Ralph Nader Will Create Madness by Joining It

Green Party Pioneer, Ralph Nader has decided to run for President...again. When will this guy ever learn that he can't win? Although he's making a stand by running and maybe even making a few people proud, by him joining the madness that is the Presidential election, will he create even more madness? There are some pundits that believe that the soon to be 74-year-old Nader won't have too much of an influence on either the voters or nominees, but it is easy to see differently, especially in November. Voters who will vote for Nader will more than likely be Independent, Green Party, and radical left wing Democrats - all voters who would have formerly voted for a Democrat. By Nader joining the race, he can take those voters away from the Democrats and also those who are undecided - all while not effecting right-wing voters at all. This could turn ugly. The two Democrats running seem to put up a facade as if they aren't worried about what could possibly happen - but it would be foolish and naive to think that they aren't thinking about it and might even alter their focus and speeches to rope the voters who would vote for Nader in, pleading for them to vote for someone who has a chance. Quotables:

• "He thought that there was no difference between Al Gore and George Bush and, eight years later, I think people realize that Ralph did not know what he was talking about. My sense is that Mr. Nader is somebody who, if you don't listen and adopt all of his policies, thinks you're not substantive."- Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL)

• "It is very unfortunate...I remember when he ran before. It didn't turn out very well for anybody -- especially our country. This time I hope it doesn't hurt anyone. I can't think of anybody that would vote for Sen. McCain who would vote for Ralph Nader. Obviously, it is not helpful to whoever our Democratic nominee is. But, you know, it is a free country."- Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY)

• "I think it always would probably pull votes away from the Democrats and not the Republicans, so naturally, Republicans would welcome his entry into the race." Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AK)

According to CNN.com, Nader encouraged people to look at his campaign Web site, www.votenader.org, which he said discusses issues important to Americans that Obama and Sen. John McCain "are not addressing."

Quick Notes

Sorry I've been gone for over a week...I don't even have a plausible explanation for it. I took the week off from work so that I can focus more on a collegiate competition that I have coming up starting next Thursday (which reminds me that I have to type up a final resolution) and my weekly class schedule isn't too tough - there really is no excuse. I feel especially bad because I have some good people on my team that big me and my work up...it is well appreciated. But the week wasn't too unproductive for me, I met a revolutionary interdisciplinary writer and performer, Coco Fusco. If you're not familiar with - get familiar at, www.cocofusco.com. To make a long story short, Coco spoke about the roles of American troops of women in interrogations in Iraq as a response to what late British feminist Virginia Wolff said about females who serve in the army don't do much. Overall, it was a good, moving performance that definitely made her audience think. Music and Entertainment

• R&B artist Ne-Yo or Neyo was arrested for speeding, driving recklessly and without a valid license - nothing ridiculous or crazy from the singer/songwriter, but we did find out why he always wears a hat:

Need I say more?

• Ne-Yo wasn't the only R&B artist that got arrested recently, rising artist, J-Holiday was arrested and charged with drug possession at around 10:30 PM when a pair of Maryland State Troopers pulled his car over because they smelled and saw marijuana.

• In case y'all haven't heard, R. Kelly is at it again! But this time with music industry vet. George Daniels' daughter, Maxine. Daniels was formerly a good friend of Kelly's and obviously disapproved of his relationship with his daughter. The daughter, a.k.a. Maxine, is 20 years younger than the 41-year-old, Kelly. According to Los Angeles Radio Station, Poppa Daniels said, "He crossed the line with my daughter...It didn't get to the extreme of that [sex tape] video or else I wouldn't be here, if you know what I'm talking about." (He's saying that if it would've been that extreme, he would've done something to be in jail right now instead of doing the interview for those that didn't catch on). Kells said that the relationship between the two was set up by Maxine's mother, and wife of George, Regina - stating that Regina gave her daughter his private phone number. But Maxine said that it was Kelly that gave it do her, and she also took full responsibility for everything that went down stating that she "was caught up in his charming and generous ways." Finally, the camp of the R&B star said that the team of Regina Daniels' reached his camp about a "healthy" six-figure settlement to make it all go away quietly. Regina denies that claim, stay tuned as the soap opera will surely continue.

• I'm not going to take up too much time or space on this one, but, R&B living legend, Patti LaBelle is putting her wonderful vocals aside to create a new line of wigs and hair pieces. According to EURweb.com, the LaBelle collection will feature nine styles of hair designed by the legend herself - the pieces are 100% human hair. It will be available exclusively in the Especially Yours catalog and available on their website, www.especiallyyours.com

• Sticking to R&B stars that are trying new things, 21-year-old Mario is putting the mic down for now and has joined a list of celebrity contestants of the upcoming season of "Dancing With the Stars." Other notable names that are joining the singer (whose album was very good, just not promoted right, by the way) are comedian Adam Corolla, actor Steve Guttenburg (can't wait to see that!), actress and ex-wife of two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash, Shannon Elizabeth, former Olympic Gold winner figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi, and Tennis Hall of Famer and stab victim, Monica Seles.

• Another R&B star making the switch includes the beautiful Mya (who can get the treatment) will start acting in the Broadway play, Chicago starting in May.

• Nas, love him or hate him, is one of the most respected rap/hip-hop artist to ever step in the studio and as all hip-hop heads now, his next album will be one of much controversy, entitled "Nig**r" but one of the producers one the album is one that doesn't get as much respect as he deserves is DJ Khalil (KHALIL not KHALED). Khalil is a staff producer for Dr. Dre and is very excited for what should be Nas' first single - a recycled song, "What It Is." Khalil recently held a public listening on some of his tracks. Check out the video:

DJ Khalil gives a Sneak Peek at new Nas

Nas What it is first listen Dj Khalil by Bounce2dis

• New Danity Kane track, "Damaged." A few notes: the track is pretty good, more of the melody that they have developed as opposed to the actual lyrics, I still want to hear that track that the dudes keep previewing, that sounds like it should be good. I hope that they get a name, though - having them known as "The Band" is pretty demeaning, LOL, and is a testament to the longevity that Diddy think that they will have.

• I remember back in the day when I used to be a HUGE WWF(now called WWE) wrestling fan, me and my entire family used to watch it religiously. I've separated myself from it when I turned a teenager but now I found myself watching it recently because of the best boxer in the world, pound for pound king, Floyd Mayweather Jr. made a special appearance on WWE's Pay-Per-View event, "No Way Out" and got in to it with 7 foot, 400 pound wrestler, nicknamed "The Big Show". Apparently, Floyd was defending a wrestler that "Big Show" was beating up, Floyd entered the ring and stood face-to-torso with the Big Show. The Big Show then got on his knees to mock Floyd when Floyd hit him with a three-piece that legitimately broke Big Show's nose. Floyd, by the way, is barely 5'8 (reppin hard for the shorter fellas). Floyd will face the Big Show, who was ironically training to be a boxer before that fell through in "WrestleMania" on March 30 - that should be quite the spectacle.

• Finally, some "A-list" celebrities were among over 100 people to be recommended to get an immediate Hepatitis A exam after a Bartender at a West Village Bar in New York City was infected. Among the big names were, Ashton Kutcher (who was there celebrating his 30th birthday), wifey Demi Moore, and Madonna. Hepatitis A is a liver disease caused by a virus and is spread from person to person by putting something in the mouth that has been contaminated with traces of fecal matter from an infected person, the department said. Symptoms include jaundice, fatigue, abdominal pain, nausea, and diarrhea.

Quick Weekend Notes

• First, our condolences to the family and friends of Rep. Tom Lantos, who was a holocaust survivor who escaped the Nazis twice as a teenager, and was the only survivor to serve in Congress - he was 80.

• There were two high school shooting in Memphis over the last week, the most recent one happened today, when a 17-year-old student shot a 19-year-old senior twice over an argument. The suspect shot the victim in gym class, the victim is in critical condition. The other shooting happened at a different school last Monday, Feb. 4 - when a student shot another student in the leg - no critical injuries were reported. Both students were detained and will more than likely be charged.
• Without getting into too much detail, Yahoo! Inc. respectfully rejected Microsoft's $44.6 billion bid to take over the company, deeming in inadequate. Word is that Yahoo! is in talks with AOL about a possible merger.

• Another lawsuit is coming out of former B2K member Raz-B's team. First, he was supposed to press charges on his prime producer/manager Chris Stokes for raping him and others - the suit was dropped a day later...nope, that's not shady at all. But this time, Raz-B's lawyers are out for blood against the team of boxing great Floyd Mayweather. According to Raz-B's lawyers, the security team of Mayweather beat Raz-B's brother, Ricky Romance, to a bloody pulp outside of a Grand Rapids, MI hotel - where Mayweather was holding his weekend extravaganza "The Mayweather Experience." Let's see if they fold if/when an athlete puts the pressure on them.

• To keep it on boxing, two big time welterweight prospects were in action this past weekend. Paul "The Punisher" Williams, who was coming off of a win against highly touted contender, Antonio Margarito, was in action against contender Carlos "Indio" Quintana, who is coming off of a loss to one of the tops in the division, Miguel Cotto. Paul Williams is a 6'1 welterweight - which means that at 6'1 - he fights at 147 pounds - he would easily be the favorite in any welterweight fight with exception only to one with either Floyd Mayweather or Miguel Cotto - but the hype was put to a stop as Quintana pulled off the upset, by winning an Unanimous Decision over the former WBO champ. The defense of Paul Williams (33-1, 24 KOs) wasn't there and both he and Quintana (25-1, 19 KOs) were sluggish, but the southpaw Quintana won the fight on straight lefts over the right arm of fellow southpaw Paul Williams. The scorecards read 115-113 (twice) and 116-113. Paul needs a rematch ASAP to prove that it was just an off night, and then he needs to move up in weight, it just looks very awkward to have a 6'1 athlete weigh 147 pounds in today's day. In the co-feature, undefeated prospect Andre Berto forced Michael Trabant to quit on his stool after six rounds of punishment, Berto moves to 21-0, 18 KOs, Trabant falls to 43-3-1, 19 KOs. Mega fights are in the future for Berto, I want to see him fight one more "average" boxer than move up to face Zab Judah.
• Lastly, big-ups to allhiphop.com, which is where I found this next clip, of some reporters at Fox in Houston tried to sucker Bun-B of the legendary UGK into demeaning hip-hop culture, but Bun-B proves he's too smart for it, and addresses the issue of him back on the road without partner, Pimp C - R.I.P.

Grammy Notes

I'm not going to write too much about the Grammy's...yet, probably won't ever (I'm not too big of a fan - the way they approach urban culture is unprofessional and some events last night proved just that), nonetheless, it seemed to be quite the night. But there are a bunch of other happenings, especially in sports and politics. First and foremost, big ups to the homie Kanye for shutting down the Grammy orchestra for trying to rush him off stage. I know that it wasn't my imagination - they definitely gave him less time than other winners who made their acceptance speeches. And it just so happened that the only two winners that got the orchestra played over their speeches were Black and quite amazing at what they do. More importantly, they both resisted and did their thing! (What up Herbie Hancock!) << style="font-weight: bold;">This clip isn't the entire acceptance speech, but it definitely wasn't a long one: Easily the best performance of the night: In other Grammy news, (by the way, I think it should be noticed that when I spell the word "grammy" with a lowercase "g" apparently, it's a misspelled word, but when I spell it with a capital "G" it's correct...smh) Amy Crackhouse, I mean Winehouse performed via satellite - she actually did a good job, despite her apparent unawareness of where the camera was filming from and the twitches and steady grabs at her crotch. She won 5 "Grammies" including record of the year and songwriter of the year - the category in which my lovely future wife who doesn't know I exist, Corinne Bailey Rae got robbed. Amy's Acceptance However, some of the best, if not unusual, news happened on the red carpet - and I'm not talking about horrid dresses worn by Cher or about how great Beyonce, Alicia Keys, Rihanna, and Corinne Bailey Rae looked, I'm talking about Nas' political statement...I don't know how I feel about his shirt, but I understand what he is trying to say. Two things to peep in this clip: Kelis and how scared and nervous the reporter is, she's getting a raise: Also, just to cap off a great weekend for Sen. Barack Obama - the Presidential hopeful won a Grammy! for Best Spoken Word Album for "The Audacity of Hope..." It's now or never.... Until then... Maybe next year, wifey.

Senator Obama speech in Richmond last night pts. 1-4

After a line of victories, Barack Obama celebrated in Richmond, Virgina - a state who votes along with Maryland, and Washington D.C. During this celebration, Sen. Obama, delivered yet another enlightening and igniting speeches. Critics call his words, just words - could he be too positive for politics? Pt.1 Pt. 2 Pt.3 Pt.4 (My personal favorite) I will post Senator Hillary Clinton's speech in Richmond, VA soon, as well. But it should be noted, that she didn't even mention Obama's name - nor did she acknowledge him by name. It was more about John McCain, but enlightening nontheless. Until then.

A Race to the Finish

Supporters indicate a big day for Obama.

Senator Obama swept the race to be the Democratic nominee in Washington (state), Nebraska, Louisiana, and the U.S. Virgin Islands yesterday, tightening his already snug race with Senator Clinton. The count for delegates stands at 1,139 for Senator Clinton and 1,106 for Senator Obama. 2,025 delegates are needed to win the nomination. The skinny jean-like tight race has brought some attention to the more than likely fact that a winner will not be announced until the Democratic Convention in late August. It also allows both candidates to focus on "superdelegates" which are elected officials and party leaders who will vote at the convention. Even more important, there are 796 of them, with the race being this close, even a portion of 796 is imperative to the two candidates. Both campaigns of the candidates are already focusing on the superdelegates by having big names in the world of government make phone calls to them. On the list for the people making the calls for the candidates are Madeline Albright (former Secretary of State under President Clinton I), President Bill Clinton, Chelsea Clinton [all in support of Hillary] as Tom Daschle, Gov. Janet Napolitano, and Senator John Kerry are among those making calls for Barack. Disheartening News for Obama Despite his recent surge in gaining support and votes across the country, the New York Times took a survey of these "superdelegates" about a week ago and the results were a bit lopsided, 204 pledged support for Sen. Clinton to only 99 for Sen. Obama. Although other surveys depicted Obama with more support than the New York Times indicated, I'm not quite sure if it is close to 204. "Superdelegates" include all Democratic governors and members of Congress, as well as officials and other prominent members of the party. Some said they were grappling with how to use their power if it comes into play, especially if their judgment does not match the will of a majority of voters - which might cause them to lose their own popularity and, in a way, disregarding the voice of the American people. Some Quotes from MSNBC about the issue of "Superdelegates"

• “My strong belief is that if we end up with the most states and the most pledged delegates from the most voters in the country, that it would be problematic for the political insiders to overturn the judgment of the voters." -Senator Obama
• “I think it is also important for superdelegates to think about who will be in the strongest position to defeat John McCain in November and who will be in the strongest position to ensure that we are broadening the base, bringing people who historically have not gotten involved in politics into the fold.” - Senator Obama

• “Superdelegates are, by design, supposed to exercise independent judgment, but, of course, if Senator Obama and his campaign continue to push this position, which is really contrary to what the definition of a superdelegate has historically been, I will look forward to receiving the support of Senator Kennedy and Senator Kerry.” - Senator Clinton

Many "superdelegates" said they would stay neutral as long as possible, hoping to be spared a decision. But, they said, they are prepared to step in and try to push the party to a decision as soon as the primaries are completed.

• “Once the primary season is over, I am hoping we will have a nominee. If those of us who are uncommitted can help bring that about, then I think we should try to do that.” Senator Cardin (D-MD)
• “I will not go through the summer, I can tell you that, without endorsing a candidate, I am not a big believer in smoke-filled rooms.” Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)
• “My personal opinion is it would be a mistake and disastrous either way for the superdelegates — insiders, establishment politicians — to come along and overturn the expressed view of those pledged delegates,” Senator John Kerry (D-MA)

It's obvious that as Sen. Obama is streaking and making a run at taking the lead and eventual victory over Sen. Clinton when it comes to delegates, he might not be as fortunate if/when it comes down to superdelegates. I understand what they're saying though, it's sort of like, if the people choose one candidate by a narrow margin, why should we have so-called "superdelegates" overturn our voices? With that said, after a line of victories yesterday for Senator Obama, he had a great speech in Richmond, VA - whose primary will be held on Tuesday along with Maryland, and Washington D.C. In the speech, he spoke about an issue I haven't heard too many candidates speak about -- education - maybe that's why it hit me as hard as it did. Nonetheless, it was a goodie, I will post it separately. Until Then.

Super Tuesday Quick Notes

Super Tuesday came and went...and voters are still left in the same ambiguous puzzle as they were before the supposedly revealing day. On the right, it seems like John McCain is slowly pulling away from his opponents (Romney and Huckabee) with his seemingly moderate approach. It's a pretty tactical strategy for McCain because if/when he wins the Republican nomination and then tries to convince some Democrats to vote for him, it won't seem like he's switching it up or "flip-flopping" as much if he keeps this moderate approach. He's probably the best candidate on the right for the country. On the left, it is still a mess...an organized one, though. And it is very exciting (we never thought CNN could be so exciting). Sen. Clinton won by a little margin in both delegates and states, but the race is still very tight and anyone who is counting Senator Obama out, might just be setting themselves up for a big shock, (see Giants vs. Patriots, LOL). On Tuesday, McCain won 605 delegates, his closest competitor, Mitt Romney, won a mere 201 and Huckabee won 195. Overall, McCain leads with 707 delegates, and Romney is in second with 294. It takes 1,191 to win the Republican nomination. In other words, this race is all but over. I read a report of how if Sen. Clinton were to win the Democratic nomination, it could lead to a big mess of a Democratic Convention in Denver during August. I respectfully disagree with that, although Colorado might be an Obama state, Clinton has more support of her peers than that of Obama. The real mess at a convention will be the Republican convention in St. Paul, Minnesota during the beginning parts of September, because of the simple fact that McCain gets steady criticized for not being "conservative enough" by his peers and far right wing voters. A good portion of his supporters and those that have voted for McCain might just be Moderate Democrats who don't want to or aren't ready to see either a Woman or an 1/2 Black man as the President - so they'd rather vote for the closest Republican to their ideals. Both the woman and the 1/2 black man fared exceptionally well on Super Tuesday - it was a very tight race, as expected. Clinton won 784 on Tuesday, Obama won 758. The race was so tight, delegates in Missouri split among the two candidates evenly. The total count for Cinton is 1,045 and Obama has 960 - 2,025 is required to win the Democratic nomination. In other words, this race is far from over. Lastly, I find it terribly important for voters to acknowledge that no one is perfect, not even you, so voting for the candidate that is "most like you" is a bit stupid. I'm sure you wouldn't want the responsibility of running the "most powerful country in the world" nor do you want everyone to be the same, have the same mindset, do the same things - that, my friends, is communism. It is important that we vote for the candidate who is best for this country, for the good of Country - not just because he/she is just like me. It's one thing to be down to earth and to relate to a candidate but another to consider his/her ideals and intended policies. Make the right choice - don't put people who call Ronald Reagan a hero in office, or else it will be a repeat of the 1980s.