Forgotten Genius

Last night some guys gave Shadow a birthday beating. Five of them surrounded him and just pummeled him with blows for about a minute. It's another one of those prison things that I don't understand. I suppose it's because they have nothing else to give except bruises. Seems stupid to me.

Another guy was complaining about the education offered here, saying that it's worth nothing because no one will hire a felon once he gets out of prison. He said that he will just go back to making and selling dope. I told him about people that I've heard about and know that get successful jobs when they get out of prison. It's all in the attitude you approach your freedom with.

I saw a great example of this on PBS's Forgotten Genius featuring Percy Julian. He was a black man who was the foremost premier chemist in the US during the 40's, 50's and 60's, and fought all odds of prejudice to get where he was. All it takes is ambition and a positive attitude and a person can overcome almost anything in this country.