Update

So I'm sitting here writing about Jimmy Cliff and in my mind I can hear the blowback.

Believe me, I've always gotten negative responses, but not with the vociferousness, the put-downs, the holier-than-thou attitudes of correspondents today. Is it about me or is it the nature of the world at large? Or maybe it's just the nature of the internet.

I mean on one hand I'm cracking up. Wondering who these people think I am. Like I'm some god who must be torn down. No, I'm just a guy with education and opinions who has built an audience based thereon. It's totally an opt-in list, you'd think I was pushing myself and my pronouncements down their throat, that there was no way to avoid me/sign off from the mailing list. But this is patently untrue.

Now most people don't respond at all. But today, a bunch of responses bothered me...

If I get one more e-mail hipping me to the fact that Desmond Dekker's 1969 smash "Israelites" was the first reggae hit, I'm going to tear what little hair I have left out of my head.

No, "Israelites" is SKA!

Listen to the track, does it sound like anything from the Wailers' Island repertoire? The other icons of reggae?

Ska predated reggae in Jamaica. Furthermore, at the end of the seventies there was a ska renaissance in the U.K., which bled all over the world. With acts like the Specials, Selecter, The "English" Beat... Would you call "Mirror in the Bathroom" reggae? No. I'd say I'm splitting hairs here, but really I am not. Because the evolution from ska into reggae is historically very important.

As for places online where you see "Israelites" labeled reggae... What you've got here is self-anointed experts half a century after the fact, oftentimes people who weren't even alive in 1969, weighing in. What was that cliché you learned in elementary school? "Don't believe everything you read"? Or "Everything in the newspaper isn't true"?

Once again, all you've got to do is listen and you can hear the difference, and the difference is important.

And believe me, when I was writing the piece, I THOUGHT about "Israelites," how it was ska and people would e-mail me that it was reggae, and voila! My dreams came true, ha!

One other pet peeve...

I constantly get e-mail from people tapping me on the shoulder, making me aware of some fact that is evidenced in what I wrote IF ONLY THEY'D READ IT! Did you know that "The Harder They Come" played at the Orson Welles in Boston for years? Yes, I WROTE THAT! But that's not enough. If you're going to take the time to correct me, wouldn't you make sure you're correct first yourself? No.

And then there are those who wonder why I no longer spell out swear words, i.e. f*ck and sh*t... BECAUSE IF YOU DO YOU CAN'T GET THROUGH SPAM FILTERS!

Once again, people don't ask, they just put me down, laughingly correct me in their holier-than-thou fashion...if you sent e-mail for a living you would know that it's almost impossible to reach people. These corporations have triggers that bounce e-mail and...

Then there are the people who castigated me for saying that the American Dream was now more achievable in Canada and parts of the EU.

These honkies who can't believe the U.S. is not perfect, who are oblivious to facts... Believe me, I knew I'd hear from them when I was writing too.

But of course what I was saying was right.

I can be wrong, of course... But I am reading ALL DAY LONG! I subscribe to four newspapers. I read three of them cover to cover each and every day. You'd be stunned what you learn. And over time there is context. Whereas those blowing back are running on emotion, not facts. As for saying you don't trust mainstream media, which as I stated above can be wrong, then who can you trust? Nobody?

So I'm reading all day long and I learned the power of analysis at an elite institution but when I say something that doesn't feel right to you, if I don't hew to conventional wisdom, rather than checking the facts before you blow back, you fire up your keyboard and insult me and...

Believe me, I can take it. But in this case, I want to set the record straight.

I'll quote from last week's "Wall Street Journal." LAST WEEK! If you were following the news instead of bloviating, if you were willing to pay for news, you might have read it:

"The Economics of Income Mobility - I believe in the American dream, but the data show that some people have an advantage in realizing it."

Free link: https://www.wsj.com/opinion/the-economics-of-income-mobility-c0a5bd3e?st=Es5FyA&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

Here's the money quote:

"Although economic mobility is a core American ideal, the U.S. now ranks below the Nordic countries, Canada and much of Europe in overall mobility, including the classic rags-to-riches story of starting in the bottom and working your way to the top."

BINGO!

I could cite the numerous articles that state this point that come up in a casual Google search, but to satisfy those who only believe in AI, this is what Google's AI response is:

"The 'American Dream' is often seen as more achievable in Canada and parts of Europe due to greater social mobility, a stronger social safety net, and better access to education and healthcare compared to the United States.

"While America may offer a more dynamic startup scene and top-tier universities, Canada and European nations are frequently cited for their lower economic inequality and higher rates of upward mobility, where it's more likely for individuals to improve their economic standing regardless of their background."

I love a good debate, I love to analyze, argue the nuances, but I HATE, HATE HATE arguing over facts. I mean if we can't agree on the same facts, how can we have a discussion at all?

And the irony of everything I said above is I'll still get e-mail from people saying that "Israelites" is reggae and that the American Dream is achievable foremost in America, but both of those are UNTRUE!

Welcome to my world.


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