Category: Opinion
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Question Culture: The Presidency
During the most recent episode of Question Culture (a bi-weekly socio-political podcast), Lornett and Brian got fired up talking about President Joe Biden (and Donald Trump). They went in depth, positing that we are led by the least among us and questioning whether the presidency is needed at all. Check out the episode. As you know,…
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Question Culture: War on Drugs
The most recent episode of Question Culture, a bi-weekly socio-political podcast started by Lornett B. Vestal at Evolving Man Project, centered on a conversation about the infamous war on drugs. On this episode, Brian and Lornett discussed war’s negative impacts in the U.S and abroad. As you know, at Waking Writer we don’t focus on…
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Question Culture: Freedom of the Press
As you know, at Waking Writer we don’t focus on writing and literature in a vacuum. In recognition that all writing and art operates within a broader social context. For this reason, we sometimes (albeit infrequently) share opinion pieces. Last month, I shared the first episode of Question Culture, a bi-weekly socio-political podcast started by…
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Question Everything…
Our sister site, Evolving Man Project by Lornett B. Vestal, recently launched a podcast covering social and political issues of the day. Lornett and his co-host, Brian, believe it is important to question conventional wisdom. During each bi-weekly episode of Question Culture, they tackle an important topic and seek to provide a unique perspective. Question…
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Reclaiming My Time: I’m breaking up with Facebook for good.
Most authors I’ve talked to at Waking Writer admit that distraction is one of their biggest obstacles to actually…you know…writing. I’m willing to acknowledge that Facebook has been one of the main sources of distraction for me. I’ve been on Facebook since 2005. Yes, nearly 15 years. It’s my longest relationship with any non-human thing:…
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Black Panther is Uh…Interesting
Thither art spoilers ahead. Continueth at thy own risk. 1. As a writer in the Trump and Black Lives Matter era, I would never write a black American character who is rightfully angry about racial injustice and believes in pan-African liberation but then be like “wayment…we can’t have this black dude with common sense radical…
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No, I Will Not Be Watching HBO’s Confederacy and Neither Should You
Here are just a few reasons why HBO’s proposed Confederacy show certainly will not be on my to-watch list: 1) I will not watch any fantasy show about an alternative reality where the Confederacy won the war and slavery was never abolished. Period. It is a thinly veiled white supremacist fantasy cloaked in liberal whyte guilt. I’ll…
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Yes, the U.S. hates poor people. Big surprise.
The United States hates poor people. That shouldn’t come as a surprise, nor should it surprise anyone to hear Trump (perhaps the most accurate and vulgar embodiment of this country) say he doesn’t want a “poor person” in his cabinet. The US president told a crowd on Wednesday night: “Somebody said why did you appoint a rich…
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Just Another Lucky Negro
I Got Lucky, and Here’s Why That’s a Shitty Realization. All I can think when I look around at the persistent cyclical poverty among black folks (in my own family and strangers I’ve encountered walking the streets of every city I’ve ever lived in): I got lucky. I got fucking lucky. And, folks, that is…
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On Not Losing My Shit While Talking to Twitler Supporters
I met a Twitler Trump supporter today and because I like to preserve my brain cells for more worthwhile endeavors, I initially decided to not bother discussing politics with him. The Super Bowl, on the other hand, seemed like a worthy and safe topic of interest. When I mentioned that I was underwhelmed by Lady Gaga’s…
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