Off to poughkeepsie via metro north. I love trains!
Archive for December, 2007
Just wanted to post the audio (once you click through, hit the “Listen” button at the top of the page. Est 15min) of our latest appearance on the Blogger Roundtable at NPR’s News & Notes. Thanks to all involved in the show for getting us in the lineup so much this past year!
Again we didn’t get to the Enough is Enough campaign, but we spent some solid time on Sharpton and Kwanzaa.
We’re back on NPR’s News & Notes with three topics in the queue. In addition to Jack & Jill, we’ve got Desmond Burton from Afronerd plus Carmen Dixon from All About Race.
The topics:
1. Is Al Sharpton the new go to guy for candidates? Does he speak for all black people? Why do high profile whites always go to him for advice? Check this article, and see Al gloat over his attention from the top three democratic candidates
2. Habari Gani! Do black people really know what Kwanzaa is? Can it coexist with Christmas in the African-American community? An article in Christianity Today.
3. Enough is Enough. Is there a cultural war in Black America? What’s up with the feel good black movies? Can they really change Americans’ perceptions of black folks?
As always, throw your thoughts down in the comment area if you have em
We humans and our fossil fuel burning arrogance murdered this poor snowman and left him for dead in the streets of Lansing
Commercial 1
Commercial 2
[NP] Last Gig Before We Break Jesus’s Heart
What’s going down my people-united-will-never-be-defeated?
It’s been an eventful past few weeks.
Hillary Clinton attacked Barack Obama for wanting to be president when he was in kindergarten. So much for encouraging black children to dream! Screw that little chilluns, just hope to be a rapper or ball player so the big bad calculating witch of the east doesn’t smear you 40 years later.
Oprah opened for Obama at a stadium in South Carolina. It was a beautiful thing to see, and Oprah was in top form giving the people what they wanted. She screamed and pointed, “Everybody look under your seats and check out your NEW. BLACK. PRESIDEEEEEEENT!!! And YOU get a black president! And YOU get a black president…” It was beautiful.
Alan Keyes thinks he’s still running for president.
And I haven’t been fired from the Onion yet. Good times all around.
UPCOMING APPEARANCES / COOL EVENTS
Tonight I’m doing my last NYC gig before the holy daze. We’ve got Joe Devito from Last Comic Standing on the bill. Come on down to:
Don’t Touch the Foot’s 25th show!
http://donttouchthefoot.com
Thursday Dec 13th, 10pm
Sage Theatre - 711 7th ave b/w 47th and 48th
$10 and no drink minimum
and for those i’ve abandoned in boston…
This Friday and Saturday in Boston
my friend and fellow comic Myq Kaplan is recording a new comedy CD
The Comedy Studio @ the Hong Kong, 8pm
PIECES OF ME YOU CAN DIGEST FROM YOUR DESK
I continue to wear out the keys on my keyboard with word production. Here are some of the things worth seeing.
My Last Weekly Dig Column.
That’s right. I’m retiring from the Dig. It’s pretty hard to write a regular column for a Boston paper when you live in NYC. I tried.
Andrew Young, I Hereby Revoke Your Black Card
I’m really sick of played out civil rights leaders getting drunk off the haterade and questioning Obama’s blackness. Andrew Young is in my crosshairs.
Showtime at the Apollo, Featuring Barack Obama
My perspective on seeing him live in Harlem
New Video on YouTube
My Comedy Central Open Mic Fight Regional Semifinal Set
One of my most solid shows caught on tape.
ATTN: FACEBOOK USERS
I’m shutting down my Group on Facebook and replacing it with a Fan Page which oughta make it easier to follow my happenings.
EVERYBODY ELSE
Always check out baratunde.com for the latest happenings
and remember to suggest cities or colleges where you want to see me perform. In January, I’ll be in DC a few times and out in Cali at Pomona College!
demand me
This is my last regular column for the Dig, and I’m gonna miss it.
I remember when I first fell in love with this paper. I was reading Media Farm, that merciless and unnecessarily rough takedown of all non-Dig media outlets. The paper had done another heinously ruthless attack on the Boston Globe’s weekend section. It was mean, but its cruelty was easily surpassed by its hilarity. “These are my people,” I thought. “I want to write for them.”
The first piece of mine that ran was a 2006 year in review of racism. Since this is my 25th and last regular submission, I thought it would be appropriate to end on a 2007 year in review of this very column.
They haven’t all been gems — that’s nearly impossible — but I’m proud of some of the moments we’ve shared.
In the beginning there was the MBTA bus driver who repeatedly threatened to kick my “fucking ass” and beat me with a wooden block in front of 20 or so passengers. Despite having lived in Boston for 11 and a half years before this encounter, I didn’t really feel like a local until this happened. Thank you, anonymous psycho driver, for teaching me that the best way to make someone feel truly welcome in Boston is to make them feel as unwelcome as possible.
For most unlikely situation to end well, nothing beat the 12 hour overnight JetBlue meltdown at JFK. It started with food shortages, dogs pooping on diapers and passengers threatening gate agents. It ended with me getting a free voucher, a good story and a great friend.
In politics, I was generally annoyed at everyone, from the people challenging Obama’s blackness to the misplaced anger at Imus’s wackness. Helping me keep cool was that nice stroll we took together from D&D to shining D&D along the streets of Somerville.
On the personal side, I got to share memories of my incredible mother, including the not-so-well-thought-out plan to disperse her ashes in the violent waters of the Atlantic. She didn’t live long enough to read my column, but her spirit and memory were strong enough to help write a few.
If there’s one column I would like to have had the most impact, it’s the one about our looming energy supply crisis and peak oil. My once-hysterical panic has been reduced to a controlled alarmism, and I’ve since taken steps to lower my energy profile, reuse more goods and get to know my neighbors. I hope you’ll do the same.
In the end, the column returned to its origins in the form of another traumatic T experience, this time not mine but that of the man named Bill who helped liberate so many from a stranded train. This time I wasn’t threatened but rather rudely rebutted in the pages of this paper by Joe Pesaturo. It was an honor to do battle with you, sir, especially because your weapons were merely words and not the standard-issue wooden block.
Thank you Dig and Dig readers. It’s been an honor to share this space with you.
BARATUNDE THURSTON WAS A BIWEEKLY COLUMNIST FOR THE DIG THROUGHOUT 2007. HE’S GONNA MISS YOU GUYS.
Because we’ve gone from a country that could not imagine having a black president, to one where people compete to prove their candidate is blacker than the other. Amazing.
I’m really going to miss not getting a cab and not having my vote counted. Those were the days.
hotness!
below the fold but whatever. i have no idea how this video was selected but thanks to whoever is responsible.
My Comedy Central Open Mic Fight Semifinal Set
Made it to the Boston regional semifinal round this past summer. Finally got the video to show my last stand. Enjoy, and share this around.
[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=4KhgY3NeGrA[/youtube]




















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