#MNR: 2022 YEAR IN REVIEW

#MNR: 2022 YEAR IN REVIEW
 
DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF MAMA DOT
 
“When I cry, you cry. We cry – together.”
Lil Mo (Ja Rule)
 
“For some strange reason I foresee my outcome. Sort of like fate was foreseen by Malcolm.”
O.C.
 
365 days. 52 weeks. 12 months. And just like that, 2022 is nevermore.
 
DEARLY DEPARTED
 
BILL RUSSELL Reverend Doctor Calvin Butts SIDNEY POITIER Franco Harris DJ KAY SLAY (eastside) James Mtume MAX JULIEN (The Mack) Ramsey Lewis BERNARD WRIGHT (“Who Do You Love”) Queen Elizabeth II MIKHAIL GORBACHEV Jerry Lee Lewis TAKEOFF Kirstie Alley COOLIO Anne Heche GILBERT GOTTFRIED Olivia Newton-John 
JAMES CAAN Bob McGrath RAY LIOTTA Naomi Judd JESSE POWELL Earnie Shavers KEVIN SAMUELS Mary Alice DWAYNE HASKINS 
Michael Henderson LOUIE ANDERSON Meat Loaf ANDRÉ LEON TALLEY 
Taylor Hawkins CHARLES MCGEE (Tuskegee Airman, Red Tail) Betty Davis BOB SAGET Chelsie Kryst (Miss USA) NICHELLE NICHOLS (Star Trek) 
Roderick “Pooh” Clark (Hi-5) MADELEINE ALBRIGHT Shinzo Abe
JOHNNY BROWN (Bookman on Good Times) Irene Cara 
TONY DOW (Wally Cleaver) Issey Miyake PAUL SORVINO Kenneth Starr 
SCOTT RAZOR RAMON HALL Estelle Harris (Estelle Costanza)
VIN SKULLY Emilio Delgado (Sesame Street) CHARLEY TAYLOR 
Andrew Woolfolk (EW&F) CLARENCE GILYARD Tony Sirico JOYCE SIMS 
Michael Henderson PHARAOH SANDERS Ivana Trump LORETTA LYNN Leslie Jordan CEDRIC MCMILLAN Dr. Ronel Cook (EPSD)
BARBARA WALTERS PnB Rock TROUBLE
 
If you notice a name is missing from the list, ask yourself one simple question. Did you actually think I was going to list every MF who died in 2022? FOH.
 
The year 2022 was full of memories, with perhaps its most enduring memory/bookmark being the end of COVID restrictions in the United States. On 6.12, Sleepy Joe lifted the federal requirement that all travelers test negative for coronavirus before flying to the U.S. The mandate for masking on airplanes and public transit was struck down on 4.18. Most local jurisdictions and places of business ended their mandates a couple months prior. AMERICA WAS OFFICIALLY BACK OUTSIDE, RIP COVID. Not so fast...
 
As of 12.14, the United States saw its 1,000,000th COVID-related fatality since the beginning of the pandemic. Almost 6.8 million have perished worldwide.
 
TOP HEADLINES OF 2022 (not ranked or in chronological order)
 
WHITE MEN STIFLE WOMEN’S RIGHT TO CHOOSE
CRYPTOCURRENCY HITS CRYPTIC ROCK BOTTOM
INFLATION SUCKS ASS – I don’t need to give numbers; your pockets know better than I do.
BRITTNEY GRINER RETURNS HOME
THE MYTH OF THE REPUBLICAN RED WAVE – the wave amounted to a slim majority in the House and a net loss of one Senate seat. Their math wasn’t mathing.
MUSK PURCHASES TWITTER, ACTIVELY DESTROYING TWITTER
MESSI & ARGENTINA WIN WORLD CUP (GOAT shit)
RUSSIA INVADES UKRAINE
8 BILLIONTH PERSON BORN
RECESSION? – Is it already here or is it on the way?
45 PILFERS & REPEATEDLY LIES ABOUT CLASSIFIED DOCS; CASUALLY STORES THEM AT MAR A LAGO – a bit wordy for an actual headline but dead-on accurate
600+ MASS SHOOTINGS IN AMERICA IN 2022
THE QUEEN HAS PERISHED (not my queen)
YE MAY BE SNIFFING YAY (wake up Mr. West!)
 
TOP OF THE TOP
 
Top Gun: Maverick was the top grossing movie (IMDb)
Bad Bunny Un Verano Sin Ti was the world’s top selling album (Soundscan)
Drake Certified Lover Boy was the top selling rap album (Soundscan)
“Better Call Saul” was the top ranked TV show (IMDb)
“Stranger Things” was the top ranked streaming series (IMDb)
“House of the Dragon” was the top ranked cable series (IMDb)
Wordle was the top Google Search (trends.google.com)
TikTok Mashup was the top US YouTube Search; Ukraine was the world’s top YouTube Search (semrush.com)
 
CHAMPIONS (college & pro)
 
GEORGIA & LA RAMS (football)
KANSAS & SOUTH CAROLINA (ladies); GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS & LAS VEGAS ACES (basketball)
OLE MISS & HOUSTON ASTROS; OKLAHOMA (baseball, softball)
DENVER & OHIO STATE (ladies); COLORADO AVALANCHE (hockey)
JOEY LOGANO (NASCAR)
SYRACUSE & UCLA (ladies); MANCHESTER CITY - Premier League; 
REAL MADRID Champions League (soccer)
 
TOP 5 BATTLE RAPPERS OF 2022 (personal ranking, in order)
 
SWAMP (Champion of the Year)
SHOTGUN SUGE
BILL COLLECTOR
JAZ THE RAPPER
DANNY MYERS
 
LONG LIVE PAT STAY
 
REFLECTIONS
 
2022 wasn’t anything special to me, candidly speaking. It was type regular; truth be told. And by regular, I mean we didn’t see anything new under the sun. We’re now approaching two years in the shadow of COVID-19. Mask wearers (me) are in the extreme minority; you see that in almost every facet of life outside of healthcare. I have no problem with it. It’s a personal choice. Vaccines continue to be superfluous. Dems were forced to eat crow because the efficacy of vaccines against newer strands and the uncertainty of long-term effects have been prone to debate, while many have chosen to [pretty much] ignore the pandemic. R’s continue to be largely ignorant in their COVID messaging, but they’ve managed to parlay civilian COVID frustration into a certain level of skepticism which they’ve used to build dissent. Numbers will continue to surge at certain points in the calendar, but for the most part, COVID is DEAD. [Let them tell it.]
 
Inflation continued to surge throughout 2022, with its effects being felt in grocery carts, at the pump and in the real estate market, to name a few areas. On a lighter side note, supply chains have improved, enough that I was able to cop a PS5 for retail (yee). We are now far removed from limited capacities in public venues (from grocery stores to the NBA Bubble), social distancing and there hasn’t been a shortage of Lysol wipes in two summers. For the uncouth, please understand that inflation is a global issue, and America isn’t even in the Top 15 on the list. So don’t blame inflation on Sleepy Joe this time.
 
Speaking of inflation...Russia’s war with Ukraine has had a significant impact on the global economy. Its impact on the global oil market and affiliations with the Saudis and China continue to make Russia a stone in America’s Birkenstocks. But back to the war...yeah, they’re off into it. America continues to send money and arms to Zelensky in the name of freedom. Russia is ruthless and Ukraine is relentless. We’ll see what happens in 2023.
 
MAGAt (the movement itself and its influence) continues to pollute the Republican party and American politics. Their master has more cases than Big Noyd in 1995 (IYKYK). The failures of most of his idiotic candidates (anyone seen Hershey Walker?) led to a historically underwhelming midterm election. And to top it all off...THOSE MFs overturned Roe v. Wade. One [in America] shouldn’t dwell in personal sentiment versus national consensus because that’s not how a democracy works. A woman’s choice is her choice; this was the precedent for half a century. But it is what it is.
 
tRump will certainly kill the Republican party in a slow burn that will culminate in Dems keeping the White House and reclaiming both halves of Congress. I don’t think Sleepy Joe will run again, even if he says he will. But back to Cheesy. He still has a spell over enough voters to kill Ron D. at the ballot. The debacle of ’24 will for the most part be the death of the Grand Old Party as we know it.
 
Back to Sleepy Joe...thanks for the service but bow out gracefully. But if he does decide to run for reelection, the Dems should primary him. Gavin Newsome (governor of California) fits the bill, but in a fair world, Pete Buttigieg should be the next president. If the Justice Department deals with Cheesy in quick fashion there’s a fair chance Sleepy Joe could lose to DeSantis, and that’s even if 45 sabotages the Republican ticket. It’s unlikely because tRump still maintains a considerable faithful voting bloc, enough to doom DeSantis if Cheesy runs on a third-party ticket. But Sleepy’s popularity AMONGST HIS OWN could doom him in a showdown against the Swamp Thing from Florida. Y’all may want to seriously consider taking Biden to primary. We shall see.
 
Kevin McCarthy...you’re a true lightweight. You’re heartless and lack integrity. I haven’t a shred of respect for you. Neither do your colleagues. Good luck on winning that Speaker’s gavel.
 
Wokeism. Black Lives Matter. Critical Race Theory. I despise all three terms. Woke, by new school definition, is necessary in any society. Black lives ABSOLUTELY DO MATTER. BLM was never a foundation to most of us; it was a movement. I hate the fact that misappropriated funds overshadow a righteous cause. Fuck that felonious bitch and her excuses. That’s not what we’re about. And as far as CRT...for the last time, it isn’t taught IN ANY K-12 SCHOOL IN AMERICA. IT IS A COLLEGIATE COURSE. A VALID COURSE. That’s that.
 
It's as simple and plain as this, so radical left please listen up. A person is free to say whatever the fuck they feel, as long as it doesn’t infringe upon the rights of another individual. You can’t cry because their rhetoric doesn’t fit your narrative. Fuck Cancel Culture. Ignore. Return fire (verbal and/or otherwise if need be). Knuckle up. Sue, if necessary (civilians only). But stop being so fucking sensitive. A MF can’t even enjoy a comedy special without the next MF catching feelings.
 
I am still pro 2A. I’m still open carry. I believe that there should be certain measures of gun control.  End of story.
 
STOP SNITCHING. FREE THE REAL.
 
In addition to Takeoff, several rappers were slain in 2022. I’m done keeping tabs. RIP to the fallen.
 
Social media insanity and clout chasing continue to stifle Black culture. Our kids (juvenile AND adult) are addicted to TikTok. “Doing it for the Gram” continues to lead to self-degradation, self-hatred, self-snitching and unnecessary envy. Twitter has devolved into a market for racism, xenophobia, ignorance and division. Social media has become an alternate reality for many; it is their needed form of escapism. To quote the GOAT, “It’s ugly outside.”
 
FUCK A METAVERSE. THE BASE OF THE WORD IS META. I DON’T DO META. FUCK YOU, MARK.
 
Speaking of GOATs...Nas and Hitboy struck oil for a fourth time with Kings Disease III. Beyonce released Renaissance, her first studio album in over six years. I’m pleased to report that Queen Bey’s soul is still intact. It’s a beautiful thing to have seen the king and queen reclaim their thrones in 2022.
 
I pray for a healthy and lucrative 2023 for all readers. Thank you for your support. We’re not going anywhere. UnB will continue to be your go-to for weekly insight and amazing apparel. Cheers.
 
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