Friday, June 29, 2007

Get Money... Advertise


What's good peoples? I'm sure you have noticed the NeoSemantics banner on the side of my page. If you're wondering, NeoSemantics is a site that is designed for networking and connecting with people in your city through a variety of mediums (Publicizing events, parties, churches, blogs, etc).

Check it out if you get a chance.

If anyone is interested in advertising NeoSemantics.com on your blog or webpage, email me at blaqboy@yahoo.com. I will direct you to the founder of the site who will explain the payment plan. Trust, you will make more money through advertising with NeoSemantics than through Google Ads. Hit me up.

Have a good weekend folks.

Next weeks posts will be dedicated to relationships and infidelity...

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Is Greek Life Incompatible with Christianity?


I ran across this recent article written by Jameka Merriweather. In it, an Alpha steps down from his position as his Chapter's President and denounces the fraternity because he says that Black Greekdom goes against Christianity.

In the article a man named Frederick Hatchett has dedicated his life to convincing others to denounced Greek organizations. What's wild about this is that I knew Fred personally for many years, and he was a Que and a Mason. He definitely let the lifestyle consume him to the point where it was probably a good idea for him to denounce them. I know many others that also let their letters define them.

Personally, I think that Greek Organizations are OK and not in conflict with Christianity, and I'm not saying this just because I'm an Alpha. I am saying this because I believe that if you completely put yourself into ANYTHING, you are at risk of having it become your God and negatively losing yourself in it--even religion. Just like some people lose sight of the purpose behind Black Greek organizations, some people lose sight behind the true meaning of the religion they profess to the point where it can become dangerous--cultish even.

Knowing Fred, I think it's safe to say that he was one of those people.

Greek or Non-Greek...Let me know what you think.

------------------------------------

A debate at historically Black Prairie View A&M University in Texas over Greek-lettered organizations and their relationship to Christianity got so heated that the president of the campus chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., stepped down from his position and denounced his membership.

Against the Will of God?

The flak over Greek-lettered organizations and their relationship to Christianity dates back to at least the mid-1980s, but how the argument got to this point was an opinion pieced titled "Why God wants you to denounce your letters," published in the student newspaper, The Panther.

In the article, a student anonymously urges others to denounce their Greek letters or steer clear of Greek-lettered organizations.

He said fraternities and sororities were "idols to themselves and to people who long to be a member of them," adding that these organizations take the place of God in some people’s hearts because they spend time "worshiping" the organizations and not God.

The student said, "demons used the founders of secret societies and Greek/Egyptian organizations to create a stronghold for young people for years to come," claiming these demons purposely work against the will of God.

"Organizations encourage members as well as potential members to dedicate all their time and efforts to their success," he said, which conflicts with God's will.

The debate lasted until the semester’s end. In response to "Why God wants you to denounce your letters," the Panther published, "Why God is ONE with my letters."

The author of that piece, B.J. O'Neal, summarized the opposing arguments as "a common mishap that occurs when religious people err in their understandings or over-interpret human action as it relates to historical events documented in the Bible." He argued that people should realize that "the true intentions of Greek organizations are in fact aligned with what God would have his people doing."

O'Neal supported his statements by citing personal experiences and Bible verses.

But it was when the chapter president of Alpha Phi Alpha at Prairie View A&M published his own article about why he bounced from his frat that things got even more intense.

'Why I Denounced My Letters'

Fuel was added to the fire when the president of the Eta Gamma Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Asad Abdul-Salaam, stepped down and denounced his fraternity membership. Abdul-Salaam wrote, "Why I denounced my letters."

Abdul-Salaam condemned Greek images and symbols, and called the rituals "anti-Christian."

"Asad was a great president," said Mark Anthony Williams II, the new president of the Eta Gamma Chapter. "He was somebody that I truly looked up to and still do. It takes bravery to work hard and to get somewhere but also to step down due to religious reasons. I don’t know a lot of people that would do that."

"We, as Alphas, don’t look at him differently. We don’t talk about him behind his back. I still love Asad to death," Williams said. "If he believes his walk with God will be greater, it’s not for us to judge. Asad is not a sporadic guy; it was something well thought out."

However, Williams said, "I personally know a lot of people that are extremely involved in church — preachers, deacons, mothers — and it’s all about how you personally portray your letters," he said. "Your organization may be flawed, but you can try to help it become better and [get] back to its original intent."

Williams said it would be better to have written about how Greek life has digressed from its original path.

Misguided Interpretations

The Rev. Kenneth I. Clarke Sr., a member of Alpha Phi Alpha and director of Cornell United Religious Work at Cornell University, traces the current debate to such ministers as Frederic Hatchett and Gail Gray, who condemn Greek-lettered organizations.

Hatchett is the founder of the Web site www.dontgogreek.com and author of "Coming Apart at the Seams: Biblically Unravelling the Evils of Sororities and Fraternities." On his Web site, he claims to have 21 years of "experience" with Greek-lettered organizations, "six years as an outsider looking in, five as an insider, 10 and counting as a born again, denounced member."

Hatchett says the origin of these organizations can be found in the "Ancient Cults of Babylon," which can be proved in "SEVEN undeniable similarities between Ancient Babylonian Cults and Greek Organizations today."

Gray is the author of "Greek-Letter Organizations: Offspring of Abomination." Her mission is to teach about "the spiritual conflict surrounding Christian membership within secret societies," according to her Web site, www.gailgray.com.

Clarke says of these critics, "They take text [from the Bible] that supports their case with a snip of a ritual and say it's evidence. You can’t take a quote out of an initiation without putting it into context," Clarke said.

Clarke said he finds this difficult to do if you have not been a part of a Greek-letter organization because, he said, members understand the symbolism behind the rituals.

"For example, I shouldn’t know what a Kappa ritual means as an Alpha any more than a Kappa should know about Alpha’s rituals," he said.

He also said, "some of the language of the rituals are used symbolically and not to be taken literally."

He maintains that some rituals have been handed down throughout history and have historical references or references to African culture.

"I have never had to make a decision between Alpha Phi Alpha and my faith," Clarke said. "No one is asked to serve something else other than God, just have a commitment to your organization."

Clarke said he is concerned that this debate will affect younger members who do not have tight grasp on their organization’s history or Black history.

Thus, Clarke says it is essential for older members and graduate members to converse with the younger ones and help them to have a better grasp of their organization’s past and of the purposes on which they were founded.

"These arguments are problematic," he said. "Christianity, as well as other religions, are most potent, most transformative when they clarify what they stand for as opposed to misguided interpretations of faith that speak about what they are against."

Monday, June 25, 2007

Chrisette Michele


I wrote a post about her back in January, and she doesn't disappoint with her new album. She's a Def Jam artist and was featured on Jay-Z's "Lost One" and Nas' "Can't Forget About You."

Unfortunately, her music isn't getting the advertising and promotion that it deserves, but it's definitely worth the purchase.

Support good music.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

"Making Love Like We Was Just Two Heated Animals"



"I'm the Ali of today. I'm the Marvin Gaye of today. I'm the Bob Marley of today. I'm the Martin Luther King, or all the other greats that have come before us. And a lot of people are starting to realize that now."
-R. Kelly

*blink blink*

Are you f***ing serious???

For years people have debated on whether or not R. Kelly (the guy in the Purple leather outfit to your immediate right) is the all-time King of R&B. He's had a very successful career and has had his share of ups-and-downs, most notably a five-year-and-counting legal bout of child pornography charges.

Has his career been fruitful? Yes. Is he a good song writer? Sometimes. Is he the greatest R&B singer of all-time? ...

I personally have never owned an R. Kelly album and I probably never will. Not because he doesn't have good commercial hits, but simply because he has lost his mind. When was the last time somebody seriously used the word "Midget" in an R&B song or talked about "having sex in the kitchen by the buttered rolls?" Are these the lyrics of a musical genius?

On top of that, The R seems to have only two subject matters that seem to be in direct conflict with one another: sex and Jesus.

Well folks... the lyrics below, from his new album, take the cake. I can never ever take him seriously again after this. In the words of one of my frat brothers, unfortunately, he has worse lyrics on the album. Because of R. Kelly I can no longer eat Skittles, Ape call, or respect astronauts.

-----------------------------------------

R. Kelly the Zoo Lyrics

(Verse 1)
It's like a jungle atmosphere
And we're two monkeys baby
It's like we're on a vine
The way we're swinging it baby
See, you're a tiger girl
The way you're scratching me
I'm a lion
In this jungle I'm a king
Girl, I got you so wet
It's like a rain forest
Like Jurassic Park
Except I'm your sex-a-saurus baby
You and me hopping
Like two kangaroos
Rattling and moaning
Out here in these woods

(b-section 1)
Ooo ooo ooo ooo
Aaa aaa aaa aaa
Those are the sounds I wanna hear
When you're moaning in my ear
Girl you're singing to me
Ooo ooo ooo ooo
Aaa aaa aaa aaa
You got me locked up in your cage of ecstasy
And I don't wanna be free cause it's

(Chorus 1)
Wild like a zoo
And that's the way I like it baby
Crazy me and you
Making love like we was just two heated animals
Baby come and lay with me in my jungle

(Verse 2)
Ooo, I swear I'm about to go
Turn your body around and beat the skins like it's a bongo
A thousand birds up out the tree
Girl, like a swarm of bees
That is how it's gonna be
Climaxing you and me
Touch the root of your soul
Let Mother Nature take control
Over us is rain and leaves
So come on girl
Let's plant these seeds, yeah

(b-section 2)
Ooo ooo ooo ooo
Aaa aaa aaa aaa
Baby, those are the sounds I wanna hear
When you're moaning in my ear
Singing

Ooo ooo ooo ooo
Aaa aaa aaa aaa
(Oh yeah)
You got me locked up in your cage of ecstasy
And I don't wanna be free cause it's

(Chorus 2)
Wild like a zoo
And that's the way I like it baby
Crazy me and you
Making love like we was just two heated animals
Baby won't you come and lay in my jungle

(Bridge)
Ya'll don't understand
Like two cheetahs running free
African butterfly to me
You're my safari fantasy
Girl this is heaven to me
Baby we are like coconut and banana trees
(It's a tropical)
Tropical chemistry
Like the wild life
I'm doing you baby
(I'm doing you baby)
You're doing me baby
(You're doing me baby)
It's you and me
(It's you and me)
Going wild

(Chorus 3)
Wild like a zoo
And that's the way (Oh baby) I like it baby
Crazy me and you
Making love like we was just two heated animals
So baby come and lay with me in my jungle

(I don't wanna break free 'cause this is)
Wild like a zoo
Just the way I like it baby
Crazy me and you
Making love like we was just two heated animals
Girl come and lay with me in my (lay with me) jungle

(Girl I like it cause it's)
Wild like a zoo (Wild like a zoo)
Crazy me and you (Crazy me and you, Yeah)
Heated animals (Heated animals)
Girl come and lay with me in my jungle

(Outro)
And the whole jungle goes
ooo ooo ooo ooo
aaa aaa aaa aaa

ooo ooo ooo ooo
aaa aaa aaa aaa

ooo ooo ooo ooo
aaa aaa aaa aaa

ooo ooo ooo ooo
aaa aaa aaa aaa

Ignorance: not being able to respect Astronauts after listening to an R. Kelly album.

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Is This What King Would Think?


Did Aaron McGruder go too far with this?

I'm not so sure that he did. While I know that he pushes the envelope to the point where you wonder if he truly has a message or is being gratuitous, outside of the language, I'm not sure that Dr. King wouldn't feel this way.

I came to this realization recently while attending Black Bike Week a couple weeks ago. Now by no means am I an elitist, and never considered myself bourgie. I grew up in the country in a typical black Southern family. I hung out with mischievous kids who many would say "had no home training." Many of them did not go to college and to be honest, a lot of them have fallen victim to the "dead or in jail" fate that so many of our young black males fall into.

The only difference between me and them was that my mother put a MAJOR emphasis on education as a way to a better life. While I could relate to my peers on so many different levels when I was younger, I prioritized and managed to stay away from the evils that plague black youth. Even still, I could relate to my peers in every way.

While in college early-on, I came in contact with like-minded people with similar goals and aspirations. Eventually, college life and the people I met there became my reality.

Fast forward to Bike Week '07...

While at this event, I literally came into contact with every negative stereotype of destructive behavior that there is about black people--that we are extremely oversexed (women in bikinis and stilettos pole dancing in the middle of the street), that we kill each other (there were 2 drive-by shootings and numerous altercations), that alcohol and drugs are our kryptonite, that we don't take care of our communities (there was trash everywhere), that we invest heavily in materialism etc. There were policemen with bullet proof vests on every corner. Local businesses closed down for the weekend. It looked like the Apocalypse.

I was a little upset about it. Never have I felt so out of place amongst my own people. Never in my life have I felt like I couldn't relate. After all, these could easily have been the people I grew up with. It seemed like everyone was in their second-childhood (i.e. 30+ year-old men with over sized white tees and jerseys smoking weed in broad daylight). I realized that what I was witnessing is exactly how all black people are portrayed in the media. While I've always felt that we as African-Americans are grossly misrepresented around the world, I actually witnessed a concentration of these misrepresentations personified.

I realized that I've changed over the years. Does that make me a sellout? Does this make me "bourgie?" How can we change attitudes in our communities? Should we try to? Is it dangerous to lump us all into one box as a homogeneous entity? What would Dr. King think about the State of Black America?

Friday, June 8, 2007

Is There REALLY a Black Man Shortage?


I don't think there is. There are plenty eligible professional black males out there, but it seems that women overlook us in search of that six-figure brother who owns several properties, looks like Denzel Morris Underwood, drives a 5-Series Benz, wants to have 1.5 children, who goes to church every Sunday, who totally honors commitment, who puts it down in the bedroom, who's sh!t smells like Kenneth Cole Black, etc. ---and the list goes on and on.

...Or on the flipside, a thug dude who they KNOW is no good, yet offers that "bad boy" excitement and can... you guessed it! Hit the bottom.

I know Brothers on both sides of the spectrum. Even Brothers that are making that six-figure salary tell me how they are annoyed when they are at an event or function, are about to engage in a conversation with a young lady, and the VERY first thing she asks him is "So what do you do?" The continuation, or ending of that conversation hinges on the next few words that come out of their mouths. For my six-figure friends, they have told me that they either are 1) turned completely off by having to go through the interview and cut the conversation short or 2) use it as leverage to have a quick physical relationship with that woman. They KNOW the are in demand and unapologetically use it to their advantage. For my brothers that are in that 50K salary range, a lot of times, the conversation is cut short by the woman and she moves on to the next "eligible" brother.

To make it even more interesting, it seems that many women will accept Denzel Morris Underwood's infidelity and knowingly compete with other women to get this man. Some will essentially put themselves on standby for this guy while he does his thing in hopes that he will choose her. It then seems like there is a 3:1 Black women to every Black man ratio.

The outcome is that women are passing over "average" brothers and playing themselves by chasing the brother that SEEMS to complete "The List." As result, perception becomes reality, and there is a so-called Black Man Shortage.

It seems like brothers in the middle get no love.

Or so says my boy Solo, who wrote a brief response for me to the so-called "Black Man Shortage." Read his response, soak it in, and sound off! Is there REALLY a black man shortage? Or are brothers just not stacking up to "The List"?

-----------------------------------------

As a black male who has spent a great deal of his life single, I don't believe there's a male shortage, but I do think that timing is off between some men and women. For instance, I consider myself a gentleman and a scholar, have never been arrested and am educated. In college I never had a girlfriend because I didn't have a car or a lot of money. I got a lot of attention from white women and Asian girls for some reason, even though I never dated any of them. Black women were angry with me for that, even though I never did anything and they didn't seem to want me in the first place, so basically I was just stuck.

Fast forward almost four years later. I have a decent job and wear nice clothes. I have an old car, but it's payed for and the only debt I have is my college loans. I help take care of my mother who has had a hard time finding work. I don't drink and have never done drugs. I have no children and I think I'm reasonably decent looking.

All that being said, the only difference between me now and back when I was in college is that women have changed. My personality is the same, my character and integrity are the same. Black women have changed. They want different things when they "grow up". Men like me have a difficult time when we're younger, because we're not "cool" and don't know how to "spit game" and whatever else makes a man attractive to a young black woman.

I turned 27 this past November and quite frankly feel no loyalty to my so called sisters, since I feel none was shown to me. I would eventually like to meet, date and marry a nice black woman, but the fact is at this point women who would have been eligible when I was younger are no longer eligible. They either have kids now (a no-no) or haven't healed from a bad relationship in which they chose the wrong guy on purpose (I've never been sure about what women's problem is in choosing a man...). NOW they want a man like me. The bottom line is, brothers like me woke up and decided not to wait on black women to notice us, so we either decided to be alone, raise our standards even higher, or date a different race. Me, I have decided to raise the bar, and am prepared to be alone if I don't meet the kind of woman I like.

I'm not putting all the blame on black women, because most of the stuff about the so-called Shortage is true (homosexuality, prison, etc.) but the fact is women tend to make bad choices in men. I know too many women who prefer "thug" types, and would consider young men like myself "lame" (I have been called lame to my face on more than one occasion by black women), or "white" if we do things a little differently. By the time these women (which unfotunately seem to be the majority) wake up, it's too late and there's a bunch of bitter black men who want nothing to do with them for different reasons. That's not the whole issue, but that's a major part of it in my opinion. Men need to carry themselves to a higher standard and women need to make better choices and realize that they are the ones who change, not men. Recognize a good man when he's right in front of you, not when he's far ahead of you and out of reach.

-----------------------------------

Make no mistake about it. This is merely a generalization and a look at the other side of the coin as some eligible Black males see it. Not all women are overlooking good brothers. But there is definately a large population out there that could have the pick of the litter, but let other factors outside of compatibility dictate who's good enough to be with them. Usually they are the first ones to scream that there are no good Black men left.

Thoughts?

Monday, June 4, 2007

You Think You're Smart Don't Cha? Prove It!


You'll never solve this riddle, but dammit, you can try.

...So you're in a house with two floors: an upstairs and a downstairs. Downstairs there is a light. Upstairs there are three switches. All are in the "off" position. One of those switches controls the light downstairs. The other two are dead switches that control nothing.

If you are allowed to go down stairs ONLY ONE TIME to check the status of the light bulb, what is an absolute way to determine which one of those switches controls the light downstairs?

FAQs:

No... you can not see the light from upstairs.

No... there's no need to turn into an electrical engineer and start re-wiring shit.

No... you can't scale the side of the house to look at the light.

No... there is no need to use mirrors.

Yes... the answer is EXTREMELY logical, and can absolutely be used in real life if you were really given this scenario. This is not a trick question riddle. There are no smoking mirrors involved.

Yes... you have to think outside the box. Imagine if you were really in this situation.

Yes... you have to go downstairs to figure out the answer

Yes... the answer actually involves manipulating the switches (i.e. flicking them in the "on/off" positions)

Yes... I really do hit the bottom.