I can't take the double standard anymore! The Paula Deen fallout.

 Here's my post on Huffington posts' "Black Voices". I'm sure some people will see it as racist and to those people I say, dig down. Dig down and seek the truth. I'm a white straight male, so I'm seen as a racist right out of the gate by a lot of people. I've been assaulted by blacks when I was a child visiting relatives in New York, all because I walked into the wrong neighborhood with my cousin. I've been told "Cracker, we gonna rob you" while delivering pizza.  In the same neighborhood as the cracker remark, I had a group of black thugs beat my car with a pipe or something right after I had delivered a pizza and then jumped in my car. Had I not made it in the vehicle, I may not be here right now. The cops told me, "We'll never catch them", so I had to pay the deductible on $1500 damage they did to my car.

 I was at a comedy club and the comedian headlining was a friend of mine who happened to be black. He asked me to hang out and watch his show for the urban crowd, after I had done my show for the mainstream crowd. It was a midnight show he was doing, the crowd was all black, except for me. I stood in the back to watch him, as he had invited me to and just because of my skin color I was called all kinds of names.

 All this and I can't stand the 'N" word. My mother raised us not to use it. It sucks when anyone of any color says it, with the "er" or the 'a" it does not matter! Here's my post!

If a white person uses the "N" word they loose their job. If a black rapper says the "N" his CD sales skyrocket, this is a new kind of racism, selective racism. We will be done with racism only when this double standard does not exist anymore. To say to one race of people that there are certain words you can't say that another race can say is childish!  The same thing to happen to anyone who uses the "N" word, whether it end in "er" or 'a", no matter what their skin color. The people who act like what the definition of the "N" word is are the reason it still exists and has power. Get rid of them and you solve a big part of the problem. Get people who have been on welfare for generations off of it, quit having kids out of wedlock and raise the children you have correctly so they can be decent citizens instead of pieces of garbage!

The NSA: Nosy Snooping Administration

Another post I did for Will Roberts' Weekly Telegram. Will also interviewed me on this same subject on his weekly podcast.  

 There are a lot of great authors who would die or die again if they suddenly came to life and listened to what is going on with the NSA. George Orwell would swear that this government agency was using his book "1984" as a guide rather than as a warning. The same with Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World".  "Big Brother" is watching where you call on Verizon and using the threat of terrorism to do it. Just plain old common sense should tell people this is very bad. If I have learned anything in my short time on earth, it's that when you allow a government to spy on its citizens; democracy is threatened.

The President said that this cell phone surveillance was only used to see "where" the phone calls were made and not to listen in on conversations. That will be the next step. They already lied to us last year and said that this could not be done without a warrant and this activity was not going on anyway. Do you think they served Verizon with a warrant on all of its phones in the meantime?

 

This stems from The Patriot Act and shows that government overreach knows no party lines. This is not an ideology thing, it's a right to privacy thing. Politicians from both sides are defending and condemning this. Who ever defends this automatically loses my vote. There's even disagreement on whether this has foiled any terror plots. I've heard it's stopped two plots, dozens of plots and zero plots. What about the attacks it has not stopped? How long has this been going on anyway? What's next, we find out the government has been listening to certain phone calls based on "buzz" words or phrases? Average citizens finding themselves being questioned because they strung the wrong words together in a simple conversation?

I was a little frightened to hear the President say "You can't have 100% security and 100% privacy", I'm paraphrasing, but you get the point. I don't care who's in the White House, a blanket statement like that can be used to explain away a lot of government prodding. This has to be cut off at the knees, because it will not stop here.

 

You know what's more powerful than money, celebrity, the military, social status and ability? Information. With the right information you can control all the aspects of life you want. There's such a thing as too much information and control over that information. Once again, if you think this will stop with looking at where the calls are going, when, how many times, etc, you're a fool and I think fools should loose their right to vote. Fools will vote themselves out of freedom every time in the name of being safe and secure.

I think I'm going to pull out my Verizon contract and see if I waved my right to privacy when I signed up. I don't remember the "And with this 2 year agreement you are allowing the NSA to monitor when, where and how many times you call certain countries, cities, geographical locations, etc" paragraph. I must have skipped that part of the fine print.

Brian T Shirley

The IRS: Irrelevant Redistribution Service

 

 

 Let me start this post by informing any U.S. Government employee reading this that I'm not a member of the Tea Party and I believe 100% in everything the Obama administration says and does. There, now that I've covered my rear, on to my right to free speech, supposedly.

 

 When a Government agency that is as powerful as the IRS gets that " Do as we say and not as we do!" fever, it's time for that entity to be gutted or done away with completely. Officials from the IRS were asked to produce receipts for expenditures on conferences, Star Trek videos and other assorted important government work and could not do it. The IRS official said he was "embarrassed" and sulked away. Could an average or non average U.S. citizen get away with this if found being asked to produce evidence or records to the IRS? I'm sorry Mr. Official, I can't find any of the receipts for what you're asking , I'm embarrassed. Can I go now? Yeah, right. All the new revelations about what's been going on with this agency has the people who wanted said organization gone, now seeing purple. People who had little trust in the IRS now have none.

 

 I thought the goal or job of the IRS was to gather people's taxes so the money could be redistributed to different government programs and eventually back to the public on the form of government services. You know, public schools, libraries, the military and unwed mothers who are to tired to work. Now, it seems, they grant or don't grant certain tax status to groups of people according to their political leanings. Then they redistribute the taxes they have gathered, first, to themselves in the form of lavish parties and idiotic videos. all the while putting the screws to folks who work their tails off. Oh, by the way, this is the government agency that will be in charge of implementing The Affordable Health care act, yet, Obama Care has nothing to do with raising your taxes. Do you smell something? What are they redistributing now?

 

 No matter what political persuasion you are, if you can't see this is government at it's worst then you're just a hack without reason. The tax code needs to be simplified, that's just common sense. The size and scope of this agency must be reduced, not increased. Finally, we need, as a country, to take a good look at some of the things our taxes pay for and just cut some of them out. Let's get the money and programs to folks who truly need it. Even Robin Hood himself would take a look at this situation and say "Time to go Little John, we're out of here!".

An article for GigMama

I've been creating a profile with an agency out of New York called "GigMama" and she sent me 9 questions to answer as a way of promoting me and GigMama at the same time. It is now up on their site, so I'm posting it here as well. It gives some insight into how I feel things should be done regarding LIVE comedy shows and some more of my background as well. Enjoy and comments welcome.


Comedian/Philosopher Brian T Shirley has been in the Business for nearly 20 years.  His act is derived from growing up poor, coming from a broken home, his military experience, partying, women, pets, infomercial’s, sports, and much,much,more.  He has performed all over the U.S., Canada and The Bahamas.  He has done special events such as opening for Huey Lewis and The News, the Laughter for Love benefit for Va. Tech, The  Second Annual Charleston Comedy festival and a Country music festival for Dodge trucks just to name a few. Brian has performed at The Jokers Wild Comedy Club located inside the Atlantis Resort and Casino on Paradise Island in The Bahamas. He has spread his comedy across the ocean performing for Carnival Cruise Lines.

How about I just let Brian tell you in his own words?
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How did Brian T Shirley come to be?  Basically, your origin as a performer.    I started writing comedy as a kid. I wrote skits, jokes and silly sayings. I also wrote for my high school newspaper and had my own column as a fictional character I created. I acted in plays as well. In the USAF I was tapped to help write and perform the comedic entertainment at several squadron functions. When I got out of the military I joined a workshop for stand-up comedy at a local comedy club and I was also part of an Improv group made up of several of the comedians from the workshop. The workshop helped me in my early development as a comedian and the Improv help me improve as a performer.

How long have you been doing it.    I have been writing comedy almost all my life. I’ve been a performer since my mid-teens. I’ve been a professional comedian for 20 years, I’ve got 3 published books, the first in 2009 and I’ve been a Radio Show Host for nearly a year. I do feel I have a lot more than a year of experience in radio as I have been interviewed hundreds of times, including radio,TV,newspaper and on the Internet.

What kind of services do you offer?  I mean I know what you do but could you give us a range of where you perform and what kind of events hire you?    I have worked in Comedy Clubs, Country Clubs,Cruise Ships,Resorts ( The Atlantis,Bahamas, Snowshoe,West VA.), Music Venues (House Of Blues),Corporate Functions, TV and Radio. I can perform G,PG,or R rated shows. I can also write a show to fit a certain crowd for a corporate function if I’m given names and information on employees and managers before the event. Because of my background in Improv, I can go into an audience and pull material from there if needed or I can stick to a script as a Master of Ceremonies.

What should a client look for when hiring a comedian?    That depends on the audience they plan on entertaining. Once they fully know what their needs are they can choose a comic to fill them. They also want a comedian with experience in different venues so he can pull from those experiences to bound with the audience, make changes in his show when needed and remain professional at all times. They need someone versatile who can read an audience, especially when it’s a corporate client.

What are some things you look for in a client?     I want all the information on the gig from them I can get. That means, what kind of show do they want, clean, adult or a mixture of both? What will the people be expecting and what’s the audience like? I want a decent stage to perform on if possible with proper lighting. A good sound system is a must, is they don’t have one or are not sure about theirs I can provide one for a modest fee. I have used my system for crowds of 300 or more, so I know it works. I also like to have the audience seated from the front of the stage first, then grouped together and not spread out. Also, if I’m the only comedian, someone to get the crowds attention and bring me onstage. It may sound like a lot, but I believe if a client wants a successful show, they need to treat it a certain way for it to work.

How do handle a situation with an unresponsive audience?     That’s when my Improv skills come into play. I will talk with them, get a dialog going and work material in as I feel necessary. I’ve done whole shows with just playing with the audience. I don’t recommend it to everyone, but it’s a nice skill to have when you pull it off. Those have been some of my best shows.

What’s the best part of your job? the worst?     That’s easy, good shows and bad shows, that’s why we do it right? For the feedback, the “do they think I’m funny” factor. I also like talking with the people after the show (the good shows) and looking them in the eye. It’s very rewarding when someone tells you that you made their night or that they really needed a good laugh. That’s why I’m doing it. The worst part can be the “Hell Gigs” and those are not always the small town one-nighters, I’ve had those Country Club gig that I wanted to run off stage and drive straight home. In a nutshell, the worst part is people that don’t have a sense of humor. I’m convinced, after 20 years of be a pro comedian, there are some people who should never enter a comedy show, but that’s a very,very small percentage of mankind,thank God! I think the good vastly outweighs the bad.
What would you say to someone interested in doing that you’re doing?     I don’t want to sound mean, but if someone want to do this and their first question is ” How much money do you make?”, I would tell them to do something else. You have to LOVE doing this for no pay for a long time before you even see a paycheck, it’s an art,not a job. Once they get beyond that and still want to do it, I tell them to write constantly. Write your own stuff, create your own voice and the only way to find that voice is to get onstage as much as possible. I still house MC sometimes when I’m not on the road to work out new material.  It’s great, I get paid to practice, but it took me many years to get to that point. Also there are a lot of books about stand-up put there, grab one and study it. I’ve interviewed authors of best selling books about comedy so I won’t say which one to buy here, but people can email me for the info.
What’s your favorite story about an event at which you entertained?     Funny you should ask. I just put a video up on you tube, my website, The BTS Radio Show FB page and several other sites called “My Perfect Hall Gig”. It’s a short story from my third book called “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Club” in which I relate the tale of woe from a gig I did in my home state of GA. I worked the stories from my book out onstage and now I incorporate them into the show. This one has got a lot of attention, as well as the three stories about my friend Dave Ugly (Stage name). I have to plead the 5th, I have several favorites and most of are in my 3rd book. Here’s a quick version of one not in the book.

I was doing a show in FLA. and I knew the band that played onstage right after my show.One night we were hanging out and they asked if I wanted to come up and join them onstage the next night and sing a song. I told them I would, but that I was having trouble with my sleep and my doctor had prescribed me some medication that I have to take after my show. Once I take the pills, I only have about 45 minutes until I pass out, I told them. They said that was cool and we decided I would sing ‘We’re an American Band” by Grand Funk Railroad. The next night, I got offstage took my medication and went back to the club. I was standing back stage when I heard the lead singer say ” Alright, we have a special treat for you as your comedian from earlier tonight will come and join us for a song. We have to do the song now because he had to take some pills and he’ll be going to sleep soon, so here he is Brian T Shirley!!”.  I remember thinking “Why the hell did she tell them that? I’m glad I didn’t tell her about my rash!”

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Everyone loves to laugh and even people that don’t love to laugh will laugh at Brian T Shirley.   You can find Brian on gigmama.com at
http://www.gigmama.com/comedians/brian-t-shirley
 Remember, Mama wants you to find the perfect entertainment for your perfect event so please stop on by www.gigmama.com and find your event entertainment.
Big Hugs,
Mama

Stuck in the middle!

 Will Roberts, known as America's foremost Will Roger's tribute artist, among other great accomplishments, gave me a call after I had sent him a testy email. I had listened to one of his pod casts that had got me steamed enough to respond to him personally.  I had interviewed Will in the past and spoke with him a few times through emails and a phone call or two and felt I could unload a little on him and keep it professional. His call about 20 minutes after my email did alarm me a little and when I found out who it was on the other end, I did tense up a bit. Not only was Will not upset at my critical email, he invited me to send him a post once a week for his "Weekly  Telegram". Damn near blew my mind, here's my first post.

 Is there anyone down the center politically anymore?

From what I hear coming out of Washington DC , all forms of news media and the golden voices of our precious celebrities is you on one side or the other. This leaves little ground for common sense, which exists in the middle. You can't call yourself open minded while you insult, denigrate and put labels on people who don't agree with your point of view.

Common sense left that side of the fence a long time ago. Conversely, you can't block every piece of legislation that comes up just because your guy is not the President and say you're acting in a bipartisan way.

Once again C.S. (Common Sense) says "See ya later Sammy!". Where is C.S. to go?

The middle has become such a thin line, from all we hear from the above mentioned sources, C.S. must have to balance in his/hers tippy toes.

I think it's perception myself. It's what all those folks with mouths open spouting their point of view from deep in the safety of their ideological confines want us who work and live in the day to day "Real" world to believe.

There's two sides and you pick one or you're worthless, they both seem to shout. I've been on both sides and swing back and forth on the issues some times. Now folks can call me a fence sitter, but there's some yard left between the two big fences if you jump off and look.

I will not be labeled by either side anymore. Just because I don't believe in gay marriage, doesn't mean I hate gays or want to take away or limit their rights. That's ridiculous!  I also believe God will judge people and their actions and it's not my place to say who's going to Heaven or Hell. Now I pissed some Christians off, of which I'm one. This is just a tiny example as to why I'm sick of both sides a lot of the time. I don't have to be in one yard or the other, I'm to complex for that.

You can't pit me in a box with a label on it and say " Done, where's the next one?". I'll leap out of the box, grab C.S. and jump back in the middle where I belong for however long I want to stay there.

The person decides what he or she's ideology is, what group or individuals they like or dislike, not the other way around. I'm stuck in the middle with C.S, we have a sign that reads "No P.C., want to join us?"

Brian T Shirley