Michael Wolff's FIRE AND FURY: INSIDE THE TRUMP WHITE HOUSE (2018) is a hilarious, head-spinning trip for the first 100+ pages. It's a big laugh on practically every page. Unbelievable weirdness inside the Trump campaign and White House that will confirm all your worst fears. Hunter S. Thompson would have loved this part of the book.
After that, it settles down into being merely grim and endless. But I would happily have read more....
FIRE AND FURY follows one man's political journey through the looking glass and into the White House, which turns out to be a place weirder and more stressful than he ever expected. But enough about Steve Bannon.
For politics junkies or Trump-haters, there are some surprises in this book:
* The Trump team never expected to win. They weren't prepared to win. They had no plan if they won. They thought losing would be good enough. Trump's brand -- and daughter Ivanka's -- would gain further recognition, and all the "experts" on their team would get media political-expert jobs.
* At one point on Air Force One, Trump has his inner circle swear not to reveal to anyone why Donald Trump Jr. and son-in-law Jared Kushner met with the Russians in Trump Tower -- to obtain dirt on Hillary Clinton. Is this obstruction of justice right here? Or merely a conspiracy to cover-up? No wonder the Trump Administration didn't want this book released.
* Former FBI Director James Comey wasn't fired for investigating Trump's ties to Russia. He was fired for looking into the extended Trump family's financial dealings -- including those of Jared Kushner and HIS family. The excuses for Comey's firing were all made-up afterward.
* Trump screamed about leakers in his administration, claiming Comey and others leaked tons of information to the media. This book shows that EVERYONE in the White House leaked -- including Trump. Usually to get back at each other.
* After his bankruptcies, Trump couldn't get any more credit from American banks, so he turned to the Russians for loans for his real-estate dealings. And the Russians had some money-laundering issues they needed some help with. And buying real estate is one of the ways you can launder money....
* The infamous "dossier" on Trump is important because it indicates the Russians might have been trying to blackmail Trump over his sexual ... um ... preferences.
* Despite his proclamations of loyalty to the cause, Trump strategist Steve Bannon wasn't so much loyal to the president -- Trump was just the "package" Bannon "sold" to get into the White House. Though Bannon was later fired, the book closes with him proclaiming that the weirdness in national politics has just begun.
The Trump White House has repeatedly called this book a trashy fantasy filled with inaccuracies -- and I'll bet every time they do, they sell more copies of the book. The reporting seems pretty solid to me -- especially in the early chapters, before the outrage and comedy starts to grind into seriousness.
Wolff claims he perched on a couch in the West Wing for months and took lots of notes. He interviewed on tape more than 200 people, including Trump. He certainly wasn't obligated to write only "nice" things about what he saw and heard. His only obligation was to report what he was witness to, no matter how outrageous it was.
It's too bad that after the first half, the book descends into depicting in-fighting over who is to blame for what disaster and what staffer's head will roll next. Usually it's Trump's fault, because no one can control him. But reading about this gets old.
Basically, the book reads like what might happen if your average dysfunctional family moved into the White House and tried to run the country -- without any previous experience whatsoever. Disasters happen, then multiply, and there is constant in-fighting over who caused it, how to fix it, can it be fixed, who should get stuck with the blame, etc.
Perhaps most annoying is the clear picture that Trump's people had no goals and no plan once he won the election -- and no idea how to implement their ideas once somebody finally decided what they were. One staffer has to go to the Internet to learn how to draft legislation and get it rolling in Congress. That's why there were so many executive orders in the administration's early days. Incompetence is standard in the West Wing.
Vice President Mike Pence and First Lady Melania Trump barely appear in the book. They're probably grateful. Melania starts crying on Election Night when she realizes her private life is over. And it's noted that the First Couple had clearly been arguing before Trump's Inauguration Day speech. Pence's office is mentioned as the one place in the White House where people are nice and things actually seem to get done.
If Wolff had been able to keep up the intense, outrageous, Hunter Thompson-like comedy of the first 100 pages, I would have been happy to read even more of this. But later on the book becomes too much like the grim fiasco we're seeing play out every single day.
You can get the Kindle version of this book from Amazon for half the price of the hardcover. But this is not a commercial.
Showing posts with label current events. Show all posts
Showing posts with label current events. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 9, 2018
Saturday, December 16, 2017
On the Moodies reaching the RnRHoF
Well, it's about time!
This was really overdue.
I would have jumped on this faster, but when I read on Facebook a couple days ago that The Moody Blues had FINALLY been voted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame ... well, all I could think are the two sentences above.
I don't usually follow too closely who gets into the RnRHoF. I think it's a useless, stupid institution, since the "history" of rock and roll gets added to every day. The "Rarnhof" should be a big beer-drinking pub in Germany or Switzerland.
But I'm glad for the Moodies. I never thought they got their due, back in the day. Once upon a time, their "Classic 7" albums meant way more to me than The Beatles, or anyone else. I still think if the Moodies had been signed to a hipper, more with-it record label, they would've had more hits and sold more albums.
Don't get me wrong -- I thought Decca was great. Decca at least had enough taste to offer a home to Caravan and Camel, among others, not to mention The Rolling Stones (after turning down The Beatles). But Decca was way uptight and old school, never even as "progressive" as EMI, and nowhere near as adventurous as Vertigo, Virgin, or Harvest. Not to mention Island.
But give the Moodies credit -- they stuck with Decca, even when they could have gone elsewhere. When Decca was bought by Polygram late in the '70s, the Moodies stayed on.
The Moodies were important to me because they were the first "strange music" I ever heard, and back in high school I spent way more hours stuck under headphones listening to the Moodies than to anyone else. Because Moodies albums were trips that you could got lost in -- for hours. I many times played their "Classic 7" albums all the way through one after another, back in the days when I had time to burn. When the radio got boring, the Moodies never disappointed me.
That doesn't mean I love ALL their stuff. I think IN SEARCH OF THE LOST CHORD is mostly dated psychedelic crap. I think most of the orchestral sections on DAYS OF FUTURE PASSED sound like bad movie-soundtrack music. I think one of their hits, "Isn't Life Strange?," is fourth-rate Bee Gees. And for most of their stuff after 1983 -- don't get me started.
But the Moodies could rock ("Story in Your Eyes," "Question," "Eyes of a Child Part 2"), or they could space you out ("Have You Heard?/The Voyage," "My Song"), or they could boggle you with a cosmic mix of the two ("You and Me"). Their later albums like LONG DISTANCE VOYAGER and THE PRESENT were at the very least good polished pop music for their time.
I know that without the Moodies and how strong their albums were, it would have taken me longer to get hooked on "strange music," and I would have been way less likely to stray from listening to the radio, no matter how bored I was. They deserve to be in the RnRHoF just for expanding my mind a bit.
Besides, when's the last time you heard any of these great overlooked Moodies songs on the radio?:
Peak Hour, Evening: Time to Get Away, Twilight Time, Simple Game, Voices in the Sky, The Actor, Lovely to See You, Send Me No Wine, Never Comes the Day, Eyes of a Child Part 2, Out and In, Gypsy, Watching and Waiting, Don't You Feel Small?, It's Up to You, Minstrel's Song, Dawning is the Day, Our Guessing Game, After You Came, One More Time to Live, You Can Never Go Home, For My Lady, You and Me, Land of Make-Believe, In My World, Meanwhile, Nervous, Veteran Cosmic Rocker, Blue World, Meet Me Halfway, Running Water, Sorry, No More Lies.
This was a choice for enshrinement in that silly, useless building in Cleveland that, for once, was well deserved.
This was really overdue.
I would have jumped on this faster, but when I read on Facebook a couple days ago that The Moody Blues had FINALLY been voted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame ... well, all I could think are the two sentences above.
I don't usually follow too closely who gets into the RnRHoF. I think it's a useless, stupid institution, since the "history" of rock and roll gets added to every day. The "Rarnhof" should be a big beer-drinking pub in Germany or Switzerland.
But I'm glad for the Moodies. I never thought they got their due, back in the day. Once upon a time, their "Classic 7" albums meant way more to me than The Beatles, or anyone else. I still think if the Moodies had been signed to a hipper, more with-it record label, they would've had more hits and sold more albums.
Don't get me wrong -- I thought Decca was great. Decca at least had enough taste to offer a home to Caravan and Camel, among others, not to mention The Rolling Stones (after turning down The Beatles). But Decca was way uptight and old school, never even as "progressive" as EMI, and nowhere near as adventurous as Vertigo, Virgin, or Harvest. Not to mention Island.
But give the Moodies credit -- they stuck with Decca, even when they could have gone elsewhere. When Decca was bought by Polygram late in the '70s, the Moodies stayed on.
The Moodies were important to me because they were the first "strange music" I ever heard, and back in high school I spent way more hours stuck under headphones listening to the Moodies than to anyone else. Because Moodies albums were trips that you could got lost in -- for hours. I many times played their "Classic 7" albums all the way through one after another, back in the days when I had time to burn. When the radio got boring, the Moodies never disappointed me.
That doesn't mean I love ALL their stuff. I think IN SEARCH OF THE LOST CHORD is mostly dated psychedelic crap. I think most of the orchestral sections on DAYS OF FUTURE PASSED sound like bad movie-soundtrack music. I think one of their hits, "Isn't Life Strange?," is fourth-rate Bee Gees. And for most of their stuff after 1983 -- don't get me started.
But the Moodies could rock ("Story in Your Eyes," "Question," "Eyes of a Child Part 2"), or they could space you out ("Have You Heard?/The Voyage," "My Song"), or they could boggle you with a cosmic mix of the two ("You and Me"). Their later albums like LONG DISTANCE VOYAGER and THE PRESENT were at the very least good polished pop music for their time.
I know that without the Moodies and how strong their albums were, it would have taken me longer to get hooked on "strange music," and I would have been way less likely to stray from listening to the radio, no matter how bored I was. They deserve to be in the RnRHoF just for expanding my mind a bit.
Besides, when's the last time you heard any of these great overlooked Moodies songs on the radio?:
Peak Hour, Evening: Time to Get Away, Twilight Time, Simple Game, Voices in the Sky, The Actor, Lovely to See You, Send Me No Wine, Never Comes the Day, Eyes of a Child Part 2, Out and In, Gypsy, Watching and Waiting, Don't You Feel Small?, It's Up to You, Minstrel's Song, Dawning is the Day, Our Guessing Game, After You Came, One More Time to Live, You Can Never Go Home, For My Lady, You and Me, Land of Make-Believe, In My World, Meanwhile, Nervous, Veteran Cosmic Rocker, Blue World, Meet Me Halfway, Running Water, Sorry, No More Lies.
This was a choice for enshrinement in that silly, useless building in Cleveland that, for once, was well deserved.
Saturday, September 23, 2017
Bow down to Nabiru
So, how 'bout that End Of The World, huh? Pretty impressive, right?
Oh, you missed it?
Well, to recap -- earlier this week The Media briefly carried a story outlining how the huge and mysterious planet Nabiru (or Planet X, if you prefer) had been predicted to slam into Earth and destroy all known life TODAY, Sept. 23, 2017 -- leaving room for an interstellar by-pass route, I assume.
One of our local all-news radio stations even ran a sound-bite of some pseudo-para-archeologist who allegedly calculated "Bible equations" mixed with "something from the Pyramids" and determined that NOW was The Time. They even quoted him saying "Everything I've heard, everything I've read, everything I've learned says that now is the time, that 2017 is a slam-dunk."
So, feel all relieved when you woke up OK this morning? Convinced we're all Past It?
Nemesis will not be mocked.
Of course, The End has been predicted at least twice since 2000 -- and many times before that. Last time I checked, we're all still here. If you're reading this, I think it's safe to assume that you are, too.
Here's the thing -- If Planet X were approaching on its doomsday course, we would, by Ghod, be able to SEE it. Rogue planets move rather slowly on the universal scale, and something allegedly that HUGE would be clearly visible in the daytime -- and block out a helluva lot of stars at night.
Also -- if Nabiru were really approaching, the gravity effects would be incredible -- the huge tides would drown coastal cities, the continents would crack, mountains would be tumbling all over each other....
None of this has happened. Though we HAVE had WAY TOO MANY earthquakes and hurricanes lately. For the folks at the center of those disasters, it really HAS been the end of the world.
But some people will believe ANYTHING. And others seem to WANT us all to panic. What would they gain by that? (I'm not talking about The Big Media here.)
I'll be looking forward to one of my favorite radio programs tonight. They're about half good sense and half pure BS, most of the time. Wonder what they'll say? "Hey, end of the world! It didn't happen, right? Wonder why not? Maybe the calculations were off...? Oh well, maybe next time. On tonight's show, we've got...."
Course we're not out of the woods yet. That joker Kim Jong Un could still lob a nuke at us. His most recent threat is to explode a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean. Been about 60 years since anybody's done that. Don't believe me? Look it up.
And of course Kim can't test too many more nukes under his Special Test Mountain in North Korea. Because he's already radiating his own people. You can look that one up, too.
And it would probably take the end of the world or the malign influence of Planet X to put a single new or coherent thought inside Donald Trump's head.
Oh, you missed it?
Well, to recap -- earlier this week The Media briefly carried a story outlining how the huge and mysterious planet Nabiru (or Planet X, if you prefer) had been predicted to slam into Earth and destroy all known life TODAY, Sept. 23, 2017 -- leaving room for an interstellar by-pass route, I assume.
One of our local all-news radio stations even ran a sound-bite of some pseudo-para-archeologist who allegedly calculated "Bible equations" mixed with "something from the Pyramids" and determined that NOW was The Time. They even quoted him saying "Everything I've heard, everything I've read, everything I've learned says that now is the time, that 2017 is a slam-dunk."
So, feel all relieved when you woke up OK this morning? Convinced we're all Past It?
Nemesis will not be mocked.
Of course, The End has been predicted at least twice since 2000 -- and many times before that. Last time I checked, we're all still here. If you're reading this, I think it's safe to assume that you are, too.
Here's the thing -- If Planet X were approaching on its doomsday course, we would, by Ghod, be able to SEE it. Rogue planets move rather slowly on the universal scale, and something allegedly that HUGE would be clearly visible in the daytime -- and block out a helluva lot of stars at night.
Also -- if Nabiru were really approaching, the gravity effects would be incredible -- the huge tides would drown coastal cities, the continents would crack, mountains would be tumbling all over each other....
None of this has happened. Though we HAVE had WAY TOO MANY earthquakes and hurricanes lately. For the folks at the center of those disasters, it really HAS been the end of the world.
But some people will believe ANYTHING. And others seem to WANT us all to panic. What would they gain by that? (I'm not talking about The Big Media here.)
I'll be looking forward to one of my favorite radio programs tonight. They're about half good sense and half pure BS, most of the time. Wonder what they'll say? "Hey, end of the world! It didn't happen, right? Wonder why not? Maybe the calculations were off...? Oh well, maybe next time. On tonight's show, we've got...."
Course we're not out of the woods yet. That joker Kim Jong Un could still lob a nuke at us. His most recent threat is to explode a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean. Been about 60 years since anybody's done that. Don't believe me? Look it up.
And of course Kim can't test too many more nukes under his Special Test Mountain in North Korea. Because he's already radiating his own people. You can look that one up, too.
And it would probably take the end of the world or the malign influence of Planet X to put a single new or coherent thought inside Donald Trump's head.
Monday, September 18, 2017
The latest snooze
I pretty much avoided keeping up with the news over the weekend, and I feel ... pretty good. There's nothing like listening to hours of old R&B hits or a couple of football games over the radio to restore your faith in Mankind ... or at least the future.
A couple of news items did get my attention earlier in the week, however.
Apparently Trump had Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi over to the White House, and over a Chinese-food dinner they all (reportedly) agreed to avoid a government shutdown, work on immigration reform, and put off that silly and expensive Border Wall for awhile.
Of course, the results of the meeting depend on who you ask. Maybe it was the MSG in the food. The White House's press-spokespeople insist that the Border Wall plan was NOT dropped, never will be, etc. etc.
And of course the rank-and-file Republicans are furious. How DARE Trump have sweet and sour chicken with the Democrats! How DARE he try to work out any of the nation's problems without the GOP! Obama tried to work out troubles by inviting the GOP over to the White House for a few beers and some informal chat -- well, by Ghod, it didn't work then and it's not gonna work now, gosh darn it!
Oh, and Kim Jong Un lobbed another missile over Japan earlier in the week. That Kim, whatta joker! And the Japanese get such a kick out of it!
While agreeing to stiffen sanctions against North Korea -- how much tougher can they get? The only person in North Korea with an electric lightbulb and a flush toilet is Kim Jong Un; the common folks have been eating grass and rocks for years now -- the United Nations still refuses to use the one bit of diplomacy that might actually work: Basketball diplomacy!
Send Dennis Rodman back to North Korea! He and KJU are LIKE THIS! Dennis would have things fixed in two shakes: "Kim, dude -- you don't wanna blow up the whole world, right? Cool. Now let's play some ball!" The Rod-man would make it happen. Kim won't listen to anyone else.
And there's no down-side. If KJU decides not to let Rodman come back home -- if he wants to hang onto his playmate forever, so the Supreme Ruler can have impromptu basketball games in a freezing-cold gym at 4 a.m. -- not that many people here will get upset. Everybody wins.
If Hunter S. Thompson were still alive, he'd be eating this stuff up with a spoon.
A couple of news items did get my attention earlier in the week, however.
Apparently Trump had Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi over to the White House, and over a Chinese-food dinner they all (reportedly) agreed to avoid a government shutdown, work on immigration reform, and put off that silly and expensive Border Wall for awhile.
Of course, the results of the meeting depend on who you ask. Maybe it was the MSG in the food. The White House's press-spokespeople insist that the Border Wall plan was NOT dropped, never will be, etc. etc.
And of course the rank-and-file Republicans are furious. How DARE Trump have sweet and sour chicken with the Democrats! How DARE he try to work out any of the nation's problems without the GOP! Obama tried to work out troubles by inviting the GOP over to the White House for a few beers and some informal chat -- well, by Ghod, it didn't work then and it's not gonna work now, gosh darn it!
Oh, and Kim Jong Un lobbed another missile over Japan earlier in the week. That Kim, whatta joker! And the Japanese get such a kick out of it!
While agreeing to stiffen sanctions against North Korea -- how much tougher can they get? The only person in North Korea with an electric lightbulb and a flush toilet is Kim Jong Un; the common folks have been eating grass and rocks for years now -- the United Nations still refuses to use the one bit of diplomacy that might actually work: Basketball diplomacy!
Send Dennis Rodman back to North Korea! He and KJU are LIKE THIS! Dennis would have things fixed in two shakes: "Kim, dude -- you don't wanna blow up the whole world, right? Cool. Now let's play some ball!" The Rod-man would make it happen. Kim won't listen to anyone else.
And there's no down-side. If KJU decides not to let Rodman come back home -- if he wants to hang onto his playmate forever, so the Supreme Ruler can have impromptu basketball games in a freezing-cold gym at 4 a.m. -- not that many people here will get upset. Everybody wins.
If Hunter S. Thompson were still alive, he'd be eating this stuff up with a spoon.
Friday, June 17, 2016
Stairway to Cleveland
I have read with amusement the media coverage of the ongoing trial in L.A. in which the former members of Led Zeppelin are being sued for allegedly "stealing" the tune to "Stairway to Heaven" from Spirit's "Taurus."
"Taurus" is a two-minute guitar instrumental, pleasant enough as an album-filler, but it goes nowhere and is far from gripping. The opening acoustic theme perhaps vaguely sounds like the start of "Stairway." In no way is "Taurus" "Stairway to Heaven" in miniature.
Spirit was an excellent late-'60s Southern California band, who achieved one hit, the driving "I Got a Line on You," and peaked with their superb fourth album, THE TWELVE DREAMS OF DOCTOR SARDONICUS, before the original group broke up in 1970. The writer of "Line" and "Taurus," guitarist Randy California, has been dead since 1997.
"Taurus" is included as a bonus track on Spirit's expanded-CD BEST OF. I haven't heard it in awhile and I don't have it immediately at hand, but it is a very small lost classic, far from being in the same league as "Line" or "Nature's Way," "Animal Zoo," "Nothing to Hide," "1984," or "Aren't You Glad" -- other greats from the same band.
Much of the trial testimony has centered on whether the members of Zep and Spirit ever met and for how long, if Zep guitarist Jimmy Page might have had any Spirit albums in his collection, etc.
The idea that "Stairway" might be descended from "Taurus" has been out there for awhile -- I think it's even mentioned in the booklet that accompanies Spirit's BEST OF. Perhaps the opening of "Taurus" might have been borrowed and fine-tuned by Page. But California and the other members of Spirit didn't write "Stairway." "Taurus" is a sketch. "Stairway" is more like a symphony.
I wonder who brought this lawsuit, and I admit I'm not clear on the details. Perhaps it was a lawyer looking out for the interests of California's family and heirs. But somehow I think it was more likely filed by whoever owns the publishing on "Taurus" now -- some music-publishing company.
Surely if Randy California thought the resemblance between the two songs was too close he could have filed a lawsuit in 1972 -- by which time LED ZEPPELIN 4 was selling millions and California could have used the money.
Now I think some lawyer just smelled the cash. And presumed faulty memories of musicians' actions and motivations from 45 years ago.
Artists steal. Everyone knows this. There have been books written about it. Ideas are public currency. It's what you DO with the ideas that matters.
Zep have been sued for plagiarizing or not giving proper songwriting credit before, and they've lost.
But this case is different, to me. Because "Taurus" -- though it may include a mildly haunting opening acoustic-guitar figure -- doesn't include Robert Plant's lyrics, or the multi-part development, heavy drama, and cascading firestorm of electric guitar at the end that Jimmy Page brought to their creation.
A smart judge who's a big music fan would laugh this case out of court. And if justice prevails, that's what will happen.
(P.S. -- Further reading shows the lawsuit was brought by a lawyer for the estate of guitarist Randy California and his heirs, and the other surviving members of Spirit; in court, the jury is comparing sheet music -- "Taurus" is allegedly not currently protected by copyright, so a recording of it cannot be played in court; the acoustic opening of "Stairway" isn't included on the sheet music -- there the tune starts with Plant's lyric; the suit can be settled for $1, IF Page and Plant will grant California co-credit as songwriter ... That could be worth millions to California's estate. ... I still think somebody just smelled lots of money. The whole thing is beyond comedy -- "Taurus" must be protected by copyright SOMEHOW: Sony is still selling copies of CDs with the song included....)
"Taurus" is a two-minute guitar instrumental, pleasant enough as an album-filler, but it goes nowhere and is far from gripping. The opening acoustic theme perhaps vaguely sounds like the start of "Stairway." In no way is "Taurus" "Stairway to Heaven" in miniature.
Spirit was an excellent late-'60s Southern California band, who achieved one hit, the driving "I Got a Line on You," and peaked with their superb fourth album, THE TWELVE DREAMS OF DOCTOR SARDONICUS, before the original group broke up in 1970. The writer of "Line" and "Taurus," guitarist Randy California, has been dead since 1997.
"Taurus" is included as a bonus track on Spirit's expanded-CD BEST OF. I haven't heard it in awhile and I don't have it immediately at hand, but it is a very small lost classic, far from being in the same league as "Line" or "Nature's Way," "Animal Zoo," "Nothing to Hide," "1984," or "Aren't You Glad" -- other greats from the same band.
Much of the trial testimony has centered on whether the members of Zep and Spirit ever met and for how long, if Zep guitarist Jimmy Page might have had any Spirit albums in his collection, etc.
The idea that "Stairway" might be descended from "Taurus" has been out there for awhile -- I think it's even mentioned in the booklet that accompanies Spirit's BEST OF. Perhaps the opening of "Taurus" might have been borrowed and fine-tuned by Page. But California and the other members of Spirit didn't write "Stairway." "Taurus" is a sketch. "Stairway" is more like a symphony.
I wonder who brought this lawsuit, and I admit I'm not clear on the details. Perhaps it was a lawyer looking out for the interests of California's family and heirs. But somehow I think it was more likely filed by whoever owns the publishing on "Taurus" now -- some music-publishing company.
Surely if Randy California thought the resemblance between the two songs was too close he could have filed a lawsuit in 1972 -- by which time LED ZEPPELIN 4 was selling millions and California could have used the money.
Now I think some lawyer just smelled the cash. And presumed faulty memories of musicians' actions and motivations from 45 years ago.
Artists steal. Everyone knows this. There have been books written about it. Ideas are public currency. It's what you DO with the ideas that matters.
Zep have been sued for plagiarizing or not giving proper songwriting credit before, and they've lost.
But this case is different, to me. Because "Taurus" -- though it may include a mildly haunting opening acoustic-guitar figure -- doesn't include Robert Plant's lyrics, or the multi-part development, heavy drama, and cascading firestorm of electric guitar at the end that Jimmy Page brought to their creation.
A smart judge who's a big music fan would laugh this case out of court. And if justice prevails, that's what will happen.
(P.S. -- Further reading shows the lawsuit was brought by a lawyer for the estate of guitarist Randy California and his heirs, and the other surviving members of Spirit; in court, the jury is comparing sheet music -- "Taurus" is allegedly not currently protected by copyright, so a recording of it cannot be played in court; the acoustic opening of "Stairway" isn't included on the sheet music -- there the tune starts with Plant's lyric; the suit can be settled for $1, IF Page and Plant will grant California co-credit as songwriter ... That could be worth millions to California's estate. ... I still think somebody just smelled lots of money. The whole thing is beyond comedy -- "Taurus" must be protected by copyright SOMEHOW: Sony is still selling copies of CDs with the song included....)
Monday, December 16, 2013
#729: Scandalous!
What's news? Depends on where you look. Let's take a brief look at some of today's silliest headlines as the world continues to go crazier....
In the news, President Barack Obama refuses to attend Nelson Mandela's funeral in Mandela's home village in South Africa. During a White House press briefing, Obama said "I dunno ... I never really liked the guy that much anyway...."
In entertainment, Grammy winners Taylor Swift and Adele have agreed to team up on an album of brand-new broken-hearted love songs. The album's due to be completed and released early in the new year. "Might as well just slash your wrists NOW," rock critic says.
In sports, the Seattle Seahawks blow another big game as they lose shamefully to the New Jersey Giants, 63-0 -- a new record in futility for the Seahawks.
At the press conference after the game, cornerback Richard Sherman -- known for his straight-shooting comments to the media -- said about the team's shameful performance: "I dunno ... Maybe we really ARE as lame as everyone says...."
In other sports news, the Seattle Mariners signed yet another unknown ball-player to a multi-year $63-gazillion-dollar contract in another futile effort to bring the team out of perpetual cellar-dweller status. The team's general manager said "We'll sign ANYONE. Money is no object. My checkbook's open. Come on down to Safeco Field and try out...."
In celebrity gossip, Kanye West has offered to pay $5 million for his wedding to Kim Kardashian -- and Kim STILL isn't happy.
"It's not about the MONEY," Kim told the tabloids. "It's just that ... Kanye can be SUCH an asshole...."
In local traffic: According to a new study, the Seattle area continues to have the WORST traffic backups in the country, with some survey respondents reportedly being born, growing old and dying while waiting on I-405 to get from Renton to Bellevue....
In business news, Boeing officials admit that they are looking at moving production of the new 777-XXX "Dreamsleeper" airplane to South Carolina, where costs are lower, salaries are cheaper, and each plane can be built at a shockingly low overall cost to Boeing of just 29 CENTS.
"Sure, they can build it there cheap," said one Boeing machinist. "But let's see how long they can keep it UP...."
He apparently spoke for thousands of machinists, who have been asking the same question about Boeing's CEO....
More coming soon, unfortunately....
In the news, President Barack Obama refuses to attend Nelson Mandela's funeral in Mandela's home village in South Africa. During a White House press briefing, Obama said "I dunno ... I never really liked the guy that much anyway...."
In entertainment, Grammy winners Taylor Swift and Adele have agreed to team up on an album of brand-new broken-hearted love songs. The album's due to be completed and released early in the new year. "Might as well just slash your wrists NOW," rock critic says.
In sports, the Seattle Seahawks blow another big game as they lose shamefully to the New Jersey Giants, 63-0 -- a new record in futility for the Seahawks.
At the press conference after the game, cornerback Richard Sherman -- known for his straight-shooting comments to the media -- said about the team's shameful performance: "I dunno ... Maybe we really ARE as lame as everyone says...."
In other sports news, the Seattle Mariners signed yet another unknown ball-player to a multi-year $63-gazillion-dollar contract in another futile effort to bring the team out of perpetual cellar-dweller status. The team's general manager said "We'll sign ANYONE. Money is no object. My checkbook's open. Come on down to Safeco Field and try out...."
In celebrity gossip, Kanye West has offered to pay $5 million for his wedding to Kim Kardashian -- and Kim STILL isn't happy.
"It's not about the MONEY," Kim told the tabloids. "It's just that ... Kanye can be SUCH an asshole...."
In local traffic: According to a new study, the Seattle area continues to have the WORST traffic backups in the country, with some survey respondents reportedly being born, growing old and dying while waiting on I-405 to get from Renton to Bellevue....
In business news, Boeing officials admit that they are looking at moving production of the new 777-XXX "Dreamsleeper" airplane to South Carolina, where costs are lower, salaries are cheaper, and each plane can be built at a shockingly low overall cost to Boeing of just 29 CENTS.
"Sure, they can build it there cheap," said one Boeing machinist. "But let's see how long they can keep it UP...."
He apparently spoke for thousands of machinists, who have been asking the same question about Boeing's CEO....
More coming soon, unfortunately....
Friday, December 21, 2012
#618: End of the world? Again?
So, supposedly according 2 the ancient Mayan calendar, the end of the world's sposta happen sometime today. Intresting how the Mayans could allegedly predict the end of the world, but they couldn't predict their own disappearance in2 the Central American jungle....
I don't even have any end-of-the-world-music suggestions 4 you, because I posted them 2 end-of-the-world predictions ago....
However, if it really IS gonna B The End, I'd suggest a really big party is in order -- in which case you should find the best upbeat party music you can lay your hands on, & I'm sure you don't need my help with that. Prince's "1999" would be a good addition 2 that pile. & his "Purple Rain" would make a nice -- tho still apocalyptic -- change of pace.
I think the period while we wait 4 the asteroids 2 come raining down (or whatever's gonna happen) could best B soundtracked by Wigwam's rumbling, ominous "Bless Your Lucky Stars."
& once the destruction begins, I think King Crimson's "Starless" might make the most appropriate funeral music.
But the end of the world doesn't havta B a bad thing. I've often thot that maybe there R just 2 many people out there crowding the globe -- & science-fiction writers have been toying with this idea 4 years. Every generation has their own end-of-the-world story: Cormac McCarthy's THE ROAD, Whitley Streiber & James Kunetka's WAR DAY, David Brin's THE POSTMAN, George R. Stewart's EARTH ABIDES, etc. & the idea of a suddenly depopulated Earth & the plusses & minuses of that go way back in fiction....
+ some happenings over the last week or so seem 2 B bearing this out -- that maybe there R too many people, & maybe The End could B a sort of cleansing thing. Ghod knows there seem 2 B enuf people Getting Ready....
& if the past week+ has taught us anything, it's that you never know when your particular world might end. "You never know what's out there, and you never know when it's coming for you."
I hope we all wake up just fine on Saturday morning. I want to keep doing this. I hope that if you do have a big "The End" party, the scariest thing you wake up with is a hangover.
Until next time then, keep your head down, keep smiling, & don't piss anyone off....
I don't even have any end-of-the-world-music suggestions 4 you, because I posted them 2 end-of-the-world predictions ago....
However, if it really IS gonna B The End, I'd suggest a really big party is in order -- in which case you should find the best upbeat party music you can lay your hands on, & I'm sure you don't need my help with that. Prince's "1999" would be a good addition 2 that pile. & his "Purple Rain" would make a nice -- tho still apocalyptic -- change of pace.
I think the period while we wait 4 the asteroids 2 come raining down (or whatever's gonna happen) could best B soundtracked by Wigwam's rumbling, ominous "Bless Your Lucky Stars."
& once the destruction begins, I think King Crimson's "Starless" might make the most appropriate funeral music.
But the end of the world doesn't havta B a bad thing. I've often thot that maybe there R just 2 many people out there crowding the globe -- & science-fiction writers have been toying with this idea 4 years. Every generation has their own end-of-the-world story: Cormac McCarthy's THE ROAD, Whitley Streiber & James Kunetka's WAR DAY, David Brin's THE POSTMAN, George R. Stewart's EARTH ABIDES, etc. & the idea of a suddenly depopulated Earth & the plusses & minuses of that go way back in fiction....
+ some happenings over the last week or so seem 2 B bearing this out -- that maybe there R too many people, & maybe The End could B a sort of cleansing thing. Ghod knows there seem 2 B enuf people Getting Ready....
& if the past week+ has taught us anything, it's that you never know when your particular world might end. "You never know what's out there, and you never know when it's coming for you."
I hope we all wake up just fine on Saturday morning. I want to keep doing this. I hope that if you do have a big "The End" party, the scariest thing you wake up with is a hangover.
Until next time then, keep your head down, keep smiling, & don't piss anyone off....
Monday, December 3, 2012
#608: Where I live (Part 2)
Port Orchard, Washington, probably WAS a really nice place 2 live, 15 years ago. Now it has most of the problems of any major city, in a town of just under 12,000 people.
Local writer Debbie Macomber has sorta immortalized the place in her "Cedar Cove" series of best-selling romance novels, but I wonder how much of the Dark Side she sees. I should pick up 1 of her novels & find out.
I know what I see....
Located just south of Navy-city Bremerton & about 20 miles northwest of Tacoma, Port Orchard is a rapidly-growing town that's also the county seat 4 Kitsap County. Tho there R 12,000 people within the city limits, there's probly another 10,000 living in the south end of Kitsap who pour in2 PO 2 do their shopping & other business. There R only about 4 direct 2-lane roads in & out of town, & all of them connect 2 the freeway. As a result, the roads R jammed most daylight hours, with bumper-to-bumper traffic during Rush Hour.
& on Friday nights starting about 4 pm, you can pretty much FORGET about getting around easily....
I live & work along Bethel Road, a nothing-fancy 2-lane that should've been widened years ago -- it's 1 of the main roads thru the south end of town.
Bethel's lined with stores like WalMart, Fred Meyer, Safeway, RiteAid, Walgreen's, & supposedly more R coming. There've been rumors about a Costco or Home Depot coming in 4 years. All the current residential property along Bethel has been re-zoned 4 commercial development, but the boom hasn't happened as fast as residents thot.
It took 5 years 2 get city & county clearance 2 "super-size" the WalMart a mile down the road, & the traffic was already murder B4 the larger store opened. 1 recent week, there were 3 injury-involved car wrecks at the major intersection where I work.
A few months back, a huge crash just up the hill from the gas station where I work left 1 of our Regulars using a cane to walk. He was in the hospital for weeks & almost died. The driver of the other car was drunk, & bounced off 1 car B4 he totaled R Regular's truck. The Regular said he couldn't avoid it -- there was nowhere 2 go.
I've been keeping him updated on car wrecks near the store ever since, & we agree something's gotta change. He thinks tougher DWI laws will help -- but they're already pretty tough. & expensive.
I sometimes rant at work about how I wish people would SLOW DOWN a little. There's no real good reason 4 all the rushing around I see each day & people might B happier or less frenzied if they'd slow down a step. 1 Regular over the weekend told me "That's just the way it is." A blog post I read a couple years ago announced that "Slow is the new fast." Well, not here. & Good Luck selling it.
I'm not sure why a suburb, a bedroom community with 12,000 people, thinks it's Seattle. Maybe Bcos that's supposedly where all the Good Times are...? Every weekend, the train of cars heading over the hill 2 the east, 2 the ferry going 2 Seattle, stretches on 4 MILES. A good number of people who live here apparently commute there every day. Even more drive the 7 miles north, winding around the bay 2 jobs in Bremerton. I've been told that commute is even worse each day than the backup traffic we've got in PO.
Meanwhile, housing prices here R way 2 high -- even in a depressed market -- but they keep building more. Who can afford those houses? Who's buying them? Where do they work?
The state taxes EVERYTHING -- everybody in Washington has their hand out. It's EXPENSIVE 2 live here, & Wash has the highest minimum-wage in the country. I wonder why everything's so expensive -- what DRIVES it?
The state's voters recently approved legalizing up to an ounce of marijuana in your possession 4 personal use -- the state thinks they can tax the SHIT out of it (at a 40-percent tax rate, even higher than the state's cigarette tax), regulate it, & make MILLIONS of $$$ in new tax revenue ... if the feds don't stomp on it 1st.
I don't partake myself, & don't really care much -- & if you move here you still won't B able 2 smoke pot in public. But some voters seem 2 think this new cash stream will magically reduce the state's 8+ percent sales tax & other taxes. Don't hold your breath. I've yet 2 see a tax the state won't drop without a fight.
Besides, with possession of pot becoming legal in a few days I'm sure there'll B more cops out on the road looking 4 stoned drivers. & 2 B honest, there R 2 many police here already. In 1 recent arrest in our parking lot, a belligerent driver provoked HALF A DOZEN police cars 2 respond in less than 2 minutes. They must have wanted the guy BAD. I've been here 10 years & I've never seen a police response like that 4 1 PERSON....
Meanwhile, what else R we getting with our tax $$$? "Everybody" seems 2 know where the bad drug neighborhoods R -- supposedly there R 2 within a few blocks of my house. If I take a "wrong" turn on my street, I'm told I'll be drifting in2 a druggie neighborhood & any cop following me will pull me over just 4 that. Luckily I haven't experienced this. Yet....
Meanwhile, these neighborhoods R left alone, even tho "everybody" knows where they R. The meth freaks who R most definitely here R left 2 plot their own ruin apparently without interference -- unless they cause a scene in public. & then, Good Luck. The meth problem appears WAY less than it was 7+ years ago -- back then I got some1 UP on something in2 the store EVERY nite. Now I'm suprised if it happens more than 1nce a week.
So what R the police, county deputies & state patrolmen in my neighborhood doing? Looking for drunk drivers & writing occasional speeding tickets, near as I can tell. In 9 years at my job, where I've had 2 make numerous emergency calls, I've learned that police & fire crews will respond 4 a car wreck -- tho it may take them a few minutes. & that's with a fire station a 2-minute drive down the street.
But until some1 points a gun at me or threatens me with a knife, I have NO FAITH that the police will respond 2 any other issues I report. I've been threatened B4 -- & it took the cops 1/2anhour 2 show up. By then the idiots were long gone....
So I'm pretty clear that I'm On My Own. I try 2 B Careful. So far, a friendly attitude, a little joking around, & some decent music on the store stereo has fended-off most Problems. But sometime, when I have an Off Night....
It's all just points on a curve anyway. The highschools here look EXACTLY like prisons ... which is maybe where The Folks In Charge think most of R kids R gonna end up. 1/2 the people I see every day carry Food Stamp cards, & they're almost always the folks with the fattest wallets & the newest cars. As a member of The Working Poor, that's a gravy train I wouldn't mind getting on -- as long as I don't have to do anything Illegal.
I don't know how things got like this -- upside down & unfair & brutal & fast-fast-fast. Maybe I'm just old & out of touch. But not much of it seems Good, or good for people. Which is why I end up running 2 this blog 4 refuge. Until I let the ugly stuff in....
Local writer Debbie Macomber has sorta immortalized the place in her "Cedar Cove" series of best-selling romance novels, but I wonder how much of the Dark Side she sees. I should pick up 1 of her novels & find out.
I know what I see....
Located just south of Navy-city Bremerton & about 20 miles northwest of Tacoma, Port Orchard is a rapidly-growing town that's also the county seat 4 Kitsap County. Tho there R 12,000 people within the city limits, there's probly another 10,000 living in the south end of Kitsap who pour in2 PO 2 do their shopping & other business. There R only about 4 direct 2-lane roads in & out of town, & all of them connect 2 the freeway. As a result, the roads R jammed most daylight hours, with bumper-to-bumper traffic during Rush Hour.
& on Friday nights starting about 4 pm, you can pretty much FORGET about getting around easily....
I live & work along Bethel Road, a nothing-fancy 2-lane that should've been widened years ago -- it's 1 of the main roads thru the south end of town.
Bethel's lined with stores like WalMart, Fred Meyer, Safeway, RiteAid, Walgreen's, & supposedly more R coming. There've been rumors about a Costco or Home Depot coming in 4 years. All the current residential property along Bethel has been re-zoned 4 commercial development, but the boom hasn't happened as fast as residents thot.
It took 5 years 2 get city & county clearance 2 "super-size" the WalMart a mile down the road, & the traffic was already murder B4 the larger store opened. 1 recent week, there were 3 injury-involved car wrecks at the major intersection where I work.
A few months back, a huge crash just up the hill from the gas station where I work left 1 of our Regulars using a cane to walk. He was in the hospital for weeks & almost died. The driver of the other car was drunk, & bounced off 1 car B4 he totaled R Regular's truck. The Regular said he couldn't avoid it -- there was nowhere 2 go.
I've been keeping him updated on car wrecks near the store ever since, & we agree something's gotta change. He thinks tougher DWI laws will help -- but they're already pretty tough. & expensive.
I sometimes rant at work about how I wish people would SLOW DOWN a little. There's no real good reason 4 all the rushing around I see each day & people might B happier or less frenzied if they'd slow down a step. 1 Regular over the weekend told me "That's just the way it is." A blog post I read a couple years ago announced that "Slow is the new fast." Well, not here. & Good Luck selling it.
I'm not sure why a suburb, a bedroom community with 12,000 people, thinks it's Seattle. Maybe Bcos that's supposedly where all the Good Times are...? Every weekend, the train of cars heading over the hill 2 the east, 2 the ferry going 2 Seattle, stretches on 4 MILES. A good number of people who live here apparently commute there every day. Even more drive the 7 miles north, winding around the bay 2 jobs in Bremerton. I've been told that commute is even worse each day than the backup traffic we've got in PO.
Meanwhile, housing prices here R way 2 high -- even in a depressed market -- but they keep building more. Who can afford those houses? Who's buying them? Where do they work?
The state taxes EVERYTHING -- everybody in Washington has their hand out. It's EXPENSIVE 2 live here, & Wash has the highest minimum-wage in the country. I wonder why everything's so expensive -- what DRIVES it?
The state's voters recently approved legalizing up to an ounce of marijuana in your possession 4 personal use -- the state thinks they can tax the SHIT out of it (at a 40-percent tax rate, even higher than the state's cigarette tax), regulate it, & make MILLIONS of $$$ in new tax revenue ... if the feds don't stomp on it 1st.
I don't partake myself, & don't really care much -- & if you move here you still won't B able 2 smoke pot in public. But some voters seem 2 think this new cash stream will magically reduce the state's 8+ percent sales tax & other taxes. Don't hold your breath. I've yet 2 see a tax the state won't drop without a fight.
Besides, with possession of pot becoming legal in a few days I'm sure there'll B more cops out on the road looking 4 stoned drivers. & 2 B honest, there R 2 many police here already. In 1 recent arrest in our parking lot, a belligerent driver provoked HALF A DOZEN police cars 2 respond in less than 2 minutes. They must have wanted the guy BAD. I've been here 10 years & I've never seen a police response like that 4 1 PERSON....
Meanwhile, what else R we getting with our tax $$$? "Everybody" seems 2 know where the bad drug neighborhoods R -- supposedly there R 2 within a few blocks of my house. If I take a "wrong" turn on my street, I'm told I'll be drifting in2 a druggie neighborhood & any cop following me will pull me over just 4 that. Luckily I haven't experienced this. Yet....
Meanwhile, these neighborhoods R left alone, even tho "everybody" knows where they R. The meth freaks who R most definitely here R left 2 plot their own ruin apparently without interference -- unless they cause a scene in public. & then, Good Luck. The meth problem appears WAY less than it was 7+ years ago -- back then I got some1 UP on something in2 the store EVERY nite. Now I'm suprised if it happens more than 1nce a week.
So what R the police, county deputies & state patrolmen in my neighborhood doing? Looking for drunk drivers & writing occasional speeding tickets, near as I can tell. In 9 years at my job, where I've had 2 make numerous emergency calls, I've learned that police & fire crews will respond 4 a car wreck -- tho it may take them a few minutes. & that's with a fire station a 2-minute drive down the street.
But until some1 points a gun at me or threatens me with a knife, I have NO FAITH that the police will respond 2 any other issues I report. I've been threatened B4 -- & it took the cops 1/2anhour 2 show up. By then the idiots were long gone....
So I'm pretty clear that I'm On My Own. I try 2 B Careful. So far, a friendly attitude, a little joking around, & some decent music on the store stereo has fended-off most Problems. But sometime, when I have an Off Night....
It's all just points on a curve anyway. The highschools here look EXACTLY like prisons ... which is maybe where The Folks In Charge think most of R kids R gonna end up. 1/2 the people I see every day carry Food Stamp cards, & they're almost always the folks with the fattest wallets & the newest cars. As a member of The Working Poor, that's a gravy train I wouldn't mind getting on -- as long as I don't have to do anything Illegal.
I don't know how things got like this -- upside down & unfair & brutal & fast-fast-fast. Maybe I'm just old & out of touch. But not much of it seems Good, or good for people. Which is why I end up running 2 this blog 4 refuge. Until I let the ugly stuff in....
Monday, November 21, 2011
Boycott Black Friday!
So, Thanksgiving's coming up pretty quick, & then -- Black Friday. The biggest retail bizness day of the year.
The day when MILLIONS of consumers climb outta bed WAY TOO EARLY after barely sleeping-off their Turkeycosis from the day B4, pile in2 SUVs & race hurriedly 2 their nearest mall 2 B there at 4 am when WalMart or Target or Macy's throw their doors open 4 the massive totally-Byond-Blief never-2-B-repeated Xmas-kickoff sales -- when HUGE 72-inch thin-screen plasma TVs sell 4 $99, when the latest videogames R slashed down 2 $5, when the latest in smartphones & other high-tech goodies R cut 2 the bone in massive across-the-board never-2-B-repeated UNBELIEVABLE sale prices....
The day when hapless minimum-wage WalMart Mployees get trampled just trying 2 get the front doors open, when every year dozens of assaults R reported Btween shoppers trying 2 elbow or punch their way closer 2 that 1 big bargain that just CAN'T B resisted, when millions of people go even further in debt trying 2 get a jump on the Xmas gift-giving season, trying 2 take advantage of prices that will NEVER -- NO, WE MEAN IT THIS TIME! -- NEVER B repeated....
Please.
What sane person would do this? What normal, thinking human being would want 2 take part in such an ugly, mindless rat race?
Actually, my X-wife useta get up way 2 early the day after Tgiving & go hit the malls, thinking she'd get the jump on something Really Good. (I don't know if she still does this.) Sometimes she took the kids with her. She said she tried 2 make it "an event."
Yeah, that's some event, all right. Driving 4 an hour or more in freezing temperatures with no sleep so you can stand outside some big-box retail store, freeze some more, & then beg 4 crumbs when they "run out" of the bargains you were hoping 2 score. That's a great Family Tradition 2 pass down 2 your kids. Tiredness, drudgery, stress, frustration, Xhaustion. What a way 2 open the Holidays. It always brot the X home stressed-out, angry, frustrated, Xhausted. & broke.
What thinking person would do this? & why do so many millions do it every year? Has no1 figured out that big retailers have plenty more goods Byond just the "unbeatable-bargain" 1s they use as bait 2 entice you 2 the store with? Does no1 remember those after-Xmas sales where prices on the same goods you fought 2 get at a month B4 R slashed 50-, 70-, 90-percent off? Does NE1 remember anything anymore?
Is it somehow more fun 2 race 2 the malls at a given day & time like lemmings, & then fight the crowds, like rats running thru a maze? You know there's some cheese in here somewhere, but you don't know Xactly where it IS, do you, Mr. Jones?
It's insanity.
The ads R all thru your junk mail, in all the newspapers, all over the TV, & it's only gonna get worse. Shit, I'm getting unwanted Black Friday Sale ads in my e-mail!
There's only 1 thing 2 do:
Boycott Black Friday.
Stay home! Sleep in! Imagine all the chaos you'll miss out on, the screaming & crying & physical violence, the car wrecks you won't have 2 witness! Sleep off that huge turkey dinner. You've earned it.
Talk your kids in2 waiting 'til the After-Xmas sales. Those new tennies or that new smartphone will B just as great then -- even better, cos they'll B 75% OFF! Tell your kids they'll get MORE presents if they wait 24 hours longer. Your kids won't fight you very hard -- they know MORE is BETTER.
Bsides, who the hell wants 2 fight all that mess? Who wants 2 deal with the General Public? I make it a point never 2 deal with the General Public when I'm not working. & then I havta deal with them every day. & believe me, they R a beast. They never stop Wanting. & Demanding.
If this avoidance therapy works 4 you, there's other steps you can take 2 reduce the hassles in your daily life. Try shopping during off-beat hours when you can avoid the crowds. I remember back in the day when I could go grocery shopping at 2 am at my favorite local 24-hour grocery store. You'd B suprised how EASY it is 2 get your shopping done then, how fast you can burn thru that place -- it sure ain't crowded then, & the same stuff is on sale.
Yeah, there's some weirdos out at 2 am. But they're out in the daytime, 2. You just can't tell. Bcos there's SO MANY of them these days.
In case you're wondering, yeah, I have a bias. I work retail. & I've worked a few Black Fridays. They're No Fun 4 NEbody. The last 1 I remember working -- at a Gig Harbor, Wash., Target store back in 2002 -- was a screaming chaotic blur from the time I got there til the time I went home. I was told I did a good job & actually helped people, & that some customers told my bosses how cool & helpful I was under pressure. But I know I never stopped talking & pointing & moving & running & sweating, never caught my breath & never hadda chance 2 relax ... all day long.
So, do your part 4 the economy, do right by yer kids & loved 1's. But save yourself the stress.
Boycott Black Friday. It ain't worth it. Those great, unbeatable, never-2-B-repeated deals will B back again. The day after Xmas....
The day when MILLIONS of consumers climb outta bed WAY TOO EARLY after barely sleeping-off their Turkeycosis from the day B4, pile in2 SUVs & race hurriedly 2 their nearest mall 2 B there at 4 am when WalMart or Target or Macy's throw their doors open 4 the massive totally-Byond-Blief never-2-B-repeated Xmas-kickoff sales -- when HUGE 72-inch thin-screen plasma TVs sell 4 $99, when the latest videogames R slashed down 2 $5, when the latest in smartphones & other high-tech goodies R cut 2 the bone in massive across-the-board never-2-B-repeated UNBELIEVABLE sale prices....
The day when hapless minimum-wage WalMart Mployees get trampled just trying 2 get the front doors open, when every year dozens of assaults R reported Btween shoppers trying 2 elbow or punch their way closer 2 that 1 big bargain that just CAN'T B resisted, when millions of people go even further in debt trying 2 get a jump on the Xmas gift-giving season, trying 2 take advantage of prices that will NEVER -- NO, WE MEAN IT THIS TIME! -- NEVER B repeated....
Please.
What sane person would do this? What normal, thinking human being would want 2 take part in such an ugly, mindless rat race?
Actually, my X-wife useta get up way 2 early the day after Tgiving & go hit the malls, thinking she'd get the jump on something Really Good. (I don't know if she still does this.) Sometimes she took the kids with her. She said she tried 2 make it "an event."
Yeah, that's some event, all right. Driving 4 an hour or more in freezing temperatures with no sleep so you can stand outside some big-box retail store, freeze some more, & then beg 4 crumbs when they "run out" of the bargains you were hoping 2 score. That's a great Family Tradition 2 pass down 2 your kids. Tiredness, drudgery, stress, frustration, Xhaustion. What a way 2 open the Holidays. It always brot the X home stressed-out, angry, frustrated, Xhausted. & broke.
What thinking person would do this? & why do so many millions do it every year? Has no1 figured out that big retailers have plenty more goods Byond just the "unbeatable-bargain" 1s they use as bait 2 entice you 2 the store with? Does no1 remember those after-Xmas sales where prices on the same goods you fought 2 get at a month B4 R slashed 50-, 70-, 90-percent off? Does NE1 remember anything anymore?
Is it somehow more fun 2 race 2 the malls at a given day & time like lemmings, & then fight the crowds, like rats running thru a maze? You know there's some cheese in here somewhere, but you don't know Xactly where it IS, do you, Mr. Jones?
It's insanity.
The ads R all thru your junk mail, in all the newspapers, all over the TV, & it's only gonna get worse. Shit, I'm getting unwanted Black Friday Sale ads in my e-mail!
There's only 1 thing 2 do:
Boycott Black Friday.
Stay home! Sleep in! Imagine all the chaos you'll miss out on, the screaming & crying & physical violence, the car wrecks you won't have 2 witness! Sleep off that huge turkey dinner. You've earned it.
Talk your kids in2 waiting 'til the After-Xmas sales. Those new tennies or that new smartphone will B just as great then -- even better, cos they'll B 75% OFF! Tell your kids they'll get MORE presents if they wait 24 hours longer. Your kids won't fight you very hard -- they know MORE is BETTER.
Bsides, who the hell wants 2 fight all that mess? Who wants 2 deal with the General Public? I make it a point never 2 deal with the General Public when I'm not working. & then I havta deal with them every day. & believe me, they R a beast. They never stop Wanting. & Demanding.
If this avoidance therapy works 4 you, there's other steps you can take 2 reduce the hassles in your daily life. Try shopping during off-beat hours when you can avoid the crowds. I remember back in the day when I could go grocery shopping at 2 am at my favorite local 24-hour grocery store. You'd B suprised how EASY it is 2 get your shopping done then, how fast you can burn thru that place -- it sure ain't crowded then, & the same stuff is on sale.
Yeah, there's some weirdos out at 2 am. But they're out in the daytime, 2. You just can't tell. Bcos there's SO MANY of them these days.
In case you're wondering, yeah, I have a bias. I work retail. & I've worked a few Black Fridays. They're No Fun 4 NEbody. The last 1 I remember working -- at a Gig Harbor, Wash., Target store back in 2002 -- was a screaming chaotic blur from the time I got there til the time I went home. I was told I did a good job & actually helped people, & that some customers told my bosses how cool & helpful I was under pressure. But I know I never stopped talking & pointing & moving & running & sweating, never caught my breath & never hadda chance 2 relax ... all day long.
So, do your part 4 the economy, do right by yer kids & loved 1's. But save yourself the stress.
Boycott Black Friday. It ain't worth it. Those great, unbeatable, never-2-B-repeated deals will B back again. The day after Xmas....
Sunday, September 11, 2011
9/11 +10
Lotta sirens going off out there 2nite, even 4 a Sat nite, even 4 a Full Moon. Hope it's just people being stupid, drunk drivers winding up in the ditch & so on.
Just B4 I left work, 1/2adozen police cars, an ambulance & a coupla fire engines screamed off 2 the east, out toward where the ferry dock 2 Seattle is. & a few mins later 1 of the ambulances w/ a 2-car police escort raced back the other way toward Bremerton.
I hope it was just an ugly car wreck, not something worse. There's nothing on the Net, the newspapers don't come out 4 hours (& might not have it), & the radio stations I listen 2 at work R useless 4 news. But you never know....
I don't remember that much about 9/11. I remember being awakened by my old girlfriend's son, calling & crying that the World Trade Center had bn hit & we were all gonna die. I remember switching-on the TV & seeing that chilling footage of the 2 towers collapsing in2 a cloud of dust. I remember going in2 shock, 3,000 miles away from where it all was happening. Here's what I wrote in the journal I kept at the time:
"...Bn a wild week in Reality: On Tues morn, Islamic terrorists destroyed the World Trade Center & part of the Pentagon, & the stunning saturation-news coverage of the event & the rescue operations after have continued ever since. Just stunning, terrifying -- thousands dead, & the pictures & stories continue 2 suck us in2 the TV nite after nite. Some amazing reporting being done, & TV again unites the country after a horrible disaster like no other media can. (The old girlfriend) has had a lotta trouble sleeping since Tues, she's hadda coupla bad nitemares -- I'm pretty sure she's worried about her son who's on Okinawa & getting ready 2 deploy with the Marines."
...Her son would go on 2 pull 2 tours in Iraq, 1 as a troop-driver in the initial invasion force.
...What I mainly remember is how QUIET it was during the days after. All air travel was grounded 4 a coupla days after the attack, & it was so QUIET where I was (Raymond, Wash). & the weather was beautiful. I was working in the Pacific County Superior Court Clerk's office as a part-time archivist then, & from their 2nd-floor windows you could see all the way west down the Willapa River in2 the bay & seemingly the ocean beyond -- & all of it framed in silence.
Everyone who came in2 the clerk's office talked quietly, even if they were upset -- which folks often were when going 2 criminal court or juvenile proceedings. But no1 raised their voice, no1 wanted 2 cause more upset. Everyone spoke in hushed tones.
& everybody kept looking out the windows, as if we all Xpected another attack any minute.
I think we were all waiting 4 the other shoe 2 drop -- wondering if the attacks were over, wondering if it could get any worse.
& nobody talked about the attacks, other than 2 say how terrible it all was. Most people hardly talked at all.
Everybody was quiet, thotful, distracted, a little tense, wondering what could happen next.
This went on for days.
& the radio kept playing Brotherhood of Man's "United We Stand." Great song, I'd always liked it. But now I can't hear it without thinking of 9/11....
...The old girlfriend & I broke-up & got back 2gether, & I was holding her hand when the 1st "shock and awe" footage of the Iraq War played over CNN a few months later. I knew she was thinking her son was soon gonna B in the middle of that mess....
He came out of it OK, but he's had nightmares & other problems 2....
...Those R my 9/11 memories, & they aren't much.
Hope you all are well. Be careful out there today. & every day....
Just B4 I left work, 1/2adozen police cars, an ambulance & a coupla fire engines screamed off 2 the east, out toward where the ferry dock 2 Seattle is. & a few mins later 1 of the ambulances w/ a 2-car police escort raced back the other way toward Bremerton.
I hope it was just an ugly car wreck, not something worse. There's nothing on the Net, the newspapers don't come out 4 hours (& might not have it), & the radio stations I listen 2 at work R useless 4 news. But you never know....
I don't remember that much about 9/11. I remember being awakened by my old girlfriend's son, calling & crying that the World Trade Center had bn hit & we were all gonna die. I remember switching-on the TV & seeing that chilling footage of the 2 towers collapsing in2 a cloud of dust. I remember going in2 shock, 3,000 miles away from where it all was happening. Here's what I wrote in the journal I kept at the time:
"...Bn a wild week in Reality: On Tues morn, Islamic terrorists destroyed the World Trade Center & part of the Pentagon, & the stunning saturation-news coverage of the event & the rescue operations after have continued ever since. Just stunning, terrifying -- thousands dead, & the pictures & stories continue 2 suck us in2 the TV nite after nite. Some amazing reporting being done, & TV again unites the country after a horrible disaster like no other media can. (The old girlfriend) has had a lotta trouble sleeping since Tues, she's hadda coupla bad nitemares -- I'm pretty sure she's worried about her son who's on Okinawa & getting ready 2 deploy with the Marines."
...Her son would go on 2 pull 2 tours in Iraq, 1 as a troop-driver in the initial invasion force.
...What I mainly remember is how QUIET it was during the days after. All air travel was grounded 4 a coupla days after the attack, & it was so QUIET where I was (Raymond, Wash). & the weather was beautiful. I was working in the Pacific County Superior Court Clerk's office as a part-time archivist then, & from their 2nd-floor windows you could see all the way west down the Willapa River in2 the bay & seemingly the ocean beyond -- & all of it framed in silence.
Everyone who came in2 the clerk's office talked quietly, even if they were upset -- which folks often were when going 2 criminal court or juvenile proceedings. But no1 raised their voice, no1 wanted 2 cause more upset. Everyone spoke in hushed tones.
& everybody kept looking out the windows, as if we all Xpected another attack any minute.
I think we were all waiting 4 the other shoe 2 drop -- wondering if the attacks were over, wondering if it could get any worse.
& nobody talked about the attacks, other than 2 say how terrible it all was. Most people hardly talked at all.
Everybody was quiet, thotful, distracted, a little tense, wondering what could happen next.
This went on for days.
& the radio kept playing Brotherhood of Man's "United We Stand." Great song, I'd always liked it. But now I can't hear it without thinking of 9/11....
...The old girlfriend & I broke-up & got back 2gether, & I was holding her hand when the 1st "shock and awe" footage of the Iraq War played over CNN a few months later. I knew she was thinking her son was soon gonna B in the middle of that mess....
He came out of it OK, but he's had nightmares & other problems 2....
...Those R my 9/11 memories, & they aren't much.
Hope you all are well. Be careful out there today. & every day....
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
End of world set for Saturday
OK, so I was gonna do this whiny post about how most current music sucks & there's hardly anything good to watch on TV & that maybe the reason why mosta the new movies that come out are either remakes or mindless comedies or wild fantasies or chop-'em-up horror is because Real Life isn't too much fun these days & maybe most of us don't really wanna deal with it anymore....
But to Hell with all that, because The End Of The World is set for this coming Saturday, 21 May 2011, & I think if it really happens it's gonna put all our other little worries way down all of our lists.
So I wouldn't worry too much about the mortgage you can't pay or the bills you can't keep ahead of or the car that needs major repairs you can't afford, or about your failing marriage or your messed-up relationship....
Because The End is at hand. And if I were you, I'd be getting your affairs in order.
This is based on a full-page advertisement that appeared in last weekend's USA TODAY, near the back of the news section. A huge, colorful ad that it was impossible to miss. The headline said something like "JUDGEMENT DAY WILL OCCUR ON SATURDAY, MAY 21, 2011," & the ad went on to explain that the end of the world will start with massive worldwide earthquakes. One can only assume that after those have subsided, Ghod Himself will then come down & pass judgement on your lazy, worthless, sinning ass. & the rest of you, too.
I'd suggest that if you wanna get in good with Ghod, you had better get cracking.
The rest of this ad -- what I can remember of it -- said that all those folks who'd previously warned us that the end of the world was coming at the end of 2012 -- you know, like Nostradamus & the Mayans & Biblical scholars down thru the ages -- they all got their calculations wrong. The Real End is coming more than 18 months ahead of schedule, & woe unto your sorry behind if you haven't been getting your stuff together.
What was the purpose of this ad, you may well ask, other than to cause massive panic among the sinners amongst us? I THINK they were trying to sell you a book that explains how the calculations about the End Times got messed up, & what you need to know B4 those End Times come to pass....
But that can't be it, because if the end is coming on Saturday, the publishers'll barely have time to debit the $39.95 from your bank account, let alone ship you the book, before the ground starts shakin....
...But they were also trying to offer a sorta Public Service Announcement: The ad urged readers to buy multiple copies of the paper & send the ad to elected officials, police chiefs, fire chiefs, emergency-response teams -- so that the public might be alerted & not be caught unaware.
Not that there's anything anyone's gonna be able to do.... Not if the earthquakes are worldwide....
Which leads us therefore unto the Day Of Judgement. & woe unto us.
Don't know about you, but I know where I'll be going. I've tried to be a good person, & I think I AM a good person. But I've lied & broken hearts & betrayed friendships & treated people badly & committed adultery -- & if I could do it all over again tomorrow I'd do it faster & more often, so obviously I didn't learn a goddamned thing. (Sorry, Lord.)
So I know I'm going to burn in Hell.
But I also know that I'll have LOTS of company.
And where will YOU be spending eternity?
Even more important -- who do you suppose paid 4 this full-page ad in USA TODAY, a newspaper with between 1 & 3 million daily readers nationwide, last I heard. I'd assume that a full-page color ad in such a publication likely costs between $5,000 & $10,000 -- pretty serious money to put down on the table if you're not Absolutely Certain that The End Is Near. & USA TODAY took the money....
So if I were you I'd get my things together. There's a bad moon on the rise, as John Fogerty once said. & woe be unto you if you are not ready when the hour is nigh.
I am NOT making this up....
...Of course I don't really BELIEVE the world as we know it is going to end on Saturday. But won't the folks who placed that ad be -- briefly -- awfully smug & self-righteous if it DOES?
But to Hell with all that, because The End Of The World is set for this coming Saturday, 21 May 2011, & I think if it really happens it's gonna put all our other little worries way down all of our lists.
So I wouldn't worry too much about the mortgage you can't pay or the bills you can't keep ahead of or the car that needs major repairs you can't afford, or about your failing marriage or your messed-up relationship....
Because The End is at hand. And if I were you, I'd be getting your affairs in order.
This is based on a full-page advertisement that appeared in last weekend's USA TODAY, near the back of the news section. A huge, colorful ad that it was impossible to miss. The headline said something like "JUDGEMENT DAY WILL OCCUR ON SATURDAY, MAY 21, 2011," & the ad went on to explain that the end of the world will start with massive worldwide earthquakes. One can only assume that after those have subsided, Ghod Himself will then come down & pass judgement on your lazy, worthless, sinning ass. & the rest of you, too.
I'd suggest that if you wanna get in good with Ghod, you had better get cracking.
The rest of this ad -- what I can remember of it -- said that all those folks who'd previously warned us that the end of the world was coming at the end of 2012 -- you know, like Nostradamus & the Mayans & Biblical scholars down thru the ages -- they all got their calculations wrong. The Real End is coming more than 18 months ahead of schedule, & woe unto your sorry behind if you haven't been getting your stuff together.
What was the purpose of this ad, you may well ask, other than to cause massive panic among the sinners amongst us? I THINK they were trying to sell you a book that explains how the calculations about the End Times got messed up, & what you need to know B4 those End Times come to pass....
But that can't be it, because if the end is coming on Saturday, the publishers'll barely have time to debit the $39.95 from your bank account, let alone ship you the book, before the ground starts shakin....
...But they were also trying to offer a sorta Public Service Announcement: The ad urged readers to buy multiple copies of the paper & send the ad to elected officials, police chiefs, fire chiefs, emergency-response teams -- so that the public might be alerted & not be caught unaware.
Not that there's anything anyone's gonna be able to do.... Not if the earthquakes are worldwide....
Which leads us therefore unto the Day Of Judgement. & woe unto us.
Don't know about you, but I know where I'll be going. I've tried to be a good person, & I think I AM a good person. But I've lied & broken hearts & betrayed friendships & treated people badly & committed adultery -- & if I could do it all over again tomorrow I'd do it faster & more often, so obviously I didn't learn a goddamned thing. (Sorry, Lord.)
So I know I'm going to burn in Hell.
But I also know that I'll have LOTS of company.
And where will YOU be spending eternity?
Even more important -- who do you suppose paid 4 this full-page ad in USA TODAY, a newspaper with between 1 & 3 million daily readers nationwide, last I heard. I'd assume that a full-page color ad in such a publication likely costs between $5,000 & $10,000 -- pretty serious money to put down on the table if you're not Absolutely Certain that The End Is Near. & USA TODAY took the money....
So if I were you I'd get my things together. There's a bad moon on the rise, as John Fogerty once said. & woe be unto you if you are not ready when the hour is nigh.
I am NOT making this up....
...Of course I don't really BELIEVE the world as we know it is going to end on Saturday. But won't the folks who placed that ad be -- briefly -- awfully smug & self-righteous if it DOES?
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