Saturday Morning Vibes: WNBA APPRECIATION

Aaaargh! Readers, I just couldn't let this one slip through the cracks.  Earlier this week a former disgraced NBA player who shall remain nameless, because well, fuck him...added another churlish rant to his long list of social media faux pas.

What makes the comments more disturbing is that said player went out of his way to denigrate the women players who have reached the same professional peak as himself.  But instead of focusing on this numbskull I decided to dedicate this post to the sacrifices made by the women of the WNBA as well as give them my deferential respect.

WNBA PLAYERS AND LEAGUE- LGBT PIONEERS

When Michael Sam and Jason Collins came out to the public they were praised for their bravery and lauded as sports heroes.  I applaud both players, however, as athletes they don't hold a candle to lesbian players like Chamique Holdsclaw and Brittney Griner.  While their male counterparts recieve sportsman of the year awards and fame, despite being awful at their respective sports, the media fails to give the women of the WNBA proper respect for their work in the community.  The WNBA is light years ahead of the sports world in it's efforts to embrace our lesbian and gay sisters and brothers. Just last year the league became the first professional american sports structure to acknowledge it's gay and lesbian fans with the first ever "Pride" game.  Let's give the WNBA credit for this unprecedented gesture.


MEAGER PAY SCALE AND SUBSEQUENT CAREER EFFECTS

In 2014 the average WNBA salary was estimated to be around $75,000 with the max salary being near $110,000. To put things in perspective the last man on an NBA team receives close to $400,000!  Of course the NBA generates more revenue than the WNBA and the WNBA players Union could possibly negotiate more fair profit-sharing, but this smaller pay scale has significant effects on the career trajectory of WNBA players.  You would never hear of Carmelo Anthony signing a contract with a foreign team immediately after his final playoff game.  This would essentially commit him to the grit and grind of a complete year of professional basketball!  Yet this is necessary for some WNBA players without coaching gigs or other supplements to increase their income.  Hell, even the great Tamika Catchings played overseas 8 of her 10 WNBA seasons.  Competing at the top of your sport year round ultimately has to have detrimental effects on your ability to stay healthy, and could possibly shorten your career.  In turn, I wonder if WNBA players would continue to play ball year round, or take time to rehabilitate and spend time at home with their loved ones if they recieved the same league revenue share as their NBA counterparts? This remains to be studied.

FAVORITE PLAYERS

Finally, as a show of obeisance...here are video montages of my 3 favorite WNBA players! Elena Delledonne (hometown hero), Ivory Latta, and arguably the future GOAT (sorry Cheryl) Maya Moore!

PEACE!!!

TheLonelyBlogger

What's the word!? From Johannesbuuuuurg?

"Oooo sista/woman have ya heaaarrrrd, from Johanessbuuurg??"- Gil Scott-Heron 1976


     Yes. There's so much life in the city of Jo'Burg. Johannesburg is a place where you can experience some of the best wine in the world, scrumptious ostrich steaks, (you should try them medium-rare) and tantalizing garlic mussels. Oh, I'd absolutely LOVE to dedicate this post to the foodie scene in Jo'Burg. But it's the brutality and heartlessness of apartheid that remained on the edges of my mind as I enjoyed the welcoming 14ZAR:1USD exchange rate.

Let this quote from an Afrikaaner congress person sink in...

     I can't say I've seen a more heartwrenching sight than the list of legislation documented on the wall of the Apartheid Museum that was used by the racist Afrikaaner regime during the 1900s.  Under the guise of a "civilized" government, this bloodthirsty establishment used bullets and laws to destroy the minds and self-esteem of black children.  Black men and women were made everyday to remember they were no better than animals in the eyes of the whites who immigrated to their homeland.
     To be an African accused of political activism was an automatic death sentence.  Steven Biko was beaten and killed while in police custody for his work, in a death to Baltimore's Freddie Gray. No police were ever charged for his death, which autopsies confirmed to be a result of brain injury from blunt force trauma.  Legislation allowed for an activist to be jailed for up to 90 days without a trial. This period often extended to 360-540 days and prisoners were often held in solitary confinement with little more than a cloth (if that) to cover their genitals.  Police constantly reminded them..."We could kill you right now and say it was suicide by hanging".  Can you imagine how many Sandra Bland's there were during apartheid?

Myself- on the corner in the city of Soweto 15 miles from Jo'Burg

      Fifteen miles outside of the city in the township of Soweto, home of Winnie Mandela and the place where blacks were relocated under the iron fist of apartheid, is the Hector Pieterson Children's Museum. This museum is dedicated to the Tamir Rice's, the hundreds of black children slain by police during the Soweto protests of a new decree of the Bantu Education Act, which stated that black schools were required to use Afrikaaner language and text as a teaching medium in an already dilapidated school system. A foreign language for black students and

Small town of tin roof houses off the highway in Soweto

teachers. A 30 yard gravel pit on the periphery of the museum is filled with bricks for each child victim of this violence. The length of the pit alone is a chilling reminder of how many lives were lost in just this brief period of a 50 year regime. 50 years of havoc wreaked on the culture, family-structure, and pride of a group of people...because of their rich, dark skin.
    Alas, this post is dedicated to the unwavering spirit of black South Africans! The natives I was able to speak to will always be in my heart. Jethro, my Zulu brother and Head Chef at the bed and breakfast I stayed at along with his beautiful wife and twin boys, my labmate Mpha and her friend NhlaNhla, my hostesses Ivon and Ntombi...all survivors of Apartheid, who, in spite of a brutal campaign to tear them down, still hold their heads high like the Kings and Queens they are. They reinforced my spirit as a black American and showed me how connected we are even thousands of miles away. They will NOT be forgotten. Finally, this post is also dedicated to my big brother and friend Dr. Manu O. Platt for granting me an opportunity to research HIV and tuberculosis while submerging myself in the history of South Africa. I cannot wait to repay him for this once in a lifetime trip! UNTIL NEXT TIME

DEUCES!

TheLonelyBlogger


 

Welcome back NBA!

The NBA season has kicked off and is in full swing!  It's great to see all the things I awaited all summer.  Here's a list of the top five things I'm most interested in this season:

Warriors Title Defense and Steph Curry MVP Encore
At this point, Steph Curry is the best player in the world.  Sorry Lebron.  His shooting ability from anywhere on the floor, coupled with insane ball handling skills is just incredible.  And I'm sure Chris Paul hates him.  Through the first 9 games of the season, it seems as if Curry has gotten better and more lethal from behind the arc, if that was possible.  The entire team seems hungrier than ever to win another and that's great to watch!

New Look T-Wolves
I know, I know, maybe I'm crazy but I love this new Timberwolves squad.  Saddening that Flip Saunders passed away prior to the season starting.  On another note, my favorite thing about this team is the presence of Kevin Garnett.  With a roster full of young players, KG is the perfect veteran to get their two recent number 1 picks to play with an attitude at all times.  Wiggins is in his second season and has improved tremendously (coming off a ROY season) and Karl Anthony Towns was 2 wins away from a NCAA championship last year.  Maybe they don't make the playoffs this year, but they can only get better and it will be exciting to watch that transition from endless years of lottery picks into a playoff berth somewhere down the road.

Russ and KD back together
Self explanatory.  Who doesn't want to see the most formidable duo in the NBA back together for an entire season.  They've both shown what they can do without the other when Durant won MVP and Westbrook with 11 triple doubles last season.  Playing under a new head coach in back to back NCAA champion Billy Donovan, OKC should definitely be a contender when the postseason comes.

Fred Hoiberg and the Bulls
I'm personally excited to see what The Mayor of Ames, IA can do for Chicago this season.  In anticlimactic fashion, the Bulls were destroyed by the Cavs last year in the playoffs so I'm hoping he can make the necessary changes to get them over the hump.  I enjoyed seeing what Hoiberg did with a virtually unknown Iowa State team over the last several seasons and I hope that success continues in the NBA.  Chicago definitely has the talent to make some noise but we'll have to wait and see how they mesh with the new coaching philosophies.

Rondo
In my opinion, Rondo was the best PG in the league at one point due to his playmaking abilities.  He racks up triple doubles when playing consistently at a high level and now he's back at the helm of team in need of a veteran presence.  Rondo will be able to help Demarcus Cousins and a struggling Kings franchise gain some sort of momentum, but they won't make the playoffs.  He hasn't really played well since his ACL injury a few seasons ago so it'll good to see if he can get back to the 10 points, 15 dimes, and 12 boards Rondo of old.

Honorable Mentions
Cavs and Lebron's quest to win a championship in Cleveland, Kobe's farewell tour, Melo and the Phil Jackson Knicks, and a deeper LA Clippers team.

Reasons I'm Done with My iPhone

iPhones Used to Be Cool
Apple has made some great devices over the last decade or so.  When the iPhone first came out, I was eager to get one because it just looked so cool and Apple was known for making great products.  I had a Macbook in 2008, an iPod nano in 2004, and an iPod touch when they first came out.  Recently the quality of their products has significantly decreased.  My iPhone continually glitches and closes apps for no reason.  My nano and touch are long gone due to their own issues.  And my Macbook is basically obsolete, mostly because I'm too cheap to upgrade my software (and even if I did, macbook gurus say that it will not run as efficiently for several reasons).  Since my software isn't updated, I cannot sync my phone with my itunes and put the songs I want on my phone, or upload my pictures to iPhoto.

These are my own personal problems I have with the company, but in all honesty, things have been on the downside since Steve Jobs passed several years ago.  Their latest unveilings have been more of the same and I'm no longer impressed by the company.  iPhones were cool in the beginning because they could do things that other phones couldn't.  Now however, other companies have caught up and iPhone is no longer the only nice looking, touch screen phone with lots of applications, and that is easy to use.  The luster wore off a long time ago.  Below is a list of more reasons I'm done with my Apple iPhone.

Ten Reasons

1. Apple Emoji's were unveiled in 2011 and it took four years to incorporate racially diverse ones.  Seriously.
2. My phone repeatedly shuts off and restarts on its own for no reason whatsoever.
3. Updates seem cumbersome and unnecessary.
4. The iPhone 6 is wack, it looks cheap and generic.
5. In the most recent phone update, I was forced to download an app for Apple Watch.  Who told them I was getting one? How presumptive!
6. I feel like my privacy is being invaded. I was asked if I'd like to scan my credit card and save my information on my phone to make online purchases go smoother.
7. I'm continually asked what my location is whenever opening certain apps and websites.
8. Siri can't answer any of my questions.
9. It's ridiculously expensive to get any repairs or replace my phone if something bad happens to it.
10. Having one makes me feel like a member of a cult or a worker ant.

I just need a phone that can make calls, text messages, receives emails, plays music, and has twitter and internet capabilities.  Any suggestions?

Peace.

P.E.T.A. (Pup Experiences Traumatizing Automobile accident)

Intro
I was walking my younger brother's dog this afternoon and something interesting happened.  Rio, the dog, tends to chase after large trucks, buses, and any vehicles that make a lot of noise.  Each day this happens and he's restrained as you can tell by the video below.

Crazy Pup
This particular scenario happens every day without fail.  On this day, he happened to be wearing a harness that was attached to his leash.  As the walk began, I noticed that he was feeling some discomfort.  I saw him laboring and attempted to fix his harness.  After he still seemed to be uncomfortable, I tried again to alleviate the pain and discomfort he was feeling.  Ironically, after the second attempt at fixing the harness, the bus he likes to chase so much was coming down the street.

Rio saw the bus trudging along and began to bark while heading into the street.  Using the leash, I began pulling him back while he tried his hardest to get into the street and he slipped right out of the harness!  He was hit in the face by the front of the bus and fell backwards closer to the sidewalk.  The bus did not stop at all.  I screamed like a schoolgirl and was frozen with shock, while he writhed in pain on the ground for a few seconds.

Conclusion
Then, in the strangest fashion, he just got up and started running back towards my house.  I went home and told my family what happened.  Other than a bloody lip, he seemed fine and chipper.  As I'm typing this, I'm still a little mortified and if any complications were to arise in the next several days, I would feel pretty awful.  I blame myself for adjusting his harness during the walk, rather than inside, and whoever put the harness on him in the first place.  He never wears a harness!  I'm glad he's okay though, probably won't be walking him for the next several days . . .

PS. It was kinda funny (now that he seems fine).  I hope he learned his lesson about trucks, buses, and noisy vehicles.

Laugh of the Day: Snow Day Adventures

Snow??

Across the south today, snow was expected in Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama.  Last year it snowed in these southern states, Atlanta specifically, and the Snowpocalypse happened.  With that in mind, schools were cancelled and offices announced they would be closed due to the impending storm.  In Birmingham, when I woke up this morning, I figured that nothing would happen because it wasn't even cold enough for snow.  It rained all day.  Essentially, my little brother missed school and my parents skipped work due to rain.

Disrupted Plans

I was planning to use this Wednesday to search for part time job opportunities around the city, so the rain played no role in my day's activities.  However, my parents urged that today wouldn't be a good day to search for employment because of the lack of open businesses that were fearful of the storm.  This led me to sit around the house and harass my kid brother all day.  During a session of roughhousing in his room, an interesting thing happened.

Roughhousing

It's important to note that my kid brother is now in 7th grade, that age when he can somewhat fight back during our skirmishes.  While we wrestled and bounced around his room, he retaliated to my shenanigans, causing me to stumble backwards a few steps into the window.  We heard the breaking of glass and stopped.  My butt broke the window.

After discovering the extent of the damage we caused (and our subsequent laughter), we devised a plan to fix the situation.  Using the top of a Nike sneaker box and duct tape, we were able to seal up the hole.  In the end, we told the parents what happened because it would have made more sense to tell them then, rather than wait and cause more drama for trying to hide it.

In my defense, I blame Alabama schools for canceling the day's activities, because if he had been in school, none of this would have happened.  Snow Days are always full of adventures . . . Even if it doesn't snow.

Just Because

As a child, my favorite VHS tape was NBA Superstars 2.  It contained highlights of the NBA's top players of the day with a great song to complement the plays.  Featuring Magic Johnson, Centers of the NBA, Dominique Wilkins, Larry Bird, Charles Barkley and more, my brothers and I watched this tape religiously. I woke up this morning with Patti Labelle's song on the MJ vid stuck in my head.  So here it is . . .

Magic Johnson's video is pretty great too.  I still watch these if I want to get hype before going to play basketball.

Watch these inspiring videos and have a great day!
Peace.

Everyday is Black History

Here at Brothers, we've been slacking.  I have been meaning to post something about the month of February and its significance but there's one problem.  The reality is that we should be celebrating black history every day.  If you're a person who is truly black and proud, Black History permeates each and every single second of every day of your life.

Black History is something you have to live and understand your importance and position in culture.  In a country where black men are murdered and imprisoned at alarming rates, we must all remember our ancestors that were enslaved, tortured, persecuted, and humiliated in order to improve our own lives.  While shopping at Barnes & Noble, I discovered this gem of a book with hundreds of quotations from Black people.  I read from it every day.

The video below shares some enlightening sentiments from Detroit Red aka Malcolm X.  I leave you with some words of advice via the great El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz!

"In the ghettoes the white man has built for us, he has forced us not to aspire to greater things, but to view life as survival."

Peace and Love

K. Plattinum

Off The Top Freestyle w/KiD CuDi

Here at Brothers we are always fans of dope music and freestyles.  This vintage off the top Cudder freestyle over some unreleased 88 Keys production will certainly have you bobbing your head. Enjoy!