OH HELL NO!!!!

Dear Metro Riders,

I just wanted to take a moment to make you aware of a gross injustice that has been done to some of your precious Metro stations. BET has invaded!!!! AHHHHHHH!! And what's worse, its just ignant!!!

I'm on my way to dinner with a friend last night and as I am walking towards the escalator I see a large billboard with Lil Kim's picture on it. the next thing I notice is that infamous BET logo. I bent down to tie my shoe and as I looked up I happened to read the caption next to Lil Kim's picture. "Countdown to Lockdown: a 14-Day trip from Hard Rhymes to Hard Times." What the #$%k?!! the chick is dumb enough to try to lie to the police when they have videotape evidence and tehy are doing a documentary on her getting ready to go to prison. People will attempt to make money off of anything these days.

Of course it's on BET!! What other cable channel would it be on? That cable network has become such a joke (in my opinion). I remember when I used to stay up Rap City, Video Soul, Video LP and Midnight Love were the only video shows on BET. Everything else was regular programming. They had Tavis, Teen Summit, the Honda Campus All-Star Challenge (of which I was a three year participant and captain of Hampton University's team), Black College Sports, the list goes on....

Now EVERYTHING is videos!!!! But I'm off on a tangent. That ad was just indicative of what a once respected cable network has become. They need to the network that carries "THE SAUCE" Awards. That's not respected either.

But, I look above Lil Kim and there is an ad for College Hill, another BET programming mistake. The tag line reads "A Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Waste", and there is a photo of the cast. The first thing you see is one of the male cast members standing in the front with no shirt on. They look like a bunch of ghetto children. Why do I have a funny feeling that the show has nothing to do with "brains". Actually, it probably has a lot to do with brains.

when rappers dont trust the police (how can you blame them?)

if dreds equals strength, busta is seriously lacking now

To Whom It May Concern,

I recently read an article that appeared in the New York Times entitled “When Rappers Keep Their Mouths Shut Tight”. It is unfortunate when people who do not understand Hip-Hop culture, write about incidents that really have nothing to do with the music, and then attempt to connect dots that have no business being connected.

For those of you who do not know, Israel Ramirez, a bodyguard for Busta Rhymes, was gunned down outside a video shoot approximately two weeks ago after a dispute supposedly involving an associate of rapper Tony Yayo and music producer Swizz Beatz. Apparently, the acquaintance traded shots with someone outside of the video shoot and Mr. Ramirez was killed. The hoopla over the past two weeks has all centered around Busta Rhymes’ refusal to talk to the police.

First of all, there were 30 to 50 bystanders outside during the shooting. How Busta Rhymes became the ONLY or most important witness confuses me. Every time I read about this in the news it is about the silence of Busta Rhymes. There are church reverends and organizations calling for the boycott of Busta Rhymes music as if HE shot someone. Busta just happened to be there too.

What about the silence of everyone else?!


“A lot of this stonewalling is posturing they do to sell records” – NYPD Commisioner Raymond Kelly

How many times does the Police Commissioner have a press conference about an unsolved murder? Q-Tip said “there’s 8 million stories in this city”, what makes this one more important than the other unsolved murders in New York City? What about all the others who have refused to talk to the police? Why not call them out?

And Busta Rhymes is not a hardcore rapper. Busta is not posturing to sell any records. This is is not an attack on civic responsibility. It’s an attack on Hip-Hop by the Police Commissioner and the rest of the media. This is clearly the case because non-cooperation with the police is nothing new in the Black community.

It is unbelievable that in this day and age someone would think that Hip-Hop is the reason youth are not cooperating with the police. This phenomenon is not something that is isolated to Hip-Hop. It is something that is widespread in the Black community. I grew up in the Bronx and talking to the police was always a no-no. It wasn’t because the rappers said the police were not to be trusted, it was because history said the police are not to be trusted.

“It’s the code of the streets: You just don’t talk to the cops. That mistrust has a long history among people of color, but its really taken on a life of it’s own.” –Bakari Kitwana

The relationship that the police have developed with members of the Black community is clearly influenced by Machiavelli’s, “The Prince”. They have cultivated a relationship in the Black community based on fear – the fear that if you DON’T cooperate, whether you are guilty of anything or not, we will lock you up too. Or worse….

In the history of the United States, when have the police ever been of any REAL help to Blacks? I remember seeing dogs sicked on innocent marchers, I have seen pictures of lynchings, I have read about the overseer and slave patrols. (patrols being originated during slavery to make sure property did not escape off the plantation) Then there was COINTELPRO and now there is Homeland Security. Why would I trust the police?

It is even more unreal to think that non-cooperation with the police is the reason that Biggie and Tupac’s murders have not been solved. Let me give you a heads up. The people involved in the Biggie and Tupac murders WERE THE POLICE!! They may not have represented all police officers, but they were. The Wallace family just settled a million dollar lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles for withholding evidence. Trust the police?

Not to mention the fact that the police (starting with the NYPD) set up a special police unit that dealt specifically with rappers and other Hip-Hop artists. All they do is surveillance and wait for rappers to do the slightest thing, (i.e. double-parking on broadway, driving with tinted windows, or just being young, rich and black)

We have all seen the “Stop Snitching” video and the t-shirts that are being peddled in inner-city neighborhoods. The article claims that the T-shirt has made “snitching” not popular. “Snitching” has always been looked down upon in the Black community. Especially when doing it to a group that is not trusted in the first place. Its just that there happened to be a few enterprising negroes who decided to make money off of it.

As a black man in America I am always suspicious, I can name more times that the police have harassed me than helped me. We fit the description, are randomly searched and pulled over. I grew up blocks from where Amadou Diallo was shot by police for holding a wallet. My life experience tells me, the police are not here to prevent crime, they are just here to protect property and lock up the people who are or aren’t criminals. Why would I trust the police?

Like 50 said, “Police response never fast enough for shots fired”. And that’s the bottom line.

Sincerely,
Akil

to my party-goers

Dear party-goers,

This is the period of time in my life when I should be out living it up right? At least according to what everyone says. THE CLUB seems to be the place where all of these people my age go to have fun and be social. Problem is, every time I go to THE CLUB I eitehr feel too old or ... too respectable. When I was younger I couldn't wait to hit the club, but times have changed. Three reasons why I can't do THE CLUB thing anymore...

1. Admission - Since I've gotten older I've grown tired of the $20 at the door admission fee. You can call me cheap, but I don't like spending money. Especially if a glass of Hennessey is $10, a shot of Petrone is at least $8 and a beer is $6. How many drinks do you think I'm going to buy after I've paid $20? That's why I like lounges. They are usually free.

2. Dress Code - I like being able to dress the way I feel. I'm a sweatpants and sneakers type of guy. Maybe even jeans, but the dress shoes and shirts are just not me. I have to wear that to work and I don't like to chill in my work clothes. Then again, do people really go to the club to chill anyway?? And some of the outfits that my sistas wear .... furs, thongs. low-rise jeans, fish nets, tank tops (its like 20 degrees outside). Its funny watching y'all stand outside the club in that stuff because i know you're cold. I guess that's the price you pay for being cute, or not.

3. Atmosphere/Attitude - Negroes (not me) go to the club to pick up women. It's that simple. As a man at the club, you gotta be a "go-getter". You gots to pimp!! There are no passive or non-aggressive men in the club. And because I'm not the type to grab someone as they walk by, or just roll up behind some random chick and start grinding on her or start whispering randomly in some girls ear I don't do well in the club environment. I don't go to the club to pick up women. Someplace that is loud, hot, dark and funky does not seem like the ideal place to meet someone. How are you supposed to talk over all that music? You're not. How are you really supposed to see the girl? You remember that song by Black Sheep, "Strobe light Honey"? I'm not trying to get caught up like that.

Anyway, I'd like to say/ I'm Dres from the Black Sheep givin you play/ step out of the light come show off yourself/ oh no I'm sorry I thought you were someone else!

Personally, I like to see what people look like before they talk to me. I like to see the look in their eyes to make sure that they are not crazy. Especially if we are in the dark. And I'm not your "typical" man so ..

IF I can see your butt-crack, not cool.
IF you are WASTED, not good for you.
IF you have on fur, it's a wrap. (that includes furry boots)
IF you have on enough make-up for the circus .. no play.
IF I can smell your funky weave... I won't even go there.
IF I have to buy you a drink before talking ... you'll just be thirsty. (My mom points to this as the reason I don't have a girlfriend. I told her it says BEFORE talking to you.)
IF you have NO college degree ... just walk away. ( although it is more likely to be the other way around these days. especially pertaining to black men and women)
If you stand there and dance with your homegirls ... that's just stupid. AND it's this phenomenon that confuses me the most. Are there that many lesbians in the world or are there too many trifling negroes? And I know that there are many trifling negroes.

Sometimes I wonder why some women even go to the club. Niggas (and I use this word sparingly so you know exactly who I'm talking about) are like vultures. I saw at least six guys attempt to dance with this girl because she was drunk off her ass. Not to mention the fact that she couldn't keep her pants up. And her homegirl was with her!!! Men putting their hands all over her and she was just so unaware... if y'all wanted to do that you should have gone to a strip club. No wonder women seem to always have attitudes at the club.

These are some of the reasons that I do not go to the club on a regular basis. It's just too superficial, too fake and a lot of UN-respect going on. Give me a lounge where I can actually see, sit, talk, drink and maybe even dance. A place where I can relax. Where I don't have to attempt to floss so someone will talk to me. Somewhere I can be REAL. Because the club is just too much stress.