Saturday, October 31, 2009

Justified By Money?

Can one's action be justified by the money they earn for doing them?
"But Tyler Perry owns his own studio.", or "His movies make millions" are popular refrains from the Medea creator's supporters.
But is the money earned the only qualifier to determine one's "success"?
What about legality?

Natalie Dylan (above) was perfectly within her rights to sell her virginity at one of Nevada's legal brothels.
Does the one million dollar price paid (Down from an offer of 3.7 million dollars after that man was "convinced" by his wife to pull his offer.) justify her actions?

What about the Afghan Warlords who make 3-5 million dollars a year? (Reuters)
Not only do they make a good living, they also get to influence World policy.
Power and money - would you want that job?

What about being Joaquin-Guzman-Loera?
Would being a billionaire (Forbes) drug dealer be worth it?
Sure, it's not legal - but maybe Cali. will change it's mind and make the man a legitimate businessman.

Not to pick on T.P. too much - but does his money earned really justify his crappy work?

Black vs. Asian

What's the difference in thinking between Blacks and Asians?
Asians own the corner stores, nail salons and beauty supply chains where many Blacks spend their money.
Many Blacks see themselves as the customers and not the owners.
But can movies (or popular culture) influence this thinking?
Jet Li (above) possess the power to overcome in The One.
It is up to him to unlock his inherent power.
Stephen Chow goes from being a broke small time criminal to Master in Kung Fu Hustle.
This revelation is only realized after a long and arduous process that brings him near death.

Madea plays like a Mary J. Blige song - "I'm So Pitiful" being it's approach to problem solving.
The Tyler Perry characters never possess an inner strength that has yet to be realized.
The characters are always just getting by and never rise to a self awareness that is beyond what others expect of them.
The characters always settle for just enough to get to the next bad situation.
The Wayans choose to be the clown in the tragedy of life.
Is this bad?
No, not really - but there has to be an example of a Black film maker who understands more than the "Just Get By" school of thought.
When Black film makers are criticized for their lack of inspiration, their supporters are quick to outline the "reality" of their work.
Maybe this is the flaw in any attempt to raise the bar for Blacks.
Maybe too many American Blacks feel as though it is their place to be the eternal victim.
Maybe too many American Blacks can't comprehend being in the top position.
Maybe our failure is that too many can't even imagine being anything other than a clown or a victim.
Maybe our common perception of ourselves is what is really holding many of us back.
Maybe we need to change the way we view ourselves and not worry so much about how others view us.

White Power

Other than Jet Li in The One -
What other minority gets to innately posses the power to rectify their situation?
(Okay, Stephen Chow in Kung Fu Hustle too - but that's a different post.)
Even Dorothy is told that she always possessed the power to return to Kansas in the Wizard of Oz.

The protagonist in Wanted grows into his full potential to defeat his evil Black enemy (And assumed to do Angelina Joile.).

Even with the future of mankind on the line, Neo is told in The Matrix; temet nosce (nosce te ipsum).
He always possessed the ability to fix the situation - even if he didn't know it.
In movies, whites are endued (not imbued) with power - while minorities benefit from the benevolent use of that power.

John 4:44

Why are people upset with a Hispanic Sandra Bullock playing the role of "The nice white lady who saves a Black kid" in Blind Side?

John 4:44 (KJV) - "For Jesus himself testified, that a prophet has no honor in his own land."
Maybe an outsider is needed.

Movies have been dealing with race and one's place at the table when attempting to rectify problems bought on by racist actions for decades.
To Kill a Mockingbird was more about the learning process of whites in how to treat and judge people by their deeds and not by their race.
Sandra Bullock teamed with Matthew McConaughey to attempt another telling of roughly the same story.
It took a white person to rescue a Black man from a racist situation.

Michelle Pfeiffer would also play the role of a White Savior and sit in a chair as Coolio would rap his lyrics to Gangster's Paradise for Dangerous Minds.

Of course it took the nice white lady Hillary Swank to inspire ghetto children to perform at levels unknown to themselves in Freedom Writers. (Didn't Meryl Steep play a music teacher in the hood in Music From the Heart.?)
The counter position of Sidney Portiere in To Sir With Love would be Jim Belushi (Long before he was sexing-up the out of his league Courtney Thorne in According to Jim. *See; "Brohammas' Heffernan Theory".) in The Principal.

While some of these stories are based on fact - So is Stand and Deliver with Edward James Olmos.
And in Lean On Me, the eternally old Morgan Freeman plays a reform minded Joe Clark.
Is it bad that outsiders are often called upon to solve problems within a community?
Nope, it's bad that those within these communities aren't generally doing better for themselves.
It's bad that the problems have become so bad that people will accept anyone who has "The Answer" to problems that they could have solved all along.
Why are these movies dangerous?
Because they are only used as a tool so white people can say, "See, we're not all bad.". (Which is true.)
Because these movies reinforce the belief (even held by many Blacks) that only a white person can solve any problems minorities have gotten themselves into.
Because these movies fail to enforce the dictum; nosce te ipsum - in that they fail to teach that the oppressed group always had the power for change on their own.
Because the minority is always subjugated and the white person is always dominant.

444

I'm not into Numerology as I have little to no use for it.
But the one number I seem to notice more than most is "444".
What is it's significance?

Before I moved to Texas, I'd always wake up at 4:44.
Regardless of what time I'd go to bed, "4:44" (am or pm) seemed to always to be the time I'd look at a clock.
This coincidence caused me to imagine it's significance.

The night before I found out I was coming to Texas - I took a walk on the local golf course to clear my head.
As I was walking, I found three balls that had been lost during someones play.
Three golf balls that all had the numeral "4" imprinted upon them.
Not all in one place, but spread across the length of three or four holes.

Later that night, my boy Turtle and I were headed out for another usual night of drinking, gambling and hoing.
As I noticed an oncoming thunder storm, "Some one is going to die tonight", I said.
"Maybe we should just have people over", my boy said.
"No foolio, not one of us. But someone we we know.", I said.
"Oh, that happens all the time.", he said.
"No, someone close to one of us.", was my reply.
"The next time we talk, one of us will mention that so-and-so died this night." I continued and then forgot all about it.

After a night on the town, I fell into a deep sleep that was filled with lucid dreams.
In this night's dreams, I would find myself in a Big Band Swing Club filled with people I'd known but who'd since passed away.
As I was dancing with some baad bodied-up girl I didn't know and enjoying a conversation with my departed grandfather - "But you better get out before the clock strikes four, because there's always room for just one more." was the lyric to the song the band leader was singing.
At this time my grandfather kicked me in the ass to quickly remove me from the dance floor.
I had wanted to stay a bit longer to have imagined conversations with friends I hadn't seen since they were alive.
But my grandfather forced me to leave the dance floor.
At this time, my grandmother joined my grandfather in a routine that would impress even Cab Calloway.

Later, I would awaken to news from my sister that my grandmother had passed away in the early hours of that morning.
Later still, I would inform my boy of my need to fly to Texas to handle the probating of a will because someone had actually died on the night I seemed to possess the gift of prescience.
Coincidence? Probably.

On the night of Obama's election - I commented that Obama would win because he would be the 44th President if elected in an election that would take place on the forth.
"444" again.
Since he'd noticed a painting in my home with a (not so) hidden 444 as a backdrop - he'd asked of it's significance.
When I retold the above story, he just stored it in his memory.
After Obama won, he'd reminded me of my fascination with the number and asked if numerology was real.
Shortly after, he would find himself checking the mail at his grandmothers house.
The clock in her car read "4:44".
"I'm going to get some money in the mail", he exclaimed.
"You don't have anyone who owes you money." she said.
Sure enough, he received a check in the mail.

"4" points on a compass.
"4" walls to rooms.
"4" phases of the moon.
"4" Beasts in Daniel.
"4" Gospels.

What is up with "4"?
Then I was looking up quotes for the above post -
John 4:44 (KJV) - For Jesus himself testified, that a prophet has no honor in his own land."
That was the kicker.
It semmed to be screaming at me, "John 4:44!.".
Maybe I belong in this seemingly God forsaken city.
Maybe "444" was my destiny after all.

Choke !

Maybe the Trojans should have let her play.
Damn... I knew USC was in trouble when the fell behind early in the game.
Unlike past years - this year's Trojan team usually starts fast and finishes slow.
This game was over before halftime.
Maybe I should move to Philly.
L.A. had two teams fighting for pennants - and both choked.
This Trojan loss was a terribly frightful way to end the week for any L.A. sports fan.

1 Florida - Embarrassed Georgia.
2 Alabama - Idle
3 Texas - Spanked Oklahoma St.
4 Iowa - Oh..... it doesn't even matter that they, along with TCU, Boise St., and Cincy, won.
My season is over.
Maybe the Trojans will enjoy being in the Holiday Bowl.

Friday, October 30, 2009

S.T.F.U.

So now some people are upset because they see non-Black women with makeup that darkens their skin on Tyra Banks' America's Next Top Model?
Pa-lease! How many photos of Tyra, Halle or Beyonce have been taken with makeup that is lighter than their own skin tone?
Is that "White Face"?

Real Black Face is a caricature of Blackness which exaggerates traits that are seen as different.
How many Black people are really that black ?
How many have big white lips?

One instance is using skin tone as an artistic expression,
the other is using skin tone to degrade a whole race.
(Not everything involving one's perceived racial traits is "Racist".)

Katie Price over-stuffed her chicken kievs as she competed with Gordon Ramsay on the F Word

Katie Price


Katie and Gordon


New best friends: Katie and Gordon pose for the cameras

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Bad Advice

Sometimes the worst advice we receive can come from within our own families.
I had a stepfather who thought his limited experiences and expectations would determine what was to be expected by us children.
While hard working - he never seemed to grasp the concept of growing beyond one's circumstances.
Anything aspirational was considered to be "Putting on Airs".

If we failed at something, he immediately told us that we were scrubs and that we would never be good in anything.
Since he was only my stepfather, I learned at an early age to ignore his ignorance.
I learned that, with enough practice, one could become proficient in most things.
I learned that there was no one way of acting Black and that Blacks were not confined to any limited definition.

Why do I bring all this up?
Because today I had to chastise a self righteous grandparent for telling her grandchildren that, "They will never be shit".
Sure, the kids were effing up. But their actions could be corrected.
The thing the grandmother failed to realize was that, while she was quick to berate, she offered no guidance on how to fix the problem.
Since she failed to solve the problem, she was part of the problem.

But this mentality is not endemic to one's family. Most self proclaimed "educated" people are quick to point out problems - but very few offer workable solutions to those same problems. Their biggest concern? Not being seen as a member of the group which they condemn.

But in reality, how can they offer practical solutions for problems they don't understand? Sure, most have the data - they just don't know how to interpret it. Without proper interpretation, what good are their views and answers?

Hijacked (Again)

Damn... it happened again.
My girl forced me to watch The Real Hoodrats finale.
Lisa - Okay, I could deal with her. She seems to be able to work with whatever condition arises. When she had to downsize, she just looked for the potential in the situation. The woman understands that she and her husband are a team.
Kandi - Maybe she lucked out of a bad situation. Not to be mean but she seems as though she could do better than a man with eight kids by ten baby momma.
Sheree' - Her fashion line was choppy. It was just a bunch of pieces - not cohesive collection. I like her fitness level but the bitch would get on my nerves.
Kim - Bitch please. Fake hair, fake tiddies - you're the most ghetto of the bunch.
Except for Nene - I guess every show needs an Amorosa character.

Cheyenne Tozzi Arriving For A Photo Shoot In Hollywood

Model Cheyenne Tozzi is seen arriving at at studio for a photo shoot in Hollywood. The aspiring singer arrived along side famous socialite Paris Hilton.


Model Cheyenne Tozzi is seen arriving at at studio for a photo shoot in Hollywood. The aspiring singer arrived along side famous socialite Paris Hilton.


Model Cheyenne Tozzi is seen arriving at at studio for a photo shoot in Hollywood. The aspiring singer arrived along side famous socialite Paris Hilton.


Model Cheyenne Tozzi is seen arriving at at studio for a photo shoot in Hollywood. The aspiring singer arrived along side famous socialite Paris Hilton.


Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Katy Perry as she dazzles at the premiere of Michael Jackson's

Katy PerryKaty Perry


Adam Lambert

Katy Perry rediscovered her sophisticated side just in time for the LA premiere of the Michael Jackson film

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Gawker - Halloween Porn

As I was cruising around http://gawker.com/
and it's sister sites, it seems that they are celebrating sex this Halloween.
Umm... this contraption for spending some "alone time" is pretty scary.

Butt (sic) these ass speakers are more funny.

It seems that even comic books have jumped on the trend.

1/10

Why convert the hood to the good?
Or why do people even attempt the impossible?
Is there really such a thing as the Talented Tenth?

Most people who have "made it" seem to think that if everyone followed their example or their way of thinking then everything and everyone would be alright.
But most fail to realize that the paths that led to "success" are many and varied.
That most success stories are filled with as much inspiration, Divine intervention or luck as they are hard work.
That there is no one "right" answer.

But the motivation behind such thinking is usually selfish in it's origin.
Most people who have all the appearances of being on the other side are often sick of being; "The only Black...", "The first Black...", or the "Best Black...".
Most of these people are only seeking some form of familiarity in an unfamiliar environment.
For many, these blogs are the only place where they can openly discuss issues with people who have a similar experience as their own. (Even if their places of origin vary.)

Another difference is that many are discussing problems from a point of view that is beyond that of being aspirational or acquisitive.
Their goal is not to conform nor to fit in to a certain affectational (My word, I don't know the variant of "affectation".) group - but that of getting others into that group.
For many, they have the game figured out.
Their goal is to translate their own success to others who may be seeking the same end.

I (as have many on these blogs) have been the first Black attending, playing, working or having many things.
But that gets old.

I have been hated on by other Blacks for "Selling Out", only to have another more credible brotha' put the haters in their place by explaining that I was breaking new ground for others to follow.
When I was a freshman in high school on the varsity swim and water polo teams, I had to walk past the brotha's as I went through the usual freshman hazing of carrying the teams equipment.
The brotha' running things pointed out that I was shattering stereotypes and that they needed to support my efforts.
I think it was the first time that our school had a mass of Black football and basketball players cheering at the "Whiteboy Sporting Events".
(The brotha who had my back was later repaid years later when his younger brother was caught up in a bad situation that I could handle. Doing the right thing seems to catch up with you.)
I have been called a "Company Man" only to open doors for others who were seeking a position.
I have been called a "Tom" because I developed social relationships with cops who would later handle situations for brotha's who where about to be railroaded.
I have been called a "House Nigga'" because we moved out of the hood to the hills.
I have been called "Soft" only to prove that I also came from the hood.
I have been threatened with being jumped - but that has never happened.
I have as much reason to hate those with less means as does anyone else - but I don't.

How many hoes (I don't mean all women, just the easy ones.) can a man do?
How many homes can one own?
How many cars can one drive?
How many parties can one attend?
How many Valentino suits, Vacheron Constantin watches or Salvatore Ferragamo shoes can one wear?
When has one had enough of the game to realize that winning that game really doesn't matter?

Matthew 24:36


"But of that day and hour knoweth no man..."
2012 is the end of of a (roughly) 5125 year cycle of the Mayan Long Count calendar and the Tzolkin and Haab.
But why do many believe the hype?

Wasn't Y2K sandwiched between the expectation of Hal and the party thrown by Prince?
And didn't Orwell have a view similar to the one appropriated by Apple in their 1984 commercial?

If 2012 is the latest End of Days, why are so many concerned?

Monday, October 26, 2009

Kung Fu

Kung Fu ; "Any individual accomplishment or skill cultivated through long and hard work."

Gesticulation

With the recent rise of interactions between other races and Blacks - it seems that many people are confused with the proper way to greet and interact with Black people.
Pumping ones fist in excitement, a la Arsenio Hall, is permitted - but do it right.
The motion is a forward throwing motion - not a reversed motion as though one is reeling in a fish.
Forward = excitement or approval
Backwards = reeling in a fish.
Got it?
Good.
Now the next pointer.

The Man Hug is permitted for those with whom you have developed a close relationship.
But it isn't really a hug at all.
Hugging a man is wrong.
(*Unless you go that way - then, that's your business.)

The proper man hug is really a hand shake that is amplified by a quick shoulder bump followed by a quick verbal expression of joy at having run into a brotha'.
(*No caress is involved.)

Don't try to keep up with the latest and coolest hand shakes.
The traditional European Handshake is acceptable,
because we know that you are white.
Any attempt at an ethnic variation will probably be viewed as pandering.
(When all else fails - stick to what you know.)


This has been a public service to those who are now forced to interact with those of a different culture.
Please return to and enjoy your previously scheduled entertainment.