Olivia Pope is a "Side Chick"...In Name ONLY

I recently came across a funny picture on Instagram about my favorite TV show, Scandal:

Chicks be like "I can't stand infidelity" but on Thursdays be like "Awwwww"

I am 100% guilty of this!!!!! There's NO denying that President Fitzgerald Thomas Grant III is married and that his affair with Olivia Pope technically makes her the "side chick". However, if you watch the show faithfully (like me) then you KNOW that's just a technicality.

Fitz does not love his wife, Mellie, and is only with her because he didn't meet Olivia first. He is the President which means that he has been in the middle of a successful political career for some time so he knows what political moves play...and having a black girlfriend does not (let's be frank).

A lot of people say that Olivia Pope does nothing but give side chicks everywhere some hope. However, TRUE "Gladiators" like myself know that there is WAY more to the story than Olivia just being a "side chick". Fitz does not confide in the First Lady the way that he does with Olivia, he doesn't talk to her, have fun with her...NOTHING!

I came up with 5 reasons and included 5 scenes that show Olivia is more than just "the other woman" and I purposefully didn't include any of their steamy love scenes because it's more to it than that. You can't hear my argument by just watching one episode and jumping to conclusions...I need you to see BEYOND the obvious & look deeper.

5) Olivia was pursued by Fitz
Olivia hit Fitz and he NEVER saw it coming. In this scene, you see his immediate and undeniable attraction to her, and it's not just on the surface. She basically told him about himself in front of his entire staff, which prompted him to fire her, only to try to get close to her.



4) They can't deny it, no matter how hard they try...OR move on 
They know it's wrong for them to be together (for now) but it's UNDENIABLE. She tried to move on with Edison but he still calls her late at night from the Oval Office. He even used his Presidential power to spy on her and had the Secret Service kidnap her to bring her to him in the middle of nowhere for goodness sake! He wouldn't have gone through all that trouble for a side chick.




3) Fitz does NOT love his wife
If you've been watching the show since day 1, you know that Fitz and Mellie don't like each other...they don't get along...they rarely speak or talk to each other. Everything between them is a political move. Mellie is so caught up in her own agenda that she doesn't really care that Fitz is having an affair. She is playing her own game and is more worried about being First Lady that being Fitz's wife. He even ponders this in front of Olivia (what man NOT in love would put himself down or insult himself for a "side piece):

"Why didn't I meet you sooner? What kind of a coward was I to marry her and not wait for you to show up?" 

2) They really know each other
Fitz knows that Olivia paces in circles when something is wrong...Olivia knows that Fitz loves the outdoors...These little details in the relationship are how I know that it's more than a fling. In this scene, Fitz asks for "one minute" because he knows that's all they have but it's just what they both need. They can't be together right now so they take what they can get.



1) They belong to each other!!!!! 
They have REAL LOVE and PASSION for each other...If you don't believe me then just watch the clip below:

~Elle Shanice~ APPROVED ✔: ABC's Scandal

It's May & you know what that means...A POST A DAY IN MAY!!!!! I will have a blog post for you EVERY DAY this month so STAY TUNED...


I have a new favorite TV show that has me on the edge of my seat every Thursday night: ABC's Scandal. 


Not only is it a compelling show that is full of twists & turns but it is also AMAZING to see a powerful yet still vulnerable black woman in charge on TV. 


The show stars Kerry Washington as Olivia Pope, the former White House Communications Coordinator, who now runs her own crisis management firm. She is quick, witty, sharp & doesn't take crap from anyone.

She has a team that will do anything for her & she goes to great lengths to preserve the reputations of her clients. However, Olivia is met head-on by a conflict of her own, that clashes her personal & professional lives together. 


The next episode airs TONIGHT at 10/9c. For more information or to catch up on previous episodes, go to: http://beta.abc.go.com/shows/scandal. Check out the preview for tonight's episode below:

How Did Someone Uninvited Get This Close To Obama???

Michaele and Tareq Salahi played "crashers" at President Obama's very first State dinner on November 24th as if they were Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn and this was a high-profile wedding.

However, it was not a wedding at all; it was a dinner with Obama and the Indian president at the White House. It wasn't a backyard barbeque or cookout at their house in Chicago...it was the WHITE HOUSE!!!!!

First of all, whoever is responsible for letting uninvited people in should be FIRED!!!!! How could you let two uninvited guests into the White House and let them get up & close with the President of the United States??? What if they were to pose some sort of threat while at the White House? They were allowed to get up close to our President and I hate to think of the possibility that something could have gone wrong or at least a scene could have been made while there.

The Salahis claimed to have received their invitation from someone at the White House via email, but it was found otherwise and I find it hard to believe that the invitation to a State dinner at the White House with the President of the United States would be sent out through email. It is laughable that they have become famous because of this, and not suprising that Michaele is trying to join the cast of the new show, Real Housewives of D.C.

Is this what we are willing to sacrifice for a little bit of fame? They could possibly face criminal charges according to a Secret Service spokesman, and I don't think that breaking the law is a good move just to be on a TV show. I guess her life is not as good without this controversy so she needed to up the ante.

I can't help but think that if Obama was white and the Salahis were black, they would not have made it onto the White House lawn, let alone shake hands with the President. This might be the wrong way of looking at it, but I feel as though Bush had a little bit better security...@ least at the White House.

By the way, I don't think that it was smart to try to sneak in ANYWHERE with that UGLY dress on...I'm just saying :-(

The World Hates America...NOT Obama!!!!!

When Chicago was picked as a finalist for the 2016 Olympics, the city and America as a whole wanted to make the best impression possible and the best case to bring the summer games there in 2016. They pulled out all of the stops, and even played their two BIGGEST cards that they had...the BIG O's.

President Obama and Oprah Winfrey; with these two in your corner, who could you LOSE??? Apparently, very easily. Chicago was the 1st city to be eliminated in the finalist judging, even after President Obama and 1st Lady Michelle Obama flew all the way to Copenhagen, Denmark to support the bid.

Of course, the Obama haters made a BIG deal about his high enthusiasm and involvement in the Olympic bid, and criticized that he has more important things going on in his own country than to be "globetrotting" on the behalf of one city.

While this is true, with the wavering support for healthcare reform and the ecomony in ruins, I do not think that Chicago was not going to win the bid in the 1st place. With its reputation for violence, only made stronger by the death of 16-year-old Derrion Albert in the middle of a Chicago street, and its location in one of the coldest parts of the country, the Olympic committee probably looked at ALL of the pros and cons for each city, and the bad must have outweighed the good.

Not to mention the world's current mindset that America is the enemy! It is no secret that the entire world hates the United States, for their own various reason. Whether it is war and the economy, the world thinks that America has a superiority complex and think that they are better than them. In every category, America is a gluttonous and greedy super-bully in the eyes on the rest of the world. They take more than they need and that is why we are the fattest and greediest countries in the world.

I'm not mad @ the Olympic committee for picking Rio de Janeiro for the 2016 games. White sandy beaches & clear blue water would have made my decision easier too. The Olympic Village is probably gonna be on the beach somewhere, & I can't be mad at that, especially since the games are in the summer time...that is a major WIN!!!!!

Obama Won the Nobel Peace Prize...GET OVER IT!!!!!

On October 9th, the Nobel committee chose President Barack Obama to be the recipient of the 2009 Nobel Peace prize. He said that

he was suprised and humbled by the award and even that he didn't feel convinced that he deserved it.

Almost immediately, the Obama "haters" questioned why he won & said that he should be focusing on more important things like healthcare and the War in Iraq, other than than winning a prize. Some people even asked why he won a "Peace" prize when his country is at war.

Even though that is true, it still should not take away from this acheivement that has been bestowed upon our President. I do not like how he felt that he had to play down his own personal acheivement & make it seem that he didn't deserve to be in the company of former winners.

He should be able to enjoy his moment because even though he is the President of the United States, he won this award as an individual and has the right to his accomplishment. Also, the fact that he is being pressured to give the prize money to charity is stupid. Of course it is his choice on how to spend the money, but just like the award is his, the money is his too.

The committee said that he was awarded the prize for his "extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples". One of the 1st things that Obama did as President was attempt to heal foreign relations with the US and strengthen his foreign policy. He met with Japan's Prime Minister in February, and in July met with Palistinian president Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Isreal.



Of course the Obama "haters" think that it is wrong to meet with foreign leaders in the attempt to make things better. I guess they would much rather go to war and see American men & women die so that they can say that they are better...smh :-(

Both Parties To Blame in Gates Arrest

The Henry Louis Gates arrest is a deafening reminder that racism STILL exists in our country. Even though we have reached the political "promised land" and have a black president, our country is still victim of racism and the problem will not go away easily.

The fact that someone of his professional stature (with a Ph. D.) can be the victim of racial profiling makes me believe that my father is not crazy after all & that people are still bound to their racial beliefs and views. Even if Gates was acting in a irate manner, he obviously thought that he was in a racially-charged situation. We don't know his prior experiences with police or something that would make him sensitive to it and become combative. You can't completely believe the police report either, because the officer could have said whatevr he needed to in order to make the case against him.

When I first heard about this situation, I have to admit that I came to the same conclusion as many people did:
"Why is this educated black man being arrested for trying to get into his own house?"

I immediately took his side because, frankly, when I heard that he was arrested by a white police officer for trying to get into his own home, I thought it was racial profiling.

I thought of a Dave Chappelle joke that I had heard:
"I didn't even call the police. I wanted to, but i couldn't. My crib was too nice. Not that it's too nice, but it's too nice for me. Soon as I open the door, they'd be like 'He's still here! Open and shut case, Johnson. Apparently this black guy broke in and hung up pictures of his family everywhere. Never seen anything like it.'" That was meant as a joke, but it hold a different meaning today.

I do not believe that Sgt. James Crowley is racist, even though you can teach against racial profiling and still have your own views, I do think that he is guilty of following the "unwritten rule" of police in racially-charged cases: GUILTY until proven innocent.

The person to blame may not be Gates or Sgt. Crowley, but the insensitive person who called the police about a break in without knowing that it was indeed a break in. I understand that the people in the neighborhood may not have been used to someone leaving their keys and trying other ways to get into their house, but immediately thinking that it was a break in because of race brings some fault as well.

Honestly, I do not like the fact that President Obama is being ridiculed for saying that the police acted "stupidly". People sometimes forget that he is a BLACK man and will have his own reservations and experiences when it comes to the police. They asked him the quesiton and he answered it...that's all.

Sarah Palin...My Personal Enigma

Enigma: a person or thing that is mysterious, puzzling, or difficult to understand; a riddle or paradox

First off...please take a few moments to read an editorial that I wrote for the "award-winning" A&T Register that was published on September 24, 2008. This will give a little background on my feelings about the soon-to-be former Governor of Alaska:

http://www.ncatregister.com/theword/the-grass-is-much-greener-on-the-other-side-sarah-palin-1.1143274

Now that you see how I feel about this hypocritical politician (but is there any other form...SMH), you may know that she has recently stepped down as Governor of Alaska, effective July 26. If I were her, I would have made it effective IMMEDIATELY in order to keep from making any more mistakes that could impede my successor's experience. But I still cannot conceive a rational reason why she would quit.

Obviously, she has some balls to do the job, as she did when she was running for VP. She didn't quit then, and she should not have quit now. How is that supposed to look when you were trying to be Vice-President of the United States and a heartbeat away from the presidency (LITERALLY...because no one really knew how long McCain would last).

Let's just take a look @ the press conference where she made the announcement. (By the way, I am NOT a fan of Fox News, but that is for another post & they had the best YouTube video)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1tnUvtjaaY

First of all, I can't even believe she knows that much about the history of the United States. Or was it just a quick briefing before or reading a teleprompter....who's to say??? Secondly, I got so aggravated by those little sayings that she used in the campaign and in the press conference, like "maverick" or "politics as usual" (Just to let you know Sarah, your running mate is the very embodiment of "politics as usual").

If you love Alaska so much, why did you accept the nomination for VP? If you had won, you would have a LOT more to worry about than Alaska. And if you are gonna be the US VP candidate, you have to know that the media (good and bad) wil be up in your face trying to get the dirt. And if you didn't have any dirt (i.e. a pregnant teenage daughter), you would not have anything to worry about.

I am not mad @ her for choosing to take the path that leads to book deals & money. Honestly, if someone came to me with a book deal offer, I would take it. But she should have finished out her term as governor and said that she would not be seeking re-election.

She did make a point that I agree with and will be acting upon in my last year @ A&T, which was "I don't need a title in order to make a difference; to help & serve the people". But what she failed to realize is that quitting an ELECTED office without finishing your term is not helping the people of Alaska either.

FOR THE RECORD: If she runs for President in 2012 & WINS...I am moving to Canada. All I need is a coat because they have the NBA, McDonalds and MTV so I would be GOOD...LOL :)