This “The Thinker’s Thoughts” is inspired by a recent conversation with Kanye. With all the backlash that he’s receiving from just expressing his opinion, I thought this was a great time for me to throw my own into the mix. This is not an attempt to come to his defense, but more me offering my perspective for consideration. I fear the opposing side not having any competition.
First, what is the root cause for the backlash? Is it over WHAT is being said or WHY is it being said? It’s seems that his intent is often lost over the content. I’m a firm believer in intent over content. I know it’s the only thing that can truly define an action. I find that the most accurate response to something begins with a clear understanding of why it was done.
For example, if someone was to suddenly push you to the ground, the best response is to ask…”why did you push me?” Now I’m not saying that you have to be smiling from ear to ear when you ask, but that question should still be first. Their answer should/will have the biggest impact on what’s the most appropriate thing for you to do next.
Scenario 1, they said their reason was to prevent you from getting hit by a bus. Most likely your reaction would be to hug them while offering many thanks.
Scenario 2, they said their reason was some explanation that boiled down to them just hating on your outfit. Never one to promote violence, yet I can understand why a quick kung fu chop to the neck region would be somewhat appropriate in this case.
Think about it…same push but different response. That’s what I call the power of intent!!!
So after all that, what’s Kanye’s intent? I’m not qualified to say for certain, but I think it’s very similar to my own…to help others with original, ground-breaking, innovative artistic expressions while never losing a strong sense of self in the process. One aspect of doing this is being bold enough to go beyond what’s accepted as “the norm”. I’ve come to understand that being possibly misunderstood or even rejected at first is something that’s just part of this journey.
When the prime objective is the preservation of “the norm”, my thought process is generally at conflict. One way that I cope is by not being too dependent upon, or too closely involved with what’s considered “the norm”. And I don’t think this makes me any better or worse than anyone…it just makes me, ME! Unfortunately the masses are conditioned to initially reject individual expressions of self…regardless of the intent.
This is just my opinion. And I know that the best thing about an opinion is everybody has a right to one…regardless of how wrong they are!!!