And finally, an unsolicited editorial.

Survivor Birhan.

Your boy Q is balling on a budget (Big up Nappy Roots!)So much so, in fact, that I have given up a few of the nicer things in life, namely cable. (That’s right, I post 56K style son, WHAT?!?! You want an mp3? F’ you, pay me! Use Kazaa Lite like!)

I have become addicted to both Dr. Phil and Oprah. I can’t help it, the run rabbit run antennae ears pick up NBC the best and Harpo and Philly Phill are both on soon as I get home. Dr. Phil won me over. You would think every man would hate to hear his take on things. You just assume he will be on the ladies side, like most dudes in that situation would. (Your man did what? He went to a strip club with his friends? He’s a loser, you don’t need him, yack, yack, yack.)

But every once in a while, he’ll let one of these chicks have it and tell them about there selves. (your selfish, overbearing, mean, and could clean up every once in a while, the man works 50 hours a week! ) Dude is funny, not ha-ha funny, more like (listen to this azz****) funny.

But Oprah runs sh! t hands down. You can’t front on her; her show is pretty tight sometimes. Today on her show she had, among others, Birhan Woldu. You may not recall her name but those of you older than 25 should remember seeing her picture. She was the dying Ethiopian girl whose picture shook up the world and brought attention to the famine and deaths that ripped Ethiopia in 1984.

Millions were disturbed by these pictures and the conditions in the African country, but some were moved to action, one being Sir Bob Geldof. He organized the historical events Live Aid and Band Aid, all for the benefit of cause, a movement, something that actually meant something. Bob didn’t have a background of being a humanitarian. He wasn’t a politician or anything like that. Dude was a singer, who started out as a music journalist like us! Years later, he found himself in a position to take a stand. You got to admire that. It made me think, why don’t we do that? In we, I mean the hip-hop community.

There are more than enough players out here to fund something like a bi-coastal concert with proceed going to AIDS research, or a world tour for Cancer? Lots of heads are beginning to take the high road in this regard, and I think that’s great. But the whole Band Aid/Live Aid thing needs to be remixed for the twenty oh five, with hip-hop leading the charge. That should shut the O’Reilly types up.

Just a thought.