Masters of opinion clash

Yes, the battle of titans came togather once again. The first such meeting since President Obama has been in charge. What it might reveal about both and their respective viewpoints is sure to create comments for months, perhaps years.

If somehow you have failed to see the Jon Stewart Daily Show, I can't imagine it. While the program is geared towards the college crowd, it loses none of its humor for those of us a bit older. It is parody and political satire often at it's best. It is also a highly liberal and Democrat friendly program.

If you are unaware of the O'Reilly Factor, you are likely in love with President Obama and Democrats. Ok, that's a joke. Seriously, the program is a well organized commentart on issues of the day, based on the center-right, that includes the voices of the left, far-left, as well as those on the right.

In listening to both men one thing is immediately clear. They are both intelligent, passionate men that believe they are serving the public via the mechanisims they employ. To that end both must be praised. Beyond that, well it comes down to personal views.

I think that Jon Stewart did quite well on the show. He made interesting observations, while defending his well-known left of center personal views. I believe he was treated fairly, and was as aggressive as he received aggression.

Though I will note that the comments by Stewart on how President Obama should weild more power and control over Congress was a bit disturbing. It clearly marked a direction towards an imbalance of power that President Bush was raked over coals for even hinting at, particularly by Stewart.

But here is the interview, let me know what you think of part 1. Part 2 will be on tonight.

In case you missed it

If you happen to be like myself, and not in the 25 - 34 demographic, you might miss some of the shows on these days. Generally that's a good thing, but on occassion it does mean catching up on something really good after the fact.

I like Jon Stewart. His show is funny, especially when viewed after watching the real news and reading the facts of the issues he mocks. There is nothing more interesting than watching his ultra-liberal view in defense of say Health Care Reform, or defense of Democrats, to just bring on the laughs.

Still, he does take on Democrats and Liberals too. Just far less often and harshly. Though they often make for some of the most outrageous bits. Of course that being said I never thought I'd see this



Well he was having a bad day. It was right before Martha Coakley got stomped in Massachuesetts. But if you thought that public self-realization of the obvious was enough to force Stewart to give up his Liberal card, wait it gets better.

Not only does Jon Stewart nail Keith Olbermann rightly for his pompous and offensive comments about Senator Scott Brown, but when Obermann decides to respond he makes himself look even worse.



Who knew Olbermann was doing sketch comedy at MSNBC. Well, actually anyone who watches him probably already knew that.

Nicely done Stewart. Now if only my readers can view the videos before you have your staff pull the video clips - as they tend to do with anyone that uses their material in a non-liberal love manner.

Stephen Colbert's Michael Steele remix

I just don’t know who I am more upset with, Michael Steele or Stephen Colbert. It’s just so hard to say at this point.

The problem starts with the idiotic statements of Michael Steele purporting that hip hop needs to be the means of gaining more Black and Hispanic/Latinos into the Republican Party. Which is just dumb. A bad gimmick and a waste of time.

In fact it’s more than a bit insulting. Just because we are Black or Latino does not obviate us to being hip hop fans. Nor does it mean that we all support the lifestyle choices that are the definition of modern commercialized ghettofabulous hip hop. It in fact flies in the face of the reality that most of the ideals of many of the Black Civil Rights leaders were more in line with current Republican views than those of President Obama and Democrats. And Michael Steele knows this as well as most anyone.

So I don’t blame Stephen Colbert for jumping on that bandwagon. It was just obvious and easy. Not like he is going to take on President Obama for lying to the public about promises he has made. Like pork-barrel spending by the Government, creating a plan to deal with the economic crisis, getting all troops out of Iraq, or giving full transparency to the public on each bill before he signs them into law – to name just a few. Colbert, like Jon Stewart, is far too in love with President Obama to dare touch on those facts.

But as I was saying, Colbert took Steele on in this hip hop is the answer (lack of) mentality. Thus came a challenge to Steele to perform a rap battle. Steele of course fell into the trap, by agreeing to this and then not following thru to do it. You know that Colbert would never let that slide.

Thus we get the following.



Yes it’s funny. Yes the massive man-power and resources of Comedy Central came up with an inventive remix of the many things Steele has said, to achieve a highly biased view of all Republicans. But it irks me.

Not because it’s against Republicans. That’s what Jon Stewart and Colbert do. And they do it well most of the time. It’s just that they are degrading African Americans. All of us.

If you don’t see that, just think of this. If Fox News, or Saturday Night Live (which will never happen) – or Jon Stewart if hell froze over - created a remix of the speeches of President Obama highlighting all the lies and broken promises he has done so far what would be the result? Massive outrage. From Democrats and the media in general as every liberal in the nation would freak-out over the portrayal that the remix implies about African Americans. Yet, it’s the same joke.

Even if you change the person to say Dr. Martin Luther King, or Malcolm X – and highlighted how their political views are actually more in line with Republican values than Democrats today – the outrage would still happen. Perhaps even more.

Thus it makes me ill at ease. Because if you can’t flip the scenario, then something is wrong in the message. Laugh it up, enjoy the humor at Michael Steele’s expense all you want. Colbert makes it work, I admit. But there is more to it. The subliminal message is not positive.

Am I over the top on this? Maybe. Then again, just because someone says it’s only a joke does not make it funny, less cruel or less offensive. Even if they bring it on to themselves.

Jon Stewart vs. Jim Cramer: really missing the point

So Jon Stewart took on Jim Cramer tonight. It was a beat down. It was vicious. It was obvious that Stewart had an ax to grind. And it was wrong on many points, yet true to the feelings of many.

As a former stockbroker I have had many discussions with people about the markets. I’ve written many things about the economy. And from time to time I have noted points in agreement and disagreement with Jim Cramer. But to attack him, and/or CNBC, as if they were the cause of the current economic crisis is both a fallacy and an attempt to find a scapegoat.

To be fair CNBC and Cramer failed in their mission to inform the public. Then again, neither ever truly were supposed to do that. Anyone thinking that either was more than an educated high-brow entertainment probably was sniffing glue (or some other like substance) and likely thought they would be made a millionaire by buying internet stocks they never heard of, or knew what they did, during the late 1990’s.

Is the market a fixed game? No. Is there an unfair advantage for large corporations and wealthy individuals? Absolutely. And are the major brokerage firms the biggest crooks in the industry? I’ve always believed so. Yet not one part of this, or what Stewart was railing about, is any different than it was 50 years ago for the most part.

What has changed is the greed and work done by small investors. If there is anyone to be upset with, it has to be that.

Jon Stewart will without doubt gain huge ratings. Jim Cramer may be looked at with harsh eyes in the near future. And CNBC will get the branding of slipshod reporting that they deserve. But it really doesn’t matter.

I don’t care how many regulations are created to prevent another Bernie Maddoff, or Enron, or Tyco, or AIG, and on an on. Given time there will be another scandal. And another ridiculous bubble in some sector of investing, with a crash that has to happen as well. Because the greed of everyone, at each level of the game, necessitates it.

I listened tonight as Stewart and Cramer went back and forth saying ‘You seemed to know’, ‘Did you know’, ‘Why weren’t we told’, ‘I was lied to’, and so on. Its wonderful posturing, but you don’t need to be an economist to have seen what was happening. Without following more than the politics of the day, occasional glances at the Dow Jones Index, and reading bits of news over the internet I foresaw the problems of the mortgage crisis. It was blatant, and there was plenty of time to act before the hammers started falling. And while I’m smart, I’m not so smart as to have been the only one to recognize what was going to happen.

Don’t believe me? Check out what I wrote back in October 2006

“The economy is better, things have improved. Barring events like 9/11, or Enron, the markets will continue to grow. But hype will never help mom & pop investors. It does help some institutions though, like LEH which was 15.68 around Feb 14, 2000 and continued HIGHER to 78.70 on Oct 16, 2006.

Just keep this stuff in mind as you watch the talking heads spout how great things are in the market. Or you see that ad saying that you should invest on your own.”

or on December 2007

“The fact that the mortgage crisis is far closer to its beginning than end. I expect that there are far more homes in danger than has been seen to date. Even with the highly selective mortgage bailout stated by President Bush, many are going to be at risk. Credit card debt can only float for so long. With the added pressure of oil at or above $100 per barrel, which I expect mid-January as I stated above, more will fail even if rates are lowered (less than 2 points).”

or even January 2008

“Those that are in trouble, or will be, with their mortgages will not be helped by lower rates as that will not cap increased heating and gasoline prices. Small businesses are not going to be able to get new loans as easily even with lower rates as financials scramble to find cash to absorb the losses they are experiencing. Effectively some degree of pain must happen and is not preventable.

I say all this for one reason. So that you my readers can be prepared. If I am correct even in part, then this nation will encounter times we have not seen for quite a while. I doubt that we will see the inflation and unemployment that existed in the 1970’s (when I was a child) but I am sure that we will see levels that those under 30 have never experienced.”

My point is that the current crisis was very visible, if anyone was not bothering to be distracted by hype from the likes of Representative Barney Frank and other Government “watchdogs”, or being entertained by CNBC. All you had to do was read and do the math. Investments are no different than your home, if you don’t keep up with it then don’t be surprised if it falls apart one day.

But there has to be a bad guy. In America we are conditioned to look out for someone in a black hat if something goes wrong. And today that guy gets to be Jim Cramer with Jon Stewart as our hero. Bull.

The bad guy is in equal parts the Government, for creating an environment over a decade ago that was little better than a Ponzi scheme. Then there are the corporations, that jumped in on the game looking to ride the wave for as much short-term profit as possible. Add to this mix speculators who looked for ever faster gains with commensurate risk. Throw in cable networks whose goal is ratings above reporting, and then put in a public that didn’t care as long as the paper investments looked better than the Jones’ 15 minutes ago.

And this complete recipe is virtually exactly what happened with the internet bubble, except this one was bigger and not quite as exhuberant. No one learned then, because no one cared. All that mattered was the immediate gratification being reported on our instantaneous communication devices. But the risk of instant gain is the environment we find ourselves in today.

It will happen again. No matter the regulations – because most of the factors that caused this meltdown were all legal if not bad business decisions which can’t be regulated. No matter the protests of Government – because their lack of understanding (or overall disdain) feeds these kinds of bubbles and crashes. Without regard to who reports what facts in whatever manner – because most don’t care or bother to pay attention to the details anyway. No matter the pain for the public – because everyone wants to be a millionaire tomorrow without doing the work required, and many believe they deserve such rewards just because they breathe air in America.

So the indignation of Jon Stewart amuses me. Yes, Cramer and CNBC could have done a better job of reporting. Yes, Congress could have done a far better job of enacting realistic regulations and understanding how those regulations are affecting the market. And a big YES, the public could have paid attention to the facts at hand and did some math. But none of them did these things. Nor do I believe they ever will, to any large or useful degree.

So I won’t score the big points with the blogosphere with this post. My past comments about the economy and markets went without much fanfare as well. Such is the fate of being right consistently. But let me ask you this…

Do you really want to feel smug and righteous because some comedian beat up on a quasi-entertainer/commentator, while politicians throw your future earnings down a drain and your retirement funds evaporate?

Do you know what the Government is doing with trillions of dollars, and how that will affect investments today and in 5 years – with even a slight bit of educated estimates?

Do you get to save your house, or retire, or pay for whatever any easier because a liberal leaning comdey show host got serious for a minute while you still don’t know how to read a corporate 10Q, understand why a second stimulus plan is already being worked out and how badly that will affect your savings and jobs, and re-elect Congressional leaders that can’t figure out their responsibilities even after 20+ years on the job?

I’m sure that many of my long-time readers do get all these things. Perhaps even more than a few of my first-time readers will. But for those that don’t, ignore the hype this one program will raise and start paying attention. Your money will depend on it.

I will now go back to the entertainment news Black Entertainment USA is normally dedicated to.

The best, most popular, and different posts of 2008 on Black Entertainment USA

For my last post of 2008 I wanted to look back and see what were some of the most popular posts I had written, and what I consider some of favorites. I know I am highly critical of things that displease me, so I thought I'd turn that same critical eye towards myself for a change.

I must say that in looking over the hundreds of posts I wrote on Black Entertainment USA alone this year, some just don't belong here. Some of the comments are far more political than anything else. And I can't use the excuse I have no where else to have said these things - I do own a political blog as well.

And I admit to having a few posts where I was just far too tired. I should have gone to sleep. Or taken that vacation all my friends have heard me speak about over the last 15 years (I've had 2 vacations in my life, none exceeding a week or involving travel). But instead I must apologize because they were really sub-par, even for a bad day.

Still overall I will say that roughly 80% or more of my posts were relevant and interesting. Many are topical and focused on the events of the day. Looking back some are not as important as I first thought they were, and others far more than I would give credit. And several posts were popular that I would not have expected to be.

Some of the top Black Entertainment USA posts of 2008, as viewed and/or commented by you my readers were:

So there is a Black guy in an elevator...
Audi television commercial says we are all not the same
OJ Simpson convicted - kangaroo court closed
OJ Simpson trial - injustice unreported
The new 90210 - is it cancelled yet?
NASCAR, Mauricia Grant, and my opinion
Is Robert Downey Jr funny as an African American?
Duane ‘Dog’ Chapman to return to cable television
VH1’s Top 100 of rap music celebrates the positives of the genre

It's an interesting group of posts indeed. And I think that I got it right in those posts. Not that everyone agreed with my view, just that they felt something after reading it. And that ultimately is one of my goals.

But I looked over the entire year and I saw a couple of other posts that I thought were very important, and/or meant something to me directly. Not all of them were relevant, given, but they said something important. And I want to present them again. Again you may not agree with my view, but I hope my top 10 will motivate some reaction. [Oh since 3 of my top 10 are in the above list that you my readers have found of interest, I will substitute 3 others]

NJ considers apology for slavery (part 1, 2, 3, 4)
Tiger Woods comment impacts Dr. Martin Luther King birthday (part 1, 2)
President Bush and Darfur now - not the movie
R Kelly - next stop Neverland Ranch
Janet Jackson: Intelligence, success, and fame are not enough
Black Americans - commodity, criminals, or something much more
Do you know enough about the 2008 Presidential election?
1st Annual Memorial Pig Roast for Madden A. Cordero - please read and donate if you can
50 cent sells a new opiate to the masses
Movie Review Iron Man

I also found the time to champion a couple of other causes that aren't the most popular or widely held:
Boycott 33 variations - Hanoi Jane Fonda
Levi's 501 jeans - promoting HIV and AIDS?

Found a video on Youtube I really liked - Try This with an Xbox360 or PS3 - and one I though was an abysmal joke - Snoop Dogg in Country Music: a bad experiment

And I achieved a great step forward for my company as well:
M V Consulting, Inc and TV One Announce Collaboration - Press Release
Introducing the first 2009 model Ashley

And of course I found the time to pick a fight:
Viacom (and maybe Jon Stewart) doesn't like Black Entertainment USA. Maybe.

So I wasn't just speaking about entertainment this year. But considering all the things that were going on, all the changes, and the things I felt mattered, I think I covered a lot of what you wanted to read about.

In 2009 I will try to stay on point a bit more. But as always I will share with you my thoughts and views about the important topics affecting all our lives as well as our entertainment. And I always look forward to your comments [yes even the dissenting views that are thought out beyond just cursing me out] about what I present.

2008 has been a tough year, no matter what country race or whatever you may be. 2009 will be different, and I hope that all of my readers, and those that will become my readers, their families and friends will share in a prosperous and peaceful year.

Viacom (and maybe Jon Stewart) doesn't like Black Entertainment USA. Maybe.

So it would seem that Jon Stewart doesn't like what I had to say. Either that, or the lovely people at Viacom (the same joyous people responsible for BET, Flavor of Love, and numerous other insults to African Americans) finally got pissed off. I believe that it is a combination of both.

Now to be fair they have a valid reason for they have done. I had a video on youtube of a portion of the Jon Stewart Daily Show, where he interviewed Mike Huckabee. Those that visit my political website, VASS, likely read my post about their conversation already. I had the video to present the actual conversation, and then expanded on it with my views. There was no question that the video was of Comedy Central's show.

That said, I am unfamiliar with how often Viacom asks Youtube to pull a video. It wasn't something they found randomly. I can say that as there is no dearth of video clips of Stewart on his show on Youtube. Thus they specifically sought out my video for deletion. So I caught someone's attention.

Now I understand how they can claim this was copyright infringement. But I really would have enjoyed anyone from the Daily Show replying to my comments. I'm a big boy, I can take sarcasm and criticism. Even better I would have enjoyed an honest debate. Because this seems to validate my view that you can say anything to far-left liberals and their programs - as long as you agree with what they have to say.

And if it was the Viacom suits that came after me, I really would love to have them make comment. There is a wealth of issues I have with their programming.

Either organization is more than welcome to contact me, or leave comment, and have a discussion that I will provide verbatim to you my readers, if they have the balls. That isn't an insult, it's a challenge. And yes I will come to you if you prefer.

On the positive side though, it is nice to know that I am having an impact. I can't wait to see a response from 50 cent, Snoop Dogg, OJ Simpson, Caroline Kennedy, Senator Hillary Clinton, Representative Barney Frank, or any of the other celebrities, entertainers, politicians and people of note that I have discussed among my blogs and 1700 posts.

And I want to thank you my readers. You and your comments are what make my posts register on the radar of the powers that be. Now that we have their attention, let's see if we can get them to get some things improved.

Alan Colmes - the smartest commentor on television?

I was at my weekly pool league game yesterday when the topic of the departure of Alan Colmes from Hannity & Colmes came up. Several people were surprised at the move, and a couple claimed that it’s just what they would expect from Fox News.

Putting aside the far-left promoted misconceptions of Fox News for a moment, I thought about why this might be happening right now. And I also remembered a recent Word of the day from Stephen Colbert – which was on love lost and love found (highly pro-Obama). And I came to a conclusion that was interesting.

I expect that Stephen Colbert will lose his show, and so will several liberal commentators in both television and radio. Also Sean Hannity will lose his #1 rating, and possibly his time slot. The reason is because Democrats now lead the Congress and Presidency. It’s just that simple. After years of promoting liberal issues (Colmes), and (liberals) demonizing in the most personal way President Bush, they are getting out of the way.

Comedians and political satirists on the airwaves have flourished since the 2000 election of President Bush. Besides the fact that he is as eloquent as a stroke victim (no offense meant to those that have suffered this) it was the fact that President Bush won (liberals still say stole) the election by the slimmest of margins. It was taken as a personal slam by many liberals, and they never forgot it. Most of liberal media was motivated by this to attack President Bush on every issue and front they could cover.

For those that chose comedy and were less venom filled than the extremes, there was success. That led to huge moves forward by Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert as examples. They had an easy target, and they had the support of many liberals. But the most extreme individuals were shunned.

But now there is the media promoted, near flawless (according to many liberal pundits) President Obama. The popularity of this elected official is enormous. As such he cannot do anything but fail these ridiculously high standards placed in front of him. And liberal commentators are realizing that when he fails to keep up to the lofty expectations they will have to critique him harshly. None of them wish to do that.

Add to this the fact that as an African American critique of President Obama will be seen with an eye towards race and race relations. That is an issue America has yet to come to terms with. It’s the dirty secret that everyone knows and few acknowledge. As such comments about President Obama in the negative, from those that lauded him prior to the election will be seen as especially harsh. And that can’t be good for ratings or future career prospects.

So the smartest move is to get out of the way. To let the focus fall on conservatives that oppose the liberal plans of the Democrats. That any opposition will look as if it is entirely partisan (and some of it will be). Thus they can return at a later point and look like shiny defenders of the realm. It’s an interesting political plan, if I am correct.

The problem is that some cannot get out of the way. Like Colbert. And thus he will suffer. Since his television program is meant to mock conservative views, in an Administration of liberal programs he will be hard pressed to mock the Administration and keep the support of his followers. Comedians with similar objectives will face a similar problem. Many will fail as they are too far to the extreme to balance in the new environment.

Alan Colmes may be one of the smartest political pundits the Democrats have. By leaving the #1 rated program on the #1 rated news channel BEFORE President Obama enacts any of his programs (though not before he has broken several campaign promises) he leaves on top. He will continue to support President Obama and the Democrat policies, as an occasional and maybe regular pundit, but that’s not the same.

This will make the views of Sean Hannity seem even more extreme (not to say that several of his views are not already). And it might make some room for critique of President Obama and the Democrat-led Congress to be taken only as partisan. It will definitely make his return, on a more liberal focused program, seem more fair and bi-partisan. Thus Colmes will win big.

All of this makes me see one thing. The news media is far too political and commercialized. There is no room for objective analysis anymore. We have already heard several organizations declare how they slanted their coverage to promote President Obama in the election. Going forward there will be the continuation of this, to the detriment of the public they are supposed to be serving. All in the name of ratings.

And those that critique the politicians, have equally been partisan. Whether it’s David Letterman, Jon Stewart, Chris Matthews, or whomever. But their reward will be the loss of much of these ratings. At least at first.

Television and news media coverage of politics are about to change. Many liberals won’t like what it turns out to be. Neither will conservative be thrilled by the media response. In effect, over the next 2 years the public will lose as will the media. If I am correct, Alan Colmes saw this outcome and stepped out of the way. That makes him the smartest commentator on television at the moment.