This week we look at (but don’t touch!) the world of interactive theatre with guests Byron Laviolette and friend of the show, Adam Risbridger. We also reflect upon the response to the Boston Marathon bombing, the lack of math in our daily lives, and when trying to be a hero goes wrong.

Click here to listen!

Byron Laviolette is known for his work with ZED.TO, The Mission Business and Morro & Jasp. He’s currently putting on Visitations, a 90 minute interactive theatre experience at the Drake Hotel.

Other things we discussed:

Toronto experienced its first bank shooting in 14 years this week, but maybe the robbers aren’t only to blame…

Thoughts he post-Boston Marathon bombing manhunt? Some promising, others disheartening.

Is anyone using math anymore? 

CBC’s Georgo Stroumboulopoulos lands a summer gig at CNN.

Matt Galloway explores Thorncliffe Park Public School, the biggest awesomest school in North America.

Deceased journalist’s mother makes Facebook remove her memorial page, because people talking about how brilliant your daughter was is just too upsetting apparently.

Toronto’s Rich Kidd has the song of the week: My City.

Past episodes! 

Shannon is off this week, so Michael is left to talk to himself. It’s kind of sad, really…

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Is the United States finally ready to step up to the marriage equality plate…err…alter? About bloody time. Buzzfeed has the skinny on the benefits, but the Golden Girls have all the common sense (22 years ago!).

Rob Ford. Dysfunctional mayor, but an alcoholic? Ford denies the latest allegations, and maybe say they’ve never seen him drink. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean much. And over of Reddit, signs of a pattern? Despite our criticisms, we wish him the best in this matter.

Whoa, what’s going on in Cyprus? A 40% bank levy? Thankfully, maybe the BRICS can offer a better financial future. Do you think this signals the decline of the West, or the rise of the rest? 

RIP CIDA. Hello DFATD.

5-year-old Daisy Morris discovers a dinosaur, has it named after her.

Why the snooze button is your enemy.

Diamonds are forever (bullshit). DeBeers doesn’t care about you.

Navneet Alang writes about TV in the Internet age, and inadvertently puts me on to Archer  (which is awesome).

Lastly, Tyler the Creator, Erykah Badu and Quadron’s Coco Maja Hastrup Karshøj bring us the song of the week, with Treehome95

Should Toronto really become a bright light’s big city and plop an oversized MGM Casino in its core? So we can agree that Rob is the human-form of blunders but a sexual deviant? Come on, surely that decorated community servant is lying! And is St. Patrick’s Day a stereotypical nightmare or big tourism ad for Ireland? We also discuss exciting news in HIV research, another way to save yourself from cancer, plus we talk video games and women – notice we said women, not damsels..

This is The Sum Up!

Click to listen!

SUM OF THIS

Are we on the verge of an HIV cure?
1. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/04/health/for-first-time-baby-cured-of-hiv-doctors-say.html?_r=0
2. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/health/rapid-hiv-treatment-points-to-possible-functional-cure-for-some-patients/article9822877/

How appropriate is a casino in Toronto?

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/toronto/olg-head-thinks-toronto-casino-vote-is-too-close-to-call/article9651175/

http://www.nowtoronto.com/mobile/story.cfm?c=191425

http://www.cp24.com/news/mgm-holds-career-showcase-despite-no-casino-approval-1.1198316

Rob Ford, Sarah Thomson & rape culture.

http://www2.macleans.ca/2013/03/09/rob-ford-and-sarah-thomson-what-we-know-and-what-we-dont-know/

FOLLOW UP

Anupa’s “Canada is still racist” in VICE (response to Doug Saunders, Toronto Life mixed race piece)

http://www.vice.com/en_ca/read/canada-is-still-racist

Anita Sarkessian’s “Tropes vs. Women in Video Games” series debuts

http://boingboing.net/2013/03/08/tropes-vs-women-in-video-games.html

WEEK IN REVIEW

Person: This dad?

http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/03/dad-hacks-donkey-kong-for-his-daughter-princess-pauline-now-saves-mario/

Lesson:

Reckless: What the world is jerking off to (PornMD)

http://gawker.com/5990301/what-is-the-world-jerking-off-to

Web Find:

Song: Rhye – Open

http://vevo.ly/XNJy0V

This week Shannon and Mike actually play nice on not the nicest of topics: homosexuality dooming Catholicism, who’s fault is it that you don’t (and maybe never will) have benefits and discussing if merely discussing pedophilia should result in the loss of your job.

We also ask if you are paying for journalism since pay walls were introduced, the relevance of traditional morning shows and what you would choose between: your car or your phone.

SUM OF THIS

Is your phone more valuable to you than your car?

Is homosexuality the Catholic Church’s ticking time bomb? 

Half of GTA residents in precarious jobs (new landmark report from the United Way)ld

Tom Flanagan has lost all his jobs after his defense of looking at child pornography. Is that just?
FOLLOW UP

NPR feature on “The Magazine” – How to start a magazine & make a profit

Globe & Mail paywalls seem to working

WEEK IN REVIEW

Person: Donna Grantis
Lesson: Beards keep you healthy and handsome
Reckless: World’s most embarrassing Mom (calls Peruvian gov’t to find backpacking son)
Web Find: This American Life spends 5 months in Chicago’s Harper High
Imagining if Sasha and Malia had a  Vlog
Song: Miguel – Candles In The Sun (new video)

“Real is taking care of your motherfucking family.”

-Kenny Duckworth Sr.

Kendrick Lamar’s Good Kid, m.A.A.d. city is one of the most remarkable albums of our time for a number of reasons. The music is groundbreaking, the lyrics are complex, and it appeals to all facets of what falls under the umbrella of hip-hop

But, in my mind, the most unheralded unique aspect of GKMC is one that’s most important to society as a whole. Through the voicemail skits that drive the narrative of the album, Kendrick introduces us to his parents. His real parents, not voice actors.

Perhaps this is the first truly intergenerational rap album.

Until now, the common trope has been the divide between what you listen to, and what your parents listen to. But rap is of the age where there are quite a number of mature adult fans with of-age children. This is probably best demonstrated in YouTube clips of a 2011, pre-GKMC Kendrick performing, when he takes a moment to tell the audience about how his parents raised him and then plays some of their favourite songs. His father’s? Tupac’s “Hail Mary”. His Mother’s? Snoop’s “Ain’t No Fun”, where Nate Dogg croons “When I met you last night baby, before you opened up your gap.”

Classic hip-hop records indeed, but a bit unconventional to enjoy with those who conceived you. But why is that? Why does our moral compass lead us to deny shared intergenerational interests when a few crass lyrics are involved? What if the Duckworth family is actually the prototype for a healthy enjoyment of hip-hop in the homestead?

I would argue that mothers, fathers and sons bonding over weed anthems, hoodrat tales and dominos is one of the most redeeming things in Kendrick’s debut. In a genre where we’ve become accustomed to struggling single mother stories and rebellious children, we’re instead presented with a strong two-parent household of common respect. For the most part. Kendrick has clearly abused his minivan borrowing privileges, but his mother’s voicemails still reaffirm her faith in his success.

This isn’t “Dear Mama.” Poppa wasn’t a player, and this isn’t about feeling like a motherless-child.

K-dot’s story isn’t devoid of struggle. He’s a good kid navigating one of America’s maddest cities, dealing with the traps that come when violence permeates a collective adolescence. But he is not navigating these waters alone. More than homies, he has a father that imparts in him valuable survival lessons, and a mother who instructs him to live as an example for others.

And this is the best family can do, whether in Compton, California or the safest of Canadian suburbs. Provide your children with knowledge that can protect them, and encourage them to act likewise, all while keeping a roof over their head and food on the table. The same table where they sit and scribe one of the most progressive hip-hop albums the world has ever heard.

Kendrick’s parents are hilarious. They’re honest. They don’t attempt to shelter their son. They don’t hide their vices, and in doing so, teach a child how to balance theirs. They’re role models for us: aging hip-hop listeners, now raising children of our own.

With GKMC, hip-hop has grown up. Not in a grown and sexy trending for the moment catch phrase, but in a way that’s really really real.

[This post originally appeared on The Ethnic Aisle, a kick ass blog representing multicultural views in Toronto. Check them out.]

Here’s a question do white journalists hog technology? Is pitchfork racist or does K-OS’ crazy genius just straight crazy in the journalistic world? And stay tuned for a recent study that proves that pot, although natural, is infact awful!

We are back this week with a new picture, new audio, a new theme song but the same ol good natured squabbling. We discuss whether you feel bad about having first world problems and if you don’t would you feel bad if an African child narrated them? Huh? Huh!? And just in time for Valentine’s Day, Facebook introduces a new app where you can locate friends who are DTF. Of course Mike snuck in some nerdy debates about Toronto transit and on other nerdy white tech guys (like himself).

We also give props to Kareem Abdul Jabar for being our new fav columnist, the Kroll Show for creating the best Degrassi/ Canadian culture spoof and J. Dilla for being cooler than Jesus in the midst of a snow storm.

This is The Sum Up, tell your friends and lose a couple by saying some reckless things in the name of good debate.

Sum of This/ None of That

1) Facebook has a new app called Bang your friends? Are you down with that?

2) Is this video “parody” on first world problems genius or ridiculous? 

3) Are you for or against road tolls for Ontario/GTA?

4) Is tech journalism dominated by white men?

5) Does Pitchfork have a race problem or does K-OS need to head back to sixth grade english?

FOLLOW UP

1. CBC steals our idea again, “Generation Jobless“…

2. “Ethnically Neutral” money gets even weirder:

The Best of the Week

Person: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Lesson: See pot IS bad for you
Web Find: The Kroll Show – Wheels Ontario
Wreckless: Hacker gains access to Bush family emails, finds GW Bush self-portrait in the shower
Song: Yancey Boys (Dilla & Illa J) – The Throwaway

Miss an episode? Scroll through and tune back in

LOTS of debate this week…even where you may not have even wanted it. We discuss whether other artists are allowed to point out what a useless, non-factor Michelle was in the Super Bowl performance; Whether a 3 day weekend is a good idea; The future and current role of multi-culturalism; also we pontificate whether men should write features on women…Surprisingly Mike thinks no and Shannon says BRING ON THE SEXIST BAD WRITING!

Speaking of drooling Shannon endorses Kathleen Wynne and Mike goes on and on about Foreign Exchange and as per usuale, despite our best efforts, Obama did something that deserved props. This is the most conversational Sum Up to date, let us know what you think!

Do some additional reading below…

SUM OF THIS/NONE OF THAT

1. Is it wrong for other singers (Keyshia Cole) to criticize other singers? Last night at the superbowl she accused Michelle Williams for “fucking up the vibe”and was met with an army of angry tweeters. Was she wrong for voicing her negative opinion? 

2. Africa’s poorest nation wants a 4-day work week. Is this a social blessing or economic disaster?

3. Is multi-culturalism dead?

4.  In light of Esquire’s drooling cover story on Megan Fox…Should men write about women?

FOLLOW UP

Remember the whole scientology advert drama in the Atlantic? Well there has been new standards put in place for sponsored content guidelines

Remember how we spent an entire episode with Taha complaining about Instagram narcissism? Well CBC apparently listened and stole our topic…yea we know, we were the first

Remember the Taliban shooting of the teenage Pakistani girl? Well she is alive and still fighting with each day looking better than the last.

YEAHx5

Person of the week: Eve Pell “The Race Grows Sweeter Near Its Final Lap” (very hard not to love this story)
Kathleen Wynne

Lesson of the week: Your biggest carbon sin may be air travel

Web Find of the week: Volkswagon commercial And BONUS from Disney

Reckless of the week: Israel giving clandestine birth control to Ethiopian immigrants

Song of the week: Foreign Exchange, So What if it is

Miss a podcast? Catch up!!

On this week’s show we discuss how far athletes willing to go to maintain grand fictitious hero narratives? Speaking of fictitious heroes… Beyonce’s new GQ cover teaches us that you can’t spell class or crass without the word ass, so there should be no difference. And a bit of advice from us here on The Sum Up, if you’re writing about rape best to use the phrase sexual assault and not “gaining a penis.”

We also discuss how the Lance Armstrong case isn’t much different from the Manti T’eO catfish tale and we debate whether people who don’t pay for subscriptions have any right to tell publications how they should advertise.

Still not sure if you should listen? We debate suicides in prison, complain about the flu and bash the new BET show, Second Generation Wayans. Oh now you wanna tune in? Yea we thought so… Speaking of thoughts don’t forget to share your two cents!

Need to do some additional reading? We got you covered

Some of this/ none of that

Beyoncé + Terry Richardson =/= feminism. Is Beyonce’s spread at all appealing?
Read the rebuttal 

Should correctional officers intervene with inmate suicides?

Scientology sponsored content on the Atlantic/ OLG content in the Globe. Is brand journalism a problem we have the right to fight against?
Athletes like Lance and Manti have gone through great lengths and told huge lies in order to play the hero. Do you think that they are terrible people? Is it an unforgivable crime to you?

Yeah x5

Person: Aaron Swartz, founder of Reddit
Recklessness: The Wayans show
Web find: Worst lead of all time
Lesson: Kevin Drum in Mother Jones on the correlation between lead & crime
Song: Oscar D’Leon, LLoraras

Miss an episode? Well it’s time to get caught up!

SPOILER ALERT: Is marriage becoming increasingly a niche cultural practice? (Maybe.) Is Django appropriate? (Kind of.) Do you know a rapist? (Yes.) Are the trades right for you? (Definitely.) Is AC Milan’s Kevin-Prince Boateng the man? (Ci!) Also, hide your children ’cause Al Jazeera’s coming to America!

This is The Sum Up, listen and let us know what you think

Need to do some additional reading?

Sum of this none of that

Do only whites and Asians place a high importance on marriage?

Al Jazeera buys Current TV, creates Al Jazeera America. Cable companies drop network. Weak?

Django: Slavery in the white male imagination

MAIN TOPIC  Why rape still needs to be a discussion

The Steubenville Rape Crew

http://localleaks.blogs.ru

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/17/sports/high-school-football-rape-case-unfolds-online-and-divides-steubenville-ohio.html?pagewanted=all&_r=3&

YEAH x5

Person: Kevin-Prince Boateng (AC Milan player)
Reckless: My great-great grandfather
Lesson: The new workforce
Web Find: Spoiler Alert (Portlandia)
Song: Azealia Banks

We reveal what country’s men have the weakest swimmers. And by swimmers we mean semen. Speaking of bodily fluids, ever used Cold FX? Well if so you are probably not the 1 in 17 people it is actually proven to do anything for. Plus it’s the last day of the year so let’s all pretend we paid attention to anything else other than our Facebooks with our sophisticated year in review! We also discuss why blasting the NRA is as useful as shooting fruit flies and we ponder whether or not it’s ever cool to give someone tips on how not to suck (in the bad way) sexually. So what are you waiting for? Join Shannon Boodram and Mike Warren on an adventurous hour long chat about the cool and current shit you should be up on.

Wanna do some further reading?

SUM OF THIS/NONE OF THAT

1. Cold-FX proven to only work (barely) in 1 in 17 cases. Do you trust unscientific remedies?

2. Down with Big Gun? Are we paying too much attention to the nra

3. Have you ever told sexual partners how to improve on their performance?

Yeah x5

PERSON:
Chief Theresa Spence (of the Idle No More movement)

LESSON:
French men have less sperm

RECKLESS:
Music Industry caught faking billions of youtube hits

WEB FIND:
New York Times Avalanche story

SONG:
Taylor Swift, I Almost Do