brohammas' "Heffernan Theory"

Sitcoms are filled with "regular guys" who are married to women who (in the real world) would never even give these guys the time of day.
Jamie Gertz from Still Standing wouldn't even date this dude.

Leah Remini (King of Queens) was hot before she blew up. But this is the "before" photo - when she was way out of Doug Heffernen's league. (In the later shows, they're a more believable match).

Since it was the Drew Carey's show, he decided to get a skinny girlfriend. Although in real life, Mimi would be his girl

Jim Belushi's wife (According to Jim) had three kids and still kept her shape? Maybe this is because the writers' wives all blew up after having their babies. Their fantasy would be to have them retain some sort of sexuality. These shows are just their idealized version of their reality.

Even the eponymous George Lopez Show had to keep the fantasy going. His wife Angie is way out of his league.

In earlier times, a fantasy situation was created to justify a wife who was out of one's league.

Samantha (Bewitched) wouldn't date Darren - she would treat him in a way more similar to the way her sister Sarena threats him.

I guess if you find a scantily clad woman in a bottle - she belongs to you. Again, a fantasy situation is created to justify such a romance.

But these guys have nothing on the video game writers who create characters like this...

Or the graphic novel writers who create women like this.

This fantasy phenomenon is largely lost on Black sitcoms.

Tyler Perry's House of Pain uses actors that are in more realistic relationships.

So did the writers of Family Matters.

Okay, Tichina Arnold (Everybody Hates Chris)is no Florida Evans - But she not Stacey Dash or Melissa Ford either.

Yeah... Bernie Mac's wife (Wanda) was hot. But he plays a famous comedian... and the kids are not hers through birth.

Claire Huxtable was (is) the model for many aspirational mothers - even Black ones. But she was a lawyer and Cliff was a doctor. Cliff didn't work for UPS or at some production plant.

Shows like All of Us don't count. Lisa Raye and Vidal (from Out All Night, I forget his real name) were divorced. And Elise Neal didn't last on the show.

Kelsey Grammer (The Game and Girlfriends) seems to be the only Hollywood insider who portrays Black women as more than just fat and dumpy caricatures.

Rent To Own

Times are tough, I understand that.

But have things really gotten this bad?

But if you need a car and you have bad credit - rent to own might be your last option.

http://www.autobyrent.com/

Oh, but you already have a bucket and you just want new rims?

http://www.rent-n-go.com/index.html

I even had a cousin rent a set of gold teeth (grillz).

I guess the economy is worse than I previously thought.

Madonna's Trip to Malawi

Madonna and her daughter Lourdes walked hand in hand through the Malawian village of Chinkhota.The pop star is attempting to adopt a second child from the southern African nation.

Katherine Heigl

Do Ra Me (Do Re Mi)

RunningMom (Black Shoes White Socks) left this link to a New York Times article about using music in healing.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/29/arts/music/29gure.html?_r=1&th&emc=th

The Game

FreeMan - "If we try to sword fight over the right approach... we defeat ourselves."
brohammas - "ranking the crabs in a barrel does not get any of them out of it"

Yep.
Perhaps I wasn't clear.
The post wasn't meant to suggest that there is some universal answer to all problems.
It was meant in response to those who sit idly by and complain about wrong doings to deaf ears.
Or to those who create the problems they complain about.
Or those who have a theoretical idea of problems - but who lack any "lab" experience.
To be able to properly understand the problems, one must be able to understand the nuances that occur on the most intimate level.

@ FreeMan - I didn't mean for you to infer that everyone has to do the same work - but that the work itself needs to done. There is no point to infinite redundancies.

@ brohammas - Maybe my metaphor, simile, analogy (or whatever) was lacking in clarity.

People who dismiss every problem as... let's say racism, when the real problem is not being prepared - these people lack an intimate understanding of the problem and will likely misdiagnose the problem. These people will likely prescribe the wrong medication (or answer).
This person can come up with a million ideas as to why things are the way they are - but their knowledge is mostly theoretical (or outdated).
(This is the person in the house complaining about having to drink warm lemonade with no ice. This is the one who says, "I'm glad I'm not one of those people".)

There are also people who do no work but blame their position on everyone else.
They might say, "I didn't get the job because I am Black" - instead of realizing that their weight, looks, lack of education or skills, or attitude were more to blame than anything else (shallow, but it happens). This person has stopped trying. Their "job" is to be the infinite victim.
(This is the person sitting under the tree who tells the working men that they're suckers for trying. He also sits back and says, "I be happy dems not me".)

Then we have the people doing the work.
This group varies in age, race, experience, perspective and a long list of other traits.
This is the group that does what the others sit back and talk about doing.
This group is too busy to hate on those who would look down on them for various reasons.
This is the group who helps each other (to varying degrees) and tries to make things better.
This group consists of those who would usually be assumed to be in one of the other two groups.
Their experiences and abilities and their relationships with others will determine how far up and down the scale these people can travel.
(Regardless of race, gender or social status - this is the group who actually "gets dirty".)

Jamie Lynn Spears