Just when I think there’s nothing YLT could do to make me love them more, they do this 💕 My lil’ gay heart just exploded. THIS is what being an ally looks like!

I should have made note of this during Tom’s previous column – –  April 16, 2007 was the date of the Virginia Tech shooting. A gunman killed 32 on the campus, before taking his own life. Our oldest daughter was a freshman at Tech and was good friends with one of the victims. That awful morning, it was an hour or two before we heard from our daughter, letting us know she was OK. (She hadn’t been in direct danger, thank God, but had been on another part of the campus.) Mrs. Carto and I were terrified. Our daughter has emotional scars that will never completely disappear.

Picture this: 8th grade closeted queer kid living in Southwest Detroit going to an unofficial party organized by a student in a suburban schooll. It’s located in a multi-level building that has been vacant for a few years close to the neighborhood. This is a picture perfect scene of urban blight in Detroit in the 2000s, mind you the city’s mayor was just indicted for some shady stuff.

I didn’t know if I wanted to go even before getting the opportunity to have a very close friend at the time go with me. We decide it would be a great escapism from the rampant homophobia and sexism going around. The constant bashing of a famous gay actor in a very popular Mexican tv show and the constant diatribe against Britney Spears at the time was added too.

At the club: a jubilation of sorts. Teens from different backgrounds and groups together to party and have fun. Was it illegal and wrong? Sure, but I and no one else seemed to care. The music is a constant rotation of club rap/r&b, 90s house and some sprinkle of pop classics too.

That is: until “Give it to Me” is blared onto the speakers. This new sound made everyone euphoric and jump to the stage. I can simply remember the stage not really holding that much space and kids absolutely bunched up together like some jubilating mosh pit. 

Enter Nelly’s verse: to this day I can remember the speed at which I sang the verse while dancing with my friend. Did I dance horribly? Probably, but we were there to have fun and escape the constant issues plaguing my cohort young Millenial crowd (wars, govt incompetence, natural disasters). 

Finally, seeing a same sex kiss, during the song chorus. Between two young males in front of a whole crowd. It was life changing and uniquely broke my barriers on a world outside of my bubble of a neighborhood. No one batted an eye or cared less, they were simply there to party, have a good time and feel like absolute criminals for being in an unofficial party.

To me that was amazing to see, I saw myself as being someone who could be out and proud and no one would give me a leer or uncomfortable nudge. It was to say the least I could be is gay and be okay to live freely in that sense. It truly felt I was living out the song’s meaning. This was a huge aspect of my life that still resonates with me. Anyway, this is a 8/10.

(btw how in the HELL is “Throw Some D’s” a 9 but “Glamorous” a 6? At this point, you can already guess the scores once you start reading, it’s getting stale luv.)

Long time reader, first time poster, long time man with big belly. I have two thoughts

1) the post makes me sad and I’m glad people are calling this out. Now that this backlash has happened, he hopefully will think twice before posting something like this again. That being said, I’m still sad bc the internet is full of stuff like this prioritizing attention over kindness, and I know it will never go away or likely get any better

2) I think some of the responses to the post are missing the point and, to some extent further perpetuating the problem. Calling the guy a fuck and attacking another human you aren’t happy with doesn’t help anything. That’s Jack Whites point in his post- he’s not arguing that Meg White is the best drummer (which he could have done and endlessly has in the past) – he’s arguing that it’s pathetic and sad and wrong that people want to attack others, and it makes him wish he lived during a better time. So why are you attacking this guy you don’t know and calling him names? Why did that guy attack someone online? Why am I posting in a comment section online for the first time in my life? Because we all want or need attention and to register a pulse. There are plenty of ways to get attention – pick one that is kind and doesn’t attack anyone, doesn’t call anyone names, and doesn’t continue the endless negative energy and hate online.

“HEY HEY YOU YOU I DON’T LIKE YOUR PROTEST”

Lessons in Marketing By Avril Lavigne

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Chapter One: Successful Sales in 4 Easy Steps!

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1. Gain Prospect’s Attention: HEY! HEY! YOU! YOU!

2. Identify Problem: “I don’t like your girlfriend.”

3. Establish Need: “I think you need a new one”

4. Recommend Solution: “I could be your girlfriend!”

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Genius!

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No wonder it went to Number One!

Bruce Springsteen spent 50 years larping as this working-class hero and he just got outclassed by a guy who still wears makeup and hairspray well into his 60s.

Messianic figure plans to uproot followers to Texas compound: What could go wrong?

me and a bunch of stupid assholes are going to start a community in the middle of the desert to either die or prove a very important point

— wint (@dril) February 17, 2014

Just an aside here to highlight the brilliance of ‘Keep my ex-husband’s ex-wife’s name out your fucking mouth’

Lewis was my boss at Def Jam. I was his last assistant ever in the music industry before he left it for good. I was a crappy assistant, technically, but I’ll never forget that Lewis told me that he didn’t hire me because he thought I’d be good at answering the phone (I wasn’t) but that he felt like it was his job to hire people cooler than him. I was 22 years old at the time and hearing someone as cool as F like him say that to me, just really meant the world to me. Lewis was so so rad, so passionate, so exciting to be around, made me really believe in the good parts of A&R, made me feel so excited to go to work everyday. I haven’t talked to him since the last day he left Def Jam (and the music industry) for good but I’ve got a giant hole in my heart today because I never got a chance to tell him how positively he affected my self esteem during that formidable time. Rest in Peace Lewis.