Tag Archives: Money

Rick Ross Doesn’t Get ‘Thought Process’ Behind Young Jeezy’s ‘B.M.F.’

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

The streets are speculating about Jeezy’s latest track ‘Death B4 Dishonor,’ in Mixtape Daily. By Shaheem Reid Rick Ross Photo: MTV News The O.D.: A Mixtape Daily Exclusive You know we only drop Mixtape Daily twice in one day when it really calls for it; we like to give you this dopeness in doses. Earlier, we brought you the latest on Slick Pulla , and now we’re going to keep it on the topic of CTE. As the 1515 fellas were heading out of the headquarters to begin an early b-day celebration for our very own J-Rod, CTE blasted out the new Young Jeezy record “Death B4 Dishonor” from his new mixtape 1000 Grams (due Thursday at 1:03 p.m.). The Snowman raps over Rick Ross’ instrumental to “B.M.F. (Blowin’ Money Fast),” and a few lines set Twitter on fire: “How you Blowin’ Money Fast?/ You don’t know the crew/ Oh, you part of the fam?/ Sh–, I never knew.” Plenty of people were speculating that Young was throwing not-so-subliminal jabs at Rick Ross, a Def Jam labelmate whom he has collaborated with in the past. We’ll have to catch up with Jeezy and Ross soon to find out what’s really going down, but eyebrows were first raised in late June when Jeezy released the track “B.M.F. (The Real Blowin’ Money Fast).” Young declined to speak about the song. We asked Ross what he thought about Jeezy’s “B.M.F.,” and the Carol City hitmaker said he didn’t understand it, but he wasn’t upset by the track. “I haven’t had a chance to talk to the homie,” Ross said. “I really don’t know what the thought process was behind it. My record was called ‘Blowin’ Money Fast.’ It confused me that if it was called ‘The Real B.M.F.,’ I would have called it ‘The Black Mafia Family.’ … You know, you may have to ask him. Other than that, we still reppin’, we still riding, and [my] record is getting love everywhere. So it’s all good.” What is your take on Jeezy’s new song? Share your thoughts in the comments. For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines . Related Artists Rick Ross (Hip-Hop) Young Jeezy

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‘The Other Guys’: Five Secrets Revealed

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Find out more about the Mark Wahlberg/Will Ferrell comedy, including the reason behind its many TLC quotes. By Eric Ditzian Mark Wahlberg and Will Ferrell in “The Other Guys” Photo: Sony Pictures On Friday, we revealed five secrets about Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg’s buddy cop flick “The Other Guys,” , from the explanation for Paris Hilton’s missing cameo to how they managed to get such a curse-filled movie to be rated PG-13. We got the inside scoop from co-writer/director Adam McKay, who called up MTV News shortly before the film opened and went on to reel in $35.6 million over the weekend . McKay also let slip a bunch of other secrets that were simply too spoilery to publish on Friday (August 9). Now, as “Other Guys” enjoys its place at the top of the box office, we’re pushing forward with five more secrets revealed (of course, beware of spoilers below!) . Why Jackson and Johnson Plunged Off a Roof to Their Deaths This out-of-nowhere game-changer comes about 15 minutes into the movie: the tough-guy cops played by Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne Johnson actually die after they miscalculate a roof jump and land with a crunch on the sidewalk. McKay told us that they entertained a number of funny and unexpected deaths before settling on the failed roof jump. “The first thought we had was that they get a call for a chase, and they pull out to join it, and just get broadsided by a truck that had nothing to do with the chase,” he said. “Then we just played with the idea of a really ignominious death — autoerotic asphyxiation — but we knew there was no way we could get that into a PG-13 movie. Even though it makes me and you laugh, 80 percent of the audience would be flat-out horrified. The one we really liked — and we came close to doing it — was that they were in a shootout and they just got shot. If you have too many shootouts, you’re going to get shot. I think even the forensic guy was like, ‘They were in 90 shootouts. You’re gonna get shot eventually.’ “But the jump was just so much fun,” he continued. “Originally in the script, you didn’t see them hit the ground. But I thought, ‘You gotta shoot that.’ It could be either grisly or fantastic. Once the Foo Fighters’ song got in, we knew we had it. For a second, you think you’re watching the worst filmmaking ever. Are they really playing this song during a fake Hollywood jump? And then they die!” How They Pulled Off The Motion-Capture Bar Scene The film’s most visually stunning scene is one that even James Cameron might applaud. It’s a freeze-frame, continuous-shot bar scene in which Ferrell and Wahlberg are caught mid-action in a series of drunken incidents. The scene honestly defies easy explanation, which is why we waited until now to reveal how McKay captured it. “My DP, Oliver Wood, and I had seen this Phillips short film with cops fighting clowns ,” he explained. “We loved it, but I think that cost $4 million to shoot. At first we were going to do digital camera stills, and I just thought that was boring and we kind of did that already on ‘Talladega Nights.’ Then Oliver said, ‘I think we can do the Phillips thing,’ and in four days we came up with the plan. “We got this motion-capture camera that you program so the camera moves exactly the same every time,” he added. “It was similar to what they did in ‘The Matrix’ with the flying bullets. They weren’t wearing motion-capture suits. I wish I had thought of that. I would have made Will wear one for no reason. We just wrote joke scenarios of a night gone horribly wrong. We went to this bar on the Upper West Side [of Manhattan] and shot it in half a day. We cast stuntmen and women who could hold poses. Our special effects company, Evil Eye, added all these funny elements.” Why Keaton Quotes TLC Michael Keaton plays the NYPD precinct captain who’s always barking orders at Ferrell and Wahlberg. He also has a strange and hilarious habit of quoting TLC lyrics without seemingly having any idea who that group is. It’s a gem of a recurring bit, and it came about entirely by accident. “We were trying to write phrases for the captain that were tough-guy euphemisms,” McKay said. “We had a draft where he said all this crazy stuff and out of that I started to say, ‘Don’t go chasing waterfalls,’ and everyone started laughing. Then we called it back two more times, and then Keaton was doing them so well, we added more.” “We came up with a whole backstory that he drove his son to college and his son played a TLC greatest-hits CD the whole time but the captain was never aware what he was listening to,” he added. “We knew at least 35 percent of the audience would have no idea who TLC is, but we were like, ‘Screw it! It’s too funny!’ ” Why McKay Had Such a Weird Cameo Last week, we revealed why Paris Hilton’s cameo was left on the cutting room floor. Now we turn our attention to McKay’s cameo as a demented homeless man who is the ringleader of a roving gay orgy gang. Yes, it is all as bizarre as it sounds. “We originally had it just as a reference about all the horrible stuff that happens to [Will’s] car [after it gets stolen],” he said. “We did a table re-write and Andrew Steele, the head writer for Funny or Die, came up with this joke that the thieves left a thank you note. That made us laugh, and then we named the thieves Dirty Mike and the Boys. Then we’re like, ‘We’ve got to see them.’ I always like to do something small in our movies, so I was like, ‘All right, it’s me!’ “So we shot this riverside scene and just did thirty minutes of the filthiest improv you’ve ever heard in your life, and had to cut everything except what you see in the movie,” he continued. “But the extended DVD has all the nastiness.” A Sequel Just Might Happen After the collapse of “Anchorman 2” this spring, fans might be wondering if we’ll ever see a sequel from one of the four big-screen collaborations between McKay and Ferrell . McKay revealed that we just might see “The Other Guys 2” down the road. “We had fun shooting this and we talked about it,” he said. “There’s almost a novelty to doing a sequel at this point. The two we were talking about were ‘Step Brothers’ and ‘Other Guys.’ We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. But I would be happy to go back into this world. I never got tired of seeing Will and Mark going back and forth.” Check out everything we’ve got on “The Other Guys.” For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com . Related Videos ‘The Other Guys’ Clips MTV Rough Cut: ‘The Other Guys’

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Slick Pulla Is ‘Focused On The Greenbacks,’ Not Wacka Flocka Flame

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

After dropping his Slicktionary, Atlanta CTE member looks toward the future with Mixtape Daily. By Shaheem Reid Slick Pulla Photo: Black Bill Gates This Week’s Main Pick Street King : Slick Pulla Holding It Down For : CTE/USDA Mixtape : Slicktionary Real Spit : Welcome home to CTE’s own Slick Pulla. The USDA member came home in early January after spending two and half years in jail. He did three months of work release and three months of house arrest with a leg monitor. Now, he can now move more freely for the remainder of his four-year parole. The leg monitor is off and he’s ready to start touring. “It wasn’t no problems with the law,” Slick said in his Atlanta studio. “It was a possession of firearms bid due to certain circumstances. Due to a certain lifestyle, you feel that’s how you got to move. Unfortunately, I already had an ‘F’ on my report card. That’s not how the powers that be felt. I sat down. … When you go in jail, you can do two things: You can come out dumber and go back; or come out smarter and go harder for your family and loved ones. That’s pretty much the gist on that.” Obviously, Pulla is doing the latter. He just recently released his first post-prison work, a mixtape called Slicktionary, hosted by the Black Bill Gates, and is already well into recording the follow-up. Besides his music, Slick has maintained a relatively low profile — that is, except for the reports that his crew and Waka Flocka’s entourage got into a scuffle at ATL clothing epicenter Walters in March. The altercation led to gunshots, but no one was arrested. Pulla refutes talk of his involvement. “Slick’s name was in some sh–. That’s all that was,” he said. As for the “Hard in Da Paint” rapper, Pulla says the only thing on his radar right now is money. “At this present time, I’m focused on the greenbacks, the frog skin,” he said. “I got tunnel vision. I’m in a zone right now. I’m looking straight ahead. All that stuff on the left and right side, I’m not even worried about it.” Slick is looking into acting and the GA OG also just launched “Slick Prints,” his own brand of T-shirts. Joints to Check For: “Black Ice (The Preface).” “The reason I chose the beat is because how I do the music — I don’t know how anybody else does the music — it takes me back to a certain time in my life,” Pulla said. “When [Goodie Mob’s] Still Standing CD came out, I wasn’t even in the music then. I was a fan of the music. Goodie Mob, the whole Dungeon family, they set the blueprint for a lot of what’s going on today. That beat right there [‘Black Ice (Sky High)’], it brought all them times back.” “Hood Rich Freestyle.” “I did the Eminem track [‘Lose Yourself’] ’cause one day I was in the halfway house and I seen the video,” Slick recalled. “It was on ‘106 and Park’ for the ‘Throwback of the Day.’ How the beat climaxed! My homeboy was like, ‘You need to snatch that up.’ ” “On Da Radar.” “That’s just a street anthem,” he explained. “If you a hustler or about your money or whatever you do for a sack, you can relate to it. The hook goes ‘I love money/ Broke ain’t on my radar.’ I love money, I’m trying to get it up.” For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines . Related Videos Mixtape Daily: Slick Pulla Related Artists Slick Pulla

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Special NB Bonus: Notable Quotables that Couldn’t Fit Into the Regular August 9 Edition

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Too much bias, not enough space. Collecting quotes for the latest edition of MRC’s bi-weekly Notable Quotables , I found more outrageous liberal eruptions than could fit into the normal newsletter. So, just for NewsBusters readers, here are a dozen worthy quotes that just couldn’t squeeze into the regular issue: ■ Confusing Tired Liberal Cliches with Economic Strategy “Let’s let the entire slew of Bush tax cuts retire. That would take us back to Clinton-era rates, when the American economy had its strongest growth years in three decades and the budget was balanced for the first time in four decades. If the economy still needs a bit more stimulus, fine, extend unemployment benefits for another year. Give some aid to the states. Those are temporary measures, and the money will get spent. Unemployment benefits work because they go to people who are living from paycheck to paycheck. They spend the money….This massive change actually requires that Congress do nothing. Let the tax cuts expire. A do-nothing Congress will have done something truly important for the country’s future.” — Newsweek international editor Fareed Zakaria hosting CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS , August 1. ■ Fox News: “Whipping Up White Hysteria” “Also for weeks Fox News and its friends have been whipping up white hysteria over allegations that members of the New Black Panther Party, two of them, intimidated voters in Philadelphia two years ago. The Justice Department found insufficient evidence to investigate the case and now all seven Senate Republicans on the U.S. Judiciary committee of the Senate want the Justice Department investigated itself. Is this yet another example of a rightist strategy to stir up racial resentment among whites by portraying whites as victims of black rule in this country?” — MSNBC host Chris Matthews on Hardball , July 27. ■ Ann Hits Joe from the Left: “How Long Can We Pay for This War?” “The House on Tuesday night agreed to fund a surge in Afghanistan — $33 billion for 30,000 additional troops. But, boy, was there some reluctance. We’ve got Democratic Congressman Jim McGovern saying, quote, ‘We’re told we can’t extend unemployment or pay to keep cops on the beat or teachers in the classroom but we’re asked to borrow another $33 billion for nation building in Afghanistan. I think we need to do more nation building here at home.’ How long can we keep paying for this war?” — NBC’s Ann Curry to Vice President Joe Biden on Today , July 29. ■ Don’t Confuse Us MSNBCers With “Journalists With an Agenda” “I am offended the right is using this as a sledgehammer against those of us who don’t practice activist journalism. Journolist was pretty offensive. Those of us who are mainstream journalists got mixed in with journalists with an agenda. Those folks who thought they were improving journalism are destroying the credibility of journalism. This has kept me up nights. I try to be fair. It’s very depressing.” — NBC White House correspondent and MSNBC daytime host Chuck Todd, as quoted by The Politico ’s Roger Simon in a July 28 article . ■ Andrew Breitbart: Just a “Smash-Mouth” “Smear Artist” “Andrew Breitbart was not an unknown. He is a notorious smear artist and practitioner of what’s sometimes called smash-mouth politics. And they [the Obama White House] should’ve realized that any kind of allegation that he made needed to be checked out very carefully before anybody acted upon it.” — Newsweek ’s Jonathan Alter on NPR’s All Things Considered , July 21. ■ Democratic Corruption or Ethics Committee Racism? “Are the ethics police on the Hill color-blind? If so, just how do you explain what’s happening to the Congressional Black Caucus? The latest on the [Charles] Rangel and Maxine Waters investigations….” “Coming up here, are black lawmakers being singled out by the ethics watchdogs on Capitol Hill? New charges of racial bias….” — NBC correspondent Andrea Mitchell teasing an upcoming segment on her 1pm ET MSNBC A ndrea Mitchell Reports , August 2. “Some are openly questioning why two high profile African-American House members are coming under such tough scrutiny…..[to Al Sharpton] Do you think that black members are being targeted unfairly by the ethics committee?” — CNN anchor Don Lemon on the 6pm ET Newsroom , August 1. ■ “One Brave Soldier” vs. Obama’s Nazi-esque “War Machine” Host Larry King: “What’s your reaction to the WikiLeaks, the Afghan War documents?” Left-wing filmmaker Michael Moore: “I think that we have this war machine that was built on a lie a number of years ago — incredible lies — that have cost thousands of lives, billions of dollars. And one brave soldier by the name of Bradley Manning decided that the truth had to be told. And he said that he was willing to do it regardless of the consequences — and he essentially followed the Nuremberg principles which is when you see something going on like this, when you see war crimes being committed, when you see lies being told in order to bring a country to war, you have to speak out against it. You can’t just line up and be a good German and do what you’re told to do.” — Exchange on CNN’s Larry King Live , July 27. ■ CNN Host Slams Fox as “Not a News Organization” Host Rick Sanchez: “Well, I understand the Associated Press. I even understand Bloomberg, but don’t have you to be a news organization to get that seat?” White House correspondent Ed Henry: “Oh! Are you saying Fox is not a news organization?” Sanchez: “Yeah. I’m just wondering.” — CNN’s Rick’s List , August 2, discussing the White House Correspondents Association decision to move the Fox News correspondent to the front row of the White House briefing room. ■ Crazy Beck vs. Limbaugh the Faker   “I sort of dig on Glenn Beck. He reminds me of certain people you encounter in big cities. You know, the ones wearing robes, sandals, and signs proclaiming that the world is going to end because American men are eating too much red meat and American women are wearing their pants too tight. He’s crazy but — like those urban nutcakes — he actually seems to believe what he’s saying I can get behind that. Rush Limbaugh, on the other hand, gives me the creeps. He sounds saner than Beck (well, marginally), but there’s absolutely no conviction in that sonorous, slightly flabby voice….He says what his listeners want to hear, but when it comes to actual convictions, I’m always reminded of what Gertrude Stein said about her hometown of Oakland: ‘There isn’t any there there.’” — Novelist Stephen King in his “The Pop of King” column in the August 6 issue of Entertainment Weekly . ■ Expecting “Tough” and “Real” Questions from The View “I would be willing to bet you that he [President Obama] might get tougher questions asked of him on The View than he would at a White House press conference….More real. More where we live….They ask pertinent questions. But I think the questions that will be asked of him on The View might resonate more with the way people live in this country.” — MSNBC contributor Mike Barnicle on Morning Joe , July 27. vs . Co-host Joy Behar: “Do you know that Lindsey Lohan is in jail?…Does Mel Gibson need anger management?…Should Snooki run as mayor of Wasilla?” Co-host Sherri Shepherd: “Mr. President, do you Tweet?”… Co-host Whoopi Goldberg: “What’s the first couple of songs on your iPod?”… Co-host Barbara Walters: “Were you invited to Chelsea Clinton’s wedding?” — Actual questions posed to Obama on The View , July 29. To see which quotes made the August 9 edition, click here .

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Elizabeth Hurley’s Awesome Bikini Cleavage

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

If any of you were wondering if Elizabeth Hurley’s hotness has suffered now that she’s a mom and has virtually disappeared from the spotlight, I’m here to tell you that it hasn’t. Here she is on her billionaire’s yacht in a little bikini showing off some awesome mom cleavage. She’s got to be one of the hottest MILF ’s around, and we normally only see her at fancy dress parties these days so it’s nice to get a look at her body in something other than an evening gown. I’ve always wanted to motorboat on an expensive yacht. Call me.

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Open Thread: You Thought the Bailouts Were Over?

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Victor Davis Hanson and Kyle Smith explore two upcoming bailouts, one directed at state governments – and therefore at the public employee unions whose lavish contracts threaten to bankrupt a number of state treasuries – and the other at homeowners who can’t afford their mortgages. “What did you expect?” asks Hanson . Progressive culture, where ads blare hourly about skipping out on credit card debt, shorting the IRS, and walking away from mortgages, did the public employee unions really think they were exempt from a Chrysler-like renegotiation? In the age of Obama, there is no real contractual obligation: everything from paying back bondholders to fixing a BP penalty is, well, “negotiable.” When the money runs out, the law will too. Law? There is no law other than a mandated equality of result. “That’s right,”  Smith notes : If you bet badly in the housing-market casino of the Aughties, the government is thinking of refunding some of your chips so you can play again. You may have heard something about a sub-prime real-estate bubble that popped and nearly took down the financial system with it? President Obama wants to double down. Are we starting (continuing) to see a pattern here? 

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Nicki Minaj Reveals Childhood Crush On Bruce Willis

Posted on August 8, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Young Money diva gushes over her ‘Your Love’ shout-out to MTV News at Teen Choice Awards. By Mawuse Ziegbe, with reporting by Kara Warner Nicki Minaj attends the 2010 Teen Choice Awards Photo: MTV News Nicki Minaj ‘s “Your Love” has been a breakout summer smash, so, music fans are familiar with the line “For your lovin’, I’mma Die Hard like Bruce Willis.” Since the song has topped the charts, it was only a matter of time before Willis got wind of the shout-out. “I can’t get enough songs on the radio that have my name in it,” Willis told MTV News in July. “It’s always an honor. I love that song. I don’t understand it, but I can understand my name.”

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Open Thread: Michelle O’s Lavish Taxpayer Funded Vacation During Recession

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

For general discussion and debate. Possible talking point: the First Lady is  spending beaucoup bucks on lavish vacations while the country is mired in what her husband calls the worst economic slowdown since the Great Depression! Michelle Obama today faced a fresh wave of attacks over her lavish break in Spain with 40 friends, which could easily cost U.S. taxpayers a staggering £50,000 a day. The First Lady has been lambasted for her extravagance at a time when the economy is still struggling. One blogger went so far as to brand her a modern-day Marie Antoinette. And her critics will be further annoyed when they learn that the president’s wife had a Spanish beach closed off today so that she, her daughter and their entourage could go for a swim. Thoughts? 

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CNN Features Disabled Iraq War Hero Selflessly Assisting Other Injured Veterans

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

A lot has been said over the years about how our media ignore heroes returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. On Friday, CNN aired an absolutely fabulous piece about Dale Beatty. “In 2004, at the age of 26, Dale’s vehicle hit a land mine in northern Iraq and at that moment, Dale’s life was about to change forever,” said Kyra Phillips on “CNN Newsroom.” “I met Dale when we were partnered together in the Fisher House Golf Tournament. Fisher House provides free lodging for military families receiving treatment for war injuries,” she continued. “And it was then that Dale told me about his charity, Purple Heart Homes. Vets helping vets from every war, from building awareness to building ramps.” Try to watch the following fabulous story without shedding a tear (videos follow with transcript and commentary): KYRA PHILLIPS, ANCHOR: August 7th, 1782, George Washington established the Purple Heart, a badge of military merit declaring, quote, “Let it be known that he who wears the military order of the Purple Heart has given of his blood in the defense of his homeland and shall forever be revered by his fellow countryman.” Now I’d like to introduce you to one such man who not only wears that Purple Heart badge of honor, but Sergeant Dale Beatty lives it. In 2004, at the age of 26, Dale’s vehicle hit a land mine in northern Iraq and at that moment, Dale’s life was about to change forever. I met Dale when we were partnered together in the Fisher House Golf Tournament. Fisher House provides free lodging for military families receiving treatment for war injuries. And it was then that Dale told me about his charity, Purple Heart Homes. Vets helping vets from every war, from building awareness to building ramps. CNN photojournalist Jay McMichaels shows us how Dale Beatty is “Making His Mark.” (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) DALE BEATTY, U.S. ARMY VETERAN & CEO OF PURPLE HEART HOMES: I’m Staff Sergeant Dale Beatty, retired from North Carolina. Playing drums in my band today, Southern Fried. Hopefully we’re going to rock these other bands off the stage. (MUSIC PLAYING) BEATTY: A big part of getting back to living is doing therapy. I had to start playing drums again because I had done that before. (MUSIC PLAYING) BEATTY: Purple Heart Homes is a 501(c)(3) public charity founded by John (INAUDIBLE) and myself. We are 100 percent veteran owned and operated. We’re both combat wounded veterans. Today, we’re out here for a Vietnam veteran, Kevin Smith, who is looking at some decreased mobility in the near future due to injuries received in the line of duty. KEVIN SMITH, VIETNAM VETERAN: I have had 14 surgeries on my right knee with three total knee replacements. I have had eight operations on my elbow with two total elbow replacements. I have had three back operations with steel plates and rods put in my back. BEATTY: And what we’re doing here is building him an accessible ramp and a nice deck where he can get into his house. Coming down from his driveway, he has steps with no handrails, and he’s looking at probably being in a wheelchair very soon. SMITH: I mean, it’s difficult for me to even do yard work. PAUL COCKERHAM, U.S. MARINE VETERAN: When I heard about the project, I asked if anybody had volunteered for the landscaping. The answer was no, so I volunteered. I believe in the mission of Purple Heart Homes, and I just wanted to be a part of it. I’m hoping Purple Heart Homes can gain a foothold and spring good to the wounded veterans. BEATTY: This is probably about I’d say 60 hours of volunteer labor to get us to this point. Why don’t I make it rough on you, give you that one. BEATTY: This will be done today or tomorrow and hopefully we can move inside Mr. Smith’s house where he has even greater need for accessibility with his bathroom. This is my office right here. Steve Jobs would like that, wouldn’t he? But most of our calls are really not veterans looking for something to be done for them but veterans that want to say, “Hey, I want to contribute my time or effort or my business specialty to what you guys are doing.” SMITH: Dale Beatty is a true hero, and to see the sacrifices that he’s made for our country and then turn around and say thank you and to help other people that are not as fortunate as some, it’s overwhelming. (MUSIC PLAYING) (END VIDEOTAPE) PHILLIPS: Now, Dale Beatty joins us live from Charlotte, North Carolina. Good to see you, Dale. BEATTY: Good to see you, Kyra. PHILLIPS: Let’s talk a little about – before we talk a little bit about your organization — your connection to these Korean vets, these Vietnam vets — because when we first met, you talked more about them, and then you talked a lot about the guys in Iraq and the guys coming back from Afghanistan. What is it about the connection you have with these guys? What brings you and these guys together from — because you’re from totally different wars, totally different generations? BEATTY: Well, first of all, it’s really a strong relationship with the military and my family. I have Korean, Vietnam, World War II veterans in my family, and even some from world war I and before. So, it’s really important to me that my children respect that generation of veterans, and we call them the Greatest Generation, World War II. So, it’s just important for me. It’s what our country has been established on. It’s the people who went overseas and fought and came back and built this country to what it is today. PHILLIPS: And can I ask you what you’ve learned from those family members and what you’ve learned from those older vets so when you went over to Iraq, did you remember what they had taught you, told you? What stuck in your heart and your mind as a young soldier? BEATTY: Really as a young soldier I didn’t think about those older guys until I actually went to war. And dealing with what I had to deal with, I look back to what my grandfather dealt with in World War II, and some of the things he told me we never even came close to the hardship he endured. So I guess, really, some of the stories he told me when my guys would start whining in Iraq, I’d say, “Look, my grandpa was gone for four years and he never came home, and here we have Internet. We have nothing to complain about.” That’s the main thing I learned is not to complain. From those guys. PHILLIPS: That’s what’s interesting. I mean, you lost both your legs when that land mine hit your vehicle. Yet you say you have no reason to complain. BEATTY: Well, there’s always somebody worse, and even from the people getting hurt like this for hundreds of years, defending for the same values, defending the freedoms of this nation. You know, here on American soil and overseas. So, it’s a no-brainer. PHILLIPS: Tell me what you need, because we want to get the word out right now about Purple Heart Homes, and we’re going to put up the web site Purple Heart Homes North Carolina. It’s phhnc.org. Tell me what you need. I know you need financial support to keep this going. Do you need volunteers? And also, as we do ask for people to contribute and help build your fund, we saw what you were doing for one Vietnam vet, building that handicapped ramp so he can get in and out ever his house easily and get around his house easily. But tell us what this money will go towards and why you need more support, Dale. BEATTY: Well, we need more support because we’re just — I believe we just really scratched the surface with what the project you saw with Kevin Smith. We have eight more candidates, and not all of them are meeting our criteria for us to help them. So, really if people want to contribute to us in general they can go to our Web site and make a donation. That would be great. Or they can e-mail us if they’re local here and tell us how they want to support, be it through their business that they have or just volunteer labor. That’s really what we need. And also really I want for people — what I need from people is to really think about how much the private sector can do for these veterans who are still out there from Vietnam. The government can’t do everything, and that’s why we created Purple Heart Homes because the private sector and the local communities can take better care of people that are next door and in their own backyards than somebody from 600 miles away. PHILLIPS: Amen. BEATTY: So, we really need people to step up and even if they’re not helping Purple Heart Homes, go shake a veteran’s hand and tell them thank you. PHILLIPS: Well, I tell you what. It was always an honor to shake your hand, not just because you beat me on the golf course, and I was very impressed but you’re a remarkable human being, Dale. BEATTY: Thanks, Kyra. PHILLIPS: Also Southern Pride (sic), your band, maybe somebody — a record producer will spot you guys out and you can cut a CD and put that money toward the organization. BEATTY: And that would be great, too. PHILLIPS: That would be a double whammy. You’re a heck of a drummer. Dale Beatty, great to see you. Have a fabulous weekend. BEATTY: Thank you, Kyra. You too. How marvelous. Brava Kyra, bravo Jay, and God bless you Dale Beatty. 

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CNN Features Disabled Iraq War Hero Selflessly Assisting Other Injured Veterans

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Liberal Talk Show Host Thom Hartmann Says It’s Time for Gay ‘Reparations’

Posted on August 6, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

It’s one thing to have liberal guilt, but this is taking it way too far.  In a video posted to YouTube on Aug. 5 , popular liberal talk host Thom Hartmann, identified what he considered was the appropriate way to cope with this guilt type, specifically that of which came with the issue of LGBT rights. Hartmann hails himself as “the 10th most important talk show host in America, and the No. 1 most important progressive host, in their ‘Heavy Hundred’ ranking” according to Talkers Magazine . Hartmann laid out the reasoning chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker used in an Aug. 4 ruling that overturn California’s Proposition 8 gay marriage ban, a ballot initiative approved by over 7 million voters in 2008 . Then he added his own unique solution. “Well yesterday, Judge Vaughn Walker, the chief judge of the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, ruled that California’s Proposition 8, which said that it was illegal for gays to get married in that state, was unconstitutional,” Hartmann said. “He said that he based his ruling, although the right-wing is all over him for being gay himself – he said he based his ruling on the preponderance of scientific evidence that was presented to him in court, which indicated that the children of families of gay couples grew up every bit as normal, and in fact in some studies more normal and healthy, psychologically healthy, as the children of straight families and that gay couples and their relationships are every bit as psychologically, and socially, and economically significant and legitimate as are straight couples.” Hartmann, with his psychological expertise in hand, alluded to the reasoning in Walker’s ruling, added that the only basis for such a ban, despite the approval of those people, were “moral and religious views.” “He said that the evidence conclusively shows that moral and religious views form the only basis for the belief that same-sex couples are different from opposite-sex couples,” Hartmann said. “Very, very interesting.” To rectify this situation – Hartmann made the incredible call for reparations, singling out the Mormon Church to pay for gay weddings in the California for the next years. “You know, I – gay people in this country have a long history of discrimination, of hatred, of murder,” he continued. “Matthew Shepard, you know – tortured, dragged, dragged you know dragged at the end of a truck, tied to a fence post left to die in the desert sun for example. I think that we should have reparations for gays. I think that the Mormon Church, which contributed a large chunk, maybe as much half of the money or maybe members of the Mormon church, as much as half of the money from out-of-state to fund Prop 8 for the next 10 years should have to pay for every gay wedding in the state of California.” The next step of this case is for it to be heard by the left-leaning Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and then would likely be heard by the Supreme Court to determine whether it violates the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of “equal protection” and “due process.”

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Liberal Talk Show Host Thom Hartmann Says It’s Time for Gay ‘Reparations’

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