Hip hop music has seen a lot of feuds. Some have been entertaining, others have been tragic. In hip hop, Jay-Z has been involved in feuds and 50 Cent has been involved in feuds. Now, it appears that the two rappers are on a collision course to go at it with each other. Jay-Z has risen to become an icon and 50 Cent hopes to be an icon.

Due to Jay-Z’s rising status, seemingly moving beyond hip hop, 50 Cent has felt the need to challenge the street credibility of the former Def Jam CEO. Every move that Jay-Z has been making for the past few years has been under scrutiny by 50 Cent. Most people say that 50 is jealous of the fact that Jay was the head of Def Jam.

While Jay-Z may have had the power at Def Jam and the title of CEO, 50 Cent said that due to the talent level and the hits coming from his camp, he held just as much influence at Interscope Records. Also, because of the fact that he was behind so many hits, he was making just as much money as Jay. 50 said that he made 50% of every profit from every G-Unit artist.

Still, the G-Unit leader was never the CEO of a label that he did not create. When 50 Cent was a rising rapper, still on the streets, he made a name for himself by dissing popular rappers. At the time, Jay-Z was still known as a rapper for the streets. Because of this, 50 began sending multiple disses to Jay-Z.

Unlike 50 Cent, Jay-Z does not respond to disses directly, he feels that this gives rival rappers a chance to feed off of his star power. As much as Jay-Z ignored 50 Cent, the disses kept coming, so Jay sent one diss to 50 Cent at the 1999 Summer Jam. With that, most people thought that 50 Cent’s rising career was over.

After the Summer Jam diss, 50 Cent began recording his debut album and shifted his disses to Jay-Z’s partner, Ja Rule. At the time, Rule was on the rise to become a star in his own right. The disses between 50 Cent towards Ja and his crew became so personal that 50 Cent was shot multiple times. This led to him being dropped from his label, but also became his motivation.

In 2003, 50 Cent stormed back to become one of rap’s biggest stars. He has maintained the position as one of rap’s biggest stars ever since. At the same time, Jay-Z’s profile has risen higher and higher. Now, 50 Cent and Jay-Z are two of the richest hip hop entertainers. Both rappers own multiple businesses and they have endorsements.

When it comes to popularity and money, Jay-Z and 50 Cent are on top. It is easy to imagine these two rappers being friends. But, if these rappers are enemies, it is almost like a soap opera. The two richest men in town having issues with each other, it could not be drawn up much better than that. Due to the profile of the two rappers, a feud would be a bit disappointing to some, though.

For the past year, 50 Cent has been baiting Jay-Z. Each diss is coming harder than the last. It is clear that 50 Cent’s album is not selling at the rate that he wants it to. Because of that, Jay-Z is unwilling to diss 50 Cent. But, Jay-Z is a very proud man, there is only so much that he can take. With no signs of 50 backing down, Jay-Z may soon unleash a diss on him.

If and when this does happen, a battle between 50 Cent and Jay-Z would be the big one.

Many people have been trying to hail Dwight Howard as the next Shaquille O’Neal. The comparisons are there. Howard has become the most dominant force in the league and he is leading the Orlando Magic. O’Neal was the last big man to do such a thing. There are many comparisons between Howard and O’Neal, but there are some differences.

When Shaquille O’Neal first came into the NBA, he was a scoring threat. Dwight Howard, on the other hand was more of a defensive player. At times, though, Howard is able to score the ball. In the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals, he played very well, offensively. But, most of his damage is done with blocks and rebounds.

In order for Dwight Howard to truly become a force in the NBA, he needs to develop an offensive game. At his peak, not only was Shaquille O’Neal a threat on offense, he was also a diverse scorer with many moves. Howard only has one move and it has become quite predictable. When the two played each other a few weeks ago, O’Neal exposed this.

As the leader of his team, Dwight Howard is going to have to learn how to become the Magic’s first scoring option. He is a great player and he delivers the points when they are needed the most, but he is going to have to score more points if he ever plans on leading this team to a NBA championship. Had Howard been more of a focal point on offense in the NBA Finals, perhaps the Magic would have the title right now.

It is almost as if Tyler Perry can do no wrong. His movies are always box office hits. For four years straight, he has come with multiple films, each one has set records. In 2007, Perry decided to shift some of his focus to weekly sitcoms. The first, “House of Payne,” became a hit, in 2008, only one year after it premiered, it was already in syndication.

After the success of “House of Payne,” Tyler Perry teamed up with TBS for another sitcom. In January 2009, he premiered “Meet the Browns,” which has become another record-breaking hit. Unlike traditional sitcom deals, TBS has ordered multiple episodes of Perry’s work in advance and all he does is film these episodes.

“Meet the Browns” has been guaranteed a 100 episode run. Due to the success that the series brought to the cable network, TBS, it has been confirmed that this series will hit syndication. Perry’s first sitcom, “House of Payne,” hit syndication and has done very well there. TV stations across the nation want to have Tyler Perry sitcoms.

Once the 100^th episode of “Meet the Browns” airs, the series will be hitting the syndication market.

David Paterson is very unpopular within the state of New York. He has been urged by several prominent Democrats to not run in the 2010 New York gubernatorial election. His approval rating is so low that he will most likely lose. After the recent Democratic losses in Virginia and New Jersey, they are not trying to risk a loss in New York.

Despite all of the negative news around him, Governor Paterson is confident that he can do the unthinkable and win in 2010. Not only fellow friends and advisors, but people from President Obama’s team at the White House have pleaded for Paterson to bow out of the race now. They hope that another Democrat can run in his place and keep the seat.

No one knows the challenges that lie ahead of David Paterson better than he does. Right now, he is experiencing record lows. No other politician has had an approval rating as low as his and still managed to win their election. Governor Paterson has said that politics is a bumpy game and there is a long time between now and the 2010 election.

Popular New York City mayor, Rudy Giuliani, has plans of running for governor. He is looking like the most electable Republican candidate. If that is the case, he will most-likely defeat Governor Paterson.

Recently, crime in America has gotten out of hand. There have always been a few murders and kidnappings throughout the year. That has almost become an American custom, but it seems that things have gotten worse during the course of 2009. During his campaign for president, Barack Obama promised a lot, including fighting against crime.

Crime is something that President Obama knows a lot about. After all, he began his political career right in Chicago. For those who do not know, Chicago is one of the crime capitals of America. The city is home to a lot of gangs. Most recently, the city is known as the place were teenager, Derrion Albert, was killed during a gang fight.

Only weeks after the death of Albert, another teen was killed. Because of that, Obama prepared a speech that dealt with crime and how to avoid it. Talking is nice; a great way to ease tensions, but it is time for someone to do something. Past presidents have always promised to take a tough stance on crime, but the crime rate in America has been increasing rapidly each year.

Barack Obama promised to be that reform candidate. A lot of people campaign to become president and they promise a lot of things. Leave it to Barack Obama to be that president to finally take responsibility and try and lower the American crime rate. The sad thing about crime is the fact that most of it is still black-on-black.

At this day and age, why are people still acting so ignorant? The previously mentioned gang war that led to the death of Derrion Albert was between two black gangs. What life was lost?, the life of a promising black young man. Earlier this year, a rapper by the name of Dolla was murdered by a group of black men. Dolla was a rapper on the rise. He could have become a star and built a better life for his family, but he was robbed of that chance.

All crime is bad, especially in a nation that claims to be the greatest in the world. But, as a race that is desperately trying to prove that they are no longer the ignorant slaves, why do they continue to do such ignorant things? While these people are out robbing and killing each other, they could be out working to clean up these communities and trying to come up with new ideas.

The president has someone in place to oversee this fight against crime. Hopefully, a resolution will be reached, soon.

When thinking of longevity in the rap game, people always look at the likes of Jay-Z and Nas. When thinking of legends in the rap game, people always look at Biggie, Tupac, Jay-Z, and Nas. Now, some are trying to put Lil Wayne on that level. But, when asked about Fat Joe, most say that he is just a lame rapper that rides every wave.

Most people do not realize that Fat Joe has been in the game for sixteen years. His first album, Represent, was released three years before Jay-Z’s Reasonable Doubt and one year before B.I.G.’s Ready To Die. He does not receive credit for it, but Fat Joe is also a pretty good lyricist. The only thing that sets him apart from these other rappers is the lack of a notable album.

Unlike all of the other artists mentioned, Fat Joe has yet to release an album that has received overall critical acclaim and he has never released an album that has gone multi-platinum. Jay-Z has done both, Nas has had three critically-acclaimed albums, Biggie’s albums were both multi-platinum success and critically-acclaimed, Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter III sold 3 million copies.

But, Fat Joe has managed to provide hit after hit, unlike any other rapper in the game. His albums never usually sell that many copies, but he usually always has a single in the top fifteen. There has not been another rapper, outside of LL Cool J, to be able to consistently make music over the span of sixteen years and stay relevant.

While Fat Joe has never had an album go more than platinum and he has never had an album receive critical acclaim, he has released multiple albums and has multiple hit singles in his name. His lyrical level may not be on the level of a Jay-Z or Nas, but his reputation is there. Does that not count for something?

In the 2005-2006 collegiate football season, there was not a player that received more hype than Reggie Bush. In the end, he would win the Heisman Award for 2006. There was so much hype around the running back that he was expected to be drafted by the Houston Texans. The team was booed after they drafted for a need, as opposed to drafting a star.

The loss of the Texans seemed to be a gain for the New Orleans Saints. With their second overall pick, they drafted the college star and he had them only one win away from the Super Bowl in his rookie season. For the Saints, the future seemed bright, especially behind their emerging star running back.

However, the next season was not nearly as smooth for Bush and as a result the team did not win as many games. Due to constant injuries, Reggie Bush became known more for his relationship with reality star, Kim Kardashian, as opposed to his ability to play on the football field. The 2008 season was not much better for Bush.

Coming into the 2009 NFL season, some critics were already trying to paint Reggie Bush as a big-name bust. Because of that, Bush came in with a chip on his shoulder. As a response to all of the criticisms, he has turned a corner in his career. Finally healthy, he has become a solid contributor, once again, and the Saints are one of only a few undefeated teams in the NFL.

Reggie Bush may very well rebuild his fan base because of his strong play on the field this season.

For years, BET has been known for crappy programming. In the entire twenty-nine years of the network’s history, it has only shown one scripted original program. BET has been known for a lot of things, but its programming has never brought anything positive. Still, the network has receives some positive acclaim.

Late last year, Tatyana Ali premiered a trailer for her online series, “Buppies.” Initially, she wanted to broadcast the series through a website for the show. Perhaps realizing that she needed an established name behind the program, BET.com picked up the show. Given the history of BET, their website has hardly ever gained any acclaim.

With this one program, which airs on BET.com, not the television network, the perception of the entire network has changed. There is a slight possibility that some of the episodes may air on the regular BET network in the future. Many websites say that the program is so anti-BET, unlike anything that the network has ever done.

After only one airing, the series has changed most people’s opinion of the network. The series was created by Ali and stars the former “Fresh Prince” star in addition. Since this program is close to becoming a hit, maybe BET may begin to pursue more programming of this nature.

Bill Thompson made an ambitious run at the Mayor’s Office in New York City. When the City Comptroller of Brooklyn said that he was running for mayor, many people thought that he was undermanned. Not only was he going against a two-time incumbent billionaire, Mayor Michael Bloomberg was also very popular within the city.

Despite all of the challenges that laid ahead of him, Thompson built a strong campaign to take on the mayor. Initially, support for William Thompson was not very high. Things changed after the people were able to hear him speak of reform within the city. Still, it was expected of Thompson to lose by a landslide.

However, as the election progressed, Bill Thompson began to pose a threat to Mayor Bloomberg. There were some polls that suggested that come Election Day, Thompson may pull the upset. It had been fifteen years of Republican leadership in New York City and the people were ready for a change.

As the day came closer, the race became tight. The race was much tighter than expected and, in the end; Bill Thompson lost a close race to Mayor Bloomberg. The fact that the race was so close has some wondering just how electable Thompson is. Now, rumors of swirling of Thompson running for a higher office in the near future.

Last month, Jamar Pickney, Jr. revealed to his father that he had sexual relations with his three-year-old half sister. It was bad enough that it happened, but it happened right in the father’s Detroit home. The entire situation was disturbing and something had to be done. There is no way he could have gone unpunished for such a horrible act.

After the father, Jamar Pickney, Sr., was informed of what happened, he showed up at the home of his son. With him, he carried a gun. He began to beat his son before leading him outside. Once he got his son outside, he killed him. As he was preparing to kill him, Pickney, Jr. begged for him not to.

An act as horrible as a fifteen-year-old having sex with his three-year-old sister is horrible. While the mother pleaded for the father not to beat his son, he deserved that. But, the fact that he killed him may have been a bit too severe. Not only did he lose his obviously troubled son, he took a human life.

Doing something that horrible warrants a tough punishment, but first Jamar Pickney, Sr. should have sought some professional help for his son. Now, there is a chance that he will spend the rest of his life behind bars. This is a tough situation all of the way around, but for a man to take the life of his own son is too much to handle.