One of my GOATs

Once More...

found increasingly solitary
ever present in this very moment
yet incapable of making the connection

and i find that...
there's never been a better time
than this

Sous Sol - Classic Werrason

May the Truth Be Told

All political thinking for years past has been vitiated in the same way. People can foresee the future only when it coincides with their own wishes, and the most grossly obvious facts can be ignored when they are unwelcome.
George Orwell

Read more: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/g/george_orwell.html#ixzz181kIJXra

http://88.80.13.160

Interracial Sleb Couples

I must admit, I did not realise some of these men were into chocolatey cocoa!

http://opentotheidea.com/2010/05/20-black-women-white-men-celebrity-couples/

http://smokiesays.blogspot.com/2009_07_01_archive.html

http://www.flyguychronicles.com/2010/02/black-woman-dating-double-standard/

shout out to Mountain View, Cali

To My One and Only Faithful Reader,

Thank you for taking interest in the rants, opinions and grievances of a socially-frustrated "like" person like me. Please feel free to drop comments even if its only a word. The Unspoken Word is feeling quite solitary and would not mind creeping up from under the vegetation for a little conversation.

Yours faithfully,
Ms Sheeba

prodigy - omen (2008)

I would love to go to a 'Prodigy' concert. Only I'm worried I might come back with broken limbs.

my ugly boy

Her vocals are simply dope.

why i love kelis

And my appreciation for David Guetta's music-making abilities grows and grows.

"I am Going to Show you, you are a Woman."

Taken from this article on the 'Lezget Real' website - definitely worth a read.

"Her attacker acted like an animal who wanted to kill, strangling her with barbed wire;  “I thought he was going to kill me; he was like an animal. And he kept saying: ‘I know you are a lesbian. You are not a man, you think you are, but I am going to show you, you are a woman. I am going to make you pregnant. I am going to kill you.”  The attacker was known To Gaika, a neighbor."

These words spoken to a young lesbian woman while she is being brutally raped by a man who has beef with the fact that she is a woman who is not heterosexual, who does not conform to the so-called prescribed gender roles that society dictates and who is simply expressing the person she truly is. For this she must suffer.

It's obvious, I don't have to call out the blatant misogyny here. This is about power, it's about reifying male dominance in a patriarchal society. Nothing more, nothing less. South Africa and much of Africa is still very far behind when it comes to embracing progressive notions on gender, gender identification and sexual orientation. Most of this nation's citizens still seem to be under the impression that there are set roles that men and women should play which under no circumstances should be violated. Stuck in the Dark Ages and failing to rise to a new level.

Rock Star - Rihanna

 Slash made this one sound good. Maybe a better vocalist and this would have been really one to have on repeat.

Brazil's First Lady...President

Yes, I am biased. This world may very well be better off with women in charge!

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/10/31/brazil.winner.profile/

“We’ll care for our economy with complete responsibility,” Rousseff, 62, told supporters in Brasilia. “The Brazilian people don’t accept governments that spend at unsustainable levels and for that reason we will make every effort to improve public spending.”

and this is for colored girls who considered suicide..

...and are moving toward the ends of their own rainbows...



Looking forward to this one.

Willow Has Arrived

We waited for it and now here it is and at a view rate of approximately 1 million viewers a day so far...

Quiety Disrupting the Equilbrium

On Sally Gross: an intersexed woman who I had the pleasure of hearing speak at the "LGBTI: Who are 'We'" Panel Discussion for UCT's HUMA two-week long series of talks and discussions around various topics addressing society, politics, philosophy, medicine and science. Her words were wise and she spoke of the importance of embracing gender diversity. One or two others also raised the point that disdain for the LGBTI community is linked to patriarchal and heteronormative ideas that sustain the myth that a gender binary must exist in order to maintain structure and avert a kind of confusion or restructuring of the status quo that may be required upon acknowledgement of a multiple gendered people.

Citing the American scholar Susan Kessler, Gross observes that such interventionist surgery at birth is carried out not because the failure of the body to conform "is threatening to the infant's life but because it is threatening to the infant's culture".

From a biophysical standpoint, its plain to see how easily the gender binary breaks down yet society continues to fervently push forth the concept of male and female and no other.

Gross points out that the way biological sex develops is complex, and cannot always be regimented into a straightforward classification of a person as either male or female. At least five variables come into play: external genitals, chromosomal patterns, dominant sex-hormones, the nature of the person's sex-glands and the internal structures of reproduction - these jointly result in the person's physical sexual type. "But none of these are absolutes," says Gross. "You get in-betweens, even within the single variables. All sorts of permutations occur. What's needed to yield unambiguous male or female is for all five of these variables to be completely congruent with one another and unambiguous in themselves. Nature and the mathematics of it all ensure that many other types of outcomes are in fact possible."

Reading her story and bearing in mind women like Caster Semenya has allowed me to dispel my own mistaken beliefs on gender and its identification. I hope that the same can be said for others who have become aware of the prevalence of intersexed peoples in South Africa and throughout the world.

Another Day, Another Dollar

I've never been someone who revels in talking down on others. Being on power-trips at the expense of others is not something I fancy. Though it delights others, the mere thought of bringing another some sort of emotional pain makes me want to lose it because I can empathize - having been in that position - and I simply refuse to be a perpetrator. But today, I gave someone a serious lecture, an almost maternalistic lecture which I did not intend to do but ended up doing instinctively. We had a group project to complete for Applied Math and you know how it goes, some people get lazy and rely too much on others. But there was one, who was truly special. The guy did not show up for a single meeting or contribute anything to the project and claimed to be part of the group a day before the deadline submission. So, I gave him a little chat about responsibility and what your task is as a college student - taking full accountability for your studies and not relying on anyone. These words must've really struck him because he seemed to be on the verge of tears. And being me, I started to feel really bad.

Man, I find it so hard to be stern. But what kind of surprised me is how seriously he took my words. I have never had that experience. Being the youngest member of the family, I am so used to being lectured to, having others instruct me or at least try to! The tables turned today, I was the one giving stern instruction and it scared me a little. I shook and my heart palpitated. At that point I realised how used to being powerless I am. How conditioned I have been to falling under the authority of others. It was such a significant moment. An epiphany and it woke me up to something I hadn't noticed about myself for so long...I am a bloody coward who needs to grow a spine.

But experiences are there to teach us and today has taught me something profound!

Yeeah, You a Bad-Ass Bitch!

This is an important read for all who believe in the "illusion of race" and think that racism is still not an issue.

This comes from the black brute stereotype – blacks as having a violent, savage, immoral nature that they have a hard time controlling. Particularly true for big black men. A fear whites have had since the 1870s shortly after blacks were freed from being slaves. In fact, though, most crime against whites comes not from blacks but from other whites and is done for all the ancient, all-too-human reasons.

From personal experience, remembering all the pathological people who were not black and suspected me of having evil intent, being dishonest, angry or malicious when I was not even close to any of these, I know that the black equates all which is bad stereotype still lives and breathes in our society. Racism is still going strong unfortunately.

Taken from a blog that addresses the Black Female Attitude Myth

Ayn Rand

Rather than considering sexual desire a debasing animal instinct, Rand portrays it as the highest celebration of human values, a physical response to intellectual and spiritual values that gives concrete expression to what could otherwise be experienced only in the abstract.

wikipedia on Atlas Shurgged by Ayn Rand

Whip Yo Hurr Real Hard...

So they have a son that just made mega millions starring in a remake of Karate Kid and now their daughter Willow is tearing up people's lives with this DOPE track and she is only nine years old.



People are comparing her to Rihanna but boy, she this girl's swag tops Rihanna's nine times out of ten - Rihanna wished she had this much swag on a good day. Ah, Willow. Too much. Too much.

Broken Open - Adam Lambert

 Can't decide which version I prefer - the acoustic unplugged, the piano-backed unplugged or the album version. Either way, it is an absolutely ethereal, otherworldly, beautifully transcendent song. The lyrics are so deeply touching. This is by far one of the most incredible songs I have ever heard. This man is amazing. God bless him. My new favourite artist.

Fierce!

 I aspire to walk into a place looking that fierce! Why has it taken me this long to find out how cool this video is? Gosh.

The Problem with Not Believing in Anything

So everybody's favourite physcists, Stephen Hawking, has a book coming out on the 7th of September called The Grand Design in which he argues that invoking a Creator or Higher Power to explain the existence of the Universe is not necessary. Fair enough. There are plenty who believe that science alone is enough to help us make sense of it all but the implications of finally acknowledging the "death of God" as Nietzsche attempted to do are far worse than anyone can imagine.

Reading an article like this helps clarify why not believing in a Higher Power is so dangerous for humanity.

Hawking’s theory means that there is no morality as life is a merely meaningless materialistic mass – a body of matter with no definite distinctive significance and no perspicuous precious value. So, why have ethics and laws? Everyone should just go for the pursuit of pleasure, sensual self-indulgence, and do whatever he likes, including killing each other, since human life is merely a mass of matter that comes together by chance.

It seems that our acknowldgement of a Diving Creator (however imaginary it may sound), forms the very basis for order in terms of our morality and value systems. Disbelieving in God dismisses the dichotomy of good and evil - creating in one a sense of irresponsibility for harm committed against oneself and to others. Having an "anything goes" attitude is exactly what motivates some to kill and harm their fellow humans without guilt or remorse. It's an attitude that stems from refusing to believe that there is essentially a purpose to life and creation. If anything, it is for these reasons I cannot stop believing in God.

A Flurry of Readers

Thanks to that Feedjit to the right>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I happen to know who is looking at this here page, what they're looking at and what country their radio has been detected. 'Bout two months ago, traffic was slow - pathetic to say the least since I seemed to be the only person looking at my bloody page. Which is cool with me.

But bada boom bada bing - what do we have here? Humans from across the globe. Wow. No, this is not another one of my narcissistic trips. But I'm a little surprised and wonder how this might have occured. Perhaps google image searches are leading people into the realms of my Unspoken Word. Ah don' know but it's nice of you to pop in. Whoever you are. Enjoy my blog, add it to your feeds, subscribe PUBLICLY if you like because the only two people following me is me and ole boy Lenny who introduced me to blogger.

Freddie Catches a Fire

Have my prayer's been answered oh Lord...can it be true?

Freddie now plays for the Chicago Fire. Wow.


Fredrik Ljungberg - Chicago Fire Designated Player from Chicago Fire Soccer on Vimeo.

Okay, those commentators need some tutoring...who on Earth is "LOONBERG"? Can somebody please explain the silent consonant rule to 'em, seriously. It's good for a laugh though, have to say that.

Otherwise, you know I'm just glad to know that I might get a chance to get closer to that sexiness called Freddie. Maybe even find out where he lives, shops, eats, gets his takeaway, buys his sneakers, purchases his suits and ties...you know? Just for knowledge's sake.

Zimbabwean on the X Factor

Even Simon Cowell was impressed "a million percent". Let's see how far she goes...all the way to the end maybe. To make history for Zim.

Some Femist Critique on "Inception"

Reading
Feminist Music Geek's review on Inception brought to light a slight issue I grappled with whilst watching the movie. The way in which the wife was represented. It smacks off that quintessential crazy male author's and directors tend to create within their female characters. Note: Laura's mother in The Glass Menagerie. Friend of mine thinks Tennessee Williams might have had some "mummy issues" - I think so. I always hear statements uttered by chauvinists around the order of "Women are crazy."  Well, I wonder where they've been getting these thoughts from. Back to the Inception commentary:

Rather, she plays as a manifestation of feminist film theory’s complaints against cinema’s conception of women and its applications of psychoanalytic thought via the scopophilic gaze. Cotillard does what she can with the role, but it feels like she’s representing, say, Tania Modeleski’s criticisms in The Women Who Knew Too Much: Hitchcock and Feminist Theory. This may have been Nolan’s intention, but by rendering Mal as an archetypical femme fatale who Cobb must overcome, he only enforces the notion that female movie characters are not fully realized as complex people but instead mere ideations from the auteur’s mind.

My thoughts exactly. Well almost exactly.

XXXO

Obamas Living Lavish

Royalty Recognises Royalty

That's what I like to see!

In Simplicity...

One can find true beauty. I could feel exactly where she was coming from with this song before there even was a video

So you think I'm alone?
But being alone's the only way to be
When you step outside
You spend life fighting for your sanity

I'll let the song speak for itself.

Inception

Yes, quite a few people have been raving about Inception which is incredibly imaginative, smart and visually mind-blowing. A feast for the intellect. Highly recommended.

Scored a Free Blackberry Today

Proabably the most exciting and fortunate thing that has happened to me in a very long time. I won a brand new blackberry 8250 through a rapping contest. Yes, it's time to start taking this thing seriously. Lol, maybe not. But hey it got me a new phone. Life is dope right now. Ooooh! Oui, oui!

Big Boys Do Cry

Ask Clint Dempsey. A Real MAN!

So passionate and expressive. So sensitive. You just feel that urge to want to comfort him. Hell, I know I'd want to. There's just something so appealing about a man who lets himself cry in public.

She Makes Me Want to Hit the Gym

Madonna looking absolutely fabulous and fierce. She is the dopeness; even those who can't stand her secretly acknowledge this fact to themselves.

The Eternal Bachelor is Not a Good Look

I just have to say that there is nothing that frightens me more than a man who reaches past the age of 40 without having settled down and married SOMEBODY, ANYBODY! Look at it this way, you have had 20 years of experience in the dating world to seriously find someone. Why haven't you done so already? I think it's that old notion that keeps some men thinking that their age will not become a major deterring factor when it comes to spusal determination. But it does. There is no amount of money that will keep you young and bustling all the way into your 50's. It's best to just settle down as quickly as you can. But for some reasons, very odd ones at that, men seem to find easy access to young flesh and more so, the wealthier and more "powerful" they appear to be.

But for some reasons, very odd ones at that, men seem to find easy access to young flesh and more so, the wealthier and more "powerful" they appear to be.

Gross. That's all I can say.

Transactional Sex: groupie love & book deals

Seems Karrine Steffans of Confessions of a Video Vixen fame has a young protege of her own. A young woman called Kat Stacks who has, as did Steffans hersself, entwined herself in numerous broiling sexual encounters with some famous rappers - Nelly, Bow Wow, the Young Money clique including their most successful member, Lil' Wayne and others she refuses to name in the video below in lieu of the imminent release of her very own tell-all book on the ways in intricacies of the life of a hip hop groupie. Whether she is doing it for her own financial gain or for her own personal empowerment is not something I can make proper judgements of. She is entitled to revel in a very basic human right called "freedom of speech" in whatever vernacular and with as many cuss-words as she so wishes.



This violent repurcussion from two of Bow Wow's crew members should come as no surprise. We should expect this sort of ire to emanate from a disgraced young rapper who feels, living in a society steeped in patriarchy, that as a famous and somewhat monied recording artist he has earned the right to as much "hot pussy" as he wishes to get without having to suffer the public humiliation brought forth by the blatant telling of his bedroom antics. All this including an admission of his palpably insufficient girth from any groupie with whom he may have copulated with i.e. Madame Stacks. Rappers of this variety aspire to reach a position in which their status will afford them easy access to submissive and willing women. They know that without the power that fame affords them, they are next to nothing and are relegated to the status of ordinary men who believe they must endure great pains and lengths just to get laid. Yet I feel that it is so much more than this. That this is a power-game and the sex is purely transactional. Groupies are paid for the power that these men are afforded in commanding control over these women sexually. It clearly does not end at that. Some groupies wish to earn a further and more lofty pay-off for their stories through book deals or cash settlements as a way of ensuring silence.

Surely, the boys who approached Kat Stacks in the club should know this by now. There is no keeping a groupie silent in this day and age without ignominy or a collosal decrease in one's bank balance.

"Pimps Up, Hoes Down" by T Denean Sharpley-Whiting

This book gave an excellent account on the multiple ways in which commercialized hip-hop culture, ever-influenced, by patriarchal ideals has worked against the positive growth and development of young black women in a post hip-hop era. For anyone curious to learn more of the way in which feminism and hip hop intersect.

Seattle's Pigs

News has spread wide and fast about the problem with police brutality. Of course, this is something that's been known for years. Cops are not to be trusted. It leaves people with a sense of ambivalence however, since these are the people that have been assigned to wipe the streets clean of society's wrongdoers and lawbreakers yet much of the brutality the commit only adds to ever-present violence that pervades communities already.

This is all just very sad to me.

The "Indestructible" Black Woman Myth...Again

My heart pounded as a watched this video. It reminded me of the physical fights I have gotten into with two male family members who saw no problem in partaking in a physical confrontation with me. Neither one apologised for their behaviour and the female members in my family proceeded to defend and justify these men's actions. One of the males even went on to say that he "understands" why such a physical reaction would have emanated. All this without a word of concern about any sort of emotional distress the fight could have caused or again, even a simple apology. I firmly believe that my being black gives them reason to falsely believe that I am incapable of feeling and therefore make the perfect punching bag.

Yes, there is a double standard. People feel more guilt causing harm to white women than they do to women of colour especially if one is black. Since we are that special group of "chicks who just happen not to have dicks", men find it easy to punch, push, strike and hit us without any inherent guilt or remorse. It is sad. Truly sad. That people are still very much incapable of understanding that black women are not as tough as society aims to point us out to be. That we are neither punching bags nor scapegoats for the satiation of the insecure others fragile id. We were not to be used by others in a way that will grant them a portal to attain a sense of power. It should be known that our bodies are sacred temples around which proper boundaries are put in place to prevent physical harm that those who fail to recognise our humanity wish to cause.

But here is where I am slightly ambivalent about this whole dichotomy. White women are apparently considered more womanly than the rest of us and deserving of courteous behaviour. As plenty of people have noted in their analysis', a man should not strike a woman under any circumstance so the ease with which the cop in question hit this young woman is reflective of a racist belief in a black woman's apparent "masculinity". Yet do I necessarily want to be viewed as weak and in need of protection? Not at all. Neither do I want to have someone engage in unwarranted physical confrontation with me. There must be a middle ground. Digressing to each extreme is neither good nor healthy in attempting to assert a real sense of equality.

Plastic Horns and Defeaning Sounds

It's World Cup African Style Y'all!

Kudos to Gawker for this one. Now we know who's raking up the profits for that darned plastic horn. As a commenter noted, this is NO long-standing tradition. The first I heard about these "charming" little instruments, during PSL Saturday soccer matches about 14 years ago. The sound was annoying to say the least but we South Africans have become so acquainted with it and its association with local club soccer. It's the rest of you that were taken by surprise and we knew people would complain instantly. I guess it takes a bit of an acquired taste. Plenty of getting used to. But after Wednesday's humbling defeat, streets of Cape Town have been awarded with a little more peace with the burgeoning realisation that South Africa will not make it to the second round as we all merrily predicted. Those of us with objective viewpoints that is.

Carelessness and Folly

Probably the worst oil-spill we have seen in years could have been avoided with a little less greed. How about that? If they had anticipated the $20B they would have had to fork out as a result of not heeding to adequate safety measures. But humans...you know?

BP also apparently rejected advice of a subcontractor, Halliburton Inc., in preparing for a cementing job to close up the well. BP rejected Halliburton's recommendation to use 21 "centralizers" to make sure the casing ran down the center of the well bore. Instead, BP used six centralizers.
In an e-mail on April 16, a BP official involved in the decision explained: "It will take 10 hours to install them. I do not like this." Later that day, another official recognized the risks of proceeding with insufficient centralizers but commented: "Who cares, it's done, end of story, will probably be fine."
The lawmakers also said BP also decided against a nine- to 12-hour procedure known as a "cement bond log" that would have tested the integrity of the cement. A team from Schlumberger, an oil services firm, was on board the rig, but BP sent the team home on a regularly scheduled helicopter flight the morning of April 20.
Less than 12 hours later, the rig exploded.

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/documents_show_bp_cut_corners_in_O6pXzORydS7VUkhLVsvmKO/1#ixzz0qumV86AG

Gotta Love Her, Honey

In the mood for Old School Neptunes

Back in the day, remember when Kelis had kaleidoscopic curly hair and Pharrell wore those trucker caps constantly and made an appearance in every video for evry song he produced. Humble Chad was never visible. God bless him. He's responsible for half of all of this unyet he never bothered with the limelight like his playboy, Peter-Pan-never-wanting-to-really-grow-up-settle-down-and-have-kids (I mean even original Peter Pan himself MJ had kids, Pharrell). But it was good times you know. Any time you heard that "neptune sound" that Jigga refers to in 'I Just Wanna Love You' and you knew just exactly who made that beat. Ah early 2000's - that was an era in itself.

South Africa and Homophobia

With a country this homophobic and this misogynistic, this kind of hatred is by no means a surprise. But I am proud of these ladies for not feeling ashamed to express their sexual orientation knowing full well that it may put them in danger of serious assault from misogynists within the community. They're courage is outstanding. Kudos to them for being openly lesbian.

Ah, Steve and Bill - You Blurry Bastards

How I love to hate them and wish to be them. Steve Jobbs and Bill Gates.

I Don't Even Know What to Call this Entry

 Just watch this and enjoy it. Kudos to Luvvie for leading me to this

Youtube Strike Back for Maya

She was banned and she just didn't like it.

Controversy Around Born-Free: My Take on It

Just finished watching the video for "Born Free", I see no reason why it should have been pulled off of Youtube a month ago. Yes there were graphic depictions of violence but here's an interesting comment I agree with which I found under the comments of this video:

so it's alright for music videos of girls dancing naked and exploiting themselves to be up on youtube rather than a video with actual substance and a message that's worth watching? idiots.

That's an excellent point to raise in the midst of all this. Vulgar depictions of misogyny - which is also hateful toward a certain demographic i.e. the female population is tolerable whilst violent imagery serving to make a statement about the insanity of war and ethnic genocide in this world should be banned.



It reminds me of several years ago when FCC fined Sarah Jones on indecency charges for the lyrics to her spoken word poem, "Your Revolution" which was an anti-sexism, anti-misogynistic war-cry. Funny the FCC chose to avoid all those rappers out there spitting vulgar lyrics about their sexual conquests with women when a woman who is simply speaking up against what she sees as derogatory should be charged. Interesting. The lawsuit was dropped eventually. Should have never been taken up in the first place. But it goes to show how selective censorship boards are. They don't really aim to censor what is considered immoral or indecent. They aim to censor instead what messages they do not want the public hearing because they're afraid of an enlightened masses, a know-better-than-that masses that begins to wake up from their government and media-induced coma. I am reminded of those stunning lyrics from Lupe's classic "Dumb it Down":

You've been shedding too much light Lu (Dumb it down)
You make'em wanna do right Lu (Dumb it down)
They're getting self-esteem Lu (Dumb it down)
These girls are trying to be queens Lu (Dumb it down)
They're trying to graduate from school Lu (Dumb it down)
They're starting to think that smart is cool Lu (Dumb it down)
They're trying to get up out the hood Lu (Dumb it down)
I'll tell you what you should do (Dumb it down)

What Could they Be Concocting?

Do I look forward to the finished product or should I find myself afraid, very afraid like after hearing that Lil' "weezy-baby" Wayne was going to record with Erykah Badu. Oh no! Yeah, exactly. And why, considering that this was George Jefferson's favourite thing to call his woman has Wayne adopted this as his catch-phrase?

Anybody else notice the connection?

Kelis: Acapella

I had a hint she was singing about her baby because God knows that Nasir is not worthy of such lyrical love-showering as it is. But then again, how would I know. But the fact that you don't realise those little baby feet peeking out from behind her waist all the way through the song until she turns around and shows her little baba wrapped around her upper-body African-style. That is so sensationally beautiful. The imagery of her as a warrior-princess protecting her young. Such an empowering image. We've come a long way from that sex-kitten image ala "my milkshake brings all the boys to the yard".

Well, Ain't I a Woman

I completed my reading of "Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism" by the ever-powerful bell hooks. Brilliant. Okay. In speaking about the Black feminist movement that his its roots in the 19th century with women such as Sojourner truth who gave this gut-wrenching, spirit-lifting speech with this extract:

That man over there says that women need to be helped into carriages, and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place everywhere. Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud-puddles, or gives me any best place! And ain't I a woman? Look at me! Look at my arm! I have ploughed and planted, and gathered into barns, and no man could head me! And ain't I a woman? I could work as much and eat as much as a man - when I could get it - and bear the lash as well! And ain't I a woman? I have borne thirteen children, and seen most all sold off to slavery, and when I cried out with my mother's grief, none but Jesus heard me! And ain't I a woman? 

Reading it called me to question the underlying message behind images such as these (by the fiercely bold and original David LaChappelle who I admiringly paid tribute to in an earlier post).We have Outkast surrounded by a pool of Black completely naked women lying them in positions of worship and submission to their "male power" in the first one and in full sexual servitude as each of them lies on the floor, on all fours (as an animal) with their asses up to the ceiling.
I have to ask, does it get any more misogynistic than this? This is the worst kind of depiction of black women and it continues to the point that it raises no sufficient protest in the mind's of viewers. We are all accustomed to portrayals of black women as lascivious, wanton, immoral, sexual tools i.e. hoes. No wonder black women clearly encounter problems in their interactions in daily-life. It is difficult to establish yourself as an intellectual and thinker when the media wants to reduce you down to nothing more than your genitalia. Your purpose for breathing - nothing more than to serve men sexually.

Hey, hey, hey with a history like America has in which black women were their to bear the brunt of white European males psychosexual confusion and misogyny through continuous rapes and utilisation of the black woman's womb for the economic gain (slave-labour) which only reinforced the ideas about black women that society currently embraces. I find it tragic that black men have sought to imitate this very exploitation of the black female form as did white men during the era before Reconstruction. Yes, those days are over but have the practices ended. Clearly not. Statistics will tell you that. Some think it's all fun and games. Yey, let's sexualize black women in images - afterall "sex sells" right. Yep - it sells darling. At the expense of other people's dignity. What a rotten system of capitalism we operate under that serves only the interests of the individual crushing the dignity and humanity of those needed to be exploited for the other person's upliftment.

PostSecret is Deep

Some of these short manifestations of deepness I retrieved from the PostSecret made me snigger a little. I'm almost done with my exams but I'm on the internet displaying my thoughtspace. This semester went by quickly and I already feel as if I'm on a break already owed to the large space between my last exam and the one I will write tomorrow and on Wednesday. I'm relaxed though. Only because they're half courses but back to the topic of discussion:

And it's so true man. How many times have you looked back in hindsight and thought, "Whoah, I'd never do that again." It's only because you now possess the knowledge that only emerges through experience that you can see your past folly for what it was. When you were in it, man - you thought you knew exactly what you were doing and nobody, not even your future self travelling through space-time to warn you would have convinced you otherwise. And that's exactly how it is - no guide-map. Just winging it.

The only reason this was not me is because I have not been privileged enough this semester to have constant 24/7 access to that monstrosity of a blessing - DC++ (filesharing software program at UCT). Then Dr House, Omar Epps and the cast of the Big Bang Theory would have been my homies for the time. (This is somewhat of a gross exaggeration have to admit but work...yeah you know the deal)

You know what tweezing just hurts alright. There's no other way to put it. That isht HURTS especially within the regions of the upper-lip area. Luckily, my dark pigment certifies that these miniscule strands remain barely unnoticed. But oh, I rock that androgynous look in the sunlight. Better know this.

AN-DRO-GY-NOUS (I am, I am), A-A-A-ANDROGYNOUS. It's okay my fellows. Rock it with pride.

Lookah here, now lookah here. There is nothing wrong with looking. Hello, boys and men have no guilt taking regular unassuming glances at your bosom whenever their "nature compels them to" (not the inverted commas) so go ahead, sister go 'head. You've got to rid yourself of these irrelevant shames.

David LaChappelle

For years, I recognized these images as amazing but had not a clue as to who the artist behind these icononoclastic images was. David LaChappelle. What an artist. I'll let the images speak for themselves.

SICK SONG!!

"i'm a singer" by M.I.A.

Beautiful track. Sincere lyrics. I love it. Can't wait to hear the entire 10-track product.

This song reminds me of jut exactly how I feel when you try to open up serious discussions about racism, sexism and the structure and culture of domination in the world that is the reason for the demise of innocent people in war-torn and disaster-stricken countries. People just shrug their shoulders as if it has nothing to do with them. Yet it is the very same system that is responsible for their wealth and comfort. These things can only exist with the presence of a severely oppressed underclass of people. Not animals, others or subhumans. PEOPLE. She is probably the one and only artist that speaks defiantly about political issues that affect the non-white, the non-privileged. The basically-invisible peoples of this world who remain voiceless and completely crippled.

"You make me hard with the wounds that I had to lick... You're a racist, I wouldn't trust you one bit."
 

Aaaargh!

Before I could get my hands on that blurry ticket for the Italy vs Paraguay match on the 14th June, the match sold out. The tickets were released on Friday and it seems too many people got excited about it, it SOLD OUT damn it! This is after being "currently unavailable" for yonks - who knows how long. Again, the others are not available either (10 days to the start of the tournament) - what is up with these people. Release the Greenpoint Stadium tickets immediately before somebody loses it. I refuse to miss out on this historical event!

Hey, there's always Shoprite Checkers just up the road. They'll have the answer.

Update soon to follow.

Fashion Faux-Pas

Wait a minute. Hold up. Adam, sweetie what are you wearing???

Another Guy: Yipee

No I did not take as much fanatical interest in American Idol Season 9 as I did last year when I was lounging (*ahem*) and not slaving at the books. But as usual, it's been tough getting another girl to take the crown. I could understand why last year when the last girl standing was 16-year-old Allison and Lil' Rounds kept picking awful songs that left people bemused but hey Crystal was good. I heard her sing several times during the Top 20 or something and Madame sounded powerful. Had so much pizzazz, confidence and flare. Oh well. It's not like winning makes all that much of a difference. Adam Lambert is doing far better than er, whatsisname? Cris Allen who is where at the moment? Does anyone beside his wife and family seem to know?

I've Been Frightened Today

What awful cause of nature would cause 50 Cent to look this miserable. My first thoughts were, "Is he ill?", "Has he got an eating disorder we didn't know of?" until I read the caption beneath the image which read:

The rapper turned actor lost an incredible 54 pounds for new film Things Fall Apart, in which he plays a terminal cancer patient, and the usually muscular star was keen to show off his new slimline look by posting photos on his blog.

Wow, Curtis Jackson id really taking his acting seriously. Even employing techniques from method actors. I have to say, I'm quite impressed. But that sullen look on his face and the washed out grey quality of this image had me worried for a second I must admit that.

MONAE Steals the Show!!

Okay, I have not even listened to ArchAndroid yet but the way critics are raving about it, it MUST be good. Need an ITunes account pronto. She is too worthy to download for free!

First track release "Tightrope" from the album. Nice groove.

Wise and Sensible

Will.I.Am says this:

“Soon I want to settle down and have lots of girl babies,” he reveals. “Because I don’t want to add to the destruction of the planet. It’s a man’s world and I think it’s gonna be a female that changes it all.”

I thought about this last night. What would happen if the women were in power? What kind of a world would we have? I like to believe it would be so much better than this mess of a planet we have going at the moment. Sometimes, I just sit and think how sad it is that men, especially white men are in power. It seems that it is in the European males best interest to dominate others for his own psychological and economic gain. So as far as the Man is in power, this predator-and-prey system we seem to live by will remain intact.

Read the first 70 pages of "Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism" last night. It was a tough read, I'm telling you. Especially the first chapter. You know how you never think that you'll be the one balling your eyes out when you visit a slave port in Liberia or you watch a movie like "Amistad". Until you witness all that pain, trauma and anguish. Being forced to acknowledege that these horrific events are not just a figment of someone's imagination. They are real-life accounts of the absolute sheer brutality that humans are capable of committing toward one another. It's just tragic. So tragic.

New Type of Supernova Discovery

This is interesting, just days ago A supernova that has been seen to detonate calcium and TITANIUM was observed. The supernova occurs as a result of two orbiting white dwarfs one of them which acquires mass continuously through helium capture and eventually detonates much like a Type Ia Carbon-Detonation Supernova and This may have some very interesting implications...
Up until this point, astronomers have only been able to identify two main types of supernova as a result of observation - the carbon-detonation Type Ia and Core-Collapse Type II responsible for very dense neutron stars and very mysterious black holes.

Wonder what implications this new type will have on current theories on dark matter within galaxy clusters.