“The Nutcracker.” It’s been a holiday tradition since dinosaurs roamed the earth, which made it really difficult because with their small arms, T-Rex were completely worthless to catch leaping Stegasaurus in those flashy dance routines. Countless generations have grown up attending performances, millions of girls have pirouetted through its choreography and cajillions of people have walked away from its pomp and grandeur with one thought burning in their mind… “Okay, that was really well done, but what the heck was it about?” And this Saturday and Sunday, that tradition will continue,... Read More

I saw an ad for something on TV recently that said it was “Too hot for TV!!!” Which was interesting, because, as I said, I saw the ad on TV. I wonder where that line is drawn? I mean, where is that particular thermostat that makes something “too hot for TV,” or “too hot for (whatever)?” Dave Chappelle did a comedy bit where he was talking about a podcaster saying he refused to comment on the R. Kelly mess because she claimed that Dave said that it, too, was “too hot for TV!” Dave said that he never said that, and then he made a bunch of jokes about... Read More

There’s a common phrase used in social justice circles: Pass the mic. Pass the mic means, metaphorically, to let others talk, and it’s usually used in regard to people of color. It’s a reminder that we need to listen to those people of color because their experience is different from ours if we’re white. While, yes, we certainly may share many commonalities, particularly in regard to economic situations if we’re among the same economic strata, there is also an intrinsic bias many in society hold based upon appearance, notably skin color, and regardless of commonalities... Read More

There’s nothing seemingly structured. There’s nothing seemingly rehearsed. And that’s PART of what makes Chapelle’s surprise special on YouTube, aptly entitled 8:46 (after both the amount of time George Floyd was choked to death on film, and a surprising detail about Chappelle’s own life) so searing and necessary. Like the movement itself and the 400+ years of oppression black humans have experienced, it is ragged and honest and brutal and unrefined. This dialogue Chappelle presents is something of this moment and something the world needs. It finds itself less stand up special... Read More