I met a farmer in rural Wisconsin named Tim. He has Clydesdale horses, llamas, miniature horses, sheep, goats, dogs, and lots of other animals. He does Equine Experiential Therapy with people who have disabilities. Tim is a big guy with a big heart. He’s gay. I’m interviewed him, his father, mother and nephew. I’m going to publish a story and video profile on him in the next few months.
I stepped into the corral on the family farm on a bitter cold Monday morning. A baby llama approached me and started licking my fingers. Huge dark eyes, a tangle of matted hair, I leaned close and she kissed me. I put my hand on her face and she brayed delicately, looking in my eyes and beyond. I immediately understood the the magic. Tim’s young nephew Bret articulated the mechinism of the modality succinctly; “They’re really soft,” he said.
I went to Kuwait with MySpace. They financed a documentary I made on a concert they did for the troops there called Operation MySpace. The thing that was most compelling about the trip was, of course, the soldiers. They were young, mostly. They were there for the opportunity and paycheck, mostly. They weren’t what I’d expected. They were smart and articulate, and not necessarily aligned with the government’s intentions in the Persian Gulf, but were committed to the idea of national defense regardless… I interviewed them and sent cameras to their families and had them interview themselves. Ultimately it was a bit of a fiasco. At one point I got detained by some MP’s after a ranking officer got out of sorts when I focused my lens on a 3-star general. Apparently I’m not the sort the person that they’re comfortable with. In hind sight, I think I would have left my orange Day-glo hunting cap at home.
Regardless, the soldiers loved the show; Carlos Mencia showed his bare ass to the the 8,000 people in attendance. Jessica Simpson sang, a metal band called The Disturbed and the Pussy Cat Dolls played. The high point was a band called Filter. The singer is an outspoken critic of the war whose song, “Nice Shot,” ironically emerged as a battle field anthem.
Here’s a few pictures from trip.
Operation MySpace_ photo by Sam Slovick
Operation MySpace_ photo by Sam Slovick
Operation MySpace_ photo by Sam Slovick
Operation MySpace_ photo by Sam Slovick
Operation MySpace_ photo by Sam Slovick
Operation MySpace_ Carlos Mencia and Sam Slovick_ photo by Luigi Ventura
Operation MySpace_ Jessica Simpson and Sam Slovick
These are some of my favorite images from 2009. Most all of these photos were captured by me though there are a couple that I rediscovered in the same time frame. The locations include; France, Belgium, the Grenadine Islands, West Indies, Kuwait, Peru, L.A. and New York mostly… Some are published in magazines or newspapers, all of them are meaningful for me; maybe it’s the shooter, the subject or the place and time.
This is Joe Donnelly kissing my ass singing my praises in the LA Weekly… He is was the editor at the Weekly who invented me as a journalist by giving me the opportunity to write cover stories for the Weekly despite my lack of experience, sense of entitlement and issues surrounding the basic principals of grammar, punctuation and spelling. He routinely received endlessly meandering drafts from me and surgically crafted them into stories, educating me in the process. It was like going to grad school directly from high school (which I’d accidentally forgotten to attend). Read more ›
“The End of Poverty?” is a new documentary by Philippe Diaz that articulates what we already know in the most disturbing terms; That poverty is the intentional outcome of a global economic strategy born of a paradigm with it’s roots in Colonialism that perpetuates the subjugation of people in the 3rd world who are trapped in a cycle of poverty and is ultimately responsible for the relentless unnecessary suffering and death of millions.
The End of Poverty? is a daring, thought-provoking and very timely documentary by award-winning filmmaker, Philippe Diaz, revealing that poverty is not an accident. It began with military conquest, slavery and colonization that resulted in the seizure of land, minerals and forced labor. Today, global poverty has reached new levels because of unfair debt, trade and tax policies — in other words, wealthy countries exploiting the weaknesses of poor, developing countries.
The End of Poverty? asks why today 20% of the planet’s population uses 80% of its resources and consumes 30% more than the planet can regenerate?
The film has been selected to over 25 international film festivals and will be released in theatres in November 2009. Directed by Philippe Diaz, produced by Cinema Libre Studio with the Robert Schalkenbach Foundation, 104mins, 2008, USA, documentary in English, Spanish, French with English Subtitles.
The Shipibo Shop is on a ruddy sand road about a half hour’s walk from Espiritu De Anaconda near Iquitos, Peru. Bastian is from Belgium. He and and his wife Vanessa, the daughter of Kestenbetsa, are the proprietors. They buy the stuff from Shipibos in Pucallupa.
“Welcome to the Jungle” is a cover story I did for L A Yoga Magazine about Amanozinan Shamanism… more specifically about the Shipibo Master Plant healing tradition called Vegitalismo.
The video is a combination of footage I shot at Espiritu de Anaconda in Iquitos, Peru along with filmmaker Ryan Wylie’s footage.
Welcome to the Jungle
Ayahuasca, Shamanism And The Diets Of Healing
I’ll open your thoughts. By doing so I’ll fill you with joy. By doing so I’ll straighten your thoughts. By doing so I’ll straighten your body. now I’ll heal you to the depths of your heart. By doing so I’ll fill you with immense joy. By doing so I’ll return life to your body and to your thoughts. I’ll heal your being, your body, with the powerful essence of the tree and the universe. so you are joyous, remember my words. so you remember them, I will chant them. Though I’m small, I made your thoughts shine. The universe is in harmony.The word is and ever will be.
Statement from Chief Arvol Looking Horse regarding the Sedona sweat lodge deaths
Yesterday at 8:36pm
As Keeper of our Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe Bundle, I am concerned for the 2 deaths and illnesses of the many people that participated in a sweat lodge in Sedona, Arizona that brought our sacred rite under fire in the news. I would like to clarify that this lodge and many others, are not our ceremonial way of life, because of the way they are being conducted. My prayers go out for their families and loved ones for their loss.
Our ceremonies are about life and healing, from the time this ancient ceremonial rite was given to our people, never has death been a part of our inikag’a (life within) when conducted properly. Today the rite is interpreted as a sweat lodge, it is much more then that. So the term does not fit our real meaning of purification.
Inikag’a is the oldest ceremony brought to us by Wakan Tanka (Great Spirit). 19 generations ago, the Lakota/Dakota/Nakota Oyate (people), were given seven sacred rites of healing by a Spirit Woman – Pte San Win (White Buffalo Calf Woman). She brought these rites along with our sacred C’anupa (pipe) to our People, when our ancestors were suffering from a difficult time. It was also brought for the future to help us for much more difficult times to come. They were brought to help us stay connected to who we are as a traditional cultural People. The values of conduct are very strict in any of these ceremonies, because we work with spirit. The way the Creator, Wakan Tanka told us; that if we stay humble and sincere, we will keep that connection with the inyan oyate (the stone people), who we call the Grandfathers, to be able to heal our selves and loved ones. We have a “gift” of prayer and healing and have to stay humble with our Unc’i Maka (Grandmother Earth) and with one another. The inikag’a is used in all of the seven sacred rites to prepare and finish the ceremonies, along with the sacred eagle feather. The feather represents the sacred knowledge of our ancestors.
Our First Nations People have to earn the right to pour the mini wic’oni (water of life) upon the inyan oyate (the stone people) in creating Inikag’a – by going on the vision quest for four years and four years Sundance. Then you are put through a ceremony to be painted – to recognize that you have now earned that right to take care of someone’s life through purification. They should also be able to understand our sacred language, to be able to understand the messages from the Grandfathers, because they are ancient, they are our spirit ancestors. They walk and teach the values of our culture; in being humble, wise, caring and compassionate.
What has happened in the news with the make shift sauna called the sweat lodge is not our ceremonial way of life!
When you do ceremony – you can not have money on your mind. We deal with the pure sincere energy to create healing that comes from everyone in that circle of ceremony. The heart and mind must be connected. When you involve money, it changes the energy of healing. The person wants to get what they paid for; the Spirit Grandfathers will not be there, our way of life is now being exploited! You do more damage then good. No” mention” of monetary energy should exist in healing, not even with a can of love donations. When that energy exists, they will not even come. Only ‘after’ the ceremony, between the person that is being healed and the Intercessor who has helped connect with the Great Spirit, the energy of money can be given out of appreciation. That exchange of energy is from the heart; it is private and does not involve the Grandfathers! Whatever gift of appreciation the person who received the help, can now give the Intercessor what ever they feel their healing is worth.
In our Prophesy of the White Buffalo Calf Woman, she told us that she would return and stand upon the earth when we are having a hard time. In 1994 this began to happen with the birth of the white buffalo, not only their nation, but many animal nations began to show their sacred color, which is white. She predicted that at this time there would be many changes upon Grandmother Earth. There would be things that we never experienced or heard of before; climate changes, earth changes, diseases, disrespect for life and one another would be shocking and there would be also many false prophets!
My Grandmother that passed the bundle to me said I would be the last Keeper if the Oyate (people) do not straighten up. The assaults upon Grandmother Earth are horrendous, the assaults toward one another was not in our culture, the assaults against our People (Oyate) have been termed as genocide, and now we are experiencing spiritual genocide!
Because of the problems that began to arise with our rebirth of being able to do our ceremonies in the open since the Freedom of Religion Act of 1978, our Elders began talking to me about the abuses they seen in our ceremonial way of life, which was once very strict. After many years of witnessing their warnings, we held a meeting to address this very issue of lack of protocol in our ceremonies. After reaching an agreement of addressing the misconduct of our ceremonies and reminding of the proper protocols, a statement was made in March 2003. Every effort was made to insure our way of life of who we are as traditional cultural People was made, because these ways are for our future and all life upon the Grandmother Earth (Mitakuye Oyasin – All my relations), so that they may have good health. Because these atrocities are being mocked and practiced all over the world, there was even a film we made called “Spirits for Sale”.
The non-native people have a right to seek help from our “First Nation Intercessors” for good health and well-being, it is up to that Intercessor. That is a privilege for all People that we gift for being able to have good health and understand that their protocol is to have respect and appreciate what we have to share. The First Nations Intercessor has to earn that right to our ceremonial way of life in the ways I have explained.
At this time, I would like to ask all Nations upon Grandmother Earth to please respect our sacred ceremonial way of life and stop the exploitation of our Tunka Oyate (Spiritual Grandfathers).
In a Sacred Hoop of Life, where there is no ending and no beginning!
Namah’u yo (hear my words),
Chief Arvol Looking Horse, 19th Generation Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe Bundle.
“It is the pinnacle of hubris to believe that we can improve upon Nature.”
herbaleveryman
I met Choc Nitty on Skid Row. I was in the Gang Enforcement Task Force in the Central Division Police station in downtown L.A. when a cop pulled up a six-pack on a computer screen and showed me his picture. He told me how he used this rapper from Jordan Downs‘ website to make him take a plea after he got arrested slanging on San Julian Street. The rapper was Choc Nitty from Snowman Cliq. On the site they had the lyric from a track called “Get them chips“. It said, “Sell my weed/Sell my weed/Sell my rock/Sell my rock/Gotta get my chippy on… San Julian is the block/Where I used to sell my rock.”
I noted the web address and emailed Snowman Cliq to interview them for the story I was working on for the L A Weekly called Super Dope Cops about cops and thugs on Skid Row, but they didn’t respond. I finally reached out to the guy who made the site; a producer named Doobie Dave. He set up a meeting. Oddly they wanted to meet at some place called The Pig’n Whistle on Hollywood Boulevard.
Choc Nitty thought I was a cop and was less than receptive, but let me interview him. I asked him about the cops on Skid Row… if he’d been arrested. “Nah. I don’t know what officer you talking about,” he says. “I don’t do much talking to polices so it’s like, nope. I asked him what “chippy” meant. “My chippies,” Choc says. “Chips is money. Cheddar. Whatever … dollar signs. Whatever money is to you, that’s it.”
I’ve know him for years by now.. written a bunch of stories about him including a cover story for the LA Weekly called The Brand New Grind, wherein I follow him all around the projects in Watts and meet up with a bunch of mixtape artists.
Choc Nitty is hood-famous. One foot in the gutter, one on higher ground, he’s managed to create a life for himself out of dust. He has a magical ability to make his way into all sorts of places and situations and always gets asked back because people love him. From Malibu to Watts and everywhere in between. He know a lot of people. He introduced me to Guerilla Black and Jay Rock… one time I met him at Star Bucks in Ladera Heights where he ran into The Game… it goes on and on.
He’s on the radio in L.A., has mix tapes and DVD and CD’s out, plays to sold out houses in Hollywood and a reality show in development. Choc Nitty goes hard in the paint and aparently he isn’t going to stop till everybody knows he’s here.
Choc Nitty has an alter-ego… of course; D.J. Squeak.
