I haven't done a journal like this in ages, but I need to get some things off my chest!  How do we change the problems we are facing today? Violence is so high, drugs are so rampent, poverty is growing. It's f**ked up and stupid what people do in order to keep an "image". I'm living in the world's richest country yet in order to live in my town, you have to be making over 40k a year, yet in order to be placed in the poverty level you have to earn under 20k, I wonder how rich we'd look then. I was discussing yesterday with a friend who has been around the country how here we work our asses of just to survive!

But getting back to the violence where I used to live? It's getting worse. These are kids, practically babies man!!. I feel for em. Imagine the experiences they've gone thru to come to the point of carrying and willing to shoot someone? Cause aint no one coming out the womb killers, they created. And no it's not the music or games or videos. I'm sorry, those are a result of the problem. This violence existed long before Playstation. Then no one seems to understand that their issues at hand. What do you when someone shoots your brother or best friend? Seriously how would you react? Are things like that forgiveable for the better of the community? How many of these kids do you think are walking around manic depressive, suffering from PTSD among other ****. I mean I'm sorry you see anyone get shot whether you know em or not you get traumatized. Can you forgive people? I get paranoid at times cause of **** I seen in my past. Sometimes it gets so bad I think I should go to counseling. I get pissed and start questioning peoples motives and friendships, people who never did nothing wrong!.

Then drugs? Oh man..don't get me ******* started! they're are destroying people quicker than I can spit!. Cats I grew up with are going to rehab, getting clean going back home were all they boys is still on that ****. When I got back from my last trip from Thailand, a friend of mine passed because of a herion overdose. She was 2 days out of rehab....2 Goddamn days!!!. It broke my boys heart cause he had to leave her cause she ended up on that **** and he was trying to leave that ****. Kinda crazy when I look back and think how I seen people fall apart in front of my eyes, o.d. off this ****, I use to sit in parks with heads while they was fiending but trying to get off. Really hard **** to watch. Then I've turned around and given "daps" to the same people that sell that poison.

Sometimes I think no one gives a flying ****, and they're happy the "lower" classes are killing themselves. Then they sit around and ridicule how "savage" we are meanwhile *they*are the ones that brought that **** to us. Everyday the media talks about the war, when hasnt our goverment been in war? Is it really surpising its people do it at home? They robbed our names and culture and left us with little knowledge of ourselves and then they ridcule us? They feed us perscription pills and pain killers then are surpised when an epidemic breaks out?man give me a motherfucking break with this bullshit! 

Most of our "leaders" are full of ****. Half of em are borderline uncle toms who aint about **** but talking. *Sigh*..........I guess I feel a bit better tomorrow.

" I use to sit in parks with heads while they was fiending but trying to get off. Really hard **** to watch. Then I've turned around and given "daps" to the same people that sell that poison.

"

i dunno what this means, and have no idea what daps are.

what exactly is an "uncle tom"? a black dude that works and behaves like a white guy?

parents don't control their kids, or teach any better any more, and the kids go crazy.

just like the damn french people here blameing everyone for their problems without looking at themselves causing the problems.

Wow, this is one depressing journal. But it's quite depressing though when people in the world's bigest economy work 3-4 months a year just to pay taxes and see their money being spent on defense. Can you believe a country with 5% of the world population spends 50% of the world's defense expenditure? Health care costs are high, public schools fall behind other countries, but Halliburton shares are up. Yeah, depressing....

It disgusts me. We are seeing the return of the ROBBER BARON era, and there is nothing we can do about it

The Multi Nationals have taken over sovereignty of most western countries. Unless there is a major ground swell within these countries to reclaim their own destiny it will only get worse.

Every day we are loosing more and more of our rights as citizens and most of the so called educated people belive it is for the better. Govenment is making it easier for Companys to demand more of its workers for less while removing any resonsibility from the company to be a good citizen. As long as this attitude prevails with the govenemnt and the commerical community having ZERO moral responsibility to the community we are doomed.

The only thisng that motivates both Govenemnt and Commerce it profit. If anything gets in the way of that profit they will trample it into the ground and move on. It disguests me and is one of the reasons Thailand looks so GOOD to me

Boston is a rough city, but all major metropolitan areas in the U.S. are like that. I lived in Chicago, and there are parts of town that you just DONT go to, not if you want to be leaving there with your car, wallet, or life. There is an absurd police presence, but that doesn't seem to help much.

When i was in college, my house was broken into three times, once while me and my roomates were there. and this was in a city with a population of less than 100,000

It was a fresh breath of air to come to BKK, where i needed to worry about being chased by soi dogs, not soi thugs. the rip-offs in Thailand don't usually consist of "stick em up!" but more of ""hey you, i take you on Tuk Tuk all day, 100 baht!" and we all know where that goes. This of course doesn't seem to apply in Nakkhon Si Thammarat, that is a dangerous city perhaps on the same level as South Chicago.

I don't want to bash the U.S. though, because there are many great places there that are safe, but i think they are safe because of the people in the communities, not because of any sort of government intervention. There are many kind, generous people there as well, despite the image that the INternational community seems to have about America given the current administration's actions.

I have written too much already. Let's just say that i am in no hurry to leave thailand to return to the U.S. partially because of similar examples to CB said.

-RILInjuH!

We are just a small person cant do too much.

Yes you just unloaded your brain and it will be better.

Anyway,A4 page is too long for me to read....take time... hehehe

your right man it sucks and geting worse someplaces like allentown for one. some kids see no other way as the "man " is a crook so why not take what ya can. Ethics, whats that ?

If you look around, you will see that the USA has the best and worst of everything in the world.

What can you do but try your best?

Everyone should know the difference between right and wrong.

Sometimes the children are taught, but then they follow the examples of people around them.

I left the USA because of the culture of vulgar and violence. It's a sad state of affairs.

The gov't puts up distractions to keep the struggling masses in conflict with each other while the wealthy just keep enjoying themselves. Every government's main function is to keep the rich rich because that is who puts them in power in the first place.

i blame rap music, myself!!

If you didn't live in Roxbury, you probably would feel as bad?

oh the violence is the same problem in antwerpen ( my town )many gangs from russia , morocco and albania are active here but i guess its everywhere the same

If yall are thinking?:

"How does this affect me right now? I know nothing about the life where you live. How does this affect the crime? The rich people buying the houses aren't killing people" Here's how it affects us. The budgets for education, afterschool programs, and other programs that keep the kids off the streets and out of trouble... barely exist. And yeah... EVEN IN Thailand!.

The police in my state are working on an already limited budget, and now millions are about to be cut from the Police GANG UNITS thanks to new budget cuts. Just what my community needs right? So when the Police and city officials tell you they are doing their best, they're lying out they're asses. Because they have been cutting these budgets steadily over the years. So yeah, they got all the cops they can afford out on the streets, as far as budgets go, But the budgets are not where they are SUPPOSED TO BE!. And Please believe the city/state has some bullshit budgets in effect, maybe like $150,000 for a dinner event, or $300,000 for a big dig party, $40million to have cops sit in their cars in the tunnels while someone cleans the walls. If you add all those up?there goes the gang unit money, Education budgets, and then some.

Not to far away is a city called Newton,Mass VERY rich affulent town, Let me tell ya, once the crime and drugs start happening in that part of town. You better believe someone will start stirring the ****. No where I used to live.

**NOTE**

I don't live in Roxbury anymore, I live in Cambridge-Somerville, Massachusetts.

You CANT ban guns, EVERYONE has the right to own a gun!

I also feel for you brotha. Having worked in a prison here in Hawaii (and we don't even have near the crime rates as some of the mainland cities!!! ), I see and hear some really disturbing and frightening things. Offenders are getting younger, the crimes are becomming increasingly more violent and the drug use (especially "ICE") is more rampant. It really does make you think where "society" is heading.

Your right about our politicians diverting money away our schools, police departments , and important programs designed to help our communities. They give these organizations a task and expect them to work with a "shoe string" budget!!! all the while knowing that they will most certainly fail or become ineffective. Victims of the "good ol boy" network.

It's hard, too many people just trying to "survive", that they are totally forgetting about societies youth. It's sad, but if we all don't do our part to help or guide (even a little) what can we expect for our future? This includes correcting friends that we have who may be a little "disfunctional"....I know I have...I'm not ashamed to do so. If they took offense to my comments, then too bad, at least I know I voiced my oppinion.

I can go on and on about societies "woes", but I don't want this turning into a novel. Brotha, I hope you got enough out and will have a great day. Take care and aloha.