Shaq Spends How much??

I actually heard about this on the radio and was glad that someone made it available online for me to browse through; It's crazy how much money Shaq spends ...

I almost get the feeling that people are over charging him, just because he can afford it.

More Obama... 2008

Here's my latest collection of videos, pertaining to Barrack Obama - a real good collection too, featuring an intro from Chris Rock (funny as Hell) - a recent show down between Clinton and Obama, and some good discussion on whether or not America is ready for it's first, Black, President.

The Fear of Possibility

By the way... I LOVE Michelle Obama - what a well spoken lady this is; If only more women were like this, as intelligent, as moved and as motivated, this country would be a dynamic place to live. Why? Because the women would be strong enough, and loving enough, to lift us all up to the best we could be... Behind every great man, is a Greater Woman.

The Media Spin...

I'm sure you heard this before... love how the media SPINS things; What Hillary said was true, regardless of the movement, and the cries for justice and equality, it took a President to Sign equality into law. I think there is a lesson there, that was lost due to the Media Spinning this into a race issue; as if She gave "more credit" to the president, than Martin Luther King, Jr. - she didn't - She only spoke the truth, that without a president taking the step to Make it happen, it would not have happened.

Score one for the Media!



Watch the guy in the middle - Classic! He takes a statement, and SPINS it right in front of our eyes; Then when Jaun Williams denies that he is calling the Clintons bigots... the guy refuses to back down from his accusation; This tactic is way too effective, and as a viewing audience we cannot allow ourselves to fall victim to it. The guy in the middle, is incorrect - Jaun Williams states that they are 'reminding people of race' - and that may be true; why? Because even the Clintons realize that while things may be a bit better in 2008 than they were in 1968.. there are still large numbers of white people who would rather not vote for a black president. So it's not the Clintons being 'bigoted' - it's the Clintons appealing to the bigots in American society, for a few extra votes, which is sometimes all you need to win the election.

Dirty ... but effective. Only beacuse as Americans, we have not done the work needed to eliminate racism from our 'culture' - therefore, so long as it remains, it can be used to create conversations like these - when what should truly matter, is not the race of the person running, but the ideas in their heads!

Bob, the Sellout Johnson

... first of all, how Dare this man say Anything about anyone and their impact on black people; This man, and his horrible television station, have done MORE HARM to African Americans, than hundreds of years of slavery and segregation; All the progress made by Dr. King, he helped reverse! - How dare he quote such a great man, who was moving people in a positive direction; all this man cares about, is making money for his OWN Personal gain.

I am, frankly insulted that this Sell out Brotha would get up and hold this speech.

BET = Black Exploitation Television - which he of course Sold out to Viacom, which runs MTV; White people run the station; I mean this guy could care less how those music videos affect black people - or how his station helps Promote these terrible, horrible ideas, as Normal! ... and as "what it means to be black!" ... :| booo on Bob Johnson.

Here's a random brotha sharing the feelings of Many around this country:



and, a lil more coverage on it...



... and finally

The Debate (South Carolina)

Things got pretty heated there... hopefully as American Voters we can find a way to look past all the talk; and vote for the right person to lead this country in the Right Direction.

but who would that be? Feel free to let me know, below.

R.I.P. Heath...

Sorry to see you go ...

This was an actor who's films I truly enjoyed. I can honestly say that I've seen most of his work, with the exception of The Order, and the Gay Movie ...

What really strikes me as odd about all of this, is just a couple weeks back when I wrote this post, about the upcoming Dark Knight film, I deleted an entire paragraph talking about how it's gonna be hard for him to live down his role as the Gay Cowboy; and then he dies....

What an almost prophetic vibe that was - really bugs me out - because now that he's died, all people are doing is talking about his role as ... the Gay Cowboy; I started to write, that this new role as the joker may free him from that perception, but who's really to say - and from the trailers, it Looks like he's given - yet again - another great performance.

Now, I didn't watch Brokeback Mountain, because I'm just not interested in a movie about gay dudes. However I deleted the paragraph about it, because I did not want any "gay backlash" from people who (easily) get the wrong interpretation from the words people use; I didn't want people to think that being known as the gay cowboy would necessarily be a bad thing - however we would be foolish to think that homosexuality is entirely accepted in American Culture.

When I saw the trailer for Rendition, a movie starring his Co-Star, Jake Gyllenhaal, I commented to friends "oh that's the dude from the gay movie"

So I was really tempted to include that in my original posting.... and then the guy dies!

While this is extremely tragic, allow me to take you back a bit to his earlier films which I truly enjoyed. Such as ...

10 Things I hate about you - I enjoyed this movie as much for julia stiles as I did for Heath's performance as a guy trying to impress a woman who's not impressed by anyone or anything.

A Knight's tale - a Wonderful film about a guy trying to "Change His Stars..." - I found this movie to be incredibly inspirational and motivational, especially since I was not born with a silver (golden) spoon in my mouth. Not to mention, the leading lady was refreshing to the eyes... :) Not bad to look at, at all.

Monster's Ball - what a great job he did, in short time - That movie really took me by surprise, along with my date that night; We both talked about how so many parts we just were not prepared for; The movie starts out with Heath giving it to a prostitute from the back ... yea, way to start off a film! But what really took me by surprise was when he offed himself in the living room - Didn't see that coming at all. In a way, he was the Symbolic Hero of this film; He was the main reason his father, played by Billy Bob, could recognize the error of his ways - and the effects that the hatred of racism has on our lives - how it spills out into the home - it's a truly destructive force. - and More so than Hallie's fat son, who couldn't stop eating, or Hallie's terrible parenting skills, Heath's performance as an open minded white dude who had the balls to stand up to his racist parent and grand parent, in a world where so many white people cave into the pressure of racism put on them by their family... was just utterly fantastic.

... anyone who knows me, knows I digg "message movies" ... So I gave him big props for Monster's Ball.

The Patriot - I also enjoyed him in this film. Mel Gibson was a true G ... but I liked his role as well. Been a while since I saw this, but I think he dies in that movie too; and that really set Mel off.

But I suppose that since he never got nominated for an Oscar over these films, the one that he DID get nominated for, would natually take front and center.

... but who knows, his portrayal of The Joker could be Oscar worthy... too bad he won't even get a chance to find out. To his family, my condolences and my deepest sympathy...

Obama - held back by racism?? True or Not True ...

An excellent article written by Cynthia Tucker - about how race is very much still an issue when it comes to our Vote for the next U.S. President; My comments are below.

RACIAL STEREOTYPES ARE DEEPLY EMBEDDED IN OUR CULTURE

By Cynthia TuckerSat Jan 19, 7:56 PM ET

After a recent column describing Barack Obama as "a presidential candidate who happens to be black -- not a black presidential candidate," I received countless responses from readers, a handful of them odd. That odd handful declared they take no notice of superficial traits such as skin color, and they took me to task for making any reference to Obama's race.

"I thought of (Obama) as a person. I did not see black or white or Hispanic or that he was a man -- I saw a person! If people really, truly want racial equality, then the first step has to be to STOP looking at skin color," wrote one reader.

"When I look at a person, the last thing I think about is skin color or heritage," wrote another.

Sorry, but I'm not buying it. While I am sympathetic to any desire to get past dated and useless habits of mind -- especially the contentious politics of the color line -- that's just nonsense. None of us, black, white or brown, is colorblind.

Those readers may think they don't notice skin color, but it's just not so, says University of Washington psychology professor Anthony Greenwald, an expert on implicit biases and common stereotypes. "Even if they can't see anything out of their eyes, they're not colorblind."

That's not a condemnation, not a presumption of malicious bigotry. It's just an acknowledgment of the peculiar burdens of humanity, especially in these United States. Assumptions about race and ethnicity are so deeply embedded in our culture that we can hardly help noticing skin color.

Each of us is stuck with prejudices, and I'm using the denotative meaning here -- "an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought or reason," according to Webster's. But we don't have to be governed by them.

Cutting-edge work by Greenwald and his colleagues, who include Harvard University's Mahzarin Banaji and the University of Virginia's Brian Nosek, suggests that people can learn to put aside their biases to make rational, fact-based judgments about people who may be black or Mexican or Mormon. "To the extent that we can influence what we learn and believe, we can influence less conscious states of mind," Banaji says.

But the first step -- as in any self-help project -- is to own up to the problem. Many people don't realize they're prejudiced because, well, they really don't realize they're prejudiced. That self-knowledge is not necessarily difficult to acquire, but it's quite often difficult to accept.

Racial bigotry is a social taboo in this country, so much so that only an extremist fringe -- assorted neo-Nazis and skinheads -- admit their rank prejudices. That may explain why some volunteers who have taken Greenwald's Implicit Association Test, which uses word association to detect unconscious biases, are furious when the test shows they hold hidden negative views of black Americans.

"Some people have a concept of themselves as non-prejudiced, so anything indicating a chink in that armor is threatening," Greenwald said. But his research has also pointed out that most people simply aren't aware of their implicit assumptions.

Take the current Democratic primary, with its history-making narrative. Greenwald and colleagues modified the Implicit Association Test (https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit) to search for unconscious biases among Democratic voters. When asked who they planned to cast ballots for, a sample of voters reported strong support for Obama, who held a 42 percent-to-34 percent lead over Hillary Clinton among the sample, with John Edwards coming in at 12. But when the same people took the Implicit Association Test, measuring their unconscious preferences, Clinton was "the runaway winner," favored by 48 percent of them, and Obama was dead last, with 25 percent. Edwards was favored by 27 percent, according to the researchers.

And here's one finding that upends conventional wisdom: According to the test, black voters, too, held implicit biases that worked against Obama. But how could it be otherwise? Black Americans are products of the same culture as white Americans, with its myriad stereotypes of black incompetence. And black Americans have internalized many of the same stereotypes.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. dreamed of a day when his children would "not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." But that day has not yet arrived. We might hasten its dawning if we'd admit that what we see is not necessarily what we believe.

Oops! In a column about rigid voter ID laws, I mistakenly referred to the Bill of Rights in underscoring the right to vote. I knew better. The right to vote is explicit in the 15th, 19th and 26th amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

Read the Original story Here:

I've been saying all along, that while I do Hope Obama wins, it's unlikely - because America is still Very racist; If you've ever been in a chat room, when the topic of race comes up, overwhelmingly there is a negative vibe towards black people.

Mexicans may get riled a bit for the illegals, but seemingly all races stick together against black people. It's truly a sight to behold - You wouldn't realize that so many Americans felt that way, in 2008 - but they do - because Nothing is truly being done to end racism in this country.

People are not being made aware of what's truth and what's brain washing - propaganda - and what's real, versus what has been made real.

As human beings, made in the image of The Creator - we too, can create.

And we do it all the time, every day - some of us may not realize it, or stop to think about it, but we all have created our lives - and together we have created the human experience - full of domino effects.

Everything is like the game of Chess, not Checkers, and then again perhaps all games can teach us that for every move, there is a counter move - or a next move that can only follow the initial move - and this can be applied to racism.

White people started racism, and it's been my belief for many years that white people must make the first move to end it; When they make that move the counter move, or the following move, will be made by blacks - to further embrace white people, once they've been shown evidence that white people no longer hold an interest in seeing black people get the short end of the stick.

Recent Events that do not display this: Katrina, Jenna 6, and now one might even argue, Obama.

We need white people to take racism seriously enough to move past their prejudices so that black people can let go of the feeling, that white people don't like them; I mean, so long as white people don't like blacks... what else are blacks gonna think?

Also, I think it's important that we not play semantics here - I know that not all white people dislike blacks; So please don't wrap your minds around the way I phrased that sentence - go deeper - instead of focusing on the white people who don't hate blacks... think of all the white people you know, who do! And from this day forward, realize that They are The Problem.

Then, deal with them, their ideas, their beliefs - get them to feel shamed for them. Only for the purpose of helping them heal - so that they can recognize the error of their ways.

Nobody is perfect - not even me - but we can all strive towards it.

The Man

Condi Rice: Tool of the white man?

MALCOLM X: Our History was Destroyed During Slavery

MALCOLM X: Oxford University Debate

.... i can see why they took this guy out. the issues he speaks about... or spoke about, are/were pretty real; he's quite prophetic on a number of things... such as not being able to enforce laws then, so what's gonna help them enforce laws from that point forward; as we've come to see, the laws they want to enforce, they enforce, nuff said. I for one do not endorse violence as a solution.

... black people were getting too militant... So efforts were made to de-militarize black people, and de-unify black people; This is how 'we' got to this point today; To recover from this, we must first know that we've been injured; Now i'm not suggesting we need to re-militarize, but we do need to unite - "for the good of black people" ... a New movement, both non violent, but strong, focused, and empowered through Education, and Awareness of the path we've traveled, realizing that there is still a ways to go - and as we move back onto the path, together.. we take the lessons from experiences had in the past, and present, with us into the future.

MALCOLM X: The White Man Brings Drugs Into Harlem

again, just my Opinion here... but I don't think we'd have to be Muslim to practice these ideas...

The White Man Be Keeping Us Down.

yea... they were just having some fun, making fun of black people... that's so fun!

.... till these kinds of ideas change, black people must focus on what they can do, in the meantime, to better improve our communities; and it would be great if more white people could act like they care about black folks too... :) Meanwhile, in closing, I leave u with one of the best perspectives I've heard really - in summation, Bill Cosby is aiming at the wrong folks; instead of beating up on the poor, he should take a look at the Wealthy Blacks to find what They are doing to help those who are in lesser blessed lifestyles...



Well spoken brotha... also hitting on points about Hip Hop, one of the tools that has been used to De-unify black people; and Corrupt black culture, distracting black people from the path they should be on.

And not enough is being done ... or said on these issues.

I mean... check out his take on the Jenna 6 - White people are just not speaking out enough on this kind of injustice; Am I completely wrong there? Someone let me know... (with evidence please, not just with opinion.)



... One More for the road!

One of the more appealing aspects of The Matrix is that it deals with actual Robots... that have taken over the world you and I know; and changed everything; literally.

Looks like we move closer and closer to doomsday... at least that's what the Movies tell us.

T.O cries for Romo, Racism on the airwaves, Question Everything

No coverage of this one on Espn.com - I wonder why that is??

T.O. has been ripped for his antics over the years, and usually the criticism includes how Selfish he is. Then, when the guy finally displays public emotion for a Team Mate, and says "we lost as a team" ... the only place I can find coverage is on Yahoo??

This goes to show, once again, that our Media in this Country is only interested in bashing people, not praising people.

If we really look deep into his antics in the past, all of them ... nearly were motivated by his desire to Win! T.O. has always been a Team Guy - why else would he play on a broken leg in the Super Bowl = for personal gain?

Last I checked, when it comes to team sports, Teams win because of the individuals playing for that team. Micheal Jordan will not only go down as possibly the greatest basketball player ever - but as a Chicago Bull. And look up some of his quotes - he's one of the first say state that individual accolades mean nothing if your Team isn't winning also; Great players understand that.

And often Great people do as well - but our media loves to tear down great people - why though?

What many people do not realize is that the media is not ON your Side. The Media is not interested in empowering the people - it's not interested in motivating you and I to be good decent citizens in the world; So they rarely shower praise on anybody for doing the right thing.

Instead those man hours are put into researching who is fucking up.

Then, in an irresponsible way, our media makes no effort to tell us how to think or feel about someone fucking up; They don't remind us that no one is perfect, that we all fuck up; Instead it's spun in a manner to make us think that These People "should" be perfect.

Afterall - they're athletes.

And this same example can be, (and is) applied to every other aspect of our society.

Afterall - they're politicians.
Afterall - they're preachers
Afterall - they're adults.

There's a great quote from Charles Barkley, on the Dan Patrick show the other day, as he weighed in on the inappropriate comment by commentator Kelly Tilghman on the Golf Channel, who in a "joking" manner stated that the only way for other golfers to beat Tiger Woods - is to "lynch him in a back alley" ... more on this in a bit; but first his quote - about the Media - "The Media has to think for people because People are too stupid to think for themselves."

That link "should" work - and I hope it does, as it's a really good interview; and it's so true. People are entirely too reliant on the media; People do not question what they hear or read in the news and in newspapers - and it's only gonna get worse with the new ruling that allows the Same people who are controlling AirWaves to also control the Printed Publications - it means less diversity of news - and more of the same.

That's one good thing about blogs; While blogs are filled more with Opinions than facts in many cases, sometimes those Opinions are indeed educated, or thought out - enough to where they are more accurate than the factless reporting we'll find in the news media - who often will mix a fact with a non-fact just for the purpose of having something that in their opinion, is more exciting than just telling people the truth.

Terrell Owens has caught so much flack, that even when he sheds a tear and shows some emotion for his Team, he either gets NO coverage at all - or, as I heard on the Jim Rome show this morning, he gets called out as a fraud fr crying; people saying he's faking it; that he's got problems, and so on.

When it comes to the media, do your selves a favor - QUESTION EVERYTHING -

A few good links - a Great Interview on KLAC by the Loose Cannons, one of the best I've heard to this date on issues of race and racism; In case you do not know about the comment, this interview is one you need to hear - along with a wonderful comparison that I feel needs to be repeated in everyone's talking points. Listen to it here - be sure to sit through some of the talking at the beginning, even if you're lost - It's not long after their top 10 Countdown.

The quote you're listening for, is along the lines of how unacceptable it would be to make this sort of comment about a Jewish Golfer - if She would've said "the only way to stop so and so (a jewish golfer) would be to put him in a gas oven" - The world would spin off it's wheels.

However when it's a black athlete, and because that athlete says its no big deal - people just lay down and say it's no big deal; Nevermind that Tiger Woods has never taken a stand on any issues that effect black people - and while Charles Barkley also took the stance, that the comment was no big deal, let us not forget how much he Loves White Women.

For many black men, and women, who have an affinity for white people, in order to be accepted By white people, they must take these stances on these issues, or else white people will not like them.

Sad, but true.

It's rare to find a black panther who's liked by a white person; But that's a topic for another posting.

I do offer up however a quote from the blog I linked up, a nice paragraph that I fully agree with by Christian Dashiell of kansascity.com

So menial action has been taken, and the parties involved are attempting to issue quick statements and hope that the comments fade away quietly. But I just can’t let that happen. The words, though perhaps said by mistake, were too violent and too charged to simply allow for a free pass.
Perhaps following so closely on the heels of the Imus debate the country is too weary to have another discussion about race and language. I contend we would be well-served by such a discussion.

Which is why I continue to discuss these issues here on thaShow - in hopes that something positive can indeed come out of it. White people need to do more to show blacks that they Do indeed care about black people; Actions like these show the oppositie. White people need to be up in arms, so that we don't have to rely on a quote from Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson, who DO not speak for Black people, and instead speak for their OWN fame and monetary gain - as they both only make appearances when paid to appear - instead, the common man should be speaking out on behalf of Tiger Woods, and how inappropriate this comment was - considering the history of Lynching.

I mean of all the things she could've said - why that?

It came off of her tongue sooo smoothly too - it's as if it's the kind of humor that SHE is around all the time; She saw nothing wrong with it - and that is indeed a Problem. This is an aspect of "white culture" that is detrimental to the stability of America - we cannot make it much longer if we continue to be divided along lines of race; if White people continue to tell blacks to just move on and get OVER racial remarks.

Again, listen to all the interviews, you'll enjoy the shows, and the points of view. However while you listen... Question what you're listening to; Don't agree with me just because, don't disagree with me just because; Think things over - bring these discussions to others... Think, think ... think!!!

Double Standard??

The laws in this country are very unfair towards men; Especially when it comes to matters between Men and Women.

Fresh off the presses, a news story about one of the most well known sex offenders, the HOT blonde teacher who got in trouble for sleeping with her students. My question to you is, would they have thrown the book at this sex offender, had she of been a male?

So much has been made of Woman's Rights; and seemingly in 2008 - it's MEN who need a liberation movement. Here's the article; You weigh in let me know what you think.

Racial Profiling? Legal? 33 men arrested @ L.A. Trade Tech

Before we get into this one ... watch this video.



Something happened last year on the College Campus of L.A. Trade Tech - I know a guy who was obtained in an incident that certainly 'sounds like' racial profiling; I don't know all of the laws of this country, so perhaps someone out there more versed in law can help me understand this but, Is this Legal?? Read about this incident below.

Courtesy of the L.A. Times - The original article can be read here, perhaps until the link dies;

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday launched an investigation into how the Sheriff's Department conducted a narcotics-search operation at Los Angeles Trade Tech College in which 33 students, all minorities, were detained.

The Oct. 17 incident has fueled allegations of racial profiling from civil rights groups and sparked changes in the way the Sheriff's Department communicates with the Los Angeles Community College District.

Deputies detained 32 African American students after investigating drug activity on campus for several months. A Latino student videotaping the incident also was detained, according to Sheriff's Department officials. No one was arrested. A video posted on YouTube.com shows several clusters of black students sitting on campus building steps, surrounded by deputies.

"I will tell you that the sheriff's actions were the worst kind of racial profiling," said Catherine Lhamon, racial justice director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, which is investigating the incident. An investigation conducted by the college district, which oversees the trade school, concluded last week that the student roundup constituted racial profiling: using racial or ethnic characteristics to determine whether a person is likely to have committed a crime.

Sheriff Lee Baca said that deputies who conducted the undercover sting operation, without the knowledge of campus officials, said they believed they were observing a narcotics sale in progress. Hoping to keep the suspect in sight, deputies detained all the students surrounding the activity, Baca said.

"The outcome certainly, any way you slice it, ended up being racial profiling," said Marshall "Mark" Drummond, chancellor of the Los Angeles Community College District.

jp.renaud@latimes.com

The Video Footage can be seen here: it's grainy, perhaps taken with a cell phone.



A class action suit was recently filed against the Police; The guy I know who's name will remain nameless for now, says they were just sitting there; That is where they meet every day before class, sit around, talk, and you know - the things people do at school between, before, and after class.

I don't think it's legal to arrest EVERYBODY near a "percieved" crime area - as citizens we cannot allow something like this to become commonplace; At least to me, it doesn't sound very Constitutional.

Obama - The embodiment of Change

This dude has the "it" factor that all Presidents have. He's really got a shot; I was listening to his speech after the victory in Iowa, and I began to feel that he really could do it. He embodies change - He talks about the kinds of things I have talked about for many years, here at ThaShow, and at my former yahoo group ThaClub, what I've talked about in chat rooms, and bulletins on myspace - the ability and even the responsibility of People to Change society.

In case you missed his winning speech in Iowa, here it is.



I also came across some excellent coverage of his talks with the people in New Hampshire, who will decide tonight who emerges from the fray of qualified leaders, who all want to steer this country - but the question is, in what direction?



Obama is talking to Us about our need to get involved, be involved, and stay involved in the matters of Our Country; The constitution states that WE the People are in charge; So it's over due for us to begin acting like it; too often we sit back and watch - but when it comes to matters of America we MUST get in the game.

It's up to Us to change and eliminate racism, it's up to us to improve education - to change and evolve culture into something positive for the people who are often harmed by it - to come together and truly love more, care more, and hate less, fight less, argue less - Doing others wrong for our own benefit is really No benefit to us at all; and we need to realize that; We need to spread the enlightenment from one end to another so that All Americans come to understand, that living in a manner that is consistent with bringing pleasure to all - is the best path to take, for all.

Enjoy 2008 - get involved in the Political Process - let's put a leader at the helm who can make this country great again.... or more accurately put, who can help this country deliver on the greatness it's always envisioned itself as being, and having.

Here's to you!

In Search Of...

A good picture of David Letterman sporting the new beard... So I can show just how much he looks like Phil Jackson.

I'm really looking forward to this one ...



Saw the trailer for the sequel... and I really liked what they did with the first one; So again I say, I'm really looking forward to part 2; The Joker, looks pretty serious...

Speaking of which there are a few cool sites linked up to the Dark Knight's coming soon bio; WhySoSerious - IbelieveinHarveyDent.com - and IbelieveinHarveyDentTOO.com - the last of which is pretty funny; if you can figure it out; (here's a hint, there is no page error... please do not write me telling me something is wrong with the page; That's part of the ... joke.)

There's really nothing funny about the harvey dent site ... but it Makes the "i believe too" site all the more cooler.

Legend

I liked this movie... most people I know either did Not like it, or thought it was just OK; but I truly enjoyed this film. I thought it was suspenseful, I liked how they unraveled the story for us, and didn't spoon feed it to us from the start in a linear way; I like how they really just got right into it; You kind of had to figure things out as you went; Kept my attention.

The ending is perhaps where the rubber meets the road for most people; Some really didn't like this ending; My cousin felt the ending was... weird. But, I liked the ending; It leaves you wondering if they're gonna somehow try to make a sequel; Kinda like the movie did, it leaves you wondering... what's gonna happen next?

I myself am a pretty spiritual dude, so I liked the subtle conversations about God, and God's role in the lives of humanity, when much of humanity is either dead, or infected with a virus that has literally turned them into some Other Inhumane species.

Dark Seekers... and as irony would have it, the lone guy in NY is a Brilliant Scientist, immune from the virus, and able because of that ... coincidence, to work on a possible cure; He goes through hell during that process, literally; I mean those dark seekers looked like demons straight out of the firey pits...

I liked that he was able to not only figure out a cure... but that, God perhaps, or maybe fate - karma - the energy of the universe that usually finds a way to help make sense of things, bad things, tragedies, down times in our lives, and ya know .. when everything just seems so, Dark - I love the references to Bob Marley, and what a wonderful story they decided to share, from a man who's literally inspired so many people, bringing joy and peace into so many people's lives, through music ... beautiful music.

I was put off for a moment that someone could have possibly lived who had never heard of Bob Marley... but then I think of some of the people I've met, even people I know personally, who are not tuned in to the world around them - who are almost, in the dark, on so many subjects and topics; So many are uninformed, and simultaneously NOT seeking to be informed. It's almost a perfect anology ... these Dark Seekers...

and what a challenge this movie presents to you and I - to follow in the ways of Bob, to Light up the Darkness...

I have thoughts on Will Smith as well - and the claim made by Forbes, the opinion really, that one of the main reasons Will has been So successful, is because he doesn't play roles that are "about black people" - but that he plays roles in movies where he just so happens to be black.

I think that's an excellent observation really - They're onto something with that guess, estimation or whatever you want to call it. White people, generally speaking, are not interested in black people. Movies, Music, and things that center on blacks, do not appeal to the masses of white people.

Of course this does not mean that all white people stay way from movies and music focused on black people; As white teens are the Highest consumers of Hip Hop Music today - However while these teens may be buying these albums, they're not sensitive to racial injustice, claims of racism and unfairness due to the color of one's skin... not in 2008 - Most are not interested in watching films about black people stuggling in "the hood" - as they make poor choices to get involved in crime, because they see no other way - or that's the example that's all around them.

Most would rather tune into something else; National Treasure... or Harry Potter; and who can blame them really?

There once was uproar over movies in the 70's, known as Blaxploitation films - because they exploited the image of black people, for a profit - a profit for white men who owned those movie studios that put them out. These movies depicted black people as Pimps, Gangsters, Criminals, negative images which many felt were affecting black people.

But as time has gone on, these movies have Continued to be made; They're no longer seen as Exploitation films... instead they're just accepted as black films. It's as if black people have allowed ourselves to be stamped with the labels we used to fight so hard to keep OFF of our chests...

So as the new year begins, and we ponder just ... What happened? ... We can turn to the success of Will Smith and be glad for him, that hes found a way to persevere in good ole racist white america - he's crossed over in fact, appealing to people all around the world; and good for him; Perhaps we all should seek to follow his example; after all, while he may not be appearing in movies "about black people" - no matter what film he does... he still Happens to be Black.

Black is not limited - black is not limited - black is ... not ... limited; So, do not limit yourself, and do not allow others to limit you; All opportunities, all avenues are open to you. Go for it, in 2008.

Leading like a Legend: Will Smith

The fresh Prince was in re-runs tonight... Ha, I remembered the first time I saw that show too... but anyways, on to why I'm writing.

I saw this review recently, about Will Smith and his tremendous success - it's been a fantastic career, and I do look forward to his best work, which is most likely yet to come; Check out this review put together by Forbes Magazine - I've got some thoughts to share on some of the points she makes, about Why, perhaps, Will Smith has been so successful.

What's Ice Cube talking about??

I enjoyed the video put together by Ice Cube... and now it's time to talk about what he's saying.

It's a Timely Video, speaking to the topic of Gangsta Rap's influence on crime in black communities... and overall violence in America. Of course what he's NOT saying, is that Gangsta Rap IS indeed responsible for this violence; What he's Saying, (in case anyone missed it) is that any violence found in the black community was learned from the white community; And he's right.

Violence is not spurred from Gangsta Rap - Gangsta Rap did not Create the conditions that he talks about; But, it does keep those conditions going; It does not do enough to speak out against those conditions, or to motivate the people born into those conditions to Do something different, to change those conditions.

Gangsta Rappers do not do enough to change those conditions; Instead they've used those conditions to make a better life ... for themselves. You tell me, is that right?

The world has always been a violent place, going all the way back to Cain and Abel. Man killing Man has always been a problem that we face in our world; Countries going to war against Countries has always existed. Some believe wars and violence will always exist.

And while that may be true, the reality is, we do not really know IF that's true. All we know is, it's always been here, and we've accepted that it will always be here, so, We've done Nothing to stop it, end it, curtail it, and so on.

Music is very powerful; and while Ice Cube may not feel that he is solely responsable for creating the violent conditions that exist in the black community, I would respectfully disagree to a point; I mean you really cannot lay 100% of the blame on the rapper; You really can't; That's neither fair or accurate.

Just like you cannot solely blame "the white man" for what they put in place 400 years ago; Systems, Ideas ... Cultures - created and grown - seeds planted, with a plan of them turning into trees called Niggas - who would act and think a certain way; The truth is those plans have more to do with black on black crime than gangsta rap does; Even more truthful, those plans explain Why gangsta rap exists in the first place.

Those plans, created a culture that is truly divided; Even during the Civil Rights Movement the black community was divided about the proper way to go about securing these, Equal Rights - Non-violence ... or Violence if Necessary.

The Crips and Bloods were at one time, ONE political Party, similar to the Black Panther Party; but they were eventually divided; as a people, sticking together, especially for the Good of our race, is not part of our culture. Certainly unlike the Jews.

Often when I would get into "fights or debates" with racist white people in chat rooms, they would point out that blacks are the only race that hasn't recovered from the harm that was done to them; They almost always point to the Japanese who were rounded up and placed in concentration camps during WWII - or the Jews and the Holocaust;

The biggest problem with this comparison, this way of thinking that all races have been through traumatic times, is that The other two races were not "divided" while going through their trauma; Instead, their trauma brought them closer together. I do not have time to go into all of the things that were done to black people during Slavery And Legalized Segregation in this post, but I have gone into detail before in other posts on the web (here and other sites).

When I say there is Lots of work to be done, that's an understatement; The black race was divided long ago, and the only true way to end violence in the black communities, is to totally destroy black culture, and then start anew. Pulling this off however, would be nearly impossible; Because of what culture is.

Culture is passed down; from one generation to another; Views and Ideas are given to young black children, and as they grow older, these views and ideas are reinforced by the communities they live in, the music they listen to, the movies they watch, the People they are around, friends, family, uncles, aunts, cousins, and so forth. So starting anew would be difficult, mainly because the Old ideas and views have not been eliminated; and are being passed on, as we speak.

Who are we to tell someone that their Mother and Father, perhaps even unknowingly so, have ruined them with views and ideas that are detrimental to their own development; that the very views and ideas they hold onto so tightly, are the same views that are holding them back from achieving success, legally, in a country that is constantly looking for ways to lock black people up.

And so, the debate ... and the conversation continues; perhaps with the hope, that the current views and Ideas held by many in the black community, can somehow begin to change on their own... that perhaps unity can eventually seep it's way into our mind sets - so that together we can all decide what to do, to better our communities; along with what not to do, to keep our communities going in a downward spiral.

I used to love Gangsta Rap growing up; I had all the NWA and Ice Cube albums; till the day I came to realize just how detrimental this music is to my people. While some people can listen to it, and not enternalize the ideas expressed with in.... many black people in my community, take those words to heart; They Become the characters from the songs; They mimic the visual representation given to them by music videos, and the movies these same gangsta rappers write for themselves, to further exploit the black community, living real good lives from representing the crime found in 'the hood' ....

Here's to America - and the hope that the Nation will wake up to the tragedy going on at home.

New Ice Cube: Gangsta Rap Made me do it..

timely...

Gangsta Rap Made Me Do It