liberty · equality · eternity

Trouble with Blog.com is not my excuse for failing to post anything this week. Just today.

Thursday I was checking the web news and found these items under Entertainment:

• William Flies Solo for the First Time
• Ex-Cop: Diana Rejected Security

The second concerns Princess Diana, the first Prince William. Not a big deal. I flew solo often when I was a teenager and William is 25. What annoyed me was that both stories are about the British royal family, not entertainment. If the Prince was giving a piano recital, that might be entertainment. I guess with actual Entertainment stories in the News section, they have space to fill under Entertainment. Allow me to clarify. I don’t care what category you put them in, I do not give a rat’s ass about the royal family.

Damned if I didn’t fulfill one of my 2008 resolutions! No, Naomi has not become my MySpace friend, I got a job. Started last week and thankfully, today is a vacation day, Jr. Rather than MLK, we could celebrate LBJ’s birthday had he not been a dick-wad. Whatever you may think of Martin Luther King, Jr, he was not a war mongrel like the second President Johnson. A good rule of thumb: the second president with the same last name is going to be a disappointment. Consider Bush. I do.

Once I had an unquenchable thirst for political coverage, before this endless campaign. I’m getting sick of all the foolishness, exceeding the bounds of credibility. If Hillary Clinton is as strong as a man, why does she set Bill on Obama? Is he going to be her Dick Cheney? [Resisting the obvious joke is killing me, but they are choosing the next half-assed president, so I’m trying to be serious, unlike the news commentators.] Obama should ask Bill Clinton about his business dealings in Dubai. Should we pick nominees based on the hotness of the candidate’s spouse? Makes about as much sense as some of the suggested criteria, or continuing to report poll results as if they are reliable.

Last Friday, O’Reilly was discussing whether news guys are too tough on the presidential candidates. He featured one of the Republican candidates, maybe Rummy, and Bill Clinton. Now, I don’t know what Bill thinks, but Clinton is not running for president.

This morning, a guy claimed Guiliani should be president because he predicted the Giants would win the playoff game by two. Martha MacCallum said her husband had done the same thing, so maybe he should be president. Perhaps so. He has a hot wife. [Couldn't find a satisfactory picture of MacCallum. Sorry.]

Does anyone else see irony in Guiliani betting the farm on his Florida showing? These are the folks who carried Pat Buchanan in 2000.

Were I a Republican, I would pray that Hillary be the Democratic nominee. She seems the most vulnerable to attack. Sooner or later, voters will figure out she’s a chameleon, trying to blend into whatever state she’s in. That may work in the primaries, particularly in states with slow people, like Arkansas. She’s running on the Bill Clinton administration’s record, too. Remember their great accomplishments? Me either. Nor do I understand why many Blacks like Clinton. Or why the troops like Bush. I prefer actions to broken promises.

Suddenly, politicians have noticed that the economy is faltering, the kind of thing they would notice every four years or so. Their solution: some kind of tax rebate. Those candidates in Congress can’t wait to take credit for this useless gesture. That way they use our money to gain points with voters. Well, dimwitted voters. Wouldn’t it be easier to have a temporary tax freeze? Don’t deduct money from payroll checks for six months or so. [Temporary increases usually become permanent. Wonder if that goes for decreases.]

Returning to the more amusing Entertainment world, I belatedly updated my Linda Lewis web spot. Use this direct link or go to gtslade.org to click on the cute drawing. I will add some new stuff. For now, I’m satisfied that all the links function and it is now non-commercial. I had been using the free Netscape server, which has adverts.

Somewhere I read that “The Riches” have been renewed by FX. I have no idea when it will return, given the writers strike, but that’s something worth living for, in case you were contemplating suicide soon. Letterman said this year’s Superbowl makes life worth living. I guess I have greater expectations.

Saw the first two “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” episodes, both directed by David Nutter. Seemed way better than the meandering title. Good action sequences and time travails. I may get the DVD when issued. It will be a short season, again due to the writers strike. Think the media companies will lower the price on DVDs if it’s a short season? Think again. Their greed is boundless.

The networks are dealing with the strike in various creative ways, within the definition of executive creativity. CBS will air edited episodes of Showtime’s “Dexter.” I believe Fox will air repeats with an onscreen message saying ‘New Episode.’ Few viewers will detect the difference; it’s Fox. As when Hillary says she’s the candidate for change. I mean, when was the last time she had to make change? My suggestion for the networks is to drag out some great shows they canceled, often without airing all the episodes. “Cupid,” for instance. It is not on DVD. Since 1998, Jeremy Piven has become better known from that lame HBO show he’s on, while Rob Thomas did “Veronica Mars.”

I avoided the Gmail editing problem by using Google’s document editor. Imagine if Microsoft Word were available free online and it worked. On second thought, save your imagination for something more plausible.

When the first President Bush was confronted by homeless Americans on his Washington motorcades, he could not ignore the problem, so his staff changed the route. Then he could ignore it. President Clinton was far better at ignoring problems, from homelessness to terrorism, but even he might be impressed by a British approach to urban blight.

Liverpool are holding big musical festivities as a “European Capital of Culture.” The port city has an image of economic deprivation, social unrest and gang violence. To give tourists a better impression, rundown buildings — including rows of dilapidated houses near downtown Liverpool — have been hidden behind billboards covered with paintings and poetry, according to the Associated Press.

Impressed with this variation of sweeping things under the rug, Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has announced a plan to surround that city with colourful billboards.

Not to be outdone, a St Louis-area town is considering a bill to ban swearing in bars, along with table-dancing, drinking contests and profane music. Holy shit! If St Charles pass that, they may as well outlaw bars completely. According to the bill’s promoters, the law is needed to control rowdy crowds because the downtown area gets a little too lively on some nights. It has been said that Missouri loves company.

The proposal would ban indecent, profane or obscene language, songs, entertainment and literature at bars. No First Amendment issues there. Literature? In bars?

With less than 300 days to the US Presidential election, I have a question. What’s wrong with Michelle Obama? We hear about the hot wives of Kucinich and Thompson, much as we did about the first George Bush’s wife, W’s mom. Michelle Obama is hot, but no one says it. Well, besides me. Is this some kind of a race thing — considered inappropriate to mention that a Black man’s Black wife is hot? Or is it because Obama doesn’t look too senile or too weird to have a hot wife? Maybe it’s one of these unmentionables, like Hillary Clinton’s hot flashes.

Back in the truly democratic world, there are 12 Libertarian Party candidates on the 5 February ballot. One of them, Christine Smith, posted a letter to Ron Paul supporters. Just think. If Christine Smith gets elected president, she would be the first woman, the first Smith and the first libertarian for maybe 200 years.

Finally, in the ultimate Federal intrusion, the government seem to have outlawed light bulbs. I’m not kidding. Check out this article. It’s a doozy. You might even say a humdinger.

The other day, before the power went out, the big news story: Police called to Britney Spears’s house. Not the Entertainment news, the regular News, at least on the Internet. I paid little attention, but she reportedly said something like, “I’ll show that little bitch who the bad sister is!” I predict tons of fun ahead.

And just when I’m thinking 2008 cannot get any better, with whipped cream and cherries in January, Tom Lantos quits.

Recently, he lauded his many accomplishments in Congress [see: me]. This is bittersweet news. I would have preferred he announce that gt slade’s blog persuaded him he was an anachronism, rather than claiming to have cancer.

For some reason, he is ignoring the Burton model of willing his seat to someone else, like his wife, so the sharks already smell blood. Jackie Speier and Leland Yee are being discussed, although there is no shortage of Democratic-party hacks seeking what they would regard as a lifetime appointment, unless something better comes along. [Most Federal offices have no term limits.]

Speier had been planning a Primary challenge. After years of coasting, Lantos was unlikely to have relished the thought of a contested campaign, cancer or not.

The older I get, the greater my conviction that we need younger legislators. Ancient Republicans, like the mercifully late Strom Thurmond, or Democrats, like Teddy Kennedy, fool themselves into believing they are wise guys, when they are just old.

Lantos is regarded by many in Congress as a foreign policy expert, hardly a meaningful endorsement, in my humble opinion. As a Congressman, Lantos traveled the world to bone up on different countries at taxpayer expense. A recent example of his expertise: he “helped craft” Bush’s 2002 Iraqi invasion authorisation, saying, “Had the United States and its allies confronted Hitler earlier… the 51 million lives needlessly lost during that war could have been saved.” Maybe so. Yet, after helping to start the Iraq war, he became an opponent, albeit unsuccessfully. He did hold thirteen big hearings on Iraq last year, which a skeptic might call thirteen big wastes of time and money.

Despite supporting that illegal war, he is revered as a “courageous opponent” of human rights abuses. For instance, he opposes the genocide in Darfur. Me, too. I’m not afraid to say it, either. He also “decried” the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan, which took a lot of courage. Although the more I learn of Bhutto, the less she seems representative of human rights or democracy, but I’m no expert.

Some of Lantos’s constituents felt local and national concerns took a back seat to his foreign affairs interests. That criticism seems unjust, considering his ineffectiveness internationally. There is no reason to believe he could have helped rescue Social Security, Medicare or any other domestic trainwreck.

He was behind a resolution urging Japan to apologise for its World War II sex slaves, the kind of thing that is so very meaningful. Maybe in his final year, he can introduce a resolution urging the US government to apologise for screwing its citizens out of the money for those soon-to-collapse programmes.

Think Rudy Giuliani’s 9/11 theme is getting tired? That was six years ago. Lantos keeps reminding people that he is the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to Congress. That terrible experience occurred when he was an adolescent. For perspective, that was before I was born, and I am old.

His buddy, Nancy Pelosi said, “His experience, intelligence and compassion will be deeply missed.” Maybe so.

I’m having the best year ever. O’Reilly, ace of spins, returned from vacation with an upbeat show. There’s been some controversy over the FoxNews decision to make Sunday’s Republican candidate debate even more boring by excluding Ron Paul. Apparently, some of my fellow Paul supporters haven’t noticed that such “debates” are about who is included, not what they say, a problem originating with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), not with FoxNews. Nick Gillespie, Reason editor-in-chief, defended Ron Paul, particularly on foreign policy.

Dr Paul believes the US should not be trying to manage the Middle East. Since I know the US haven’t a hope in hell of creating peace out of chaos, I oppose the candidates who, in various ways, would continue the present destructive and doomed policies.

We don’t need to fight them there, we need better protection at home.

Dennis Miller, who appears weekly on “The Factor,” was off this week, replaced by Norm MacDonald. Always delightful seeing Norm.

I’ve watched some election coverage, which consists alternately of analysing poll results and decrying the reliance on polls. I believe the Iowa caucus (not a primary) is this week and I’m psyched to ignore it.

Speaking of which, AOL ran one of those non-scientific polls on “which late show will you watch?” Another serious concern. The actual “Late Show” (CBS) edged out “Tonight” (NBC) 37% to 34%, with “Neither” (F/X) bringing up the rear with 29%. I’ll watch Dave, but I wish he had Norm instead of Robin (Williams) as his first guest. Or the lovely Bill Murray. At least none of them are Mike Huckabee. I’ve seen enough of that guy to last me for, well, an eternity.

To me personally, and remember it’s my Blog, the most exciting event was the arrival of “Right On” by Maxine Weldon. I had forgotten precisely how incredible an album it is, when it popped out of my speakers from this new Japanese CD. Definitely worth buying, even if it costs more than the $27 I paid.

So far this year, my PC O’Shit didn’t do anything particularly weird or annoying for over 48 hours, so that’s comforting.  But this entry is supposed to be about music, as I’d started last year before the computer swallowed it.

A Reuters article by Ed Christman (28/12/07) observed that “music business ends year on another weak note.” If you want to gawk at the damage, read the article yourself. What I found most illuminating is that the industry were sounding a new note. Although they didn’t blame outrageous list prices for reduced sales, they also didn’t blame music copying, which has been their favourite scapegoat directing the blame away from their ineptitude. Mostly, they say it was the weather. Seriously. Snowstorms, plus the 5^th December mall shooting, which “led everybody into a malaise for about a week,” according to the head of the Homers chain, Mike Fratt. And also there’s the “dearth of hit titles.”

They left out something. Oh, the vast quantity of dreck.

I recently got “The Best Darn Thing,” Avril Lavigne’s latest. Like many folks, I enjoyed her debut, “Let Go,” in 2002. Her follow-up, “Under My Skin,” was aw-rite, but this latest is just sad. In the pictures, Avril seems to be portraying a slutty high school girl, only she’s a married adult. What’s that about?

Turns out my copy is the censored version, with no warning label. “Motherfucking shit” would not have been as offensive as the album’s tone or lack of good music. For one thing, Ms Lavigne can’t decide if she’s a singer or a cheerleader. As in the first single, “Boyfriend,” she punctuates her music with lame cheers. This song, such as it is, finds the songstress decrying her boyfriend’s new squeeze with the incisive lines, “She’s like so whatever, you could do much better.” Not exactly on the level of “Popstar” by the Pretenders, at least it rhymes.

Avril’s reliance on near-rhymes gave me the impression she didn’t waste time perfecting the lyrics. That and their silliness. “I’m the one who wears the pants,” I’m reduced to silly rants, from the aptly titled “I Don’t Have To Try.” Well, darlin’, you kind of do, if you want to save the record industry.

I gave the album several chances, even listening on the headphones, where I discovered the arrangements were very fine, the band superb and the recording top-notch, none of which could overcome the lame lyrics and lack of decent tunes. The very last song was pretty good. Credit where it’s due, and you can download “Keep Holding On” for under a dollar, while holding on to the rest of your cash. My advice to Avril: avoid album names so easy to twist against you.  Or make better albums.

It is mediocrity that sends buyers to non-traditional sources. There is plenty of good music out there, only the record companies are finding themselves increasingly irrelevant, as artists learn how to distribute their own. Last year, many of my purchases were of older albums (“Right On” is from 1970.) I have found ways of circumventing outdated distribution paradigms, which I will share in the months ahead, if I have nothing better to do.

I was sort of kidding about the best year ever, but one never knows, do one?

©2008 gt slade