Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 10/23/17
POTUS bickers with Gold Star widow
4:12 PMWhat up, gang? Happy Monday. It’s another Around The Horn day in these streets, so that’s a good thing. Also a good thing? Guess who’s back in these streets, kiddos? You guessed it. The gawd.
::taps mic:: Is this thing on?
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) October 23, 2017
David Letterman is a comedy legend. When I was a kid, I spent many a night staying up way too late to watch his television program, which I’d argue is the greatest of its kind of all time. He was thoughtful, random, kind, but mean when he needed to be, for people who deserved it. This weekend, he received the Mark Twain Prize for comedy, which is a well-deserved award. A bunch of his comedian colleagues spoke before he accepted the award at the ceremony, and they all had quite a bit to say about the president.
Speaking of the president, the circumstance regarding U.S. Army Sgt. La David Johnson has moved from uncomfortable to shameful. When a soldier is killed, condolences from a sitting commander in chief are not out of the ordinary. It’s certainly not a requirement, but how each president does it is up to them. Trump has found a way to now be in a war of words with a Gold Star widow, in public, no less, which isn’t a good look for anyone involved at all. She sat down with Good Morning America to talk about it.
In New York City, you gotta watch your back. Why? Because a sucker is born every minute. Meaning, people are constantly trying to con you out of your money, one way or another. Some people do it the ski mask way, as it were, some people do it via Wall Street banks, and some people just ask. Seriously. These “friendly thieves” are roaming the city, looking for drunken idiots or otherwise unsuspecting people, befriending them, then just requesting their possessions. Pro tip: Do not give these people your money.
It doesn’t appear that Eric Bledsoe will be playing in Phoenix any longer. The 27-year-old point guard straight up tweeted that he wanted out of the NBA’s desert squad, and now, it looks like he’ll get his wish. To be clear, the Suns are garbage. And have been for two seasons. This wasn’t always the case, but various botched personnel decisions have put them behind the eight ball, and now their best player is done. It’s unfortunate, because they could have had something going out there, but that franchise is a mess.
Free Food
Coffee Break: R. Kelly’s history with young women, so-called R&B proteges, and girls in general is extremely disgusting and problematic. It’s a long list of offenses that somehow have not landed him in jail, but now one of former artists is speaking out. In long form.
Snack Time: There are crazy plays in high school games and THERE ARE CRAZY PLAYS IN HIGH SCHOOL GAMES. This high school volleyball play is 100 percent bananas.
Dessert: Apply for this job. Thank me later.
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 10/20/17
Lupita Nyong’o speaks out about Harvey Weinstein
1:35 PMAll right, folks, Friday’s a busy day. Got Around The Horn at 5 p.m. on ESPN and am doing radio from 4-7 p.m. EST. Should be a fun one, kiddos. Tune in where you can.
NBA impostors getting outta hand this season pic.twitter.com/LDNv5ozkdi
— Jasmine (@JasmineLWatkins) October 19, 2017
Lupita Nyong’o is not one to be played. Now that the Harvey Weinstein accusations are all out in the open, various actresses have come forth with stories about times they encountered him and were either assaulted or insulted in some way, and she’s no different. Well, except for the fact that when she does it, it happens in The New York Times, because she’s got clout like that. Her story is not necessarily all that different from many others we’ve heard, but it is another example of exactly how shameless this man was in his predatory pursuits.
Y’all know how it is in the club. You meet some people who claim to be this, that and third, and you take it with a grain of salt because people will do anything to get what they think they want out of people they just met. So you don’t go into any public entertainment space necessarily expecting to meet royalty, but hey, you never know. That’s exactly what happened to one woman in Washington, D.C., who found herself an Ethiopian prince just chilling in the spot one night. I guess Coming To America is a real-life tale.
Halloween is right around the corner. Some of us have already changed out Twitter display names to “spooky” monikers, and I’m seeing decorations around my neighborhood for the oh-so-frightening holiday. And if you’re the kind of person who enjoys ghost stories, this is your time of year. But, because it’s 2017, we don’t all sit around and read scary books or just watch movies — we’ve got podcasts to freak us out, hands-free. Check out this list of horror shows guaranteed to give you your fill of the creeps.
We’re all rooting for Teddy Bridgewater. When he went down with an injury a while back in practice, it set back the Minnesota Vikings franchise quite a bit, and because of the nature of the problem, some people thought he might never play again at all. Now it appears that he’s beat the odds and is somewhat close to playing shape, or at least that’s what he’s telling the public. The onetime franchise quarterback says that he thinks he can actually play this season, which, frankly, would be nothing short of a miracle.
Free Food
Coffee Break: Tiny houses are a thing, and I don’t really know why. For whatever reason, people really enjoy cooping themselves up in the smallest possible spaces as their homes, then brag about it to everyone, as if it’s somehow saving the earth. Just kidding! Good job, folks. Now, take a look at their kitchens, also miniscule.
Snack Time: I had no idea that the world needed what’s being billed as a “Netflix for bedding,” but, apparently, here we are. What an interesting service.
Dessert: Here’s some dope raps to take you into the weekend. Safety first, kiddos.
All Day Podcast
All Day Podcast: 10/19/17
Kweku Collins live from All Things Go Fall Classic, and the NBA is underway early
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Every once in a while, a festival comes to D.C. that I enjoy enough to get out to and talk to an artist or two. Last week it was the All Things Go Fall Classic, which features music of all types, in its fourth annual installment. The story of how it got started is a fun one, with four friends who just decided to take their music blog of the same name and make it a show for everyone to enjoy.
While the three-day event featured the likes of Vince Staples and Young Thug, I caught up with Kweku Collins, a rapper from Evanston, Illinois, who doesn’t like to categorize his sound, the same way he doesn’t particularly love to pigeonhole his identity. Of mixed race, he exudes the type of charm that we’re seeing out of more and more artists of his age (he graduated high school last year) regarding acceptance. He reminds me of a Logic type, if I were to make unnecessarily blanket comparisons of mixed dudes on the mic.
Kweku Collins on stage during All Things Go Fall Classic 2017
Doug Van Sant
After that, we hit the hardwood with The Undefeated’s Mike Wise at Wednesday’s season opener of the Washington Wizards, who were taking on the Philadelphia 76ers. They’re both relatively young teams, with the Zards being the elder statesmen in that relationship. We went around the league, talking about the Celtics and their woes now that Gordon Hayward is hurt and exactly what to make of the Western Conference.
Lastly, we discussed The Undefeated’s newest list of the Top 50 Players in the NBA re-imagined, which takes a look at how one might change the list that was originally created in 1996. With help from longtime NBA and basketball minds, our latest breakdown has more changes on it than you might think.
Enjoy!
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 10/19/17
Waffle House and football: An American tradition
1:36 PMAll right, gang, Thursday’s another radio day. I’ll be filling in for Bomani Jones on #TheRightTime from 4-7 p.m. EST. We’ll be talking baseball, a decent amount of football and, of course, NBA hoops.
I just wanted to bring this to everyone's attention pic.twitter.com/A0bxUiUxhL
— Thickamaru Nara (@Aphrothighty) October 18, 2017
Creepy clowns are a hot topic in this space. We’ve been over all the reservations we have about how clowns have hijacked the modern entertainment genre. We’ve discussed the fact that the concept of their evil has unfairly stigmatized those trying to do good. And we’ve even talked about how it’s amazing to think that this bit actually worked for a while, even if cold cases are being reopened decades later. My view on this has always been the same: If a clown is creeping you out, sometimes you gotta let the hands fly. That’s exactly what one kid in Florida did.
Remember the guy who shot and killed his daughter’s boyfriend? The white guy who decided that taking up arms was the best way to avenge his apparent honor being besmirched? Yeah, his little girl was dating a black person, and he claimed he did what he did was in self-defense because she had run away from home and was living in a “crime-ridden neighborhood.” It’s worth noting that dude is an ex-cop. Well, he was convicted of manslaughter after various mistrials, which in itself is scary. His sentencing is next month.
Waffle House is an American treasure. Open 24 hours, always serving breakfast, the restaurant chain’s mere existence is exactly what makes this country great on multiple levels. The last time I was in one, I ended up arguing with a buddy for a good 90 minutes over how I chose to eat my meal, which was funny for obvious reasons. That said, in the South, they’re more than just eateries. This story about the establishment’s relationship with college football is nothing short of magical.
I’ve said this before, but Donald Trump would be a perfect NFL owner. A decent amount of visibility without necessarily having to be in charge of everything, a clearly profitable business group that sort of runs itself, and the ability to boss people around and act like you’re controlling everything when, in fact, the people you’ve hired are more likely the brains of the operation. He tried to get in the league, but they wouldn’t let him. Now, the Jacksonville Jaguars’ owner is doubling down on his comments about Trump, calling him jealous of the NFL.
Free Food
Coffee Break: I thought the catfish trend had come and gone, but apparently not. It’s pretty nuts to think that people are still getting away with that nonsense in the year of our Lord 2017. But it happens, and in some cases the person whose fake pictures are being used actually ends up being the one you land. What a wild tale.
Snack Time: Grace Jones is an incredible human being. The Jamaican singer’s life story is pretty incredible, and now there’s a new documentary coming out about her life.
Dessert: If you’re looking for some musical motivation, these beats should hold you up for the afternoon.
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 10/18/17
Gucci Mane ties the knot
4:36 PMHey, now! Got another win on Around The Horn on Tuesday, which was fun. Of course, Wednesday night is the season opener for the Washington Wizards, which should be exciting, so I’ll be there.
— Chad Moriyama (@ChadMoriyama) October 18, 2017
Even when it comes to showing concern, President Donald Trump has problems. After falsely claiming that various presidents had not contacted the parents and families of soldiers who were killed in action, when he finally decided to do it himself, he made things worse. According to Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Florida), Trump told the widow of the late Army Sgt. La David T. Johnson that “he knew what he signed up for.” He leaves behind two children and an unborn child. If you’d like to donate to their college funds, you can do so here. Trump has denied it happened.
Gucci Mane is now a married man. In a lavish $1.7M ceremony dubbed The Mane Event on BET, Radric Davis wed Keyshia Ka’oir in front of a celebrity crowd all dressed in white. Because this is 2017, the entire process will be part of a 10-part special for the network, The Wopsters, which will be must-see TV. We need not extol the virtues of Gucci and his turnaround — except, actually, we do. His new album, Mr. Davis, is way better than the two previous post-jail projects he’s dropped. This dude is such an inspiration.
Chris Long puts his money where his mouth is. Earlier in the year, he pledged to give game checks to start scholarships for college in his hometown of Charlottesville, Virginia. You might recall that a white nationalist rally in that city sparked huge outrage when a driver plowed into a crowd of people in a scarily violent and deadly scene. Now, the Philadelphia Eagles defensive lineman is donating his next 10 game checks to launch the Pledge 10 for Tomorrow campaign, designed to support educational equality efforts. Great cause.
NFL 1, President Trump, 0. After a meeting Tuesday with players, the NFL decided that it will not be penalizing players who don’t kneel for the national anthem, a far cry from all the bluster that was spoken in previous weeks. Remember when Trump got on stage and started screaming that if guys didn’t stand for the anthem they should be fired on the spot? And then Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones backed that up with a toothless statement that no player of his would kneel without getting benched?
Free Food
Coffee Break: You know you’re an important person in society when Lego decides to re-create your likeness for kids across the globe to play with. Lego’s now done so for female scientists with the new “Women of NASA” set, which features Nancy G. Roman, Margaret Hamilton, Sally Ride and Mae Jemison.
Snack Time: When it comes to cultural appropriation, some people are so ruthless with it. Take for example this restaurant in California that serves Popeyes chicken, which they PROUDLY have delivered twice a day. Wow.
Dessert: Let Thundercat take you away this afternoon. We love him.
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