The power of language is a powerful tool for anyone who’s willing to use it. In this entry, Charles describes how this power is applied to speakers from politicians to entertainers.
His website: http://www.charleslchatmon.com
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Brothers Need 2 Step Up (TOAS)
In this podcast, Chatmon’s Books owner Charles L. Chatmon makes an appeal for Black men to step up and consider retaking the lead when it comes to organizing projects or organizations in the community.
Please visit Charles at his website, CharlesLChatmon.com
Visit us at ChatmonsBooks.com
Responding to Critics (Podcast)
In this Thoughts on a String podcast entry, a commentary on how authors should handle criticism – and expect it. It’s common for writers of any genre or medium.
Living in a Fahrenheit 451 Society (TOAS Podcast)
Distractions. Misinformation. Spending long hours on social media and the internet. Is this the dypostian future Ray Bradbury warned us about in his classic novel, Fahrenheit 451? Author and owner of Chatmon’s Books, Charles L. Chatmon attempts to explain what all this means as well as the deeper meaning of Bradbury’s novel holds for all of us. A must listen.
Please Shed A Tear For Us, Charlie Gordon
Note: The following was featured on this blog:
Submitted for your (dis) approval…..
I want to show you the truest example of what ‘woke” is. Yes, this word has been used as a definition of someone obtaining the highest consciousness in our society, a slang term used by the black community and appropriated by the larger society (what else is new?) The following scene is from the movie Charly based on a short story by Daniel Keyes’s “Flowers for Algernon”. Link here for background to the plot of the story, but in the movie, Charlie Gordon has just finished a procedure to increase his intelligence. Paraded by the doctors who operated on him, it’s only fitting Charlie addresses the crowd with his newfound intelligence and his thoughts on the world he is now consciously living in:
‘Things as they are. And what they are becoming.’
I wager an intellect understands things are they are in our society today. Through no fault of his or her own, they have seen partisan politics, poverty, and other social ills affect us all. They know their voices will be stifled by the carnival barkers, the many voices of dissention and rancor among us, often for profit or relevancy. In today’s ongoing stream of the internet, fringe voices that at one time were too small or narrow to alter the minds of the masses are now enhanced, bolstered to promote their various conspiracies and agendas. What Charlie warned us what will come to pass, has happened. There is no ‘1984‘ philosophy at work, but a Brave New World society where anything goes – and often for the worst. The intellect also understands the patterns of mistakes we make in Mankind contributes to our downfall. When irrationality and persuasive emotion persist without reason, the chaos we’re experiencing this year alone is a testament to what Mr. Gordon tried to tell us, but we didn’t want to believe.
Charlie Gordon for his part was spared in the end. We may think his fate was unfortunate, but in his case he had entered Plato’s cave, found the light too bright to see and returned back to the state where he once belonged. If you reader, know about Plato’s The Allegory of The Cave, you will recognize Charlie’s ascent and descent after viewing the bright light of reason and intellect. A light that was too bright for him. Truthfully, this is written because in this election year, we are witnessing incidents in our body politic that were one time unthinkable, now winked at or shrugged without a thought. We see individuals we would call associate, neighbor or friend lusting for cultural vengeance no matter what the cost. We see division and hatred on a level that hasn’t been seen in decades. Yes, if Charlie Gordon were alive today to see this, I can see him not only mourning for Algernon, the mouse used for the experiment to increase his intellect, but he may also shed a tear for our generation, and those fortunate enough to follow.
Charles L. Chatmon
Owner, Chatmon’s Books
TOAS Podcast: Cancel Social Media
Charles issues a warning to the social media public. He offers words of caution to #cancelsocialmedia between now and November 3rd. As he explains in the video, there will be tons of (dis) information all battling for the most precious real estate we own. Take a listen if you like.
Parody: White Man’s Burden 2020
Fellow humans:
Do not be alarmed. It’s just a parody of the classic poem by Rudyard Kipling. Updated for our present time. Enjoy. (or not)
Charles L. Chatmon
Author, President of Chatmon’s Books
TOAS Podcast: The Opinions Expressed……
This is my first try in years of starting a consistent podcast for your peeps out there. Just like my blog on another site, I hope to provide you with my perspective on issues on various subjects. I do hope you enjoy what you’re about to listen to.
For this first entry, I explain that those of us who write, speak and watch this medium every day, are engaging in an opinion-based medium unless our subject or point is supported by indisputable, reliable sources. Please take a listen. Thank you.
(TOAS = Thoughts on a String)
I’m an Author, Not an Armchair Activist
In our last episode, we mentioned that as an author, nothing else should be expected of me rather than what you read in my books and to keep the discussion there. I prefer to speak about the imagery in “Take a Minute and Pause” in the Voices of South Central than to discuss endlessly about the subject matter in the book. I’m trying to sell it to you, the reader, not to start a rant outside of the pages of that book as many armchair activists have done online.
Armchair activists. If you have a Twitter and Facebook account, you too can play this game by constantly posting what’s wrong with our world and society that spirals out of control. However, as an author, my job is to tell you what’s going on in this world and that’s by talking about the themes and topics in the things I’m passionate about. This may offend a great deal of friends who are already posting current news and/or opinions from the philosophers or great men and women of influence in the past, but newsflash: your ‘fans’ are interested in YOU, not the postings of an anti Obama tirade. Yes, you may appeal to your fans who are just as interested as ‘freeing the sheep’ but unless you talk about your book, the same book you put an effort to produce and eventually publish, then outside of that circle, chances are the gains to attract new readers will fall short.
Look, if you’ve read my posts this far (over a thousand) then you know on what issues I stand and where my heart lies with the subjects that concern me the most. But I am a poet and author who speaks on life’s foibles, not an armchair activist who posts something on social media which eventually will be pushed further down in the news feed within a manner of seconds. If any reader wants to know who Charles L. Chatmon is, I have a website, an updated bio, even a guestbook if they want to maintain in touch (and I do suggest you sign the guestbook, smile) with me. Chatwrites2@yahoo.com is my email address. The one thing I am not nor will ever be, is an armchair activist. I have good speaking ability, but not of the legendary quality. I have stood behind a pulpit and preached a sermon twenty years ago, and while my gift of writing may be used as a ‘bully pulpit’ on paper and on screen. My job as an author is to share with you, the reader what I wrote in my published books and keep a dialogue with you in this forum about future appearances, etc., rather than recreate the Civil Rights Movement here. As I said last time, better and greater men and women than I can succeed in that task.
In a forum like this, a blog (how many folks continue to read blogs anyway?) it’s my responsibility to provide content that reveals my thoughts and feelings. You, the reader must decide if future visits here are worth your time. In a past article, I referenced websites such as the old Black Voices and Net Noir where folks had their say about Presidents Clinton and Bush, touched on the same issues as Black people we’re still going through and yet…..those websites are closed, shut down. So our armchair activism really didn’t account for much, did it?
Social media is all the rage right now, but as an author it is my hope that it doesn’t take away the human factor in going out for book signings and/or events such as the L.A. Black Book Expo. It’s created a monster in that everyone, everyone has an opinion, an agenda, a cause, a mission, you name it, everyone’s on the internet distracted from the things that matter including ‘pulling out of thin air’ philosophies that make no sense at all. Personally, I will continue to use my social media pages to post important news stories while focusing on the book scene. I seriously doubt my tirade to the president, congress or even Shoe Shine Boy will make a difference. The machinations of men will continue to grind with or without an insightful and conscious probing post. Perhaps those memes of Kermit the Frog sipping some tea while telling you whatever is none of his business will make our ‘leaders’ quake in their boots. An author shouldn’t waste time dealing with foolishness like that, nor he or she should encourage it.
Reminder: I’m an author, not a world leader, revolutionary or armchair activist. I write books and articles, not social policy.
Charles L. Chatmon
Author, President, Chatmon’s Books
I’m An Author, Not A World Leader or Revolutionary
I’m an author, not a world leader or revolutionary. I write books and articles, not make strirring speeches which fire up the soul or go out in the campaign trail. Yet somehow, in this world we call the internet, it seems anyone can assume the mantle of ‘saving us’ by posting quotes from social role models, etc. It is far too easy for someone like me (and you have almost one thousand examples of this) where I use my talent to ‘influence’ others on what’s happening in the world and my own observations of it.
There comes a time when I try to heed what Solomon said in Ecclesiastes 12:12 ”But beyond this, my son, be warned: the writing of many books is endless, and excessive devotion to books is wearying to the body.” (New American Standard) So if the wisest man who has ever lived can make a statement like that and if writing (of books or anything is endless), then perhaps our minds are ‘worn out’ by constantly offering every opinion, every personal agenda, every point of view we hold in our social media, without knowing we’ve built a ‘fan base’ who reads and absorbs all of this – and yet we are writers.
If you have a moment, google some famous authors you know and admire. Look at their websites. If they have a social media account, look that up too. See how they interact with their fans, watch how they respond to each criticism or praise. They don’t spend time ranting about drama they have or will never control, don’t go on about the conspiracies we’re force fed to believe, the authors I’ve seen interact, keyword – INTERACT – with their fans and answer every question given to them, Maybe they offer a remedy on chicken soup, but they stay within themselves and speak their minds about a current event of the day, but not required to answer all of life’s questions in their posts. They’re human, just like you and I.
Therefore, I think it’s laughable to think even I as much as I’ve shared a lot of my personal thoughts and opinions (it is my blog you know), I have to assume the duty of a wise sage, a soothsayer for my readership. They can buy my books and look at my poems to see where I stand which is always up for debate. I also tried to offer opinions on the writing business and the changes happening before our eyes. It’s tempting not to ‘stay within oneself’ and pretend that I’m some ‘leader’ who’s leading our race towards the mountaintop. Better and greater men than I have the ability to encourage, influence and inspire the multitude. I’m not nor will ever be that person. Again, I’m an author, not a world leader.
Charles L. Chatmon
Author, President, Chatmon’s Books
