Category: News

Despite being president for four years, it’s not clear if Donald Trump ever read the job description. For one thing, he didn’t seem to understand how the military worked. On top of calling fallen soldiers “losers,” he also reportedly wished they acted more like the German soldiers during World War II, aka the Nazis. Now a veteran is calling him out for allegedly thinking they were only there to do his bidding.

As caught by Raw Story, Theodore Johnson, a Navy vet and Brennan Center for Justice fellow, wrote a column for The Bulwark in which he torched the former commander-in-chief for thinking the military was an “apparatus for personal use.” Comparing him to Louis XIV, who infamously declared, “L’état, c’est moi” (“I am the state”), Johnson claimed that Trump “and his acolytes acted as though the Constitution meant whatever he said it meant, and thus, the oath military members took to it was received as fealty to the president (the person) and not the presidency (the office).”

Johnson cited a number of disturbing actions Trump took. One was using soldiers to teargas protesters in Lafayette Square during the George Floyd protests of 2020, which caused Gen. Mark Milley to draft a resignation letter he never sent. Another was him taking classified documents, allegedly including nuclear secrets, down to Mar-a-Lago, leading to a search by the FBI, from which he’s now fundraising off of his cash-strapped supporters.

“These occurrences,” Johnson writes, “bring to the fore a troubling issue usually lurking in the background of civil-military relations: When a president believes his interests supersede the nation’s — or, worse, that his interests become the nation’s — the democratic principle of ‘civilian control of the military’ exposes the armed services to co-option as a partisan tool for domestic politics.”

Trump may run again, even if it’s from jail. But even if he doesn’t, “dangers remain,” writes Johnson. “If our country’s toxic polarization, hyperpartisanship, and intentional stoking of social tensions for political ends are not sufficiently addressed,” he wrote, “we may find ourselves dangerously close to the precipice once more—and if Trump or someone following the Trump model comes to power again, we may well tumble over the edge.”

Perhaps Johnson is referring to a certain governor who punishes corporations that disagree with him and bullies kids.

(Via Bulwark and Raw Story)

It was reported earlier this week that Swizz Beatz and Timbaland are suing Triller for $28 million after the company never paid up for their rap battle show Verzuz. Now Diddy is speaking up to express solidarity with the two rappers.

On a joint Instagram live with So So Def founder Jermaine Dupri, Diddy said, “Since we ain’t f*ckin’ with [Triller] no more, since they’re f*ckin’ around with our boys, we don’t need to be going against each other. Let’s come together and do that Bad Boy-So So Def in Atlanta. It ain’t no Verzuz, it’s just hit-for-hit.”

He added after, “We’re not f*ckin’ with Triller until they take care of Swizz and Tim for Verzuz. Nobody f*cks with Triller until they take care of Tim and Swizz for Verzuz, ’cause Tim and Swizz is Verzuz.”

The suit, filed Tuesday, said that Triller “unequivocally and unconditionally guaranteed to Mosley and Dean the payment and performance of Triller Hold’s obligations under that agreement and related agreements.” Triller allegedly paid them in January and April 2021, but then defaulted on the next required payment.

March of this year marked the two-year anniversary of Verzuz and they celebrated with a documentary. Since its inception, it has held numerous duels between the likes of The Lox, Dipset, Nelly, Ludacris, Keyshia Cole, Ashanti, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, E-40, Too Short, Gucci Mane, Jeezy, and many more.

It’s been almost six months since Russia invaded Ukraine, which has earned the former widespread condemnation (with the notable exception of certain figures on the American far right). Not only has the aggressor nation been hit with sanctions, but companies have pulled out, forcing them to find creative replacements. In June, the country’s many McDonald’s rebranded as a knock-off with almost the same menu. Now the same thing has happened with Starbucks.”

According to CNN, a new coffee chain opened its doors on Friday, with a similar name and a similar logo. It’s called Stars Coffee, and its logo also features a green circle with a female figure at the center. (Starbucks has forbidden them from using the exact same logo.) The chain was launched by Timati, a pro-Kremlin rapper, and Anton Pinskiy, a restauranteur. The slogan, as per The Daily Mail: “bucks is gone, stars stay.”

Because Starbucks has its own resource and production base, Stars Coffee had to find new suppliers. That they did, importing beans from South America and Africa. Other items come from suppliers within the country.

This may all sound very much like “Dumb Starbucks,” the beloved episode of Nathan for You in which Nathan Fielder competes with the coffee giant by opening a similar but different store with almost the same name and logo. But truth, as always, is stranger than fiction.

(Via CNN and The Daily Mail)

Larry June just unveiled his new LP Spaceships On The Blade after building anticipation with singles and videos like “Don’t Check Me” and “Private Valet.” It finally came out yesterday, and now social media is overflowing with appreciation from fans, especially for its suave feeling.

“Larry June be rapping bout drinking apple juice and make that sh*t sound so fly,” one person wrote. Another praised, “Ya’ll wasn’t lying this Larry June really sliding song for song no skips.” Yet another added, “I love Larry June. Man raps about good credit, smoothies, expensive candles, a healthy lifestyle and financial freedom. I’ll take all that good energy on a beat!”

The 20-track album includes features from Herm Lewis, 2 Chainz, Duckwrth, Syd, Babyface Ray, and Curren$y. Spaceships arrives just under five months after June’s collaborative project 2 P’z In A Pod, with Jay Worthy and Lndn Drgs. “That’s really my brother u don’t meet many people in this industry that are solid and genuine like that,” Worthy said in a statement. “We really a team and it’s deeper then than rap with us, it’s family! Larry the only person who truly understood the Lndn Drgs sound. If you notice, Larry June the only other rapper other than myself who receives production from Sean House.”

Q Lazzrus, the enigmatic singer whose songs appeared in multiple iconic Jonathan Demme movies, passed away on July 19 following a short illness. Her death wasn’t reported until a month later. She was 61.

Born Diane Luckey, the singer had one of the great discovery stories. As the tale goes, after struggling to get a record deal during the ‘80s — made worse by racist reactions within the industry to her dreadlocks — she was driving a cab when she happened to pick up acclaimed filmmaker Jonathan Demme. She asked Demme if he was in the music industry. He was, sort of, having made one of the great concert movies. Then she played him a demo of the song “Candle Goes Away.”

Demme was blown away, and he put the song in his 1986 classic Something Wild. A few years later he did the same to “Goodbye Horses,” which prominently featured in a memorable scene from The Silence of the Lambs, where Ted Levine’s serial killer Buffalo Bill applies makeup. For his next movie, Philadelphia, Demme enlisted her to cover the Talking Heads song “Heaven.”

Luckey disappeared in the ‘90s, and rumors floated about what became of her. In 2017, the world finally got an answer. As per Stereogum, a musician hoping to cover “Goodbye Horses” tweeted about trying to locate her — only to get a response from Luckey herself. She said she’d lost interest in singing and was driving a bus in Staten Island.

Luckey is survived by her husband, her son and daughter, and several family members. You can watch the original video for “Goodbye Horses” above, but also make sure to check out the equally haunting demo version.

(Via The Wrap)

This article was first published on 4.20.22.

It seems like only yesterday a millennial was a college kid that baby boomers chided for being entitled and Gen Xers thought were way too sincere and needed to learn how to take a joke. Today, the oldest millennials, those born around 1980, have hit their 40s and have lived long enough to have some serious regrets.

They also have enough experience to take some pride in decisions that, in hindsight, were the right moves.

The good news is that at 40 there is still plenty of time to learn from our successes and failures to set ourselves up for a great second half of life. These lessons are also valuable to the Gen Zers coming up who can avoid the pitfalls of the older generation.

A Reddit user who has since deleted their profile asked millennials nearing 40 “what were your biggest mistakes at this point in life?” and they received more than 2,200 responses. The biggest regrets these millennials have are being flippant about their health and not saving enough money when they were younger.

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They also realized that the carefree days of youth are fleeting and impossible to get back. So they should have spent less time working and more time enjoying themselves. Many also lamented that they should have taken their education more seriously in their 20s so they have more opportunities now.

The responses to this thread are bittersweet. It’s tough hearing people come to grips with their regrets but the realizations are also opportunities to grow. Hopefully, some younger people will read this thread and take the advice to heart.

Here are 21 of the most powerful responses to the question: “Millennials of Reddit now nearing your 40s, what were your biggest mistakes at this point in life?”

1.

“Not taking care of my hearing, not even 35 and going deaf.” — Kusanagi8811

2.

“Not getting healthy earlier.” — zombiearchivist

3.

“Staying too long at a job in my 20s, just because it was safe and easy. When I finally got the motivation to leave, ended up with an almost 50% pay boost.” — Hrekires

4. 

“Thinking that I could and should put myself on the back burner for anything and anyone else.” — lenalilly227

5.

“Smoking and not dealing with my shit the right way.” — Allenrw3

6.

“Pining after the wrong person.” — runikepisteme

7.

“I turned 40 this year and just started liking who I am. Why the fuck did it take 40 years for self acceptance?” — guscallee

8.

“Take care of your fucking back. Lift with your knees. Sure it’s rad when you grab a fridge by yourself and lift it in the back of a moving truck unaided, but one day that shit is going to have consequences that won’t just magically go away by resting and “taking it easy” for a week.” — GuyTallman

9.

“I wish I spent more time with my dad while I had the chance.” — CharlieChooper

10.

“I’m 37. I absolutely could have taken better care of my body, but I’m in relatively good health. I’m starting to realize how important it is to maintain my health. I do also think I drank far too much in my 20 and early 30’s. I’m trying to rectify that now, but it’s hard. So that I guess.” — dartastic

11.

“I’m not sure if people have experienced the same but when I entered my 30s I became convinced I was rapidly running out of time. Rather than using that as motivation I let it paralyze me with indecision because I “couldn’t afford to make the wrong choice.” Consequently, I’m now 39 and, though I’ve had great things happen in my 30s, I regret spending so much time worrying and so little time committing to a course of action.” — tomwaste

12.

“Work to live, don’t live to work. You have half your working life after you turn 40 but only 20-25 years to really live it up before the responsibilities become heavy and your joints start to ache. Live life. Really LIVE it. Experience as much you can. Every sensation, sight, sound, touch. Be open. Be brave. Live your first few decades in the fast lane. You have the rest of your life to take it easy, when you have no choice.” — MrDundee666

13.

“I should have paid more attention to my parents telling me to save money and less attention when they were teaching me about purity culture.” — Arkie_MTB

14.

“If I could tell my 18 year old self one thing, it would be to save 10% of every paycheck I ever got.” — PutAForkInHim

15.

“Thinking that I have time to do everything I want only to find myself loosing time, and the endless energy I used to have in order to purse them.” — ezZiioFTW

16.

“Not wearing sunscreen.” — blueboxreddress

17.

“Not recognizing the importance of work/life balance earlier in life. My late teens, all 20’s, and early 30’s were spent pulling 60-100+hr weeks because I thought it was what was required to succeed. How wrong I was. Others stabbed me in the back and reaped the reward.

1.) Putting work first for too long. Work is my #1 priority during work hours now. After quitting time, I don’t think about it (much) anymore. I don’t vent to my wife or friends about it anymore either.

2.) Investing more into fast cars than solid long-term investments. Sure, it was fun, but I could have made bookoos more had I put that towards less-fun investments.

3.) Not using PTO and just waiting for the payout. All those years, missed. I’m in my mid 30’s and I didn’t actually have a real vacation until 3 years ago.

4.) Not realizing that “the good guy” often loses. Just because you’re morally justified doesn’t mean you’re going to win. Just because there’s a number to call doesn’t mean anyone will actually help you. Just because “law” exists, doesn’t mean people follow it, enforce it, or create justice. The world is dog eat dog and cynicism can be healthy in moderate doses.” — [Deleted]

18.

“When you get out of college, keep your friends. No matter how hard it is. Hold on to them.” — mpssss22

19.

“I imagine these are kinda universal:

• Not getting fit and healthy
• Assuming I’d be offered proper guidance on how to achieve my goals
• Assuming higher education would help me achieve my goals
• Spending far too long caring what people think
• Not taking risks that might better my life when I was younger and had nothing to lose
• Staying in relationships too long after they were clearly done.” — katapultperson

20.

“Always ask for more pay. Starting, yearly, before leaving, whatever. Get that money.” — SensibleReply

21.

“Spending too much time in front of a screen and not enough enjoying life.” — BellaPadella

It has been reported that rapper Quando Rondo was shot in Georgia on Friday night, August 19, while with his friend Lul Pab, who was fatally wounded. Quando is in stable condition, as per VladTV.

Around 11:30 p.m., Quando’s aunt posted Instagram stories updating fans on the situation. “I love everyone but please give my family time to call me,” she wrote. “You guys are clogging my line. We’re fine. Maybe I should reword it, he’s fine. I spoke with him myself.”

She then requested people for privacy, writing, “I know y’all are concerned but please stop calling me!!! Please understand I can’t talk to him [and] not none of the people I need to be talkin’ to for him if y’all keep calling!! I just kept answering because I think y’all him! Please stopppppp.”

In May of last year, the rapper was shot at in a Blackshear, Georgia convenience store parking while with some associates. He was rumored to be involved in the killing of King Von in 2021, with a source telling TMZ that Rondo was taking a nap in a car outside the lounge where the shooting took place. Video of the incident appears to show Von instigating the initial fistfight.

Remember when Will Smith was a goofball? Ever since his fateful Oscars slap, the beloved rapper-turned-actor has been in the doghouse, out of the public eye, off social media, only seen when apologizing. But on Friday, the older Smith was back with a joke about the mess he’s made.

As per The Hollywood Reporter, Smith took to Instagram with a little video of a baby gorilla hesitantly poking a much larger gorilla, only to earn its ire. “Me trying to get back on social,” he wrote over top.

After slapping presenter Chris Rock on live television — then, about 20 minutes later, winning an Oscar — Smith was quiet. At first he offered a measured apology. Then he seemed to drop off the face of the planet. He wound up in India for spiritual purposes, doing yoga and meditation. Some of his upcoming projects were cancelled, though Martin Lawrence later claimed a fourth Bad Boys was still in the offing.

Late last month, he started baby stepping back into the public eye, dropping a longer, more fulsome apology. He said “no part of me that thinks that was the right way to behave in that moment. There’s no part of me that thinks that’s the optimal way to handle a feeling of disrespect or insults.” He also denied that his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, told him to “do something,” that strutting on stage to attack someone who’d made a joke was his idea and his idea only.

Anyway, so begins the Will Smith Comeback Tour, apparently.

(Via THR)

Folks, it’s almost football season. College football is right around the corner, while the NFL is in the midst of its preseason. But in some places, football season is already here. That’s the case down in the great state of Georgia, where Loganville High School and Monroe Area High School on Friday night under the lights.

According to MaxPreps, the game ended with Loganville winning 45-39. But the scoreline doesn’t quite tell the whole story, because as you can see in the box score, Loganville outscored Monroe Area in overtime, 28-22. But even that doesn’t tell the whole story! Here is a tweet that is making its way around of how the game ended in quadruple overtime — just watch it once and then try to figure out what happened after that.

At first glance I straight up wondered if I missed something and the quarterback threw the ball past the line of scrimmage. But then, you realize what happened: The signal caller took the snap, handed the ball to a tight end, and then the big fella — with his back to his offensive line — just hucked the ball over his head. It looked like the defense just kinda stopped playing, while the ball landed softly into the outstretched arms of another tight end.

I still have zero idea how this worked, or where this is in the team’s playbook, or why you would even call it, but hey, Loganville won because of it.

NBA players suiting up and participating in summer pro-ams is nothing new, and this summer, we’ve seen some of the biggest names in the game take the floor at these sort of huge offseason events. LeBron James has even gotten in on the fun, as the Los Angeles Lakers star participated in The Drew League alongside DeMar DeRozan last month and had a monster performance in a win.

On Friday, we learned that James will play in another pro-am before the summer ends, as he’s headed to Seattle to participate in Jamal Crawford’s The CrawsOver. It features an absolutely loaded roster of NBA players, with Paolo Banchero, Tari Eason, Chet Holmgren, Dejounte Murray, and Isaiah Thomas all slated to attend.

But as it turns out, Crawford has one more trick up his sleeve. In the early hours of Saturday morning, Crawford announced that Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum is slated to make his CrawsOver debut alongside James.

Tatum seems like he can’t wait to take the floor in what is suddenly becoming the most star-studded game that we’ve seen this summer.

If Tatum is going to play in the same game as James, click this link to learn how you can watch.