The New Face of Crime

The Daily Show's Larry Wilmore gives the 411 on the "new" face of crime.

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The New White Face of Crime
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Daily Show Full Episodes Important Things w/ Demetri Martin Political Humor

"I'm Not a Member of Any Organized Political Party . . .

I'm a Democrat." These famous words were spoken by Will Rogers, but they are still very relevant today. With the Republicans engaged in an internecine battle over the very soul of their party at best, or just running around like chickens with their heads cut off at worst; it should be easy for the Democrats to enact and pass whatever they want. And after eight years of Bush, this is definitely the time to enact real CHANGE. However, instead of maximizing the advantage of the Presidency and the wide legislative margins in Congress, they are playing prevent defense on themselves.

At a time when the nation is in the most perilous period that it has experienced at least in my lifetime, the conservative members of the party want to do what the Republicans can't, and slow down the Administration's agenda (which is only mildly progressive if you ask me).

What I want to know (and I’m asking this entirely rhetorically) is “What the hell were they doing for the last eight years?” While Bush was pulling a Kanye and saying, “Y’all can’t tell me nothin’;” the Democrats were embodying the title of that Roots tune “Don’t Say Nothing.” Where were their voices of fiscal restraint? Where were their voices calling for investigations into the questionable and sometimes illegal practices of the previous administration? Where were their voices of dissent then? They were nowhere to be found. They were real quiet; acting like D’Bo had just rolled up on them or something. Now that it is time for the mess to be cleaned up, they want to object. Now that it is time for action, they want to rise up and say "slow down." It is downright appalling.

No one would be happier than I if the Republicans wandered around in the wilderness for years out of power; however, they really do not have anything to worry about. The Democrats, even when they have all of the tools necessary to succeed, find a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. With the Conservadems doing their thing, the Right will be back on top before they know it.

Rachel Maddow expounds more elegantly on the situation below.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

The Lonely Blogger Likes to Free His Mind @ Night

Kid Cudi's "Day N' Nite" is one of my favorite songs of the past year. This is probably due to the overwhelmingly catchy beat. A beat so popular that several rappers have decided to spit their own verses over it; the best probably coming from Joell Ortiz and Jim Jones (yes, i really did just say Jim Jones). Hey, he can't rap on his own songs, but he's killer on other people's hits.

I'm also a big fan of the acoustic sound and that is why this video of London's Little Boots doing a cover of Day N' Nite is so fascinating. From what I understand, she is a classically trained musician and DJ who is currently lighting up the charts over the pond. She is also a performer at the upcoming SXSW festival next week, so if you are in the Austin area you might want to check her out.

Can You Smell What Barack is Cooking?

President Obama is known for his cool demeanor, and it has definitely served him well in his political career thus far. However, I must admit that I would love to see him "lay the smack down" on the Republicans more often. Saturday Night Live offers us a glimpse into what that might look like.

Girl from Another Planet

One of the very few perks of living in this icy outpost is that it surprisingly gets a bunch of great musical acts. I think it’s because they decide to try out the show and work out the kinks here before taking it on to larger metropolitan areas. But whatever the reason, it was one of the little things that made living here bearable.

One of the concerts I checked out near the end of last year was Janelle Monae. The Kansas City born, ATL living Afro-punk star was the opening act for some cat named Jaime Liddell. I still have no idea who he is as I didn’t stick around to watch his set. However, her set was absolutely amazing. If you don’t have her album, Metropolis: The Chase Suite (and shame on you if you don’t), her set is basically a straight adaptation of the studio performance. However, whatever amount of energy you thought she put into the album is greatly exceeded in the stage show. She dances, turns, kicks, swings her hair, and moves her hips nonstop all while still singing flawlessly and not running out of breath. You would think that she went to the Matthew Knowles singers’ boot camp. It was truly a remarkable site to see. She has a stage presence that is strikingly similar to Andre 3000 (circa “Hey Ya”), right down to the permed-out guitar players. This is probably not by coincidence, considering that she was “discovered” by Big Boi and appeared on both his Purple Ribbon All-stars Compilation and the Idlewild soundtrack.

Her voice is strong and robust. Not really what you would expect from someone who is so tiny. It really filled the room even with the drums blaring and guitar thrashing. And just to prove that she can really carry a tune, she takes a break to sing a cover of “Smile.” It was totally beautiful. Her voice was a rich as Swiss milk chocolate. It was definitely a contrast to the rest of the show, but somehow still worked. The slowdown also helped the crowd to catch its breath before she continued with the more upbeat fare.

Although the crowd was sparse (probably due to the demographics of this area), she still decided to do a stage dive. This resulted in me literally being the only one holding her up at one point, and that is when I realized that she is really little. Like really, really little. Like she may weigh 100 pounds little. But after passing her off to another concert patron, she eventually made her way back to the stage and continued the show. She finished with the song “Lettin’ Go”, which is probably her most recognizable tune, before ceding the stage to her band mates who lit into a five minute jam session. The permed-out guitar players did their best Jimi Hendrix impersonations and the drummer head-banged while beating out some monster rhythms. He ended by throwing his drumsticks into the crowd of which I managed to snag one. I even was able to get Janelle to sign a copy of her album after the show. Needless-to-say, I left the show as a very happy camper.

If you have not checked out Janelle’s album yet, I highly recommend that you do so. You can hear some of her songs at her website www.jmonae.com or MySpace page. There is also a new special edition of the album available through iTunes. If you get a chance to see her live, definitely go. The show is high-energy, she sings her heart out, and on top of all of that she is extremely gracious to her fans. What more could you ask for?

Chopped N Screwed

Unfortunately, your boy was one of the 598,000 people that got laid off in January. It's a totally surreal experience if you have never gone through it. One minute you are diligently working at your desk and the next you get called in the boss's office, told that you have 3 hours to pack up your personal items, meet with HR, and turn in all of the company property before security comes to escort you out. I'll elaborate on this more at some point; but needless-to-say, this is why I will have much more time in the interim to get my blog on.

As I was driving home, I heard this song on the radio. And although it is clearly not a perfect metaphor for the situation, it somehow seemed strangely appropriate.

And I'm Back . . .

Due to certain events that will be explained later, I'm back to writing and will be spending a lot more time doing so over the coming weeks. I actually have a few pieces in the can that I finished last year, so you'll be seeing some of those as well (at least the ones that are still quasi-relevant). So here's hoping that the Holiday Season and the New Year have been good to you thus far, and that y'all are ready for more commentary.

-AIR

Yes We Did!!!

Change

Betfair's Presidential Election: National Chart

Gamblers literally put their money where their mouths are. Studies have shown that betting markets are oftentimes more accurate than polls because of this fact. In 2004, Betfair got the call of every state right even when exit polls were saying differently. Let's see how it turns out this year.

Protect Your Vote

Wassup 2008

Colin Powell: "I'll be Voting for Barack Obama"

"Who is this Batman . . . Um, I mean Barack Obama?"

In case you were one of the 250 million people who had something better to do than watch the debate on Wednesday, this classic clip from the 1960s Batman TV series gives you everything that you would need to know in less than three minutes.

It's totally uncanny. The Penguin lays out all of John McCain's classic hits from this campaign: from questioning Obama's associations, to saying he's not going to sling mud while of course slinging mud, and making references to his "enthusiastic" crowds. It's almost unbelievable how spot on this is and it's pretty funny too.



(h/t) Marc Ambinder

The Big Debate

Last night's debate was watched by an estimated 57 million people. Here are the highlights in three minutes from Time.com

The Look of Love

Barack Obama upon seeing his wife Michelle after the first Presidential Debate.

(h/t) Jack & Jill Politics

Something is Missing . . .

Do you remember those Highlights Magazines that we used to read when we were kids? They always had the cool pictures where you had to find the hidden object or figure out what was missing. Something is missing in the picture of John McCain, can you figure out what it is?



That's right, it's the FLAG PIN! Remember how much grief Obama was given back in primaries for not wearing a flag pin? You had all of these people talking about he's not patriotic because he doesn't wear a flag pin . . . a freakin' flag pin! How many of y'all rock a flag pin on the way to work everyday? Anyway, I'll be very interested to see if this is brought up on the Sunday talk shows and given the same kind of coverage that was given to Obama previously.

Joe Biden

Like any good surrogate should do, Democratic VP Candidate Joe Biden comes out talking to the press after the debate. However Sarah Palin is mysteriously absent . . . I wonder why?



By the way, Joe is straight on fire in his analysis. Got to love it.

But Tell Us How You Really Feel . . .

CNN's Jack Cafferty gives it us to straight, no chaser on his feelings about Sarah Palin.

John McCain: Time Traveler?

John McCain just keeps outdoing himself when it comes to political stunts. For his latest trick, he has done something thus far only achieved in science fiction: time travel. That's right, I said TIME TRAVEL. Before a single question has been asked in tonight's debate at the University of Mississippi, McCain has already been to the future and won it. Unbelievable!

Check the story from this morning's online edition of the Washington Post here.