I love to discuss about the many issues of the day with my friends, family, and fellow citizens. However, I feel that people are only speaking with “hearsay” information and not with actual facts. Because of this problem, I drew up a list of books and documents that people love to argue over but have never actually read. In no particular order, here they are:
1. The Constitution of the United States. If you are going to talk about your rights as a citizen of this great country, then you are required to read this entire document. The US Constitution, and only the US Constitution, describes how the People of the Unitized States will govern themselves. Not the Declaration of Independence. And not the Holy Bible. And especially not something you heard from a radio talk show host. It is only a couple of pages long and shouldn’t take you very long to read. Now, when you scream that you have certain rights, you will know what they ACTUALLY are instead of what you believe they are.
2. The Holy Bible. If you proclaim yourself to be a Christian or Born Again AND have not read the Holy Bible, I think that you are a fool, an idiot, or just stupid. If this book is God’s Plan for Mankind, you must have read and understood the Plan, correct? I currently refuse to have any discussion with individuals about Christianity or God if that individual has not read at least ONE book in the Bible. Please, folks, just read one book in the Bible all the way through in one sitting. Not a number of Sundays in church. I don’t even care which book it is. You can the first book: Genesis. You can read the shortest: 3 John. It can be the longest: Psalms. You can even read (dare I say) one of the books that has that guy named Jesus in it: Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John. Reading the Bible may make you a better Christian, a better citizen, and just less ignorant about what the book actually says.
3. An Instruction Manual. I am not writing about reading the instruction manual for a simple appliance like a clock or radio. I am writing about reading the instructional manual for items such as prescriptions drugs, automobiles, power tools, computers, electronics, or some other complex device. I want a law that states that an individual cannot sue the manufacturer of a product unless said individual has read the instruction manual for that product. I feel that most people are intelligent but we are lazy sometimes. Laziness can hurt you and the people around you. If you are lazy and you hurt yourself, you should not be able to transfer that pain another person or entity (such as a corporation).
4. The Exclamation Proclamation. If you describe yourself as a Black person, African-American, or person of African-American descent, you should read this document. This document, signed and issued by President Abraham Lincoln on September 22, 1962, “technically” freed the slaves on January 1, 1863. Say, what did I mean by “technically?” And was all the slaves in the United States freed or just certain ones? Read the document, folks, to solve that mystery.
5. A book of Science. Men and women who work hard long hours (and sometimes under dangerous conditions) to understand how the world works are called scientists. The facts of science can be beautiful, useful, unusual, perplexing, and can sometimes go against what you feel is correct about the world. If you disagree about some concept that scientists are stating is based on facts, how about doing the rest of us a favor and read a book on that subject. Just one. I am not asking you to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree on the subject (that’s why we have scientists). You may find that you are correct…wouldn’t that be wonderful?
6. A book written by an African-American before 1970. Why pre-1970s? Because life for blacks were a whole lot different under segregation than it is today. And, as a bonus, you will learn some Black History.
I am certain that many books or documents should be included in this Required Reading List. I wanted to keep this reading simple. Now, when you approach me either on the train, the bus, or waiting in line to see the next summer blockbuster movie and start talking about a particular issue, we (you and I) will have a solid foundation to support our livid discussion. Thanks.
