Arrrrr . . . . thump
April 13, 2009
Actually, I did have a picture of me . . .
and the dog probably would have done a better job of it:
April 12, 2009
Easter wasn’t bad . . .
Being an agnostic, I tend to keep my own counsel on certain popular aspects of the day. But the general concepts of resurrection and renewal are not bad.
This Easter is the first one I can remember in at least five years that wasn’t frigid, rainy or a combination of the two. In fact, it was a good day for an afternoon hike up the mountain above our little burg. The not-so-dark-Dark One agreed . . .
March 17, 2009
Here’s another reason to major in history, or at least read it more than once every few years . . .
The Credit Mobilier scandal of 1872 - a good reason to hold big business’ s and elected government’s collective feet to the fire on a regular basis.
“Crédit Mobilier of America was formed by George Francis Train, the vice-president in charge of publicity for the Union Pacific Railroad. Crédit Mobilier of America was designed to limit the liability of stockholders and maximize profits from construction with the hefty fees being paid by federal subsidies. The company also gave cheap shares of stock to members of Congress who agreed to support additional funding . . .
“It was claimed that the $72 million in contracts had been given to Crédit Mobilier for building a rail only worth $53 million. Union Pacific and other investors were left nearly bankrupt.”
Okay folks, and that was 57 years before the 1929 crash. Dubya, let’s go over the success of the “No Child Left Behind Act” again, shall we?
March 15, 2009
Cry me a river, you neo-fascist turd
Dick Cheney is aggrieved because Dubya didn’t pardon his familiar:
“I was clearly not happy that we, in effect, left Scooter sort of hanging in the wind,” Cheney said in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union with John King.” He acknowledged a “fundamental difference of opinion” with Bush on the matter.
A federal jury in Washington convicted Libby of lying and obstructing an investigation into who blew the cover of CIA officer Valerie Plame, whose husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, had criticized the Iraq war.
Bush earlier commuted Libby’s 2-1/2-year prison sentence but before leaving office in January, Bush refused to give Libby an outright pardon.
Cheney said Libby had been unjustly accused and deserved a pardon but Bush disagreed. It was one of the few areas that Cheney has publicly said he disagreed with Bush on during their eight years in the White House.
I’ve made my opinion of Dick Cheney clear in this blog many a time – from his term as Secretary of Defense to the last eight years of a neo-fascist pall over this country. But now, I truly think he is this country’s Beria or Feliks Dzerzhinskiy, or even a low-rent Himmler.
Please, Cheney, find yourself a lair with some self-destructive mountain militia.
March 13, 2009
Where have you gone, Louis Rukeyser? Our nation holds its lonely eyes to you . .
If anyone ever questions or trivializes the role of satire and humor in society, they should remember this 10-minute segment.
Especially in a time where Citibank is hosting conference calls – on our tax dime – to encourage union-busting and who-knows-what-else.
What Stewart did is in the best tradition of Petroleum V. Nasby, Herblock, Samuel Clemens, Mort Sahl, George Carlin, Tom Lehrer and hosts of other humorists – ridicule, embarass, shame, humiliate and destroy anything that would prey upon society.
This society needs a huge sweep to remind ‘big business,’ ‘Wall Street,’ and every other over-dominant segment of the American business and political scene that acting like Charles Keating did in the years leading up the the savings and loan scandals of the 1980s may not be child molestation but is just about as legally and morally defensible as being a child molester.
And while we’re at it on a bleak Friday afternoon, please allow Rush Limbaugh to continue broadcasting and expressing his opinion. Part of a free society is having the right to express one’s opinions and having the responsibility to defend the logic and rationality of those opinions.
And please allow Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele the right to express his political views for the same reason – even if he lacks the intellectual weight to generate rational policy and philosophical positions.
By the way – even Louis Rukeyser got caught violating federal trading rules, so be thankful, Jim Cramer. Be very, very thankful.
March 6, 2009
Oh Brother, Where Art thou Caste?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7923190.stm
I’ve already been given inspiration to write – if I ever got into the screenwriting biz – a Bollywood adaptation of the Coen Brothers’ and Homer’s big screen epic, “Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?”
From the BBC (be sure to whistle the first couple of bars of “Liliburlero” first . . .)
“India’s governing Congress party has acquired the rights to Jai Ho – the Oscar-winning song from the movie Slumdog Millionaire.
Party officials say the song will be used as part of the election campaign to publicise Congress achievements.
The general election in India will take place between 16 April and 13 May. Counting is due on 16 May.
British director Danny Boyle’s Slumdog, based in the slums of the Indian city of Mumbai (Bombay), won eight Oscars.
‘Performed well’
Bollywood composer AR Rahman and lyricist Gulzar won the Best Song Oscar for Jai Ho, literally meaning victory.
With its catchy tune and uplifting lyrics, Jai Ho has become immensely popular with the public in India.
Congress Party spokesman Manish Tiwari told the BBC the achievements of the government deserved to be saluted and the song best explained that.
“Our party has performed well, be it in governance or in its pro-poor policies,” Mr Tiwari said.
But a senior leader of the main opposition Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Prakash Javdekar, told Reuters news agency: “This song will ensure their defeat because it will remind every Indian that millions of people still have to stay in slums because of faulty Congress policies.” “
One of the key scenes already came to me in a flash of twisted inspiration, as Pappy O’Nehru (played with suitably restrained, yet ebullient populism by Ben Kingsley) arrives at the Congress Party rally to find that the Soggy Bengal Boys are perfoming ‘Jai Ho’ to a standing, enthusiastically screaming crowd.
A homespun-and-turban -wearing George Clooney (he’ll probably jump into this with financing – the sacrifices we have to make for art) leans over to his sweetheart at the dignitaries table and stretches his fake beard, in a burst of comic relief designed to set the stage for an extended musical number leading into the arrival of the closet Kashmir separatist candidate (John Rhys Davies or Alfred Molina – I’m still tossing that stereotype around). The separatist unintentionally exposes his true colors and is dragged away by Congress loyalists.
O’Nehru then climbs on stage and teases his departed rival for being less than non-violent, to the laughter and applause of the audience. He then brings Clooney and the Soggy Bengal Boys to hand and exacts a public promise that they have renounced their ways.
“You will support Congress in the April elections, won’t you?” O’Nehru asks Clooney in a stern yet fatherly way, to which Clooney ferently asserts his agreement.
O’Nehru and the Soggy Bengal Boys then line up for a pull-out-all-the-stops rendition of “Jai Ho.”
I’m still trying to figure out how to do the lynching scene, although the Ganges at flood stage should be easy enough.
I’m a believer . . . .
Confession: If I had ever had to hang out with the Monkees, I would have hung out with Mike Nesmith and Peter Tork. Micky Dolenz was just a little wound up and Davy Jones still has to apologize for that Brady Bunch appearance . . .
Anyway, Pete, I’m rooting for you on this one:
Peter Tork, a former member of the 1960s pop group the Monkees, says he has a rare form of head and neck cancer, but the prognosis is good.
The 67-year-old Tork had surgery Wednesday in New York. His spokeswoman says he is doing well and will begin radiation treatment after a short recovery period.
He announced on his Web site Tuesday that he has been diagnosed with adenoid cystic carcinoma on the lower region of his tongue. He says it’s an uncommon but slow-growing type of cancer, and it hasn’t spread beyond the initial site.
February 26, 2009
Thank you Rain for boosting my self esteem!
As Sly Stone would say in a situation like this, “I want to thank you/for letting me/be myself’/again!”
Congratulations, you’re rabies!
Transmitted by rabid animals, you’re most commonly found infecting creatures such as raccoons, skunks, bats and foxes. But don’t worry, you affect humans too, causing either paralysis or hyperactivity in your advanced stages, and ultimately death.
Your most famous symptom is hypersalviation – that delightful foaming at the mouth that we have come to know and indeed love. However, you can also cause hallucination; think of the fun you could have at parties!
If you wish, you can proudly tell the world that you kill dogs . . .
Which Horrible Affliction are you?
A Rum and Monkey disease.
