THE WILLIAMS EFFECTS

Over the past few days I watched the longest playing political sitcom nearing the end of its second season. Why do I say this? Well May and June is when all the other Television Shows end their seasons and the way the Democrats are playing out their scripts, the Season Finale should end pretty much around the same time LOST leaves the American people in the same state. Some time around September or October when the NEW SEASON re-airs, the Cliffhanger that is “WHO WILL BE THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE will be the new storyline that the American people will follow, with new characters (since Romney, Guliani, Bill Clinton, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Anne Colter and if we are lucky Rush Limbaugh will be written out like poorly written Soap Opera sub-plots) and NEW players will surface to bring about new Dramas and Laughs to boost the ratings. So until then we will watch a Summer of Sports and that sport of choice for me will be TENNIS.

As a youth, my parents encouraged me to participate in sports. I played some of every MASCULINE DRIVEN sports; Football, Basketball, Baseball, Wrestling, Volleyball, Swimming, Track and Field and for a short time Tennis. Tennis didn’t stick but for that short period of time, I learned one thing, I didn’t like playing the sport but loved watching it. Years later I chose the sport I liked most and excelled at it well into and after my college years. As the years continued, I learned by working in youth sports, to enjoy watching kids try and find themselves through their experiences in sports. In the 1990’s I had a few youth players enter into an Annual Summer Youth competition where our elite Tennis players were up against a group of players from California. I was to soon learn that our BEST PLAYERS got WALKED ALL UP THEIR BACKS AND NECKS WITH COMPTON HEELS by two little girls with the last name’s of WILLIAMS. That was the first time I witnessed the talents of Serena and Venus Williams.

The best part about my time working with youth and sports is that many on the Premium Players then that survived their Inner City circumstances, are now some of the most visible leaders in their field and seeing the Williams Sisters grow into World Recognizable Status makes a person proud.

So when Venus came of age, the Tennis World couldn’t wait. Being unorthodox in her training and experience she started out shaky and so did her Critics. There wasn’t a kind word at all about her abilities. The comments that came with Venus Williams’ arrival to the Sport of tennis were Racist (especially since the Tennis Association WAS and elitist Sport to begin with). I followed the media; I collected and taped everything Venus Williams. I even had a storage boxes and file cabinets of articles, newspapers and magazines of everything written which in the late 90’s was pretty much all anti-WILLIAMS which detailed her inability to WIN the big ones. Then Serena came along and that only heightened the negative press. For a time I followed USA Today’s forum on Women’s Tennis and in my experience, the International Community had nothing but NEGATIVE comments as well. I mean they were NASTY. For every one posting, there were 25 NASTY comments with only HIGH PRAISE for people like Lindsay Davenport, Martina Hingis, Jennifer Capriati and Anna Kournikova. To the World and America, those Women were the darlings and future of TENNIS. To their surprise and America’s, THE WILLIAMS in a short period of time crushed and forced that same NEGATIVE World to Recognize that they were in Tennis to win it, and Venus and Serena Williams WON IT ALL for several years straight.

So once the two sisters got into their stride, there was A CHANGE in the whole game of tennis. People began to notice the SPORT. Sponsors wanted to be apart of the game, fashion, soft drink companies, cosmetics, McDonalds and Hollywood. Then there were the MILLIONS of dollars that came rushing in like the rains of NOAH. The Tennis Association embraced these "two little ashy kneed, Ghetto playing, Compton plastic bead wearing, Amazon darlings of the TENNIS WORLD". The Naysayers had to eat crow and apologized or grudgingly learned to accept the fact that DIFFERENT wasn’t DEFICIENT and these girls were SERIOUS and could PLAY. There style of play so GREAT that it lifted the level of PLAY across the board on both the Women’s and the Men’s side of the game. This all may be HISTORY to some but it isn’t where I want to go with this story, what I want to do is concentrate on the RELATIONSHIP of the Sisters themselves.

By 1999 America now had two viable Champions that they could stand behind to represent the very best that a country had to offer, “even if they were BLACK”. Their consistency took the country into a ZONE that it could not wake up from. No matter what you though about the Sisters, the FATHER or the family background, Tennis, America, Whites and Blacks knew they had champions, even when they HAD to play each other. And there developed a slight problem. The Sisters were so GOOD that the only people capable of beating them were themselves. As such, AMERICA and the TENNIS WORLD had to decide whom they liked BEST.

SOUNDS FAMILIAR??

Last Tuesday I wanted to make this my Blog topic of the day but my act of Civil Disobedience delayed it. The Political Battles of Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama continued with a 1 to 1 win, Hillary winning Indiana and Obama taking North Carolina. Surprise or no surprise, each won the states they were suppose to win. As they say, a win is a win. Much like tennis, if you take the way the Williams Sisters play, you know from the beginning, they were going to MOP the floor with the chicks on the field and then up the playing once they got to the higher tier players. We knew that once the higher tier players were put away, in the finals you had Venus on one side and Serena on the other. Once that happened AMERICA HAD TO DECIDE. It wasn’t as simple as, “Oh I am just happy that they both made it to the finals because they will both be winners.” NO DAMN IT! Someone has to win and someone had to loose.

The Williams came from the same PARTY, my bad, the same FAMILY. Both are strong players, same talents, same background, the same opportunities but once one looks deeper, there is that one thing that makes a person PULL for one sister over the other. For me, Venus is my choice. She was the first to emerge, the oldest, the more controlled, her goals were loftier, her talents mostly from hard work and dedication and not natural ability unlike Serena, who is a NATURAL TENNIS PLAYER and even by her family’s acknowledgement, is the BETTER PLAYER. You see, I am an Underdog lover and Venus Williams is the Underdog when comparing the two.

Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama, right now are a product of THE WILLIAMS EFFECT. The two are so evenly matched and loved that now the two are meeting at Center Court for the Finals of the GRAND SLAM and America is forced to take a side. Even though in the end, the PEOPLE will be satisfied with the Winner, both will benefit in the end. You might ask how? Lets take a look at political benefits of these two if either accepts the Second Place trophy.

Hillary Clinton is the consummate politician. There is no one on the Political landscape, media, or grassroots can say that Hillary Clinton don't know Politics and the tools to become a good one. You don’t become a leading Presidential candidate on a whim nor do you become a person that is a catalyst in a Political movement that can and has ignited a Nation and a World to pay attention to every word and step you take unless you have the ability to command that attention and or respect. In a short time being active in politics and the history being politically behind and in the forefront as an established influence, as Senator of the United States she stands at the front of the Class as the WOMAN that holds more that 46% of the Democratic Party behind her as most favorite Politician. A Democratic Politician that has left a footprint in all 50 States; good or bad. A Democratic Politician that has played torchbearer in every other Senator’s and House Representative’s backyard. She has carved out a successful Physical presence as well as Political influence that can carry for several years and across several generations. So what if Senator Hillary Clinton looses the nomination for President, She goes back to Congress as the MOST INFLUENTIAL POLITICIAN on the Hill because she has done something that Ted Kennedy, John McCain, John Kerry, Joe Lieberman and a minor few has not been able to do, and that is to ignite the interest of Millions to Vote. Millions more than her counterparts were unable to do. Regardless of her “married name”, Hillary Clinton still had to do the work, and WORK she is and had done. Like a Williams Sister, they earned every POINT and not one was given freely.

In playing on the courts (still using the tennis references), Hillary Clinton knows the angles to play. She sees the lines, the weakness, the good calls and the potential bad calls, but like the WILLIAMS SISTERS, when in the beginning of their playing careers, the crowds were against them. Hillary’s level of Political play to NOT give in or give up, to come back from behind and to TALK THE TALK of the Working Poor and Blue Collar and the Small Towns will and have given her the Aces to play when reaching across the aisles and proposing Bills that benefit those 46% that backed her during her run for President. For some, that might sound like a REACHING PROBABILITY but it isn’t a stretch, especially since the new politics of today has re-written the book on what is Normal Politics.

Like THE WILLIAMS EFFECT, when each Sister Opens Up A Can of WHOMP-ASS on the field and end up playing each other in the finals of the Grand Slam, they sometimes clean-up playing in DOUBLES. When that happens, the Sisters take home the Jackpots of First and Second Prize and then the First Prize in the doubles. Separately the SISTERS improve their status and rankings as number 1 and number 2, their money and influence also rises, and depending on when they peak, the two can and DID capture GOLD METALS during Olympic Years. If Hillary is Venus Williams than Barak Obama is Serena with a No Holds Barred attitude and soon he will garner a SERENA SLAM and capture the love of those on the other side of the Sister Love. Do they collect the Singles or do they consider the Doubles as well? Either way, it is a WIN WIN situation because it’s THE WILLIAMS EFFECT.

Together the Sisters are in love with each other. Of course they have their moments (as all sisters do, and I know because I have four of them) but when it come down to WORK, they snap to it really quick. Hillary Clinton is playing her game until she looses and right now, she has not loss. Calling it, she is in the Third set, and in tiebreakers where SHE and Obama are going back and forth, point for point. Someone has to loose and someone has to win, and in the end, one of the Sisters will reach across the net, shake hands, hug, laugh and giggle and then divide the spoils between the two because in the end, the Prize stays within the family. What happens after the GRAND SLAM depends on the Sisters and there are more Slams, more Players to PUT IN THEIR PLACE, more Games and more challengers to watch out for. You see, sometimes going for the BIG PRIZE, you become limited in what you can really do unless you have backing. Considering the Second Prize can be either going back to the Senate with PREZ CRED or Vice President with Back Up Cred. And this is why I look at Obama because how he WINS will determine how he might loose.

In the Past, the media has always looked for a way to get in between the Williams Sister’s relationship. Even at their dominance in the sport, the players, the Tennis Association, the media has tried to create drama, animosity and psychological difference between the two but that BLOOD mixed with their SPIRIT was the shield that rejected all attempts. If anything, it brought them closer. Not a word or a motion, a gesture or a look gave any evidence that their LOVE for family was in doubt. THE WILLIAMS EFFECT not only demonstrate the proper way to handle the stress of being a leader, but it taught lesson of Grace and Dignity. Obama and Hillary in the end has shown this contrary to the MEDIA’S reporting otherwise.

For Obama loosing the nomination (which at this writing doesn’t seem to be the case), he sits upon the same perch that Hillary would sits upon if roles were reversed. His popularity far outweighs any of the most Senior of Statesmen on Capitol Hill. He also has a fair number of Delegates and Super Delegate behind him with over 53% of American Democrats tugging on his sweaty towel. That type of influence can garner a lot of favors and support. Think about this for a minute, Obama has an open invitation into a Youth Momovement that can guarantee a political base for the next 15 to 20 years. Like the Bill Clinton Generation of the early 1990’s, you can ride this wave just like that crowds at the US Open and Wimbledon throughout the stadium. All it takes is one person to move the crowd and everyone else follows smiling and laughing because they too were in the mix, moving the energy in the direction of the masses.

So, as a Senator, whenever Obama goes before the Congress, no matter what side of the aisle you are on, you have to acknowledge that he has the ability to swing supporters from any and all 50 States because like Hillary Clinton, he has played in all courts and surfaces as well due to his success. Both have changed the nature of the Game; the Political Game. Like THE WILLIAMS EFFECT, all the other players are either breaking or broke down due to the stress of playing a Williams Style Game (Jennifer Capriati, Martina Hingis, Monica Seles, Mary Pierce) or they had to step up their Game (Lindsay Davenport, Kim Clijsters, Amelie Mauresmo, Justine Henin-Hardenne, Maria Sharapova). To relate it to the Political field just substitute any of the prior names with people like Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Fred Thompson, Joseph Biden, Chris Dodd, or a John Edwards. Not one of them could, did or will command the type of popularity that a Hillary Clinton or Barak Obama currently command or ever will. Much like THE WILLIAMS EFFECT, Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama have changed the toporgraphy of American Politics; the old tricks and assumptions no longer work. The CHANGE is so evident that even the REPUBLICANS has been effected in its methodology, message, and appeal within its own Party. The Clinton Campaign's initial messages and images that normally worked during National Elections had to be revisited and re-tooled for a newer strategies which had to appeal to "real people". It was because of this quick-to-change that Hillary Clinton was able to achieve a "stay in it to win it" posture. No different than the sport of tennis when a Champion starts out down to then battle back for the win (typical of a Williams sister). It was in her (Clinton) ability to do it quickly and decisively that separated from the rest of the field.

So here we are, at the Finals and the Serena vs. Venus/Hillary vs. Obama Grand Slam which is set for Prime Time, the first time ever. There are millions of viewers watching just to see what the excitement is all about. These two TITANS will be grunting and serving at speeds and power that will defy any one familiar or unfamiliar with the SPORT. If I recall correctly, the first time was a bit ANTI-CLIMATIC. Serena Won In Two Sets and for the Venus fans, we were disappointed. We wanted more and got less but even though she didn’t win over her Kid Sister something happened, WE GOT OVER IT because they were still CHAMPIONS and no one was even close to their CLASS OF SPORTSMANSHIP. America or at least the National Tennis Associations has to or had acknowledge that the Williams Sisters has changed the nature of the sport for a New Generation. Their presence had excited tennis and non-tennis players alike, more tennis clinics and instructors are finding work and purpose, tennis attendance has increased exponentially (US Open tickets jumped from an average of $30 to over $150 in a single year with the SISTERS in play, more Black and Brown folk took to the sport and over all the HATERS (John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert; the Tennis Pundits of the Sport) have all fallen in-line to go with the momentum of the PEOPLE and watch some good A$$ TENNIS .Same here. We are living in a world where we are experiencing some GOOD ASS POLITICS.

A BENEDICTINE HOUSE CLEANING

For a while, it seemed as though my mind had turned off. I am not use to living my life in an emotional flux. Most people not connected to me personally would most likely think I am insensitive to the world around me but in truth I am very much affected by the events around me.

My brain is constantly stimulated. Often times it is so hyper stimulated that I find myself getting a bit scattered trying to keep pace with my thoughts. It is worst then my body is tired and my brain is running a marathon. That is where reading and sometimes Junk Food Television come into play. Last night was one of those times.

Getting over my emotional setback, I began writing again. It was after midnight with my mind in overdrive as I struggled to focus on a topic to write on, I flipped the channel to the late News. It’s a habit to have the television on for me. I tried to do it in compete silence but it never took. A sociologist told me once that this television thing is a product of my early childhood when television became a member of the American family and as such, it became a part of my though process. Television then as it is now in the background is much like having a person in the room with you; someone having a conversation. Although you may not be paying attention to any one particular show, the voices in the background produces a subconscious “comfort” that helps me focus my over active mind.

WHATEVER. I like TV as oppose to quite and music so that's what I was doing just before I heard in the background about the latest Celeb to hit the streets on New York.

So while thinking about doing something on my conversation with this kid I met who is in the S&M (for which I know you are all looking forward to reading), I got caught up in New York’s preparation for the Pope’s visit next week. Funny how I go from S&M to the Pope in once sentence Right?

Well I am listening to how the Pope’s visit is to make people here loose their minds. I mean you have the Catholic Churches cleaning house. You know how at work when you know the District Manager or the CEO is coming through for a visit and all of a sudden “everyone” has to UP his or her professionalism like cleaning off the desk, no more casual dress, rehearsing possible answers to questions you might be asked, you know all the phony prep work. You have the news promoting youth choirs made up of little Black and Brown children singing Gregorian chants songs in Latin, information on how traffic will change, the Who’s Who list of dignitaries that will have VIP seats to see the Pope, his United Nation’s agenda, then there are the Commercial items like tee-shits, mugs, hats, bobble-heads, sandwiches and then you have all the Catholic representative speculating how much grace and gratitude the Pope will bestow upon the people of the New York City.

Huuuummmmm?


There goes my brain working overtime. I begin to think back about the time Pope John Paul II made his World tour to the New York area back in the day and how he stirred up similar excitement BUT the only difference was, I was working for a Catholic school and TRUST ME, when a Pope visits, it isn’t for the purpose of spreading the Gospel, he’s here CLEANING HOUSE.

It was very resent that there were reports that Christendom in the West is on a major decline. Not just Catholicism, but all Christian faiths in Europe. For the most part, religion in general is and has taken a back seat to Europe’s embrace of real World philosophies and socio-economic practices. I like how the Christian Conservatives in America define the movement as the GODLESSNESS OF EUROPE. From the many ethnic groups that have either migrated to Europe or have lived for generations throughout the Western World, the shared consciousness of those opposed to Christianity and its affects on countries outside of Europe is coined as, “ …. Jesus Christ symbolizes no spiritual power, or moral uprightness. He is no more than an artifice for legitimizing wanton imperialist aggression.” It is in this belief that has turned those non-European countries and cultures away from the Gospel that is the “Word” of Christians and into the interest of Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism and Islam. With Catholics being 22% of America’s religious population (Latinos making up the Majority) 64% state that the Catholics Church is out of touch. That is a problem when you have an organization that forbids criticism. What is especially interesting is that Islam is now the fastest growing religion in the World and has the most actively participating faith on the land. Historically, these two Religions not only encompassed the known Western World but transformed it in their intense religious war killing 100's of thousands possibly millions undocumented. Some would argue that since there is a decline in Christian followers in Europe, this has become fertile ground for new and more Eastern philosophies to enter into the void. Others argue that in the decline of secular and Christian churches in the West, the ability to expand into other countries and cultures to make up the difference are aggressively declined where as in the West, the boarders are traditionally open to non-Christian faiths, constituting an unfair advantage. Regardless of the reasons, the numbers are down and for the Vatican, so are the dollars.

Working within the Catholic organization in the 1990's, and I may sound bias when I say this, BUT the bottom line was Parishioners and Dollars. There was never a moment, behind closed doors, that the books weren't open and people were dropping sweat balls in between the pages of the rolls. When Pope John Paul II was in New York, heads rolled, Mother Superiors and Monsignors were running with ledgers in hand, simple meetings went on for hours and sometimes days. No one without a potion of responsibility was absent and or not held under deep scrutiny and when it was all done, the organization was streamlined, lay-people (those are Non-Catholic employees) were let go, schools and churches closed and a HIGH LEVEL CAMPAIGN for recruiting younger members became the focus. Just sitting back and watching the television, I see this heavy rotation concentrated on YOUTH participation, organizations and education. This same focus was exactly what was pushed more than 10 years ago. Then again, so was the Gulf War. I suspect Pope Benedict XVI will be doing the same even if the US News and the Catholic Media machine are down playing it. The Catholic Church is in trouble and when you get the HEAD to leave the thrown, you know that the kingdom is going to be shaken up.

This statement just might sound a bit stiff and again a little bias but the Pope’s visit is nothing new to New York. I can give you a listing of Important and Famous people where the entire city rolls out the red carpet. It is business as usually to shut down streets, redirect traffic, creating tee-shirts with someone’s face on it or have the entire city’s News agencies forget that there are other events going on at the same time. The Pope’s visit is just one more tourist attraction. Already the losers of the Theater Strike of 2007 are looking forward for making up their loss with the Pope’s visit. Amazingly enough, I don’t hear much about what Message of God that Pope Benedict XVI plans to bring. How is that for keeping the faith alive?

MONTEL WILLIAMS CASUALTY OF IRAQ INVASION

No sooner than I send off STAR JONES and close the door, Montel Williams gets my attention as he asks for his hat and coat to leave as well. My BLACK TV HOST PARTY is starting to get smaller.

Montel Williams is the latest casualty of the Iraq Invasion and the FOX Network. Montel the ex-Marine, Rodeo Clown, National Syndicated Talk Show Host, Spokes Person for (MS) Multiple Sclerosis, Spokes Person for Partnership for Prescription Assistance, Speaker of Veterans’ Rights and now recently fired from the FOX Network.

Lets just detail how this happened:

"Shortly before Fox-owned and operated television stations in major markets terminated Montel's talk-show contract, Montel appeared in an interview on Fox News Channel's Fox and Friends, and was asked to discuss Heath Ledger's death. He used the interview to point out that TV networks had continued to extensively cover Mr. Ledger's death while ignoring the deaths of 28 US soldiers in Iraq since the beginning of the year. Montel expressed sympathy for Mr. Ledger's family and remorse for his passing but also encouraged the three interviewers to recognize the absence of coverage for the US soldiers killed in Iraq. The interviewers sought to point out that their audience wanted celebrity news and it was more interesting than soldier deaths. Montel suggested that US news networks had the capacity to lead the country's attitudes by placing more importance on US deaths in Iraq than the deaths of celebrities. Montel noted that he had awoken that morning very saddened by the unknown names of those slain in Iraq and was further saddened when he could not find their names on the web.

Three minutes into this awkward segment on Fox, one host cut off Montel in order to go to a commercial. Montel did not return after the break."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montel_Williams

Four days later, after 17 years as a television host, Montel lost his job. The SPIN is that Montel Williams quit. I find it hard to believe that a man of his caliber, with the OUTREACH of a NATIONALLY syndicated show and the causes he support would QUIT. Last I checked, Marines don’t QUIT.

I am not a big Montel Williams fan. I won’t front and say I never was but like all things, some of his personal philosophies rubbed hard against many of my beliefs. Personally I feel many of his Montel’isms are a product of his military career (which in itself is a unique ideology) and choices in his personal life. But that is the beauty in GOD’s creation, we are all uniquely different individuals and thus the spirit of a MAN allows for civilized co-existence or at least in the United States the Right to agree to disagree without fist-to-cuffs. Regardless of my indifference to Montel Williams, I don’t like when people get JACKED and AXED for speaking Truth. The MAN SPOKE truth and for it, he is not necessarily SILENCED but is stabbed at his reputation and the money he makes. You see most people fear for their lives but WEALTHY people fear POVERTY more. To go for the pockets/pocketbooks is the standard for silencing the wealthy and FOX decided to go that routine which as far as I'm concern will be a practice of the past come election time.

I recall a speech made several years ago where the topic was BUYING BLACKS OUT OF THEIR COMMUNITIES. The speaker spoke on how various annals of America tease and titillate the most talented in BLACK communities with promises of Money, Political Influence (never any real Power), Fame and Beauty. The speaker also detailed a number of Blacks whom had taken the APPLE FROM THE TREE and decided to share that knowledge or speak for those they had left behind and the actions taken to bring them down and or silenced before they succeeded. He had also detailed those that currently are riding the wave of success and in Black’s praise of them, only time will show if they will compromise or reach out to help others rise as well. So far, they haven’t. Montel wasn’t on that short list but the events of his show’s cancellation clearly details how much loyalty one has for the TRUTH and the extent THE POWERS THAT BE would go to destroy it.

Lately Montel Williams have gone public to discuss his objection to Obesity, Child Abuse, Internet Predators, Holistic Living, Detoxing of the Body, making the names of Military Officers Public, the effects of Poverty in Relation to Crime and many more social concerns. With his Talk Show as a venue for discussion, it was only a matter of time before the FOX Network saw fit to cancel his show. It’s like that one person at work that gets all the accolades. As long as he/she doesn’t affect the Boss or Supervisor they are safe. Bring attention that their performance is better or more efficient, they are gone because of some minor infraction. Montel, not wanting to talk about a dead man and the details of his death before an autopsy was done was a fair and respectful as well as an honorable thing to do. His Momma taught him well.

Am I upset that his show was cancelled. Not really, I didn’t watch it and yet it does not take away from the fact that others did and that Montel Williams did serve a purpose and regardless of my personal feelings toward him, I’d still call on him to do GREAT THINGS in my community. He’s a Good Man and FOX doesn’t want Good Men, they only want SHEEP. Last time I checked, the Marines Don’t Do Sheep.

STAR TODAY GONE TOMORROW

I never understood the desperation by which people aspire to be famous. There was a time where there were shows on PBS and the ABC After School Specials (yeah I know, I'm dating myself with that one) where the overall theme was to, “Be yourself”. Some show themes talked about how loosing your identity can do my damage to you and your family than friends than all the fame in the world. People like Brittney Spears being shipped to the CRAZY HOUSE, ACTIVE THREATS against OJ Simpson, OVERDOSING of Heath Ledger, you ask yourself how much of your soul to you sell for that kinda life?

Well in the business, STARS rise and stars fall. They get up there again but at some point they implode and become nothing more than echoes in the sky.

The STAR JONES SHOW has been cancelled. He’s what they say in Reuters edition Jan. 31, 2008:

"Due to the re-branding and programming refocus of the network, truTV and Star Jones Reynolds have mutually agreed to cease production of 'The Star Jones Show,"' said a memo from Marc Juris, executive vice president and general manager of the channel formerly known as Court TV.

The show, which began in August, showcased Reynolds' work as a TV host and former lawyer. She will remain with the network as a contributor to the channel's trial coverage."

Two things. They are actually re-tooling the image of truTV (and by the way, what F&*%’ing idiot came up with that TAG?) or the STAR JONES SHOW was so bad and a drain on the budget that to just come out and say the FAT LADY (I mean the simmer and more slimmer LADY) just hit her last note and its time to “EXIT, STAGE RIGHT”.

I would bet on the latter. I watched STAR’s show and I honestly gave her my support and prospers. I like a good comeback story, especially how ABC did her. In recent Blogs such as You Should Have Learned Your ABC's, posted on Yahoo360’s Blog site on June 13, 2007, I detailed the cold decisions that Entertainment and Media, specifically ABC, can make at the expense of the bottom line or personal feelings. In light of ABC's diminishing number of Black Actors and non-existing News and National Corespondents, actors like Isaiah Washington (Grey's Anatomy), Star Jones (The View), Taye Diggs (Day Break) and Alfre Woodard (Desperate Housewives) have come and quickly gone on to where most Black actors go until someone at a desk in Hollywood feels the pressure to show some Color in a project. So in my support of the underdog I watched the STAR JONES SHOW and watched and watched and then I started to yawn. That was all SHE WROTE. I started to get the STAR TREATMENT; attitude, Star’isms, personal rants and if I hear one more time about WHAT HER GRANDMA told here or scolded her about I was going to scream. Maybe she should have ignored Grandma more and did what was needed and kept the show a legitimate LEGAL SHOW. The show started to become everything that people turned off to when she was on The View.

When Star dropped knowledge it was for the better. It initially was advertised as a place to get legal information from. It was also suppose to be a show with "a little of this and a little of that." RED FLAG !!! But I still had love for my STAR. I recall an earlier show where she discussed A Patients Bill of Rights, the rights of a patient to keep their medical records secure and private. After that show I began to pull that knowledge into play and got very positive results. There were other shows that talked about money issues, credit protection, false arrests, orders of protection and a personals legal right to act against Credit Card Companies. Shows like "When is it right to sue your family when they steal your identity?" There were a few great legal stories up in her lineup that I made sure I recorded or jotted down the details, but that other SHYT? What was that all about?

OJ Simpson, Brittney Spears, Kidnapped Babies, Wives disappearing (when we all know the HUSBAND DID IT), it was the same TV that many people turn to cable to escape. Star Jones went from Lawyer Girl to Gossip Girl in a matter of three months. The format kept changing, o’ Girl kept trying new things out; there were very few ONE ON ONES. I mean where were the exclusive Celebrity Contract Disputes, the CEO’s caught with their hands in the cookie jars, where were the pieces on WHERE ARE THE GOVERNMENT AND CORPORATE WHISTLE BLOWERS NOW? How about a step-by-step list on what to do when you WIN the lottery? I mean there was so much a person can do and all I got was ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT meets TMZ meets THE COCHRAN GROUP. In essence, there was too much FAT and not enough LEAN.

STAR STAR STAR … you should know about getting rid of the FAT GIRL SNACKS, the Fluff and Sweets, the salt and grease. After a few months the show started to get REAL MESSY especially with the exclusive OJ Simpson coverages. That was the final sign that the show was doomed to fail. It would have been a BOLD STATEMENT to NOT cover that bogus trial. Star Jones told us she would be directly involve in all aspects of the show. Maybe she needed a little HANDS OFF TREATMENT with this one. I don’t want to hate too much cause I like you Star (and based upon the people I talk to – Sistahs included, they ain’t feelin you too much) I want you to bounce … I mean get back in the saddle. Not the one you got at home for your FREAK FELLAH I mean back in front of the camera so we can REALLY SEE the legal mind your have. People need more of that then all the Celebrity CRAP truTV or LawTV or whatever they want to call it now tried to spoon-feed instead of a bogus recipe on how to bring down the HEAVENS and a STAR.

SOUL TRAIN WAS SO GAYS

My sister had a party not long ago, a self-organized self-indulgent Birthday party; it was one of those Waaaaaaaayyyyyy Over The Top Black Tie Affair Jammies. So as family do, we all attended and grinned and tolerated it for the LOVE OF FAMILY. Before the end of this "Self Indulgence of Grandeur", the DJ announced that it was time to do the Soul Train Line and he dedicated it to my sister. By the way, did I mention that my sister is a DIVA?

So we all got up and lined up, Men on one side, Women on the other. Some were excited to get up and flaunt their hot mini dresses (a shitty mess if I ever saw) and ther MOVIE HAIR, the fellahs were trying to set themselves up to get with the HOTTIE across from them (last chance for a post-party bootycall) and show just how much gyration they had left in their hips. Then there were my Parents, Brother and younger Sisters whom all had that, “Oh I am so over this” look on the face, and then there was ME, the oldest of the family and HOT to make a fool out of myself. Ol’ ASS ME, in a suit, giving everyone my best Cellie shimmy between a corridor of Black Folk bent on reliving a cultural ritual. A ritual that connected every generation in the room to each other through music, laughter and dance. Fun was had by all, and we all came home satisfied that we continued a tradition of the Soul Train Line that will out live and remain current far longer that the “slide” up to that funny Soulja Boy dance he’s pawning off.

That was then, this is now.

Lately I have been a night owl. Not a good thing on my part because now, in the daytime, I am like Fred Sanford talking to Aunt Ester, "EVIL to the core. I don’t like anything or anyone until the afternoon. Since I try not to pollute my mind with the idiot box, I temper what I watch which is usually the NEWS or the History Channel. So this particular afternoon, as I began to become normal and accept the fact that I am part of the HUMAN RACE, I saw Soul Train was about to come on. I had gotten away from the show for a while, back since the days of SHEmar Moore. I mean Don Cornelius was the MAN. That tall ass 'RANG-A-TANG of a man intimidated everyone that came on the show. Brotha could palm your face with his index finger and thumb and still slap yo’ ass with a pinkie. I LOVE IT cause you had to come correct and if you didn’t, you felt a CHILL IN THE AIR, like the music industry Mafia was waiting in the wings to bust you up some. You had to SING and DANCE and TALK, none of that scripted RAP or Fluff. THE DON had no problems asking what your mother’s name is, your church you attended and the last time you were there, if you could actually READ and WRITE music and if you couldn't THE DON asked you "WHY NOT"? He was THE DON and everyone kissed his ring for acceptance. Then SHEmar Moore took his place and that was when I knew The Don wanted a more hands off on the hosting.

I understood why Shemar Moore was there. He was the eye-candy for the GIRLS and GURLZ, with his Pretty Ass Self. Problem I had was, he was trying to play like he was hardcore and a THUG. No No No No No, Negro was a bi-racial (confused) little boy traveling the WORLD and living in AFRICA. Last I checked the Bloods and Crips didn’t quite reach that far – YET. I mean, SHEmar didn’t even grow up eating Government cheese (then again he could have eaten African Government Goat made with Rhino Blood for all I know but its not the same as the ORANGE BLOCKS here in America) but still he was not hardly HARDCORE or Ghetto so I was like “Auuggghhh, Don’t Talk!! Just smile, lick your lips and keep your shirt open and show the nipple for the ladies.”

Then there was Dorian Gregory, MR CHARMED himself. He tried the Hardcore thing too but all I kept seeing was the dorky kid that use to have a runny nose back in the day who read comic books and ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch all the time (sorry, I’m channeling MORNING TIME RIGHT NOW, I’LL CALM DOWN SOME). Then they took it a step further and was dressing him is Bozo Gear by Jay-Z and Puffy. It was like watching my father being dressed by those QUEER GUYS FOR STR8 GUYS but could only shop in 125th Street in Harlem on a welfare budget. “Come on, ladies, you can’t possibly tell me Mr. Charmed looked good in 8 Ball jackets saying Yo Yo Yo all the time?” I kept hoping those three little White girls came a chanting, "THE POWER OF THREE WILL SET YOU FREE." It never happened and eventually he was taken back to the WB or to some Never Never Land or OZ or some magical place called Hollywood.

Yet I continued to watch occasionally, even when they threw Nick Cannon up there. He was good considering the direction of the show, Young, Hip-Hop, Rap and Lip-Sync’ing. I knew then that you weren’t going to get people like Stevie Wonder, Earth Wind and Fire, The Isley Brothers, Smokey Robinson, Chaka Khan, Roy Ayers, Keith Sweat, Take 6, Brian McKnight, Aaron Neville, Will Downing, Kenny Lattimore, Regina Belle, or a Yolanda Adams to appear anymore. I like Nick and all but he is a BABY compared to these music legends and mainstays. I mean what is he really going to ask them, “So do your kids have the new PLAYSTATION and can you DROP IT LIKE ITS HOT?” That was when I stopped watching, as I can also assume, did many others that grew up on the TRAIN.


Then something wonderful happened. THE DON, in his greatness decided to NIX the Modern Train and go back to the Basics with Classic Soul Train. Now we see all the re-runs of the Train dating back 30 years. I AM LOVIN’ IT. Not only does SOUL TRAIN air the classics, where I am, it comes on in the early afternoon and late evenings. I get a double shot of nostalgia. I sit with family as we talk about the music and the fashions. It’s like looking at your parent’s Yearbook …. better yet, my younger brother and sisters looking at mine. "Yeah, THE TRAIN got it all, the Bell Bottoms, Lifts and High Heels, Afro and Afro Puffs, Big Ass Chains, Big Vibrant Colors, Tight Pants, Brothas Twirling, On the Floor Crawling, On the Floor on Their backs, On the Floor with Their Legs in the Air, On the Floor with Their Legs Spread in the Air, Splitting, High Kicking Pass Their Ears and Shaking it Harder than the Women, Colorful Ascots Around the Neck, Shirts Tied in a Mid-Rift …..HEY … WAIT A MINUTE …. YO THESE KATS ARE GAY !!! OH MY GOD, I HAVE BEEN MIND RAPED AND DIDN’T EVEN KNOW IT. "

For years I have been doing the Soul Train Line and picking up my SMOOTH MOVES from the Rocketts and I was none the knowing. "Oooooooo DON I’m coming to CHICAGO AN’ GiTTin’ Yo Black Ass." You tried to turn me out. Where’s Mitt Romney, where’s Mike Huckabee, where’s Donnie McClurkin, where is Barak Obama, where’s 911?

Man I look at my SOUL TRAIN now and not only reminisce about the good ol’ days, the music, the idea of my being at a certain place in my life when performers appeared on the show, but I am also reminded of how innocent my mind was as a child and also how deep the Black Community’s practice of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” was a big part of our culture when it came to Soul Train. It’s so much like the Church preaching how HELL has 5 Star Hotels Suites waiting for Homosexuals and then turning to the choir to lead the congregation in sending them off promptly and by first class ala the BIBLE and a little song.

I asked my mother about Soul Train and she was like, “STOP IT. That is not true. Everyone danced like that. Even you.”

Oooooooo I didn’t like how that sound. Soul Train had me a bell-bottom, big shoe wearing, Afro carrying, tight pint-striped pant wearing, shiny shirt showing, hip wiggling, multiple turn-spinning Drag Queen in training?

“Mom do you have any pictures or movies of me?”

“No but I think your uncle have a few cause you swore you were Michael Jackson when you were younger. Big pants and doing that Soul Train dance. You sure loved you some Soul Train dancing.”

Then I began to remember it all. How I channeled little Michael Jackson and the clothes and why I now have a Trick Hip and then I start the SCREAMING IN MY HEAD.

"Noooooooooo !!!!!"

THE BEST GOLDEN GLOBES MONEY CAN BUY

It’s confirmed; I have skipped over my parents and become my Grandmother. I am so set in my ways that I look for the sadness and misery in others for my amusement, and watching the 2008 Golden Globes did not disappoint.

I had to keep checking my cable remote to make sure I wasn’t watching CNN or FOX because for a minute, I thought I was watching a caucus. The reporter faces had this BLANK, “I don’t know what to do next” look just like the political reporters that lost script trying to comment on the election of the REAL.

I know I like to look at most things as they really are and without the fluff but living in a world where fantasy and escapism is the norm, I LOVED THE GOLDEN GLOBES just as they were because it was carried out like it was suppose to, like an awards ceremony while them stank ass Mofo’s had to do their drinking, drugging and daily insanity at home. So while the people who make their money promoting THE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE stood there as if they were all Anchoring Reporters demoted to covering the epidemic of "dog shyt" on public streets, we all witnessed what I can only describe as a does of UNION POWER. America was sent to its room without supper for "Watching too much and Thinking too little; for YEARS."

I mean DAYUM, no parties no expensive cars, no advertisers, no free gift bags, no free flowing of alcohol, no movie hair, borrowed BLOOD DIAMONDS and them dresses and tuxedoes. Flippin the channel back and forth I couldn’t help remember that famous line from Sparkle: “They don’t need them dresses, they don’t need them make-ups, those girls can SANG !!!” Even better, I don't have to watch hour upon hour of Morning and Talk Show News about who had the best speech, who was funny and who had attitude for not winning nor do I have to deal with the Best and Worst Dressed breakdowns and the WHERE YOU CAN BUY A KNOCK OFF DRESS FROM.

See, GOD does bless you when you ask for it sometimes.

I trumpeted as my New Years' mantra, CLEAN SLATE FOR 2008 so that the issues of the past don't converge into my present. This here idiot box is taking a serious beating so far but I think its calling on my mantra more than I. The professional athletes are being busted for performance enhancement drugs left and right and now have to play at NORMAL levels, you have qualified politicians talking about real issues in politics and they look like REAL PEOPLE WITH REAL ISSUES as well, the States are now starting to seriously look at banning the Death Penalty, the Writer’s Strike is making Hollywood recognize that you can’t do shyt unless they write shyt, Broadway got shut down as well and caved to giving up them dollars, Corporate America out sourced jobs are getting snagged with compliance issues; issues that are poisoning and killing peoples as well as costing them more outside the country then if they had kept them in the States to begin with, the media can’t guess and BS anymore because they are blatantly getting it wrong, and those people with no Talent (Superhead, Wendy Williams and I Love New York) and the music industry are being called on their ineptitude and shallowness.

The last time we saw an awards ceremony like this, I think Gone With The Wind was the HOTNESS. People didn’t have TV like that and media had to broadcast most of it on radio. All I kept hearing from the Hollywood reporters were, ‘Oh it was so boring, Oh how I miss the RED CARPET, WOW those Striking Writers might be coming back, I hope they do by the Oscars, Oh how television lost so much money", but all I kept seeing was the reality that over the course of seven years, these award shows went on as if nothing was happening in the world, like Iraq, Katrina, Unemployment, Jena 6, children kidnapped, people loosing homes, over populated prisons, increase trafficking in guns and drugs, people held as sex slaves, illegal immigation, national infristructure issues, fires and tornadoes wiping out whole towns and I can go on. Yes I know this is a time when people can reward those talents for their work in fantasy (I am an actor and writer myself and I do like to be acknowledged for it from time to time) BUT this was the best thing that ever happened to TELEVISION and AMERICAN media; the Writer’s Strike.

If this had happened just before the Invasion of Iraq, we might have paid more attention to what was happening to our government and economy and stopped it.