So yesterday evening Ryce and I did a podcast, IC 252: Pedophile Insurance (Cheap Plug) and one of the topics we talked about was Lupe Fiasco’s comments about President Obama being the world’s biggest terrorist. I had a few comments about that issue then but felt the need to write this follow up because I did something that I normally don’t do: I commented on the issue before actually watching/listening to what Lupe said. I hate doing that. I hate not getting the full context or full story straight from the source instead. Sometimes things get “lost in translation”.  Now to be fair, in the case of Lupe, I was betting on the fact that he probably did indeed say it because that’s pretty much par for the course for the guy. But I still felt it necessary to follow up.
So…after listening I have to say this:Â Lupe needs to shut the fuck up.
Seriously folks. If all you’re doing is listening to what he’s saying and not really thinking about it, it might make sense. But if you stop for a minute…a second even…and really really think about it, Lupe sounds like a fucking idiot (and if you agree with him, you’re sound pretty fucking stupid too). Let me break it down…
“In my fight against terrorism, to me, the biggest terrorist is Obama in the United States of America. For me, I’m trying to fight the terrorism that’s actually causing the other forms of terrorism. The root cause of the terrorism is the stuff that you as a government allow to happen and the foreign policies that we have in place in different countries that inspire people to become terrorists. And it’s easy for us because it’s really just some oil, which we can really get on our own.â€
So according to Lupe he’s “fighting against terrorism” that US foreign policy is creating. I understand that sentiment. I fully believe that US foreign policy creates terrorism. But here’s the thing, I also understand that the world is complicated. We could pull all our troops currently in foreign country out and bring them home and we’d still have problems like we do today. US foreign policy just isn’t about wars.  It’s about who we ally with, who we trade and interact with…it’s a complex deeply rooted thing. For example, if we pulled all our troops out of Afghanistan and Iraq, what about oil companies currently in Africa that are raping the lands there? And that’s the thing with US foreign policy. It’s not a “world policy”. The goal isn’t to strengthen other countries but rather to strengthen the US and do what’s right for the US. It’s selfish. But you know what? It’s no different than what any other country would be doing if given the opportunity. The only way for US foreign policy to ever be what Lupe wants it to be would be for every entity of the US to pull back to within our own borders. I’m just going to be real with you. That’s not going to happen. The US is always going to be stepping on someone’s toes.
But there’s a larger issue I have with Lupe. It’s based off of this statement:
“I don’t vote. I don’t get involved in the political process because it’s meaningless, to be honest. I’m a real big believer if I’m gonna vouch for someone, then I’m gonna stand behind everything that they do. That’s just how I am as a human being. So politicians aren’t gonna do that because I don’t want you to bomb some village in the middle of nowhere.”
Dude…fuck you. Seriously, fuck you.
I’m tired of people who come off as if they have such a higher understanding of the world because they aren’t going to vote because all politicians are evil. Fuck you. It’s fucking stupid. Maybe people like Lupe who don’t vote don’t realize what voting really is because they don’t vote but let me break it down. First off, voting isn’t going into a booth and voting a straight Democratic or Republican ticket just because that’s the political affiliation you’re registered for. If that’s what you’re doing, I have news for you…you’re just as bad as Lupe and as far as I’m concerned, you’re not voting either. Voting involves doing research to find out who represents a reasonable amount of the views and values you have and supporting them.
I’m a real big believer if I’m gonna vouch for someone, then I’m gonna stand behind everything that they do. That’s just how I am as a human being.
What Lupe said right there is fucking stupid because that’s not how the world works. No one does this. I guarantee you that Lupe has friends that he doesn’t agree 100% with but he still would vouch for them. I disagree with friends and family on issues all the time but that doesn’t make them lesser people to me. If your reason for not voting is because you’re waiting for a politician that you will agree with every stance they take then you’re going to die waiting. Even people who support the same politician have different views. How many people supported Obama but are holding him accountable now and voicing their displeasure with things he’s doing that they don’t agree with? That’s the political process. That’s how things in this world work. Lupe even said it himself. When Atlantic didn’t release his album, his fans voiced their displeasure and guess what? IT WORKED. To say you won’t vote for someone because then when they do something you don’t agree with you have to stop supporting them is ridiculous. I get into disagreements ALL THE TIME with other people who voted for Obama. If we can’t even agree on things amongst ourselves, how in the world does Lupe (or people using his logic) think he’s going to find a politician he can 100% vouch for? I stopped with that pipe dream a long time ago. Now I vote for people I think are moving the country forward in the direction I want to go. It’s never 100%. Sometimes it’s just 5%…but 5% is better than 0% or worse, going backwards.
What really gets me about Lupe’s statements though is, THERE ARE POLITICIANS WHO SUPPORT HIS VIEWS.
So politicians aren’t gonna do that because I don’t want you to bomb some village in the middle of nowhere.
If Lupe’s concern is with fighting terrorism from US Foreign Policy, then why didn’t he support Dennis Kucinich? Kucinich was anti-war and was trying to get President Bush impeached. Well, Kucinich is still a Democrat so maybe that’s why. But why not Cynthia Mckinney?  Lupe has shown in his music that he has a concern about Gaza and that’s McKinney’s wheelhouse. Right now she’s in Tripoli talking about the NATO airstrikes. There are politicians out there that are in line with Lupe’s views. Maybe not 100%, but if there’s someone out there who is in line with him 85%, is he really saying he’s not going to support them because of the 15%? Come on.
Another reason this not voting thing is stupid is that on the ballot, there’s more than just names of politicians. There are questions, referendums, State Constitutional amendments, etc. If gay marriage gets on the ballot in your state are you still “not going to vote”? What about tax increases? Funding for schools in your district? These things end up on the ballot. To me they’re actually more important than the Presidential race.
To end let me say this. Fuck Lupe. I have no time for people who spend all their time bitching and moaning but when it’s time for them to step up they don’t. What’s the point of “educating the people” if you don’t then take that education into the voting booth to try to get the result you want? I have no problem with someone who reads a ballot and comes to the decision that either 1. They can’t support anyone on the ballot or 2. They aren’t informed enough about the issues to vote on the topic. That to me is still “voting”. But Lupe’s not doing any of that. There are politicians out there that run for office that support the ideas that Lupe says he stands for. Yet he still doesn’t vote. He’s not voting because of fundamental reasons. He’s doing it cause he thinks it’s cool to stand on the side, bitch & moan and “go against the grain”. That just makes him an asshat, not deep.
The root cause of the terrorism is the stuff that you as a government allow to happen
Well Lupe, the “government” is something that WE as a society allow to happen as well. Voting is how we change that government. So if you want to really break it down, by not voting to change the government, the root cause of terrorism is WE THE PEOPLE. I’ll let you and everyone else giving you props stew on that one for a while.
You’re dead on right, and its so sad that this is playing out the way it is. Lupe Fiasco will go down as the rap game’s Cat Stevens/Yusef Islam. Very talented, marginally successful, but turns out kinda batshit crazy.
I’ve been around them Black Panther hangovers whose hearts may be in the right place, but their minds are fucked, and their actions are equally so. Really unfortunate, because the rap game needs an educated voice with an eye on community development and growth, and Lupe seemed like he had that potential. Turns out, he’s Waka Flaka with a Q’uran.
Fantastic article except for the Cynthia McKinney – she’s a whackjob for defending a dictator. well maybe they should get together after all. I have a hearty laugh over people who will call the US terrorists but will express support for dictators who starve and steal from their people.
Well, I’m not saying I support McKinney and I think she’s a whackjob too. But from Lupe’s perspective she’s the type of candidate he would like and support. That’s all I was saying.
Of course young people aren’t voting, they are not paying attention.
This is what our culture is degenerating into… http://nordalai.com/a/2f
That is our future.
You’re absolutely right. Our young people are shaming our community, and we only encourage it.
You don’t have a community. You are a nigger. This site is made by and for niggers. Niggers don’t have communities, they need guidance, or else they lose control. I agree with the writer, Lupe needs to shut the fuck up, along with the rest of the niggers, and you all need to get back in the god-damn fields.
Whereas I agree with you, I would be very careful… That kind of talk will get you banned!
I am pretty sure the guy in the video is Kriss…
“you’re sound pretty fucking stupid too”
The author of this article doesn’t sound too intelligent when he manages to make editorial errors like this. If you’re gonna go around calling people stupid, you need to be damn sure you don’t sound stupid yourself.
ahh, yes…an editorial error outweighs everything else in the article. You’re right, completely invalidates the entire article because of 1 small simple mistake. *straight face*
I see you still haven’t corrected it either. So you acknowledge there is an error in your article, but you don’t fix it? WTF? I guess quality means nothing.
You’re right, quality means nothing…1 mistake in an entire article. I actually didn’t fix it cause i knew you would come back and focus on that ONE thing instead of the entire article. Whose the one who looks bad here? You’re basing the quality of the article on one tiny mistake but not what’s actually written. Honestly, I’m now going to leave it there so that people like you can bitch and moan about it instead of reading and focusing on the article as a whole.
That’s an excellent policy. That’s how the New York Times, the Washington Post and all the professional organizations attract readers, with poorly thought-out, crap content, then when an error is found, they don’t fix it either. They tell their readers that they are wrong. You are 100% correct, this is a great policy. Why admit to a mistake and fix it, when you can just berate your readers? It makes no difference to me if you leave it there. This is your “blog” or website or whatever you want to call it. If you want to be hostile towards your readers, that’s fine. I hope both of your readers enjoy your shitty attitude and love of mediocrity.
First off, the New York Times and the Washington Post have editors and people staffed and paid full time to correct editors. I don’t. Secondly, if you hadn’t tried to link 1 simple error to the entire post being stupid and poorly thought out, I wouldn’t have had a problem. But that’s not what you did. You call the post poorly written because of 1 small, inconsequential mistake. That happens. It doesn’t take away from the post and you haven’t provided any other evidence that the piece is poorly thought out besides that ONE small error. And so yes, when someone like you comes on here and feels the need to trash an entire article over ONE error, yeah, I’m gonna be a little hostile.
You can’t start off the hostilities then get mad when I get hostile back.
Kriss, this guy was my favorite rapper, until he made those comments. I lost all respect for him. He may be a great rapper, but as a person, he a complete douchebag.