Katrina

I am very sad for New Orleans, and for all the communities destroyed by the hurricane. But New Orleans in particular is a painful loss because the city is very special to me. The news coverage has been extensive and predictably racist. When black people steal, it’s looting. When white people steal, it’s because emergency […]

Marrakech

I practiced and practiced for hours every day to prepare for the bellydance showcase at Marrakech. Bellydance has become a major force in my life, and since performing is the natural outcome of all this preparation, it is the one unmissable step. Being a performer for a living doesn’t exactly help me as a dancer. […]

Fred Phelps

Good old Fred Phelps never fails to impress me with the lengths he will go to in order to show how much he hates homosexuals. This time he took his homo-hatin’ congregation to stage a protest at a funeral of two Tennessee soldiers who died in Iraq. Phelps claims that American soldiers are being killed […]

Real Beauty

I love the new Dove ads with the curvy girls in their underwear. They are hottt. I was kind of shocked by them at first, mostly because we never, ever see any images of real looking women in the media, much less unclothed. The way we see ‘normal’ in advertising, movies, and tv is completely […]

He is Sorry

Pat Robertson has now apologized for saying that the US should assassinate Venezuelan President Chavez. At first, he tried to deny ever saying it and blamed the media for taking his remarks out of context. Then he just hunkered down and said he was sorry. I think what happened is the CIA was about to […]

Bullshit Protector

Bill Moyer, 73, wears a “Bullshit Protector” flap over his ear while President George W. Bush addresses the Veterans of Foreign Wars. (AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac) – August 23rd, 2005

Theatre of Stupidity

Pat Robertson says we should just assassinate Venezuela’s President Chavez, calling him a “dangerous enemy” for his leftist views and because he controls enough oil to make Robertson think he could hurt America. I am not sure exactly how we can be hurt by oil, other than the possibility that it would raise our cholesterol […]

Sheherazade

What a stunning spectacle is Suhaila Salimpour’s “Sheherazade.” The show opened last night in NoHo at the El Portal Theater. Everyone with a pulse should go see it. I love a dance show, but this is not your mother’s “Nutcracker.” Sheherazade is an inspired and devastatingly beautiful retelling of the ancient tale, as the audience […]