Saturday, August 30, 2008

Is that yo' chick?!


Palin hugs McCainReaction(s) to McCain's VP selection.


So I just finished The Paragon's post [link] and spent about an hour skimming through the world's reaction to McCain's VP nomination on BBC News [link]. Thankfully most of the world sees the choice for what it is, a desperate move to try and draw Hillary zealots and traditional conservatives. Which I assume McCain didn't expect anyone to pick up on, so now the world is insulted - especially the women.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Goodbye Olympics...


I made time for you. Far too much time. I put my life on hold, almost eagerly, staying tuned in. I somehow incorporated you into my conversation and other gatherings. I narrated and recounted your stories to those still detached from your clutches. Not me, I was devoted. But now I know way more than I ever wanted and far more than I will ever need to know about Michael Phelps, Shawn Johnson, Nastia Liukin, and Usain Bolt. Yet, somehow I feel lost without you. I guess I have a month to try to kick the habit, through the cold shakes and shudders of the remainder of summer reruns, but you and I both know that the new fall season will pull me right back in this tubed addiction. You could say I live 22minutes at a time, if you call it living at all. I don't. No, every time I sit/lay down to get my fix, I tell myself I could be doing something more productive. Sure a list of things springs to mind, but the weight of them compiles until I feel I need get away. Only a brief get away, maybe to a place of levity, where I don't have to worry about what's going on because it really doesn't affect me. Even thinking about trying to get away is becoming a bit burdensome. I wonder what's on TV now that the Olympics are over?

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Obama Names Biden as Running Mate

Obama selects Biden as VP Obama + Foreign Policy clout!


Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama selected Senator Joseph (Joe) Biden of Delaware as his Vice Presidential candidate around 12:04 PM EST. Speculation has been mounting for some time about the Illinois senator's choice and the announcement was delayed from the expected Friday disclosure.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Badass of the Moment: Usain Bolt


World Record Holder Usain BoltThat's right, I said it!

Having set the World Record in both the 100 meter and 200 meter races, Usain "Lightening" Bolt would already be a contender for Badass of the Week. However it was the manner in which he won his Gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics that is most badass. And even more so considering the brief backlash he faced.

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Isaac Hayes found dead at age 65

Isaac Hayes

Never can say goodbye...


Musician and actor Isaac Hayes' wife called police to their Memphis home after discovering him unconscious. Taken to a hospital, he was pronounced dead at 2:08 PM (EST). The cause of death is not immediately known, but family members believe it was a medical condition. Hayes was hospitalized for exhaustion in January 2006 and reportedly suffered a stroke that year.

Bernie Mac passes away at age 50


Bernie Mac RIP

He left them wanting more.

U.S. comedian, film and television star Bernie Mac died Saturday morning at Chicago "from complications due to pneumonia" according to his publicist, Danica Smith. Mac had long suffered from the ailment, sarcoidosis, and was admitted to the hospital days prior for pneumonia.
Are you ready for the new D'Angelo?


D'Angelo on set of THAT video..."This is my MTV diary. You think you know..."

So my boy texted me the other day asking if I read the Spin Magazine article on D'Angelo. "Of course (I haven't)" I replied. Thus, priority one was finding this article. Supposedly folks were scouring the internet for this article but to no avail, complaining that it was nowhere to be found and being pulled down from sites. Meanwhile, the Gent found Spin Magazine's free digital version and read the article at his leisure.

Friday, August 08, 2008

RAPPER or REPUBLICAN?

50 Cent: Blood on the Sand "It ain't hard to tell... " or is it?




My best friend was perusing a gaming magazine recently and noticed a short blurb on a new video game coming out… you ready?…wait for it…wait for it… 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand. Oh! I kid you not. Essentially 50 Cent murdering mofos in the Middle East. Now I will give Vivendi the benefit of the doubt that the premise (and it’s proclivity to alliteration) is pure happenstance but one can’t help but wonder… who would ‘Fiddy’ have beef with in the Middle East? Oh wait, given the current bogeyman status of terrorism in the U.S., why not allow youths to “spread democracy” as their favorite chunky rapper against… I dunno… probably Al-Qaeda. No, that would be just too blatant. One could already make a small leap and view the game as an accidental allegory for the belief that the government is sending young Black males focused on improving their economic status to handle its political stumbles as one would send a janitor for a mess. I’m not making that leap, I’m just saying someone could see it that way. However, it turns out the game is a sequel to 50 Cent: Bloodmoney and IGN reports the game is described as a mix between Three Kings and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. (Seriously, IGN?)


Anyway, the game sparked a new theory for me though. We'll say conspiracy theory to make it easily laughable and dismissible. So... ::exhale:: what if the mainstream was trying to make black folks republicans? Give it a second. And I guess I should say "republicans again". Now throw on your best Oswald Bates impression and 'propose the question again!' Using rappers to represent mainstream thugs and politicians/lobbyists to represent mainstream republicans, let's just look at three signatures of each...

Lil Wayne kissing Baby No Homo: Rampant throughout the hood, homophobia has swelled to the point that you can't even talk about your male friend (pause? ... no, exactly) because now you need some sort of qualifier disavowing any conceivable erotic/romantic connection. For the grand old party (GOP), it goes without saying the lack of tolerance for such a stereotypically liberal orientation. Most hypocritically evident in how disconcerted Vice President Cheney gets whenever his lesbian daughter, Mary Cheney is mentioned. The usual justification/excuse being "it's in the Bible". Which brings us to our next signature...

Morgan Freeman portraying God The Original G: Even the most hardcore, weight-moving, whore-mongering, cold-blooded street disciple has a desperate need to cling to his faith. On wax, you hear the "thug" rapper with that one religious track talking about a higher power's omnipotence/omniscience or thanking Him for allowing said rapper to be where he is now (and thus do what he does - which makes you wonder if they think God condones the hustle). Either way, they love Him. And though they may not be in the pews on Sunday, they make no hesitation in expressing their faith. Most stereotypically through a tattoo or jewelry, such as the ever-popular 'Jesus-piece'. Again, I doubt we even need to note the political alignment of the bible belt and beyond. Shoot, nowadays if you're not touching a Great Lake, the Pacific Ocean, or New England your probably in a red state. I whole-heartedly expect to see Gov. Schwarzenegger with a Jesus-piece one day. Give him time, he was the Terminator. And that shoot-first-ask-later persona brings us to the last signature...

Pistol Pistol Grip Pump: "From my cold, dead hands" exclaimed past NRA president Charlton Heston. The right-wing's embrace of the second amendment has grown perversely near to a religion as well. Who goes hunting? Who joins the military for sh*ts and giggles? Not thugs, but they still tote them burners. Can we count the number of arrests including firearms? Hell, even D'Angelo was charged with carrying a concealed weapon in January 2005. Wasn't T.I. recently jailed for attempting to purchase three machine guns not to mention his man-size safe of assault rifles? Imagine John C. Sigler (NRA) showing up in his defense to protest his conviction.

Scrooge McDuck Bonus signature: MONEY! They 'bout they paper. And neither is afraid to do crime to get it. "Do thangs, do thangs, do thangs, bad things with it... "

Now that I think about it, The Daily Show's Wyatt Cenac recently did a segment called "Rapper or Republican" where he described an individual while host, Jon Stewart, was supposed to "guess" whether it was one or the other. As a viewer I assumed it would be clear, but in actuality it was amusing how similar certain aspects of the two groups are on paper. Apparently I'm not the only one picking up on this congruence. Anyway, I'm not saying beware I'm just throwing it out there lest it transgress 'excuse me, I mean transvestite our colonic threshold.'

Sunday, August 03, 2008

Obama opposes "reparations"...

Barack Obama fields questionsInstead advocates... reparations.

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama reiterated his stance of opposition to offering reparations to the descendants of slaves arguing that the government should 'combat the legacy of slavery by improving schools, health care and the economy for all.' Meanwhile, two dozen members of Congress recently co-sponsored legislation to form a committee to study reparations (meaning 'payments and programs to make up for the damage done by slavery'.)

Friday, August 01, 2008

Slapping Miss Daisy


Slapping Miss Daisy


Gee whiz, Beave. How can I best backslap the rest of your people and slightly exclude you?! Maybe if I say "no offense".


Growing up I remember using the huge box of crayons with the names you knew someone was overpaid to create (we're looking at you "orange-yellow"). In that box, the one that always pissed me off was "Flesh". Especially since my flesh wasn't "flesh" colored. What were they trying to say? How self-centered do you have to be not to realize the ramifications of labeling one hue "flesh"; dangerous not to just yourself, but your company? Do you not consider how you may be inadvertently offending... oh... say... everyone else? Go find this crayon... if you are around that color, this sermon is for you. Why the "flesh" colored people? Because they are the main perpetrators of the non-compliment. I'm going to use the most recent example in my life but please recognize that "...this type of sh*t happens ev-ery-day!"