Troy

I'm looking around for some software that will make comments on this site's web pages and maybe even replace the discussion forum software. The account creation really discourages people from participating. The video was on one of those vendors' websites. I liked the spirit of the video.

Such a terrible situation... Where are these gangs getting all of these weapons and ammunition? We just gave Russia back an arms dealer in exchange for a sister they jammed to use as a bargaining chip (or so it seems). Interestingly, the media pay so much attention to Kyrie's tweet that the situation in Haiti isn't even part of the daily discourse. Thanks for bringing this to the fore @Chevdove.

Also check out “The Visions of Octavia Butler” article in the New York Times.

Speaking of Octavia Butler check out this free (no paywall) article in the New York Times: https://nyti.ms/3AZxzL3 This is one of the most visually compelling articles I have ever read online. The Visions of Octavia Butler As a science fiction writer, Butler forged a new path and envisioned bold possibilities. On the eve of a major revival of her work, this is the story of how she came to see a future that is now our present. Text by Lynell George with Visuals by Ainslee Alem Robson ___________ Also check out the new drama series premiering on Tuesday, December 13, based on Octavia E. Butler's novel Kindred.

Octavia Butler's book Kindred was one of my favorite novels. It is true sci-fi without reliance on high tech. Just an interesting what-if story of teleportation across space/time. Well technically not teleportation, I don't know what the word for it would be ... it was just an excellent book! FX’s Kindred New Drama Series Premieres Tuesday, December 13 Exclusively on Hulu All Eight Episodes Will Be Available at Premiere Based on the Profoundly Influential Novel by Octavia E. Butler LOS ANGELES, October 10, 2022 – FX’s Kindred, the new drama series based on Octavia E. Butler’s profoundly influential novel, will premiere Tuesday, December 13 exclusively on Hulu. The premiere will include all eight episodes. The series will soon be available on Star+ in Latin America and Disney+ under the Star banner in all other territories. The announcement was made yesterday, at New York Comic Con during a Kindred panel presentation featuring showrunner and executive producer Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and cast members Mallori Johnson, Micah Stock, Gayle Rankin, Austin Smith, David Alexander Kaplan, Sophina Brown and Sheria Irving. Adapted from the celebrated novel Kindred, by Hugo Award-winner Octavia E. Butler, the FX series centers on “Dana James” (Mallori Johnson), a young Black woman and aspiring writer who has uprooted her life of familial obligation and relocated to Los Angeles, ready to claim a future that, for once, feels all her own. But, before she can settle into her new home, she finds herself being violently pulled back and forth in time. She emerges at a nineteenth-century plantation, a place remarkably and intimately linked with Dana and her family. An interracial romance threads through Dana’s past and present, and the clock is ticking as she struggles to confront secrets she never knew ran through her blood, in this genre-breaking exploration of the ties that bind. Kindred stars Mallori Johnson as “Dana James,” Micah Stock as “Kevin Franklin,” Ryan Kwanten as “Thomas Weylin,” Gayle Rankin as “Margaret Weylin,” Austin Smith as “Luke,” David Alexander Kaplan as “Rufus Weylin,” Sophina Brown as “Sarah” and Sheria Irving as “Olivia.” Kindred, Octavia E. Butler’s celebrated and critically acclaimed novel, has been adapted for television by writer and showrunner Branden Jacobs-Jenkins who executive produces the series with Joe Weisberg, Joel Fields, Darren Aronofsky and Ari Handel of Protozoa Pictures, Courtney Lee-Mitchell, Jules Jackson and Ernestine Walker. Janicza Bravo directed and served as an executive producer on the pilot. The eight-episode season is produced by FX Productions. About FX FX, a division of Disney General Entertainment, is a global multiplatform brand that develops, produces, commissions and markets original programming for Hulu and the FX and FXX linear channels in the U.S., and Star+ in Latin America and Disney+ in all other international territories. The FX brand mark appears above the title across its entire slate of originals. Over the past two decades, FX has been responsible for some the most-critically acclaimed and award-winning shows on television. Some of the brand’s current and legacy titles include the dramas American Horror Story, American Crime Story, The Americans, The Bear, Damages, Fargo, Justified, Nip/Tuck, The Old Man, The Patient, Pose, Rescue Me, The Shield and Sons of Anarchy; the comedies Archer, Atlanta, Better Things, DAVE, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Little Demon, Reservation Dogs and What We Do in the Shadows; and a growing slate of docuseries and documentary films. ###

I'm not sure why you mention this (I did not watch the video), but "Nuyorican" has been around a lot longer than 20 years -- I can recall the term for most of my life. @Delano you may be familiar with the Nuyorican Poets Cafe -- that goes back ... what 50 years? Hummm I thought Aretha Franklin sang all those songs from Sparkle. I also remember Irene from the TV series Fame (she was in that right?). Sorry to hear she was Blacklisted I just assumed that she aged out, failing to stay relevant in a rapidly changing industry... Did she have any hit records?

Since you have not seen either film it is difficult to understand why you would take such opposing views. Perhaps because The Woman King celebrated powerful Black women and find that less threatening that a film that focuses on Black men? Both are works of fiction whose main goals are to generate profit -- not to educate. As far as Will Smith continuing to make money after assaulting Rock. We see the industry does not care. I guess it is up to the individual to decide if they will decide to continue to support him. I will watch the film once I can stream it without having to pay extra.

your uncertainty about the stats is evident. have you considered that the reporting on violent crime has increased? It is one of the reasons i consumer less so called news. i do. I just keep them to myself. And of course there are some white people plotting against us. Who is denying that? It is when you go off the rails with roundabouts where i take issue.

@Cynique probably wrote that because "Classical" liberals, do not call for less laws and rules, that a libertarian and conservative position. Words have meaning. That is not true, I believe in conspiracies, as many are documented. I just don't believe in most of the "conspiracy theories" you tout, as they are generally baseless fiction you created in your mind. Now you say violent crime has "skyrocketed across the nation." I'm not sure what you mean by "sky rocketed." Perhaps you can share an example of a national statistic that warrants such a claim.

I have not played any video games since Guitar Hero first came out (purchased for my kids). I have never played any games where you could see the faces of the characters... Like the good professor wrote, as an artist you have the license to do what you want within the bounds of your talent. That said, why not a Shaolin monk? Maybe he was down with Wu-Tang

Preach!

well @Delano there is a lot to unpack there. @Pioneer1 cavalierly drew a causal relationship between roundabouts and an increase in traffic fatalities and said it this is proof that was a deliberate scheme for white people to get rich. He does all of this with no data on an increase in roundabouts, without controlling for other factors, and completely ignoring the dramatic decrease in deaths over a longer time period. Again i knew it was futile to try to reason with him, but I really thought the video would help. Why does he think you worship white men, or any man for matter?

@Pioneer1 watch the short video @frankster shared above, and let me know if it changes your mind.

Agreed

I think it is a waste of mental energy to believe roundabouts are a plot to kill Black people, but it is a greater waste to try to convince you otherwise. No you don’t do that unless you’re trying to deceive yourself or someone else. Are you trying to win an argument or get at the truth?

So, if none of the religions you have studied are perfect, why assert that these religions cannot evolve? History tells us that religions evolve. Look at how many variations of Christianity there are in this country.

Run-away slave…. interesting. He did a lot of running in that movie What was the sex scene about? The boy was young enough for it to have been considered child porn. i thought blade runner was a good film when i first saw it. @richardmurray Prof D response was basically what i would have written. I would also throw in the idea that commerce impacts the art —usually in a bad way. A filmmaker creates an excellent first film. They are given even more resources to make more films but are rarely able to improve on the initial effort. M Night Shamaylan will probably never do another move as good as the Sixth Sense. I doubt Peele will do anything as good as Get Out. this is why we see so many sequels, most of which pale in comparison to the original.

i was hoping to have @Pioneer1 draw that conclusion on his own. Pioneer do you agree with Prof D?

The first Star Wars the first matrix — great film Superfly’s sound track was great. Up there with Shaft. They don’t make original sound tracks any more do they? Yeah Jeff Wright is a great actor. i purchased the DVD for the film since it was a classic and did not like or at all it simply didn’t get it. I have the DVD away. I liked Pulp Fiction, A Soldiers Story, the first predator, that i-see-dead-people-film, and so many others my favorite spike Lee film… i dunno maybe the one with Robin Harris was that do the right thing?

Of course, hence the need for the word in our language. Conintelpro was a well-documented conspiracy. I just don't think white folks are gathering around a table and deciding to build traffic circles to cause more deaths to bolster the profits of hospitals and insurance agencies as you do. @Pioneer1 why did you lop off the data that showed the dramatic decrease in highway fatalities from more than 20 years ago? Were you deliberately cherry-picking data to make a point?

It is absolutely true for these things. But as you seem to indicate it is that story that matters. The stories you mentioned are a variation of the tried and true boy meets girl... What makes Peele and Lee trailblazer is that they are telling stories that are rarely told on the big screen. Peele is doing this in a unique (as far as I can tell) way -- one that does not work for me (save Get Out), but I'm glad he has the opportunity and I support his films. But the operative word in my statement was "should." I don't think films, collectively, are getting any better over the decades. I mean how many times can we watch a Marvel Movie -- they are getting boring now, as it is the same old story over and over again; an ominous seemingly invincible threat emerges, the superheroes are rallied, despite some setbacks, infighting -- whatever -- they eventually get themselves together and save the day ...roll credits and wait for the bonus clip ... yawn! Look it is really hard to make a good film -- let alone a great one. What was the last great (or really good film) any of you watched?

No, I would not knowingly give my kids any of those things. Of course not. But, why do you think that is?

Washington Post published a photo of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones in the crowd of the North Little Rock Six incident in 1957. What was he doing? He claims he was just curious. He must have been very curious, as you could not get much closer... I wonder what happened to the guy with the cigarette in his mouth. He looks like prison was in his future, but he probably ended up a prominent local business owner and leader of the Klan. The balding guy on the right was probably just curious too, and he probably attended a lynching when he was younger... SMH @Cynique what is your recollection of this incident?

yes, that is exactly my point. I believe those additional films gave Peele a benefit lee did not have. Over time movies should be getting better because each generation learns from the previous one.

Absolutely! what?! Of course you can’t say traffic circles was the cause of the increase. In fact the stats you chose not to show appears to reflect a dramatic decrease in accidents and fatalities. Why the hard on for traffic circles @Pioneer1?