Sunny Choi - "Not Like The Movies"
(via Katy Perry)
Monday, February 28, 2011
The Night Of the Spotlight
The reviews of last night’s Academy Awards are in, and thus far James Franco is receiving a rousing thumbs down for a lackluster performance as co-host. It began on a high note – a clever pre-filmed opening of James and co-host Anne Hathaway interacting within well-produced sequences of scenes from each of the nominated Best Pictures. Nice work from all involved.
As the evening went on, however, Anne was left to do the heavy-lifting as James appeared to mentally check out, preferring to tweet rather than greet. Aside from that portion of Hollywood’s Biggest Night, I came away with a genuine, positive impression of Anne Hathaway’s talents, freshness - not to ignore how she rocked every gown she wore throughout the event…beginning with her Red Carpet from-the-Valentino-archives reddish-burgundy gown that, in my opinion, was the sharpest of them all.
A fairly sophisticated group of film devotee’s mingling with industry veterans at the party where I spent Oscar night were also pleasantly impressed with the show on a visual level, as well as Hathaway’s gowns and energy. Also of note is that in this mildly jaded crowd, no one complained for a change on the always lengthy pace of the show. The producers knew how to provide the audience with a grand distraction with that sweepingly gorgeous set. In fact, my only complaint re: the beautiful visual element is that we were so enthralled as to comment on it quite often, making it difficult to hear what was being said on the show.
Beyond the fashion and hosting critique (which I’ll leave to the pros to explore), I give the program’s set design an early Emmy.
As the evening went on, however, Anne was left to do the heavy-lifting as James appeared to mentally check out, preferring to tweet rather than greet. Aside from that portion of Hollywood’s Biggest Night, I came away with a genuine, positive impression of Anne Hathaway’s talents, freshness - not to ignore how she rocked every gown she wore throughout the event…beginning with her Red Carpet from-the-Valentino-archives reddish-burgundy gown that, in my opinion, was the sharpest of them all.
A fairly sophisticated group of film devotee’s mingling with industry veterans at the party where I spent Oscar night were also pleasantly impressed with the show on a visual level, as well as Hathaway’s gowns and energy. Also of note is that in this mildly jaded crowd, no one complained for a change on the always lengthy pace of the show. The producers knew how to provide the audience with a grand distraction with that sweepingly gorgeous set. In fact, my only complaint re: the beautiful visual element is that we were so enthralled as to comment on it quite often, making it difficult to hear what was being said on the show.
Beyond the fashion and hosting critique (which I’ll leave to the pros to explore), I give the program’s set design an early Emmy.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Checking In
No flogs today.... Must get ready for the Big Night. Does anyone think Annette Bening might win Best Actress rather than Natalie Portman?
Oh, and does anyone think Mr. Gaddafi and Charlie Sheen could use a few thousand "chill" pills about now?
Will be back sooner than later......
Oh, and does anyone think Mr. Gaddafi and Charlie Sheen could use a few thousand "chill" pills about now?
Will be back sooner than later......
Saturday, February 26, 2011
No Rain On the Charade
The sun is shining bright over Los Angeles today after a storm of snow and rain last night/early morning shocked the living Hey-Suse out of Californians who still don’t know how to drive in the rain (or snow). Thank heavens the forecast for Sunday is clear and sunny. The Academy Awards' red carpet must remain dry and warm for those who endure the annual ritual of screaming fans, annoying reporters and interviewers who gush over stars wearing some of the most atrocious fashion mistakes one can imagine, and hours of chilly boredom in a large space where the a/c is ramped so high it is always a mystery to me why most of the female participants don’t end up in the hospital with pneumonia the following day.
What a night it will be! I can’t wait, I tell you, for the comedic duo of James Franco and Anne Hathaway to bring down the house with whatever clever words are tossed into the teleprompter for both to read with that snappy spark of snark one always expects from the hosts. Forget Steve Martin or Billy Crystal (who?) and others who know how to work a room filled with the most self-conscious and self-absorbed audience one can find outside the U.S. Congress. It’s a tough job and someone has to do it, so why not hire two actors best known for their whimsy and sharp wit? Thank Gawd I’ll be at a party where I may wander at leisure away from the large screen and spend half the night at the buffet.
For those who don’t watch the glitzy event because you are either saving lives somewhere in the world or simply find the entire glamour parade charade a bit shallow, I’ll be happy to provide a few choice observations for your vicarious pleasure on Monday after I wash the blur out of my eyes from what I expect will be a fairly un-eventful series of awards. Should Natalie Portman NOT win Best Actress, or Colin Firth NOT win Best Actor, or The King’s Speech NOT win Best Picture, you can bet half of Hollywood will be all abuzz over how shocking such snubberies had been to those who have been reaping all of the industry’s statues at other award shows this season.
Imagine being told by everyone that you are a “shoe-in” and then NOT winning? Such a buzz kill has to hurt (or anger, witness Bill Murray’s and Eddie Murphy’s sour responses to their losses over the years. Murray walked out….) The saddest loss I have observed was when Lauren Bacall was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in 1996 for her work in The Mirror Has Two Faces. The hype everywhere from everyone in and out of the industry was that the golden naked guy would end up in Lauren’s well-deserved hands after “all these years.” After all, she had won at the Golden Globes. But no, the Academy gave the Oscar to someone else…and the dejected expression that fell on Lauren’s still lovely face as the camera held its place on each nominee remains in my memory. No camera could shut off fast enough to spare us her utter shock.
As the Academy usually does after slapping down one of their finest, Ms. Bacall received an Honorary Academy Award in 2009. Well thank you all in the Academy for that gesture! And thank you, “Betty” (as she is called) for being gracious enough to accept it (although it was not televised). I almost put my lips together to whistle in celebration. (Not exact quote.)
Oh, I wrote too soon. A cloud is now passing over the once clear LA sky. Mother Nature is such a tease, isn’t she? Oh well, as I often write, tomorrow is another day and just as it is every year for the Rose Parade, I guarantee by red carpet time tomorrow the sky will be clear and full of good cheer.
What a night it will be! I can’t wait, I tell you, for the comedic duo of James Franco and Anne Hathaway to bring down the house with whatever clever words are tossed into the teleprompter for both to read with that snappy spark of snark one always expects from the hosts. Forget Steve Martin or Billy Crystal (who?) and others who know how to work a room filled with the most self-conscious and self-absorbed audience one can find outside the U.S. Congress. It’s a tough job and someone has to do it, so why not hire two actors best known for their whimsy and sharp wit? Thank Gawd I’ll be at a party where I may wander at leisure away from the large screen and spend half the night at the buffet.
For those who don’t watch the glitzy event because you are either saving lives somewhere in the world or simply find the entire glamour parade charade a bit shallow, I’ll be happy to provide a few choice observations for your vicarious pleasure on Monday after I wash the blur out of my eyes from what I expect will be a fairly un-eventful series of awards. Should Natalie Portman NOT win Best Actress, or Colin Firth NOT win Best Actor, or The King’s Speech NOT win Best Picture, you can bet half of Hollywood will be all abuzz over how shocking such snubberies had been to those who have been reaping all of the industry’s statues at other award shows this season.
Imagine being told by everyone that you are a “shoe-in” and then NOT winning? Such a buzz kill has to hurt (or anger, witness Bill Murray’s and Eddie Murphy’s sour responses to their losses over the years. Murray walked out….) The saddest loss I have observed was when Lauren Bacall was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in 1996 for her work in The Mirror Has Two Faces. The hype everywhere from everyone in and out of the industry was that the golden naked guy would end up in Lauren’s well-deserved hands after “all these years.” After all, she had won at the Golden Globes. But no, the Academy gave the Oscar to someone else…and the dejected expression that fell on Lauren’s still lovely face as the camera held its place on each nominee remains in my memory. No camera could shut off fast enough to spare us her utter shock.
As the Academy usually does after slapping down one of their finest, Ms. Bacall received an Honorary Academy Award in 2009. Well thank you all in the Academy for that gesture! And thank you, “Betty” (as she is called) for being gracious enough to accept it (although it was not televised). I almost put my lips together to whistle in celebration. (Not exact quote.)
Oh, I wrote too soon. A cloud is now passing over the once clear LA sky. Mother Nature is such a tease, isn’t she? Oh well, as I often write, tomorrow is another day and just as it is every year for the Rose Parade, I guarantee by red carpet time tomorrow the sky will be clear and full of good cheer.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Weekly-Eeeks
Another week. Another tweak in our collective consciousness. Hell did freeze over: Former Secretary of Defense/Offense/No-Repentance, Donald Rumsfeld, appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on Wednesday night. Amazing.
Let’s pause for a moment: Rumsfeld is such a chump as to go on any program that will have him because: a) He has written a book and apparently needs the money. b) Has money, but wants all of the world to think of him as a stand-up kind of guy because all wagging fingers have been pointing to him for the debacle of the Iraq war and the decline of Western Civilization. c) Is crazy. d) Knows no shame. e) Is one of those guys who hires someone to beat the crap out of him. f) All of the above. g) Just so I could write about him.
Libya’s clearly unhinged/deranged Muammar al-Gaddafi continued to accuse that nation’s protesters of being under the influence of hallucinogenic drugs while his military maintains an aggressive, violent attack against them. The drug accusation in this situation is the other way around, as any reasonably sane person can surmise if they watched/listened to Gaddafi’s one hour-long rambling speech the other day, as well as increasingly ludicrous behaviour during a telephone interview where he flitted from subject to subject, ultimately ending with a failed attempt to properly hang up his phone. Let’s not forget that for years the dictator has seemed more than a tad askew.
Have you ever glanced at a picture of him wearing those strange little hats with his bushy hair flopping out on both sides of his head? He resembles a middle-aged transsexual who forgot to put on her makeup to go shopping. At least that’s what his mirror tries to tell him, I betcha.
Wasn’t it a hoot to listen to the conversation Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker had with the faux David Koch this week? Talk about getting “punk’d”! One could almost hear Walker jiggling in his desk chair for the honor of talking with one of his largest benefactors. In fact, Walker kept on talking and talking – to his ultimate embarrassment when the prank-punk was revealed.
Similar to how a cat pretends not to have made a mistake by nonchalantly licking their paws and producing a “I didn’t knock over the vase – it just fell on its own” look, Governor Walker rushed out to the microphones to tell everyone he didn’t say anything that he hadn’t said in public…except considering the insertion of “troublemakers” into the thus-far peaceful protests – you know, little devious plans like that.
While Wisconsin continued to whirl in the collective bargaining quagmire, other states and their legislators found themselves defending their own anti-public employee bargaining stances. The best quote of the week was inspired by Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels’ remark that public employee unions were the “privileged elite.” In response, the ever clever Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report commented, "Those freeloaders with their cushy state jobs - like snow plow operators, prison guards, and teachers. Oh, they’re always driving around, lording their ’93 Nissan Sentras over everybody."
Jennifer Lopez gave American Idol viewers a true show when she crumbled into what appeared to be a pre-menstrual breakdown of saline-based waterworks when a contestant with a wheelchair-bound girlfriend was told he had to go home. Perhaps Jennifer just wanted to go home when she finally awoke to see what’s happened to her career?
“The Grey Carpet” post said all I care to write about dearest Lindsay Lohan’s court appearance, thus we’ll move on……
And then there’s Charlie-without-his-Sheen making bad news again in two quite angry interviews yesterday that finally caused CBS executives to cash in their chips on this season’s production of Two and a Half Men – which was a rather smart decision considering how the “Home Rehab” has gone not-so-well for the guy. Or maybe he has finally “come clean” in his private detox which might explain his rants. Withdrawal vitriol? Now what’s he going to do for an encore? Turn his home into a mini-Playboy Mansion? That’s an idea he has considered – albeit in a different home than his where he would stash his cash with a rainbow collection of porn stars and strippers. Meh, a Hugh Hefner he’ll never be. And to think Hef was once considered to be the ultimate King of Decadence.
That’s it for the moment. If I don’t publish this post now, I’ll never have an end to a partial rundown of the week’s low-lights as something new transpires almost every hour to cause shock, horror and nervous laughter.
Chow – for now.
Let’s pause for a moment: Rumsfeld is such a chump as to go on any program that will have him because: a) He has written a book and apparently needs the money. b) Has money, but wants all of the world to think of him as a stand-up kind of guy because all wagging fingers have been pointing to him for the debacle of the Iraq war and the decline of Western Civilization. c) Is crazy. d) Knows no shame. e) Is one of those guys who hires someone to beat the crap out of him. f) All of the above. g) Just so I could write about him.
Libya’s clearly unhinged/deranged Muammar al-Gaddafi continued to accuse that nation’s protesters of being under the influence of hallucinogenic drugs while his military maintains an aggressive, violent attack against them. The drug accusation in this situation is the other way around, as any reasonably sane person can surmise if they watched/listened to Gaddafi’s one hour-long rambling speech the other day, as well as increasingly ludicrous behaviour during a telephone interview where he flitted from subject to subject, ultimately ending with a failed attempt to properly hang up his phone. Let’s not forget that for years the dictator has seemed more than a tad askew.
Have you ever glanced at a picture of him wearing those strange little hats with his bushy hair flopping out on both sides of his head? He resembles a middle-aged transsexual who forgot to put on her makeup to go shopping. At least that’s what his mirror tries to tell him, I betcha.
Wasn’t it a hoot to listen to the conversation Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker had with the faux David Koch this week? Talk about getting “punk’d”! One could almost hear Walker jiggling in his desk chair for the honor of talking with one of his largest benefactors. In fact, Walker kept on talking and talking – to his ultimate embarrassment when the prank-punk was revealed.
Similar to how a cat pretends not to have made a mistake by nonchalantly licking their paws and producing a “I didn’t knock over the vase – it just fell on its own” look, Governor Walker rushed out to the microphones to tell everyone he didn’t say anything that he hadn’t said in public…except considering the insertion of “troublemakers” into the thus-far peaceful protests – you know, little devious plans like that.
While Wisconsin continued to whirl in the collective bargaining quagmire, other states and their legislators found themselves defending their own anti-public employee bargaining stances. The best quote of the week was inspired by Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels’ remark that public employee unions were the “privileged elite.” In response, the ever clever Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report commented, "Those freeloaders with their cushy state jobs - like snow plow operators, prison guards, and teachers. Oh, they’re always driving around, lording their ’93 Nissan Sentras over everybody."
Jennifer Lopez gave American Idol viewers a true show when she crumbled into what appeared to be a pre-menstrual breakdown of saline-based waterworks when a contestant with a wheelchair-bound girlfriend was told he had to go home. Perhaps Jennifer just wanted to go home when she finally awoke to see what’s happened to her career?
“The Grey Carpet” post said all I care to write about dearest Lindsay Lohan’s court appearance, thus we’ll move on……
And then there’s Charlie-without-his-Sheen making bad news again in two quite angry interviews yesterday that finally caused CBS executives to cash in their chips on this season’s production of Two and a Half Men – which was a rather smart decision considering how the “Home Rehab” has gone not-so-well for the guy. Or maybe he has finally “come clean” in his private detox which might explain his rants. Withdrawal vitriol? Now what’s he going to do for an encore? Turn his home into a mini-Playboy Mansion? That’s an idea he has considered – albeit in a different home than his where he would stash his cash with a rainbow collection of porn stars and strippers. Meh, a Hugh Hefner he’ll never be. And to think Hef was once considered to be the ultimate King of Decadence.
That’s it for the moment. If I don’t publish this post now, I’ll never have an end to a partial rundown of the week’s low-lights as something new transpires almost every hour to cause shock, horror and nervous laughter.
Chow – for now.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Feeling Antsy
I really want to flog what's happening in the U.S. regarding the GOP attack on women's rights and everyone else's rights who do not agree with the GOP, but I'm in a battle with a very large ant that seems to live inside my laptop and enjoys wandering all over my screen. I don't have the heart to kill it, and I have not yet been able to get the dasterdly nemesis on a sheet of paper to send to the outside world where it could climb all over everything else, thus I'm utterly flummoxed and unable to concentrate.....
Per chance the ant would like a bit of music before I eventually trap and send it out to find its way in the tangled web we've woven/weaved/cleaved-to in the big bad world of trees and bees?
Not kidding... The size of this particular ant brings about a cause for pause in what on earth is going on in the California ant-most-feared toxic atmosphere. (You "saw" that coming. didn't you?) You may also note that this was posted "just" after midnight PST. I may be awake most of the night in a fight for my part of the bed tonight.
Eeek!
(Pssst. Despite a seeming lack of comments on this blog, there are many elsewhere - and I'm aware that Blogspot has an issue with the "Comments" function. Thanks to those who try to post here.)
Per chance the ant would like a bit of music before I eventually trap and send it out to find its way in the tangled web we've woven/weaved/cleaved-to in the big bad world of trees and bees?
Not kidding... The size of this particular ant brings about a cause for pause in what on earth is going on in the California ant-most-feared toxic atmosphere. (You "saw" that coming. didn't you?) You may also note that this was posted "just" after midnight PST. I may be awake most of the night in a fight for my part of the bed tonight.
Eeek!
(Pssst. Despite a seeming lack of comments on this blog, there are many elsewhere - and I'm aware that Blogspot has an issue with the "Comments" function. Thanks to those who try to post here.)
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
The Grey Carpet
Walking the grey carpet of justice is a new spectacle in Hollywood of late. Paris Hilton gave the press her best “I’m no longer a perp” walk several years ago when she was released from the Los Angeles County Jail, and now we’ve had a series of Lindsay Lohan court arrivals surrounded by a yellow-tinged roped-off cement walkway with paparazzi packed behind the flimsy barrier to get the best shot of what the “troubled” starlet (or whatever she is considered to be these days) is wearing on her unusually puffy lips and body. Last time we saw our Lindsay-girl in court she was wearing a tight crew-neck white mini dress. Today she tossed the cleavage cover-up aside in exchange for a black top dipping low enough in the front for her two chesty friends to wave hello to the judge. If not for her current legal ailments, I’d suggest she be arrested by the fashion police.
TDFB is waiting for the outcome of Ms. Woe-Is-Me’s preliminary hearing re: her alleged necklace shop-lifting. After all, it’s not as if there is other news of import to impart. Not much going on other than a bloodbath in Libya and more U.S. states joining Wisconsin in Democratic walk-outs to send a message to their GOP-led counterparts that things aren’t coming up roses when it gets down to voting on issues where no compromise is allowed.
Updates forthcoming……
And here it is -
Nothing happened, really. A plea deal will still send her to jail, sayeth the judge. OR, she can have a trial. Next court date? March 10. She sez she won't cop a plea - for a change. I mean, all she seems to do is plead for attention. A trial?
Well now, that would be lovely. Does she realize that most of the people who would be on a jury live in reality - not on cloud of delusion? And, who in the world could be considered a "jury of her peers"? Imagine that lineup. I won't provide an example. You can have a few mindless minutes arranging that group in your imaginations/nightmares before moving on to what she'll wear on March 10.
That's all that matters, isn't it?
TDFB is waiting for the outcome of Ms. Woe-Is-Me’s preliminary hearing re: her alleged necklace shop-lifting. After all, it’s not as if there is other news of import to impart. Not much going on other than a bloodbath in Libya and more U.S. states joining Wisconsin in Democratic walk-outs to send a message to their GOP-led counterparts that things aren’t coming up roses when it gets down to voting on issues where no compromise is allowed.
Updates forthcoming……
And here it is -
Nothing happened, really. A plea deal will still send her to jail, sayeth the judge. OR, she can have a trial. Next court date? March 10. She sez she won't cop a plea - for a change. I mean, all she seems to do is plead for attention. A trial?
Well now, that would be lovely. Does she realize that most of the people who would be on a jury live in reality - not on cloud of delusion? And, who in the world could be considered a "jury of her peers"? Imagine that lineup. I won't provide an example. You can have a few mindless minutes arranging that group in your imaginations/nightmares before moving on to what she'll wear on March 10.
That's all that matters, isn't it?
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Kochy-Coup?
I am not an expert on the Koch brothers, but I have learned enough about them to realize why the US of A is growing into a cesspool of anti-union, anti-health care, anti-anything-progressive (or, shall I simply write “fair and decent”). The 3rd and 4th richest men in the U.S. are the Koch brothers; Charles and David respectively. Their father created Koch Industries, which deals in all things oil, ranching, mining. Did I just hear a cash cow chewing the cud of what else may lay under that huge rug? Yep. Delving deeper, one finds that their father was among the founders and financial backers of the infamous John Birch Society – which may explain what runs in their seemingly well-oiled veins.
Why are we now hearing about these guys? Unless you’ve turned off the TV and tossed out the newspaper for scrap, you have already heard about Supreme Court Justice Thomas’s lovely 4 day “stop-in” at a Koch retreat in Palm Springs 3 years ago where our mysteriously silent Justice quietly participated in what is known in “those” circles as a place where heavy-duty influential and wealthy conservatives get together and plot the overthrow of the American government. Ooops, I mean where they plot to retain their control over the American government so that Democrats and others of that ilk won’t overthrow their version of the government. Something like that. I’m just kidding, of course. Heh heh? I haven’t been invited so I really don’t know what actually transpires....
Perhaps another way to view the Koch’s cushy retreats would be to think of it as a Club Med for lots of white guys in suits who share a secret handshake and attend various fun-filled functions such as Power Point presentations on how to rule the world.
The brothers and/or their various corporate havens reportedly funded Wisconsin’s anti-union Governor’s run for office. Hmmmmmmm. Do ya' think someone has a big stake in the outcome of Wisconsin’s uprising? Could the influence of those men be why Gov. Walker has tried to ram his anti public employees’ union’s negotiating rights through the state legislature in such an un-democratic way?
In addition to owning much of America’s oil and land, the brothers own the Georgia Pacific logging company. They founded the Cato Institute, a conservative marketing firm that has been accused of being a front for a think tank. Other accusations abound regarding their funding activities – all of which smell like a conspiracy novel written in the wee hours of a stormy night with lightning strikes and thunder roaring in the background.
If any of the perceived secret involvements in the country’s political and business concerns is true, then what we have here, my friends, is a name for two participants in the New World Order/aka The Powers That Be/aka The Industrial Complex/aka the Big Bad Guys who would never run for office but prefer to be the puppeteers rather than the wee little puppets. Here are the true leaders in our country because they buy and pay for those who have the power to make decisions that will benefit whatever deals have been struck over time to keep the gap between the wealthy and the poor ever-widening into what may eventually become a U.S. revolt against the stifling of democracy. Does any of this sound familiar?
OMG! I’m sounding like a conspiracy person. However, the latest domestic area of discontent is Ohio, and it is suggested by numerous people that the Koch brothers’ long veiny arms are behind the problems there.
Stay tuned…… It's only just begun - yet again.
Why are we now hearing about these guys? Unless you’ve turned off the TV and tossed out the newspaper for scrap, you have already heard about Supreme Court Justice Thomas’s lovely 4 day “stop-in” at a Koch retreat in Palm Springs 3 years ago where our mysteriously silent Justice quietly participated in what is known in “those” circles as a place where heavy-duty influential and wealthy conservatives get together and plot the overthrow of the American government. Ooops, I mean where they plot to retain their control over the American government so that Democrats and others of that ilk won’t overthrow their version of the government. Something like that. I’m just kidding, of course. Heh heh? I haven’t been invited so I really don’t know what actually transpires....
Perhaps another way to view the Koch’s cushy retreats would be to think of it as a Club Med for lots of white guys in suits who share a secret handshake and attend various fun-filled functions such as Power Point presentations on how to rule the world.
The brothers and/or their various corporate havens reportedly funded Wisconsin’s anti-union Governor’s run for office. Hmmmmmmm. Do ya' think someone has a big stake in the outcome of Wisconsin’s uprising? Could the influence of those men be why Gov. Walker has tried to ram his anti public employees’ union’s negotiating rights through the state legislature in such an un-democratic way?
In addition to owning much of America’s oil and land, the brothers own the Georgia Pacific logging company. They founded the Cato Institute, a conservative marketing firm that has been accused of being a front for a think tank. Other accusations abound regarding their funding activities – all of which smell like a conspiracy novel written in the wee hours of a stormy night with lightning strikes and thunder roaring in the background.
If any of the perceived secret involvements in the country’s political and business concerns is true, then what we have here, my friends, is a name for two participants in the New World Order/aka The Powers That Be/aka The Industrial Complex/aka the Big Bad Guys who would never run for office but prefer to be the puppeteers rather than the wee little puppets. Here are the true leaders in our country because they buy and pay for those who have the power to make decisions that will benefit whatever deals have been struck over time to keep the gap between the wealthy and the poor ever-widening into what may eventually become a U.S. revolt against the stifling of democracy. Does any of this sound familiar?
OMG! I’m sounding like a conspiracy person. However, the latest domestic area of discontent is Ohio, and it is suggested by numerous people that the Koch brothers’ long veiny arms are behind the problems there.
Stay tuned…… It's only just begun - yet again.
Monday, February 21, 2011
A Little Peck At Beck
The world is counting down to one serious struggle for equality and freedom after another, isn’t it? Every day for over a month a new protest from a new country begins, continues, simmers, which means the changes ahead are bigger than anyone imagined. Yes Glenn Beckers, even in your fevered attempts to frighten the Bee-Hay-Suse out of your viewers regarding a Middle East “Caliphate” because, to you, freedom shouldn’t belong to those strangers over there with funny-sounding names and squiggly writing - nope, not even the almighty You could have predicted how quickly the icy dice would roll over the region.
Just to be additionally annoying to you, Mr. Clown, do you think nearby states will soon join with Wisconsin in a “Caliphate” of the Midwest? Why not predict dire-grim-horrific visions of what would happen if a substantial block of our country decided to stand up for their rights in loud rants? Will you give your viewers the bug-eye of doom and begin to quiver in the shivering thought of a country willing and ready to be as bold as those thug-like teachers and Democratic legislators have been in Wisconsin through their refusal to accept an already rigged political scheme? Oh dear, Mr. Beckless, do warn us that the sky is indeed falling if Wisconsin is calling foul on their Governor’s state of ill-repair due to a dubious bill that is unfair.
And Beckers, next time you wish to send chills down your audience's spine, try not to suggest there could be a “Caliphate” brewing in the U.S. Midwest lest your audience will decide to move to Connecticut where it’s safe. If you live there, Mr. Beck, then surely your direct cable line to God will save your flock from the horrors of democracy in action.
However, you do work in Manhattan: therefore, be clear to your followers not to stalk/seek you in that brazen hell after you have completed your almost daily horror-shows. (Unless it snows really hard in Manhattan again and no one can drive down a street because snow ploughs aren’t running on time - or something quite suspicious and askew is to blame other than a slow-footed mayor and a testy transportation force not to be reckoned with when they’re feeling pissy.)
Yep. I’m on the Becker’s case today. He can handle it. He did look straight into the TV camera over a week ago and told people like me that we can “Go to hell” – so, after ruminating on his version of what I label a “Fock-Wah” on a large part of the U.S. population, I decided to let him take the blame for all the hell that is breaking loose all of a sudden.
Apparently most of the stubborn leaders in the Middle East and an equally bombastic Governor in Wisconsin are living in some kind of hell, which, of course, must be the work of Beck because he cursed lots of people and right now you could connect those hellish dots right back to the rancid energy of Beck’s vision of hell = democracy is bad when it’s not in his ‘hood.
Just to be additionally annoying to you, Mr. Clown, do you think nearby states will soon join with Wisconsin in a “Caliphate” of the Midwest? Why not predict dire-grim-horrific visions of what would happen if a substantial block of our country decided to stand up for their rights in loud rants? Will you give your viewers the bug-eye of doom and begin to quiver in the shivering thought of a country willing and ready to be as bold as those thug-like teachers and Democratic legislators have been in Wisconsin through their refusal to accept an already rigged political scheme? Oh dear, Mr. Beckless, do warn us that the sky is indeed falling if Wisconsin is calling foul on their Governor’s state of ill-repair due to a dubious bill that is unfair.
And Beckers, next time you wish to send chills down your audience's spine, try not to suggest there could be a “Caliphate” brewing in the U.S. Midwest lest your audience will decide to move to Connecticut where it’s safe. If you live there, Mr. Beck, then surely your direct cable line to God will save your flock from the horrors of democracy in action.
However, you do work in Manhattan: therefore, be clear to your followers not to stalk/seek you in that brazen hell after you have completed your almost daily horror-shows. (Unless it snows really hard in Manhattan again and no one can drive down a street because snow ploughs aren’t running on time - or something quite suspicious and askew is to blame other than a slow-footed mayor and a testy transportation force not to be reckoned with when they’re feeling pissy.)
Yep. I’m on the Becker’s case today. He can handle it. He did look straight into the TV camera over a week ago and told people like me that we can “Go to hell” – so, after ruminating on his version of what I label a “Fock-Wah” on a large part of the U.S. population, I decided to let him take the blame for all the hell that is breaking loose all of a sudden.
Apparently most of the stubborn leaders in the Middle East and an equally bombastic Governor in Wisconsin are living in some kind of hell, which, of course, must be the work of Beck because he cursed lots of people and right now you could connect those hellish dots right back to the rancid energy of Beck’s vision of hell = democracy is bad when it’s not in his ‘hood.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Planned Political Errant-Hood
In what era do we live in the U.S.? Where did these dense reactionary leaders now in a tea bag or hanging by a tea bag’s string, come from? A hole in a cracked wall of social malfeasance? It is utterly stupefying to learn of the current fiscal attack against Planned Parenthood, of all programs! Let’s also beat down the poor and middle class uninsured - while we’re at it - by taking away programs for their health and welfare in repealing the health care law - and by all means, let’s shut down the government and deprive the most vulnerable among us of their Social Security checks because there is strong disagreement in Washington over how to deal with the deficit.
If Republicans think a government shutdown is the way to gain funds and influence 2012 political runs, then go ahead. Do it. Let your elderly or disabled relatives suffer for your immaturity. Nothing came of the 1995 federal shutdown other than a bored sexually overheated president having more than one slice of delivered pizza from an intern.
Shutting down a government is one great way to ensure additional angst among those who do not have any other form of income. What a fabulous way to help the economy. Those who live check-to-check will either default on monthly payments from lack of funds, or raise their credit card debt to pay the rent and buy groceries, or, further drain what may be left of their savings. Sure. After a government shutdown is resolved, all monies owed by the federal gov’t are paid - retroactively. That’s quite a large sum to bleed out, isn’t it, with millions of Americans to be reimbursed?
Meanwhile, the potential emotional and fiscal impact on those who have been hurt the most could create more problems – and who wins in the end? Big corporations. One winner would be banks that would charge late fees for unpaid balances. And we can’t ignore the impact on home owners who are already teetering on the foreclosure cliff. The financial sector only needs to send another chill wind gust their way and – voila – the house is tumbling into Big Bank’s abyss.
The timing couldn’t be better for taking money out of people’s pockets and handing it over to those who really aren’t starving, right? What a grand idea! While at it, let’s follow Wisconsin's Governor Walter’s lead by taking a state economy’s near finish-line win to fiscal stability and throw it at big business, then propose a bill to dump unions from their lawful negotiating power citing a budget problem as the reason. Hah!
In simple language, what the hell is going on with an apparent attack from the Right on almost everyone’s turf except Big Business, CEO’s, and other basic millionaires under the guise of “cutting spending.” Can I cut your salary, Mr. Speaker? How about your health care? Do you have any pre-existing conditions other than over-active tear ducts? If so, in the future, you better be ready to wait for hours at the nearby free clinic for your health care…. Hey, buddy, read MY lips: “So be it.”
Oh, wait. By the time the GOP legislators across the country have their way, most free clinics will be so overcrowded, overwhelmed, etc., that a crisis worse than a flu pandemic will become the latest platform for protest…if anyone is healthy enough to hold a sign and stand outside in any weather – hot or cold – to use their increasingly croaking voices to beg for fairness and basic humanity. I firmly believe that most of these so-called leaders treat their household pets better than their vulnerable constituents.
Please…what are these people thinking? They aren’t thinking. It’s as simple as that pithy response. The proverbial “they” is, indeed, a combination of staunch Republicans and the fringe Tea Party. If hypocrisy with regard to health coverage and federal, local paychecks were not in play I wouldn’t be writing most of this post. How many stories have you heard about new Washington Congress-people who campaigned against Federal health care immediately requesting information concerning their own federally-funded health care within hours of taking office? I see, it’s fine for them, not okay for anyone else.
Listen, the Liberal side of any aisle is just as upset and concerned about the budget as those on the “other side.” No one is very happy these days – and, when one looks at what could be a “middle ground” between the two, it isn’t as impossible as some mouthpieces would like us to believe so that a compromise can be designed. The difference is that the Democratic party stands for ALL the people in social concerns, whereas the GOP seems to care for money and nothing more or less.
Sorry, truly, to beat this same battered drum, but the truth AND the FACTS are not in accord with what the GOP says it is with the budget. I say, if money is the primary reason for kicking wounded citizens into a ditch, where were all of these “fiscally responsible” people during the last administration that created the fiscal miasma we are now facing?
Enough talk and complaining about how much the Obama administration has spent – if you follow the facts, the government ledgers, the very size of government now compared to “then”(smaller), you will see how this country was saved from complete despair via decisions that had to be made to save jobs, thus saving our country from further danger.
May I also remind those who claim that people like me are always asking for more government programs and spending that the U.S. government sets money aside for NASCAR while punching grandma's few dollars. What's up with that? Where's the GOP cry to action in cutting that sort of pork?
Why always go after government programs that have worked for decades? Why? Because it’s always easier to pick on the “little guy” when you are a cowardly bully at heart, rather than turn to face the corporations and your golfing buddies the next time you have an opportunity to swirl a vintage cognac in a crystal glass at that tony club. Oh, and by the way, I know it’s not just men at the party. A few token women have been allowed in the room over the years – as long as they pop out a few babies and don’t tell your wife where the mistress just had her latest abortion of your seed’s secret deed.
No, Mr. Speaker, I WON’T read your lips. They are full of feathers from the innocent canary you just ate from the kid’s room while sleep-walking through the maze of your new House.
If Republicans think a government shutdown is the way to gain funds and influence 2012 political runs, then go ahead. Do it. Let your elderly or disabled relatives suffer for your immaturity. Nothing came of the 1995 federal shutdown other than a bored sexually overheated president having more than one slice of delivered pizza from an intern.
Shutting down a government is one great way to ensure additional angst among those who do not have any other form of income. What a fabulous way to help the economy. Those who live check-to-check will either default on monthly payments from lack of funds, or raise their credit card debt to pay the rent and buy groceries, or, further drain what may be left of their savings. Sure. After a government shutdown is resolved, all monies owed by the federal gov’t are paid - retroactively. That’s quite a large sum to bleed out, isn’t it, with millions of Americans to be reimbursed?
Meanwhile, the potential emotional and fiscal impact on those who have been hurt the most could create more problems – and who wins in the end? Big corporations. One winner would be banks that would charge late fees for unpaid balances. And we can’t ignore the impact on home owners who are already teetering on the foreclosure cliff. The financial sector only needs to send another chill wind gust their way and – voila – the house is tumbling into Big Bank’s abyss.
The timing couldn’t be better for taking money out of people’s pockets and handing it over to those who really aren’t starving, right? What a grand idea! While at it, let’s follow Wisconsin's Governor Walter’s lead by taking a state economy’s near finish-line win to fiscal stability and throw it at big business, then propose a bill to dump unions from their lawful negotiating power citing a budget problem as the reason. Hah!
In simple language, what the hell is going on with an apparent attack from the Right on almost everyone’s turf except Big Business, CEO’s, and other basic millionaires under the guise of “cutting spending.” Can I cut your salary, Mr. Speaker? How about your health care? Do you have any pre-existing conditions other than over-active tear ducts? If so, in the future, you better be ready to wait for hours at the nearby free clinic for your health care…. Hey, buddy, read MY lips: “So be it.”
Oh, wait. By the time the GOP legislators across the country have their way, most free clinics will be so overcrowded, overwhelmed, etc., that a crisis worse than a flu pandemic will become the latest platform for protest…if anyone is healthy enough to hold a sign and stand outside in any weather – hot or cold – to use their increasingly croaking voices to beg for fairness and basic humanity. I firmly believe that most of these so-called leaders treat their household pets better than their vulnerable constituents.
Please…what are these people thinking? They aren’t thinking. It’s as simple as that pithy response. The proverbial “they” is, indeed, a combination of staunch Republicans and the fringe Tea Party. If hypocrisy with regard to health coverage and federal, local paychecks were not in play I wouldn’t be writing most of this post. How many stories have you heard about new Washington Congress-people who campaigned against Federal health care immediately requesting information concerning their own federally-funded health care within hours of taking office? I see, it’s fine for them, not okay for anyone else.
Listen, the Liberal side of any aisle is just as upset and concerned about the budget as those on the “other side.” No one is very happy these days – and, when one looks at what could be a “middle ground” between the two, it isn’t as impossible as some mouthpieces would like us to believe so that a compromise can be designed. The difference is that the Democratic party stands for ALL the people in social concerns, whereas the GOP seems to care for money and nothing more or less.
Sorry, truly, to beat this same battered drum, but the truth AND the FACTS are not in accord with what the GOP says it is with the budget. I say, if money is the primary reason for kicking wounded citizens into a ditch, where were all of these “fiscally responsible” people during the last administration that created the fiscal miasma we are now facing?
Enough talk and complaining about how much the Obama administration has spent – if you follow the facts, the government ledgers, the very size of government now compared to “then”(smaller), you will see how this country was saved from complete despair via decisions that had to be made to save jobs, thus saving our country from further danger.
May I also remind those who claim that people like me are always asking for more government programs and spending that the U.S. government sets money aside for NASCAR while punching grandma's few dollars. What's up with that? Where's the GOP cry to action in cutting that sort of pork?
Why always go after government programs that have worked for decades? Why? Because it’s always easier to pick on the “little guy” when you are a cowardly bully at heart, rather than turn to face the corporations and your golfing buddies the next time you have an opportunity to swirl a vintage cognac in a crystal glass at that tony club. Oh, and by the way, I know it’s not just men at the party. A few token women have been allowed in the room over the years – as long as they pop out a few babies and don’t tell your wife where the mistress just had her latest abortion of your seed’s secret deed.
No, Mr. Speaker, I WON’T read your lips. They are full of feathers from the innocent canary you just ate from the kid’s room while sleep-walking through the maze of your new House.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Dopes-At-Home-Ah
There’s a light golden haze on the tree-tops
the sun has come out to say “Hi”
I had hoped for more rain
to clear soot from street drains
but the clouds have gone by
so I sit in the house wondering why….
Oh, it’s a beautiful morning
looks like it will be great day
I had a wonderful feeling
until I read what is in play….
Oy - everything’s going their way.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/19/house-budget-cuts_n_825405.html
the sun has come out to say “Hi”
I had hoped for more rain
to clear soot from street drains
but the clouds have gone by
so I sit in the house wondering why….
Oh, it’s a beautiful morning
looks like it will be great day
I had a wonderful feeling
until I read what is in play….
Oy - everything’s going their way.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/19/house-budget-cuts_n_825405.html
Friday, February 18, 2011
Friday’s I-Rant
Oh those kids! Iran’s still freaking out? Pffft. Always happens. Nothing will come of it (so "they" say). Iran’s leadership closed off media coverage of the opposition movement’s demonstrations to the world through banning all (heh) coverage of how the leadership bashes, tear-gasses, harasses, the opposition into smithereens. Have you seen the way it’s been in Iran since the Western-backed Shah was removed from power in 2009? Why would now be different? Per chance something in the air is kicking up a sandstorm?
Freedom is said to be contagious. In Yemen, Jordan, Libya and on and on, the ground is rumbling with the pounding of fists demanding concessions, democracy – anything better than who and what is in power. Change - or else - is the fervent cry of the time. How exciting – how frightening - depending on your view of the world’s political direction.
The next month – beginning today – may prove to be a wild trek through the deserts of Middle East mirages, manna from heaven moments, and that sort of deserty-stereotypical imagery.
As goes Egypt, so does a mystical edict: change; rearrange; home, home for the estranged.
The week that still is exudes a basic, primal, finally-not-so-passive/genteel-anymore attitude by people who see their representatives/leaders having a fabulous dinner in a private room at the most desirable restaurant haunt of the velly wealthy-em-powered towers of nation creation, while being sent off to a cheap diner down the street for their treats. After a while, one gets more than a wee bit resentful......
What interesting times in which we live…especially if you are in Madison, Wisconsin, right now. Whoa, that’s another unexpected group of protesting voices, isn’t it? I’ll weigh-in on that subject a bit later. I’m still having too much fun hearing cell phone interviews with Wisconsin’s Democrat's-on-the-run-protesting-legislator's coming in from “undisclosed locations.”
I think I’ll go out to buy more popcorn…..
Freedom is said to be contagious. In Yemen, Jordan, Libya and on and on, the ground is rumbling with the pounding of fists demanding concessions, democracy – anything better than who and what is in power. Change - or else - is the fervent cry of the time. How exciting – how frightening - depending on your view of the world’s political direction.
The next month – beginning today – may prove to be a wild trek through the deserts of Middle East mirages, manna from heaven moments, and that sort of deserty-stereotypical imagery.
As goes Egypt, so does a mystical edict: change; rearrange; home, home for the estranged.
The week that still is exudes a basic, primal, finally-not-so-passive/genteel-anymore attitude by people who see their representatives/leaders having a fabulous dinner in a private room at the most desirable restaurant haunt of the velly wealthy-em-powered towers of nation creation, while being sent off to a cheap diner down the street for their treats. After a while, one gets more than a wee bit resentful......
What interesting times in which we live…especially if you are in Madison, Wisconsin, right now. Whoa, that’s another unexpected group of protesting voices, isn’t it? I’ll weigh-in on that subject a bit later. I’m still having too much fun hearing cell phone interviews with Wisconsin’s Democrat's-on-the-run-protesting-legislator's coming in from “undisclosed locations.”
I think I’ll go out to buy more popcorn…..
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Bubble Talk
Has it come to this? Has the world turned on its axis? Of course not. We’re just in for more brain-drains from the fames – or could it be that yet another unlikely source in the headlights of perky high-lights can strut a sentence worth the attention of those who barely knew his name?
Little baby Justin-Bibber-With-the-Bangs-On-His-Mop has been quoted on mainstream and credible cable news outlets as a voice of reason in the gnawing debate over health care in the U.S. - in comparison to his home-grown Canadian health benefits. Sayeth the wee-teeny-he in an interview with Rolling Stone: "You guys are evil," he supposedly joked. "Canada's the best country in the world. We go to the doctor and we don't need to worry about paying him, but here, your whole life, you're broke because of medical bills. My bodyguard's baby was premature, and now he has to pay for it. In Canada, if your baby's premature, he stays in the hospital as long as he needs to, and then you go home."
What? The little Beeber-That-Could actually said something – not vacuous. Smelling salts/Amyl Nitrate – anyone?
Charlie Sheen has decided it is of the utmost importance to provide Lindsay Lohan with addiction advice! During an interview on The Dan Patrick Show (Direct TV), the rascally loved-by-almost-any-guy-over-the-age-of-16 said these words of dim-doom to the host, "You get Lindsay on the show, I will call in. I've got some advice for her. I've got some things I would recommend she consider because I don't tell anybody what to do. Work on your impulse control. Just try to think things through a little bit before you do them. I was not there in the store, the necklace, the thing, the bracelet, who cares? They're so desperate to vilify without fact…."
Hahahahahahahahah! We have now entered The Dimlight Zone.
One must pause to recalibrate one’s brain before moving on from what just transpired in our minds while reading the above-the-above comments/advice. Chortle.
On to other bees dancing in the headline hive:
High Speed rail for the U.S.? I’m for it.
Little baby Justin-Bibber-With-the-Bangs-On-His-Mop has been quoted on mainstream and credible cable news outlets as a voice of reason in the gnawing debate over health care in the U.S. - in comparison to his home-grown Canadian health benefits. Sayeth the wee-teeny-he in an interview with Rolling Stone: "You guys are evil," he supposedly joked. "Canada's the best country in the world. We go to the doctor and we don't need to worry about paying him, but here, your whole life, you're broke because of medical bills. My bodyguard's baby was premature, and now he has to pay for it. In Canada, if your baby's premature, he stays in the hospital as long as he needs to, and then you go home."
What? The little Beeber-That-Could actually said something – not vacuous. Smelling salts/Amyl Nitrate – anyone?
Charlie Sheen has decided it is of the utmost importance to provide Lindsay Lohan with addiction advice! During an interview on The Dan Patrick Show (Direct TV), the rascally loved-by-almost-any-guy-over-the-age-of-16 said these words of dim-doom to the host, "You get Lindsay on the show, I will call in. I've got some advice for her. I've got some things I would recommend she consider because I don't tell anybody what to do. Work on your impulse control. Just try to think things through a little bit before you do them. I was not there in the store, the necklace, the thing, the bracelet, who cares? They're so desperate to vilify without fact…."
Hahahahahahahahah! We have now entered The Dimlight Zone.
One must pause to recalibrate one’s brain before moving on from what just transpired in our minds while reading the above-the-above comments/advice. Chortle.
On to other bees dancing in the headline hive:
High Speed rail for the U.S.? I’m for it.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Mourning In America
It’s midweek in America, not “morning” per former President Ronald Reagan’s wistful glimmerings in his most admired speech in the 80’s. At the moment, we have abortion rights again “on the table” for reconsideration of its legality; 400 amendments to the “spending bill” = Big-Time U.S. SPENDING (please – someone has to place a limit on how many of these annoying amendments can be attached to a bill simply to appease those with favours to repay, as well as a means to create new law delays); a racist “comedic” rendition of the US of A’s First Lady hitting the ultra-stupid’s funny nerves online; the Arab world sweltering in the heated streets of their various cities to voice unhappy feelings toward their leaders – newly energized, as you know, by the recent success in Egypt.
By the way, is former President Mubarak the ultimate Drama Queen or what? Is he actually playing Camille? He’s in a coma? He’s not in a coma but his health “isn’t good.” He may die any day. His heart is broken. If true, I’ll back away and send blessings for his recovery. However, considering his most recent public performance, I suspect he wants his countrymen (certainly not the women) to feel sorry for him. Until I hear otherwise - Meh.
Finally, the “Birthers” are at it once more: Obama isn’t a U.S. citizen; Obama is a Manchurian candidate; Obama can’t be a Christian because he has a Muslim name; isn’t “White” (which must translate into “isn’t right” ); isn’t a Republican; no one remembers him from college days (hmmmmm - on that one I dare say/write). Ohhh, it's all starting to feel very creepy. Brrrrr.
Bottom line? What the hell are you guys doing up/down/over there in the Washington District of Conundrum? Rather than whispering, lisping and jittering about a man whose name isn’t simple as Bush’s tush (and doesn’t need a spray tan), what has he done that is odious that other president’s have not?
Most importantly (as is the usual sentence beginning of this sort), he has followed many of the previous administration’s ideas and plans to the dismay of progressives. Is it difficult for the mind to assemble the fact that a person of tact, discipline, and a great smile with oratory skills similar to a recently lauded “One” is helming our extremely ladened boat?
Frankly, my dears, I don’t really give a damn where he was born.
Someone’s finally trying to do something right despite the spite.
By the way, is former President Mubarak the ultimate Drama Queen or what? Is he actually playing Camille? He’s in a coma? He’s not in a coma but his health “isn’t good.” He may die any day. His heart is broken. If true, I’ll back away and send blessings for his recovery. However, considering his most recent public performance, I suspect he wants his countrymen (certainly not the women) to feel sorry for him. Until I hear otherwise - Meh.
Finally, the “Birthers” are at it once more: Obama isn’t a U.S. citizen; Obama is a Manchurian candidate; Obama can’t be a Christian because he has a Muslim name; isn’t “White” (which must translate into “isn’t right” ); isn’t a Republican; no one remembers him from college days (hmmmmm - on that one I dare say/write). Ohhh, it's all starting to feel very creepy. Brrrrr.
Bottom line? What the hell are you guys doing up/down/over there in the Washington District of Conundrum? Rather than whispering, lisping and jittering about a man whose name isn’t simple as Bush’s tush (and doesn’t need a spray tan), what has he done that is odious that other president’s have not?
Most importantly (as is the usual sentence beginning of this sort), he has followed many of the previous administration’s ideas and plans to the dismay of progressives. Is it difficult for the mind to assemble the fact that a person of tact, discipline, and a great smile with oratory skills similar to a recently lauded “One” is helming our extremely ladened boat?
Frankly, my dears, I don’t really give a damn where he was born.
Someone’s finally trying to do something right despite the spite.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
There’s No Biz Like Faux Biz
After an extensive search, the previously mentioned “lost” Flogging Whip was found under Rihanna’s CD trying to slip in-between those frustrating tight plastic clasps to give her a ripe ole’ reminder of what it feels like to be bashed in the face before she goes out to record another questionable “I love pain” tune.
The temporary loss of snark made a sharp comeback after the whip realized it couldn’t penetrate the gate of the music industry’s desire to turn all young women singers into clones of ho’s. Geez. Will Taylor Swift be next? Her rep’s have already begun playing the PR game when they tucked her under Jake Fakes-it-for-You-All’s long arms for a few weeks. At least she was still wearing colors and didn’t strut around in Virgin White boost-the-yay’s during that adorable “relationship.”
Do I sound too jaded or cynical regarding the above pairing? Yes and no. One is indeed sleeping under a heavy comforter pinned down as if anchored by a rock unable to shake the sand out of their eyes if they believe the crock of numerous entertainment-based faux-mances. And, according to what I have been told, read, and have witnessed, quite a few of those arrangements thrive to this day – usually to control rumours that one of the two are gay. If not the feared-by-most-leading-men "gay" label and/or revelation, then something else is in play in the couplings of many high profile figures.
Amazing that such “marriage of convenience” machinations continue on – decade after decade. Meanwhile, the "sanctity of marriage" is pulled-out at every turn regarding not allowing loving gay couples to legally seal the deal when it's real.
Ultimately, it’s not my - or your - business to crawl around outside the home of a celebrity to find out who is sharing their Pratesi sheets. It really isn’t (unless you’re a pro PI or a rogue paparazzo). Everyone deserves their privacy. All of us are entitled to determine who knows what about us and how far we want to go in allowing people into our homes or thoughts.
What upsets a great deal of fans and “onlookers” is when said high profile couples turn their business arrangements into world news under the guise of “love” and “family” – jumping on couches, marrying in lavish ceremonies at a cost which could bail out half of California’s debt, and provide endless photo op’s of strained or excessive PDA to desperately cling to an image of so-happy-together. Couldn’t they keep it – uh – dignified? It’s been done.
Now, would you consider such performances to be hypocritical or simply part of the cliché'd “fame game”? Think about it. In many ways, duty calls before love, and I have had a great deal of empathy for anyone who must marry, or at the least, become publicly involved with a partner with whom they have no chemistry or desire to bed based on their “position” in life – such as nobility – or through cultural edicts.
How awful it had to have been for Prince Charles to seek a virgin to marry when he was in love with another woman? How awful for Princess Diana to fall in love with a man who was merely doing his duty and neglected to tell her so along the courtship way? But, that’s very old news and this time around, a Prince is allowed to marry the woman he loves - i.e.; Prince William and Kate Middleton.
I digress, of course, from the ultimate point of the flog: that my whip was found; Rihanna must like to bind or be bound; women/girl singers have to look like used-up coffee grounds; cute little entertainment newbies are soon thrown into a faux ring of liar fire by playing along with a worn-out image tire as if both individuals involved are a one-night hire.
Not that I don’t understand entertainment PR-land. It’s just that some of it has "gotten out of hand"…..
Written by Shauna Z’s ubiquitous Stream of Conscientiousness
The temporary loss of snark made a sharp comeback after the whip realized it couldn’t penetrate the gate of the music industry’s desire to turn all young women singers into clones of ho’s. Geez. Will Taylor Swift be next? Her rep’s have already begun playing the PR game when they tucked her under Jake Fakes-it-for-You-All’s long arms for a few weeks. At least she was still wearing colors and didn’t strut around in Virgin White boost-the-yay’s during that adorable “relationship.”
Do I sound too jaded or cynical regarding the above pairing? Yes and no. One is indeed sleeping under a heavy comforter pinned down as if anchored by a rock unable to shake the sand out of their eyes if they believe the crock of numerous entertainment-based faux-mances. And, according to what I have been told, read, and have witnessed, quite a few of those arrangements thrive to this day – usually to control rumours that one of the two are gay. If not the feared-by-most-leading-men "gay" label and/or revelation, then something else is in play in the couplings of many high profile figures.
Amazing that such “marriage of convenience” machinations continue on – decade after decade. Meanwhile, the "sanctity of marriage" is pulled-out at every turn regarding not allowing loving gay couples to legally seal the deal when it's real.
Ultimately, it’s not my - or your - business to crawl around outside the home of a celebrity to find out who is sharing their Pratesi sheets. It really isn’t (unless you’re a pro PI or a rogue paparazzo). Everyone deserves their privacy. All of us are entitled to determine who knows what about us and how far we want to go in allowing people into our homes or thoughts.
What upsets a great deal of fans and “onlookers” is when said high profile couples turn their business arrangements into world news under the guise of “love” and “family” – jumping on couches, marrying in lavish ceremonies at a cost which could bail out half of California’s debt, and provide endless photo op’s of strained or excessive PDA to desperately cling to an image of so-happy-together. Couldn’t they keep it – uh – dignified? It’s been done.
Now, would you consider such performances to be hypocritical or simply part of the cliché'd “fame game”? Think about it. In many ways, duty calls before love, and I have had a great deal of empathy for anyone who must marry, or at the least, become publicly involved with a partner with whom they have no chemistry or desire to bed based on their “position” in life – such as nobility – or through cultural edicts.
How awful it had to have been for Prince Charles to seek a virgin to marry when he was in love with another woman? How awful for Princess Diana to fall in love with a man who was merely doing his duty and neglected to tell her so along the courtship way? But, that’s very old news and this time around, a Prince is allowed to marry the woman he loves - i.e.; Prince William and Kate Middleton.
I digress, of course, from the ultimate point of the flog: that my whip was found; Rihanna must like to bind or be bound; women/girl singers have to look like used-up coffee grounds; cute little entertainment newbies are soon thrown into a faux ring of liar fire by playing along with a worn-out image tire as if both individuals involved are a one-night hire.
Not that I don’t understand entertainment PR-land. It’s just that some of it has "gotten out of hand"…..
Written by Shauna Z’s ubiquitous Stream of Conscientiousness
Whip It Up
I think Rihanna made off with my flogging whip. This is the second time that particular item has gone missing and I just won't accept such disrespect anymore, I tell you. How can I flog Iran's violence against the opposition without my sharp snarky partner? Or whine over MSNBC's increasing ratings loss to CNN - as predicted with Keith O's exit and Comcast's entry into NBC-land? Yep. It's not the same, is it? Well, I'm going to huff around the house until I find my partner in rhyme...and make a few calls to a certain diva's handlers...just in case.
Until then, I remain, as always, ready to send in the YouTube brigade.
Until then, I remain, as always, ready to send in the YouTube brigade.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Grammy Whammy’s
Marketing, marketing, marketing. Branding, branding, branding. The key words for the last decade held court last evening in LA where the Grammy Awards brought another parade of fashion challenges for what a large part of the event entails. And brand, market, star it, wear it, share it, was and is always the point with Lady Gag-Gag who preened in all of her magnificence at the awards….. Wait! In truth, no. She didn’t preen nor did she brand herself beyond “boring” when she floated a huge Plexiglas egg over the red carpet, on to the stage, then emerged from it without organic cracking fanfare of birth or mirth into the audience’s air space – way too early before breakfast for all to enjoy whatever it was Gaggy wanted to serve up with a not-so-golden egg.
We wuz robbed, I tell you! Robbed! Lady Gaggy-Gag lost her luster for shocking, and Eminem was quasi-ignored – again.
Yes, he did catch a few statues. But hey, Eminem was given the Best Rap Album of the Year rather than the Big One. Recovery was far more than a Rap performance. What a rip. Who won in that category? You know, the exhaulted Album of the Year? I’m not sure who they are other than Canadian and why they won anything. I know their name - Arcade Fire – and am watching them now while they close the show with a standard rock-out cacophony most bands can pull off - further convincing me that half of the academy is stoned-deaf. I could be in a minority on my entire take of the event, but somewhere along the night, I simply glazed over, although ”Need You Now” is a very good tune and Lady Antebellum deserved most of their five wins. It’s a straight-forward catchy little thing that almost wants to tug at your jaded heart no matter how far you’d like to run away from music with a twang.
But once again Eminem was overlooked in 3 top categories: Record, Song, and Album of the Year. Whine. Wince. Hiss.
The evening began on a high note with an amazing musical tribute to Aretha Franklin where Christina A redeemed herself - a tiny bit if you ignore that she fell down and went boom - from the Super Foil episode, and Jennifer Hudson and others joined in to give the Queen of Soul her definite due. Ah hah! I thought. This is going to be a good show. How cool. And it was…for approximately 35 minutes before it all began to look and sound the same.
Lady Gag-Gag seemed to be worth waiting for if for nothing other than how she’d dress and what her number would be like considering how she tends to steal a show…..
Oh dear. Poor baby. She had so much to live up to following last year’s ash-covered-glittery spin in Elton John’s bomb-shelter, a meat dress at the MTV Awards last September, as well as how she dresses just to get to her next gig on a plane…. How could she surpass herself this time? I can certainly attest to how it wasn’t by heating-up within the claustrophobic egg unless she had been ‘over easy.’ Had Justin Bieber dressed as bacon and Usher as hash-fries, I still doubt the entire charade could have been satisfying - even with a double latte.
We wuz robbed, I tell you! Robbed! Lady Gaggy-Gag lost her luster for shocking, and Eminem was quasi-ignored – again.
Yes, he did catch a few statues. But hey, Eminem was given the Best Rap Album of the Year rather than the Big One. Recovery was far more than a Rap performance. What a rip. Who won in that category? You know, the exhaulted Album of the Year? I’m not sure who they are other than Canadian and why they won anything. I know their name - Arcade Fire – and am watching them now while they close the show with a standard rock-out cacophony most bands can pull off - further convincing me that half of the academy is stoned-deaf. I could be in a minority on my entire take of the event, but somewhere along the night, I simply glazed over, although ”Need You Now” is a very good tune and Lady Antebellum deserved most of their five wins. It’s a straight-forward catchy little thing that almost wants to tug at your jaded heart no matter how far you’d like to run away from music with a twang.
But once again Eminem was overlooked in 3 top categories: Record, Song, and Album of the Year. Whine. Wince. Hiss.
The evening began on a high note with an amazing musical tribute to Aretha Franklin where Christina A redeemed herself - a tiny bit if you ignore that she fell down and went boom - from the Super Foil episode, and Jennifer Hudson and others joined in to give the Queen of Soul her definite due. Ah hah! I thought. This is going to be a good show. How cool. And it was…for approximately 35 minutes before it all began to look and sound the same.
Lady Gag-Gag seemed to be worth waiting for if for nothing other than how she’d dress and what her number would be like considering how she tends to steal a show…..
Oh dear. Poor baby. She had so much to live up to following last year’s ash-covered-glittery spin in Elton John’s bomb-shelter, a meat dress at the MTV Awards last September, as well as how she dresses just to get to her next gig on a plane…. How could she surpass herself this time? I can certainly attest to how it wasn’t by heating-up within the claustrophobic egg unless she had been ‘over easy.’ Had Justin Bieber dressed as bacon and Usher as hash-fries, I still doubt the entire charade could have been satisfying - even with a double latte.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
She Loves the Way She Cries?
No politics today. It’s time for a break from the heavy weight of the world.
The Grammy Awards are tonight – another awards show filled with potentially awkward moments and winner surprises. I’ll flog NARAS (National Association of Recording Arts & Sciences) if Eminiem’s Recovery CD doesn’t receive its proper due with Album of the Year. A brilliant mix of rap and melody, substance and fluidity, Recovery remained true to Em’s musical chronicling of his latest life journey = getting clean from nefarious habits. With a little help from Elton John, Slim Shady was brought back to earth, picking up a few vocal tricks from such an unlikely mentor. You can hear the influence on “Beautiful” – which is, in my opinion, completely beautiful.
Continuing in Eminem-land, the “I Love the Way You Lie” duet (as it were) with Rihanna concerning domestic abuse was an incredible song. From the first listen I knew it was a hit, and jumped on that music wagon rather fast. However, I was – and still am – a tad confused when almost every shot in the video of Rihanna singing her part dripped with sexual energy. In what world was she singing and posturing as a house burned down behind her? Kind of looked as if she liked the perversity of the abuse. Hey, I almost get it – women are sucked-in to their abuser. It was “artistic interpretation” - I guess?
It was almost appropriate for Eminem and Rihanna to pull off a video with violent imagery considering her beat-down by Chris Brown and Eminem’s public beat-up of his former wife’s life. On paper, it was a perfect blend. On video, the director had Rihanna twist the message on its end. Many of us “gave her a pass” on that questionable rendering, until now. But, oops, she did it again – now we have another new tune by Rihanna titled “S & M” – mixed messages much? Who is running her career? Chits Brown’s BFF’s?
And who the hell is doing her hair these days, I really, really want to know.
Check it out. Come to your own conclusion.
The Grammy Awards are tonight – another awards show filled with potentially awkward moments and winner surprises. I’ll flog NARAS (National Association of Recording Arts & Sciences) if Eminiem’s Recovery CD doesn’t receive its proper due with Album of the Year. A brilliant mix of rap and melody, substance and fluidity, Recovery remained true to Em’s musical chronicling of his latest life journey = getting clean from nefarious habits. With a little help from Elton John, Slim Shady was brought back to earth, picking up a few vocal tricks from such an unlikely mentor. You can hear the influence on “Beautiful” – which is, in my opinion, completely beautiful.
Continuing in Eminem-land, the “I Love the Way You Lie” duet (as it were) with Rihanna concerning domestic abuse was an incredible song. From the first listen I knew it was a hit, and jumped on that music wagon rather fast. However, I was – and still am – a tad confused when almost every shot in the video of Rihanna singing her part dripped with sexual energy. In what world was she singing and posturing as a house burned down behind her? Kind of looked as if she liked the perversity of the abuse. Hey, I almost get it – women are sucked-in to their abuser. It was “artistic interpretation” - I guess?
It was almost appropriate for Eminem and Rihanna to pull off a video with violent imagery considering her beat-down by Chris Brown and Eminem’s public beat-up of his former wife’s life. On paper, it was a perfect blend. On video, the director had Rihanna twist the message on its end. Many of us “gave her a pass” on that questionable rendering, until now. But, oops, she did it again – now we have another new tune by Rihanna titled “S & M” – mixed messages much? Who is running her career? Chits Brown’s BFF’s?
And who the hell is doing her hair these days, I really, really want to know.
Check it out. Come to your own conclusion.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Yawn.....
After such an exciting week in the world, not to ignore the excitement at CPAC with Donald Trump talking about bombing enemies, and for the umpteenth time calling attention to his "brand" by suggesting he might run for president in 2012, I feel a need to breathe deep and go back to sleep.
It's Saturday, isn't it?
It's Saturday, isn't it?
Friday, February 11, 2011
Weekly Flog-Off
Update: Written in the wee hours prior to the latest news that Mubarak has finally resigned.
_________________________________________________
Before we slide or skid into the weekend, a side-eye glance over our shoulders to all things rendered-of-days-past shall be examined, illuminated, ruminated.
Big Bad Flog: Here we go – again. Those dictator-types love to stay in power, don’t they? Please give me a break. This contest of witless willpower is growing old. Mubarak’s beginning to bore the bee-Hay-suse out of me. What’s he thinking? Oh, he’s thinking he’s still everyone in Egypt’s father and he won’t let his children have a bath until he’s finished scrubbing his bodily crowns in clean, hot water just as it once was in the days of yore in Europe (and elsewhere) when the man of the manor was first to have a hot bath; next came the wife to cleanse in her liege's debris, following her were the children to be dipped into what by that point would be a puddle of parental filth. Yuck!
No wonder so many children died of a composite of strange illnesses.
Enough of that. Far more important happenings were spreading throughout the past week’s vast information circuits:
Yawn-While-Awake Flog: Our dear Sarah Pales-in-Comparison-to-almost-everyone-with-a-brain-on-either-side-of-the-political-nets, showed her class-act ACT when she so eloquently chose to rise to comments made by former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum (R) of Pennsylvania, regarding why Pale-&-Dim chose not to make herself available at the GOP CPAC conference this week. Sayeth Sancto-Monotonous, ”I have a feeling that she has some demands on her time, and a lot of them have financial benefit attached to them.”
What? You must be joking! She’s out for money? Santorum said that Palin has “other business opportunities” - a not-so-vague implication of the obvious.
In response to Santorum’s grasp on reality, Missy Who-Won’t-Leave-Anything-Alone-Except-Her-Job-As-A-Governor retorted to someone somewhere in Glenn Beck-land radio that Mr. Santorum was “uninformed” to suggest she has “other business opportunities.” (Oh my! How could he be so wrong? Who’s fooling who, ole’ Grizzly Mama? Your priorities have been Bristol-clear for quite some time, you darling deer-in-the-spotlights-happy-to-see-ya’-fakey-dangerous-lady. Not.)
I declare that this cunning, defensive, calculated opportunistic reaction is nothing more than an empty roar. Her slug-fest comment? “I will not call him the knuckle-dragging Neanderthal that perhaps others would want to call him. I’ll let his wife call him that instead,” Palin told Sean Hannity on Fox News. (Her latest BFF. Swoon.)
Whew! What a pissy-hiss! People like me and on TV are still talking/writing about her this week - partially due/or due partially, to her Alaskan-honed heavy-handed-verbal knuckles. Ka-Ching-Ching
Flogger Log: Wikileaks is leaking how Julian Assange’s possible prosecution of releasing secret government documents may not occur, whereas the actual leaker, the currently incarcerated in solitary confinement Private First Class, Army Intelligence Officer Bradley Manning, may be the one who goes down on paper with watery streak marks as the true traitor at the gates of secret gov't information. Perhaps he has access to music - at the very least. How about something old, something new titled, "Live or Let Lie"?
Nevertheless, Sweden, one of the most casually progressive and realistic countries on the planet (in my most humble opinion) is going forth with rape charges against Mr. Assange which, depending on what news source you prefer to believe, may or may not be legit. For his breach in leaking, he's facing a dire eeking. Is he hero or victim? I do not know. All anyone can surmise is that Julian has not learned how to follow the example of the Dutch by plugging holes in damn-ing fluid overflows.
How Could This Not Be Mentioned? Celebrities are fair game if you’re Lindsay Dough-Scam no longer on the lam this time around, and the same judge who once admonished and sentenced you in the past on one of your many arraignments, felt so intimated by the media focus on your case that he felt it necessary to speak to you in court two days ago as if you were a 10-year-old who knocked over a fine piece of china in an expensive hotel. For shame, Lindsay, for shame! You, young lady, must, and I mean must - get a grip! And not on jewelry! You’re facing serious, serious wrist slapping this time! The word “felony” is muy different than "I'm hell on thee" - no?
Heaven Help Others, Not Most Of Us: In Science news, or what I’ll label NASA’s NASTIES, the world was alerted to the information citing that another unwelcome asteroid visitor is en route to earth by 2035. Cool. I thought we might be hitting the end in 2012.
Whew!
_________________________________________________
Before we slide or skid into the weekend, a side-eye glance over our shoulders to all things rendered-of-days-past shall be examined, illuminated, ruminated.
Big Bad Flog: Here we go – again. Those dictator-types love to stay in power, don’t they? Please give me a break. This contest of witless willpower is growing old. Mubarak’s beginning to bore the bee-Hay-suse out of me. What’s he thinking? Oh, he’s thinking he’s still everyone in Egypt’s father and he won’t let his children have a bath until he’s finished scrubbing his bodily crowns in clean, hot water just as it once was in the days of yore in Europe (and elsewhere) when the man of the manor was first to have a hot bath; next came the wife to cleanse in her liege's debris, following her were the children to be dipped into what by that point would be a puddle of parental filth. Yuck!
No wonder so many children died of a composite of strange illnesses.
Enough of that. Far more important happenings were spreading throughout the past week’s vast information circuits:
Yawn-While-Awake Flog: Our dear Sarah Pales-in-Comparison-to-almost-everyone-with-a-brain-on-either-side-of-the-political-nets, showed her class-act ACT when she so eloquently chose to rise to comments made by former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum (R) of Pennsylvania, regarding why Pale-&-Dim chose not to make herself available at the GOP CPAC conference this week. Sayeth Sancto-Monotonous, ”I have a feeling that she has some demands on her time, and a lot of them have financial benefit attached to them.”
What? You must be joking! She’s out for money? Santorum said that Palin has “other business opportunities” - a not-so-vague implication of the obvious.
In response to Santorum’s grasp on reality, Missy Who-Won’t-Leave-Anything-Alone-Except-Her-Job-As-A-Governor retorted to someone somewhere in Glenn Beck-land radio that Mr. Santorum was “uninformed” to suggest she has “other business opportunities.” (Oh my! How could he be so wrong? Who’s fooling who, ole’ Grizzly Mama? Your priorities have been Bristol-clear for quite some time, you darling deer-in-the-spotlights-happy-to-see-ya’-fakey-dangerous-lady. Not.)
I declare that this cunning, defensive, calculated opportunistic reaction is nothing more than an empty roar. Her slug-fest comment? “I will not call him the knuckle-dragging Neanderthal that perhaps others would want to call him. I’ll let his wife call him that instead,” Palin told Sean Hannity on Fox News. (Her latest BFF. Swoon.)
Whew! What a pissy-hiss! People like me and on TV are still talking/writing about her this week - partially due/or due partially, to her Alaskan-honed heavy-handed-verbal knuckles. Ka-Ching-Ching
Flogger Log: Wikileaks is leaking how Julian Assange’s possible prosecution of releasing secret government documents may not occur, whereas the actual leaker, the currently incarcerated in solitary confinement Private First Class, Army Intelligence Officer Bradley Manning, may be the one who goes down on paper with watery streak marks as the true traitor at the gates of secret gov't information. Perhaps he has access to music - at the very least. How about something old, something new titled, "Live or Let Lie"?
Nevertheless, Sweden, one of the most casually progressive and realistic countries on the planet (in my most humble opinion) is going forth with rape charges against Mr. Assange which, depending on what news source you prefer to believe, may or may not be legit. For his breach in leaking, he's facing a dire eeking. Is he hero or victim? I do not know. All anyone can surmise is that Julian has not learned how to follow the example of the Dutch by plugging holes in damn-ing fluid overflows.
How Could This Not Be Mentioned? Celebrities are fair game if you’re Lindsay Dough-Scam no longer on the lam this time around, and the same judge who once admonished and sentenced you in the past on one of your many arraignments, felt so intimated by the media focus on your case that he felt it necessary to speak to you in court two days ago as if you were a 10-year-old who knocked over a fine piece of china in an expensive hotel. For shame, Lindsay, for shame! You, young lady, must, and I mean must - get a grip! And not on jewelry! You’re facing serious, serious wrist slapping this time! The word “felony” is muy different than "I'm hell on thee" - no?
Heaven Help Others, Not Most Of Us: In Science news, or what I’ll label NASA’s NASTIES, the world was alerted to the information citing that another unwelcome asteroid visitor is en route to earth by 2035. Cool. I thought we might be hitting the end in 2012.
Whew!
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Hell No, He Won’t Go!
In listening to Prezzie-of-Forever Mubarak's rambling, ultimately defiant speech wherein who-knows-what he was saying beyond “I am still President and I’ll leave in September, so go eff yourselves, my sons and daughters of this wonderful land,” I could feel the heat rising within the previously hopeful crowd gathered at Tahrir Square – optimistically labeled “Liberation” Square within recent hours past.
Apparently he is a real tease as my previous post suggested. Not very nice, sir. You’re too old to be playing parlor games with a brutally motivated populace to see you off to another land.
Aside from the obvious fact that Mubarak is a stubborn, prideful man, he is dangling too many empty words, band-aid platitudes, and symbolic changes at an angry populace in a foolish delusion that his masses (and, in his eyes, they are HIS people), will just “go back home” and carry on their daily lives as if the last 3 weeks hadn’t existed beyond his public, quite condescending natterings to quell the little people’s bad mood.
What will come of the seemingly sadistic tease that he would step down only to turn part of the power (in reality) over to his equally hated new Vice President Omar Suleiman. The new VP’s diplomatic stance with the protester’s is quite heart-warming: if protesters do not become involved in government-requested negotiations, a “coup” could take place that would cause more chaos, raising the likelihood of a crackdown. Uh oh. Another Bad Daddy figure.
The revolution, as it were as of today, has once more only just begun.
BTW, if the 9 private jets belonging to Mubarak won’t be used any time soon for any reason, I certainly would be happy to suggest that they be returned to the US as a form of good will – they were a bit costly at $111 million…..
Drat! No major celebration to watch on TV...only baffled pundits and speculative talk. Now I no longer have an excuse to sidestep the dreaded housework in prep for a guest.
Apparently he is a real tease as my previous post suggested. Not very nice, sir. You’re too old to be playing parlor games with a brutally motivated populace to see you off to another land.
Aside from the obvious fact that Mubarak is a stubborn, prideful man, he is dangling too many empty words, band-aid platitudes, and symbolic changes at an angry populace in a foolish delusion that his masses (and, in his eyes, they are HIS people), will just “go back home” and carry on their daily lives as if the last 3 weeks hadn’t existed beyond his public, quite condescending natterings to quell the little people’s bad mood.
What will come of the seemingly sadistic tease that he would step down only to turn part of the power (in reality) over to his equally hated new Vice President Omar Suleiman. The new VP’s diplomatic stance with the protester’s is quite heart-warming: if protesters do not become involved in government-requested negotiations, a “coup” could take place that would cause more chaos, raising the likelihood of a crackdown. Uh oh. Another Bad Daddy figure.
The revolution, as it were as of today, has once more only just begun.
BTW, if the 9 private jets belonging to Mubarak won’t be used any time soon for any reason, I certainly would be happy to suggest that they be returned to the US as a form of good will – they were a bit costly at $111 million…..
Drat! No major celebration to watch on TV...only baffled pundits and speculative talk. Now I no longer have an excuse to sidestep the dreaded housework in prep for a guest.
Down and Almost Out
The world is holding a collective breath for official word that Egyptian President Mubarak has left the building.
As I write, news of Mubarak’s impending resignation within mere hours is crackling through cell phones of on-the-ground reporters while TV cameras flash images of a dimly lit "Liberation" Square teeming with chanting protesters. Wow! A so-called “military coup” without grenades, excessive posturing with weapons, and nary a camel in sight with a broken back covered in straw.
Well, I gather my house cleaning plans for the day will be placed on hold as I remain locked into following TV coverage of this latest BREAKING NEWS event. How can one focus on sweeping, dusting, and all of that exciting domestic stuff when history is made? At least that’s my latest excuse not to tote any more mop-like barges or lift further bales of dust into the trash bin.
Unless Mubarak has a perverse sense of teasing humour and isn’t really stepping-down, he will be gone from power after 28 years (always rounded-off to 30) and on to a new life. But where and how? First, as president, he has a fleet of 9 private jets – all funded with American money – to utilize to get the hell out of town or country. Cushy ride if he chooses to go that air route.
Where does a former leader go after getting the pink slip? We shall soon find out. If he follows recent tradition, he may be having a lovely French baguette for breakfast.
Developing…..
As I write, news of Mubarak’s impending resignation within mere hours is crackling through cell phones of on-the-ground reporters while TV cameras flash images of a dimly lit "Liberation" Square teeming with chanting protesters. Wow! A so-called “military coup” without grenades, excessive posturing with weapons, and nary a camel in sight with a broken back covered in straw.
Well, I gather my house cleaning plans for the day will be placed on hold as I remain locked into following TV coverage of this latest BREAKING NEWS event. How can one focus on sweeping, dusting, and all of that exciting domestic stuff when history is made? At least that’s my latest excuse not to tote any more mop-like barges or lift further bales of dust into the trash bin.
Unless Mubarak has a perverse sense of teasing humour and isn’t really stepping-down, he will be gone from power after 28 years (always rounded-off to 30) and on to a new life. But where and how? First, as president, he has a fleet of 9 private jets – all funded with American money – to utilize to get the hell out of town or country. Cushy ride if he chooses to go that air route.
Where does a former leader go after getting the pink slip? We shall soon find out. If he follows recent tradition, he may be having a lovely French baguette for breakfast.
Developing…..
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Listen While You Work
It’s a video-only day at TDFB. Enjoy a midweek break while I gather my thoughts for upcoming topics/targets - and continue to clean up several typos found in earlier posts…
My bad.
<takes self off to woodshed>
My bad.
<takes self off to woodshed>
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Below Intolerance
Today’s flogging focus takes a turn from current headlines into a dark corner of a supposed enlightened society’s treatment of “kids being kids" as criminals for acting like a kid. If the end result of the referenced examples were not so chilling and/or almost laughable, I wouldn’t bother to risk the scorn from those who would rather I lend my voice to political and celebrity issues.
Let’s back-track to several absurdities in our increasingly “zero tolerance” culture which provides a glaringly crazed example of the mis-use of power, taxpayer money, and a general waste of time when worse incidents occur every other minute that are ignored; negated; sedated. Shine a high-powered flashlight on areas of reform in education and government that we the people should no longer tolerate if we are to ever get out of the quicksand of abject immaturity and paranoia that has taken over an enormous part of our population, and you will find a creepy, almost Salem Witch Hunt mind-set – not to ignore a run-on sentence.
Do you recall a brief story from January concerning a 7-year-old child who allegedly shot a Nerf-style toy gun while at school in Hammonton, NJ.? The toy gun shoots ping-pong type balls similar to a Nerf * gun. Although not one person was hurt, the child faces misdemeanor criminal charges. No one had been threatened by the boy or the gun: nonetheless, local police were brought into the school to begin an investigation into the “suspicious activity” at the Hammonton Early Childhood Education Center after school officials contacted them about the dastardly incident. While police were following-up on such an egregious crime, I wonder what other crimes were committed where a police presence may have been better served?
Dr. Dan Blachford, the Hammonton Board of Education superintendent, said the school has a zero tolerance policy. "We are just very vigilant and we feel that if we draw a very strict line then we have much less worry about someone bringing in something dangerous," said Blachford.
“Just very vigilant”? Please. This was a TOY GUN! If schools are becoming so very sensitive to weaponry, then baseball has to go. After all, baseball bats are dangerous weapons…as are scissors, so that ends Arts & Crafts class, doesn’t it? If the colorful plastic toy resembled a “real” gun, and had the child threatened others with it, I would understand the concern. However, calling the police, arresting the child, is a grand over-reaction.
The above example is tame compared to the following:
Let’s back-track to several absurdities in our increasingly “zero tolerance” culture which provides a glaringly crazed example of the mis-use of power, taxpayer money, and a general waste of time when worse incidents occur every other minute that are ignored; negated; sedated. Shine a high-powered flashlight on areas of reform in education and government that we the people should no longer tolerate if we are to ever get out of the quicksand of abject immaturity and paranoia that has taken over an enormous part of our population, and you will find a creepy, almost Salem Witch Hunt mind-set – not to ignore a run-on sentence.
Do you recall a brief story from January concerning a 7-year-old child who allegedly shot a Nerf-style toy gun while at school in Hammonton, NJ.? The toy gun shoots ping-pong type balls similar to a Nerf * gun. Although not one person was hurt, the child faces misdemeanor criminal charges. No one had been threatened by the boy or the gun: nonetheless, local police were brought into the school to begin an investigation into the “suspicious activity” at the Hammonton Early Childhood Education Center after school officials contacted them about the dastardly incident. While police were following-up on such an egregious crime, I wonder what other crimes were committed where a police presence may have been better served?
Dr. Dan Blachford, the Hammonton Board of Education superintendent, said the school has a zero tolerance policy. "We are just very vigilant and we feel that if we draw a very strict line then we have much less worry about someone bringing in something dangerous," said Blachford.
“Just very vigilant”? Please. This was a TOY GUN! If schools are becoming so very sensitive to weaponry, then baseball has to go. After all, baseball bats are dangerous weapons…as are scissors, so that ends Arts & Crafts class, doesn’t it? If the colorful plastic toy resembled a “real” gun, and had the child threatened others with it, I would understand the concern. However, calling the police, arresting the child, is a grand over-reaction.
The above example is tame compared to the following:
Monday, February 7, 2011
Update
For those who have taken the time to write comments on various posts here at TDFB, only to discover the comment is missing, please be aware that I do not delete any comments unless they are in extremely bad taste - which, I'm happy to write, hasn't been often. I have been informed that there is a "bug" in a few of the templates.
In the near future The Daily Flog Blog will become part of a full website where such errors should not be an issue.
I do like to hear the opinions of those who disagree or may question or correct a post. If you believe that you have not signed-in properly for your post to remain, please try the "Anonymous" option - it seems to be the one way a comment will "stick."
BTW, Facebook likes us again.
In the near future The Daily Flog Blog will become part of a full website where such errors should not be an issue.
I do like to hear the opinions of those who disagree or may question or correct a post. If you believe that you have not signed-in properly for your post to remain, please try the "Anonymous" option - it seems to be the one way a comment will "stick."
BTW, Facebook likes us again.
Monday’s Ramblings
How are your ears? Mine are aching from yet another Super Bowl misstep in the choice of those who sing the “Star Spangled Bummer” to kick off the game. Oh, Christina, it was worse than missing a few words. You sounded like Cher singing in her sleep after taking too many Ambien. In fact, Cher would have been a better choice. Forget her still-decent voice, it’s what she wouldn’t have worn that could have made the pre-kick-off stage the area for the latest wardrobe malfunction. Having that element behind us, the half-time program would have been moot this year – which it was anyway – unless one deems the cold-looking-bulky Sci-Fi attire worn by The Black Eyed Peas and friends a malfunction worse than hearing Fergie sing off key.
Tsk. Some things never change. And then, some things do……
Change has been a–comin’ every which way this year. Apparently the collective consciousness decided to take the turning of the New Year page to heart. Less than two months into 2011, the world has seen revolutions in two government's (Tunisia and Egypt); further meltdowns from two of Hollywood’s loose cannons (Lohan and Sheen); Eminem in a car commercial for the Super Bowl and Detroit in general; Sarah Palin cashing-in on her name to turn into a trademark faster than a gambling junkie on the prowl in Las Vegas with fat pockets; Bill O’Reilly becoming the voice of reason at Fox News (if one ignores his views on the Moon and tides); Keith Olbermann’s exit from MSNBC - and now this: the impending merger of AOL and The Huffington Post that Arianna Huffington announced on her site today. Say what?
Off and running into a corporate alliance, I applaud Arianna and company for their success over the past 5+ years and her media-based savvy by creating a highly informative online “newspaper” that would eventually attract lucrative buyers. However, AOL has been floundering for years and is seen as a very old horse the public sent out to pasture to quietly chomp on what remains of their cyber landscape.
The Huffington Post is indeed a fine acquisition as it ranks #1 on Technorati’s Top Blogs listings as if superglue had been inserted under the HP’s moniker. Arianna wrote a detailed account of what led to this questionable marriage. On the surface, her reasoning for accepting the ring of commitment from the bended knee of AOL Chairman and CEO Tim Armstrong, appears to fit her vision for a broader reach of The Huffington Post. My concern is the taint of yet another corporate buyout of an entity many readers believed to be reasonably pure of more than Groupon and numerous how to lose body fat ads.
I wonder what Tina Brown would do if Yahoo offered to buy The Daily Beast? Yes, Yahoo. Remember them? If a mass exodus of The Huffington Post readers actually occurs per numerous comments on that site today, The Daily Beast may just live up to its name and scarf-up the leftovers.
(Thanks to an astute reader's comment, I will mention that in November, 2010, Newsweek and The Daily Beast merged in a 50-50 venture. Yahoo was an example of an online entity of little power.)
Tsk. Some things never change. And then, some things do……
Change has been a–comin’ every which way this year. Apparently the collective consciousness decided to take the turning of the New Year page to heart. Less than two months into 2011, the world has seen revolutions in two government's (Tunisia and Egypt); further meltdowns from two of Hollywood’s loose cannons (Lohan and Sheen); Eminem in a car commercial for the Super Bowl and Detroit in general; Sarah Palin cashing-in on her name to turn into a trademark faster than a gambling junkie on the prowl in Las Vegas with fat pockets; Bill O’Reilly becoming the voice of reason at Fox News (if one ignores his views on the Moon and tides); Keith Olbermann’s exit from MSNBC - and now this: the impending merger of AOL and The Huffington Post that Arianna Huffington announced on her site today. Say what?
Off and running into a corporate alliance, I applaud Arianna and company for their success over the past 5+ years and her media-based savvy by creating a highly informative online “newspaper” that would eventually attract lucrative buyers. However, AOL has been floundering for years and is seen as a very old horse the public sent out to pasture to quietly chomp on what remains of their cyber landscape.
The Huffington Post is indeed a fine acquisition as it ranks #1 on Technorati’s Top Blogs listings as if superglue had been inserted under the HP’s moniker. Arianna wrote a detailed account of what led to this questionable marriage. On the surface, her reasoning for accepting the ring of commitment from the bended knee of AOL Chairman and CEO Tim Armstrong, appears to fit her vision for a broader reach of The Huffington Post. My concern is the taint of yet another corporate buyout of an entity many readers believed to be reasonably pure of more than Groupon and numerous how to lose body fat ads.
I wonder what Tina Brown would do if Yahoo offered to buy The Daily Beast? Yes, Yahoo. Remember them? If a mass exodus of The Huffington Post readers actually occurs per numerous comments on that site today, The Daily Beast may just live up to its name and scarf-up the leftovers.
(Thanks to an astute reader's comment, I will mention that in November, 2010, Newsweek and The Daily Beast merged in a 50-50 venture. Yahoo was an example of an online entity of little power.)
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Touching Down & Out
How's your attention span today? Mine is all askew. I have a job to do and the deadline is in a few hours. As always, I'll be back to slap Sarah Pain-in-the-Gut-Nut very soon. You know she's mouthing off once again over Obama's Egypt policy - as if she knows where Egypt is on the map. And yes, it's true that she wants to place a trademark on her name.
Ah, the plot sickens.......
Ah, the plot sickens.......
Saturday, February 5, 2011
At Wit’s End
I don’t know where to begin flogging today, which is frustrating to say the least. I’m staring at a blank screen begging to be filled with words of wrath or laughs – perhaps something in-between – and haven’t the wit to fit the schick. To get the juices pumping, the video below was posted, but the constant come-on face of Andra got in the way of the amazing special effects and all I wanted to do was shout “Stop gyrating and pouting! Get on with the song for eff’s sake! There’s nothing NEW about it!” Except for those nifty “special” effects.
After pacing around my abode for an hour in a blogger’s fog, retracing the latest news in my head, it dawned on me that writing an entire blog full of cliché’s could be entertaining, albeit straining on the brain. What do you think? Shall I give it a try? Is it something new? I doubt it; nevertheless, I have nothing to lose.
For once in my life I’ll let the chips fall where they may. What in the world does that mean? It’s an incomplete sentence. “Where they may…” May what? May give the devil his due so those chips will, by hook or by crook, end up, by the end of the day, in a heap on a poker table? The chips are poker chips, aren’t they? Not chips as in “fish and chips.” Could it be wood chips? Wow! I’m behind the eight ball on this one - hook, line, and sinker.
To discover the meaning of the chips, I could nip the entire question in the bud by researching the phrase. Doing so, though, would end the fun of playing with what in the world it actually means. Oh, I know most of you are chomping at the bit to learn the answer to this age-old question that no one really cares about; however, most of us from all walks of life have used the phrase at least once and never gave it a thought. We’re all in the same boat on this one unless you are a trivia scholar of sorts.
Having said that, I will carry on until the bitter end with this nonsense although I may pay the piper by losing your interest along the way. Don’t worry, I’ll have the answer just in the nick of time and this blog will be selling like hot cakes before the day is through. Yep. There’s never a dull moment here at TDFB. If there is, you can be sure I’ll find a way to stick out like a sore thumb whenever possible to gain your attention as you while away the hours looking for something to do. Believe me, I will leave no stone unturned to make your day. I do realize that you must have the patience of Job to hang in there with me as I ramble through this post in leaps and bounds of absurdity.
But what is a Saturday for other than to kick up one’s heels in the calm before the storm of this Sunday in particular, a Super Day for many in the US of A; or just another day for some to cry over spilled milk of their sins in a place of worship when the writing is on the wall that chances are most people will just do whatever it is all over again on Monday. ‘Tis simply human nature from time immemorial to allow sermons to fall on deaf ears, especially when a nearby home is full of cheers for a sports event.
Oh, silly is as silly does, doesn’t it? We’ve been on a whirlwind tour of cliché’s long enough. After all, we must get to the bottom of the “chip” mystery lock, stock, and barrel, correct?
The answer is: it’s wood chips from a woodcutter.
On that note, I leave you all for the day to make hay while the sun shines. Until my return tomorrow, I remain, as always, your faithful blogger who is feeling cool as a cucumber.
Sort of.
After pacing around my abode for an hour in a blogger’s fog, retracing the latest news in my head, it dawned on me that writing an entire blog full of cliché’s could be entertaining, albeit straining on the brain. What do you think? Shall I give it a try? Is it something new? I doubt it; nevertheless, I have nothing to lose.
For once in my life I’ll let the chips fall where they may. What in the world does that mean? It’s an incomplete sentence. “Where they may…” May what? May give the devil his due so those chips will, by hook or by crook, end up, by the end of the day, in a heap on a poker table? The chips are poker chips, aren’t they? Not chips as in “fish and chips.” Could it be wood chips? Wow! I’m behind the eight ball on this one - hook, line, and sinker.
To discover the meaning of the chips, I could nip the entire question in the bud by researching the phrase. Doing so, though, would end the fun of playing with what in the world it actually means. Oh, I know most of you are chomping at the bit to learn the answer to this age-old question that no one really cares about; however, most of us from all walks of life have used the phrase at least once and never gave it a thought. We’re all in the same boat on this one unless you are a trivia scholar of sorts.
Having said that, I will carry on until the bitter end with this nonsense although I may pay the piper by losing your interest along the way. Don’t worry, I’ll have the answer just in the nick of time and this blog will be selling like hot cakes before the day is through. Yep. There’s never a dull moment here at TDFB. If there is, you can be sure I’ll find a way to stick out like a sore thumb whenever possible to gain your attention as you while away the hours looking for something to do. Believe me, I will leave no stone unturned to make your day. I do realize that you must have the patience of Job to hang in there with me as I ramble through this post in leaps and bounds of absurdity.
But what is a Saturday for other than to kick up one’s heels in the calm before the storm of this Sunday in particular, a Super Day for many in the US of A; or just another day for some to cry over spilled milk of their sins in a place of worship when the writing is on the wall that chances are most people will just do whatever it is all over again on Monday. ‘Tis simply human nature from time immemorial to allow sermons to fall on deaf ears, especially when a nearby home is full of cheers for a sports event.
Oh, silly is as silly does, doesn’t it? We’ve been on a whirlwind tour of cliché’s long enough. After all, we must get to the bottom of the “chip” mystery lock, stock, and barrel, correct?
The answer is: it’s wood chips from a woodcutter.
On that note, I leave you all for the day to make hay while the sun shines. Until my return tomorrow, I remain, as always, your faithful blogger who is feeling cool as a cucumber.
Sort of.
Friday, February 4, 2011
The Week That Wuz
Once again I lift my nimble fingers to report, comment and vent on another week gone by.
The big story has been (and remains) Egypt. Revolution. Chaos. Censorship. That’s all I’ll write as the changes are coming so fast that by the time I complete this sentence yet another odd event or action will have occurred. In fact, just now I’ve learned that Egyptian TV is currently showing pictures of flowers.
Ponder that image. Try not to laugh.
Meanwhile, our dear BFF, Mother Nature, is really in an escalating surly or feisty mood as she dumps gigantic snowballs over half of the U.S. - just for kicks, I guess. Oh, who can blame her for having her own version of a meltdown or being the class clown of the Universe? It must get lonely at the top with no one to play with, so, from time to time, she must have a giggle-fest or a total blowout.
Australia was next in her crosshairs with a major Cyclone yesterday that swirled down under with gripping force flattening all plant life and tossing roof's of homes and buildings into the air to slap a few more Aussies around while they attempt to put their lives back together following the soaring floods of January. Hey, that kind of behavior is simply not acceptable, Missy Nature! How about a nice little rain shower in drought-ridden areas? You know, do something productive instead of destructive?
Oh, she won’t listen to me. It’s as if I’m talking to the wind.
Hollywood news never gets old, does it? It’s not as if the same names are in the press every week with a new bout of troubles. No way. Nope. We’re not tired of hearing about Lindsay Lohan’s recent kleptomaniac moment at a jewelry store, are we? The classy way she had a “friend” return the $2,500 necklace after the store reported the alleged theft to the police? Or that her probation may be jeopardized - again - with this latest" mistake"? Or that she may end up back in prison for this little mishap? Or, could it be that her wattle wrist is gonna get slapped one more time and she’ll be re-sent off to re-Habitat for Insanity? Hey, I have an idea. Why not send her over to Charlie Sheen’s man cave for his version of home rehab? The two of them would have a real good time, I betcha.
Try not to imagine what even one night in the same room with those two would be like. Really. Don’t.
A new media throwdown is on the rise between MSNBC’s Chris Matthews and Fox News’ Glenn Beck. How nostalgic it is now that Keith O. is gone and his war of words against Bill O’Reilly of Fox is but a mere, dim memory of bashings past. Chris has taken up the sword and is calling Beck “looney-tunes” – a rather mild description in my humble opinion. Glenn Beck’s maniacal Islamic conspiracy ramblings have risen to a fear-mongering hysteria at the same speed of his radio and TV ratings nose dive. Never fear, Fox is standing behind their man. The only way they would dare to send him out the door would be in a much-needed straitjacket as he clutched his blackboard and chalk, pointer and the hefty buzz saw he swung around his set last week, indicating that he just might use it on a bunny wabbit.
Oh that Glenn. He’s a laugh and a half, isn’t he? Hope if any of you watched that segment you weren’t with sensitive children or future serial killers enjoying the promise of a chainsaw massacre on live TV. In future, Fox should place a PG 14 warning on his program for all kinds of crazy reasons – as in, he’s bloomin’ crazy!
Last, and the very least of the weeks’ grand bumbles, is the reality that not one person I know, nor not one stranger on the Internet, misses Larry King. Now, that says something – I just don’t know what it means because Piers Morgan hasn’t shut his boring mouth on his gaudy new set in Larry’s old time slot since Day One. Perhaps viewers are too shell-shocked watching all of those wispy pastels in the background make Piers appear as if he’s channeling his show from the inside of a VW bus from the 1960’s. Guaranteed LSD flashbacks for diversion.
Otherwise, most of us would change the channel much faster if we could only find that funny-looking remote device with all of those confusing little buttons with numbers and squiggles on them......
The big story has been (and remains) Egypt. Revolution. Chaos. Censorship. That’s all I’ll write as the changes are coming so fast that by the time I complete this sentence yet another odd event or action will have occurred. In fact, just now I’ve learned that Egyptian TV is currently showing pictures of flowers.
Ponder that image. Try not to laugh.
Meanwhile, our dear BFF, Mother Nature, is really in an escalating surly or feisty mood as she dumps gigantic snowballs over half of the U.S. - just for kicks, I guess. Oh, who can blame her for having her own version of a meltdown or being the class clown of the Universe? It must get lonely at the top with no one to play with, so, from time to time, she must have a giggle-fest or a total blowout.
Australia was next in her crosshairs with a major Cyclone yesterday that swirled down under with gripping force flattening all plant life and tossing roof's of homes and buildings into the air to slap a few more Aussies around while they attempt to put their lives back together following the soaring floods of January. Hey, that kind of behavior is simply not acceptable, Missy Nature! How about a nice little rain shower in drought-ridden areas? You know, do something productive instead of destructive?
Oh, she won’t listen to me. It’s as if I’m talking to the wind.
Hollywood news never gets old, does it? It’s not as if the same names are in the press every week with a new bout of troubles. No way. Nope. We’re not tired of hearing about Lindsay Lohan’s recent kleptomaniac moment at a jewelry store, are we? The classy way she had a “friend” return the $2,500 necklace after the store reported the alleged theft to the police? Or that her probation may be jeopardized - again - with this latest" mistake"? Or that she may end up back in prison for this little mishap? Or, could it be that her wattle wrist is gonna get slapped one more time and she’ll be re-sent off to re-Habitat for Insanity? Hey, I have an idea. Why not send her over to Charlie Sheen’s man cave for his version of home rehab? The two of them would have a real good time, I betcha.
Try not to imagine what even one night in the same room with those two would be like. Really. Don’t.
A new media throwdown is on the rise between MSNBC’s Chris Matthews and Fox News’ Glenn Beck. How nostalgic it is now that Keith O. is gone and his war of words against Bill O’Reilly of Fox is but a mere, dim memory of bashings past. Chris has taken up the sword and is calling Beck “looney-tunes” – a rather mild description in my humble opinion. Glenn Beck’s maniacal Islamic conspiracy ramblings have risen to a fear-mongering hysteria at the same speed of his radio and TV ratings nose dive. Never fear, Fox is standing behind their man. The only way they would dare to send him out the door would be in a much-needed straitjacket as he clutched his blackboard and chalk, pointer and the hefty buzz saw he swung around his set last week, indicating that he just might use it on a bunny wabbit.
Oh that Glenn. He’s a laugh and a half, isn’t he? Hope if any of you watched that segment you weren’t with sensitive children or future serial killers enjoying the promise of a chainsaw massacre on live TV. In future, Fox should place a PG 14 warning on his program for all kinds of crazy reasons – as in, he’s bloomin’ crazy!
Last, and the very least of the weeks’ grand bumbles, is the reality that not one person I know, nor not one stranger on the Internet, misses Larry King. Now, that says something – I just don’t know what it means because Piers Morgan hasn’t shut his boring mouth on his gaudy new set in Larry’s old time slot since Day One. Perhaps viewers are too shell-shocked watching all of those wispy pastels in the background make Piers appear as if he’s channeling his show from the inside of a VW bus from the 1960’s. Guaranteed LSD flashbacks for diversion.
Otherwise, most of us would change the channel much faster if we could only find that funny-looking remote device with all of those confusing little buttons with numbers and squiggles on them......
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Say It Ain’t So
Okay. I’m convinced that hell has frozen over and that the end is near. It began when I found myself agreeing with Bill O'Reilly twice in one week. I was so shocked the first time, I no longer recall the subject. The second was when he stood up to a small panel of pundits on his TV program where he graded President Obama’s handling of the Egyptian crisis higher than both – and one was a Democrat.
Then, yesterday, Michele Bachmann expressed her concern over the TSA body scans, suggesting she will not go through such an experience lest a copy of her scan would land in the wrong hands to be posted on the interwebs. Though an idea of seeing what could be inside that creepy Being is too much for me to consider before breakfast, it’s true that, eventually, someone at some point in the future will stealthily leak a scan of a person of public interest for the sheer thrill of it, not to mention all the money a tabloid-powered website and publication would pay for the skeletal sensation it would create. Therefore, I agree with her. Gulp.
But it’s the possible UFO sighting in Jerusalem over the weekend that has brought me to the conclusion that something big is afoot beyond a few thousand protester’s storming the streets of Cairo. Have you seen the “UFO” video? More than one video of it exists. If it was a hoax, as the usual cynics are suggesting, I’d like to know how the “hoax” was created to move at such speed? I’ve been thinking (and sometimes saying) for many years that when we begin to have very public sightings of those strange lights in the sky, it will be a significant indication of how close we are to ruining our planet.
Aside from the doom and gloom scenario, it’s a lovely day today. The earth is still spinning, isn’t it? Or is it just my head?
Then, yesterday, Michele Bachmann expressed her concern over the TSA body scans, suggesting she will not go through such an experience lest a copy of her scan would land in the wrong hands to be posted on the interwebs. Though an idea of seeing what could be inside that creepy Being is too much for me to consider before breakfast, it’s true that, eventually, someone at some point in the future will stealthily leak a scan of a person of public interest for the sheer thrill of it, not to mention all the money a tabloid-powered website and publication would pay for the skeletal sensation it would create. Therefore, I agree with her. Gulp.
But it’s the possible UFO sighting in Jerusalem over the weekend that has brought me to the conclusion that something big is afoot beyond a few thousand protester’s storming the streets of Cairo. Have you seen the “UFO” video? More than one video of it exists. If it was a hoax, as the usual cynics are suggesting, I’d like to know how the “hoax” was created to move at such speed? I’ve been thinking (and sometimes saying) for many years that when we begin to have very public sightings of those strange lights in the sky, it will be a significant indication of how close we are to ruining our planet.
Aside from the doom and gloom scenario, it’s a lovely day today. The earth is still spinning, isn’t it? Or is it just my head?
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Egyptian Caught-en in Shreds
It’s back to Egypt we go. Peaceful protests lasted long enough for most protesters to catch a shower, have a quick dinner, before going back out to face the new music. And the music isn’t soothing or attended by veiled women sensually gyrating to sounds of violence. Now there are camels in Tahrir Square, carrying thugs with clubs to beat the heat out of the disgruntled masses. Suddenly, Mubarak supporter’s are descending on the scene of distress ready and willing to create a bloody mess.
And a big fat mess it is. When Anderson Cooper is bashed over his silvery head, you just have to know he’s not in Manhattan anymore. Where is Brian Williams hiding-out? In a very secret safe zone, that’s where. Little tents can be seen in the background of his day time reports, while he tells us that he is, in essence, staying clear of flying fists and extreme hissy-fits.
I don’t hold that against any journalist in Cairo right now. No reporters had been attacked until Mubarak’s supporters/henchmen arrived to cut off the talking heads of universal information. President Mubarak may have been, and could remain so, a helpful force in Middle East stability; however, shutting down communication outlets, targeting (it would seem) anyone with a microphone, is serious mean sheet.
Now that Mubarak’s proposed exit in the fall of this year has done nothing to quell the outraged, we can expect to see a significant continuation of mass hostile responses from all sides escalating to a crescendo of a true revolution most of us haven’t witnessed in a very long time – if ever.
Who wouldn’t be pissed after 30 years of faux democracy without the perks of a true democracy? Hmmm. What perks? Right now America is slowly going the way of Egypt with regard to poverty, unemployment….
The difference is that our Mubarak has been in the form of Wall Street and Investment Bankers…the CEO’s of the Hallowed Halls of Greed. A mass protest against the guilty in those institutions would end up with most of the masses further in debt when they realize their wallets were cleverly snagged by the slick little pick-pocketer’s in the crowd. After all, like attracts like…chances are most would be employees of the corporations in question. Gotta get as much money out of the great unwashed as is possible, right?
One element of the riveting unrest in Egypt is the drumbeat of comparing Obama’s response to those of other president’s when faced with great international challenges. By now, I’m sure that most of you who follow the news have heard at least one pundit use Reagan’s “tear down that wall” as a primo example of leadership. My opinion is that Obama has been excellent in the wake of this latest Middle East human quake.
Unlike America’s relationship with Russia at the time of Reagan’s famous pronouncement, a wall going down between two sections of a country promised stability in the region rather than disastrous instability as we now face with an impending new government in Egypt. As Egyptian dominoes fall, so does Jordan, Israel, Yemen, China. Those countries in that lineup would give any person cause for pause before stepping in front of a microphone and demanding the removal of another country’s leader.
Either way, Obama/the U.S., is between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Fancy dancing is required to appease all concerned. What is said now could reverberate through the Middle East ad infinitum, bringing either more hate toward the United States or a wave of relief.
It’s true that no one can please all of the people all of the time, and yet Obama has been receiving good marks from unusual sources such as John The Pain McCain and Bill O’Reilly - of all people. I don’t want a reactionary loose-lipped president standing at a podium bow-legged from a day at the ranch spewing incomprehensible babble-talk at a time like this. A calm, steady and firm mind must flow with the events until all ducks, so to speak, are lined-up. Meaning, I’m sure the White House phone lines are sizzling between Jordan, Israel, Yemen, China (shah), among other country’s leaders to find a way to handle what’s lurking beneath Egypt’s many sand dunes.
So far, all I can see as the outcome is yet another rock falling off of The Great Pyramid from further erosion via the toxic air.
Developing……
And a big fat mess it is. When Anderson Cooper is bashed over his silvery head, you just have to know he’s not in Manhattan anymore. Where is Brian Williams hiding-out? In a very secret safe zone, that’s where. Little tents can be seen in the background of his day time reports, while he tells us that he is, in essence, staying clear of flying fists and extreme hissy-fits.
I don’t hold that against any journalist in Cairo right now. No reporters had been attacked until Mubarak’s supporters/henchmen arrived to cut off the talking heads of universal information. President Mubarak may have been, and could remain so, a helpful force in Middle East stability; however, shutting down communication outlets, targeting (it would seem) anyone with a microphone, is serious mean sheet.
Now that Mubarak’s proposed exit in the fall of this year has done nothing to quell the outraged, we can expect to see a significant continuation of mass hostile responses from all sides escalating to a crescendo of a true revolution most of us haven’t witnessed in a very long time – if ever.
Who wouldn’t be pissed after 30 years of faux democracy without the perks of a true democracy? Hmmm. What perks? Right now America is slowly going the way of Egypt with regard to poverty, unemployment….
The difference is that our Mubarak has been in the form of Wall Street and Investment Bankers…the CEO’s of the Hallowed Halls of Greed. A mass protest against the guilty in those institutions would end up with most of the masses further in debt when they realize their wallets were cleverly snagged by the slick little pick-pocketer’s in the crowd. After all, like attracts like…chances are most would be employees of the corporations in question. Gotta get as much money out of the great unwashed as is possible, right?
One element of the riveting unrest in Egypt is the drumbeat of comparing Obama’s response to those of other president’s when faced with great international challenges. By now, I’m sure that most of you who follow the news have heard at least one pundit use Reagan’s “tear down that wall” as a primo example of leadership. My opinion is that Obama has been excellent in the wake of this latest Middle East human quake.
Unlike America’s relationship with Russia at the time of Reagan’s famous pronouncement, a wall going down between two sections of a country promised stability in the region rather than disastrous instability as we now face with an impending new government in Egypt. As Egyptian dominoes fall, so does Jordan, Israel, Yemen, China. Those countries in that lineup would give any person cause for pause before stepping in front of a microphone and demanding the removal of another country’s leader.
Either way, Obama/the U.S., is between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Fancy dancing is required to appease all concerned. What is said now could reverberate through the Middle East ad infinitum, bringing either more hate toward the United States or a wave of relief.
It’s true that no one can please all of the people all of the time, and yet Obama has been receiving good marks from unusual sources such as John The Pain McCain and Bill O’Reilly - of all people. I don’t want a reactionary loose-lipped president standing at a podium bow-legged from a day at the ranch spewing incomprehensible babble-talk at a time like this. A calm, steady and firm mind must flow with the events until all ducks, so to speak, are lined-up. Meaning, I’m sure the White House phone lines are sizzling between Jordan, Israel, Yemen, China (shah), among other country’s leaders to find a way to handle what’s lurking beneath Egypt’s many sand dunes.
So far, all I can see as the outcome is yet another rock falling off of The Great Pyramid from further erosion via the toxic air.
Developing……
Everybody Must Get Honed
This here edgy-cated whoa-man who rights this here post is feelin’ like she fell back into the Wild West these crazy daze. Wanna have a gun? Jest git yerself off to the land of South Dakota where they’s a trin’ to push a mandatory “every body’s gotta get guns” kinda law into their land. Yee haw – once agin. Git yer saddle out an’ lets jus’ have our day in the fun. Bang-Bang. Hope the grand masses of South Dakota (population: nary a few) shoot it down - now. We don’t need no more gratuitous violence in the streets - and how!
Truth is, the folks who are buying’ the guns of late are often those whom defy the stereotypical “Redneck” label and are able to speak without a vocabulary disability. (Whoops. I was un-PC. My bad.) Ask Ashton Kutcher, who is, according to his own words *, compiling a fine gun collection to protect his family from impending irrational chaos on these here shores of the US of A. To be incredibly honest, I understand this form of paranoia. Humans, like many of their animal counterparts, are a tad unpredictable…and yet, extremely predictable: see All Wars/Territorial Bloodshed/Random Chaos, etc.
The desire for guns in America is rising as much as the country’s debt ratio. Part of the concern of the seemingly sane and urbane, is an impending Armageddon. Granted, regardless of one’s religious beliefs, all one has to do is pay attention to how the Universe enjoys supposed "random" surprises. HI! We’re gonna wreak some heavy-duty sheet on you guys, so hang on tight – if you might.
Truth is, the folks who are buying’ the guns of late are often those whom defy the stereotypical “Redneck” label and are able to speak without a vocabulary disability. (Whoops. I was un-PC. My bad.) Ask Ashton Kutcher, who is, according to his own words *, compiling a fine gun collection to protect his family from impending irrational chaos on these here shores of the US of A. To be incredibly honest, I understand this form of paranoia. Humans, like many of their animal counterparts, are a tad unpredictable…and yet, extremely predictable: see All Wars/Territorial Bloodshed/Random Chaos, etc.
The desire for guns in America is rising as much as the country’s debt ratio. Part of the concern of the seemingly sane and urbane, is an impending Armageddon. Granted, regardless of one’s religious beliefs, all one has to do is pay attention to how the Universe enjoys supposed "random" surprises. HI! We’re gonna wreak some heavy-duty sheet on you guys, so hang on tight – if you might.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
The Revolution Is Only Televised
With Internet access still on lockdown in Egypt, and as of today a supposed blackout on cell phone signals, those of us who live elsewhere in the world are sitting in our homes, in a coffee shop, at a desk, listening and/or watching a country undergo a revolution in a primarily decent way. Not to negate the 100+ deaths, the week-long rowdy protests, but in general, considering how many revolutions have been the opposite, what we’re witnessing is fairly tame, albeit full of extraordinarily potential sketchy ramifications. Like it or not, President Mubarak has kept Israel and Egypt out of war for 30 years.
It does look daunting over there with visuals of seas of people on the move; however, when a military presence begins flying overhead in waves; when the possibility of being shot for screaming too much in the wrong place at the wrong time exists, things tend to calm down - or become worse. For now, it’s quieter than it’s been. Calm before the storming of the palace doors to grab President Mubarak by the scruff of his neck and drag the man out of his 30 year “Democratic” reign?
Change can be good, depending on who or what is in place to pick up the slack. If anyone thinks what is happening over "there" won't affect what happens "here" - think again. The instability and stability of that region in the world is key to every aspect of our lives in the West. The U.S. in particular is more than in bed with Israel and Egypt, but has dabbled in some kinky machinations over the years on those high thread count middle east sheets just to keep the peace. As it were.
Okay. I weighed-in - lightly - on the main story playing out over the world stage. I've done my bit for the day. Where to find the flog, though?
Oh! Well, we can always count on Charlie who-never-seems-to-lose-his-Sheen, for a good snark. It's now rehab at HIS HOME! That's right. Charlie has a few "privacy" issues (????) and feels more comfy in his lovely abode. I wonder how that's considered "rehab"? Does it mean his nurses must dress as teachers rather than school girls? The legal drugs will be served in a silver cup rather than in a porn star's navel?
I also wonder if he'll be allowed Internet access considering how much the guy loves his online porn. Now, keeping him away from that is going to be quite a revolution.
It does look daunting over there with visuals of seas of people on the move; however, when a military presence begins flying overhead in waves; when the possibility of being shot for screaming too much in the wrong place at the wrong time exists, things tend to calm down - or become worse. For now, it’s quieter than it’s been. Calm before the storming of the palace doors to grab President Mubarak by the scruff of his neck and drag the man out of his 30 year “Democratic” reign?
Change can be good, depending on who or what is in place to pick up the slack. If anyone thinks what is happening over "there" won't affect what happens "here" - think again. The instability and stability of that region in the world is key to every aspect of our lives in the West. The U.S. in particular is more than in bed with Israel and Egypt, but has dabbled in some kinky machinations over the years on those high thread count middle east sheets just to keep the peace. As it were.
Okay. I weighed-in - lightly - on the main story playing out over the world stage. I've done my bit for the day. Where to find the flog, though?
Oh! Well, we can always count on Charlie who-never-seems-to-lose-his-Sheen, for a good snark. It's now rehab at HIS HOME! That's right. Charlie has a few "privacy" issues (????) and feels more comfy in his lovely abode. I wonder how that's considered "rehab"? Does it mean his nurses must dress as teachers rather than school girls? The legal drugs will be served in a silver cup rather than in a porn star's navel?
I also wonder if he'll be allowed Internet access considering how much the guy loves his online porn. Now, keeping him away from that is going to be quite a revolution.
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