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Friday, July 28, 2006
What We Find On the Internet
Last summers "research" job afforded me the opportunity to visit some interesting web sites. Since moving on to another position, I have to rely on email forwards and random web searches to find these cyber gems. Well, todays picture was the result of a random office search on the Ugliest Dog (whom recently passed away). A co-worker and I found Sam's personal website. On what I assume was a fan page with pictures that had been sent to the dogs owner we found:
Miss Kitty otherwise known as the Ugliest Cat in America I don't know who owns this, errr, thing, but how would you like to wake up at 3am to this guy perked on the pillow next to you?
Break out the Stilettos and Sports Coats...If you live in Philly, Dreemz Ultra Lounge (2nd and Chestnut in the Old City section) is the place to be on a Friday night for Luxe Fridays, hosted by Howards own, Dr. Miles Gray, III (Class of '01). Dr. Gray's Teambbc.com Lifestyle and Entertainment Group has brought back the sophistication and sexy that the club scene in Philadelphia that has been for a decade*. Teambbc.com, which has affiliations with most of the local colleges, has thrown signature events for holiday celebrations ( President's Day, Cinco de Mayo), Company launches ( S.T.Y.L.E. LLC), Sporting events ( Penn Relays) and Fashion ( Sneaker Suite). Of course there is always the free birthday party. Great drinks, great music, great location, and great people all comprise this ultimate party for the 21st century's young urban professional. You can see pictures from Teambbc.com's weekly parties at Nite Life Link. *Unlike DC, Philly night life was (and still is on the low) controled by the mob. When some of the more powerful leaders got sent to jail, slowly but surely mainy of the better clubs in Philly closed, and night scene hasn't been the same since. It's not a good party without the ham...
Now, I have to admit Luxe Fridays did put the SexyBack into Philly, but we all know that were there's sexy the H.A.M. is sure to follow. I don't think I need to explain my issues with this picture any further. 
and you know exactally which one I'm talking about, too!
I have to admit that sometimes my weave (I'm sorry if you had been fooled all this time) does leave much to be desired, but when you are boasting a number one album and pop star status there is no excuse for looking HAMalicious.
The latest celeb hair fiascos:
Ashanti Is her next movie a remake of Sweet Valley High?
Mya For Real with the Baby Hair? 
Be-Yawn-Ce0 Is it me or does she look like a tired house wife with that ponytail--like she just got finished scrubbing the floor and is about to watch Days of Our Lives with a box of BonBon's. 
Let the Count Down Begin!
White Sand and Clear Water for Everyone...
In 7 days I will be jumping on a plane to embark on my first vacation as a grown woman. Actually this will my first vacation in 5 years. Damn, I'm a workaholic. Nonetheless, my best friend and I are going to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic for 7 nights starting next Friday. We got a great deal and just hope that everything works out. Cross your fingers for a hurricane free week.
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Slow Day...Let's Watch Videos
Alright, I'm so bored I might actually do some work today! So in the mean time to keep up our unproductiveness here are some videos:
Janet, Call on Me ft Nelly
Justin Timberlake SexyBack ft Timberland
Nick Lachey (yeah I know, but still), I Can't Hate You Anymore
Omarion, Entourage
Shawna, Damn Fergie (of The Black Eyed Peas), London Bridges (Oh, Shit)
I remember when I went with my roommate to West Palm Beach for Spring Break my fresshman year. I guess that was when Trick Daddy fist coined his catch phrase, "Trick Luv da kids" and good googley moogley ever since. I know I mentioned that adults need to be more consistant and responsible role models so I'm glad he has taken the initiative to form a non profit organization that aims to better the academic experience for less fortunate children attending low proforming schools. However, I can't help but cringe when reading a title for an family event that includes reference to prostitution--even if it's someones nickname. Miami rapper Trick Daddy and his non-profit Trick Luvs Da Kids Foundation has partnered with the Florida Marlins and radio station 103.5 The Beat for a day of free activities for local high school students. The rapper will host the 3rd Annual Trick Luvs Da Kids Back to School Family Fun Fest at Virrick Park Saturday (July 29), providing a day of free activities, food and music. Additionally, students will receive a backpack filled with school supplies to help them through the upcoming school year.
“We want to encourage students to do their best in school," Trick Daddy told AllHipHop.com in a statement. "South Florida schools are among the lowest schools in the state with low FCAT [Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test scores.] We want students to be excited about learning."
Through the efforts of Trick Daddy and many others, FCAT scores in reading and math have steadily risen in 2006, according to numbers released by the Miami-Dade County Public School system.
"I enjoy giving back to the children," Trick Daddy continued. "These kids will one day be our leaders."
Will Smith will star in his most emotionally challenging role yet, the tear jerker, The Pursuit of Happyness (Sony Pictures). The film is slated for release on December 15th and co-stars his real life son, Jaden and Thandie Newton (Crash, Beloved, Mission Impossible II)  Will Smith is Chris Gardner, a struggling single parent. When he and his young
son are evicted from their San Francisco apartment, Chris steps into high gear
and lands a prestigious stock brokerage internship.
[source]
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
And People Wonder Why I Don't Like Her
Beyawnce (and/or her marketing team) Throws Some Shade
As you know, LeToya Luckett's self-titled CD was released yesterday (7/25) and is expected to do well on the strength of her hit "Torn". Not to be outdone, LeToya's former band member Beeyawnce has made her album "B'Day" available for pre-order on iTunes, in an attempt to uncut LeToya's sales. Beeyawnce's album was originally scheduled to be release Sept. 5, her birthday, but the pre-order was pushed up 2 months early. [source] c/o [source]
I just had two separate discussions about how shady Beyawnce's marketing has been at the expense of her bandmates (old and new). This stunt is an obvious move of disperation and it turns me off to Bee even more than I already am. Apparently, Bee is scare because she has had a 7 year head start, numerous ad campaigns, movies and guest spots and yet in her second solo effort her first single is luke warm at best and her first video, although well financed is so horrid that her "fans" have start petitioning for a re-shoot. Now, here comes LeToya, who has been missing, for lack of a better word, since being unceremoniously kicked from the group (at the point when Beyonce's star status was just bloosoming), she has written most of her tracks on her album, executive produced her first CD, has shot a better video than Beyawnce most recent effort (and any of Kelly Rowland's) and is set to make a major impact on R&B records sales of the summer.
Can we say P-E-T-T-Y!
After years of speculating during stand up comedy routines everywhere, we have finally identified a gay boy band member. Lance Bass, formerly of N*sync, came out in an artical in People Magazine.
 NEW YORK (AP) -- Lance Bass, band member of 'N Sync, says he's gay and in a "very stable" relationship with a reality show star.
Bass, who formed 'N Sync with Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick, tells People magazine that he didn't earlier disclose his sexuality because he didn't want to affect the group's popularity.
"I knew that I was in this popular band and I had four other guys' careers in my hand, and I knew that if I ever acted on it or even said (that I was gay), it would overpower everything," he tells the magazine.
'N Sync is known for a string of hits including "Bye Bye Bye" and "It's Gonna Be Me." The band went on hiatus in 2002. Bass has also found headlines for undertaking astronaut training and failing to raise money for a trip into space.
Bass says he wondered if his coming out could prompt "the end of 'N Sync." He explains, "So I had that weight on me of like, 'Wow, if I ever let anyone know, it's bad.' So I just never did."
The singer says he's in a "very stable" relationship with 32-year-old actor Reichen Lehmkuhl, winner of season four of CBS' "Amazing Race."
Bass and Fatone, 29, are developing a sitcom pilot inspired by the screwball comedy "The Odd Couple," in which his character will be gay.
"The thing is, I'm not ashamed -- that's the one thing I went to say," Bass says. "I don't think it's wrong, I'm not devastated going through this. I'm more liberated and happy than I've been my whole life. I'm just happy."
Honesty is the Best Policy
DETROIT (July 25) - A homeless man who returned $21,000 worth of saving bonds he found in a trash bin is finding out how much honesty can pay off.
Charles Moore, 59, had been searching for returnable bottles last week when he came across the 31 U.S. savings bonds. He turned them in to a homeless shelter, where a staff member tracked down the family of the man who had owned them.
For his good deed, the bond owner's son gave Moore $100, but residents around Michigan and in other states decided his action merited a more generous reward.
So far, Moore has received over $4,000.
One man sent him eight trash bags full of returnable bottles and a bowl of coins. Three others gave a combined $2,500, and two businessmen from Troy donated $1,200, a shopping spree and a lead on a job.
"I was thankful for it," said Moore, who had lost his roofing job in Ohio and moved back to Michigan but couldn't find work.
Moore said he plans to use the money to find an apartment.
David C. Smith, of Albuquerque, N.M., gave Moore $1,000. Smith said he and his fiancee wouldn't have thought twice about what to do if the bonds had belonged to them.
"We would have given him the whole amount, period," Smith said. "No questions asked."
And They Wonder What Went Wrong?
Any day now some parents group will start complaining about how over sexed and out of control today's teenagers are--we are due for a coupe on the teeny booper lifestyle. But, what gets me is how we just let the little stuff slide and then wonder why girls are wearing multi-colored bracelets to signify which sex act they will be willing to perform on a boy or why teens are having sex parties after school or why the teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease rates are so high!
Personally, I agree it's the media. I know that that statement seems a little bandwagonish, but t's true. Back in the mid to early 90's there was a clearly defined line between the cultures of children, teenagers, young adults, and old heads. Towards the late 90's that line became blurred. 30 year olds portraying 16 year olds on TV and teenage story lines became increasingly mature. The juniors section of clothing stores became more and more little your local stripper supply store. And teenage musical artists started singing about having (dysfunctional, yet pleasing) sexual relationships.
Nickelodeon used to be a haven for young people, offering a myriad of age appropriate programming. Then they choose Paris Hilton, the slut of socialites to host their annual awards show. What are they trying to say with that decision? Now, Nelly Furtado and Timberland are set to perform "Promiscuous" at Teen Choice 2006. The song is nominated for Choice R&B/ Hip Hop Track at the awards show, which presents surfboard trophies to honorees chosen by the public. They have to be kidding me! This is just as bad as Marques Houston old a$$ joining the Scream Tour last summer and having the nerve to get up in front of a bunch of 12 year olds and their parents singing about, "lets get naked" while wearing nothing but a towel.
Were is the outrage? Why isn't this topping nightly talk shows like the Janet Jackson/Justin Timberlake Superbowl incident or the Terrell Owen/Nicole Sheridan fiasco. Obviously, the problem with our youth is be not their lack of attention, but our's. We as adults, mentors, role models, and parents can't pick and choice when to enforce levels of appropriateness. We need to be more consistent. Ultimately, we need to reestablish that line of what is acceptable and age appropriate behavior. Lawd, help the children! Nelly Furtado "Promiscuous" ft Timberland
It's beginning to look like Barb and the gals are just looking for a black ladies to harass on a daily basis. She is really starting to sound out of pocket. I wonder how her approval ratings are doing lately.
Barbara V. Mo'Nique I sorry but if I had the choice between this and an hour of talk about an extravagant wedding to a former homosexual, I'll take the latter.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
It's a Different World From Where You Come From!
Yes, The Daily Dose is a Howard Insider presentation, but that doesn't mean we can't discuss issues that effect our non-HBCU counter parts like Proposition 209 and the systematic demolition of Affirmative Action in higher education.
Diversity Inc. (one of my favorite sites for intellectual stimulation) reported on the drastic and historic decline in the enrollment of minorities in the State School system since race was taken out of concideration in admission choices.
Below is the article. Feel free to comment (click Doctors Notes below this post) or share (click Referrals below this post)
Affirmative-Action Update: Where Are All the Black Students? Compiled by the DiversityInc staff
© 2006 DiversityInc.com July 24, 2006
Not at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Of nearly 10,000 black students who graduated from Los Angeles County high schools this past June, just 1 percent will attend UCLA, according to NPR's Morning Edition. Why? For many, the culprit is Proposition 209, the 1996 anti-affirmative-action bill backed by former UC Regent Ward Connerly, which made it illegal to use race-based preferences in admissions, employment and contracting throughout the state. When Connerly's term ended in January 2005, his message was clear: Don't bring back affirmative action, according to Black Issues in Higher Education. UC may not be able to reinstate affirmative action, but the devastating decline in black enrollment has spawned discussion about how to revive the university's diversity within the boundaries of the law. While UC has admitted more students of color since an initial drop after Connerly's Proposition 209, the disparities are concerning. This year, black enrollment at UCLA will be the lowest in more than three decades—a 57 percent decline since 1996. Last year, Latinos comprised 17 percent of UC admissions, marking only a minor gain since 1997, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. (See also: Ward Connerly's Anti-Affirmative-Action Legacy) "We agree it's a crisis—absolutely," Yanina Montero, vice chancellor for student affairs at UCLA, told NPR. In 2006, blacks accounted for just 2 percent of UCLA admissions. "We are not able, with these numbers, if they continue to decline, to have a critical mass of African-American students on campus to provide them with a positive experience, as well as maintaining the quality of the educational environment," said Montero. On Wednesday, the UC Board of Regents approved a proposal to study the impact of Proposition 209 since its 1996 inception. The study will look at graduate and professional students as well as undergraduates, assess the effects on admissions, enrollment and campus climate and provide recommendations on how UC can enhance diversity within the law. "African Americans are disappearing [from the UC student body] at an alarming and precipitous rate," Regent Eddie Island told UCSF Today, the daily news site for UC San Francisco. "If 209 brought about this result, then we ought to know it and the public ought to know it." The results will be reported to the Regents' Committee on Educational Policy by May 2007, five months too late to impact Michigan's vote on a similar proposal. Connerly faults the school system, rather than his initiative, for the disparities. He aruges that black applicants are not as academically qualified as other students. "It's much more convenient to blame 209, and to blame the university's
requirements, than to do the heavy lifting of getting our students prepared so
that they can compete," Connerly told NPR.
But how can students of color compete without equal opportunity? Connerly's relentless campaign has already opened the floodgates for a slew of anti-affirmative-action legislation in the name of civil rights. The U.S. Supreme Court recently agreed to hear two cases relative to public schools in Seattle, Wash., and Louisville, Ky. These public schools are two among many that have employed cluster districting and other tactics to achieve racial/ethnic balance in an effort to reap the benefits of integration and level the playing field. A May 2006 study by UC Davis and UCLA psychologists found that middle-school students felt safer and less lonely in diverse schools, a tout to the psychological benefits of diversity. In a survey of more than 70 sixth-grade classrooms in 11 public middle schools in Southern California urban communities, the researchers compared classrooms with lower and higher classroom diversity among whites, blacks, Latinos and Asians.
"The skills needed for young people to successfully negotiate today's increasingly global economy can best be developed through exposure to very diverse people, cultures and points of view," Sandra Graham of the UCLA Department of Education said in a release. "Diversity benefits everyone; in fact, it is critical in contemporary America and especially in states like California, where the population is changing dramatically."
In 2004, people of color comprised more than 70 percent of the Los Angeles County population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This year, they only were 22 percent of UC admissions.
According to the Los Angeles Times, UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert J. Birgeneau believes this was not the outcome voters intended when they favored the 1996 California Civil Rights Initiative, which housed Proposition 209. In 1998, Connerly led a victorious campaign in Washington to pass Initiative 200, which was patterned after Proposition 209.
Will his third campaign be successful? This November, Michigan will vote on the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative (MCRI), which would mirror the legislation already enacted in California and Washington. Civil-rights and advocacy groups such as BAMN, a coalition to defend affirmative action "By Any Means Necessary," have crusaded against Connerly's efforts, backed by bipartisan opposition to MCRI. And public sentiment appears to be shifting. According to a July 7–12 Free Press-Local 4 Michigan poll of 632 likely voters in the upcoming November election, 48 percent oppose the MCRI, 43 percent favor it and 9 percent are unsure. That 9 percent will make a critical difference come November. A campaign for awareness that leverages the lessons learned at UC will be key in securing those votes.
Last year, following a trip to Atlanta I began a segment of Joi's Ramblings called, " Yeah, I'm Hating on Your City." Although the following complaint is not half as venomous as my previous gripes, I would like to plead with the people of Atlanta with all sincerity. NO MORE DANCES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We bounced with you, some people rocked with you, and a few people are even snappin with you, but the insanity has got to stop. Why is it that every time we look around, Atlanta has invented, no concocted some form of coonery that the black community is supposed to latch onto as the dance crazy of the moment? Don't ya'll have jobs? Families to take care of? When do you find the time to make this foolishness up? And what's worst, is ya'll even find this mess deep enough to launch (wack a$$) dance off's. You guys can't be serious! What heterosexual male really wants to be caught in public swinging his hips and breaking his wrists? And please don't response with that "no homo" crap. From the moment I first saw Dem Franchise Boys Leanin and Rockin wit It I couldn't help but think of Lamar Latrell from Revenge of the Nerds. Recently, DJ Comic Kev of Power 99FM (Philly) played a "new" track from some group out of Atlanta called "Walk Wit' It." Nooooooooooooooooooooooo! I immediately called my Atlanta News Bureau Chief, Kim, for the facts. She has since investigated and according to her credible sources (her teenage brother and sister), yes, "walkin" is the new big thing on the Atlanta dance scene. Good Lawd, the madness has got to stop. I hear by issue a ban in the city of Atlanta for creating any new dances for the next 5 years. Just take a break. Live a little. The time off will do you guys some good.
Baby, You've Got What I Need
 Today is the day we've been waiting almost seven years for--the day when original member of Destiny's Child, Letoya Luckett will release her much anticipated debut album, Letoya.
Even though a rip of her album was leaked late last week, I encourage you all to go out and buy a legitament copy--I know I am.
Monday, July 24, 2006
Lil' Wayne was never (visually) my favorite rapper. Quite frankly don't believe its healthy to look him straight on without something to filter the ugliness--like a paper bag or something. However, I've got to respect him lyrically (even if Gillie the Kid is his ghost writer), especially after seeing his MTV Jams "Jam of the Week," "Shooter" featuring Robin Thicke (aka Mr. Seevers son). The track is the biznass, and shows that southern rappers can spit about more than just spinners, strippers and snapping. However, the video does give us another refreshing view of why white (guys) are in. Robin Thicke is that dude and I'll bet anyone $100 that he could pick up at least 5 chicks from the yard. With Justin Timberlake gearing up to release his sophmore solo album, Futuresex/Lovesounds, Fall 2006 is looking to be the Year of Urban Whiteness. Good Lawd, and I want a front seat. disclaiminger: My fine nubian kings need not worry this is not a declaration of abandonment. I love my chocolate and always will.
Lil Wayne ft Robin Thicke, Shooter
Speaking of Kelly Rowland, while I was looking up the above clip on YouTube, I found this clip from a Brittish special of Destiny's Child. Clearly we can see the dysfuctionality of the Kelly/Beyonce relatinship forming.
The Post Star era of The View has Ol' Barb showing her true colors--errrr ignorance.
B. Walters V. The Replacements
Ms. Walters V. Kelly Rowland
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