Saturday, July 02, 2005

The Stain of Torture

via Atrios - go read the whole thing
The Stain of Torture:
"Having served as a doctor in the Army Medical Corps early in my career and as presidential physician to George H.W. Bush for four years, I might be expected to bring a skeptical and partisan perspective to allegations of torture and abuse by U.S. forces. I might even be expected to join those who, on the one hand, deny that U.S. personnel have engaged in systematic use of torture while, on the other, claiming that such abuse is justified. But I cannot do so."

That Guy - hangover reflection #1

this is an audio post - click to play

Friday, July 01, 2005

The Huffington Post | The Blog

The Huffington Post | The Blog:
"You can almost hear their pulses accelerating and their hormones flowing - the prospect of putting one of their own on the Supreme Court is exactly what arouses these guys and exactly what they fantasize about when the lights shut off in their mansions at night."

He's not talking about the religious right.

It's not just abortion at stake here...
labor law, environmental law, pretty much the whole deal...
with the right judge they really could roll back the new deal, the great society, anything they want...

FIGHT!

Friday Eno Blogging: Another Day on Earth

The new Eno cd could never be as good as I want it to be...
but it is better than I heard it was,
and probably better than whatever you bought last.

Steve Jones (Sex Pistols, etc.) is one of the guitar players on the CD.
I find that funny.

There's nothing as catchy as "Baby's on Fire" or anything,
but it is better than I remember the CD he did with Cale a few years back being...

I need a dark room, "supplies", and a loud stereo (all of which I have at home) and I'll be better able to evaluate it...but so far I can recommend it to anyone who wants to hear what Eno is up to...and what the hell...I can recommend it to the rest of you too...after all, what are you going to do if you don't like it? hunt me down?

Bush: No Successor Til After July 8 and Other White House Stories : Wonkette

Bush: No Successor Til After July 8 and Other White House Stories : Wonkette: "Before naming a successor to Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, President Bush will allow Democrats and progressives to spend the 4th of July holiday frantically pleading for moderation and consensus. Then he'll pick whoever he wants. Or as Scott McClellan puts it, 'I can't imagine that the Democrats would want to engage in controversial tactics when it comes to a nominee for the Supreme Court.' "

empahasis mine...
and here I thought Scotty at least had a good imagination...
and filibustering should NOT be a controversial tactic...
at least not to anyone who has ever seen Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.

The Washington Monthly

Framing is important, and this is right on...

The Washington Monthly:
"Generally speaking I don't have a big problem with O'Connor's tenure on the court, but when even Democrats start calling her a moderate, it moves the goalposts too far. They should be referring to her as a 'moderate conservative,' a 'mainstream conservative,' or a 'thoughtful conservative.' Anything like that is fine. But whatever they call her, they should make it clear that she's a conservative."

MONSTERS!

My complicity
makes me a monster.
Don't give me that grin,
you're in the same boat.
That's my problem
with art
about the holocaust
art
about the nazis.
If you want
an example
of the banality
of evil
you don't have to
travel in time
you don't have to
go to Germany
all you have to do
is look in the mirror.

I have a job
I ship out computer parts
I ship them to our government
other governments
IRAQ
people in the diamond business
people in the oil business
people in the war business
people in the torture business

I ship them to whoever buys them
to whoever needs a replacement
I provide aid
help
to people and projects
whose morals are reprehensible

I am complicit in crimes against
you, me, all of us...
and I'm just doing my job.

I'm not even going to address
driving a car,
using pharmaceuticals,
eating the products of argibusiness...

there is a web from me
reaching
to the furthest horrors

don't pretend
you're not caught
in it too
you buy lightbulbs
you pay taxes

you're not pure

Who Polices tha Police? International Edition!!!

Well, they may let gay folks get married up in Canadan, but hey,
police culture is still fucked...

Warrenellis.com � Toronto Police “Assault Iranian Bar Owner”:
"...as a matter of fact, up until this point, no badge was shown by the ladies and gentlemen in question. i made them aware of this fact at this point. that’s when one officer pulled out his badge as he started laughing; “are you happy now? boy, now you’re really fucked”
another officer turned to me "

Daily Kos: Supreme Court: What You Can Do RIGHT NOW

Daily Kos: Supreme Court: What You Can Do RIGHT NOW:
"Whatever happens with the Supreme Court nomination battle that is about to ensue, it's going to happen fast. Here are some things you can do right now:
If you have a cell phone, sign up for People at the American Way's Mass Immediate Response site. This way, you'll be able to receive text message action items instantly as events break. (If you signed up during the nuclear option fight, you'll need to re-sign up.)

Also sign up with the Save the Court, another PFAW website devoted specifically to this issue.

Recruit friends and family members to the cause.

Write to the President, telling him he should choose a consensus candidate to replace O'Connor.

Contact your Senators to tell them the same thing."

there's links in the post...so go to KOS and click on em and do the right thing...

happy 4th everybody

Fourth of July
a fuckin lie
When did we ever
Get a piece of the pie
Gotta whole day comin
Without no pay
Cause a fuckin job
Cant gimme no play

-Public Enemy "Hitler Day"

Thursday, June 30, 2005

we make money not art: String Thing - file under: I want

we make money not art: String Thing

Four parallel metal rods are each divided into a long and a short section by a bridge element. The pressure and position of the fingers on the longer rod section are sensed to control pitch and expression; pressure on the shorter sections controls velocity, attack and volume. MIDI software converts the data into sound and, through magnets under each rod, vibrates the rod according to the pressure it senses, thus returning haptic feedback to the player.

Off the Kuff: How's it playing in Houston?

Off the Kuff: How's it playing in Houston?:
"Everybody's linked to the SurveyUSA 50-state approval ratings poll for President Bush, for which Garance has the best take, but what interests me is the results for Texas, where Dubya is pulling anemic (but not Perryesque) 50/47 numbers. Inside that is the total for Harris County, where Bush is in negative territory - 43% approve, 54% disapprove."

This means I get to be moderately proud of being a Houstonian...
YAY!

little miss messycovers: Vote for Leopard Boy, Please!

What the lil' miss says:
little miss messycovers: Vote for Leopard Boy, Please!

Leopard Boy is a mythical creature, bar fly, and member of the brazosport lil' players...
and he shoots fire from his fingers...
it's not much of power,
but it impresses the ladies...


REAL ART (and politics and culture)

I guess we can file this in the win column:

REAL ART (and politics and culture): "Nike Skateboarding sincerely apologizes for the creation of a tour poster inspired by Minor Threat's album cover. Despite rumors being circulated, Wieden & Kennedy and Odopod had nothing to do with the creation of this tour poster and should not be held accountable. To set the record straight, Nike Skateboarding's 'Major Threat' Tour poster was designed, executed, and promoted by skateboarders, for skateboarders. All of the Nike employees responsible for the creation of the tour flyer are fans of both Minor Threat and Dischord records and have nothing but respect for both."

Wednesday, June 29, 2005

This is Pop!: Dylan biopic to debut on DVD, PBS

Here's a little good Dylan news to counteract the scary starbucks Dylan news...

This is Pop!: Dylan biopic to debut on DVD, PBS

The film focuses on Dylan's life and music from 1961-66 and includes never-before-seen performance footage and interviews with artists and musicians whose lives were intertwined in some way with Dylan during that time.


Definitely interested in seeing this...

we make money not art: A service to help you manage lies

Now this looks useful...

we make money not art: A service to help you manage lies

First you have to provide the True.Lies service with a record of your lies and your daily schedule. They catgorise and store the lies on a computer database. As they monitor your schedule and your record of lies, constant reminders are sent to you at the appropriate time through post, email, SMS, cash machines, phone booths, etc. to let you know the record of lies you have already made to the people you're about to meet. Therefore avoiding any embarrassement.

��TBogg��

��TBogg��: "'Oprah describes it as 'one of the most humiliating moments of her life.''

No. Humiliating is having to have to put your life on hold and re-open the store so that a woman who has made a career out of pretending to care for the common man can come in and browse around with her friends for an overpriced gift watch so that the recipient will be forced to acknowledge how fucking wonderful and generous she is. "

somebody give that man a cigar...
if the store was closed they was no reason to open the store for Oprah, me, or Queen Goldilocks...
sheesh...
give somebody all the money in the world and suddenly they think they are important.

Tuesday, June 28, 2005

April Winchell: Multimedia

April Winchell: Multimedia
uhm, Paul Winchell (voice of tigger, ventriloquist and inventor of the artificial heart) died recently.
His daughter posted some stuff about it, and pissed people off, and then posted something very moving and honest...(go to her main page to read it)
I wanted to be a ventriloquist when I was a kid...
but I'm not here to talk about all that...

I'm here to point you to an amazing collection of cool multimedia stuff she has up...

You can d/l the soundtracks to KFC training films AND


TONY RANDALL SINGING NATURE BOY!

she's got Sonny Bono's "Pammy's on a Bummer" and I bet it's a transfer from a copy cleaner than mine...

and NICHELLE NICHOLS singing the theme from "Star Trek"

so get over there now and start torturing your ears,

THEY DESERVE IT!

The Huffington Post | The Blog

A glimpse a Larry David's internal monologue in the middle of the night...
The Huffington Post | The Blog: "I like how they keep saying the science isn’t in on global warming. They just don’t know. No proof. But, of course, it’s in on God. Lots of proof on that. Tons of empirical evidence. They got God’s DNA. And Moses parted the Red Sea. He said, “Open sea,” and it opened. And Jesus walked on water. Those are some tricks. People must have been after Moses to do it again until he finally got sick of them and lost his temper. 'No, I'm not parting it again, now leave me alone.' 'C'mon Moses, please?' 'I said no, now get the hell outta here!' You'd think anyone who believes this stuff would be so embarassed they'd keep it to themselves. But those maniacs shout it from the rooftops and they're running our country. God talks to Bush all the time. I don’t care if you’re President, if you say God talks to you, you’re a schizophrenic and a menace to society. You should be on drugs in a mental institution, like the Son of Sam. What’s the difference between God or a dog talking to you? It’s still a voice in your head. That means you’re certifiably fucking crazy!"


mine has more worries about money in it...
and women...
but otherwise is remarkably similar...

Stay Free! Daily: No, I'm happy to see you

Stay Free! Daily: No, I'm happy to see you:
"The article has reviews of package-enhancing briefs, including some that feel 'like wearing your mother's underwear.' I don't know the reviewer so ... is that a good thing? Are they roomy? Silky? Incredibly creepy? Newsweek doesn't let on, and if I try to figure it out next Thanksgiving, it would be the last one I spend with family."

Hmmm...
think I'll go with CREEPY!

This is Pop!: Starbucks to release Dylan bootleg

This is Pop!: Starbucks to release Dylan bootleg

ok...
this is one instance where I have to encourage everyone to just download this and send bob a dollar or something...
really...

mathletes gig

tomorrow night...
at a church
in sugarland
benefit for a women's shelter

think it starts around 6
we're playing around 8

3300 Austin Parkway
Sugarland, Tx

um...use google maps or something...

Joe says I'm not allowed to talk at this show...
and since it's in a church and for a women's shelter we won't be doing diaperland
or our song about animals raping one another...

breakage

this weekend - car, computer and bass...
car - brakes going out...
computer - video card going out
bass - don't make no noise

so, this paycheck is taking a hit before it even gets to the bank...
uh, yay?

and there's too much work to do to say much more...

oh yeah, failed my CCNA again...
whoohoo?

and there's a mathletes gig in sugarland tomorrow at a women's shelter benefit....
think we're playing at a church...
more details later...

Monday, June 27, 2005

Warrenellis.com � Zombie Dogs. ZOMBIE DOGS - file under :future zombie army!

Warrenellis.com � Zombie Dogs. ZOMBIE DOGS

The animals are considered scientifically dead, as they stop breathing and have no heartbeat or brain activity. But three hours later, their blood is replaced and the zombie dogs are brought back to life with an electric shock.

Click opera - June 26th, 2005 - ahh...The City

It's things like this make me wish I was in New York...
Click opera - June 26th, 2005: "The first day of 'I'll Speak, You Sing' was a success. Three tours came through the gallery, some people sat there for two hours listening, art world celebrities (Takashi Murakami!) dropped by and listened, chuckling, and the two most important critics of the New York art world came by and seemed to leave impressed: Jerry Saltz of the Village Voice and Roberta Smith of the New York Times. Saltz told me afterwards the show was great, and Smith stayed for 45 minutes taking notes. She also asked for pictures, so it looks like we may get a lead review in the Times next Friday or the one after. We shouldn't count chickens, but the reviews may well be good."