, before breaking down. For anyone that has appreciated MJ's music, you know the message that song is sending and how it directly relates to Chris Brown and his life after the Rhianna incident. If you weren't able to see the performance... (Look for it on YouTube. The videos I had were taken down.)

Again, I thought that this tribute was long overdue. Regardless of what people felt or feel about Chris Brown, there is no doubt in my mind that he should have been the one doing this tribute last year. Great job Chris. You gave every MJ fan what Michael himself always gave, a great show.

Now, the reason I wanted to write about this event isn't just to express my thoughts on the performance, but to give my thoughts on the Chris and Rhianna situation. After the performance, I saw a lot of people on my feeds writing things such as, 'he still beat her...' The reason I was turned off by those type of comments is that nobody but Chris and Rhianna know exactly what happened and what led up to there situation. Now I am not saying that either one of them were right nor wrong. Nor do I advocate violence, of any kind. Nor will I try to justify the actions of either party.

What I am here to do is to challenge the way people think. Challenge the reason that we as humans, jump out of our seats if a man puts his hands on a woman, but rarely do I see the same reaction when a woman puts her hands on a man. Why is it that as a society, for hundreds of years, we have chosen to put man above woman and believe that men are more powerful. Now I understand the scientific evidence that naturally, men are, one average, bigger and stronger, but what does that have to do with domestic violence. By getting upset at a man for hitting a woman, simply because he is a man, is stating that the woman is not capable of defending herself, simply because she is a woman. I know that may sound a bit confusing and I may not be making myself clear enough, but what I am getting at is this...

If women were seen as the 'stronger' gender in society, would we be scrutinizing males who act violently towards women? I rarely hear any comments about Rhianna physically hitting Chris Brown. Or women being physical towards men in general. To me it is fascinating that women are portrayed to be weak individuals and people seem to be fine with that image.

Again, I am not advocating violence of any kind, I am simply questioning why a society completely rejected a young man who undoubtedly made a mistake? I did not see Rhianna being scrutinized by the media or by the public for her role in the situation. I wonder, if Chris Brown would have had a black eye and Rhianna nothing, would society have treated her the way they did Chris?

I know we will never know the answer to this question, but i my opinion, I don't think she would have gone through what he did.

This is just one of the many issues in this world in which double standards are often employed and while it often benefits one side, we seem to forget that there are always 2 sides. In this incident, Chris Brown was rejected and considered to be a villain, while Rhianna was embraced by both the public and the media.

Lastly I would like to encourage people to not be blinded by the media and social constructs and really take a look at the entire picture. I have seen many instances in which women have been the violent ones towards men, but those cases are often overlooked. Violence happens everywhere, between all kinds of people. We must not neglect another human being because of their actions, instead we must accept them and try to understand them.

Feel free to comment below. Again, this is a conversation. A place for people to come together and discuss an issue that is larger than any of us.

Thanks for tuning in...
Jose

Labels: , , , , ,

Written at 1:49 PM by JC.
1 comments
Friday, June 25, 2010
New Site!
Hello world. I just launched a site to showcase some of my photography. Although the layout that i currently have limits me to 15 images, I plan on working on it to expand that. In the meantime, I have some work up that I shot during my trip to Aruba this past March. Please feel free to check it out and pass the link along. Also, feel free to contact me with any feedback.

Here is the link:
josecotto.tumblr.com/

Thanks for tuning in...

Jose

Labels: , ,

Written at 11:23 PM by JC.
0 comments
Thursday, June 10, 2010
When Is Someone 'Wrong?'
When is someone wrong? This is a question that I have had many debates over... It is one that brings forth all of our beliefs and morals. But is that fair? Can we determine whether or not someone is truly wrong by judging them using our own moral codes?

Far too often, this conversation comes up when discussing religion. It is always a heated topic. You know... You always have the people who believe in 'God' and follow the bible that think abortion is wrong. Those who don't follow a religion and think that those that do, are wrong for doing so. People are always thinking that someone is wrong for doing something. It is almost as if we have to in order to stand by our own morals and beliefs. But is that true? Why can't we just 'agree to disagree?' But is that even the best approach?

For myself, I have decided that I will no longer think people are wrong. I do not even want to 'agree to disagree...' I want to learn. I think that society has become such an individualistic place, that we can no longer think about others... We seem to only think that what we think is right. We are trained to do so... Schools have almost eliminated critical thinking... Debates and discussion on 'touchy subjects' have become taboo. But why? Why not foster discussion and debate. It is the ONLY way we can learn from each other. If we simply agree on everything, our thoughts are never challenged, which means they are never strengthened.

This is why I have worked on taking this new stance. I want to understand WHY someone feels the way they do about something. WHY they believe in something. Why they don't believe in something. I don't just want to know your POV, I want to know how you arrived at that point. I want to know because I need to know. I want to learn about you, so I can learn about myself. Then, and only then, can I truly learn and progress as an individual.

Now this doesn't happen all the time. I still find myself pushing my idea(s) sometimes... But I try to challenge myself and now I'm putting the challenge out to everyone, to really try to put yourself in someone's shoes and think about why it is that they believe/think/do what they do... Before we label them as wrong.

This is by no means an easy thing to do... Our morals and beliefs often make up the foundation of our lives; but if we do not try to understand others on a level that goes deeper than the surface, how can we truly learn about each other? How can we progress as a people and not just as a person.

Now you may not agree with any of what is written above... But I ask that you just think about the following statement:

"Without knowing someone's ENTIRE story, we cannot say that they are 'wrong' in anything they do. It is simply unfair to do so." Jose Cotto

*(While I do agree with everything I wrote above, note that I also believe there is a difference between someone breaking a rule/law and someone being wrong. The two need to be seen independent from one another because rules/laws are socially constructed.)

(Any questions/comments? Feel free to leave some and start a conversation.)

Thanks for tuning in...

Jose



Labels: ,

Written at 4:51 PM by JC.
0 comments
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Thank You
Thank you.

That is about as concise as one can be in showing someone appreciation for contributing to their lives.

Recently, one of my professors at UMass Amherst, David Dillon, passed away. Prof. Dillon was a great writer, a great teacher, but most importantly a great person and a great mind. He taught me things that I will carry with me until my time is up. He taught me how to be concise. How to get straight to the point. How to see things differently and analyse them critically. However, I wish I had put some of these lessons to use when I had the chance.

See, before Prof. Dillon passed away, I had received a couple emails from him. He emailed our entire Jr. Yr. writing class with feedback on our final projects and to let us know that we were a 'good group.' After receiving several emails in the last few weeks, I wanted to email Prof. Dillon and let him know how thankful I was for having him as professor. I started writing an email one day and I think the Internet had crashed, so I just put it to the side. I figured I'd just email him 'tomorrow.' Tomorrow came, and it slipped my mind. Tomorrow came again and it slipped my mind, again. Needless to say, I never got to it.

When I received an email with his name as the 'Subject' I knew it was bad news... The first thing I thought was, "He didn't pass away!?" Sure enough, I opened the email, only to learn that one of the best professors I've had was gone. I didn't know what to feel. I had only known this man for less than 6 months, but from the first time I met him, I felt an intellectual connection and I knew I would learn a lot from this man and when I got the news, I felt that I wasn't done learning from him yet... I was upset that future students wouldn't have the luxury to have such a great professor, at the same time, I was glad and thankful for the opportunity that I had. But did he know that?

To be honest, I do not know. I hope he did. I expressed to him in person that I was thankful... But I wanted to use the tools he gave me to express how I thankful I truly was. But I didn't. I never got to it. I thought I would have tomorrow...

I thought about this for a long time. How simple it would have been to send a quick email. And how not being able to express how I felt, felt. It sucks. So I wanted to share this story with you all. Now to sum this up and get straight to the point, David Dillon style....

If you want to say Thank You to someone, do it now, because you are never guaranteed tomorrow.

Professor Dillon, Thank You.

You will truly be missed. The world had lost a great mind, but thanks to you, it has gained many more.


Check out this article I came across on artandseek.net

Labels: , ,

Written at 11:05 AM by JC.
2 comments
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Why I Cannot Stand Boston Fans...

People wonder why I cannot stand Boston fans... It is because of their obnoxious attitude and the constant double standards that they set... People were outraged about the article written about the Celtics... But Celtic fans say things like "I hope Rondo slaps Kobe..." Then they continue to talk trash about Kobe and the rest of the Lakers.. Calling them the "Lackers.." I post a link of a t-shirt that reads, "F*ck the Celtics" and I am called a "hater..." Yet every Celtic fan was rocking a "Beat LA" shirt just a few years ago... It cannot be one thing when you do it, and another when someone else does it to you... I understand you guys love yourself some Tommy Heinsohn, but you should let go of that mentality...

See, when the Yanks won the World Series I didn't go outside and chant "Red Sox Suck.." I didn't go on Facebook and post obnoxious comments on peoples walls... Or set my status to "Yankees WON.. TAKE THAT RED SOX NATION!" When the Yanks lose a game, I don't blame it on the umps... I don't make excuses... And when DJ makes a routine play, I don't act like it should be a ESPN Top 10 nominee...

So Boston fans.. If you are wondering why every other part of the country thinks you are obnoxious and cannot stand you, it is because YOU ARE.
Written at 10:48 PM by JC.
0 comments