Olympic Women's Boxing Controversy Explained & Biden's Quest to Hold SCOTUS Accountable (Plus: Lakers' New Kobe Statue)
Olympic Women's Boxing Controversy Explained & Biden's Quest to Hold SCOTUS Accountable (Plus: Lakers' New Kobe Statue)
What I’m Discussing Today:
Kareem’s Daily Quote: A day without art is a day I wouldn’t want to endure.
Biden decries ‘extremism’ on Supreme Court, details plan for term limits, ethics code for justices: Finally, an attempt to hold SCOTUS accountable.
In an attempt to reverse the Supreme Court’s immunity decision, Schumer introduces the No Kings Act: This legislation may be one of the most important to the future of democracy in the U.S.
What to know about the gender controversy sweeping Olympic boxing: The facts so far are that two women are being harassed by misinformed and vicious misogynists. What else is new?
Kareem’s Video Break: A little girl has a delightful chat with AI.
America’s New Political War Pits Young Men Against Young Women: Young men are feeling left out. Welcome to the struggle.
Lakers unveil new statue honoring ‘Girl Dad’ Kobe Bryant’s bond with daughter Gianna: This statue tells us Kobe’s legacy is greater than being a basketball player.
Smokey Robinson and The Miracles: “Ooo Baby Baby”: Allow yourself to relax into the smooth sounds of one of the greatest groups ever.
Kareem’s Daily Quote
Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.
Thomas Merton (1915-1968), American monk and writer
Science shows us the possibilities of life, business provides the practicalities of life, and art shows us how to better enjoy life. What is the point of science prolonging life and business building better homes if we are miserable in that longer life and those comfortable homes?
Art isn’t just the landscape painting on the wall where you honeymooned or Hummel figurines on the fireplace mantel. Art permeates our day from the design of the bed we sleep in, the fashion of the clothing we put on, the music we play on the drive to work, the book we read on lunch break, and the TV show we watch after dinner. And so much more.
Yet, despite our daily diet of all things artful, many people are intimidated by discussions of art. People fall back on the old clichés: “I don’t know anything about art but I know what I like” and “I just want to be entertained.” Neither statement is true. People know more about art than they realize—if they just think about it. And, yes, we all want to be entertained, but the art that endures in our memory also touches something deep inside us and changes us. Most people remember books they read as children that opened their eyes to new possibilities and nudged them in a different direction in life. That, too, is the purpose of art.
For me, many books inspired me, but two books come immediately to mind. Alone in my room, I was barely a teen when I read Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers. It was exciting and suspenseful with lots of swordplay, intrigue, and betrayal. But it taught me something about teamwork, about being part of a group that was more important than the individual. I spent most of my youth and adulthood as part of a team in which we celebrated “All for one and one for all.”
The Autobiography of Malcolm X came out when I was 18 and I devoured it like a starving man on a desert island. The story of Malcolm X’s struggles to find his identity as a Black man in America passionately articulated feelings I’d had but hadn’t yet found the words to express. It made me better understand myself and my place in America, but it also made me want to improve that place for everyone like me who lived in America’s margins.
It’s also important to note that there were books I read and movies I saw that gave me exciting ideas about the world—ideas that I later abandoned after more thought and experience. But going through that process of examining ideas—embracing and then rejecting them—was an important part of my journey. Sometimes, it’s necessary to be wrong so that you can develop the skills to recognize you’re wrong and have the courage to admit it. Art taught me that.
Merton’s quote says we find ourselves in art, which I did. I found out who I was and who I wasn’t. He also says we lose ourselves, which I did. I lost my childish ego in order to become part of a team that was bigger than myself. Even after I retired from the NBA, I have always felt part of a team as a member of the Black community, as an American, and as a part of this Substack community.
Art helps one find the joy in life and reveals the source of pain so it can be addressed. But it also is a celebration of our individual and group values. We build statues of people we admire so that we can emulate them. We don’t always get it right, but like I just mentioned, getting it wrong is also part of the journey.
Aristotle said, “The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.” You don’t have to study art history to want to look deeper. It’s all about the desire to be a seeker, not specific knowledge. The joy comes from looking for the inward significance. Those who can’t be bothered to look, discover nothing. Art reveals that shallowness.
Finally, art is entertainment. It can be a delightful distraction from the daily dark of routine and struggles. A chance to catch our breath and regroup for tomorrow. That makes me think of the poem “The Juggler” by Richard Wilbur in which the audience watches the juggler juggling a table, a plate, and a broom—the symbols of their heavy daily responsibilities—as if they were weightless. When he’s done, the audience bursts into thunderous applause for lightening their load:
For him we batter our hands
Who has won for once over the world's weight.
As you venture forth today, notice the art that surrounds you, enlightens you, and lifts you. And rejoice.