MMM

Ughhhhh... no more please....

found @ Flickr

Hell fucking yeah! My favorite movie as a kid.

Absolutely ridiculous. Thanks Drug War!

Whoa

As I said earlier, I was in Vermont for the weekend. Had a great time, although the travel wasn't exactly as smooth as I had anticipated. Apparently getting away for Valentine's weekend from NYC to Vermont is not as novel as an idea as we supposed. I arrived at Penn 45 minutes or so before my train was to leave (good boy!) only to find that the train was Sold Out. Sold Out?? Do trains sell out??? Apparently so. This was only the beginning of our adventures, and if you read any of it from Melly's Blog then you'll know.

Whatever though, I like having to improvise and pull vacations out of my ass. It's what I do best. It was nice to be away from the computer, even if I did sneak in a little clandestine Google Reader on my phone every once in a while. Anyway, on the train ride back we got seats and I dived back into my laptop. I love doing work on trains and our last trip was where my song Kinda (see left) came from.

So, I came up with this little ditty on the train. It's nothing terribly original, but it's easy on the ears.

Vermonter 3

Enjoy!

PS As always, feedback is always encouraged, even if you just want to tell me that arpeggios are soooo 90s...

Really, how can you be excited about a candidate who makes a fuss over bullshit like this??

Come on. Are you really going to criticize a politician for recycling clichés??? That's like criticizing a beaver for recycling wood.

Off to Montpelier, Vermont for the weekend! Back 2 bloggin on Tuesdish.

Marine dad in giant heart surprises kids

Cocaine killed teen; mother cleared of murder

Homebuilders catch fire

Finding love getting easier in rural areas

Boy, 10, shotguns sis in face over chips

Troubleshooter: Marriott, where are my points?

Does photo show mayor aiming at chief?

Ticker: Chelsea Clinton to say aloha to Hawaii

Bush Will Veto Ban On Torture

And McCain opposes it. That's right.

I've been steering clear in the past, oh, year or so of getting all freaked out about the state of our country. Yeah, the Bush years were fucked, the war is insane, all that.

But really, if we can't manage to show that we are above TORTURE, then we kinda deserve to be hated around the world.

And McCain has truly proven that he will do anything to get elected.

Maverick, my ass.

Ok.

Now,

Yeah.

This apparently is the counterpart to the Yes, We Can video for Obama.

Umm. This makes that video seem like fucking Kubrick.



P.S. Doesn't the whole vibe seem a little culty? Like, after they're finished singing they're all gonna skip on over to the punchbowl and start downing the strychnine?

Saudi Arabia has asked florists and gift shops to remove all red items until after Valentine's Day, calling the celebration of such a holiday a sin, local media reported Monday.
As Muslims we shouldn't celebrate a non-Muslim celebration, especially this one that encourages immoral relations between unmarried men and women, " Sheikh Khaled Al-Dossari, a scholar in Islamic studies, told the Saudi Gazette, an English-language newspaper.

I mean, really. There's not much out there that's more evil than that. I grew up reading 1984, Fahrenheit 541, and other dystopian novels. This is one of those worlds. The list of repressions and atrocities are staggering in this hellhole. This isn't merely a cultural difference, this is oppression pure and simple, which is what makes it all the more insane that the Bush's are close family friends with the Saudi royal family. As much shit as I talk about the democrats, it'll be nice to have a president who, ya know, isn't close friends with the Big Brothers of another country.

Update: Oops! Forgot the Link!

Wow. Just, kind of dumb, huh. I noticed that all of the comments on YouTube were positive. Then I tried to post one that was, um, not and it said "comment pending approval". I guess no surprise that they seem to be only approving the glowing comments.

Here's a funny Obama article by that guy you always see on VH-1. His feelings are similar to mine. He feels both inspired and embarrassed by the Obama phenomenon:

From his interview with actor Eric Christian Olsen, who inspires us all in the Yes We Can video:

When I started to make fun of Olsen, he said: "I get that it's a movement. But it's not like a movement for Nickelback. For the first time, we should feel justified in our passion. You don't have to feel embarrassed about it, buddy." It was a convincing argument until he told me he cried during an Obama speech. That did not help me feel less lame.

The City of Berkeley City Council passed a measure urging representatives from the Marines to leave their city. It is a fascinating story. On one hand I respect the fierce drive for autonomy and localism that Berkeley represents. On the other, I think their approach is simple-minded and somewhat offensive.

I believe a large problem of the anti-war movement is the visibility and audacity of the fringe elements. They are easy to report on, easy to make fun of, and easy to dismiss because, to be honest, their arguments often don't subsist of much other than slogans and lofty ideals. In one of the photos in the article a lady is carrying a sign with that says: "Join the Marines: Travel to exotic lands, meet exciting unusual people, AND KILL THEM". Yeah, that's from Full Metal Jacket, which was not an anti-war film, Kubrick maintained this. I can't imagine anyone who would have their mind changed by signs like these and: NO BLOOD FOR OIL, and BUSH = WAR CRIMINAL. I might even agree with many of these slogans, but you're preachin' to the choir man.

But, I also believe that cities should have the right to pass radical measures, as long as they don't affect peoples' basic civil rights. It is healthy to have cities challenging authority, specifically the government. I believe in localized policy, even localized currency, and as long as the measures aren't directly harming individuals then let them be debated, and passed if they see fit.

Just once though, I'd like to see sensible radicals become the forces for change in this country. It almost never happens. Where are the Voltairine DeCleyre's, the Ayn Rand's, hell, even the Thomas Jefferon's?

Watch and laugh your ass off:

This seems set up, but still, these kids are hilarious. I'd like to see them tear down a few more celebs, maybe some that deserve it a bit more.

New feature here on Mafoo Blog USA: Suck Band of the Week. Each week I'll bring you... well I think you get the idea.

First off:

Bachman-Turner Overdrive

Farmed from members of The Guess Who, who were actually alright (American Woman), BTO rose to prominence, or notoriety, in the mid 70s. Their breakout single was Takin' Care of Business, which I personally think is one of the lamest songs ever recorded. I live in New York, and in vicinity to New Jersey more importantly, and for some reason this song is like the fucking Star Spangled Banner to people out here. Anytime you go anywhere, it is there. They play it at every sporting event, on commercials; hell I heard it at Chuck E Cheeses this weekend! It literally means: getting something done; therefore it is applicable to every situation that has ever happened or will happen. Every time I hear this song I picture some community fair with a bunch of overweight Jerseyans gnashing out a near identical cover to the delight of banality-seeking, turkey leg-gnawing white people. Ok, I just had to let that out. Ironically, BTO are from Winnipeg. Hmmm.

Their next hit was, keeping with the trend of utilizing clichés in dialect for their songs, You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet. It's a song about a guy who tells a girl, "You ain't seen nothing yet". Again the song is applicable in almost every situation, which is why it's been whored out by every stadium, office supply store, and political party. BTO needs to just record a song called Stuff.

Luckily those were their only two significant hits. But the nightmare didn't stop. For a time during the 80s, there where actually two BTOs, each led by a Bachman brother, leading to a lawsuit between brothers and bla bla bla a bunch of shit that you would expect lame, glory hog, rock musicians to do.

Luckily, they're pretty much gone now. But, Randy Bachman has had a recent hit with his Christmas-themed tune: Takin' Care of Christmas. Get it? It's like Takin' Care of Business but with Christmas instead. Yeah. Ha ha he hmmmmmmm...

Ok, so I couldn't exactly keep up with the daily mp3s, but let's see how weekly ones work. As always hook a brother up with some feedback as to what you might like to see featured.

This week: Ripped open by metal explosions - Galt MacDermot

Galt MacDermot is best known for the music from Hair, but he also made a career for himself scoring films in the 70s, notably Blaxploitation flicks. This tune is actually from Hair, but it is obviously more funk than rock. I think this is a later version as well, from his funk/soul days.

I'm a big fan of Lifehacker's featured extensions for Firefox. I have been using Better Gmail and Better Reader for some time, and now they have a new one, Better YouTube! If you are an extensions geek like me you will love this. Or, better yet, if you are not, and don't feel like experimenting with a bunch of precarious Greasemonkey scripts, then this is even more for you. Lifehacker has collected a bunch of YouTube-themed Greasemonkey scripts into one package: install it, restart Firefox and you are good to go. Mess with your settings in the Tools column. Do things such as hiding comments, disabling auto-play, and enabling download. Good stuff.

Go on! Fracture! Split! Die!! The party of mindless unity has become the party of spoiled empty idealogues. Really the only crucial difference between McCain and the "party line" is that he doesn't want to crucify immigrants, endorse torture, and whore out our government. But apparently to everyones favorite pundits of evil, this is venom! It is wonderful to see the Republicans, drunk with power, eating themselves alive.

Now, if only today goes as I hope it will!

OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGPLZPLZPLZPLZOMGOMGOMG

This is really just such a frightening video in so many ways:

Yeah, in case you were wondering, I'm sitting here in my apartment alone, watching the Super Bowl and drinking girly drinks, which is why I've been storm-blogging. That probably makes me kind of lame, but you know what makes been even lamer? I'm about to start bitching about the Super Bowl, blog-style.

Well, the game is actually pretty good. But we are currently at half-time, where we have yet another aging rocker performing hits from 20+ years ago. Weak. I mean, I like Tom Petty ok, and I guess it's still an upgrade from the Up With People Super Bowl Halftimes, but I mean, can we have something current please?

Well, this Super Bowl's solution was to get a whole mess of youngsters, from God knows where, to rush the stage - as if the normal, unhot audience weren't barricaded from the field - and dance funkily as if they had any idea who Tom Petty were, aside from the guy who sings Freefalling while they chug rancid Labatts from a beer bong in their frat houses. Ok, I'm getting dark, but it was pretty annoying when they showed a close up of MTVers who were apparently supposed to be singing along, but they obviously didn't know the words.

Well, the game is back on. I'll resume casually watching the Super Bowl, lazily practicing horn, attempting to fix my BlackBerry, drinking Vodka and cranberry juice, and possibly pausing to write more sassy blogs.

Two controversial issues tackled by the British government that pretty much run the gamut regarding personal freedom/responsibility:

The first, which I think is pretty ridiculous, is about the "obesity crisis". Apparently, obesity is no longer an individuals' fault, officially.

The second, which I agree with, is about polygamy. While I can easily see how many people might consider polygamy to be pretty messed up, I don't think it is the government's business. I like that they are taking a step in a more sensible direction, but I fear it is more a product of reactionary cultural relativism than respect for freedom and alternative lifestyles.

In case you were wondering about the, ya know, breadth of political and social insight of the people behind the Yes We Can video, here are will.i.am and Jesse Dylan (Bob Dylan's son! wtf?) discussing the song:



Now will.i.am seems like a nice guy (I actually dug Behind the Front) and Jesse Dylan seems harmless enough, be these guys hardly have substantial knowledge about the political realm.

Here is my favorite quote:

Alisha Davis: So, what are some of the changes you wanna see right now?

will.i.am: (pause) Education. (pause) America's finance, you know, getting our dollar back up to where it should be.

Jesse Dylan: Stopping the war. (smiles and looks around slyly)

will.i.am: Stopping the war. Um... Health. Um... International policies. Ya know, good things?

Alisha Davis: Good things, we can support that.

So, yeah, not the brightest bunch. But you know what? It's ok. They're artists. The video is moving and inspiring on a purely emotional level. People respond to that. Sometimes it takes emotional impact for people to get off of their asses for a cause.
The I Have A Dream speech is really a poem; there is not much in terms of policy that King was speaking of, but it is a work of art, and I think that it helped to inspire the civil rights movement.

But of course, the cynic in me still thinks the video is bullshit. It still seems like it is more of a way to help launch Scarlett Johannson's debut album, or revive Tatyana Ali's career. And why do I find Kate Walsh so immensely unlikable??

Ok, this post is now both digressing and becoming bitchy. My point is that it is hard to look at a bunch of sexy millionaires, who have varying degrees of talent in areas other than government, and see it as anything but something directed towards children. To me it's no different than putting Michael Jordan on the Wheaties box.

What does Michael Jordan have to do with Wheaties?

Nothing, eat the fucking cereal.

Ok. I live in New York City. This means that I am accustomed to noise, a good amount of it. It is routine for me to hear:

MTA Buses

Police and Ambulance Sirens

Banda and Reggaeton with deep bass

The loudspeaker Azan a block away

Big cargo trucks which for some reason are allowed to drive down my Avenue

A Italian tenor with a vibrato so wide you could drive one of those cargo trucks through

The people upstairs who mysteriously begin moving furniture every evening at midnight

An air raid siren that inexplicably will go off in the distance, leaving me casually wondering if I am about to be vaporized by a hydrogen bomb

The car alarms of seemingly abandoned gypsy cabs.

Unabandoned gypsy cabs that will honk their horns to pick up a rider no matter the time of day (or night)

A crazy lady outside my window who literally shrieks at the top of her lungs to her children in Arabic


But the newest, and most inexplicable, is the new Cowbell Virtuoso.

This is a human, I think, who will bang on a cowbell at more or less a steady tempo for hours at a time. I've thought that maybe it was a child or baby, but the tempo is too steady. It sounds somewhat disciplined (not that it is in any way impressive), and completely in earnest. It is always absent any apparent accompaniment or instrument and never seams to be reactive. It also sounds as if it is being played by a proper drum stick, which only supports my theory that the player is taking it very seriously.

I can't really get angry. I mean, I play the french-fucking-horn and am often screaming at the top of my lungs, in falsetto, one sentence that repeats throughout a melody. So I am trying to live with my new friend, the Cowbell Virtuoso.

Perhaps at a gig in the near future I'll hear a familiar "plonk" behind me and turn to see the dutiful artist feasting on the sonic fruits emanating from his/her/its hollow metal Stradivari. Then I'll walk over, extend my hand and say:

"Give me that! No more for you! Bad Cowbell Virtuoso Bad! Keeping me awake with your 'plonks' all the damn day. Bad Cowbell Virtuoso!!"

What do you think?

Inspiring message of hope uniquely expressed by some of the leading musical artists of our time?

or

Self-aggrandizing ego queens so in love with themselves being on camera that they'll perform a politician's propaganda as a song accompanied by oddly transcendent facial expressions in the hope that you'll briefly ascend to their exalted level of social consciousness and pick their preferred candidate for the Democratic nomination?

I think I'm somewhere in the middle.

Or perhaps I'm both.

Ok, so on the day of the massive suicide bombing in Baghdad, what, pray tell, is the leading headline on CNN.com?

Source: Arrest sought again in Holloway case

Hey, remember that one girl who died that one time, like almost 3 years ago? Yeah, that's more important than the nearly 100 that died today, by a pair of women with down syndrome.

From The Adventures of Mark Twain. This cartoon bewildered me as a child:


Werner Herzog discussing filming in the jungle for Fitzcarraldo. Money quote:
"Taking a close look at what's around us, there is some sort of harmony; it is the harmony of overwhelming and collective murder."


And if you have any doubts as to whether turntables can be an instrument, check out DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist live: