Filed under: Life....I wonder..., Media Manipulation | Tags: American Government, DC Tea Party, Life I wonder, Media Manipulation, protest, rally
My boy forwarded this video of the DC Tea Party protest/rally to me about a week ago and I just got around to watching it. Now there’s not many things that scare me but seeing these people out there passionately protesting when they couldn’t even answer basic questions about what they were protesting against creeped me out and here’s five reasons why.
1. Even when the interviewer broke down the history of the term “Czar” as it relates to American government these fools fine upstanding citizens still attempted to assert an argument against Obama having Czars after essentially being logically stomped out.
2. Did you see some of those signs? God bless Glen Beck? Pelosi is a Jezebel? Obama is the AntiChrist? Palin in 2012 !?!
3. Did old boy really just say that abortion was a greater evil than Slavery? Slavery? And did he really bust out with the 12 % of the population argument? Would you like to talk about the disparities involving Blacks and the Death Penalty my brother? Probably not.
4. Take a good look at the demographic composition of the crowd, that’s all I’m going to say about that.
5. The woman that starts crying at the 5:20 mark….um yeah
Filed under: Life....I wonder..., Media Manipulation | Tags: Chris Brown, domestic abuse, domestic violence, Eve-Love is Blind, Life I wonder, Media Manipulation, music videos, Rihanna, Rihanna 20/20 interview, Rihanna talks about Chris Brown
Why does a a person stay with someone who has repeatedly been violent towards them? Why does a person stay with a someone who is so temperamental, so argumentative that they are moved to act with extreme aggression towards them? Why does ‘love’ seem to hurt more than it heals? Why is everyone acting like this is something new? These are the things I think about when faced with the media’s obsession with the events that transpired between Robin Fenty and Chris Brown the night of February 8, 2009. I have always believed that whatever happened in that car, they were both as much to blame as they were both victims. The best of friends for 6 years and lovers for 2, the public will never be able to understand what got them to the place of bruised faces and probation. I would love to see 20/20 go in depth with Brown, but we all know that will never happen. The media is definitely biased and the public has been conditioned to empathize with the female in these types of situations.
It is naive and archaic to think that a man won’t hit a woman. I say this knowing full well that most will persecute me for saying so, but I don’t feel sympathy for women who hit men and then get hit back. I am in no way speculating that Fenty struck Brown first, as many have, but I am merely making the point that in this day and age the same old rules do not apply. When it comes to male on female violence younger generations regard it much more differently than their elders. There are several females I know, myself included, who are not afraid to fight a man. They take no issue in breaking somebody off with a jab, jab, upper cut, left hook combo no matter whether they be of the same or opposite sex. In a survey taken during March of this year by the Boston Public Health commission 44% of the 200 12-19 year old youths surveyed said fighting(as opposed to arguing) was a NORMAL part of a relationship. Interestingly enough, the older gentlemen who wrote the post critiscizing the results of the poll could not wrap his head around why the youth thought this way. We live in a hyper sexual, hyper violent society in which the ages of victims as well as perpitrators of rape, assault, and murder just gets lower and lower. We see examples everyday on our television screens of what mishandled emotions cause people to do to one another. Among the youth, it is often said, emotions run wild.
For many of us domestic violence is just a fact of life. Many a young woman I know, myself included, knows first hand what happens when a woman cowers at the site of a raised hand or balled fist, and many aren’t going out like that. Many young men I know have grown up with a woman internally scarred from domestic abuse attempting to TEACH them how to be a man. The only thing I found shocking when the story broke was how shocked the nation seemed to be. This type of thing literally happens every day, every 9 seconds to be exact. It is time to start exploring the WHY with as much passion and vigor as we discuss the WHAT. Despite the popular rationalization “It is never okay for a man to put his hands on a woman ever” flying out of the mouths of Oprah and your next door neighbor alike, WHY does a physical assault on a woman at the hands of an intimate partner take place every 9 seconds in this country, WHY will 25% of women be physically assaulted by an intimate partner in her lifetime, WHY are 1.3 million women an 835,000 men physically assaulted by an intimate partner each year? It’s naive and sexist to think the abuse of a female is somehow more important or severe than the abuse of a man.
There is something that I found very striking as I watched Rihanna’s interview on 20/20 this evening. She made a statement almost identical to a statement Brown made in his interview with Larry King. Both said that as children they were afraid to go to sleep at night for fear of what would happen to thier mothers at the hands of the men in their lives. It is a profound link, the shared experience of being children reared amidst the turmoil of domestic violence, that tells more about what happened as they drove home that night than any interview they will ever give. Watching her, I saw a young woman still trying to make sense of the situation. I saw a young woman dealing with the enourmous weight of super stardom who felt the pressure to satisfy the public and set the record ‘straight’ in order to keep her image intact and her empire from crumbling around her. I don’t believe we got the full scope of what happened between them, and I don’t think we ever will.
Domestic violence, especially today, is not as one sided as most would like to believe. It is a complex situation having many layers, that most of us just don’t have the time or patience to peel away. I think that it was a bad move on the part of the media to get any further involved in this situation than they already have. It seemed as if 20/20 was looking at this 21 year old to shed light on a situation that has plagued society for decades, centuries. As much as she may want to fill that role Rihanna can’t and won’t be the Golden Child for the decline of domestic violence. She did not say anything we have not heard before ; if it happened to me it can happen to anyone, F love, and love is blind. Eve told us love was blind back in 99′. Halle let us know in 2004 if it can happen to one of the most beautiful, successful and powerful women on the planet it could happen to us. Tina said F love when she released the timeless jam ’What’s Love Got To Do With It’. I’m not trying to take anything away from what Rihanna has experienced and the good she is trying to make of it, but when it comes to domestic violence, as a society we have been so obsessed with the WHO and the WHAT. Can we get down to the WHY?
Filed under: Life....I wonder..., Media Manipulation, Uncategorized | Tags: Beyonce, Beyonce and Lady Gaga, hype williams, Media Manipulation, pop stardom, tactical mission, Video Phone official video premiere
The wools not getting pulled over these eyes, technical difficulties my ass. A tactical mission was underway when Beyonce psyched up the masses for her ’historic’ collaboration with Lady Gaga only to send the internet into a meltdown akin to the opening of the 7th seal when there was no video to be seen. I myself was at work while the world waited in front of computers and television screens, can’t front like I didn’t check for it when I got home though. I’ve got to hand it Beyonce, she is the lean green money making machine we call pop stardom in full effect. This was an age old marketing strategy which was sneaky, simple, but effective. Build anticipation to generate a buzz, dissapoint to build a buzz, and double the buzz and anticipation in the process. Even those who really don’t give two expletives about Lady GaGa or Beyonce will now be compelled by forces beyond their control to watch this video when it does air. I can’t lie like I didn’t want to see it too, but it’s mostly due to the fact I’m a huge fan of Hype’s work and wanted to see what he came up with, and I did like the song enough to put it on my December 2008 mixtape. Back to my main point, Beyonce plays her fans like Miles played the trumpet….I find her domination of pop music fascinating in regards to her business sense and ability to build her brand. I’m still waiting for the independents to overthrow the empire that is the major music labels but until then behold the power……
Filed under: Life....I wonder..., Media Manipulation | Tags: 2012, black president, black presidents in disaster movies, deep impact, disaster movies, New World Order, the fifth element, the illuminati
I remember a conversation I had with one of my favorite mentors Ms. Baker while voulunteering as her assistant in the Shaw University library. We used to get into all kinds of heavy topics, usually based in conspiracy theory. Ms. B was the only adult I could converse with about the Illuminati and extraterrestrials who wasn’t too complacent in maturity to think outside the box. She was old enough to be my grandmother and an extremely learned woman, which equpped her with a wisdom that could not be gained by study alone. She was an eye witness to events I could only read about in my history books, as well as events that ‘they’ are content to leave buried under the rubble of the past.
During one of our lengthy chats we ended up on the subject of black presidents, the apocolypse, and movies. She spoke of being hit with an eerie feeling while watching the film Deep Impact, stricken particularly by the image of a black man having to tell the citizens of the United States they were about to experience, in essence, the end of the world. This made me think back to something I had once read on educate-yourself.org about the Illuminati and their connection to Hollywood. Sidenote, if you visit the site(which you should at least once) check out the articles under Swine Flu Hoax/Vaccine….all I can say is DAMN, Illseed told yall.
“How do they do this? They don’t go to a film producer and say, “Oh, by the way, we’re Illuminati members and we want you to make a movie that promotes our agenda”. (Remember, they aren’t stupid, either). Instead, they will form a small investment corporation that funds movies with ideas that they like. They quietly hire actors and producers and directors and scripts, but they never mention their affiliation publicly or why they are doing this.
Money talks, and especially in Hollywood. If you have money, you can get about anything made, and they know this. They can also channel money intoadvertising campaigns, etc. for their films (how many Christian films have had major ad campaigns in the past twenty years? Very few. How many occult movies have? I rest my case).”
Now this got the wheels in my head turning a little, but what got them cranking full speed is what I noticed when I caught one of my favorite flicks Head Of State on television a couple of nights later. Am I the only one that finds it ridiculously ironic that the movie came out in 2003 but heavily references the election year 2008. I also find it strange that Black candidate Mays Gilliam(Rock) bears several similarities to Obama; being relatively unkown in the world of politics, seen as not possessing enough experience due to age, both had low profile political positions before being elected, Gilliam was an alderman and Obama was a legislator and both have vested interests in thier cities most poverty stricken areas, South Side Chicago and DC’s 9th Ward. Similarities and coincidences aside, it is the shady tactics that take place during the election and the underlying agenda for Gilliam being in the election in the first place that really does it for me.
Working with the assumption that the images on our movie screens are not without purpose, that they subliminally carry a message or push an agenda of some sort, why is it that when a black actor is portraying the President in most instances society as we know it is in peril or shambles.
Deep Impact- President played by Morgan Freeman, a giant meteor will strike the earth innevitably killing most of us
The Fifth Element- President played by Tom Lister Jr (Deebo!), a great evil will appear, destroy all life
Idiocracy- President played by Terry Crews (Another Friday series alum) in the year 2505 our society is comprised of nothing but idiots, hence the title Idiocracy
Left Behind: World At War- President played by Lou Gossett Jr, the title pretty much speaks for itself, after the biblical Rapture many have been left behind in a world that is at war
2012- President played by Danny Glover, in the year 2012 the earth as we know it will be destroyed, given all the speculation about the predictions of the Mayans and rare planetary alignments, I’ve always found it interesting that the end of Obama’s first term as President takes place in this ‘catastrophic’ year.
Along with these films, many other online sites and threads dedicated to this topic have cited the series 24 as being a member of the ‘Black presidents’ facing disaster’ club. I know I’m not the first to question Hollywood’s portrayal of Black folks in the presidency, but after seeing Danny Glover in the trailer for 2012 I couldn’ t help but think to myself, ” Really?” I mean it is an accurate depiction given how our current president is of the darker persuasion but……..
Are we reading too far into things? Should we just be happy that black actors are playing such powerful roles on film? Or is somebody, somewhere, trying to tell us something?
Filed under: Life....I wonder..., Media Manipulation | Tags: baby powder pimp, balloon hoax, Life I wonder, Media Manipulation, Richard Heene
Is this what we do when we want to get noticed? We call 911 and say our child is located inside an air balloon that is quickly ascending into the high heavens? Then we coerce said child to hide in the attic, while television crews and reporters descend upon our home to document this tragic drama as it unfolds? As if the second appearance on Wife Swap was NOT enough prime time shine? This is how we stretch that dusty little 15 minutes of fame into an hour? They say these fools did it in hopes of landing a reality tv deal but now they’ve got nothing but damaged credibility and pending criminal charges…..where’s Baby Powder when you need him?
crap quality video, but you get the point though……..
Filed under: Echoes of William Lynch, Life....I wonder... | Tags: America, culture, Echoes of William Lynch, ethnicity, interaccial marriage, Keith Bardwell, Life I wonder, race, Racism
” I’m not a rascist, I just don’t believe in mixing the races that way. I have piles and piles of black friends. They come to my home. I marry them. They use my bathroom. I treat them just like anyone else.”
The words of Keith Bardwell, who refused to issue a marriage liscence to an interaccial couple in Tangipahoa parish. Don’t worry he wasn’t being cruel or peabrained, he just loves the kids
” There is problems by both groups accepting a child from such a marriage. I think those children suffer and I won’t help put them through it.”
See…he only discriminates because he cares…and let’s not forget he does have piles and piles of black friends, who even get to use the bathroom in his big house. I don’t even really have anything profound to say about this except for America is getting realer everyday. This is my take on the whole 2012 ‘end times’ theory; the final battle will be between progression and regression.Our consciousness will divide us, perhaps to the point of physical war. I remember when I started studying Astrology and reading about the age of aquarius I came to the conclusion that GOD would not come back in form, but in Spirit, through us. Some of us will embody GOD, some of us will embody the opposite of GOD and everyone will have to choose.
We can not continue to live in a society in which everyone is not afforded the right to live and love as they choose, chaos will ensue. I guess Mr. Bradwell has the right to believe what he wants to about interaccial marriage if I put it that way, but that whole “the races shouldn’t mix” rhetoric is as played out as it is ironically oxymoronic. We are all ”mixed”. Race is nothing more than a social construct used to divide and conquer. Ethnic identification on the other hand differs from race in that I feel it is expressed naturally. If we were never given a label from birth I believe that we would naturally gravitate toward certain music, food, clothing,hairstyles etc. We physically manifest what is spiritually innate and that is the beauty and the mystery of individuality, of culture. I believe in Tribal Identity, I don’t think that we will ever all be the ”same”, but I do believe that all parts are of equal importance to the whole. Variety enriches my life as it does the world. If history has taught us anything it’s that where there is inequality there is oppression, where there is oppression there is suppression, where there is suppression there is rage, where there is rage there is violence, where there is violence there is pain, and pain is one of the most powerful catalysts for change. People need to get with the program, for real for real.
Filed under: Life....I wonder..., Media Manipulation | Tags: current events, Life I wonder, PA gym shooting, public shootings, twilight zone
Is anyone else as disturbed as I am that it is now a common form of therapeutic release to spray up public crowds with bullets? This kind of thing tends to get press for sure, any journalist knows if it bleeds it leads, but why can’t we see more in depth research and reporting on mental health in America? Better yet, how about shedding more public light on the rising rates of gun violence? Why are people so unhappy, and when exactly did it become plausible to take out strangers because of an intense personal dissatisfaction with they way life has been treating you? The thing that gets me the most is that not only are folks plotting acts of small scale domestic terrorism, they’re blogging about it? Can I get a WTF?
Some interesting facts on gun violence in the United States
- Firearms were the third leading cause of injury related deaths nationwide in 2005, preceeded by car accidents and poisoning
- In the first 5 years of the US war with Iraq 4,000 American soldiers were killed, guns take the lives of more US civilians every 7 weeks
- On average 46 gun suicides were committed per day for the years of 1999-2005
- Firearm homicide is the leading cause of death for African American’s ages 1-45
- White males comprise 40% of the US population and accounted for 80% of firearm suicides in 2005
Read the rest of the report here
Filed under: Echoes of William Lynch, Life....I wonder..., Uncategorized | Tags: Henry Louis Gates Jr, Officer Justin Barrett email, police brutality, race relations in America, Racism, Skip Gates arrest
I love when somebody slips up and let’s their true colors show in regards to race. I LOVE IT. I don’t know why. It’s like a personal, mmm hmmm I told you so moment. I’m often accused of being too into that “black girl shit” as one of my friends so eloquently described the content of some of my articles on this site. I’m sorry, I’m black, that’s the racial label I was given. Yes, I am into all things that have to do with black folks, especially when it comes to attacks, directly or indirectly, on my status as a human being in this society. In comes Officer Justin Barrett. You’ve probably heard of him by now if you keep up with the jones’s through CNN or if you’ve been following the soap opera-esque melodrama that is the Henry Louis Gates Jr. arrest. For clarification’s sake, Officer Justin Barrett is not the arresting officer, that was Sgt Joseph Crowley. Now we all know cops take care of thier own, and Officer Barrett went directly into ‘ride or die’ mode. He sent an e-mail to columnist Yvonne Abraham in which he referred to Mr. Gates as a “banana eating jungle monkey” and a “bumbling jungle monkey” and also refers to her writing as “jungle monkey gibberish”. After Mr. Barrett debunks Ms Abrahams skills as “as good as jungle monkey gibberish” he then goes on to state, ” I might as well AX you the question….” Hmmmmm. Why would a self-proclaimed former English teacher and writer use AX as if it was a proper word. Perhaps it was an attempt at jungle monkey speak? Even though I’ve never seen a photograph of Ms. Abraham, given some of the publications she’s written for, I am pretty that sure she’s a black woman, which makes his ignorant insinuations that much more provocative. You can view the original e-mail for yourself here. Now that Officer Barrett has been placed on administrative leave pending a full investigation and a termination hearing, he wants to cry I am not a racist, which he also stated in his e-mail.
I sincerely apologize to fellow officers, soldiers and citizens, I did not intend any racial bigotry blah, blah, bleh, bleh, bleh. Come on dude! I could see if he came up with something along the lines of, ” You know what, I was angry and there’s just some things about this country/some people I just don’t understand/upset me…..” Perhaps I could relate if he stood up for himself like a man and spoke his truth instead of stumbling and fumbling through that pre-written, politically correct, apology speech that was fooling no one. You’ve got to love how his lawyer tried to take the viewers to church when Larry started poking. My favorite part of this whole interview;
Larry: What made you come up with that language though?
Officer Barrett: I don’t even know…
Oh you know buddy, you know. You may not consider yourself a full bigot but you’ve got a little bit of it up in there swimming around somewhere, don’t front. Language like that does not come from nowhere. Social conditioning, deep-seated prejudices and upbringing might bring about that kind of language, but it most certainly does not just pop into your head like some faerie visiting you in the night.
When I was little, whenever I got a cut or a scratch ,I was always told the fastest way to heal that sucka’ was to let the air get to it. You can cover it up and keep it clean, but to speed up the healing proces you have to air it out. I say that to say this, if you’re a bigot, put it in the air. Somebody just might come along and help you heal. Don’t hide behind the veil of being a decent citizen who always treats others with respect and dignity if you know damn well you’ll let a racial slur slip from your lips in a heartbeat if somebody of the wrong complexion tests you . Don’t be afraid to let you’re true colors show, everybody is not going to like you but at least they can respect you. Having open, honest and uncensored DIALOUGUE( more intelligent debate than verbal fisticuffs) about racial prejudices and biases is the only way we’re ever really going to move forward with race relations in this country. All things that are done in the dark will come to light. It’s better to put your beliefs on front street voluntarily then let them fester in your mind untill they blow up all over your “good name”.
White people, and anyone else who this may apply to, stop perpitrating. You know good and well referring to black folks as monkeys is as Jim Crow as ‘coloreds only’ signs
Filed under: Life....I wonder..., Media Manipulation, Uncategorized | Tags: current music, envogue, moment of silence, music, music is dead, music sucks, music videos, xscape
Yes, I asked you to please take a moment of silence for my dear friend. In my feeble mind I believed that while my friend was ill, as good as dead some would say, they would undoubtedly pull through. That they would regain thier failing health and make a vibrant and triumphant return to the land of the living. But alas, not even the sheer will to fight, or tenacity or the prayers of loved ones could keep her alive. My good friend the music industry has lost her vibrant lifeforce and now sits rotting in the afterworld that is mediocrity and ineptitude.
I am over the mainstream. Not in some hip hop is dead, the kids aren’t alright, Miley Cyrus makes me upchuck type of way but in a damn this shit really don’t move me anymore type of way. It has become apparent the game is so starved for something fresh, something new, something organically soul shatteringly dope that they smother the goodness out of anything that shows any sign of promise no matter how miniscule, ahem Drake. They covet and overexpose pre-greatness before it has a chance to rightfully blossom. Those roses that do happen to grow in the concrete are plucked in all thier nubile glory and promptly glazed in plastic, preserving the beauty they have now all the while killing the beauty that was still yet to come. It seemed like back in the day an artist had to grind, prove themselves before they got the shine and adoration that these new artists get within a months time, and then keep that stuff that got them there coming and they brought it with a hunger and passion and soul that was remarkable, nothing short of divine. The average career span back in the day was like a decade or so, at least a good 5, 6, 7 year run.Hell artists like Teena Marie are still gettin in in and making quality music to this day, but these new cats? Washed up by thier sophmore album, third if they’re lucky.
I stopped listening to my radio a long time ago and just the other day while watching videos it hit me, music is not ruled by creative genius anymore. It’s ruled by what’s hot at the moment, what dude or homegirl already did but tweaked a little bit to the left or right. I know there’s been whispers and shouts about , this dumbing down of music, this death of true artistry, for a hot minute, but it’s only now just really really hit me, like a sucker punch to the left eye. Perhaps it’s the half-bladie craze sweeping the ladies of the industry or the fact that songs are now sampling songs that came out less than a year ago that you can still hear on the radio right after you hear the song that sampled it, ahem Kid Cudi, but the industry today is reminiscent of that one clique in high school. That one clique that got all the shine. Come hell or highwater you knew who the class president was going to be, who started the trends, who changed the trends, who set the rules that everybody who wanted to be down followed. Carbon copy individuality. Safe and socially acceptable exploration of the creative self. You wanna hit record? Add a lil auto-tune, make up a dance to go with it. You want to bring sexy back? Cut off your hair and wear ripped up clothes. Even non-urban music seems to have hit a slump, though nowadays r&b and hip hop are the main musical consumption of the masses. To be honest MTV lost me a loooong time ago during the Mandy Moore, N’Sync, O Town foolishness. I remember the golden age though when MTV was the spot for ear candy of all genres.
Lil Wayne is aight with me but about his much publicized and debated boasts of being the best rapper alive? For real? Really? Out of every MC in the game, the game of MUSIC in the larger sense, you’re making the best music. You’re the most lyrically astute, for real? Maybe he just has the highest popularity quotient, at the moment and, because of said popularity now every one that happens to run with dude is touted as being the next big thing, ahem Nicki Minaj. I remember a time when Lil Jon was everywhere, making joints with everybody, bringing out artists left and right and then…….
Beyonce, the hottest chick in the game. Really? Really like this game isn’t big enough for us to have at least a couple of vocally gifted, jiggling songbirds to choose from. Like there is only one throne in the vast kingdom of musicland and she is the only certifiable female around to sit on it’s golden cushion? Oh and the girl groups, what happened yo!!!!!!! I was watching old Xscape vids on youtube the other day and I would piss my pants if some chicks hit us with some harmonies like this right here
or this
In a nutshell what I’m getting at here is today popularity is confused with achieving artistic omnipotence. MUSIC is and should be represented as larger than a handful of artists who happen to dominate the air and radio waves and thier cheap perpetually one step below clones. Overkill is the name of the game and variety is a sorely missed asset folks. Armand Van Helden said it best when he answered the question what is your most missed memory. When art not money ruled.
Filed under: Life....I wonder..., Media Manipulation | Tags: BET, fourfour blog, jocelyn wildenstein, Life I wonder, Music Video, plastic surgery, TI, Tiny, Tiny and Toya, xscape
Now I don’t know if this breaks the rules and regulations of blogger ettiquette, but then again I don’t really care. While surfing the web for something other than what every other entertainment blog did a post on today, I came across this lovely ode to the one, the only, Tiny!!!!!! I do my best not to talk about folk, but damn if this ain’t funny…….
“she looks like something that would be growing off Mariah Carey….” it’s so wrong, but it’s so right
On a more serious note, Tiny was a cutie back in Xscape,
I wanna say that she had some type of plastic surgery done, but I can’t call it for sure. All I know is she was beautiful back in the day and now everybody cracks hard on her. Plastic surgery is evil, it’ll have you lookin like Jocelyn Wiledenstein 
and that’s never cute. You better appreciate what you were given and work with what you got. Now if you were born with a severe facial abnormality, had a flesh eating bacteria that massacred half your face, or were involved in a disfiguring accident that’s another story. Oh well people are gonna do what they wanna do, so for now just reminisce with me……….
