AB.com Random Notes.

Hot Topics time again. Here's just a handful of news items that got my attention. Chime in below...

Sequestration On The Way - Honestly, I'm not really sure what the effects of sequestration are gonna be. I doubt anyone does. Sheeit, I can barely spell it, let alone tell you what it means. Predictably, both sides of the political aisle are busy blaming the other and playing their own version of "Scare You To Death"-is, as the deadline approaches. But riddle me this: if this is such a dire (aka: non-manufactured) situation, why the hell did Congress just take a weeklong vacation, and why has the President been chillin' more than Bruh Man from the Fith Flo lately? Something tells me this is (as usual) much ado about nothing. The deadline will come, a few people will get furloughed, both sides will come to a "resolution" and we'll move right on to the next "crisis". Please excuse me if I've got Crisis Fatigue™, but darnit, it's hard to really take anyone in this equation seriously anymore.

The Oscars - I didn't much any of the Oscars, just as I didn't watch many of the movies nominated for Oscars. I heard the white dude who saved D'Jango won an award, as did the guy who wrote D'Jango. But D'Jango himself ain't win sh*t. Story of America, in a nutshell.

Should The Redskins Change Their Name?!? - Shoudld they? Yes. It's downright comical that a multibillion dollar corporate entity uses stereotypical native American imagery in 2013. We have a black President, damnit! Will they? Of course not. The annual calls to have the team drop the Chief are only louder this year because the team was actually halfway decent. When the team addresses the issue by (wait for it) pointing to high schools that use Indian imagery to justify their silliness, you know they have no intention of changing anytime soon. And that's a shame, cause they could just as easily be call the Pigskins, drop the Indian on the Helmet, and be just as (many more) profitable.

Jimmy Fallon Performs ‘The Evolution Of Mom Dancing’ …With First Lady Michelle Obama - Hate our FLOTUS all you want. Just don't call the woman a stiff. Cause darnit, no other FLOTUS could pull this off (and might I add, without a single drop of perspiration). No other.

Following Backlash, The Onion Deletes Tweet Calling 9-Year-Old Oscar Nominee A ‘C**t’ - Like, seriously? Even in the world of parody, nothing about this is funny. Nothing.

Horse Meat Found in Ikea Meatballs - No joke, after I took my sons to the park yesterday, the thought of swinging by Ikea (it's right across the street) and feeding them a cheap, sleep inducing lunch briefly passed my mind. Then I was like, "nah, I gotta take them both out their seats, then get them inside, and.. awww, forget it." Thank God for parental laziness.

MC Hammer 'very argumentative' before arrest, authorities say - Apparently, the police CAN touch this. Don't drop the soap, Stanley.

Question: Got any links/stories you wanna share?

Obama Says "Middle Finger To My Haters!" Golfs With Tiger Woods.

A lot of black people, somewhat exasperated with the timid, often meek President Obama seen in his first term continually noted that if he simply won re-election, we'd see the "Real Barack". He'd grow a goatee. He's put some Trinidad James on his iPod. He'd go back to Ben's Chili Bowl. He'd sit courtside at the All Star Game. You know, typical rich Negro sh*t.

A month into the 2nd term, there are indeed some signs that President Obama is shifting into full-blown "I ain't gotta get re-elected, so eff' all ya'll!" mode. He brought a 102 year old black woman to the SOTU to halfheartedly puch a point about voting rights. He finally went to Chicago and addressed the city's gun violence issue, although the speech itself was not too different from the stock "raise your d*mn kids!" Father's Day speeches he has given in the past. But nothing speaks to the "I don't give a ****" nature of his 2nd term than what he did yesterday.

President Obama is in the middle of spending a three-day weekend at a posh Florida golf and yacht club. And if taking private training lessons on the links from Tiger Woods’ old coach Saturday wasn’t enough, today the Tiger himself has joined Obama on the links. This is the first time the two played together.

A White House official confirmed to the press that the president was playing with Woods, although media have not been allowed on the resort since the president’s Friday arrival to view any activity.

U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk and the property’s owner, Jim Crane, were also on the course, according to the official. Crane is a former Obama donor and the owner of the Houston Astros baseball team.

Woods, who is among the world’s top professional golfers, was the first person to hold all four major championship titles simultaneously. By contrast, Obama, who only took up the sport in recent years, has previously described himself as only an average duffer. His love of the game is well known however; as of last summer he had played more than a hundred rounds since obtaining the presidency.

Obama has occasionally drawn criticism from opponents for the amount of time he’s spent on golf courses, mainly complaints that it is time wasted away from the Oval Office. But he is far from the golf record holder among U.S. presidents. That goes to Woodrow Wilson, who historians note played 1,200 rounds during his presidency. Former President Dwight Eisenhower takes second place at 800, according to his memorial commission.

Woods is currently the second highest ranking golfer in the world, although his career suffered in 2009 when a messy extramarital affair came to the public eye.

I still don't know whether to label this as totally ballsy or totally stupid.

Reality is, with no more elections to worry about, the POTUS can do things like this without really worrying about political blowback. People who already don't like him will simply find yet another reason to justify their dislike. The inevitable bellyaching about wasted taxpayer money, lack of media access, and associating with the formerly squeaky clean, now forever tarnished Woods have already surfaced. The President (obviously) doesn't really care about the criticism and honestly, why should he?

Personally, I have outrage fatigue, so this is the rare case in which I don't really have an opinion one way or the other. It just is what it is. What say ye?

Question: Is this a bad political move for the President, or does it really even matter anymore? Now that the POTUS is in full blown "I Got This Here" mode, what else would you like to see him do?

Infamous ATL Mall Cop Finally Gets His Comeuppance.

Raise your hands if you didn't see this one coming a mile away.

AB.com Random Notes.

Happy Valentines Day, errybody. Stay bunned up, it's cold out there. Hot Topics time again. Here's just a handful of news items that got my attention. Chime in below...

Chris Dorner Burned Alive. LAPD Claims It Wasn't On Purpose - Come on, after the way they blasted that pickup truck full of Latina newspaper carriers without prior warning, you know darn well the cops had no intention of just "smoking out" Dorner. They should just be 100% honest about this.

Dr. Ben Carson vs Obama - The renowned neurosurgeon delivers National Prayer Breakfast speech blasting the President (who was sitting just feet away). Immediately becomes Conservative hero and is now entertaining talk of running in 2016.

Marco Rubio Milking "WaterBottle-Gate" For Campaign Donations - After bombing his SOTU rebuttal the other night, Marco Rubio is using the swig heard round the world to raise campaign funds. I'll admit, it's refreshing to see a public figure respond to such an awkward moment with self-reprecation. Of course, none of that obscures the fact that Rubio's speech was simply a rehash of Bush-era economic policies with a dash of Conservative victimology to boot. But hey, the guy (allegedly) is a huge rap music fan. I'll give him a pass. Not a vote, just a pass.

White Folks "Discover" The Harlem Shake - Uhhh, didn't this dance play out in like 2001? What's next, a revival of "Chicken Noodle Soup"? Speaking of which, look at this coonery.



#losing

Kentucky Star Freshman Blows Out Knee, Draft Status In Limbo - For anyone who thinks basketball players should be required to attend college, I present Exhibit A: Nerlens Noel. A routine block and an awkard landing likely cost the probably #1 overall pick millions. But yeah, stay in school. Or whatever.

South African Paralympic Track Star (Allegedly) Kills Girlfriend - Holy Rae Carruth!

Question: Got any links/stories you wanna share?

Ashy Or Classy?!? - NBA Jerseys With Sleeves.

I haven't done Ashy Or Classy? in ages. Then again, I haven't done any of the regular features that used to be staples here in ages. You know, I got 3 kids and whatnot, so there's my excuse.

Anyways, I'm both an NBA addict, and a uniform/jersey addict. I have a collection of Big 10 basketball/football jerseys that infuriate my wife and consume an entire downstairs closet. I have the Uni-Watch Blog on my Pulse reader. So yeah, this story is of interest, to say the least.[1]

Adidas and the Golden State Warriors unveiled a brand new uniform system on Monday (February 11), sporting short sleeves and touting it as the team's "lightest uniform to date."

The uniforms will be officially unveiled at a press conference at the Warriors' Oracle Arena at 2 pm PST.

The adizero short sleeve NBA Uniform System is 26% lighter than the Warriors' current uniforms and will debut for the first time when the team faces the San Antonio Spurs on Friday (February 22) on ESPN at 10:30 p.m. ET/7:30 p.m. PT. The Warriors will also wear the uniforms for two additional Friday home games during the 2012-13 season including March 8 vs. the Houston Rockets and March 15 vs. the Chicago Bulls.

The new system was developed by Adidas to allow for optimal performance on the court, while providing fans with a new and unique apparel option.

The uniform system is made from 60% recycled materials and features adidas' Revolution 30 technology found in current NBA uniforms -- a lightweight uniform system, which was launched in the 2010-11 season.

As a guy who suffered through my hometeam's atrocious black and gold alternates a few years ago, I gotta say these are just about as bad. The sleeves actually aren't that terrible an idea. 90% of people who play pickup ball wear t-shirts anyway. Shrinking this and making it form fitting for players isn't an awful idea. In fact, the replica/swingman jersey of this, assuming it's loose-fitting, is prolly going to be a hot item with fans. And plenty of players already sport those silly compression tanks under their jerseys anyway. And oh yeah, the Warriors are just the guinea pig; you can expect a similar look from every NBA team in the near future.

So the sleeves aren't the problem.

So what's the problem? Everything else.

The shorts are pinstriped. The top isn't.
The shorts aren't even the same color as the top.
The wordmark and numbers are comically rendered.
And of yeah, did I mention all that yellow? Sheesh.
They look like 3rd graders playing YMCA ball.

I'm gonna call this one Ashy. The concept is clever, but execution is sh*tty.

Question: Ashy or Classy?!? Should grown men be forced to work in such attire? Would you buy one of these jerseys if/when they make one for your team?

[1] If this isn't your thing, kindly move along. No need to launch flames.

Chris Dorner: African American Terrorist.

I'm not quite sure how to describe my facination with this Chris Dorner manhunt. It's an incredible story of vengeance, police corruption, and race, mixed into one very violent ball of fire. And yes, I realize how awful that last sentence was. It's Monday.

Anyways, I got some random thoughts on this whole thing, as I'm sure you do:

Dorner Is Not A Hero - One somewhat disturbing development I observed via Twitter was how many people were coming to Dorner's defense. Many people even seemed to be cheering him on. Black folks (in particular, but not exclusively), let's get our sh*t together here: the man (allegedly) killed 3 innocent people. He isn't a hero. I don't care how much you might dislike or distrust the LAPD, taking matters into ones own hands on some Rambo sh*t is not heroic. There's no redeeming quality to Dorner or what he's doing. Knock it off already.

LAPD Is Shady As Always - With all that said, I completely understand the distrust with LAPD. Having read Dorner's 11 page manifesto (more on that later), I find it very, very difficult to believe that none of what he said it true. I have little doubt that he blew the whistle on his colleague who kicked a homeless, mentally challenged man in the head. I don't doubt that Dorner's colleagues peppered him with racial epithets, then refuted that such a thing happened. After the Rampart scandal, I'm not sure what credibility LAPD has left. Which is why their pledge to "reopen and reexamine" Dorner's initial report of the (alleged) police brutality incident seems like nothing more than awful PR.

Shoot First. Ask Questions Never - Speaking of LAPD being shady as hell, seriously, they're only offering to give the elderly Hispanic ladies whom they opened fire on without prior notification a replacment for their truck that got shot up? Werd? Just a replacement truck? Not an upgrade? Can a sista get some leather interior and whatnot, given the fact that she's got two bullets in her back? Thankfully, these women lawyered up early. Here's to hoping they get enough money in that settlement to quit delivering newspapers forever. And to move out of LA County. Forver.

The Manifesto - Boy, boy, boy. I've read some sh*t in my day. Dorner's epic 11 page Facebook post (how exactly did they determine a post was 11 pages?) was both cryptic and clairvoyant. At turns disturbing, at others hilarious, Dorner outlined his case and sent a gang of shoutouts to people as random as Wolf Blitzer and the black chick on "True Blood". Then again, if I was planning my own deathwish, I'd prolly have a few things to say also. That list of things prolly wouldn't include props for Michelle Obama's bangs though. So yeah, this dude's sorta out there.

Media Bias - I hate agreeing with Conservatives on anything, but I can see the legitimate gripe for media bias here. Dorner's last words included plenty of shoutouts to President Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and just about every liberal cable news host. He also voiced (someone confusingly) the case for stricter gun control laws to prevent people like him from doing what he's doing. Yeah, that was confusing. Had some wacko written a similar diatribe praising the Tea Party and the GOP, the proverbial knives would be out right now. Then again, since Conservatives scream media bias everytime a napkin falls off a table, it's easy to understand why people no longer take their charges seriously. But I sorta, kinda see their point. This time at least.

The Race Issue - Suprisingly, the media narrative on this case hasn't really delved into the race issue. So I'm not sure I will either.

Attack Of The Drones - News broke yesterday that aerial drones are being used to look for Dorner, making him the first such target on US soil. The fact that he's being labeled a "target" tells you that these drones aren't merely being used for surveillance. And yes, you and I should be very, very frightened at the thought that some idiots could fire upon a vehicle they suspect contains said suspect. Surely there are better ways.

The Motion Picture - Cause you know there will be one, when all's said and done. I'm not sure how to make anyone in this story a good guy, but Hollywood's surely got ideas already in the works. I think Ving Rhames would be a shoo-in for Dorner. What ya'll think?

Where Is This Negro, Anyway?!? - I doubt he's in Big Bear. This dude's supposedly fairly smart. I'm thinking he's in Cabo by now. I'm just hoping their find him before any more collateral damage (whether at the hands of Dorner or the bumbling idiots pursuing him) occurs.

Question: What's your take on this story?

A Nation Of Hatred.

These two clips came across my virtual desk. I felt the need to pass along.

Recently fired Fox News "political analyst" suggests that the GOP can pull in Hispanic voters by convincing them to not behave like "The Blacks".



Jackass Alabama High School Teacher calls the FLOTUS a "fat butt". Talks sh*t about teh gheys. Gets suspended, not fired.



Question: Is this country more racist now than it was pre-Obama?!?

AB.com Random Notes.

Hot Topics time again. Here's just a handful of news items that got my attention. Chime in below...

As Obama calls for short-term fix to avert sequester, CBO reports falling deficits - Wouldn't you know it. Raising taxes on the rich actually helps lower the deficit. Go figure.

Virginia coin moves closer to reality - As if you needed any more reasons to hate the state of Virginia (which is quickly approaching Florida/California/Texas levels of idiocy), the state is now considering minting its own currency in an attempt to safeguard its economy against the Federal Reserve. And you wonder why I keep my black a$$ on this side of the river.

Michelle Obama’s posterior again the subject of a public rant - Here we go (yet!) again. A high school teacher in (where else?) Alabama goes on an epic rant about Michelle O's big butt and teh gheys. Student records it. Teacher gets suspended. Conservatives are outraged about this man's right to free speech being violated. The FLOTUS being disrespected by a schoolteacher in front of impressionable kids? Not so much.

Can a kinder, gentler Eric Cantor 'rebrand' Republicans? - That's obviously a rhetorical question.

Saturday mail delivery to end Aug. 1 - I think we all knew this day was coming sooner or later. I don't really see the downside, since packages will still be delivered. Waiting 2 more days to open the mailbox and see more bills isn't gonna bug me one bit. If this helps the postal service prevent hiking fees every 6 months, so be it.

Jacksonville Jaguars decide to make logo even tamer - As a guy with a strange fetish for sports logos and uniforms, I find this rebrand downright comical.

Question: Got any links/stories you wanna share?

Never, Ever, Ever Insult The Judge!

And while you're at it, never, ever, ever come to court (clearly and obviously) geeked up off dem' bars.

Why The GOP Will Never, Ever, Ever Win The Black Vote, In A Nutshell.

No need to lie, after Baltimore went up 28-6 at the beginning of the 3rd quarter, I thought to myself "man, this Superbowl really sucks". I'm fairly sure most people who don't live in the city of Baltimore thought the exact same thing. Of course, most of them didn't feel the need to go to Twitter and express their feelings of suckitude by comparing said suckiness to a dead teenager. And most of the people who did so were prolly not (former) GOP state party executives.

Some Teabagger numbnut named Todd Kincannon did just that, however.

During last night’s Super Bowl, former South Carolina GOP executive director Todd Kincannon sent out a flurry of racially-charged tweets, stirring controversy among social media users.

Kincannon’s tweets largely involved “jokes” about Trayvon Martin, d*ck-sucking, Hurricane Katrina, and black people. After receiving much criticism for his Trayvon Martin remark, Kincannon dug in deeper, thrice more invoking the shooting victim’s name as a punchline.

And, given the mid-game blackout, Kincannon took the opportunity to make a “joke” about the arena and its use as shelter for the “poors” among New Orleans’ majority black population during Hurricane Katrina. The tweets sent off a flurry of negative responses, which was met with the legal analyst doubling down on his remarks, laughing off criticism, and re-tweeting dozens of supportive responses.

Congrats, GOP, for proving once again what you really think about us, and ensuring that unless you somehow manage to kidnap, brainwash, and run Michelle Obama, you'll never see anything more than 5-7% of the black vote.

Seriously, it's difficult for me to understand the feeble mindedness that produces such garbage. How exactly did this ingrate manage to ascend the party ranks and (once) run the South Carolina GOP? Did others in the party have any idea of his views? Did they care? The party loves touting its (recent) success with minority candidates in the Palmetto state. What's Senator Tim Scott's view on his? How about Governor Nikki Haley? I'm sure both will issue the standard "I wasn't aware of his Tweets" non-refutal, and that's really sad on too many levels to count here.

Kincannon, to his credit, isn't playing the ole' "my cousin tweeted that/my account was hacked" card. Nope, he's doubling down on the sentiment, and using tweets by those offended as proof for how "intolerant liberals are". So yeah, even though he's a total racist jackass, at least he's a standup guy.[1] There's something to be said for that. I'd much rather know how you really feel about me than to wonder. So props for that Mr. Kincannon.

Question: Why won't the GOP stand up to idiots like this? Do they realize/care about the damage such sentiments do to their "brand"?!?

[1] He was also busted in a sexting scandal last year after having bashed Anthony Weiner for the same thing, but hey, nobody's perfect.

AB.com Open Mic Monday.

It's Monday. Congrats to all the Ravens fans on last night's triumph. Please try hard not to burn up all of West Baltimore with ya'll celebration.

Anyways, I'm busy with the Day Job and whatnot, today. Your show. Have at it.

Question: What's on your mind today?

An Update On The ATL Hoodrat Mall Taser Story.

A very interesting update on yesterday's story. Turns out the guy who shot this video did so because of a recent spate of crimes in the "mall", which I actually worked around the corner from once (long story).



Thanks to Godzilla Jr. for passing this along.

Question: Does this update change your opinion on this story in any way?