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Happy Anniversary, TLC's CrazySexyCool!
Home › Anniversary › Happy Anniversary, TLC's CrazySexyCool!
Anniversary, Music, Review
It's hard to believe that it has been almost 25 years since we have enjoyed the ground breaking album, 1994's 'CrazySexyCool', which broke down the barriers for many of todays music acts and enabled R&B to crossover into the mainstream!
TLC followed up their hugely successful 1992 debut album 'Ooooooohhh… on the TLC Tip' with a more laid back, grown and sexy approach with the help of Jermaine Dupri, Organized Noize, Diddy, JonJohn, Babyface and Dallas Austin.
In between the recording of the album, Left Eye's personal life became headline news when her relationship with Atlanta Falcon's footballer Andre Rison went up in flames, literally!
Lisa accidentally burnt down Andre's mansion while merely trying to torch a set of tennis shoes in the bathtub after a dispute between the two. She was arrested and sentenced to rehab after the event.
While on the way to the diversion center, Lisa saw a rainbow in the sky. It went on to be the inspiration behind her rap in the record breaking and probably the most important song of the 90s, 'Waterfalls'!
Despite selling more than 10 million copies in the US alone, becoming the first group to earn an RIAA diamond-certified album, TLC filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy following the revelation of their not so great contracts with their label and former manager.
Left Eye's personal affairs clearly boosted interest and sales of the single and album, but the music speaks for itself.
The quality of the songs were of a high standard, merged with the unique style and chemistry of T-Boz, Chilli and Left Eye made this timeless album stand the test of time, remaining just as important to the world today as it was back in 1994!
Graphic made by Megan Dove
Fans are hoping to one day see a re-release of this epic album, either with some bonus tracks and remixes added, or maybe a completely re-recorded or live version of the album!
We'd love to see a CrazySexyCool tour in 2019 to celebrate 25 years of CrazySexyCool!
A post shared by TLC Army™ (@tlc_army)
Thank you for being Crazy, Sexy and Cool, TLC!
Listen to the album in full on Spotify!
Listen to 'One Last Song' (TLC Demo) + Lyrics
Ciara Pays Homage To TLC By Recreating "No Scrubs" For Halloween 2021
Missy Elliott: "Left Eye Wanted 702's 'Where's My Girls At' For TLC!
One of the best girl group, album ever! Love it, still rocking this today! Big congrats! TLC 4-ever, much love!!


Poor Shooting Sees UCSB Drop Home Season-Opener to Oregon St.
The Gauchos finished just 33.8 percent from the field and 18.2 percent from three on their way to a loss to Oregon St. on Saturday.
Despite 23 points from senior guard Michael Bryson, the UCSB men's basketball team was unable to contain the dynamic offense of No. 15 Cal in its 85-67 loss on Monday.
Playing in their first Big West final since 2011, the Gauchos fell 1-0 to Cal State Fullerton despite a 22-6 advantage in shots.
Playing without senior Michael Bryson, the Gauchos finish the game on a 9-1 run to come away with a close win in their first game of the season.
After defeating UC Davis for the third time in 2015, the Gauchos will play in their first Big West Tournament Championship since 2011 this Saturday against Cal State Fullerton.
The Gauchos haven't won a postseason game since 2011, but will have a great shot tomorrow at home against a UC Davis team they went 2-0 against in the regular season.
Senior guards John Green and Michael Bryson both hit the 20-point mark as they led UCSB to a season-opening exhibition victory.
Nick DePuy, the nation's leading goalscorer, recorded his third brace of the season in the Gauchos' big win over Sac St. on Wednesday.
No. 18 UCSB Seeks Revenge in Home Finale Against Sac St.
Still just a point in front of No. 22 Cal Poly for first place, the Gauchos need a win against a team that beat them 5-2 earlier this month.
Instant classic. The Gauchos hosted the Mustangs on Saturday in front of the second largest campus crowd in NCAA history.
One down, three to go before the conclusion of the 2015 regular season. The Gauchos picked up a big win over UC Davis and will now prepare to face No. 20 Cal Poly this Saturday.


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Court win lets Trump campaign present ballot fraud evidence, potentially overturning Biden's Nevada 'win'
Paul Bedard
© Jae C. Hong/AP
In its first court victory, a Nevada judge has agreed to let the Trump campaign present its evidence that fraud and illegalities plagued the state's election, enough to reverse Joe Biden's win and set an example for other state challenges.
According to Trump officials, the judge set a Dec. 3 hearing date and is allowing 15 depositions. What's more, the campaign plans to present its evidence that could result in the rejection of tens of thousands of mail-in ballots in Democratic Clark County where Biden ballots outnumbered Trump ballots by 91,000 in unofficial results.
"BIG news in Nevada: a Judge has allowed NV Republicans to present findings of widespread voter fraud in a Dec. 3rd hearing. Americans will now hear evidence from those who saw firsthand what happened — a critical step for transparency and remedying illegal ballots. Stay tuned," White House chief of staff Mark Meadows tweeted.
American Conservative Union Chairman Matt Schlapp, one of those heading the Nevada case, told Secrets, "It gives us a real chance, if to do nothing else, to begin to show this historic level of fraud."
Oddly, there has been a virtual news blackout of the Trump court victory. However, there were major headlines on the state Supreme Court's certification of Biden's victory Tuesday.
In its court filing from Nov. 17, the Trump team made several allegations of voter fraud, including votes by nonresidents and the dead.
But its biggest claim was that the signatures on hundreds of thousands of mail-in ballots were not verified by human officials, as required by law.
What's more, they found that officials used a machine to verify signatures, apparently against the rules, and even those machines were plagued with problems.
Schlapp said he is eager to get a chance to finally show its evidence of fraud and for the campaign to present the thousands of examples of signature machine errors. Since many states require signature verification, that is where the campaign's fraud investigation is focused.
"The biggest thing which is true in all of these states we're talking about including in Georgia where a third of the ballots were cast in the mail Nevada half the ballots were cast in the mail, with no legal signature verification, certainly not in Clark County, that is the big treasure trove of illegal balloting in all of these states," he said on Fox late Tuesday.
The campaign also has testimony from a blind person who claims somebody else voted for her and that she was barred from voting as a result. And they plan to present evidence that Native Americans were offered bribes of TVs and gas cards for their vote.
"Our filing said we have over 15 individual and tens of thousands more from mail-in fraud. We have enough to switch the outcome," Schlapp told us.
Late last night, he revealed the judge's decision on Sean Hannity's Fox show. Schlapp said, "For the first time in this whole tragic story of the 2020 presidential election, a state court has granted republicans in Nevada and the Trump campaign, the ability to present their case of widespread illegal balloting, and to just depose up to 15 people who know what went down in Clark County in the state of Nevada, so this is big news you know a lot of people in the national media have said, you know, if you have evidence of voter fraud, show it. Well, we have thousands and thousands of examples of real people in real-life instances of voter illegality. And I just think it's a great step that we're going to have a chance to present it. A court if we get a fair hearing. I believe the results in Nevada should be switched."
parzival · 2020-11-26T05:37:04Z
RUDY GIULIANI'S GETTYSBURG HEARING - PRESIDENT TRUMP CALLS IN VIA PHONE (VIDEO) [Link]
FULL SHOW - TUCKER CARLSON - NOV 24 2020 [Link]
Joyly · 2020-11-26T06:24:49Z
parzival Thanks P. The Gettysberg hearing is certainly worth a look. TC if you want to get a look at What a Biden domestic and foreign policy might be - no good news for the peeps. 🙏
Bradly · 2020-11-26T06:37:00Z
Hate to spoil the party, but Trump doesn't have any evidence. Just a lot whining.
Bradly And what is your source for that bit of wisdom? CNN?
Joyly Batley Townswomen's Guild..
Bradly If it is anything to do with Monte Python I think it is probably a farce.
Bradly ·
Joyly
Bradly Are you a Hasbara Jew? You're using their standard tactic of making an outrageous bald declaration without any shred of evidence or further explanation, merely in order to raise the temperature and incite dissension on this site. Stir up the Goyim and watch contemptuously while they destroy each other. Perhaps you could make a lot more money by working for Black Lives Matter or George Soros and trying to destroy this country by setting neighbors against each other? That should give you satisfaction. Everything for people like you is a commodity and has its price, even motherhood and decency. Or, even better, you could move to your homeland Palestine and incite the IDF to shoot a few more thousands of Palestinian children in the knees then deny them medicines and drugs to treat their pain. Where does your conscience reside? In your testicles or in your anus?
OCEAN · 2020-11-26T14:07:49Z
Bradly Batley!! That's just a grimey little village full of twonks.
life · 2020-11-26T14:29:19Z
Bradly
Bahahahha that's a beauty, hoser! dude, your sense of humour is whitty ! there are many whitty commentors here, but only half the time, and will undoubtably think you're a few sandwiches short of a picnic 🙄
LG, hey man, remember to breath, it helps to look past the obvious and see the light(er) side of things, cheers eh
life Cheers Life.. if only the rest had a sense of humour like yours.
Twitter embroiled in new child porn scandal: Lawsuit claims Twitter defends sick content, says it doesn't 'violate policies'

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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RADP / Pulse Kenya > Sports
Shujaa set for revenge mission against Ireland in final Olympic match
Cyprian Kimutai
CHOFU, JAPAN - JULY 26: Team Kenya take to the field during the Men's Pool C Rugby Sevens match between South Africa and Kenya on day three of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Tokyo Stadium on July 26, 2021 in Chofu, Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)
The Kenya sevens rugby team will be motivated by revenge as the Innocent "Namcos" Simiyu side face Ireland for a place in the ninth-place final.
After securing their first win of the tournament with a comfortable 21-7 victory against Japan, Shujaa will turn their attention to Ireland and the chance to resolve some unfinished business.
In similar fashion to the group games, Kenya started poorly as a brilliant play by the Japanese led to their captain Chihito Matsui scoring a try only a minute 55 seconds into the match.
The try brought out the best in Shujaa as two minutes later, Alvin Otieno zoomed past the home side to score his first try of the tournament.
Japan's Ryota Kano (top) wins the ball in the men's placing 9-12 rugby sevens match between Kenya and Japan during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Tokyo Stadium in Tokyo on July 27, 2021. (Photo by Ben STANSALL / AFP) (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images) Pulse Live Kenya
After Johnstone Olindi's successful conversion, Kenyans applied more pressure and settled onto the game which resulted in a second try by Jeff Oluoch a minute before half time.
In the second half, Kenya continued to prey on the Japanese nerves, turning the ball over and knocking it on throughout the half.
Kenya's defensive dominance and counter attack saw them clinch victory through a try in the dying stages of the game by Captain fantastic, Andrew Amonde.
The towering forward bulldozed past the Japanese sprinting more than 50 metres to snatch a final showdown against Ireland.
Tokyo , Japan - 26 July 2021; Kenya players run out before the rugby sevens men's pool A match between South Africa and Kenya at the Tokyo Stadium during the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo By Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile via Getty Images) Pulse Live Kenya
Revenge mission
The Irish in the early hours of Tuesday morning denied Kenya an opportunity to progress to the quarter-final by inflicting a 12-7 defeat.
After successive losses against United States and South Africa on the opening day, Kenya just needed to beat Ireland by whichever margin to go through to the quarters as one of the best two third placed teams.
A fine piece of skill from Terry Kennedy opened a gap for Hugo Lennox who drove for the line and scored the opening try, although the conversion was missed.
Just over a minute later and Ireland had their second try of the match, with Harry McNulty capitalising on a Kenyan handling error and going over, before Billy Dardis added the extras.
Ireland's Harry McNulty (L) fights for the ball with Kenya's Collins Injera (R) in the men's pool C rugby sevens match between Kenya and Ireland during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Tokyo Stadium in Tokyo on July 27, 2021. (Photo by Ben STANSALL / AFP) (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images) Pulse Live Kenya
Ireland were in complete control in the first-half, penning Kenya back inside our own half and forcing us into making some very uncharacteristic errors.
Jordan Conroy had a decent chance to add to Ireland's tally early in the second-half but was unable to make the most of it as a fine tip-tackle halted his run with the line beckoning and his pass was intercepted.
Kenya's Eden Agero (L) tries to tackle Ireland's Jordan Conroy (R) in the men's pool C rugby sevens match between Kenya and Ireland during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Tokyo Stadium in Tokyo on July 27, 2021. (Photo by Ben STANSALL / AFP) (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images) Pulse Live Kenya
As the clock ticked down, just like the previous two games against USA and South Africa, Shujaa stood tall and showed their might.
A crooked Irish line-out throw in their own half gave Kenya a scrum with a minute left on the clock and from that scrum, they split the Irish defence for Vincent Onyala to touch down under the posts.
Daniel Taabu kicked the conversion with less than 30 seconds to go but it was too little too late.
After the game, captain Amonde expressed his disappointment for not being able to lead his team to a first ever Olympic medal.
"For some of us this was our last tournament and we really wanted to lead the boys to the final, but I am disappointed I was not able to do that even as I bid farewell to the national team," he said.
"We really wanted to make it to the next stage of the competition but we couldn't. We knew it was going to be a tough pool and we now have to pick ourselves up for the next thing," said Collins Injera.
Coach Innocent Simiyu explained the loss boils down to the young Shujaa team not taking their chances as well as poor build up towards the tournament.
"We did not do well in the restarts and also in the scrums and went more into contact instead of looking for space.
"However we also have to accept the fact that we just started preparation only the other day for the Olympics while the other teams have had up to four years building up for this," Simiyu said.
Cyprian Kimutai Cyprian Kimutai Limo is my full name but most people refer to me as CP. Digital media has opened a new front for journalists, me being one of them. I understand what can be interesting for the audience, therefore I play around with words to satisfy the needs of the reader.
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A public meeting on the status of the old hospital cleanup last week drew strong comments by at least three community members.
WWC Engineering Project Manager Beth Famiglietti ran the meeting, which offered no new information, other than what the next several steps would be. Also present were Kevin Oliver of Northern Industrial Hygiene, all three Stillwater County commissioners, commissioner-elect Tyrel Hamilton, County Economic Coordinator Marissa Hauge and approximately eight community members.
Famiglietti gave an overview of the project that will include the cleanup of approximately 14,000 square feet of asbestos, lead-based paint, mercury and mold. More "document preparation" is needed and then the containments will be removed or remediated.
7) Monthly Progress Reports, etc.
An estimated timetable puts the project completion at the end of the 2019 summer.
Hauge successfully secured a $170,000 federal grant for the cleanup, which involves a $34,000 matching grant by the county. At this point in the process, there is between $130,000 and $140,000 left to complete the project.
For at least three community members in attendance, the primary concern was if the building is going to be demolished or remodeled and if WWC had prepared cost estimates for both.
"Are you talking about demolishing this building or remodeling it?" asked Columbus resident Harry Harsha.
Carl Gates, who worked in the old hospital in the 1990s, spoke about how the building was in poor condition back then.
Corky Kem asked if Famiglietti had received instructions from the commissioners to look at both options. Famiglietti said they had not reached that point in the process yet, but did discuss with the audience the price differences involved in remediating a building that was going to be demolished versus a building that was going to be remodeled.
Famiglietti told the group the biggest issue between the two is the removal of mold, with the demolishing option being less expensive as it would not have to be removed.
Hamilton asked when the decision would be made between demolition and remodeling. A clear answer was not given to this question. However, Famiglietti told the group that WWC was very "mindful of everything" that was being said.
Harsha then spoke about the building's "inferior insulation" and windows, to which Commissioner Dennis Shupak responded the plan would be to gut the interior of the building completely. Harsha said that could potentially make a remodel as expensive as a new building. The building's foundation was then discussed, which Shupak said was good.
Gates quickly countered that, saying it was just cement.
Columbus resident Maurie Petterson reminded the commissioners that several local contractors had said the building was not worth saving. Commissioner Maureen Davey countered that a structural engineer had said the foundation was fine.
"Those structural engineers (only) did a walk-through of the building," said Petterson.
Davey said that when the hospital had planned on remodeling in 2006, that her family had donated a lot of money for that purpose.
"At that time, the building was good enough to use as a hospital," said Davey.
Petterson brought the conversation back around to the fact that at the public meetings held about the project a few years ago, the publicly had clearly said the old hospital was not an option they supported.
The meeting closed with assurances from WWC that all voices were being heard.
"We'll figure it out together. Trust me. We have your backs," said Famiglietti.
The next update meeting will take place in approximately two months.


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Sunlongers
Kettal Stores
Authorized retail dealer
Architect Section
Request budget
Dion Neutra was born in Los Angeles on October 8, 1926 -the year the Neutra practice was formed by his famed architect father Richard Neutra, who had emigrated to the US in the early 20s, ending up in LA.
There he celebrated the arrival of his second son by founding his firm..
At the age of 11, Dion Neutra began his architectural apprenticeship at a drafting table in his father's office.
After having served in the US Navy in WWII, he studied for a year in Zurich and finally in 1950 graduated cum laude from USC with a BA in architecture. A few weeks later he passed the four-day State Board Architectural License Exam in one sitting, and became one of the youngest corporate members of the AIA at the age of 24.
Since then the Neutra Practice developed numbers of award-winning facilities: educational, medical, civic, recreational and residential.
In the early 60s after a fire devastated the family home, the partners collaborated in the design of a rebuilding of the home dubbed VDL II.
Dion lived just behind the construction, observing it for 2 years and is really responsible for what one sees today on a visit.
After the passing of Richard Neutra in 1970, Dion became firm president and continued to grow the practice, which in 2018, celebrates its 92nd year. He has traveled widely, lecturing in numerous locations in California, Nevada, Washington, DC, Pennsylvania, Spain, Switzerland, Japan, Puerto Rico, France, Canada and the South. He also provided leadership for the non-profit Neutra Institute for Design under whose aegis he developed the NEUTRA INSTITUTE MUSEUM OF SILVER LAKE.
The Museum has hosted some 80 shows and events since its founding in August, 2014. This is housed in the front portion of the Neutra Office Building, at 2379 Glendale Blvd. Los Angeles, California 90039. www.neutra.org. Check the website for late news on the museum.
Dion and Richard Neutra Collection
Kettal Structures seek to bring order, form and structure to outdoor areas, although functionally they are designed to provide shelter: to shade and cool or protect from the rain and wind.
Dion and Richard Neutra Images


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Jabal al-Kana'is is a mountain in the Hama Governorate in Syria. It has an elevation of 1,259 meters, making it the highest mountain in the Hama Governorate and the 165th highest in Syria.

References

Mountains of Hama Governorate

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Q: Check in compile-time that javascript / typescript objects correspond to C# object We are developing a Web API RESTful service in C# and UI in React + Typescript.
After I renamed/add/remove some proeprties in C# REstAPI models the web UI stopped to work, because I forgot to rename it in UI.
Futhermore it is for me almost impossible to find all usage of API calls of such objects.
I would like to configure strongly typed, compiled time checked system that typescript object will be mapped somehow to C# object and compiler will check it.
I can image that I (programmer) would mark javascript/typescript object with some metadata (C# namespace and class name).
How can I do that.

A: The key to resolving this issue is to abstract out a level to a configurable multi-language definition. From that definition you will be able generate both c# and typescript object definitions. The two major type descriptive options are Protos , and OpenApi from Google/Microsoft respectively.
This allows your workflow to become:

*

*Change the type configuration.

*Build the type configuration into the C# and Typescript definitions.

*Build the C# and Typescript libraries.

This ensures the object definitions are always in sync as the C# and Typescript libraries can depend directly on the auto-generated code.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Super Furry Animals, Pet Politics, Dogs, Ducks, a Gator and a Llama
Thursday, August 25, 2005 - 08:00 AM
Posted by: kbade
SUPER FURRY ANIMALS score an impressive 8.5 for Love Kraft on the Pitchfork.
THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS' Twin Cinema is racking up raves most everywhere, looking at the round-up at Metacritic. The Onion's A.V. Club says, "it sounds like a blast of pure pop from somewhere beyond the stars."
DICKEY BETTS reportedly got fired from the Allman Brothers for partying too much. He hasn't stopped.
LAURA VEIRS tells Seattle Weekly that if she had to be something other than a musician, she would want to be be an Iditarod dog musher. Why not a lumberjack?
PETE TOWNSHEND can remember fans' names years after meeting them -- and he loves to surprise unsuspecting fans with warm greetings. Especially the younger ones. Okay, I made that last bit up... I think.
METAL MADNESS ensues when Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson and Sharon Osbourne start feuding.
PET POLITICS is the nom de rock of Magnus Larsson, who tells *Sixeyes that some of his favorite records are by Bonnie "Prince" Billy, the Velvet Underground, Sonic Youth, Silver Jews, and Magnetic Fields. His stuff bears out those influences, with the exception of Sonic Youth. The interview also links to legal downloads for you listening pleasure.
PETE DOHERTY UPDATE: The troubled singer is supposedly back with galpal Kate Moss, so why is Moss moving to L.A., where she fled two months ago when she and Doherty briefly broke up.
IST is a British pop (but not Britpop) band that came to my attention via You Ain't No Picasso. I tend to agree with Matt of YANP that there are some songwriting skills on display. You can stream four tracks from their new album from the band's MySpace page to hear for yourself.
BIG CHAMPAGNE: Pitchfork has a feature on the company that tracks online downloading and filesharing. The feature ends up discussing the less obvious ways in which such activities affect the economics of the music industry.
KATRINA AND THE WAVES hit Florida this weekend (Thanks, Fark).
BRADGELINA UPDATE: Pitt and Jolie celebrated his divorce last weekend in Canada, where he is filming The Assassination Of Jesse James. Pitt, Jolie, her son and daughter took in a dinosaur exhibit at the Royal Tyrrell Museum.
TOM-KAT UPDATE: Defamer reports sightings of Cruise clones around the set of Mission Impossible 3. Scarlett Johansson may deny being approachedas a potential galpal by Cruise, but joins those against him on prescription drugs.
LOHAN LOWDOWN: The teen actress is spotted dining with Bruce Willis, which will reignite those old rumors.
IRAQ: At Iraq the Model, Omar reported on bloody clashes in Najaf between the supporters of Muqtada Al-Sadr and the local authorities. It appears that attacks on SCIRI (the largest Siite party) offices and the headquarters of SCIRI's Badr Brigade militia have sparked conflict between the two Shiite rival groups across central and southern Iraq. Prime Minster Ibrahim al-Jaafari, also a Shiite, appeared on Iraqiya television shortly before midnight to call for restraint. Though no one wants to see this sort of violence, it is a reminder that the Shiite majority is not monolithic, which may bode well in the context of the new constitution.
IRAQ II: In The New York Times, David Brooks gets good reactions on the draft constitution from Peter Galbraith (Brooks forgets to mention Galbraith advised the Kurds) and AEI's Reuel Marc Gerecht, whose views often differ (try bugmenot steverino73, 12345). ALSO: Maj. Gen. Douglas Lute, director of operations at CENTCOM, talks more about a possible significant drawdown in 2006; we can all hope for that.
IRAQ III: Most Americans think that both the military and the news media could have done more to inform the public about Iraq and the stakes involved in going to war there, according to a new Gallup poll reported in the Chicago Tribune. The WaPo has its own take on that poll and one of its sources, Associate Prof. Cori Dauber, blogs further on it. Ironically, U.S. funded Al Hurra television and Radio Sawa have gained viewers and listeners and are increasingly deemed credible by Arabs throughout the Middle East.
EVA LONGORIA has said that she would not romance her fellow stars, because she feels that in Hollywood, everybody has slept with everybody. Wasn't Tommy Lee spotted stumbling out of her hotel room at 3:30 a.m. the other day?
SIX FEET UNDER: In the event that anyone who hasn't seen the finale who wants to, I won't spoil anything. But if you saw the end and want to know even more, check TV Squad.
WHEN WILL CELEB WEEKLIES' BUBBLE BURST? Inquiring minds at Business 2.0 want to know.
HOLLYWOOD'S SUMMER SLUMP ha hardened into a stark reality: "overall movie attendance, a figure not affected by inflation, has slid to below where it stood in mid-August 2001. DVD sales, while still robust, are no longer rising exponentially, and some analysts say that a poor box office performance this summer will lead to poor DVD sales this winter. With billions of dollars at stake, nerves are growing understandably frayed."
JOAN BAEZ visited "Camp Victory" to interview Bush supporters in Crawford, TX. The Buzz blog at National Review online reports: "To Ms. Baez's credit, she was quite respectful and diplomatic when talking with the supporters, even though they have very different views on the war and President Bush." Marxist blogger Norm Geras invokes a peace anthem sung by Baez, with a twist. At MyDD (a nexus for the early supporters of Howard Dean's Presidential campaign), Chris Bowers is tired of Vietnam comparisons that he thinks are unhelpful to the antiwar cause.
EGYPTIAN BLOGGERS are leading antigovernment protests. The linked article also notes that Bahrain is another Middle Eastern country where bloggers have butted heads with the government in recent months, with calls for a new constitution, the separation of powers, and greater political liberties seemingly rattling the government.
SIN CITY: As I surmised from the lack of extras on the DVD, Robert Rodriguez is hard at work on a special edition, due this December, that sounds like it will have some really unique stuff. Also, it appears that the sequel will start shooting in January.
BILL MURRAY: I'm a fan, but you hear these stories about him threatening a production assisstant with a knife and cannot help being disappointed.
SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE: Keanu Reeves has dumped his girlfriend to start dating Diane Keaton.
SEAN PENN meets with Hassan Khomeini, the grandson of the late Ayatollah and wonders what yardstick defines Iran as a terrorist-supporting nation, yet dismisses such a claim against the United States. Aside from the U.S. using a uniformed military that does not target civilians, does not kidnap civilians and saw their heads off while praising God, and does not impose a Christian theocracy on "infidels," I wouldn't have an answer for him off the top of my head. Did Sean learn nothing from Mr. Hand?
OSAMA BIN LADEN reportedly injured in Afghanistan, fwiw. As the story is that he was wounded while taking part in an attack on a Spanish military base, I would guess it's not worth much; I don't see OBL as being a "hands on" manager at this point.
ASSASSINATION: Given the general uproar (myself included) over the Rev. Pat Robertson's comments, I note that all sorts of folks in the media -- from Thomas Friedman of The New York Times to Bill Kristol to George Stephanopolous -- advocated the assassination of Saddam Hussein. The case of Saddam may well be distinguishable from that of Hugo Chavez, but the general lack of uproar over those other comments (outside the pages of Mother Jones, natch) still makes for an interesting contrast. Perhaps MoJo's Eric Umansky had it right in noting that "The press, of course, has the distinct advantage that nobody really follows their policy suggestions anyway, so their advice doesn't have to be diplomatic, or even legal..."
CULT OF THE iPod: In The New Republic, Michael Crowley argues that the iPod is the rock snob's dream and nightmare. Ladies can now carry their Pod in Kate Spade's new line of cases.
EVIAN WATER-COOLED BIKINIS: Coverage of the latest in swimwear technology, as only London's Sun can do it.
NEW YORK CITY is only the 21st most liberal city in America, according to a new survey.
THE BLOB is threatening some of Canada's richest fishing grounds.
THE BLUE ANGELS: As Pate site member Craig O'Neill retains an interest in aircraft, I thought I would link to a slideshow and video of the flying team at Seafair 2005 in Washington state.
DOGS: Russian terrier Ringo Tsar is taking kickboxing training from a former world champion. Lhasa Apsos have a £300 birthday party, complete with a "bouncy castle." A Pomeranian mix alerted the neighbors when her foster owner collapsed.
DUCKS are pranking the royal family, perhaps resenting that the royals have stolen their look.
L.A. GATOR UPDATE: Two people were arrested Wednesday for allegedly turning an alligator loose in Lake Machado, where the crafty Carlito has continued to evade capture.
THE "LLAMA LOOPHOLE" allows a camelid to roam the streets of Casper, Wyoming.
Body Parts, Body Snatching, a Bra Ban and... MORE COWBELL!
Wednesday, August 24, 2005 - 08:00 AM
KEITH RICHARDS claims Mick Jagger is not well-endowed, which could explain the origin of the Mars bar legend.
ROCK'S MOST INCREDIBLE BODY PARTS are listed by Spin magazine. Presley's pelvis was robbed! So was Keith Richards' liver.
PERNICE BROTHERS: There's an interview with Joe Pernice and a legal MP3 for you at Pulse of the Twin Cities.
JOHN PEEL DAY: BBC Radio 1 is dedicating Octoober 13th to the legendary DJ, with concert venues around the UK being invited to stage gigs under the Peel Day banner.
BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE'S self-titled album has leaked onto the 'net, but Kevin Drew waxes a little poetic about it. The one-time title track, "Windsurfing Nation" gets praise at the Pitchfork.
20 DYNAMIC SUPER-HIT EXPLOSIONS: the Boston Globe runs a piece on K-Tel Records. All original hits, all original artists.
WILCO has a fever... and the only cure is... more cowbell!
HOW TO IDENTIFY EMOS, indies and screamos (try bugmenot or mary@dealsinwheels.com, 123456).
BAY CITY ROLLER Les McKeown was due to appear in court on Tuesday, charged with conspiracy to supply cocaine.
SUFJAN STEVENS' ILLINOIS is reviewed by the Illinois Times.
PETE DOHERTY UPDATE: The troubled singer actually makes news related to music, as Babyshambles' new single enters the UK charts at number four.
COURTNEY LOVE: Journo Neil Strauss, author of the forthcoming book Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pick-Up Artists, got so good at pick-ups that he inadvertently picked up Courtney Love while interviewing her for a Rolling Stone piece. Deranged hilarity ensued.
JESSICA ALBA: Apparently, I'm too young for her.
JESSICA SIMPSON: Yesterday, Sylvia Hauser and I were mocking her a bit. Later, Golden Fiddle made me laugh 'til I cried.
EVA LONGORIA AND TOMMY LEE kept going after he licked her face on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. I can't believe I missed that and the Del McCoury Band.
SEAN PENN finds a Men's room in Iran as part of his hard-hitting series for the San Francisco Chronicle.
MICHAEL MOORE is going to a re-education camp.
ALEC BALDWIN is getting the Linda McCartney Memorial Award at PETA's 25th anniversary gala in Hollywood on Sept. 10th, for proving that even a vegetarian diet can cause you to swell up to the size of Marlon Brando. Well, maybe not exactly, but he is being feted.
SCARLETT JOHANSSON: Paparazzi turn her trip to Disneyland into Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.
LOHAN LOWDOWN: Ex-beau Aaron Carter channels Sigmund Freud.
HARRY SHEARER thinks August is not a "slow news month," but that journos are lazy -- and points to a story that should get more coverage than missing teenage tourists.
PAT ROBERTSON calls for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, but is disavowed by the White House. Conservative bloggers go further, even compiling a list of Robertson's most idiotic statements to date. Mark Daniels thinks it's bad theology also. Granted, Chavez cozies up to Fidel Castro, Saddam Hussein, Muammar Gaddafi and even started up a correspondence with notorious terrorist Ilich Ramírez "Carlos the Jackal" Sánchez. He's turned Venezuela into a safe haven for Columbian terrorists. He's even been accused of supporting Al Qaeda. But imho, you don't call for assassinating him; the only beneficiaries of such idiocy are Chavez... and major media during a slow news month, especially CNN.
CRESSIDA'S MOM has got it going on.
THE PASSION of the Robocop?
DIRTY DANCING 3: Nun reprimanded after spreading her legs for a missionary.
BAN THE BRA? Britain could be facing a bra shortage after an European Union ban blocked £50 million of Chinese-made clothing heading for the UK. The director of a Danish lingerie chain borrowed a helicopter Monday morning to secure one of the last EU import licences for bras.
CHILD MOLESTATION on your honeymoon? Anytime is despicable, but on your honeymoon!?
IRAQ: The Christian Science Monitor examines why the Sunnis fear the new constitution. At Publius Pundit, Robert Mayer notes that the language on Islam in the draft is weaker than that of the new Afghan constitution. Article 14 of the draft provides: "Iraqis are equal before the law without discrimination because of gender, ethnicity, nationality, origin, color, religion, sect, belief, opinion or social or economic status." Article 151 of the draft provides: "No less than 25 percent of Council of Deputies seats go to women." There's even more analysis from Prof. Brendan O'Leary -- an advisor to the Kurdistan government -- at Norm Geras' blog; he doesn't think the Sunnis would be able to muster a veto in the referendum. Imho, the interpretation and implementation of any new constitution is probably more important than the document itself -- the constitution of the former Soviet Union sounded great, but the reality was much different.
LONDON: A Muslim accused of anti-Semitism and praising Sheikh Omar Abdul Rahman -- the man behind the first WTC bombing -- is to be appointed to a government role in charge of rooting out extremism in the wake of last month's suicide bombings in London.
CULT OF THE iPod: The giant wooden iPod is okay, but how about the solid aluminum mod?
WOXY, a Ken King discovery, is podcasting music news and will soon podcast a show featuring unsigned bands.
ENGADGET found a time machine and went back to the future of 1985, which is a little ironic.
FUTURE MILITARY DRONE PLANES may be modeled on seagulls, diving between buildings, zooming under overpasses and landing on apartment balconies.
GLOBAL WARMING: Colorado's state climatologist has resigned from a Bush administration science advisory team in a disagreement over research into the causes of global warming. Roger Pielke Sr. said the Climate Change Science Program had minimized evidence that factors other than greenhouse gases can contribute to global warming.
GOOGLE is reportedly to launch an instant voice messaging service that would compete with Skype.
SAM, THE WORLD'S UGLIEST DOG, has his own website, blog and even a fan site.
MONKEYS are pulling all-nighters at Wake Forest University for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. At least, that's what they're doing when they aren't hitting the casinos.
FAMILY-RUN GUINEA PIG FARM shuts down after a six-year campaign of intimidation by animal rights activists, including death threats, arson and the theft of the corpse of a family relative.
POST 9/11, Customs will notice if you have green tree pythons, albino pythons, iguanas, frilled-neck dragons, slider turtles and tree monitors in your luggage.
IT'S RAINING FEATHERS in Richmond, CA. No one knows why.
CROCODILE tracked by satellite.
LOVE MOTEL FOR PETS: Yesterday, I had a listing of pet-pampering hotels, but the Pet Love motel, in Sao Paulo, Brazil may have them beat.
Robert Moog, Neil Young, Orlando Bloom, Cloned Cats, Dogs and Iguanas
Tuesday, August 23, 2005 - 08:00 AM
THE RAVEONETTES' Sune Rose Wagner is interviewed at Suicide Girls about songwriting, recording and vintage clothing.
THE ROLLING STONES claim that Angela Merkel, the Christian Democratic Union's candidate for Chancellor in Germany, is using "Angie" as a theme song without permission. A spokesman for the CDU disputed the claim, saying the party cleared usage of excerpts from the song with the German music distribution rights regulator, Gema. ALSO: A woman was hospitalized with broken bones after she climbed onto the rafters of Fenway Park during Sunday night's Rolling Stones concert and fell 35 to 40 feet. Would it be a Stones tour without fan injury stories?
DEADHEADS want Jerry Garcia on a postage stamp. Click through for an amusing online poll.
ROBERT MOOG, whose self-named synthesizers turned electric currents into sound, revolutionizing music in the 1960s and opening the wave that became electronica, has died at 71. An inoperable brain tumor had been detected in April. Though folks tend to think of Keith Emerson, Walter (WendY) Carlos and others from the 1970s when they hear the name, Moog's current customers included Nine Inch Nails, Pearl Jam, Beck, Phish, Sonic Youth and Widespread Panic.
COURTNEY LOVE claims to be pregnant. The putative father's denial may deserve the benefit of the doubt for now, given that Courtney is... a little wacky.
NEIL YOUNG'S upcoming album, Prairie Wind, is tinged with gospel and blues, making the Grand Ole Opry an ideal place for Jonathan Demme to film its debut.
THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS' Twin Cinema, which is out today, racks up a 9.0 on the Pitchfork. Remember, you can download two tracks for free at Matador's website.
THE PIXIES are essayed in London's Guardian, with Frank Black telling his version of how the band reunited.
BAUHAUS re-re-unites.
BEASTIE BOYS a cappella MP3s for your remixing pleasure.
STING has seven houses to keep him grounded. Not working, is it?
MADONNA is working her Kabbalah to accelerate her recovery from that horse-riding accident.
IS BRITNEY SPEARS A BIGAMIST? Richard Bacon, a presenter on the BBC's Top of the Pops, claims he was legally married to Spears shortly after her split with Justin Timberlake. Spears' reps deny the claim, natch. ALSO: Spears has reportedly planned a Kabbalah water birth.
THE FRENCH HOTEL: is her engagement off?
SIENNA MILLER is heartbroken. I Don't Like You In That Way has the pictures.
SEX (AND THE CITY) TOURISM: Greenwich Village takes its cut.
NATASHA LYONNE, perhaps best known from the American Pie movies (though Rufus Wainwright wrote a song about her, too) is worse off than Tara Reid and arguably worse off than Courtney Love.
ORLANDO BLOOM is reportedly set to marry sweetheart Kate Bosworth.
EVA LONGORIA: The Desperate Housewife claims she got in touch with her inner sexual self after a Brazilian wax. I'm restraining myself as the broad side of the barn passes by.
SUMMER TV RATINGS are slumping like summer movie attendance.
SEAN PENN'S REPORTS FROM IRAN have started as a week-long series in the San Francisco Chronicle.
IRAQ: At Iraq the Model, Omar reported on the role of Islam in the proposed constitution: "it was agreed upon that no laws that are against the widely agreed upon values of Islam can be issued and no laws that are against the values of democracy and human rights can be issued." That language seems confirmed in London's Independent. Though not ideal, it may be better than the language found in the constitutions of countries like Egypt, Syria and Kuwait, none of which are theocracies. It will be interesting to see what the current draft specifically says about womens' rights. That the parliamentary vote on the draft has been delayed for three days to try to win more Sunni support is probably a good sign -- or at least a recognition that the Sunni vote could veto the draft at the referendum.
AFGHANISTAN: Taliban fighters will not attack polling stations during next month's election, a spokesman said, but he vowed that the war against the government and U.S. forces would go on. I would take that with a truckload of salt, though it's possible that the Taliban noticed the backlash against such attacks in Iraq.
TOM-KAT UPDATE: Holmes is already on record as wanting a simple wedding, so we can only surmise that the reported plan for a million dollar Arabian Knights-themed wedding in Spain was hatched by her over-the-top, couch-jumping fiancee.
BRADGELINA UPDATE: Pitt and Aniston now have a judgment for dissolution, which frees them to marry again starting October 2nd.
IN PRAISE OF FEMALE SEXUALITY, by Paul Sheehan, is posted at the Common Dreams News Center, a self-described progressive website... but I wonder what NOW, NARRAL and Planned Parenthood think of this paragraph: "This is society's real problem. Teenage pregnancy is trivial by comparison to suppressed pregnancy."
FIRST-BORN CHILDREN achieve the most success in life, according to a new study. I'm doomed!
DEMOCRATIC DIAGNOSIS: Democrats are split on how to approach Iraq and Supreme Court nominee John Roberts. These disagreements may be part of a larger rift, as Democratic consultant and uber-blogger Markos Moulitsas Zúniga declares war on the Democratic Leadership Council. As he wants "to make the DLC radioactive," maybe it's nuclear war.
THE FRENCH PRESS examines the sources of the strong anti-French sentiment in central and eastern Europe, with special reference to the Czech Republic.
CLONED WILDCATS produce healthy wildkitties.
DOGS: It looks like the skateboarding dog video has been around for a while, but if you haven't seen it, you should.
PET-PAMPERING HOTELS are featured at Expedia (Thanks to Debbie).
FROGS INVADE FRANCE: Giant California bullfrogs, introduced illegally to France 37 years ago, can grow to more than 4lbs in weight and almost 2ft long, consuming other frogs, fish, lizards and even small birds. Hunters working for the government's wildlife agency will be stalking ponds in south-west France this weekend, aimed with flash-lights, rifles, silencers and night-vision sights.
CHIMPANZEES like humans, show social conformity, according to a new study. Take a look at the BBC's picture -- I think all that's missing is the monolith.
COLUMBIAN COW jailed after a car accident.
IGUANAS are a growing problem in southern Florida: "It was like Jurassic Park in my toilet."
Thin Lizzy, Mountain Goats, Metal Mania, Mullets and more...
Monday, August 22, 2005 - 08:00 AM
SO, WHAT DID Y'ALL DO THIS WEEKEND?
I SAW BRIAN WILSON'S SMiLE TOUR (again), at the very last minute, as a venue he was supposed to play in Michigan Sunday night went bankrupt, so he landed at the ParkWest instead. I have a review of last year's show up in this site's Reviews section. This one was a bit less formal, as the only people more crowded that Brian and his big band onstage were the folks jammed into the table and chair set-up offstage. But worth it to sit 15 feet from a legend of popular music. I publicly apologize in advance to Ken King for not alerting him, though it really was a last minute thing. Which makes me feel less guilty about mentioning that Brian's female backup singer -- Ken knows exactly who I mean -- was even hotter up close. I would recommend the DVD, even to people who aren't big Brian fans, for the Beautiful Dreamer documentary, as it tells a story that I think even non-fans could find interesting and dramatic.
THE BOY IS BACK IN TOWN: The late Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy finally returned to "The Old Town" of Dublin, Ireland when a statue commemorating him was unveiled off the city's busy Grafton Street on what would have been his 56th birthday.
ON THE PITCHFORK: Ian McCulloch thinks the upcoming Echo and the Bunnymen album is a "masterpiece." The Rev. Horton Heat is doing an Xmas album and tour.
THE DECEMBERISTS, DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE AND STARS join onstage for Fleetwood Mac's "Go Your Own Way." You Ain't No Picasso is killing music by pointing you to the MP3 and the video.
THE MOUNTAIN GOATS' video for "This Year" can be streamed here.
BANDS NAMED AFTER MEMBERS OTHER THAN THE SINGER are discussed at MetaFilter.
DICK CAVETT AND ROCK STARS: Out on DVD. I'd like to hear about Jimi Hendrix's days as a paratrooper.
THE MAGIC NUMBERS talk to London's Guardian about walking off Top of the Pops and their desire to get into Brian Wilson's sandbox.
ROCK STAR "DON'TS" are listed at the Castor Oil blog. For example: "Just admit it, you were in bad heavy metal bands until Weezer broke out and you have never listened to Gang of Four in your life. It's really OK, no one out there gives a sh*t enough to judge you for it."
HEAVY METAL: It's your one-way ticket to midnight. It's also becoming hip, if the linked Slate article referring to Mastodon is any indication.
MULLET HUNT at the Iowa State Fair. See what you expats are missing?
POISON GUITARIST C.C. DeVille jumped out of the "Where Are They Now?" file and into a Stuff magazine party in Vegas by way of air guitar.
ZIPCODE MAN: And I thought I retained trivia.
COURTNEY LOVE gets court-ordered rehab after she admits to three probation violations.
PATTY SMYTH jumps out of the "Where are they now?" file to fill in for Billy Joel's daughter at a charity gig. I guess she still is the Warrior.
DO THEY KNOW IT'S HALLOWEEN? is a benefit record for UNICEF featuring Beck, Sum 41, The Arcade Fire, Sonic Youth, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Sloan, Peaches, Feist, Devendra Banhart, Wolf Parade, Postal Service, Buck 65, Arrested Development's David Cross, Sex Pistols' founder Malcolm McLaren, Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, 60's soul legend Gino Washington, Roky Erickson, Sparks, and more. Seems like it should be produced by Steve Albini or Tim Burton. Stream it here.
HARD WORKERS work hard in the bedroom.
MARCH OF THE PENGUINS is snarking on Hustle and Flow.
GRIZZLY MAN: I saw and recommend Grizzly Man, though it's not playing on many screens around the country.
JESSICA ALBA having second thoughts about a Fantastic Four sequel? Or just about negotiating a better contract? A Newsweek web exclusive interview reports that she is signed for two sequels -- which is standard for such movies. She may star in a movie version of I Dream of Jeannie, which would be the only reason to see it.
KIRSTEN DUNST PREGNANT? She was spotted eyeing a box of New Chapter Organics Perfect Prenatal dietary supplements with Jake Gyllenhall, with whom she has been linked previously. But I would guess the odds are about the same as Katie Holmes getting pregnant.
ALICIA SILVERSTONE hates being in the spotlight. As if that's a problem for her.
MARCIA CROSS: The Desperate Housewife who has denied rumors that she prefers women is engaged, but no wedding date has been set.
IRAQ: On Friday, Iraq's national security adviser said the country would descend into civil war if federalism was not entrenched in the constitution. States' rights -- and disputes over the right to secede -- are issues Americans know to be difficult and divisive. People who have lived under tyranny often prefer a weak central government. U.S. diplomats reportedly have conceded ground to the Shiites on the role of Islam in the constitution. At Iraq the Model, Omar reports on Christians protesting for a secular constitution, demands for more voters' registration offices in Fallujah and for international monitoring of the referendum. Omar also translates polling showing Iraqis prefer a federal state where Islam is just one (rather than the only) source for legislation. The Shiites should remember that the Sunnis -- who seem eager to participate in the referendum -- probably hold a veto over the proposed constitution.
THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS' Twin Cinema drops tomorrow, prompting reviews from PopMatters and Carl Wilson and a blurb in Macleans that describes the band's chance meeting with Broken Social Scene.
PUNK ROCKER is the Town Crier in Westcountry UK.
EMINEM GOES INTO REHAB dependency to sleep medication, according to his publicist. Maybe he'll remix that one number so that while he's rapping, "My name is..." a group can respond, "Hello, Marshall..."
INXS: The estate of the band's late singer, Michael Hutchence, reportedly has been valued at nothing. However, the estate did not include a string of properties in Australia worth more than 10 million dollars, a villa in southern France, a house in London, a development in Indonesia, numerous luxury cars and royalty payments from INXS, which had been placed in a complex array of companies and trusts from Liberia to the British Virgin Islands over which he had limited control to protect his wealth. No Rock and Roll Fun wonders where that money is going.
JEANETTE SLIWINSKI, who killed three Chicago area musicians with her car, was quite a piece of work, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
"GAY BATMAN" ARTIST gets a "cease and desist" letter from D.C. Comics.
GRADES FOR SEX, MONEY SCANDAL at Florida Memorial University.
OIL-FOR-FOOD SCANDAL: A Danish maker of industrial pumps, admits paying kickbacks to Saddam's regime under the U.N. program.
A STUDY IN WARTIME UNDERWEAR: British troops get germ-fighting underwear. Some Palestinian suicide bombers wrap their penises into fire-proof aluminum foil to save them for those virgins they were promised in the afterlife.
IRAQ II: The Army is planning for the possibility of keeping the current number of soldiers in Iraq for four more years, the Army's top general said Saturday. Imho, planning for a worst-case scenario is better than not planning for it. The Washington Post covers Soldiers' Angels, a wonderful group which supports our troops by doing everything from writing letters to donating computers, backpacks and body armor to troops in the field. Belgravia Dispatch has analysis based on another WaPO article about the rising influence of Shiite and Kurdish militias.
JUDE LAW AND SIENNA MILLER: Splitsville. Of course, tomorrow is another day...
TOM SIZEMORE SEX TAPE surfaces. Many women; no celebs.
JUDITH MILLER, The New York Times reporter jailed on contempt charges for refusing to testify about a source to a grand jury, needs to have a chat with her husband, who is currently telling friends that his wife "is having the time of her life." That's a phrase you tend to hear in commercials for vacation cruises like the one Miller's husband took while she was in the slam.
JOE RANFT, an Academy Award-nominated storyboard supervisor for Disney and Pixar animated films, who co-wrote Toy Story and A Bug's Life after work on Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King, was killed in a car accident last week. He was 45.
CA GOVERNOR'S RACE: Will Steve Jobs or Robin Williams challenge the Governator?
WHAT WOULD TOM CRUISE SAY? Margarita Lopez, a candidate for Manhattan borough president, is a Scientologist who shuttled hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars to a Scientology-backed detox center co-founded by Cruise. Rivals have also taken openly gay Lopez to task because Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard preached against homosexuality.
MICHAEL YON writes from Mosul about what he doesn't report, and why. He also seems to think the major media is routinely blowing its coverage: "What is seen on television and in the papers is practically always inaccurate, or is at least poorly framed."
SEXY SAUDI SWIMWEAR, courtesy of Publius Pundit. Actually, the company looks to be Turkish, but the point is basically the same.
AL QAEDA LEADER KILLED in Saudi Arabia. Saleh Mohammed al-Aoofi, the kingdom's top fugitive, had led local al-Qaida operations since his predecessor was killed by police a year ago. An Al Qaeda-linked group plans to "terrorize" U.S.-led forces in Iraq and their families by bombarding them with e-mails and by posting gruesome photos online.
TREATING TERRORISTS LIKE PIRATES: Author Douglas R. Burgess Jr. thinks it may clarify our thinking on terrorism.
STUCK IN LODI: The idea of a "million Muslim march" to publicly denounce terrorism has officially died, when it became apparent the deep division in Lodi's Muslim community would make organizing the event difficult if not impossible. A federal grand jury has handed up indictments against a Lodi father and his son accused of having ties to Al Qaeda. A Muslim cleric and his son were deported to Pakistan after Federal immigration officials said the cleric and his successor, planned to establish a madrassa similar to one in Pakistan, where both taught before coming to the U.S. Evidence presented at last week's proceeding showed that madrassa had been used to recruit individuals to engage in jihad.
THE HOME FRONT: Margot Kidder became a U.S. citizen Wednesday to avoid possible deportation to her native Canada when she begins protesting the war. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a former San Francisco mayor, helped secure three million dollars to tow the retired USS Iowa from to the Bay Area in hopes of making touristy Fisherman's Wharf its new home. But city supervisors voted 8-3 last month to oppose taking in the ship, citing local opposition to the Iraq war and the military's stance on gays, among other things. Feinstein called it a "very petty decision." And supporters of the President's Iraq policy have started their own camp down in Crawford.
DEMOCRATIC DIAGNOSIS: Poll numbers for President Bush and the GOP-led Congress have declined, but pollsters and analysts say that Democrats aren't doing any better. Sen. John Kerry sees no need to make any changes.
WHAT IS THIS? It's a fossil of something, but nobody knows what it is a fossil of.
BLOGGING AFFECTS THE BRAIN? Drs. Fernette and Brock Eide consider the possibilities.
NANOTECH: Carbon nanotubes get a big, but layperson-friendly, write-up from Science on MSNBC. That article begins by talking about transparent sheets of carbon nanotubes that can be used for screens and windows, which are discussed further at the website for Nature.
CLIMATE CHANGE may have profoundly influenced human evolution, according to a new study published in this week's Science.
IT'S ALIVE... ITS'S ALIIIIVE!!! Synthetic biologists boldly claim the ability to make never-before-seen living things, one genetic molecule at a time. At The American Prospect, Chris Mooney is "tired of preachy retreads of the Frankenstein myth, first laid out in Mary Shelley's 19th-century classic and recycled by Hollywood constantly in films from Godsend to Jurassic Park.
SODA IN SCHOOL: The American Beverage Association is recommending limiting the availability of soft drinks in schools across the country. The Freakonomics blog has a theory as to why.
GROUND ZERO: A global network of human rights museums is urging the International Freedom Center to downplay America in its exhibits and programs at Ground Zero, the New York Daily News has learned. For some reason, some 9/11 family members disagree with the idea of turning Ground Zero into the "Why They Hate Us" museum.
CULT OF THE iPod: You Ain't No Picasso describes friends adapting the card game "War" to iPods. Playlist lists six iPod hacks. But none of them match the MegaGiant wood iPod that eliminates the threat of being mugged (Thanks to Sylvia).
PODCASTING: The Washington Post surveys popular and specialty podcasts. Slate is promoting its own podcast.
AMAZON.COM is selling more sex toys "than you knew they would ever dare sell and more than you even knew were being manufactured in the world today and a more advanced and varied selection than you probably imagined they could ever get away with..." Are there links in the linked column? Why, yes, there are.
THE BANANA is an endangered species.
FASTER-THAN-LIGHT SPEED: Scientists have managed to control the speed of light – both slowing it down and speeding it up – in an optical fiber, using off-the-shelf instrumentation in normal environmental conditions.
L.A. GATOR UPDATE: The crafty Carlito has already become a folk hero in the gritty neighborhood where he continues to outwit wranglers and elude capture in Lake Machado.
ANIMAL HOARDING, WITH A TWIST: This time, more than 70 cats, dogs, birds, guinea pigs and more were found living in deplorable conditions at a home billed as an animal shelter and occupied by a man who has written several books on caring for dogs.
BIRDS were accidentally fed cannabis seeds by a Norwegian grandmother. That's probably a vicious cycle, as I imagine it only gave the birds the munchies.
GOOEY THE DUCK was raised by a woman since he was a day old, even wearing special duck diapers and going to the woman's job. Washington stste's Fish and Wildlife Department has seized Gooey and is looking into whether the woman should be charged with unlawful possession of wildlife. The local police are investigating the wildlife officers, one of whom the woman says struck her as he snatched the duck away.
A RARE AND RANDY WARBLER is ironically facing extinction, despite being the most promiscuous and energetic lover in the avian world. And "Randy Warbler" would make a good fake DJ name.
MAIL ORDER CHICKENS: It's probably not exactly what you think, but I don't know if it can be explained.
DONKEY'S PROTEST CENSORED in Serbia.
MERCENARY GOATS TO FIGHT KUDZU in Peachtree City, GA. ALSO: Mountain goat threatens a woman in her garage in Salt Lake City.
DOZENS OF LAMBS DISQUALIFIED from competing at the Wyoming State Fair because their tails were cut too short. It sounds picky, but you wouldn't want your rectum to slip out of place, would you?
CATS AND DOGS will be rescued from settlements in the Gaza strip. Even so, an evacuated settler told a news website, "Horses, dogs and cats and even chickens were wandering the streets. There is no one to feed or care for them."
KITTY burns two or three of its lives, surviving an electrical shock, a fall and a fire in Nevada.
DOGS of celebrities attended a birthday bash for Romeo Hastreiter (a mutt of Paper magazine founder Kim Hastreiter), at the Tribeca Grand Hotel last Thursday.
The Stooges, First Ave., Smoosh and Sheba the Wonder Dog
Friday, August 19, 2005 - 08:00 AM
THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE: I don't care if Monday's blue/ Tuesday's grey and Wednesday too/ Thursday I don't care about you/ It's Friday...
OKAY, NOT REALLY, BUT THE CURE helped secure the release of Belarusian scientist Yury Bandazhevsky, who was jailed in Russia after being convicted of taking bribes from students seeking admission to the Gomel Medical Institute. Amnesty International adopted him as a Prisoner of Conscience, believing that he was convicted on trumped up charges because of his open criticism of the authorities' response to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. The Cure promoted a petition for his release during their last tour.
FRIDAY TIMEWASTER: All the cutesy Flash games you can handle at Orisinal.
THE STOOGES REISSUES score 8.9 and 9.4 on the Pitchfork: "It should go without saying that these are two of the most important signposts on the way to the punk explosion, and that any rock fan with a sense of history owes it to themselves to check them out if they haven't already. What's often lost as we place them in the canon, though, is the fact that both albums sound incredibly good today on their own terms, raw and immediate and dripping with an aggression that's rarely been rivaled."
THE WHITE STRIPES: An L.A. Times review of their gig at the Greek Theater is dismantled at losanjealous. I can only imagine what this blogger would do with this piece in The New Republic.
FIRST AVE. AND THE 7TH ST. ENTRY: The Minnesota Historical Society has an inventory of the clubs' band files for 1977-2004, including "correspondence with bands and/or agents, contracts, attendance and 'take' or 'numbers' sheets (financial breakdowns), photographs of performers and other promotional materials, tickets, post-performance reviews, and other miscellany." The list of shows posted online is impressive, though incomplete, as I could not find the Golden Palominos show I saw there. But they do note the Replacements/Young Fresh Fellows bill where Scott McCaughey -- wearing a wig he stole from the M-Shop -- heckled Music Works' Paul Miller from atop a monitor speaker during the guitar solos...
SEVEN BAND NAMES that would be impossible to book. I guess the Who is the exception that proves the rule.
GWEN STEFANI is reportedly boycotting the MTV Music Awards because she wasn't invited to play.
SUFJAN STEVENS gets mainstream attention in Newsday. Now that I know the band is dressing as Illinois cheerleaders on tour, I may have to break down and get those tickets...
SHAMELESS PLUG: Anyone who needs a guitar tech in Chicagoland should check out Andon Davis and the rest of the crew at Third Coast Guitar. Andon's a fine guitarist in his own right and knows how one should sound and look. In fact, even non-musicians should take a peek at the site, as the image maps seem well-suited to the target audience. No, I'm not being paid to say it, either; I just like Andon's playing.
SMOOSH: The pre-high school sisters rocked the office at SPIN magazine. I've mentioned them twice before. Check out the groovy video for "Le Pump," complete with Claymation, at Pattern 25, which also links to streaming audio from KEXP and more... Or stream a couple from NPR. Come on; how many indie bands get interviewed by Scholastic News?
RADIOHEAD frontman Thom Yorke has started a blog and used it to announce the band has begun recording its next album.
JUNKMEDIA: I hadn't visited in a while, but the site has been redesigned, complete with a newsblog called "World of Sound." Currently featured is an interview with the Decemberists' Colin Meloy. But it's really all about Ken King's review of the Pate box that keeps me going back, because I'm a tremendous narcissist.
COMEDY CENTRAL has started a blog chock full 'o' video clips. Excellent idea.
BANGLADESH: About 400 small bombs, suspected to have been planted by an Islamic militant outfit, exploded almost simultaneously in cities and towns across Bangladesh, killing at least two persons, including a child, and injuring 138. Leaflets found at the sites of the blasts said "It is time to implement Islamic law in Bangladesh. There is no future with man-made law," and "(US President George W Bush) and (British Prime Minister Tony Blair) be warned and get out of Muslim countries." We're occupying Bangladesh? Who knew? The targets of these bombs were courts, suggesting the real motivation was the first one. Another target, the Grameen Bank is a micro-development lender; such banks often help third-world women get into business.
CLOWN ASSAILANT NABBED IN SEATTLE: The clown would have gotten away with it, too... if it hadn't been for those meddlesome kids!
BRADGELINA UPDATE: Jolie was overheard saying thst she and Pitt are "working on" getting married and plan to adopt more babies. She was also overheard telling baby Zahara that "Mommy misses Brad." But a guy who dines with B.P. regularly told E!'s Ted Casablanca that Pitt "will not marry Angelina." And a "big producer" tells Casablanca that Pitt is risking his career: "Women don't like what he's done."
HOLLYWOOD is cutting back its ads in papers like The New York Times and L.A. Times. The studios would cut back more if they didn't feel they need to stroke the ego of the "talent."
TOM-KAT UPDATE: Rumor has it that Cruise's next PR mess will involve Lindsay Lohan.
BRITNEY SPEARS may name her son Preston, which I could almost see with the name Spears, but Preston Federline? Better keep him in private schools...
HUNTER S. THOMPSON is ready for blast-off Saturday.
DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES: Eva Longoria was struck in the head by a pole while filming a scene for Desperate Housewives and it was not in the script. Teri Hatcher has considered hiring a gigolo. Yeah, right.
JUDE LAW: At Defamer, an anonymous eyewitness defends Law's manhood. Could it be George Costanza? ALSO: Law and estranged fiancee Sienna Miller have been spotted together in public.
THE FRENCH HOTEL is now so infamous that she had a makeup artist spend three hours the other day fitting her with a prosthetic nose and a red wig so that she could take her brothers to Disneyland.
BOXERS, BRIEFS OR VICTORIA'S SECRET? It seems like when a Clinton runs for office, people start asking the candidates about their undies.
IRAQ: The New York Times (via the registration-free IHT) reports on the rebuilding of the Mosul police force; a couple of soldiers quoted think that the force could crumble unless the American troops stay for years. However, Michael Yon has reported that the ISF in Mosul is making remarkable progress, with the police a frequent target of the terrorists. Yon also did a radio interview this past week you can hear here. Fred Kagan argues in the Washington Post that security in Iraq is not as simple as decreasing our troops and increasing theirs, which is almost certainly true -- though more and improved Iraqi forces could allow the U.S. to draw down substantially and focus on providing logistics and support. I've noticed that local papers often get stories the national media misses, like Sgt. 1st Class Elbert Jetton of the 3rd ID seeing improvements, even in Baghdad, during his second deployment. (try bugmenot SOMEONE777@aol.com, 7777777)
OIL-FOR-FOOD SCANDAL: Guess who bought some of the oil? Enron.
THE FIREFLY PHONE is designed for kids -- and their parents, with parental management of incoming and outgoing calls. Links to reviews at Gizmodo.
NATURE OR NURTURE: A lengthy piece in the Boston Globe asks, "What Makes People Gay?" suggests it's at least half biology, but questions whether that matters: "Some advocates of gay marriage argue that proving sexual orientation is inborn would make it easier to frame the debate as simply a matter of civil rights. That could be true, but then again, freedom of religion enjoyed federal protection long before inborn traits like race and sex."
PODCASTING becomes a tool for academia.
DIGITAL VIDEO RECORDERS may be turning television into the Internet.
REAL-TIME SURGERY BY INTERNET: Scientists in Australia have successfully performed laser surgery and "optical trapping" in a Southern California laboratory via the Internet.
EDU-BLOGGING: The latest Carnival of Education is online.
FOX NEWS CHANNEL did not affect voting registration or patterns in 2000, according to a new study.
INTERACTIVE 3-D DISPLAY coming to market. Now all we need are precogs. Or the plans to the Death Star.
NANOTECH: The intricate Fibonacci pattern-based spiral patterns seen on the heads of sunflowers, and thought to occur only in plants, have now been spotted on nanoparticles. Gotta love the Golden Mean!
DRY SPAGHETTI doesn't break into two pieces. This baffled the late, great Richard Feynman, the Nobel laureate and father of modern quantum theory. Now the mystery is solved, complete with video.
BOY SCOUT LEADER ARRESTED on child molestation charges in Mesa, AZ. Which is one reason why the BSA has been a bit exclusionary over the years; the civil lawsuits would already be filed otherwise.
CINDY SHEEHAN left her anti-war camp in Crawford, Texas on Thursday to fly to L.A. after hearing that her mother had suffered a stroke. That's sad news, but after 20,585 mentions in television news broadcasts, the saturation media coverage was about to focus on whether she was getting too much coverage anyway -- it's a time-honored part of any saturation coverage. Ronald R. Griffin, who lost a son in Iraq, but disagrees with Ms. Sheehan on policy, is in some way heartened "to have all this attention paid to her, because that means others in her position now have the chance to be heard." Griffin adds: "Those who lost their lives believed in the mission. To honor their memory, and because it's right, we must believe in the mission, too." Imho, one need not believe in the mission to honor our troops' service (though Ms. Sheehan's own statements suggest she does neither); Griffin is closer to the mark in writing that no parent has the absolute moral authority to speak for all parents or troops.
SHEBA THE WONDER DOG can tell you the square root of 36, where Matt Lauer was today and much more. Videos at the link.
CATS: A little Friday cat-blogging, but click through on the "update" link for the payoff.
TAKING HER LYNX TO BE SPAYED AND NEUTERED may subject Karen Goeckect to wildlife charges in Utah.
LIONS, CHEETAHS, ELEPHANTS AND CAMELS could soon roam parts of North America, under a plan called Pleistocene re-wilding: "If we only have 10 minutes to present this idea, people think we're nuts," said Harry Greene, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at Cornell University, "But if people hear the one-hour version, they realise they haven't thought about this as much as we have." And still think you're nuts.
A SIBERIAN TIGER kills a teenage girl posing for photos at a family-run animal sanctuary Thursday in southeast Kansas. See what I mean?
THE LAKE CHAMPLAIN MONSTER: It's no Nessie, Doc, but hundreds claim to have spotted the mythical beast.
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After COP21, an inconvenient truth: the problem is capitalism
Details	Adam Booth 14 Dec 2015
There were scenes of jubilation in Paris last Saturday evening, as delegates celebrated the results of negotiations at the United Nations climate change conference. But before the ink had even dried on the paper, doubts were already being raised – doubts that, in the final analysis, reflect the limitations and contradictions of the capitalist system.
There were scenes of jubilation in Paris last Saturday evening, as delegates from almost 200 countries celebrated the results of over two weeks of negotiations at the 2015 United Nations climate change conference, COP21. World leaders have declared the Paris agreement to be a "historic" landmark in the fight against climate change; an unprecedented display of cooperation in terms of international efforts to curb global warming.
According to the Financial Times (12th December 2015), "John Kerry, US secretary of state, said: 'This is a tremendous victory for all of our citizens . . . It is a victory for all of the planet and for future generations . . . I know that all of us will be better off for the agreement we have finalised here today.'", whilst "Xie Zhenhua, China's chief climate negotiator, hailed the agreement as a 'milestone in the global efforts to respond to climate change.'"
Elsewhere, again according to the FT (13th December 2015), "Angela Merkel, German chancellor, said the deal was 'the first time that the entire world community has obligated itself to act — to act in the battle against global climate change', while Pope Francis also praised the "concerted effort and generous dedication" of those involved."
But before the ink had even dried on the paper, doubts were already being raised about the viability of the agreement – doubts that, in the final analysis, reflect the limitations and contradictions of the capitalist system.
Rising temperatures; increasing pressure
So why all the backslapping and self-congratulating amongst representatives at COP21? In many respects, the joy on display in Paris was the result of the extremely low expectations that have been sown in relation to such negotiations, due to years of anti-climactic posturing and paralysis.
For more than two decades, until now, the world has been treated to an annual display of complete impotence by political leaders, who have routinely failed to agree on any way forward in terms of reducing global greenhouse gas emissions. Delegates have simply been unable to decide how responsibility should be shared out, with each nation's representatives simply trying to export the problem elsewhere. The last major attempt in Copenhagen in 2009 accomplished almost nothing, with the sole outcome being a pathetic "accord", worth less than the paper it was written on. The fact that anything has been agreed this time round is therefore considered to be a major achievement.
Many commentators, however, have gone much further and praised the Paris agreement for committing almost all countries to a programme of carbon emission reduction targets that aim to keep global temperature increases (compared to pre-industrial levels) to below 2°C, with efforts to limit increases to an even more ambitious 1.5°C figure. Furthermore, the agreement requires countries to revisit and assess their progress and targets every five years, with aims to have net-zero average worldwide carbon emissions by the year 2050. And for the first time, the biggest emitters – the US, China, and India – are signed up to an international climate change agreement.
The fact that such commitments have been made is a reflection of the grassroots campaigning and pressure from below that has taken place over the months and years leading up to COP21. As the natural and social impacts of climate change become apparent to all, and with hundreds of thousands taking to the streets worldwide in recent weeks to demand the protection of our planet, delegates in Paris will have felt the eyes of the world burning into the back of their heads as they attempted to negotiate a deal.
Nevertheless, the limits of the Paris agreement were also quickly plain to see. Many have rightly noted that the Paris agreement provides no legally binding commitments to reduce carbon emissions – a point of contention that was at the centre of the breakdowns in all previous negotiations. To avoid embarrassment this time around, UN organiser simply ignored this elephant in the room, instead asking countries to supply "intended" targets for emission reduction. But, as the Economist (12th December 2015) notes:
"The efforts outlined in the pledges on climate action—'intended nationally determined contributions' that 186 of the countries at the Paris negotiations have provided—are more in line with a total warming of 3°C than one of less than 2°C, the limit that was written into previous UN documents, let alone 1.5°C."
Michael McCarthy, environmental columnist for the Independent, asserted that, "the treaty which has been four laborious years in the making is simply not enough."
"It will not, as it stands, keep global warming below the recognised danger threshold for the world of 2C above the pre-industrial level – still less below the new 'aspirational' limit of 1.5C, which the conference decided upon in one of its most eye-catching moves."
The environmentalist and journalist, continues:
"We need to be clear: there is no guarantee whatsoever that the present settlement will bring about the necessary cuts in emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases which are causing the atmosphere to warm, with potentially disastrous effect. The voluntary CO2 reductions which virtually all countries promised in the run-up to the conference, even if implemented in full – and that's a big if – will only hold the projected warming down to 2.7°C at best, which is well into the danger zone for the world; and this recognition of the agreement's limitations is at the heart of the criticism levelled at it over the weekend from some of the more radical climate campaigning groups."
We should add, however, that even the limited targets and plans that have been agreed at COP21 represent no more than good intentions at the present time. As the developmental economist, Jeffrey Sachs, emphasised in response to the results of the climate change negotiations, writing in the Financial Times (12th December 2015):
"The diplomats have done their job: the Paris agreement points the world in the right direction…It does not, however, ensure implementation, which remains the domain of politicians, businessmen, scientists, engineers and civil society."
Sachs – a renowned bourgeois economist – is being a bit generous to his friends in Washington and Wall Street, however; for the failure to act against climate change does not lie in the slightest at the feet of "scientists, engineers and civil society". The problem is not one of science and technology, but one of class interests, with the bosses and bankers – and their political representatives in all countries – first and foremost seeking to protect the profits of big business.
This was clearly displayed within hours of the agreement in Paris, as the chief executives of major fossil fuel corporations – so confident of having the final say on the matter of environmental policy and regulation – stated that they did not see any change to their plans as a result of COP21 negotiations. Indeed, to stress this point unambiguously, politicians from the US Republicans spoke categorically of their opposition to the Paris agreement, as the FT reports:
"In the US, Mitch McConnell, the Republican Senate majority leader, questioned the Paris deal, saying that the US portion relied on measures championed by President Barack Obama that were being challenged in the courts.
"'Before his international partners pop the champagne, they should remember that this is an unattainable deal based on a domestic energy plan that is likely illegal, that half the states have sued to halt, and that Congress has already voted to reject,' Mr McConnell said.
"A spokesman for Paul Ryan, the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, told the Financial Times: 'This agreement does not bind Congress in any way, and we will continue to focus on an energy policy that promotes America's abundant natural resources.'"
Regardless of the good intentions and political colours of those world leaders who are now tasked with implementing the decisions taken in Paris, however, within the shackles and straightjacket of the capitalist system, such international agreements remain, at best, unstable and uncertain; at worst, they are dangerous utopias and illusions.
At root is the barrier of the nation state, which under capitalism exists to protect the profits and interests of the capitalist class within its borders on the world stage. Like a thieving band of pirates, such nations may be able to cooperate in the short term as long as there is enough fruit from their plunder to go around; but as soon as the loot dries up, the bandits and gangsters will quickly be at each other's throats.
The world has seen major international agreements in the past; most notably, the formation of the post-war consensus surrounding the Bretton Woods agreement, which was responsible for creating an international monetary system, with global bodies such as the United Nations and the World Bank at its helm. Such international co-operation in the post-war period, however, was a product of a unique convergence of historical factors, which led to a massive economic upswing, and an unprecedented epoch of geo-political stability, presided over by the hegemonic and unrivalled world power of US imperialism.
Today, the conditions for such stability are long gone. The material conditions for reforms have been shattered as a result of the deepest crisis in capitalism's history; the decline of US imperialism, meanwhile, along with the impacts of the global economic crisis, have given rise to the most turbulent geo-political relations since World War Two. This is demonstrated point blank by the crises in the Middle East; the disintegration of the European project; a collapse in oil prices; the scourge of terrorism and fundamentalism; and the waves of refugees fleeing wars and poverty abroad.
Who pays?
At the end of the day, the question boils down to a simple one: who pays? As part of the Paris agreement, the advanced capitalist countries have promised to transfer at least $100bn per year to developing countries by 2020, to help the most vulnerable nations deal with the impacts and effects of climate change. On top of this, there is a clear need for hundreds-of-billions more in terms of the investment in renewable energy and green technologies required to reduce emissions to the targets agreed upon in COP21.
And yet, the money clearly exists. Already, according to official estimates by the International Energy Agency, subsidies to the fossil fuel industry amount to almost $600bn in total. On top of this, we might wish to mention the $1.6 trillion spent worldwide on arms and weapons to fight in imperialist wars. Rather than pave the deserts of the planet with solar panels, our capitalist governments spend eye-watering amounts to fight for access to the black gold that lies underneath.
As the global crisis of capitalism deepens and spreads, those international agreements thought up between diplomats and negotiators in the sanctuary of Parisian conference centres will quickly be fractured by the harsh realities of the capitalist system and its race-to-the-bottom logic of competition.
Already we see how the hard won reforms and rights of the past are being eroded away by the endless attacks and austerity of the ruling class, in order to protect the profits of the 1%. Similarly, the environmental regulations and reforms fought for today will be the first to be attacked – along with what remains of workers' rights to organise against the bosses – in the future as the capitalists seek to claw back the profits they have lost as a result of such laws.
The more far-sighted bourgeois analysts have already drawn the conclusion that another world slump is on the horizon, threatening to plunge the global economy back into the darkness of recession and crisis. In such an event, all the fine words agreed upon at COP21 under the observation and scrutiny of the planet's population will quickly be tossed aside as bourgeois politicians rush to save the system that benefits them and the class that they represent.
The parasite of capitalism
After seven years now of endless crisis, the capitalists and their political representatives have shown clearly that they are incapable of running the economy, let alone managing something as complex and important as the environment. And yet the wealth and technology to solve the problems of climate change are lying right in front of us, just waiting to be picked up, placed under the control of society, and used in the interests of the 99%, rather than for the profits of the few.
The fundamental problem is not one of political will, but of economic laws and logic. Only by replacing the laws of competition, profit, and private ownership with a democratic, rational, socialist plan of production can we seriously set about tackling the environmental questions with the vigour required.
Amidst all the celebrations in Paris, we as Marxists must tell an inconvenient truth: the only way to guarantee the health and protection of our planet is to put an end to the cancerous and parasitic capitalist system that is sucking the life out of it.


When it comes to cutting the cake on your wedding day, it is probably the most weird part of the day. I thought it was weird when I got married and I still think its weird every time I take a picture at a couple's wedding, nobody ever really seems that comfortable cutting the cake.
But before I start to sound like a grumpy old man, I am a man of who loves tradition and of the cutting of the wedding cake is steeped in tradition and history. I approach the cutting the cake with two emotions in mind. The emotion between the bride and groom, with their hands clasped together around the knife, and the emotion of the throng of guests jostling for position, like a pack of pap's, hounding a celebrity.
I would be interested know how others handle wedding cake photography. I think maybe instead of just announcing that the cake is going to be cut, the best man could maybe give a running commentary or a countdown. Or at least get everyone to cheer once the cake is cut, as so often I find it to be a bit of a non-event. So if you are planning your wedding, or you happen to be reading this and will be attending a wedding. Go on, do your bit to make it a bit more special whip up the guests into a frenzy. It will certainly make for some great pictures if you do.
Whilst this is obviously my personal opinion as a professional working at a wedding. It would be interesting to hear other professionals and guests opinions on the subject. I almost forgot, brides and grooms, I would love to hear what you thought about wedding cake photography.


This is episode 78 of my Spanish learning podcast. Today you're going to practice using the verb DAR with some very useful sentences.
In my previous lesson we went through the six forms of the irregular verb DAR in the present tense. Today we're going to build some everyday sentences with those six forms.
Learning everyday sentences is a great way of mastering the Spanish language fast. Once you know some common sentences, building new ones is a lot easier.
Can you [singular] give me two coffees?
¿Me dais una botella de agua?
Can you [plural] give me a bottle of water?
Let's do another speaking drill again. Can you tell me these six sentences in Spanish?
Come back to this lesson every now and then to make sure you've learned these six sentences well.


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Marvel Cancels Artist's Upcoming Covers After Spider-Woman Butt Fiasco
Callie Beusman
The comic book industry is not particularly well-known for portraying women in a non- insanely-sexualized manner (you can't fight crime without a boob window, as we have all observed over the years). Even given that, a recent Spider-Woman cover somehow managed to slink under the world's already-low expectations with the single most terrifying butt-drawing of all time. And now, after facing widespread online criticism of the psychosexual nightmare-butt, it seems that Marvel has canceled two upcoming covers from the artist responsible.
Here Is The Male Version Of Power Girl's Boob Window (NSFW)
Power Girl's costume is infamous for showing off her particular endowments, but what would be the…
There's a lot wrong with this Spider-Woman cover, which was drawn by Milo Manara: as the Mary Sue pointed out originally, Spider-Woman is a title meant to attract women — something Marvel's been attempting to do a lot more recently, as when they announced a female Thor on The View. Depicting Spider-Woman in an anatomically impossible "seductive" pose treats her primarily as an object of sexualized gaze, and not as, you know, a superhero. You can't really court women by continuing to regurgitate tropes that subordinate their power and strength to the imperative that they look extremely sexy all the time.
According to a report from the Mary Sue, Marvel's editor-in-chief, Axel Alonso has since apologized for the image, stating that it did not "reflect the sensibility or tone of the series." And, in a new development, Milo Manara has been taken off two upcoming covers: Thor 2 and Avengers and X-Men. It's unclear why, exactly, this has happened — as Jill Pantozzi wonders at the Mary Sue, "Was the thought that these other variants might be equally offensive in their specific content, or did Marvel feel it was better to simply cancel them regardless of how they looked?"
Either way, it's pretty telling that the cover got okay'ed in the first place. And reassigning one artist isn't going to change an industry culture that prefers gazing upon asses to celebrating ass-kicking women.
Image via Marvel.
mllequink
Something to remember is that Milo Manara is famous for erotic and pornographic comics. I don't know what else the expected from him in commissioning him to do the Spider-Woman cover. He should be one of the last choices for something that is not explicitly about sex. The fault here lies primarily with the people who commissioned the work from him. It's like going to a butchers and being pissed that they didn't make you a batch of cupcakes.


"In Going Green, Ransom does a fantastic job of creating a believable story of a future where people can 'Go Green' with the belief they are making the world a better place. As Calyssa Brentwood discovers, the choice comes with consequences she doesn't fully grasp until she is thrust into a visit that changes how she sees the world around her. Not everyone or everything is as advertised in her tidy world and she must decide what to do with the discovery."


All models of MicroSet may be ordered with a built-in beat amplifier which allows you to hear the tick as you measure a timepiece. No new controls are needed. The amplifier is turned on and off with the standard keypad and the volume is controlled by the exisiting LEVEL control. A speaker is added to the bottom of the timer. Since MicroSet sits on rubber feet, the speaker is held off the table top and can be easily heard.


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Top Five Amiga Shmups
November 15, 2011 November 15, 2011 Simon Lethbridge 3 Comments agony, amiga, apidya, Datastorm, project x, scorpio, shoot-em up
It's generally accepted that, outside of the arcades at least, shoot 'em ups have always been the province of consoles. There were a few good examples on the Spectrum, Amstrad, Commodore 64, Atari 400 & 800, etc, and the arrival of the more powerful 16-bit machines should've heralded even more, but they never really came, despite the genre's enduring popularity. Few could argue with either the quantity or quality of offerings on the likes of the NES, PC Engine, or MegaDrive, and I myself, in my days as a die-hard Sega fanboy, used to champion the latter console as Lord of Shmups. Of all the computers, however, it was arguably the Commodore Amiga that fared the best with its shmups with not only some decent arcade conversions but also a good few original games too. In fact, I believe all the games in this Top Five were Amiga exclusives! Here they are:
Games-Related Top Fives Disclaimer: Unlike my usual Games-Related Top Five Disclaimers, which cover my arse by mentioning that the list was compiled only from games that I already know and love, and that any great games not featured may well not yet have been played by me, this one is different, mainly because I never was a big Amiga gamer and probably hadn't even played five shmups on it! Therefore I had to research this list thoroughly by playing each game via emulation. However, to finally get to the actual 'disclaimer' part, there was a few supposedly great games that I wasn't able to play (because they didn't work). Therefore, assuming I ever am able to play them, I'll make a revised list accordingly. Phew!
5. Agony (1992)
Regarded as something of a tart by many Amiga owners, it's easy to see where Agony gets this reputation – the presentation and graphics really are something else and leave the gameplay with a lot to live up to. It's certainly a pretty original concept, with you in control of an owl which uses echo-location to take down the masses of evil creatures spread across the six worlds that lie between it and the 'Cosmic Power' that it seeks. The intro/loading screens feature beautiful artwork and music, and in-game action is similarly gorgeous. This certainly isn't the most playable shmup I've played, even just on the Amiga, but at the same time its reputation seems a little unfair. Besides its stunning aesthetics Agony is a unique and enjoyable horizontal-scroller which would've blown my socks off if I'd discovered it when it originally came out!
4. Project-X (1992)
Released to much fanfare by Team 17 during their superb run on the Amiga, this is another one with amazing aesthetics. It's far less original and moody than Agony, being a somewhat generic game set in space and across all the usual landscapes, but it nonetheless comes closer than any other Amiga shmup to duplicating the arcade/console style of shooter. The hi-res graphics are beautifully drawn and feature some amazing effects, and the sound is equally impressive with some great music, effects, and speech that MegaDrive owners (myself included) would've killed for. In fact, the only thing stopping this from taking top-spot is its insane difficulty level! Even at the peak of my skills I couldn't get anywhere near the end of this otherwise ultra-playable game. Responding to pleas from gamers, Team 17 did release a Special Edition of the game which toned down the difficulty though, and if I get around to buying that version perhaps it will feature higher in the list next time.
3. Scorpio (1989)
This is one I had absolutely no knowledge of prior to looking into this Top Five but I'm very glad I found it, for it's one of the most addictive little blasters I've played! Initially seeming to be a very basic and fairly uninspiring game, it soon reveals itself to be a tough but rewarding, not to mention highly enjoyable shooter. Its creators had clearly been sniffing around the back-catalogue of Irem though, as this is basically a vertically-scrolling take on R-Type! Your little ship can be equipped with a Force-style attachment, the weapons are a copy of those from Irem's classic, the power-up capsules themselves look the same, and there's even a circle of guns! Some of the the 'homages' are far from subtle, but it's hard to complain when it's as well done as this.
2. Datastorm (1989)
Here's another one that takes its inspiration from elsewhere, this time from both Defender and Dropzone, the latter of which is itself a Defender clone! The object is to rescue at least one of the eight pods drifting along the floor of each stage and drop them at a portal while pesky Landers try to steal them. Millions of other enemies also swarm each stage and all must be eliminated. Datastorm is a tough, fast-paced game that rewards practise and is a fantastic score-attack game! This is one of the few Amiga games I really have spent a lot of time playing, first on my friend's Amiga, then on my own when I finally got one, and now again via emulation, and it's never gotten boring. Fantastic music and sound effects too.
1. Apidya (1992)
For some reason I never knew about this one when it came out but I've heard about it repeatedly over the intervening years and know how highly regarded it is amongst the Amiga fraternity. Having finally played it for this feature, I can see why! Much like Agony, it's a unusual premise for a shoot 'em up. Here, you take control of a magical honeybee (although it looks more like a wasp to me) and must battle against other insects, garden beasties, and all manner of others monstrous adversaries across five stages. The game has nicely detailed, colourful stages and great music, but it's the finely-honed gameplay that is most responsible for Apidya's grand reputation. The stages and weapons are nicely designed and it's a real pleasure playing through this interesting and unique shooter.
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Simon Lethbridge
Hello. :) I'm a 38 year old nerd from England, and I like lots of stuff, including retro video games, movies, sci-fi, and anime. This is the place where I will blabber on about them! At the very least, it will give me an excuse to try games/films that I keep putting off. Hope you like reading it! :)
My Experiences: EA Sports Tester
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