Finally, a network is taking up the cause of finding missing BLACK FOLKS!  It is well documented that a missing black person DOES NOT garner as much attention as a missing non-black person.  TV One’s new show, Find Our Missing features the real life stories of the blacks that have gone missing.  S. Epatha  Merkerson (Law & Order) hosts of the show which airs Wednesday Nights @ 10 pm on TV One. 

Also featured is the organization Black and Missing Foundation, which features alerts of recent African-Americans who have gone missing.  Just curious, has anyone heard the names Phoenix Coldon (23), Stacey Nicole English (36) or Khaniya Margarett Roberts (10)? 

If your answer is no, then you understand the need for this TV show AND this organization.   All three are black females that went missing during the month of December. 

 From TV One’s website: 

“Find Our Missing, a new, hour-long docu-drama series for TV One, will put names and faces to people of color – young and old- who have disappeared without a trace. Each riveting episode features a dramatic and emotional tale that places the viewer within the lives of the missing person, along with reflecting the pain of their loved ones, while confronting dead ends at every turn.”

“From the moment of their disappearance the story back tracks to learn about the missing person from the people who knew them best – who they were, what made them tick and how they touched those around them. With each break’s cliffhanger and each new twist unearthed, viewers will be more than just engrossed in the story being told; they will want to help solve the case. ” ~ TV One

You can also view episodes online on TV One’s website.  So after you get your fill of guilty ghettoness pleasures from random TV Shows (which shall remain nameless)…tune in and support something worthwhile. 

~kdub

-Collage photo from CDAN

January 18, 2012

A number of websites have taken a stand today against the latest attempts to silence the internet.  If you don’t know anything about it, check out the two troublesome bills SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) and PIPA (Protect IP Act) in both the House and the Senate.  The powers that be, i.e. dudes with a boatload of cash aka 1%-ers, are trying to convince Congress to pass this legislation.  If you don’t think this effects you…then just imagine an internet without free knowledge, Youtube or even Hot Ghetto Mess.

Thanks to those sites who took a stand today.  Pay attention folks…because this is real!!  Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

~kdub

***UPDATED*** Part 2 of this wonderful documentary airs Christmas Day on CBS 4pm – 6 pm***

So listen up folks…if you want to WIN the next barbarshop argument (with correct facts) about the history of  Black professional football players…you might want to get a pen, pad and set your DVR so you can take notes…

 Third and Long: The History of African-Americans in Pro Football 1946-1989

Someone, who looks like us, took the time to tell OUR history. We need to support!! 

Theresa Moore’s production company, T-Time Productions, has produced a ground-breaking documentary entitled “Third and Long: African Americans in Pro Football 1946-1989″ (TAL) . “Third and Long” is a unique, two-part documentary that explores and celebrates the history, racial struggles, sacrifices and triumphs of African Americans in professional football from 1946, with the re-integration of the sport after a 13-year exclusion of Black players, through 1989, when Art Shell was named the first Black head coach of the NFL’s modern era. The TAL documentary examines the impact of societal events such as World War II, the Civil Rights Movement, Brown v. Board of Education, the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy and the Vietnam War and adds a unique viewpoint by including the perspectives and experiences of some of the players’ wives. It also examines the critical role and contributions of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) during this time period.

“Third and Long” includes interviews with football luminaries such as Jim Brown, Willie Lanier, Tony Dungy, Art Shell, Deacon Jones, Bobby Mitchell, Lenny Moore, Wally Triplett, James “Shack” Harris, Ray Lewis, Bobby Bell, Joe Gibbs, Ambassador Dan Rooney, Jeffrey Lurie, former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, Willie Davis, Willie Brown, John Wooten, Abner Haynes, Ted Hendricks, Ron Mix, Paul Hornung, Kellen Winslow Sr. and Doug Williams.

“Third and Long” will premiere on CBS on Saturday, December 17, at 1PM EST . The second episode of “Third and Long” will premier on CBS on December 25 from 4-6 PM EST

Check out the ”Third and Long” website at www.thirdandlong.tv, and Like this on Facebook  and follow Thirdandlong1 on Twitter.

Finally, something about our history and not during black history month.  Oh, did I mention the program was narrated by Chuck D?  (you can’t go wrong with that)…

thanks for listening…

~kdub

Anyone live in Texas?  If so, meet Kenneth Robinson. 

July 24, 2011

Kenneth has used his noggin to find an obsecure Texas law which allowed him to stake claim to a $300,000 house for a mere $16.  Of course, the neighbors are pissed…can you guess why?

Click Here to read about his story.

Thanks to WFAA-Dallas for the report and Playahata for posting.

May 7, 2011

In one week, President Obama has soared back to the top of the heap. He silenced Donald Trump (indirectly calling him a carnival barker), got the gas prices to stop rising (at least for the interim) and took out the most wanted terrorist on the planet. Hell, even the student loan couldn’t find bin Laden although he was hiding in plain sight ala Abbottabad.

What have we learned…Poor planning generally leads to piss poor execution, i.e. 10 years of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and $15 trillion out of the pocket.

So let this be a lesson kiddies…sometimes it pays to just “be still”, keep your mouth shut and have a plan.

All hail the chief!! We know POTUS is his title, but that brother is C-O-O-L!! (What’s that spell…come on now, don’t act like you don’t know the words)

~kdub

March 2, 2011

Raynell Cooper & Brandon Welch – Winner & Semi-Finalist of 2011 Teen Jeopardy Tournament

As most of you wonder what to make of this next generation…out pops some breaths of fresh air.  Read more…

The path through life is often a bumpy one.  There are few of us who have made it without a lot of mistakes and bad decision making.  And while, its optimal to keep yourself out of trouble—its honorable to face your bad decision making, mitigate your damages and turn it around.  Too often we see bad circumstances or bad decision-making as a death sentence that crushes our goals and motivation.  We use our misfortune as an excuse and a life-time reason to gripe about what we don’t have and what we cant get.  But not Rob Tillman.

Almost one year to the day after graduating 5th in his high school class and receiving a full academic scholarship to a major university, Rob sat in a county jail cell.

Read more…

NEWSFLASH:  You can have a bunch of fancy schmancy degrees and still give back.  Jim Smith shows you how.

Jim Smith is one of my heroes.  So often, we buy into the dichotomy that you have to either make a lot of money and forget the people or love the people and be broke.  However, Jim Smith, with a mind trained in physics, technology and business has devoted his life and significant brain power to crafting more effective and efficient ways to mentor and teach life development skills to at-risk youth.    He looks back on his days in subsidized housing and knows that it was education and a strong family that helped him avoid becoming a statistic, and he is determined to create opportunities that will do the same for others.

Read more…

Aaron McGruder
Cartoonist

Born: 29 May 1974
Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois

Just a few years ago, when he was still a young college student, Aaron McGruder decided to create a comic strip that reflected both his love of hip-hop culture and the true racial diversity and complexity of the world in which he lived.

The result was The Boondocks, the story of a group of African-American city kids adjusting to life in white suburbia. Combining childhood antics with contemporary political and social satire, the strip explores the terrain where dashikis and Brand Nubian CDs meet The Gap and Hanson.

Read more…

I love these guys!  Thank you for reminding us that there is more to black music  than clubs and ballin and booty shaking and that there are some of us that actually still know how to play an instrument.

You’ve heard the expression, “don’t judge a book by its cover”; teenage brothers Damien and Tourie Escobar are a perfect example. When you first spy the New York duo’s streetwise style, you may expect them to start rapping, but then you hear their violins, and an entirely profound and altogether surprising sound awakens from their souls. Dubbed N.B.S or Nuttin But Stringz, the talented young musicians play an intense blending of classical music, jazz, r&b, and yes, hip hop.

Tourie and Damien, studied at the Juliard School of Music and Bloomingdale School of Music and have taken their mastered skill to startling heights to include the world famous APOLLO THEATER, JAY LENO SHOW and ELLEN SHOW just to name a few.

Read more…