Thank You and You're Welcome. NO THANKS!

I get annoyed with a lot of things in life, but one that really irks me is when people are proud of their ignorance. 

Kanye West has now joined the ranks of the woefully ignorant and misinformed. 

“I am a proud non-reader of books. I like to get information from doing stuff like actually talking to people and living real life,” he said.

“Sometimes people write novels and they just be so wordy and so self-absorbed,” West said. “I am not a fan of books. I would never want a book’s autograph. 

“My mom taught me to believe in my flyness and conquer my shyness,” he said, defining “flyness” as confidence.

So writes Kanye in a book that he’s recently released:

Apparently rap-stars who are popular in mainstream media have credibility when it comes to writing and as such can expound on the virtues and vices of life. I am sure that Kanye West has indeed lived an amazing life and faced struggles and tribulations the like of which I’ve never seen. But the quotation above [ click on image for more at his blog ], is something that angers me quite a bit. He certainly has every right to “write” a book and to share his thoughts and life story, or as he calls his wisdom “Kanye-isms.”

It is not so much the latter, but the former part of that quote that pisses me off. To proclaim proudly of the fact that he does not read is the height of absurdity and stupidity. 

As I’ve already said, he certainly has every right to tell his life story or his life philosophy or whatever the hell he thinks this book is about, but to share this one thought pisses me right off. Whether you want to admit it or not, fan or not a fan, Kanye has amazing influence in the world and as a result, with children. 

Another irony of his life, someone who looks down upon the written word, sure seems to rely heavily on their influence, after all what is rap if not poetry set to music. UGH!

He is sending the wrong message by telling children that everything he’s learned he’s learned in life. Kind of ironic, telling people that they should not read a book and go out and live life from a book that you’ve just published. Here’s a small peak inside from his website: 

Tell you what Kanye, you got what you wanted because I certainly won’t be picking up this trash philosophy that you’re attempting to espouse on the larger public. 

It is already difficult to get children reading when there are so many distractions in the world [ ipods, computers, television, etc.. ], the last thing we need is someone who has influence like Kanye preaching his idiotic message to the world. Here’s hoping this book fails.

Oh and the best part of this entire issue, courtesy of MSNBC:

West’s derision of books comes despite the fact that his late mother, Donda West, was a university English professor before she retired to manage his music career. She died in 2007 of complications following cosmetic surgery.