Reader's Issue:I Hate "Blind Items"! It's Like Telling An Incomplete Story!

I just finished reading Terrance Dean's "Hiding In Hip Hip"(On The Down Low In The Entertainment Industry). It was an interesting read because he revealed the sexual molestation that he suffered as a boy. And he says that traumatic experience made him aware of his attraction to men. Terrance Dean also gives great detail about his relationships with women & how he loved the taste of them at one time. He recounts his life in the music & entertainment industry as well. But,every man that was hiding in hip hop remains hidden after you read the last page of the book.The author really is talking about his life on the "down low" & exposing himself only. I appreciated the insight that he gives women who have always wondered about this very secretive lifestyle. I just hate that he talked about these celebrities at all. When you give someone a pseudonym,it makes it hard for me to believe or even care about what transpired. So, I was glad that Terrance Dean didn't just talk about these famous,but anonymous to us, celebrities that he slept with on every page. For me, it's just like reading fiction. I mean, anyone can make up these blind items that pop up on all of these gossip sites. If you want to talk about the hypocrisy of closeted gay-bashing rappers in hip-hop,the message gets lost if your audience is left guessing.I guess one of my pet peeves is blind items!I freakin' hate them!

This video contains a clip from the Mike & Juliet Show. The author of the book talks about being on the "down-low". This was the subject of the show.

If Obama Isn't Black, Then Neither Is Cleopatra! Scientists Are Saying That The Egyptian Queen Was Of Mixed Race!

Have you heard how about the debate over whether Obama is black or not? I,for one, find it absolutely ridiculous to tell someone how they should identify themselves. If Obama says he is black,then why the hell is anyone questioning that? Here's more on that from The Star Tribune:

"A perplexing new chapter is unfolding in Barack Obama's racial saga: Many people insist that "the first black president" is actually not black.

Debate over whether to call this son of a white Kansan and a black Kenyan biracial, African-American, mixed-race, half-and-half, multiracial — or, in Obama's own words, a "mutt" — has reached a crescendo since Obama's election shattered assumptions about race.

Obama has said, "I identify as African-American — that's how I'm treated and that's how I'm viewed. I'm proud of it." In other words, the world gave Obama no choice but to be black, and he was happy to oblige."(END OF EXCERPT) Read the rest here:http://www.startribune.com/politics/36106829.html

Now,it has been discovered that an Egyptian queen that was said to be European really was African all along. Scientists have reconstructed Cleopatra's face & it appears that she was of mixed race. Now, if she is mixed with both European & African, will she be viewed as black by those who say that Obama is not? In my view,we can only classify her based on her appearance because we don't know how she identified herself. But,if someone states they are black, then that's what they are. Let the individual decide how to present themselves to society. I am happy to have a African & European leader who identifies himself as black. And it is wonderful to have affirmation that what black folks have been saying for quite some time is true. Cleopatra is black,unless she can reach out to us from the past & tell us otherwise! This video contains a beautiful slideshow of African royalty. It's absolutely exquisite!But,here's more on Cleopatra's racial makeup:

"Over the last several centuries artists have attempted to paint the image of Cleopatra, to give a face to the name that has become one of the most famous and mysterious in history. But for the first time we may have finally gotten it right.

After a year of extensive research, Dr. Sally Ann Ashton of Cambridge University has pieced together what she believed to be the true face of Cleopatra (top left), one that differs greatly from the many depictions throughout history.

Pieced together from images on ancient artifacts, including a ring dating from Cleopatra’s reign 2,000 years ago, it is the culmination of more than a year of painstaking research. It shows her as a woman of mixed race, with dark eyes, hair, and skin, and nice looks, a far cry from the extremes of the unattractive depiction of ancient artifacts (shown below), or the Hollywood version of beauty of modern movies.

Dr. Ashton is scheduled to release the full results as part of a five part documentary." This is the post in it's entirety which I got from ChattahBox.Here's the link to this post:
http://chattahbox.com/science/2008/12/16/first-accurate-depiction-of-cleopatra-created/

Is Anyone Other Than Catholics Outraged By The Nude Virgin Mary Playboy Cover?

There is an outrage over a cover of Playboy that features a model dressed in a white head wrap only. It is said to be meant to evoke the image of the Virgin Mary in the nude.Many Mexican Catholics are upset over what they consider to be a blasphemous photo. I don't get upset over an image that probably isn't accurate anyway. How do we know what Jesus or the Virgin Mary looked like? We don't! There were a whole lot of women dressed like the Virgin Mary because that was the style of dress during biblical times. The stained glass window in the background is the only thing that gives it away.Does anyone,other than Catholics, find this cover to be blasphemous? I don't know, but Playboy apologized for what many found to be a distasteful cover. Here's more from The S.F. Examiner:

"Playboy magazine apologized for a controversial cover featuring a scantily-clad woman resembling the Virgin Mary, Reuters reported.The December edition was published Thursday, just before the Mexican festival honoring Mary known as the Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe.Playboy Enterprises Inc., based in Chicago, released a statement Friday explaining that the company did not approve the cover because the Mexican version of the magazine is published by a licensee, according to Reuters."(END OF EXCERPT) Read the whole article here:http://www.examiner.com/r-4474814~Playboy_Virgin_Mary_Cover_Sparks_Outrage_In_Mexico.html