Hans W. Bush, a cousin of the Resident, has pulled a few strings, and it appears that the Nobel Peace Prize is now going to go to George W. Bush, kleptomaniac -- who now insists on being called "The Prince of Peace".
When asked what he was going to do with the prize, Mr. Bush said he would like to use it as a pretext to go to war with Iran, Syria, Turkey, Blogistan, Amsterdam, and Paris. Maybe Atlantis. "But first, i think I need to clear some tumbleweeds back in Crawford. Let my brain rest a bit. Peace is hard work. Hard." And when asked what the future might bring, Bush said that he was still hoping for Baseball Commissioner.
Back at CurrentTV headquarters, Al Gore is fending off rumours that he was trying to steal the coveted prize from Bush, and an ad hoc panel of impartial Floridians told Frank Luntz that Gore should just move on. "If Bush has the prize, it's obvious he won it!", said one of the pathetic fascists.
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Hans W. Bush, a cousin of the Resident, has pulled a few strings, and it appears that the Nobel Peace Prize is now going to go to George W. Bush, kleptomaniac -- who now insists on being called "The Prince of Peace".
When asked what he was going to do with the prize, Mr. Bush said he would like to use it as a pretext to go to war with Iran, Syria, Turkey, Blogistan, Amsterdam, and Paris. Maybe Atlantis. "But first, i think I need to clear some tumbleweeds back in Crawford. Let my brain rest a bit. Peace is hard work. Hard." And when asked what the future might bring, Bush said that he was still hoping for Baseball Commissioner.
Back at CurrentTV headquarters, Al Gore is fending off rumours that he was trying to steal the coveted prize from Bush, and an ad hoc panel of impartial Floridians told Frank Luntz that Gore should just move on. "If Bush has the prize, it's obvious he won it!", said one of the pathetic fascists.
When asked if he thought that Bush deserved to award, he candidly revealed that he thought it was actually going to go to John Edwards for his work at ending poverty around the world.
Asked about this comment, and what he thought about Bush's amazing victory, he said "the system is rigged", and then went on to say that he has learned his lesson, and that he will not be chided into allowing Bush to hi-jack reality yet again. "This BushWorld fantasy has got to end."
Besides, Edwards said, today is Iddybud's birthday, and the law of synchronicity favors a Gore victory, as that was what the great blogmeistress had stated as her desired birthday gift...and she is in harmony with the Tao.
I'm sure scientists will be debating these results for decades, maybe centuries. History is, alas, the final fiction.
Lesson 1: Nothing lasts forever.
Lesson 2: Carpe millennium.
Showing posts with label Gore. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gore. Show all posts
Friday, October 12, 2007
Sunday, February 11, 2007
The Transformational Joy of Music
There are many sucky things about life. Music ain't necessarily one of them. In fact music can be one of life's higher medicines. It's a shame so many people never veer beyond the official "top 40" and discover the exotic medicinals that lie beyond.
An example of what I mean can be heard in the work of Gorecki, who is cool even if only because his name contains Gore, who was, as everyone knows, the first hero of the 21st century.
But check out Gorecki's 3rd symphony...the "sorrowful symphony". You may want to skip right to the 2nd and 3rd movements, which, I think, are the most sublime. I have found, over repeated listenings, that around 6 minutes into the 3rd movement, my psyche experiences a transformation, and yes, a joyful transformation -- A release almost, from the sorrow that preceded it. I suspect others have also felt this.
I have also felt this transformative power in the works of Arvo Part, Lisa Gerrard, Andrea Bocelli, Mark Isham, Ennio Morrocone, Phillip Glass, Roberta Flack, Sibelius, and others.
When coupled with images, this transformative music can really cause a spirit to soar, offer repose, or induce all manner of magics. The love theme in "Life is Beautiful", the final climax of climaxes scene in "Cinema Paradiso", the epiphany in "Truman Show" where Truman cracks his own cosmic egg, as it were, and begins beating against that final prison wall, crying out for freedom.
Without the music these scenes could never be so transformative.
I'd be interested in hearing of the favorite scenes of other Taverners.
An example of what I mean can be heard in the work of Gorecki, who is cool even if only because his name contains Gore, who was, as everyone knows, the first hero of the 21st century.
But check out Gorecki's 3rd symphony...the "sorrowful symphony". You may want to skip right to the 2nd and 3rd movements, which, I think, are the most sublime. I have found, over repeated listenings, that around 6 minutes into the 3rd movement, my psyche experiences a transformation, and yes, a joyful transformation -- A release almost, from the sorrow that preceded it. I suspect others have also felt this.
I have also felt this transformative power in the works of Arvo Part, Lisa Gerrard, Andrea Bocelli, Mark Isham, Ennio Morrocone, Phillip Glass, Roberta Flack, Sibelius, and others.
When coupled with images, this transformative music can really cause a spirit to soar, offer repose, or induce all manner of magics. The love theme in "Life is Beautiful", the final climax of climaxes scene in "Cinema Paradiso", the epiphany in "Truman Show" where Truman cracks his own cosmic egg, as it were, and begins beating against that final prison wall, crying out for freedom.
Without the music these scenes could never be so transformative.
I'd be interested in hearing of the favorite scenes of other Taverners.
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Real Men Can Handle the Truth : Soldiers ARE dropouts, killers and rapists.
American soldiers are on the top shelf of humanity. They are your Gandhis, your Martin Luther Kings, your Immanuel Kants. They are as great as Rumi and Lao T'se. They invent things, write great novels and compose the world's greatest symphonies. They have PhDs from Harvard and Berkeley and Chapel Hill. They are the world's greatest healers. No one is smarter than an American Soldier. No one has a bigger heart.
On the other hand, there are always anomalies. As such there are also American soldiers who are the opposite of the above. Only recently did the military discuss lowering the standards and accepting drop-outs. Largely because of fact that people are less willing to walk into a fire (unless of course you are a Hero...who can also fly, stop time and so on) recruiters are accepting lower standards, thus, themselves, perpetuating the egregious lowering of standards. But the standards were sadly low from the top and beginning. It's what they call "trickle-down" or "drink this".
Kerry was stupid because, unlike the more clever George, he didn't simply say, when service called, ""Could you take care of this for me?", leave the task to willing dupes like the great Prince Albert Gore Vidal Sassoon, and his evil-twin Osama bin Franklin Roosevelt Greer Garson Kanin Abel Baruch...Sassoon, of course.
Limbaugh, on Cloud 1, claims to have not parodied Michael J. Fox.
Apparently he didn't realize that in becoming, temporarily, someone clearly superior in every way, Rush got to raise his Being significantly before having to go back inside the bowling alley bar of his Mammonical and selfish little life of Me, Me, Me.
I Ching say "Ego take wrong message and run wrong way."
On the other hand, there are always anomalies. As such there are also American soldiers who are the opposite of the above. Only recently did the military discuss lowering the standards and accepting drop-outs. Largely because of fact that people are less willing to walk into a fire (unless of course you are a Hero...who can also fly, stop time and so on) recruiters are accepting lower standards, thus, themselves, perpetuating the egregious lowering of standards. But the standards were sadly low from the top and beginning. It's what they call "trickle-down" or "drink this".
Kerry was stupid because, unlike the more clever George, he didn't simply say, when service called, ""Could you take care of this for me?", leave the task to willing dupes like the great Prince Albert Gore Vidal Sassoon, and his evil-twin Osama bin Franklin Roosevelt Greer Garson Kanin Abel Baruch...Sassoon, of course.
Limbaugh, on Cloud 1, claims to have not parodied Michael J. Fox.
Apparently he didn't realize that in becoming, temporarily, someone clearly superior in every way, Rush got to raise his Being significantly before having to go back inside the bowling alley bar of his Mammonical and selfish little life of Me, Me, Me.
I Ching say "Ego take wrong message and run wrong way."
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Clinton Global Initiative: Iddybud Chosen to Report on World Elite
Small Group of Excellent Bloggers Attend Future-Creating Event
"The best way to predict the future is the create it."
First Lady Laura Bush and former President Bill Clinton
Jude Camwell, the blogger known as "Iddybud" was among a mere handful of bloggers, including Barbara O'Brien (Mahablog) and Peter Daou of Salon.com's Daou Report, chosen to attend and report on the Clinton Global Initiative in Manhattan this week. The 3-day event has gathered a collection of leaders and thinkers most rare in human history. Along with many world kings and queens are such business and government leaders as First Lady Laura Bush, President Pervez Musharraf, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, President Hamid Karzai, King Abdullah II bin Al Hussein, Elie Wiesel, Ted Turner, Warren Buffett, Bill and Melinda Gates, Rupert Murdoch, Secretary-General Kofi Annan, The Right Honorable Gordon Brown, Al Gore, former presidents Jimmy Carter and (of course) Bill Clinton (with Hillary also playing an important role), President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Vice Prime Minister Shimon Peres, The Honorable Dr. Javier Solana, Gerry Adams, Dr. Madeleine K. Albright, Wesley Clark, Thomas L. Friedman, David Freeman, Vartan Gregorian, Robert Edward Rubin, Jeffrey Sachs, media giants such as Tom Brokaw, Diane Sawyer, Judy Woodruff, Fareed Zakaria, George Stephanopoulos, Laura Rozen and Katie Couric, and many more. Kudos to Jude and fellow bloggers, as well as the Initiative which Jude says is a most positive ray of hope in an otherwise dark future.
"The best way to predict the future is the create it."
First Lady Laura Bush and former President Bill Clinton
Jude Camwell, the blogger known as "Iddybud" was among a mere handful of bloggers, including Barbara O'Brien (Mahablog) and Peter Daou of Salon.com's Daou Report, chosen to attend and report on the Clinton Global Initiative in Manhattan this week. The 3-day event has gathered a collection of leaders and thinkers most rare in human history. Along with many world kings and queens are such business and government leaders as First Lady Laura Bush, President Pervez Musharraf, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, President Hamid Karzai, King Abdullah II bin Al Hussein, Elie Wiesel, Ted Turner, Warren Buffett, Bill and Melinda Gates, Rupert Murdoch, Secretary-General Kofi Annan, The Right Honorable Gordon Brown, Al Gore, former presidents Jimmy Carter and (of course) Bill Clinton (with Hillary also playing an important role), President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Vice Prime Minister Shimon Peres, The Honorable Dr. Javier Solana, Gerry Adams, Dr. Madeleine K. Albright, Wesley Clark, Thomas L. Friedman, David Freeman, Vartan Gregorian, Robert Edward Rubin, Jeffrey Sachs, media giants such as Tom Brokaw, Diane Sawyer, Judy Woodruff, Fareed Zakaria, George Stephanopoulos, Laura Rozen and Katie Couric, and many more. Kudos to Jude and fellow bloggers, as well as the Initiative which Jude says is a most positive ray of hope in an otherwise dark future.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
McCain & Lieberman to launch "Arrogant Has-Been Party"
David Brooks dying to jump from sinking GOP ship
David Brooks: 'McCain-Lieberman Party' still emerging
Moderate Republicans need to sit on their hands this election, and help restore some goodness and principle to the system. Don't let your party be taken over by evil fools like Hagee and Limbaugh, who are paid royally to lie lie lie...and stir up hatred. Moderate Republicans are better than that. Time to prove it before it, and you, are too late.
David Brooks, whom I like and respect, is also better than a watered down middling faux center party. Lieberman is a Rightwing ideologue who loves money way too much. Come on David. Face it. The Democrats are better people. Instead of licking the boot of some worshipped superior in hopes for more and more dollars, Democrats look out for those less fortunate, and can easily tell the bribesmiths to go shove it. In other words Democrats are more like Jesus, Gandhi, Abraham, Martin and John... while the Immoderate Republicans are only like Abramoff, Hagee and Rush.
Democrats are the stewards of the earth, like Gore. And stewards of the poor, like Edwards.
Princes of Peace, not Presidents of War.
Lieberman once said: "If you want to live like a Republican, you need to vote like a Democrat."
I take it he wants to live like a Republican. I guess he is impressed by the corrupt, jaded, mediocre, bloodthirsty, Mammoniacal, greedy, selfish, ego-centric, micranimous, war-profiteering, war-mongering liars and thieves.
Who knows. Maybe he was talking about moderate Republicans, but there is a reek of obsolescence among this diminishing sect.
David Brooks: 'McCain-Lieberman Party' still emerging
According to New York Times columnist David Brooks, theIf this is all the imagination Mr. Brooks can muster, I'm sorry but no thanks. Moderate Republicans need to realize that the immoderate Republicans are corrupt, jaded, mediocre, hateful, incompetent, bloodthirsty, Mammoniacal, greedy, self-righteous, ego-centric, micranimous, war-profiteering, war-mongering, murderous, liars and thieves. And many of them can't wait for WWIII. I guess they hate children as well.
"three major parties in America" are "the Democratic Party, the Republican Party
and the McCain-Lieberman Party," and "all were on display Tuesday night."
"The Democratic Party was represented by its rising force -- Ned Lamont on a
victory platform with the net roots exulting before him and Al Sharpton smiling
just behind," Brooks opines in Thursday's edition of The Times. "The Republican
Party was represented by its collapsing old guard -- scandal-tainted Tom DeLay
trying to get his name removed from the November ballot."
"And the McCain-Lieberman Party was represented by Joe
Lieberman himself, giving a concession speech that explained why polarized
primary voters shouldn't be allowed to define the choices in American politics,"
Brooks continues.
Moderate Republicans need to sit on their hands this election, and help restore some goodness and principle to the system. Don't let your party be taken over by evil fools like Hagee and Limbaugh, who are paid royally to lie lie lie...and stir up hatred. Moderate Republicans are better than that. Time to prove it before it, and you, are too late.
David Brooks, whom I like and respect, is also better than a watered down middling faux center party. Lieberman is a Rightwing ideologue who loves money way too much. Come on David. Face it. The Democrats are better people. Instead of licking the boot of some worshipped superior in hopes for more and more dollars, Democrats look out for those less fortunate, and can easily tell the bribesmiths to go shove it. In other words Democrats are more like Jesus, Gandhi, Abraham, Martin and John... while the Immoderate Republicans are only like Abramoff, Hagee and Rush.
Democrats are the stewards of the earth, like Gore. And stewards of the poor, like Edwards.
Princes of Peace, not Presidents of War.
Lieberman once said: "If you want to live like a Republican, you need to vote like a Democrat."
I take it he wants to live like a Republican. I guess he is impressed by the corrupt, jaded, mediocre, bloodthirsty, Mammoniacal, greedy, selfish, ego-centric, micranimous, war-profiteering, war-mongering liars and thieves.
Who knows. Maybe he was talking about moderate Republicans, but there is a reek of obsolescence among this diminishing sect.
Friday, July 28, 2006
How to Cause the World to NOT End
It's a whole new world...
It's an entirely diffident point of view.
In the very very secret and very unique and interesting "World Maintenence Manual", there are a number of things that Juan may do in order to prevent the world from ending, which is considered, by some, to be mauvaise foi and entirely unfun. I disagree, but not with that.
Included in the list:
So you see, it is not too late. You don't have to give up and lose everything just because a moron from Texas is so power-crazed that he wants to bring it all down with him. Let HIM go down instead, then laugh at him derisively for having such evil and adolescent notions. Send in the clowns, and lock up the serial killing mass murderers.
Future and Fun begin with "f. u..."
So tell your president "F. U." next time you see him.
This will cause the world to not end.
(Cross-posted on The American Street)
It's an entirely diffident point of view.
In the very very secret and very unique and interesting "World Maintenence Manual", there are a number of things that Juan may do in order to prevent the world from ending, which is considered, by some, to be mauvaise foi and entirely unfun. I disagree, but not with that.
Included in the list:
- Make war, itself, a crime. Arrest and incarcerate all those who participate.
- Truth in advertising. Call "War" by its real names: "Mass Murder" and "Serial Killing", and consider all those involved mass murderers and serial killers.
As Chaplin noted, "numbers sanctify". Not good. If one man kills, he is a murderer, but if a thousand kill, they are heroes. Desanctify number. Truth in advertising.
- When you find a leader who consistently makes the wrong decision (like George W. Bush)...use him! Ask him his view on the problem, and then do THE OPPOSITE of what he says. If, for example, he says "no ceasefire", know that the correct answer is "yes ceasefire". Most smart people know this already, but just look at the buffoons who still "stay the course" with every daft dictum of the dafter dictator, ever-dialed into Dick the Dastard: Dark Deity.
- Realize that the Foolwells of the world are literally banking on Armageddon. Deny them their Satanic visions. Create a a long, flexible tube wide enough for, say, Rush Limbaugh or Jerry Foolwell, and then put one end in the vacuum of Space: the final frontier. Then simply suck these Foolwells out into space. It may be the only sucking they've received in their ugly waste of a life. Very good for world maintenence, since these thumping egos are but shills for those who profit from the earth's rapine and destruction. What we call tree fuckers. See also: Exxon/Mobil, Halliburton
- Empower all the world's women. Men have devolved to the point where their mass-murdering wiles freely include women and children. No woman would stand for this. Women have to carpe the diem... and millennium.
- Elect wise leaders with a record of world maintenence, like Al Gore, John Edwards, Robert Redford, Constance Rice or The Yogurthead Man. Sex-changes are easy these days, even fun! (I've done it three times now, and am now working on my second species change. Genus is next.)
So you see, it is not too late. You don't have to give up and lose everything just because a moron from Texas is so power-crazed that he wants to bring it all down with him. Let HIM go down instead, then laugh at him derisively for having such evil and adolescent notions. Send in the clowns, and lock up the serial killing mass murderers.
Future and Fun begin with "f. u..."
So tell your president "F. U." next time you see him.
This will cause the world to not end.
(Cross-posted on The American Street)
Thursday, June 22, 2006
John Edwards, "The Real Deal", lays out his vision at National Press Club
My conscience and intuition tells me there are only two people who deserve to be at the top of the Democratic Ticket, and indeed, the United States of America. One of them is Al Gore, the other is John Edwards.
Here is one reason why Senator Edwards should be our leader. He is one of the ones we've been waiting for.
Friday, June 09, 2006
Zarqawi's Last Words
Before taking two bombs and going to sleep, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi spoke the following words:
Ibm aq abu musta jahisc moblab suwami qal sniti, barumbi tanaji ikn kinh zaflamid ouches
boumboum carash yawi zawi pudinanpawi, haoduz yir gahdin growe.
Gitt thufuk oudam ifaz, lim ba pygboi sukon midik u peesa shite.
Translation:
Laying here looking at the ceiling, someone lays a sheet across my chest
Something warm is flowing down my fingers, pain is flowing all through my back.
Life is flowing out my body, pain is flowing out with my blood
The sheets are red and moist where I am lying, God in heaven teach me how to die
Moments after having breathed his last, a crowd of exuberant Iraqis gathered in the streets and began to chant:
Ibm aq abu musta jahisc moblab suwami qal sniti, barumbi tanaji ikn kinh zaflamid ouches
boumboum carash yawi zawi pudinanpawi, haoduz yir gahdin growe.
Gitt thufuk oudam ifaz, lim ba pygboi sukon midik u peesa shite.
Translation:
Laying here looking at the ceiling, someone lays a sheet across my chest
Something warm is flowing down my fingers, pain is flowing all through my back.
Life is flowing out my body, pain is flowing out with my blood
The sheets are red and moist where I am lying, God in heaven teach me how to die
Moments after having breathed his last, a crowd of exuberant Iraqis gathered in the streets and began to chant:
"Abu Musab al-Zarqawi"All this while doing their latest dance craze, "The Twist".
(to the tune of "My Favorite Things")
Bombdrops on Moses and whisky and kittens,
bright copper cattle and war's wooden shippins,
brown paper packages tied up with strings,
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Cream-coated yonies and crisp penile strudels,
Gore bails and slay hells and schnitzels on poodles.
Bombers that fly with "Rev. Moon" on their wings.
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Girls in white dresses with blue satin burkas
snowflakes that stay in my nose and mind circus,
silver white weapons that melt anything,
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
When the Bush bites, when Cheney stings,
when I'm feeling bad,
I simply remember Musab Zarqawi,
and then I don't feel so mad.
Bombdrops on Moses who whispers to kittens,
bright copper cattle and war's wooden shippins,
brown paper packages tied up with strings,
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Al Gore on Jay Leno TONIGHT!
AND
North Carolina's Ryan Adams and Tift Merritt on Austin City Limits.
Decisions, decisions...
North Carolina's Ryan Adams and Tift Merritt on Austin City Limits.
Decisions, decisions...
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Saturday, May 13, 2006
Al Gore on Saturday Night Live (SNL) in Landslide Performance
The great Al Gore was on SNL playing the President, and you know what? He could just show this to everyone, and be shoehorned into the presidency in a landslide.
Bravo!
But Al...you should have chosen John Edwards!!!
Still time!
Monday, March 20, 2006
Anonymoses TV : Week of March 20, 2006
Juggle with the Beatles
CLICK ON LINKS BELOW FOR MORE AMAZING TV.
BLOGGING
What is a blog? - Robert Scoble
What is a blog? - David Sifry
What is a blog? - Chris Pirillo - Money with blogs
What is a blog? - Howard Rheingold
Dutch Bloggies 2006
POLITICS
Eisenhower's Farewell Address to the American People
PNAC and the NEOCONs: wanted a new Pearl Harbor
Uncovered: The Whole Truth About The Iraq War
George Lakoff on Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think
"Stick It" from Boston Legal (James Spader)
The Boat and the Bomb : 20th Anniversary of the Bombing of the Rainbow Warrior
Iraq War - Chomsky
Election 2004: Republican Terror Manipulations, How They Work and Why
Al Franken, The Truth (with Jokes)
Being Opinionated in America: Maureen Dowd & Thomas Friedman
George Soros - The Bubble of American Supremacy
Nuclear Age Peace Foundation: 20th Annual Evening for Peace - Jonathan Schell and Harry Belafonte
Journalists Under Fire: Vietnam & Iraq
Iraq War - Staff Sergeant Jimmy Massey - Killing Civillians in Iraq
The Illuminati Families who Rule the World
Charlie Rose - Gore Vidal / Pierre Salinger
Frank Zappa on CNN's Crossfire (1986)
Clip from Manufacturing Consent
John and Yoko's Year of Peace
Cornel West - Democracy Matters
The Secret Government - Bill Moyers
John Edwards campaign speech
Speech by Al Gore on January 16th on Domestic Spying
A Conversation with William J. Clinton
HUMOR
Problems of Right-wing activists
Ed Thompson's Trumpet Duet
Long John Johnson, all the livelong day - Cat talking
Choco Party - Japanese Commercial
The Fartlighter
Chris Bliss - live comedy performance
Chris Bliss - television appearances
Monty Pythons the Knights and the Holy Grail
Farting Preacher
Titanic reenacted in 50 seconds
SPIRITUALITY
God's Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It
His Holiness - The XIV Dalai Lama
Krishnamurti with Trungpa Rimpoche
Lost Secrets of the Sacred Ark - Laurence Gardner
RUMI: POET OF THE HEART
FILM
Ritual In Transfigured Time - Maya Deren
Le voyage dans la lune - Melies
les francais au travail - Lumiere
Metropolis [1927] - Fritz Lang
un chien andalou - Luis Bunuel & Salvadore Dali
Man Ray Avant Garde Collection - Surrealist masterpieces
L'AGE D'OR [1930] - Luis Bunuel
Zero De Conduite 1933 - Jean Vigo
Battleship Potemkin - Eisenstein
Rhythm 21 - Hans Richter
Ballet mecanique - Fernand Leger
Nosferatu [1922]
His Girl Friday
My Man Godfrey $$
MUSIC
Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring - Josh Groban
I Saw Her Standing There - The Beatles
The Beatles - I'm Down - Live at Shea Stadium 1965
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds Music Video by The Beatles
John Coltrane - Naima Live 1965
John Coltrane - Live 1963
SummerFest 2004: Chick Corea: Rehearsal
The Kinks "Well Respected Man" on Beat Beat Beat!
Ten Years After - I'm going home (live woodstock)
Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead Tribute
Dave Clark Five - "Catch Us If You Can"
dead can dance - milan 2005
Jon Anderson - tour of the universe tour
Enya Tribute to WTC 9/11
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds "Nature Boy" Music Video
CULTURE
Tim Leary before leaving us
Robert Anton Wilson, Part One
Robert Anton Wilson, Part Two
County Sligo, Ireland
Gurdjieff inParis (1949)
Gurdjieff & Friends tour France (1949)
Concert of Sacred Music by Gurdjieff
NASA - Hubble view of the universe
Life Beyond Earth and the Mind of Man 1975 - Ashley Montagu
African American Lives - Henry Louis Gates III
Maurice Sendak's "Where the Wild Things Are"
ArtsPass: John Singer Sargent 1856-1925
UNC vs Duke - Matt jumping over Bonfires
Andy Griffith Show: Andy Discovers America
The Biltmore Estate - Asheville, North Carolina
Saturday, March 18, 2006
Anonymoses recommends: Google : Current TV
tv
The Network Created by the People Who Watch It
On Google Video Search (also recommended)
Google Video Search allows you to preview snippets of videos on a browser/thumbnail format, or you can watch the entire video by clicking into it. In some cases, there is a charge for viewing. Most seem to be free. You can even show off your dancing abilities!
Johnny Bell and Gotham Chopra talk about Current TV, and how it is part of the 2nd Internet Revolution. (Gregory Mantell Show)
Current TV was the brainchild of former Vice President and Internet pioneer, Al Gore.
Huge kudos to all those involved in creating this excellent alternative to the whoring Snail TV.
Hard to imagine Bush doing anything useful, like this, for humanity.
I predict Current TV, Lulu.com, YouTV and the like will drive a nail into the coffin which is the mainstream corporate propaganda machine.
The Network Created by the People Who Watch It
On Google Video Search (also recommended)
Google Video Search allows you to preview snippets of videos on a browser/thumbnail format, or you can watch the entire video by clicking into it. In some cases, there is a charge for viewing. Most seem to be free. You can even show off your dancing abilities!
Johnny Bell and Gotham Chopra talk about Current TV, and how it is part of the 2nd Internet Revolution. (Gregory Mantell Show)
Current TV was the brainchild of former Vice President and Internet pioneer, Al Gore.
Huge kudos to all those involved in creating this excellent alternative to the whoring Snail TV.
Hard to imagine Bush doing anything useful, like this, for humanity.
I predict Current TV, Lulu.com, YouTV and the like will drive a nail into the coffin which is the mainstream corporate propaganda machine.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
In the Works
NEXT ISSUE
Body of Ancient Man who discovered Fire Found in Siberia
Fire-eating dogs now being bred to replace traditional fire hose
Charlotte Poultroon Gets Serious Wedgie
How Sept 11 Caused the World to Stay the Same
Deloitte: "I'm just looking for some Touche"
Over-eager Oilman Strikes Hell
Conversation Deemed Spuerfluous, Deipnosophists Up in Arms
Gore Gets Mad and De-Invents the Internet Causing World Panic
Mt. Everest to be ground down and auctioned off in sugar packets on eBay
7 Habits of Highly Habituated Addicts
Why cats can beat up dogs but rarely waste the energy
Sexual Congress: A New Page
Want to lose weight? Eat what skinny people eat, stupid!
How to know if you have class
Avant-garde Lovemaking
"Secret Ingredient" in beer found more addictive than crack. US government still prohibited from demanding Ingredient labels.
Save your hair! New hair religion stops it from going to Hell
Trees found to have canine souls. . . discovered in bark
Unborn fetus discovered masturbating in womb
Wheelchair-disabled sue stand-up comedians in Class Action suit
Cordless dropcords may cause insanity
Salted beer nuts found to cause alcoholism
New poll shows women really prefer beta males
Do you believe in love after love? NY woman has sex with 2000 partners!
"The Matriot" slated to begin production in August
The real reason you can't see peepees on TV
Toll-roads taking their toll
Indo-European roots and berries
How to fool others into thinking you are likeable
Body of Ancient Man who discovered Fire Found in Siberia
Fire-eating dogs now being bred to replace traditional fire hose
Charlotte Poultroon Gets Serious Wedgie
How Sept 11 Caused the World to Stay the Same
Deloitte: "I'm just looking for some Touche"
Over-eager Oilman Strikes Hell
Conversation Deemed Spuerfluous, Deipnosophists Up in Arms
Gore Gets Mad and De-Invents the Internet Causing World Panic
Mt. Everest to be ground down and auctioned off in sugar packets on eBay
7 Habits of Highly Habituated Addicts
Why cats can beat up dogs but rarely waste the energy
Sexual Congress: A New Page
Want to lose weight? Eat what skinny people eat, stupid!
How to know if you have class
Avant-garde Lovemaking
"Secret Ingredient" in beer found more addictive than crack. US government still prohibited from demanding Ingredient labels.
Save your hair! New hair religion stops it from going to Hell
Trees found to have canine souls. . . discovered in bark
Unborn fetus discovered masturbating in womb
Wheelchair-disabled sue stand-up comedians in Class Action suit
Cordless dropcords may cause insanity
Salted beer nuts found to cause alcoholism
New poll shows women really prefer beta males
Do you believe in love after love? NY woman has sex with 2000 partners!
"The Matriot" slated to begin production in August
The real reason you can't see peepees on TV
Toll-roads taking their toll
Indo-European roots and berries
How to fool others into thinking you are likeable
Monday, November 28, 2005
Who should the Military Trust?
This has made its rounds, but deserves repeating...
Democrats
* Richard Gephardt: Air National Guard, 1965-71.
* David Bonior: Staff Sgt., Air Force 1968-72.
* Tom Daschle: 1st Lt., Air Force SAC 1969-72.
* Al Gore: enlisted Aug. 1969; sent to Vietnam Jan. 1971 as an army
journalist in 20th Engineer Brigade.
* Bob Kerrey: Lt. j.g. Navy 1966-69; Medal of Honor, Vietnam.
* Daniel Inouye: Army 1943-47; Medal of Honor, WWII. He lost an arm.
* John Kerry: Lt., Navy 1966-70; Silver Star, Bronze Star with Combat V,
Purple Hearts.
* Charles Rangel: Staff Sgt., Army 1948-52; Bronze Star, Korea.
* Max Cleland: Captain, Army 1965-68; Silver Star & Bronze Star,
Vietnam.
* Ted Kennedy: Army, 1951-53.
* Tom Harkin: Lt., Navy, 1962-67; Naval Reserve, 1968-74.
* Jack Reed: Army Ranger, 1971-1979; Captain, Army Reserve 1979-91.
* Fritz Hollings: Army officer in WWII; Bronze Star and seven
campaign ribbons.
* Leonard Boswell: Lt. Col., Army 1956-76; Vietnam, DFCs, Bronze
Stars, and Soldier's Medal.
* Pete Peterson: Air Force Captain, POW. Purple Heart, Silver Star
and Legion of Merit.
* Mike Thompson: Staff sergeant, 173rd Airborne, Purple Heart.
* Bill McBride: Candidate for Fla. Governor. Marine in Vietnam; Bronze
Star
with Combat V.
* Gray Davis: Army Captain in Vietnam, Bronze Star.
* Pete Stark: Air Force 1955-57
* Chuck Robb: Vietnam
* Howell Heflin: Silver Star
* George McGovern: Silver Star & DFC during WWII.
* Bill Clinton: Did not serve. Student deferments. Entered draft but
received #311.
* Jimmy Carter: Seven years in the Navy.
* Walter Mondale: Army 1951-1953
* John Glenn: WWII and Korea; six DFCs and Air Medal with 18
Clusters.
* Tom Lantos: Served in Hungarian underground in WWII. Saved by Raoul
Wallenberg.
Republicans
* Dick Cheney: did not serve. Several deferments, the last by marriage. Seven deferments. Seven.
* Dennis Hastert: did not serve.
* Tom Delay: did not serve.
* Roy Blunt: did not serve.
* Bill Frist: did not serve.
* Mitch McConnell: did not serve.
* Rick Santorum: did not serve. Probably took time out of his homophobia.
* Trent Lott: did not serve. Hey, he needed the time to practice his racism.
* John Ashcroft: did not serve. Seven deferments to teach business.
* Jeb Bush: did not serve.
* Karl Rove: did not serve. Probably spent it studying Machiavelli.
* Saxby Chambliss: did not serve. "Bad knee." The man who attacked
Max Cleland's patriotism.
* Paul Wolfowitz: did not serve.
* Vin Weber: did not serve.
* Richard Perle: did not serve.
* Douglas Feith: did not serve.
* Eliot Abrams: did not serve.
* Richard Shelby: did not serve.
* Jon! Kyl: did not serve.
* Tim Hutchison: did not serve.
* Christopher Cox: did not serve.
* Newt Gingrich: did not serve.
* Don Rumsfeld: served in Navy (1954-57) as flight instructor.
* George W. Bush: failed to complete his six-year National Guard; got
assigned to Alabama so he could campaign for family friend running
for U.S. Senate; failed to show up for required medical exam,
disappeared from duty.
* Ronald Reagan: due to poor eyesight, served in a non-combat role
making movies. *And then confused the movies with real life.
* B-1 Bob Dornan: Consciously enlisted after fighting was over in Korea.
* Phil Gramm: did not serve.
* John McCain: Silver Star, Bronze Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart
and Distinguished Flying Cross.
* Dana Rohrabacher: did not serve.
* John M. McHugh: did not serve.
* JC Watts: did not serve.
* Jack Kemp: did not serve. "Knee problem," although continued
in NFL for 8 years.
* Dan Quayle: Journalism unit of the Indiana National Guard.
* Rudy Giuliani: did not serve.
* George Pataki: did not serve.
* Spencer Abraham: did not serve.
* John Engler: did not serve.
* Lindsey Graham: National Guard lawyer.
* Arnold Schwarzenegger: AWOL from Austrian army base.
Pundits & Preachers
* Sean Hannity: did not serve.
* Rush Limbaugh: did not serve (4-F with a 'pilonidal cyst.')
* Bill O'Reilly: did not serve.
* Michael Savage: did not serve.
* George Will: did not serve.
* Chris Matthews: did not serve.
* Paul Gigot: did not serve.
* Bill Bennett: did not serve.
* Pat Buchanan: did not serve.
* John Wayne: did not serve.
* Bill Kristol: did not serve.
* Kenneth Starr: did not serve.
* Antonin Scalia: did not serve.
* Clarence Thomas: did not serve. Needed the time to study harassment of women.
* Ralph Reed: did not serve.
* Michael Medved: did not serve.
* Charlie Daniels: did not serve.
* Ted Nugent: did not serve. (He only shoots at things that don't shoot
back.) Don't get me started on this long-haired sexist neo wingnut.
Democrats
* Richard Gephardt: Air National Guard, 1965-71.
* David Bonior: Staff Sgt., Air Force 1968-72.
* Tom Daschle: 1st Lt., Air Force SAC 1969-72.
* Al Gore: enlisted Aug. 1969; sent to Vietnam Jan. 1971 as an army
journalist in 20th Engineer Brigade.
* Bob Kerrey: Lt. j.g. Navy 1966-69; Medal of Honor, Vietnam.
* Daniel Inouye: Army 1943-47; Medal of Honor, WWII. He lost an arm.
* John Kerry: Lt., Navy 1966-70; Silver Star, Bronze Star with Combat V,
Purple Hearts.
* Charles Rangel: Staff Sgt., Army 1948-52; Bronze Star, Korea.
* Max Cleland: Captain, Army 1965-68; Silver Star & Bronze Star,
Vietnam.
* Ted Kennedy: Army, 1951-53.
* Tom Harkin: Lt., Navy, 1962-67; Naval Reserve, 1968-74.
* Jack Reed: Army Ranger, 1971-1979; Captain, Army Reserve 1979-91.
* Fritz Hollings: Army officer in WWII; Bronze Star and seven
campaign ribbons.
* Leonard Boswell: Lt. Col., Army 1956-76; Vietnam, DFCs, Bronze
Stars, and Soldier's Medal.
* Pete Peterson: Air Force Captain, POW. Purple Heart, Silver Star
and Legion of Merit.
* Mike Thompson: Staff sergeant, 173rd Airborne, Purple Heart.
* Bill McBride: Candidate for Fla. Governor. Marine in Vietnam; Bronze
Star
with Combat V.
* Gray Davis: Army Captain in Vietnam, Bronze Star.
* Pete Stark: Air Force 1955-57
* Chuck Robb: Vietnam
* Howell Heflin: Silver Star
* George McGovern: Silver Star & DFC during WWII.
* Bill Clinton: Did not serve. Student deferments. Entered draft but
received #311.
* Jimmy Carter: Seven years in the Navy.
* Walter Mondale: Army 1951-1953
* John Glenn: WWII and Korea; six DFCs and Air Medal with 18
Clusters.
* Tom Lantos: Served in Hungarian underground in WWII. Saved by Raoul
Wallenberg.
Republicans
* Dick Cheney: did not serve. Several deferments, the last by marriage. Seven deferments. Seven.
* Dennis Hastert: did not serve.
* Tom Delay: did not serve.
* Roy Blunt: did not serve.
* Bill Frist: did not serve.
* Mitch McConnell: did not serve.
* Rick Santorum: did not serve. Probably took time out of his homophobia.
* Trent Lott: did not serve. Hey, he needed the time to practice his racism.
* John Ashcroft: did not serve. Seven deferments to teach business.
* Jeb Bush: did not serve.
* Karl Rove: did not serve. Probably spent it studying Machiavelli.
* Saxby Chambliss: did not serve. "Bad knee." The man who attacked
Max Cleland's patriotism.
* Paul Wolfowitz: did not serve.
* Vin Weber: did not serve.
* Richard Perle: did not serve.
* Douglas Feith: did not serve.
* Eliot Abrams: did not serve.
* Richard Shelby: did not serve.
* Jon! Kyl: did not serve.
* Tim Hutchison: did not serve.
* Christopher Cox: did not serve.
* Newt Gingrich: did not serve.
* Don Rumsfeld: served in Navy (1954-57) as flight instructor.
* George W. Bush: failed to complete his six-year National Guard; got
assigned to Alabama so he could campaign for family friend running
for U.S. Senate; failed to show up for required medical exam,
disappeared from duty.
* Ronald Reagan: due to poor eyesight, served in a non-combat role
making movies. *And then confused the movies with real life.
* B-1 Bob Dornan: Consciously enlisted after fighting was over in Korea.
* Phil Gramm: did not serve.
* John McCain: Silver Star, Bronze Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart
and Distinguished Flying Cross.
* Dana Rohrabacher: did not serve.
* John M. McHugh: did not serve.
* JC Watts: did not serve.
* Jack Kemp: did not serve. "Knee problem," although continued
in NFL for 8 years.
* Dan Quayle: Journalism unit of the Indiana National Guard.
* Rudy Giuliani: did not serve.
* George Pataki: did not serve.
* Spencer Abraham: did not serve.
* John Engler: did not serve.
* Lindsey Graham: National Guard lawyer.
* Arnold Schwarzenegger: AWOL from Austrian army base.
Pundits & Preachers
* Sean Hannity: did not serve.
* Rush Limbaugh: did not serve (4-F with a 'pilonidal cyst.')
* Bill O'Reilly: did not serve.
* Michael Savage: did not serve.
* George Will: did not serve.
* Chris Matthews: did not serve.
* Paul Gigot: did not serve.
* Bill Bennett: did not serve.
* Pat Buchanan: did not serve.
* John Wayne: did not serve.
* Bill Kristol: did not serve.
* Kenneth Starr: did not serve.
* Antonin Scalia: did not serve.
* Clarence Thomas: did not serve. Needed the time to study harassment of women.
* Ralph Reed: did not serve.
* Michael Medved: did not serve.
* Charlie Daniels: did not serve.
* Ted Nugent: did not serve. (He only shoots at things that don't shoot
back.) Don't get me started on this long-haired sexist neo wingnut.
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Bill Clinton, like Gore and Edwards, acknowledge that Iraq Invasion was a big mistake
Jerusalem Post | Breaking News from Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World
Unlike many of the pussilanimous Democrats and nearly all the Repuppetlicans, Clinton, Gore and Edwards are using their eyes and minds...
Unlike many of the pussilanimous Democrats and nearly all the Repuppetlicans, Clinton, Gore and Edwards are using their eyes and minds...
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Rehnquist is dead
Now God or the Devil can explain to him why Bush v Gore was an opprobrious decision.
Remember that scenario that Al Gore talked about before the selection?
You wake up. The coffee is brewing, nice music on the radio, sunny outside...and the paper reads: "Gore Wins!"
OR You wake up. Sleet and freezing rain. Miserable weather. The newspaper is soaked.
Through the smears you can see "Bush Wins".
Well it has been Bushweather ever since. And has peaked with Katrina.
It rained on his inauguration. It rains wherever he has gone. The man against nature is finding that nature is also against him. And sadly, us.
Rehnquist was part of the coup that put Mr. Foulfeather into office.
I don't know him, so I won't miss him. Old people die. People with cancer die.
I feel sorry for his family.
He did, however, have some cool robes. And William is a pretty popular name.
But with all the suffering that America and the World has had to go through because of his poor decision-making, don't expect any great outpouring of sympathy. One man has died.
But thousands of others have died needlessly because of him.
I mourn for the thousands.
Mister Bush must be happy to know that Rehnquist's death knocked Katrina coverage off the Sunday talk shows.
Watch for the hairy Justice Scalia to take his place. And for weather to get even worse.
Remember that scenario that Al Gore talked about before the selection?
You wake up. The coffee is brewing, nice music on the radio, sunny outside...and the paper reads: "Gore Wins!"
OR You wake up. Sleet and freezing rain. Miserable weather. The newspaper is soaked.
Through the smears you can see "Bush Wins".
Well it has been Bushweather ever since. And has peaked with Katrina.
It rained on his inauguration. It rains wherever he has gone. The man against nature is finding that nature is also against him. And sadly, us.
Rehnquist was part of the coup that put Mr. Foulfeather into office.
I don't know him, so I won't miss him. Old people die. People with cancer die.
I feel sorry for his family.
He did, however, have some cool robes. And William is a pretty popular name.
But with all the suffering that America and the World has had to go through because of his poor decision-making, don't expect any great outpouring of sympathy. One man has died.
But thousands of others have died needlessly because of him.
I mourn for the thousands.
Mister Bush must be happy to know that Rehnquist's death knocked Katrina coverage off the Sunday talk shows.
Watch for the hairy Justice Scalia to take his place. And for weather to get even worse.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
ConvergeSouth: The Movie
OCTOBER 9, 2005
BLOGSBORO, NC
TARHEEL TAVERN
ConvergeSouth
It was a weekend unlike any other in this small Southern city. Celebrities and blogebrities were everywhere. You would trip on them as you walked. And if you ran, forget about it, collision with fame was a certitude. Anyone who was anyone was in Blogsboro to lend their support, influence and money to the blogtival, and to the historically African-American institution who was hosting the event this momentous and pivotal year. So far, over a million has been raised, which will go toward creating a "Blogospheric Studies" department at A & T University, along with scholarships and such, as well as other projects like the network of "poverty oases" hosted by the University of North Carolina, at their many branches -- with Greensboro, Chapel Hill and A & T triangulating as pioneers, soon to be in all branches.
(A "poverty oasis" is a place in the university where the poor and luckshy can come and gain valuable skills, connections, food and work. )
"Word of this event started to saturate the media by late summer", says blogger Synonymoses, "and before long Hollywood and Independent directors were fighting over the rights to covering the event.
Spielberg wanted to call his "Blogging Private Ryan", about war-bloggers during the current unpleasantness in Iraq.
Michael Moore pitched for "Blogging for Columbine", a story about how students are sublimating their violent urges and learning how not to kill people by killing time instead.
David Lynch's "Oil Peaks" is about Peak Oil and its coverage in the blogosphere.
The Farrelly Brothers' "Jog Blog" will star Jack Black as a jogging blogger.
Francis Ford Coppola is doing "The Blogfather" about Mister Ed Cone, pioneer and gentleman blogger.
George Lucas will do "Blog Wars" to get more of the anger out.
Gus Van Sant's "Even Cowgirls get the Blogs" is about how the blogosphere is now seeping from the Headland into the Heartland.
James Cameron pitched"Blogtanic" but retracted it when told it would not hold water.
John Hughes' "Blog Alone" is about a blogger's life prior to discovering the blogosphere.
John Sayles' "Blogwan" is a story about West Virginia bloggers who rebel against their ISP after The Bhagwan is reincarnated as Glenn Reynolds, who proceeds to make them all drive Rolls-Royces and chant nonsense in Hindi.
Jonathan Demme is working on "Stop Making Blogs" and the sequel, "Silence of the Blogs".
Kevin Costner's "Steppin' with Wolves" is about a night out with FOX executives.
Martin Scorsese's "Raging Blog" covers the more vituperative bloggers among us.
Mike Nichols' "Who's afraid of Virginia Blogs"is about the lack of blogging representation from Virginia, our state to the north (should you have forgotten).
Oliver Stone, what else?: "GWB"
Quentin Tarantino - "Blog Fiction", about the work of Billy the Blogging Wordjones and others.
Richard Linklater "Slack Blogger" is a blogumentary about yours truly.
Rob Reiner's "Spinal Blog" is about bogus blog musicians.
Robert Altman... "B*L*O*G"
Tim Robbins' "Blog Roberts", about the blogging of neo-Supreme, John Roberts and/or a simple love story about bloggers who are named Robert.
Steve Martin's "Blogfinger"is about Carpel-Tunnel syndrome.
Tim Burton's "Edward Bloggerhands"another movie about Carpel-Tunnel.
Woody Allen & Roman Polanski are whipping together "Young Girls Who Blog".
Robert Redford's "Horse Yeller" is a sort of cross between "Old Yeller" and "Horse Whisperer", only the character yells at his horse, mainly because he is still using dialup.
Spike Lee's "Blog the Right Thang" is a blogumentary joint about ConvergeSouth.
One mustn't overlook the music at this veritable Blogstock, this Blogapalooza, this Tangleblog. All the best bands in the South were in attendance. REM, Dave Matthews, James Taylor, Allman Brothers, Ryan Adams, Josh Joplin, Love Tractor, B52s, Hootie, Arvo Part, and all the rest. Oops. Arvo is not from down here. Maybe next time.
Writers and novelists, always curious, also came out in droves, as did political beings such as Jesse Jackson (an alumnus of A&T), John Edwards and Liddy Dole. Andy Griffith even made a cameo appearance, whistling that famous melody, and partaking in a discussion on poverty with Mister Edwards and his lovely wife, Elizabeth.
The hightlight was, of course, the appearance of Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton...who stole the show even more than Mister Internet himself, Al Gore, who was also there. Along with their esteemed and beautiful wives!
Steve Jobs and Bill Gates made appearances, as did Misters Ellison, Grove and Chambers. Flipper and Lassie were allowed in free. Flipper, bless his heart, wound up having people throw buckets of cold water on him, and complained that the sidewalks needed sweeping.
Of course, the cream of the blogosphere were in attendance, including Hoder, Jay Rosen, Dan Gillmor, Sybril Bennett, Nancy McLaughlin, David Hoggard, John Robinson, Lex Alexander, Ruby Sinreich, Ed Cone, Michael Moran, Christie Seals, Allison Perkins, John Teleha, Ted Vaden, DeWayne Wickham, Jeff Jarvis, Phil Meyer, Bob Steele, Francisco Camara, George Curry, Kevin Sites, Duncan Black (Atrios), Amanda Congdon, Dave Winer, Sandy Carmany, Tiffany Brown, Herb Everett, Roch Smith, Jr., Ruby Sinreich, Michael Bowen, Jimmy Wales, Sue Polinsky, Iddybud, Seth Godin, Dave Taylor, BL Ochman, (Sir Tristram) Tris Hussey, Toby Bloomberg, Andy Wibbels, Denise Wakeman, Steve Rubel, Rick Bruner, Wayne Hurlbert, John Jantsch, Neville Hobson, Biz Stone, Eric Alterman, Stowe Boyd, Henry Copeland, Wil Wheaton, Wiley Wiggins, Cory Doctorow, Arianna Huffington, Al Franken, Lawrence Lessig, Doc Searls, David Corn, Katrina Vanden Heuvel, James Wolcott, Juan Cole, Matthew Yglesias, Andrew Sullivan, Evan Williams, and God herself!
Can't wait to see the movies!"
Are you through now, Mister, ah, Synonymoses?
"Quite! Except to thank hometown bank, Bank of America, for their generous sponsorship."
And now a word from ProductPlacement...
ConvergeSouth
BE THERE OR BE STUPID
Saturday, August 06, 2005
TARHEEL TAVERN : Going to Blogolina in my Mind
A Blogtour of North Carolina
In my mind I'm going to Blogolina.
Can't you take the sunshine,
can't you just drink the moonshine?
Ain't it just like a friend of wine
to smack me on behind?
Yes, I'm going to Blogolina in my mind.
With a holy host of bloggers blogging round me,
listening to the dark side of the moon.
And it seems like this blog goes on like this forever...
The blogosphere is not equally distributed throughout these United, or should I say Untied States. It is not even equally distributed around this state. Any look at NCBlogs.com will tell you that. The heaviest concentration is in the Triad/Triangle region, with Charlotte and the Mountains in second rank, and Jesse country pulling up the rear, so to speak.
There are reasons for this unequal distribution, just as there are ways and needs for expanding into these undernourished regions, these bozarts, again, if you will.
That makes twice that I've said "will", and it is beginning to disconcert me. I am growing ill at the thought of Will. And no, not Will Robinson, should you be lost or spaced. I'm talking Will, as in Der Willen. Will as in George's "They will not break our Will." Or Leni and Dolphy's "Triumph of the Will". Not wit. Not love. Not caritas. But Will. Getting your way, costs be damned.
But alas I digress. It is what I do. Life is digression. The opposite of Will.
That said, let me try to hoist this travel guide back into the saddle, and quit examining the remains of our passing.
Coming, going, the waterfowl leaves not a trace,
nor does it need a guide.
I remember that koan from the sunny '70s, when I first made their acquaintance. I remember telling Rob Urban, who also thought it was "pretty neat". Neither of us embodied it though.
But neither, I predict, have you. Yet we have no Hiroshimas to live down either.
Or do we?
Live simply that others may simply live.
More true to that one I suppose. Some are actually astonished, or turned to stone, at the simplicity of my lean-to down by the river.
OK, it is not really a lean-to, and it is not near a river, but it is simple, practically Thorouvian. But relatively energy-efficient.
So, what was that about a saddle?
Alright. Enough! Time to start over.
[ I WILL STILL BE TAKING SUBMISSIONS UNTIL I AM TUCKERED OUT. THE FINAL VERSION WILL BE SET AT MIDNIGHT. - THANKS FOR PLAYING. - DAVE]
Blogtouring North Carolina
The blogosphere is not equally distributed throughout these United States. It is not even equally distributed around this state. Any look at NCBlogs.com will tell you that. The heaviest concentration is in the Triad/Triangle region, with Charlotte and the Mountains in second rank, and Eastern North Carolina pulling up the rear.
There are reasons for this unequal distribution, just as there are ways and needs for expanding into these undernourished regions of the state, country and world. In the old days, it was the seaport cities where civilization and culture mostly took place, because of their being a crossroads of different cultures. As the late Dr. Richard Schultes once said, "Monoculture breeds disease." But moreover, it breeds ignorance.
In these new times, it is not just the seaports, but also the blogports, and other places where minds meet, where you will find civilization and culture thriving. North Carolina is among these meeting grounds, along with New York, California, Massachusetts, Virginia, Oregon, Washington, and parts of Texas. Places where universities also thrive.
Within North Carolina, the universities are mainly in the Triad/Triangle area, along with the bulk of the blogosphere. And it is these places who will reap the rewards of blogtourism. So when a blogger, such as the illustrious Iddybud (who is an honorary Tarheel, although she lives in New York, and has appeared on CNN, the LA Times, Yes Weekly, and on John Edwards' blog, as well as others), comes to North Carolina, she knows she can contact Tarheel bloggers, tell them of the upcoming visit, and then tour the state with bloggers as guides and helpers. No blogger a stranger. And speaking of which, Jude (Iddy) plans to attend the upcoming event of the year, which is ConvergeSouth, to be held in Blogsboro (Greensboro) on the weekend of October 7th...so introduce yourself, and extend some of that famous Southern Hospitality. But if you really feel the need to throw tomatoes, make it the Jellybean variety, or the Sungolds or Juliets or the Calabash Purple, such as you might find in the garden, or blog, of Laurie, who because of her Slowly She Turned blog, has recently been named "Blogsboro's slow food guru". And throw them at me, not Jude, or anyone else for that matter. I'll come armed with lettuce and bacon.
Laurie's 'matersEAT AND BE EATEN
And speaking of Bacon, how about them six degrees of Kevin Bacon! To think that every person alive has only six degrees of separation, at most, from Hollywood's Kevin Bacon, whose quatrayle, or great-great-great grandfather, was none other than Novum Organum's Sir Francis Bacon, who, no, did not write Shakespeare (or "Sheik's Peer", as some have insinuated).
Was he really a Sufi?A DIGRESSION ON NAMES
Prince Albert Gore Vidal Sassoon
Earl Warren Christopher Lloyd George Michael Jackson Browne
Patricia Neal Diamond Jim Cary Grant Tinker Bell
Osama Bin Franklin Roosevelt Grier Garson Kanin Abel
OK, so I was wrong about Kevin and Francis. His quatrayle was a guy named Lonnie. But this fascination with the interconnectedness of humanity, not to mention the interconnectedness of all life, has now merged with technology, and now, because of so-called "social software" such as LinkedIn.com as well as Ecademy, Ryze, Multiply, MySpace, Friendster and others, tracking and using these connections has become but a mouseclick away. I have to thank Tarheel Taverner -- not to be confused with John Taverner, who is one of America's premiere composers, I believe, although I know there were Taverners in colonial Virginia -- Dr. Sue of Sue's Place for urging me to get linked in, as I now see that it is to blogging what blogging is to solitaire. Which is to say that when you play solitaire, you connect with no one. When you blog, you are likely to connect, but usually with Americans. With sites like LinkedIn, you are just as likely to connect with people from other countries as you are to connect with Americans. Your cybertourismic possibilities are equally widened, as are other possibilities.
Also linked in are Billy the Blogging Poet, Matt Gross, Roch Smith Jr., Ben Hwang and others, included, but not limited to, Dan Gillmor, Steve Rubel, Dave Taylor, Wiley Wiggins...but there is nothing stopping everyone here from also connecting in with these new tools. And by using them, welding the relationships, in a manner not unlike that of photoblogger, Mandie's omnicapable father, one may truly cast their net worldwide, and fish the exotic seas of distant shores. Bring the world home, and home to the world.
And North Carolina has so much to offer to the world. Do people around the world suffer loss? Of course not! But if they did, they could find comfort in the books and blog of Erin Monahan, for example, and learn how to cope with loss, divorce, death. Her Poetic Acceptance could touch hearts not only in North Carolina, and America, but could be touching lives even in the dark and archaeological cloacae of Harappa or Mohenjo-Daro, or at the Priory of Sion in risible Rennes, while making a nice profit for Erin.DO WHAT IS PLEASING TO ONE'S SELF AND USEFUL TO OTHERS
Poetry, it seems, has helped more than Erin cope with loss. Billy Jones too has found meaning in his own poetry, and others. And his blog highlights his poetry and online novels, but also features the poetry of others. His shorter prose is also enlightening, as in this post, where he celebrates the life of his father, and laments his passing on the anniversary of his death. And although Billy wonders if he will ever attain the greatness of his father, we think his father would be darned proud. Particularly of his work in establishing North Carolina as one of the blog hotspots on the globe. I know I am. And I know many other that are as well.I say we erect a statue!
But lest it be said that North Carolina is great, but so serious, one need look no further than Valerie Nieman to be given a dose of levitas and jocundity...
AUTOMATIC PENCIL, PART THE FIRST
Automatic pencil
Autopencil, to write moving finger without thought, to fill page after page like a signature machine freed of the loops and squiggles of a program, like the mind in long stretches of waiting for something, waiting is all, waiting is the empty place from which understanding blooms like a seed sudden from the desert after a breath of rain.
Automatic pencil
My father’s clipboard, his pencils, shop pencils thick in the barrel, industrial.I have one, black plastic or Bakelite, steel at each end where the lead came out and where the eraser sat, now an empty tube. The legend: Champion Tool & Die Co. McKeesport, Pa. 15131412 751-6000
I wonder if they’re still in business, or rusted with the rest of the belt, foundries and steel suppliers, solvent and paint dealers, tool and die works, trucking companies, designers, fabricators, merchants. A whole world whittled away, year by year, until now the red brick buildings stand like historic sites, Hadrian’s Wall or the Great Wall or some other useless thing, a single bare bulb burning over a back door.
Automatic pencil
Is not to be preferred over the traditional sort. Thin lead in yellow plastic. Ersatz. No smell of cedar, no scalloped shavings, no angled shading across a ruled page as faces and horses emerge from doodles, no pencil-point under the skin from grade-school bullies. - Val Nieman-
Her latest book is Fidelities, a short story collection from West Virginia University Press. The collection of 18 stories includes two winners of the Elizabeth Simpson Smith Prize from the Charlotte Writers Club, as well as stories that have appeared in the News & Observer, Wellspring, and the anthologies One Paycheck Away from Main Street Rag Press (Charlotte), The O. Henry Festival Stories 2003 (Greensboro) and Racing Home: Stories from Award-Winning North Carolina Writers, The Paper Journey Press (Durham).
She has also published poetry, a novel about the '70s called Survivors, and an SF novel way back when, Neena Gathering.
AUTOMATIC PENCIL, PART THE SECOND
In which our state's most beloved Ogre, makes the following astute assessment:
The Quick Brown Fox
The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog. The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog. The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.
But after the quick brown fox jumped over, the lazy dog moved quickly. The lazy dog ran after the quick brown fox. The quick brown fox discovered that it was not as quick as it thought it might have been. The formerly lazy dog quickly closed the distance between it and the not-so-quick fox as the chase continued.
The quick brown fox ran past Chicken Little, Henny Penny, Turkey Lurkey, and even past his cousin, Sly Fox. The lazy dog, now panting profusely, continued to get closer and closer. The quick brown fox hopped on the alligator's head for a ride over the river. Still the lazy dog followed.
They continued over the hills and through the woods. The race went down the path and the quick brown fox took a shortcut that his half-brother suggested through the woods that led past grandma's house. The lazy dog fell behind a little while traversing the thick undergrowth of the woods.
On the other side of the forest, the quick brown fox ran through the brier patch. Brer rabbit waved as first the quick brown fox, then the lazy dog, sped through his brier path. The briers slowed the quick brown fox, but the lazy dog continued.
Past the brier patch, the quick brown fox ran up the hill. At the top of the hill was a well that had recently been abandoned by Jack and Jill. With nowhere else to go, the quick brown fox stopped and turned to face the lazy dog. He bared his teeth at the lazy dog, hoping that it would turn him away.
The lazy dog stopped, panting from the long chase. He paused to catch his breath, watching the quick brown fox the entire time. Finally, the lazy dog said, "Why did you jump over me?"
From the Left Coast of North Carolina, to the Right, our state abounds in talent, fortuna et lux.
And speaking of which, Science and Politics' Bora Zivkovic, inches from his PhD, graces us with his ample and protean mind, week after week, and for this occasion has explained the differences between left and right...when it comes to science, pseudoscience, borderlands science, and nonsense.
About the pseudosciences he says:
Lefty pseudoscience was always marginal and marginalized by everyone on both the Left and the Right. No political party has ever pushed for astrology or biorhythms to be used in classrooms or in military planning.
However, attack on science, reason and rationality is the centerpiece of the Right-Wing strategy. The only way they can save their medieval notions about society, economics, religion, science, race, gender equality, etc. from being deposited forever in the trashbin of history is if they systematically brainwash every new generation into dogmatism, uncritical thinking and fearful obedience to their authority. They are in power now - White House, Congress, Supreme Court - and they are ramming anti-science and anti-reality ideas into school (and into media) as hard as they can.
His provocative and entertaining explanation can be read in its entirety here. Read and enjoy each delightful and instructive paragraph. Dull minds think alike. Coturnix is an original.
And for a slightly different take, you may want to snort a sprocket...which is a helluva lot safer than snorting "the powders", or "the vapors", which is just gross. The best thing to snort, though, is air. And the best way to snort air is pranayama...not to be confused with melinama, which is not to be confused with melanoma.
Thhhhhhhheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee thing is this. This is the thing, and the thing, is thusly this. You see.
And thus, you may feel something a bit odd in your whithers today. It could be that you are dreaming of taking droughts of Dramamine (unit of measure: drams), or perhaps possible pensives of Pontius Pilate’s palate, who ponders persimmons.
We are the persimmons. EAT US.
You can rest assured that the way is weirdly wondrous and wends through the jungle. Night thoughts, we can be assured. Assuredly, be.
Thoughts of 1 (2? 3!) hit my cortex. Impaled! It is time for much work, and we have so much to do, and not much time.
Lastly: remember. We are all (in love). In love, we all are.
In love.
Quick! Get this man some Asinine Alliteration Antidote with the anti-Charles Dodgson additive!
— Andrew S. Damick Aug 5, 10:01 AM #
“You don’t see the Shintus come around here, shattering sheetglass in the shithouse, shouting slogans…”
“Oh, don’t you go practicing your alliteration on me!”
Or so says Snort a Sprocket from the smerpological depths.
"Smerpological depths?", you ask. Why not alabandical depths, or antipelargical depths, flosculational depths or miasmic depths?
To answer these questions, we have to turn to our resident sesquipedalian, Melinama at Pratie's Place: a phrontistery (affront history?) where you will learn the meaning of the previous paragraph, as well as much else besides.
We owe this word to the Roman writer Horace, who wrote in his Ars Poetica (The Art of Poetry) [ see also Arse Poetica] : “Proicit ampullas et sesquipedalia verba” (“He throws aside his paint pots and his words that are a foot and a half long”). It comes from Latin sesqui–, one and a half, plus ped, a foot. It was borrowed into English in the seventeenth century and has become a favourite of those writers who like self-referential terms, or are addicted to polysyllabic humour. - Weird WordsCarolinians, and indeed, Southerners, have long been verbophiliacs, which may alas stem from the predominance of Shakespeare in our cultural heritage, dating back to England, or maybe the interplay of cultures, or it may be what historian David Hackett Fischer called our love of leisure and "killing time".
With that in mind, allow me to share the adventures of Durham's Ron Hudson, who is killing time in Spain and Portugal. Let him share some of his own methods for killing time. You can keep track of his journeys by bookmarking his blog, 2Sides2Ron.
In this present age of threats to democracy and individual liberty, probably only the scamp and the spirit of the scamp alone will save us from becoming lost as serially numbered units in the masses of disciplined, obedient, regimented and uniformed coolies. The scamp will be the last and most formidable enemy of dictatorships. He will be the champion of human dignity and individual freedom, and will be the last to be conquered. All modern civilization depends entirely upon him.
-Lin Yutang
The Importance of Living 1937
On the other hand...
"War paralyzes your courage and deadens the spirit of true manhood. It degrades and stupefies with the sense that you are not responsible, that 'tis not yours to think and reason why, but to do and die,' like the hundred thousand others doomed like yourself. War means blind obedience, unthinking stupidity, brutish callousness, wanton destruction, and irresponsible murder."
—Alexander Berkman
The Berkman quote just came to me in an email from another honorary Tarheel, who absolutely loves it down here, but lives in Cleveland, just a couple of miles from the base that sent so many to their deaths recently, and about which he says:
I'm sure you heard about the deaths of all those marines who came from my home state. Everyone here is just devastated at the tragic loss of life. I have never seen such an outpouring of grief and sorrow in quite a long time. The battalion headquarters where those marines were stationed is only a couple of miles from where I live. I drive past it every time I go visit my Mother. I think people are now starting to realize how absolutely insane and senseless this war is and who it's truly impacting.
But that's so negative, man! Don't drag me to negativeland. Sharks and Condit are what everyone is talking about now! No wait, that was on 9/10 and the months before. What is it we're talking about now? Oh yeah...shuttle debris and flag burning.
The question then becomes...
When the Media obsesses on junk-food news, are we in for a whacking? On September the 8th, 2001, while walking to a Yes concert at Radio City Music Hall, in, yes, Manhattan, I asked a media person about the obsession with sharks and Condit, to which he responded, "It is a slow news time." My intuition* told me otherwise. That is why I trust my intuition.
And when I need a muffler repair, I trust Maaco. To charge me an arm and a leg.
So why is the media obsessing on trivial, diversionary matters? Don't tell me they are still in cahoots with Daddy Warbucks, and that we are about to be taken to the cleaners yet again.
And wasn't Bush vacationing in Texas during the months before and during 9/11?
Is there a connection between Bush's vacations, a pussilanimous and diversionary Media, and terror?
It is such negativeland, Debbie Downer kind of stuff, that makes people want to watch sports all day and night, with the only reality being reality TV, which should really be labeled "reality-food TV", following Kraft's famous individually wrapped cheese-food ... also a few degrees of separation from reality.
But I digress. I am not a Fascist so I am allowed that luxury. More people should digress. Procrastination can be a virtue. I wish we would have procrastinated on the war. But nooo! Even the War Machine has to show a profit, and the Media has way too much invested in their parent companies. Thank God for blogs!
But I am surely starting to sound cynical. The MSM, mainstream media, corporate media, have great and good people working for them. Some could even become bloggers if they tried! But as Ben Bagdikian points out, and which can be found at Pratie's Place:"Trying to be a first-rate reporter on the average American newspaper is like trying to play Bach's St. Matthew's Passion on a ukulele." - Bagdikian's Observation
I should talk about religion...
How 'bout them stupid Baptists!
Naa...better not go there. Hell, Clinton AND Gore were both Southern Baptists! The exemplars! (Not to be confused with the Templars.)
The TemplarsSpeaking of confusion, who, besides me, is confused by this most appalling of Tarheel Taverns? Can I git a show of hands? OUCH! Not of the face, Reverend!
I know...one hand clapping. Very funny.
Now I realize that there are going to be some fellers who do not agree with my position on war and peace, and might even claim that our illustrious prince of war is to be preferred to the prince of peace, as Pam's House Blend points out, but alas, their numbers are dwindling, largely because of the relationship between time and truth. What is new is rarely good, because if it is good, it is not long new, but long old. I'm long and old, so I know. (Stupid, the word is "tall"!)
Fine! Whatever!
And so it goes in sweet Caroline. Sweetness and light. Delicacy of feeling. Whimsical charm. T'ungjen.
And speaking of T'ungjen, we may as well go over some other Chinese terms, and why not start from the top?
A DIGRESSION ON 4-LETTER WORD POETRY
Time will tell
your mama that Karl
Rove will fess most
lies that Rush took
into Hell when dope
took that mind away.
Away! Into that cool
blue roof. Away! Help
your mama make soup.
Away!
Some days seem like they came from Hell.Better second-hand and first-rate, than first-hand and second-rate
And what better proof of this than a Sunday circumambulation of a good second-hand store...
Let our favorite lenslinger, Stew Pittman, show you how it is done. If you don't know him, he is the premiere video-journalist in the blogosphere, at least as far as I have seen. AND he's right up the street!
Check out his take on second-hand store shopping. He won't dissappoint.
Only a few shoppers noticed the bearded man with the fancy-cam gliding down aisle five. Most just shuffled behind battered shopping carts, staring fixedly at row after row of hand-me-down clothes and second hand doodads. North Carolina’s annual tax-free weekend was only a few hours old, but the feeding frenzy was well underway...
But if that is a little to down-to-earth, you may find solace in Joe Guarino's post on Supreme Court Nominations, Ellen Goodman and the Right to Take Human Life.
Since Justice O'Connor's retirement announcement, Ellen Goodman has been writing often about the issue of Supreme Court nominations and abortion. I have been following her column in the News and Record... - Joe Guarino
JOCULAR CONCLUSION
A scientist and a philosopher were being chased by a hungry lion. The scientist made some quick calculations, he said “it's no good trying to outrun it, its catching up”.
The philosopher kept a little ahead and replied “I am not trying to outrun the lion, I am trying to outrun you !”A woman gets on a bus with her baby. The bus driver says: “That's the ugliest baby that I've ever seen. Ugh!” The woman goes to the rear of the bus and sits down, fuming. She says to a man next to her: “The driver just insulted me!”
The man says: “You go right up there and tell him off – go ahead, I'll hold your monkey for you.”Thanks to all who played and/or enjoyed this little foray into the life of the Tarheel Tavern. It has been a barrel of said monkeys. But looks aren't everything.
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