YAZM!

Archive for the ‘Politics’ Category

Very soon after the devastated earthquake in Haiti this past January, Wyclef Jean began doing the television rounds, making a massive fundraising push for his Haitian-based charity, Yele Haiti. Wyclef became one of the faces of the tragedy, just because he was and is one of the most prominent Haitians in the world of celebrity/infotainment news. So - with that kind of name recognition, it’s easy to see why Wyclef is considering a run for Haiti’s president. But I have bigger problems with this news, and so will many other people. First, Wyclef’s news:

Wyclef Jean for president?

There are reports that the musician is mulling a run for the top office in Haiti. Reached by phone, Jean told CNN that talk of a campaign is a bit premature as he is still mulling it over.

“I can’t sing forever,” Jean said.

The Canadian publication Le Droit reported over the weekend that Jean would be throwing his hat into the political ring in his native homeland. But Jean told CNN that such reports reflect him being “drafted” but he hasn’t decided for sure yet.

He added that he has filled out the necessary paperwork in case he does decide to move forward with a candidacy. Jean has been an outspoken proponent of Haiti through his Yele Haiti Foundation and was one of the first celebrities to offer aid after the devastating earthquake.

“Wyclef’s commitment to his homeland and its youth is boundless, and he will remain its greatest supporter regardless of whether he is part of the government moving forward,” said a statement released by his foundation. “At this time, Wyclef Jean has not announced his intent to run for Haitian president. If and when a decision is made, media will be alerted immediately. Please let us know if we can help with anything else.”

[From CNN]

On one side it would be interesting to see someone like Wyclef not only run for office in Haiti but actually have to do the heavy lifting of governing the notoriously and historically corrupt country. On the other side, Wyclef has some notorious corruption on his side, too. Just a few short weeks after the earthquake, various analysts began giving the Yele Haiti charity a thorough examination and they discovered that Yele Haiti was rife with financial shenanigans, wasting thousands of dollars and that Wyclef himself might have even dipped into the charity’s coffers for personal reasons. Later, after the Haiti telethon, Yele Haiti didn’t get its piece of the pie, and instead that money went to larger charities doing work in Haiti. So while I can’t say that Wyclef is a financial fraud, there is totally enough information out there to cast serious doubt on Wyclef’s potential candidacy. Also: there’s some sex scandal stuff too - something about Wyclef’s wife finding naked photos of one of his employees on his phone. Ah, politics!

Wylcef on March 15 & April 15, 2010. Credit: WENN.

A lot has really been going on with former Vice President Al Gore lately. First it was the break-up with Tipper, his wife of 40 years. Then it was the rumors of him cheating with Seinfeld producer Larry David’s wife. And now, word has come to surface that Gore may have been involved in a sexual abuse scandal!

In 2006, Al allegedly sexually assaulted an Oregan masseuse during a three-hour massage session at the Portland hotel. The unidentified woman later filed a complaint against Gore but refused to work with police to carry out the investigation.

“We were told the woman was not willing to be interviewed by the Portland Police Bureau and did not want a criminal investigation to proceed,” Multnomah County D.A. Michael Schrunk told press.

(...) Continue Reading »

A lot has really been going on with former Vice President Al Gore lately. First it was the break-up with Tipper, his wife of 40 years. Then it was the rumors of him cheating with Seinfeld producer Larry David’s wife. And now, word has come to surface that Gore may have been involved in a sexual abuse scandal!

In 2006, Al allegedly sexually assaulted an Oregan masseuse during a three-hour massage session at the Portland hotel. The unidentified woman later filed a complaint against Gore but refused to work with police to carry out the investigation.

“We were told the woman was not willing to be interviewed by the Portland Police Bureau and did not want a criminal investigation to proceed,” Multnomah County D.A. Michael Schrunk told press.

(...) Continue Reading »

A lot has really been going on with former Vice President Al Gore lately. First it was the break-up with Tipper, his wife of 40 years. Then it was the rumors of him cheating with Seinfeld producer Larry David’s wife. And now, word has come to surface that Gore may have been involved in a sexual abuse scandal!

In 2006, Al allegedly sexually assaulted an Oregan masseuse during a three-hour massage session at the Portland hotel. The unidentified woman later filed a complaint against Gore but refused to work with police to carry out the investigation.

“We were told the woman was not willing to be interviewed by the Portland Police Bureau and did not want a criminal investigation to proceed,” Multnomah County D.A. Michael Schrunk told press.

(...) Continue Reading »

A lot has really been going on with former Vice President Al Gore lately. First it was the break-up with Tipper, his wife of 40 years. Then it was the rumors of him cheating with Seinfeld producer Larry David’s wife. And now, word has come to surface that Gore may have been involved in a sexual abuse scandal!

In 2006, Al allegedly sexually assaulted an Oregan masseuse during a three-hour massage session at the Portland hotel. The unidentified woman later filed a complaint against Gore but refused to work with police to carry out the investigation.

“We were told the woman was not willing to be interviewed by the Portland Police Bureau and did not want a criminal investigation to proceed,” Multnomah County D.A. Michael Schrunk told press.

(...) Continue Reading »

A lot has really been going on with former Vice President Al Gore lately. First it was the break-up with Tipper, his wife of 40 years. Then it was the rumors of him cheating with Seinfeld producer Larry David’s wife. And now, word has come to surface that Gore may have been involved in a sexual abuse scandal!

In 2006, Al allegedly sexually assaulted an Oregan masseuse during a three-hour massage session at the Portland hotel. The unidentified woman later filed a complaint against Gore but refused to work with police to carry out the investigation.

“We were told the woman was not willing to be interviewed by the Portland Police Bureau and did not want a criminal investigation to proceed,” Multnomah County D.A. Michael Schrunk told press.

(...) Continue Reading »

A lot has really been going on with former Vice President Al Gore lately. First it was the break-up with Tipper, his wife of 40 years. Then it was the rumors of him cheating with Seinfeld producer Larry David’s wife. And now, word has come to surface that Gore may have been involved in a sexual abuse scandal!

In 2006, Al allegedly sexually assaulted an Oregan masseuse during a three-hour massage session at the Portland hotel. The unidentified woman later filed a complaint against Gore but refused to work with police to carry out the investigation.

“We were told the woman was not willing to be interviewed by the Portland Police Bureau and did not want a criminal investigation to proceed,” Multnomah County D.A. Michael Schrunk told press.

(...) Continue Reading »