Uppity-Negro.com

. . . Greg Palast is only too happy to remind:

In the 2000 presidential election, 1.9 million Americans cast ballots that no one counted. "Spoiled votes" is the technical term. The pile of ballots left to rot has a distinctly dark hue: About 1 million of them -- half of the rejected ballots -- were cast by African Americans although black voters make up only 12 percent of the electorate.

This year, it could get worse.

Finally picked up the current (not that I'd read the prior one) edition of The Best Democracy Money Can Buy. Between that, the linked article and the all-too-familiar-from-personal-experience dismissal of African American House members at the beginning of Fahrenheit 9/11. . . oh yeah, I'm feeling good.

And really liking Republicans. And the Democratic Party. I am full of love. And optimism. Knowing, with clear, absolute certainty, that the Republicans are evil, racist fucking assholes, rather than merely suspecting it, is actually reassuring in a way. Knowing the Democratic Party has better things to do with their time and political capital than uphold the rule of law or democratic principles? Good to know.

And to think.

I was actually feeling guilty about the veiny, evil, fuck all y'all attitude.

The LAPD showing themselves still ready, willing and able to go Giuliani Time on a brotha on camera really just makes the very slightest difference. Barely noticeable, to be honest.

I won't bore you with my reaction to the slow pan over a group of white, male senators smiling and applauding as President Pro Tempore Al Gore gaveled us -- yes, children, us -- into silence/submission.

It might reflect badly on me.

And if there's one thing I've learned from numerous condescending lectures from insufferable, arrogant white pricks, it's that in the face of all the shit we're expected to endure with quiet dignity in this society, the absolute worst thing any Negro could possibly do or say is something that reflects badly to our genetic, intellectual superiors.

Posted by Aaron at 9:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm just certain I'll forget to use this by the time it's truly Too Damned Hot to sit outside updating:

Job 30

29. I am a brother to dragons, and a companion to owls.
30. My skin is black upon me, and my bones are burned with heat.

But I always say that.

As it happens, I won't be seeing the IMAX version of the film of J.K. Rowling's third Harry Potter novel this evening with the hot babe after all. And if you followed that sentence, you're a better person than I. I just write this stuff; as you can tell from the typos and editing errors, I clearly don't actually read it.

The quote is something Linus (not Torvalds, Van Pelt) said right before. . . oh, I won't ruin the Peanuts parody strip for you, seeing as it's (apparently) no longer available on line. I'm sure it'll reappear. These things always do.

Off to experience the joy that is the Blue Line. I always question when the nice Milwaukee announcer claims that This is Grand, because, generally speaking, no, it really isn't.

Posted by Aaron at 5:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (7) | TrackBacks (0)

. . . I wouldn't be terribly impressed by someone taking an informal survey of blogs run by Negroes and declaring that President Bush was popular among us, because they had the (possibly deliberate) misfortune of running across. . . no, linking them will just bring them here. And that child -- the subject of the piece, not the writer -- will say she's going to pray for me again. Which always sounds like a threat when she says it.

Suggested reading, not on this point, but rather on the Ryan thing I'm not talking about either: It's Not The Hypocrisy, Damn It, over at respectful of otters. Particular attention should be given to the comments. Well, some of the comments, anyway.

Posted by Aaron at 6:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (1)

. . . cuz it's hot. Well, not that bad, but it's early summer yet. . .

Never did manage to get the entry about Fahrenheit 9/11, which I saw Sunday night, into shape. For a start, couldn't work in this bit from an interview with Francis Wheen, author of Idiot Proof: Deluded Celebrities, Irrational Power Brokers, Media Morons, and the Erosion of Common Sense:

A few months later, Margaret Thatcher's Tories were elected in Britain, and Ronald Reagan was elected in November. Thatcher and Reagan also wanted to retreat from the 20th century -- to the 19th century, in their case, a time innocent of welfare states, regulated economies, or interventionist governments. In the quarter-century since, the Enlightenment insistence on rejecting tradition and authority as the infallible sources of truth has taken a bashing in both America and Britain.

[. . .] It's tragic, because America is the biggest, boldest, and most successful Enlightenment project. Those who strive to discredit rationalism consign us all to a life in darkness.

Which link/interview I saw at Blog of a Bookslut, and if you buy the book through that link, I think the money goes to Jessica, so that's all right. And I assure you, it would work in context. If I could get the context worked out.

I did like the movie, though, although I have to agree with the complaint from some reviewer (can't remember who) who mentioned that Moore has an unfortunate tendency to use found footage no matter how crappy. And the difference in image quality between video and film has never been clearer.

What, you wanted a discussion of the content?

That's nice.

May be going to see Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban tomorrow at Navy Pier, in IMAX, with a hot babe.

But I doubt anyone would be interested in this -- movie's been out for ages -- so there probably won't be an entry about that either.

And I love my tenous grasp on sanity you all too much to write anything about my temp assignment. Unless anyone is in need of a sleep aid. . .

Posted by Aaron at 10:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Which would be a coffee shop on Damen & North & Milwaukee. Um, yeah, I'm here too, but only as an anthropologist observing their curious, ritualized behavior. Mating, for example,seems to involve. . . never mind.

The good news is, facefive WiFi cares not if one uses GNU/Linux, as long as you gots the cash.

The bad news is, trying to write entries offline the last few days has involved entirely too much thinking, reconsidering what I'd written, trying to edit to better reflect the changes in thought brought about by actually putting 'em down on paper/screen/whatever, and then. . .

. . . abandoning the things as not worth the effort.

Don't worry, you're not missing much.

Oh, you weren't worried.

Well, all right then.

Posted by Aaron at 8:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Clicking that graphic will take you to kitty30.com | Hello Kitty 30 years. You'll want to turn your speakers up. Or down. Or off, depending on how much cute you can stand.

This is, of course, old news. From Lisa Loeb's site:

Lisa to be Master of Ceremonies for Sanrio / HELLO KITTY 30th Anniversary Party!

ON Tuesday, June 8, Lisa will be hosting a 30th Anniversary Party commemorating Hello Kitty and announcing Hello Kitty's new partnership with the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. The event is going to be held at Rockefeller Center in New York City. For more information, click here.

And check in with Sanrio.com or hellokitty.com throughout the year to see other ways that you can support UNICEF. For more information on UNICEF's Girls Education initiatives click here.

Er, sorry for not mentioning this before. . .

On second thought, no, I'm not.

Posted by Aaron at 3:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Early next month, people in the Sin Twin Cities and here in Chi can see Vienna Teng, up there on July 8th at The 400, and here on the 9th, at Schuba's. But tonight, tonight she opened for Over the Rhine at The Dame in Lexington, Kentucky. Which, if you hit that link, has the coolest graphic ever.

I think I would have driven down there for that, if I'd known about it. And hadn't returned the (leased) Focus a few months back.

Vienna'll be playing The Dame again on the 13th, and Birdy's in Indianapolis on the 11th. She had a cold last time she played Chicago, and I still loved the (abbreviated, apology-filled) show, for what it's worth.

Seeing as I'm also considering seeing Melissa Etheridge on the 1st, at Perillo of all places, this may not be worth much.

np: This American Life, #266, I'm From the Private Sector and I'm Here to Help

Posted by Aaron at 11:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Jon Stewart, that is, on Larry King, from the highlights reel at Sisyphus Shrugged, discussing that one guy we're supposedly trying to capture or kill or something:

KING: Why do you think it's been so hard, Clinton said it last night, to get Osama bin Laden?

STEWART: Oh, he's a shape shifter.

KING: He's a what?

STEWART: Like on Star Trek.

KING: Oh.

STEWART: Some days he's Osama bin Laden, other days he's a lamp. And here's the other thing, too, when you have a beard, you have so many more disguise options than most people. He can trim it, he can go with a van dyke. Nobody expects that from bin Laden.

Suppose the Trek gag gives me a perfect opportunity to say something about that Jack Ryan thing:

Beleaguered Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Jack Ryan ended his campaign Friday, leaving his party scrambling to find a replacement with enough money and magnetism to mount a serious challenge against Democratic candidate Barack Obama.

Ryan had been under attack by a wide range of party leaders for a lack of candor following the release this week of previously sealed records from his divorce from TV actress Jeri Ryan, giving rise to what one prominent Republican called "buyer's remorse."

The Trib used to be solidly Republican, too. Weird. Oh, and registration-required. Also, they do mention their role in all this, quoting Ryan bitching about 'em:

"The media has gotten out of control," Ryan complained. "The fact that the Chicago Tribune sues for access to sealed custody documents and then takes unto itself the right to publish details of a custody dispute over the objections of two parents who agree that the re-airing of their arguments will hurt their ability to co-parent their child and will hurt their child is truly outrageous."

You know, I'd almost feel sorry for the guy if he'd quit fucking using that slightly remixed "What about the children" line. And making this about "the media" rather than his own (alleged) behavior. And getting into a Senate race with that sort of dirty laundry. And. . .

Ok, no, I wouldn't feel sorry for him despite all that, because I remember the Clinton scandals, real and fabricated. I've seen the level of discourse in politics get dragged down to the level that I doubt anyone who isn't a total policy wonk could accurately describe either Bush or Kerry's stances on five given issues.

And yes, I blame the Republicans for this. Including the ones who ain't have nothing to do with it, because they obviously weren't so opposed that they either a) fought to prevent it from happening or b) left the party in disgust.

I'm strongly in favor of leaving in disgust these days.

This may be one of the reasons I temp.

Posted by Aaron at 11:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (1)

Under normal circumstances, I'd adjust the all-caps title to MEET THE WHIMPSTER: THE MANIPULATIVE ASSHOLE IN SENSITIVE CLOTHING., a different version of which appears in this month's Bust, but it's a lazy Saturday afternoon, and I'm feeling lazy. And copy-and-paste-y. Deal.

The whimpster relationship is always the passive/aggressive stalker type.

Everyone's been in one of these... also known as: "hanging out", "coming over", "friends", "not my girlfriend", "whatever," "trading mix cds" or even worse: the pretend marriage.

This is the tricky part, because you realize that whimpsters really reveal more about your character than theirs. They prey on your insecurities by revealing their own. This is how you get stuck in a codependent, passive, jealous relationship with a whimpster you hopelessly try to fix, even though he won't let you. You'll spend a lot of time wondering why he's around, because his emotional unavailability is staggering. "If he's so sensitive, why isn't he even talking to me?"

Discuss.

Or don't.

There's also (in the magazine, not on the site) a brief history of vibrators and clitoral stimulation as a means of achieving orgasm, but it's pretty -- in fact, totally -- Western-centric. 'course, I'm not sure it's even possible to examine that in non-Western cultures, particularly from a historical perspective, since any first-person accounts from contemporary sources would, inevitably, reflect the biases of the (generally male) Western observ--

It's a lazy Saturday afternoon. Perhaps there's a better time for this discussion.

Or not.

Posted by Aaron at 3:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBacks (0)

See, at the appearance at Virgin MechaGodzilla Megastore on Thursday, Rachel Sage pointed out the shelf of Hello, Kitty merchandise the trumpet player was sitting next to, and mentioned the sweet deal that Lisa Loeb has with the Sanrio Corporation. So last night at Uncommon Ground, I gave her the Fetish Dress Hello, Kitty doll before the show.

It seemed like the right thing to do.

What?

Anyway, if you missed her (and Meredith, Tour Manager/roadie/all around cool person), there's a list o'shows posted, um, at that previous link. Anyone in/around Harrisburg in the house?

No, didn't think so.

And I'd written part of an entry last night at the show (and still have some time on the face five card, come t'think of it. . .), but the battery in the laptop died, and I had not saved it local or to the site before posting, so my brilliance has been lost to the ages. Which may be for the best, as I was slightly drunk. For example, I don't think the comparisons to Shakira are nearly as accurate as they may have seemed at the time, attire and dance notwithstanding.

I was going to say I was still too out-of-it to attend Pride March, but seeing as that's tomorrow, not today, I'll have to come up with another excuse. Don't worry, I'm good at that.

Posted by Aaron at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I've used that one before, haven't I?

Anyway, so. Finally broke down and bought the current issue of BUST at major chain type bookstore place, instead of waiting for Quimby's, which had sold out, to get more copies in. I know, this makes me a bad person, and I'll do penance later. Unless the current veiny evil is the penance, in which case, um, yeah.

But it has a piece by Wendy that's really good and you should buy the magazine and read it and laugh and stuff. Seeing as it doesn't appear to be online, and I don't feel like typing bits of it.

Also, she has guest bloggers while she's off in beautiful(?) Lake Forest, so oddly enough her place is updated more frequently than this one.

What else? Rachel Sage in-store appearance at the Virgin Megastore on Michigan later today. I have one of her cds, that I ordered from the former mp3.com, but can't say as I've listened to it lately. But there should be lots of Chicago Ectophile people there, and Meredith who is an Ectophile but isn't a Chicagoan, so you should go and listen to the music and buy cds and stuff.

Or wait for the appearance tomorrow at Uncommon Ground, since there's at least the semblance of advance notice on that one. And if you just can't pull yourself away from the computer for a few hours, they're a facefive WiFi provider location thingee.

No, I'm not sure why I'm writing like that either.

Oh, right, to hide the veiny evil. Somehow, I think writing like Jhonen Vasquez and Joss Whedon collaboting on a Delerium (from Sandman) comic helps. I'm deluding myself again, ain't I?

Posted by Aaron at 12:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

It started with Cosby's comments.

Or, not so much the comments, as the reaction of the (when I say "mainstream" read "white") mainstream media to said comments.

This was followed by the over-the-top praise of Reagan, with the odd notice that Negro folk didn't seem to be joining in in sufficient numbers, with sufficient enthusiasim, and discussion of what's wrong with those people that they didn't appreciate the greatness of the man, or at least couldn't put their petty differences (our differences are always petty) aside and go through the motions.

Mixed in with a beheading or two and calls to sterilize the entire Middle East, Except the White Folks Israel, and acts of stupidity in comments sections elsewhere. . . kind'a not feeling like writing much here lately.

Not anything that anyone, including me, would want to read, anyway.

Or is bitter, profanity-laced, ill-thought-out commentary what people come here for? I forget.

Update: Permalinks are a wonderful thing. If I was a real web log type person, I'd use them. . .

Posted by Aaron at 7:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

Very sketchy entry, seeing as I'm writing it over lunch at a cybercafe (Cyberia Chicago! Drop by and give them lots of money and stuff!). From the cover story of this week's Cincinnati Citybeat, The Banana Republic:

I hadn't realized how American, how numbingly national and stupidly patriotic I'd been toward Cubans until I deconstructed my ignorance of Cuba. Like most Americans, I assumed Cuba was forbidden, dark, dingy, diseased and filled with pitifully begging and dirty people blindly and loyally waiting for Castro to tell them when to take a shit.

Then on Fridays they stood on line at company stores waiting to return to the government the wages they'd slaved all week to earn. Stepford Cubans.

How stupid. Why won't they come here? And why won't they fly? Why the inner tubes?

Our presidents don't like Castro so he must be evil, a brainwashing egomaniacal dictator. That's because neither America public education, media conglomerates scripting news reports this side of propaganda nor do popularly elected officials tell the truth of our relationship to Cuba and our accountability for why Cuba is the way it is or why Castro behaves the way he does toward us.

That's Kathy Wilson, Your Negro Tour Guide, taking a tour of Cuba. It's a longer piece than the column usually is, since, y'know, cover story. And that's a good thing.

Finally started the review copy of the book (also called Your Negro Tour Guide, do try to keep up) that I received from the publisher longer ago than I'd care to think about. Am I not clear enough about the suckage? I think I mention the suckage fairly frequently. Do people think I'm joking about the suckage?

I'm enjoying it so far. Possibly because no group I consider myself to be part of has been in the crosshairs yet. And the bit about dreads. . . yes, "I'm not your negro petting zoo" will be the response next time someone asks if they can touch them.

Unless I like you.

Then it's ok.

Posted by Aaron at 12:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBacks (0)

From the Atlantic:

Is it possible that the stout woman, poor dear, has at last become stylish? May she at last be frankly fat, emancipated from the frantic remodelings at the hands of corsetière and couturière? The burden of obesity is not in the carrying of its pounds, but in being forced to treat the obvious as if it were surreptitious. What dizzy elation for the fat woman to realize that henceforth she is suffered to be not only frank but fashionable!

Specifically, from The Atlantic, February 1919, as you may have guessed from the word choice and syntax. Well, maybe not the precise date, but the style is pretty damned archaic, to my eyes, at least.

That reprint -- oddly, they weren't posting stories to their site back then -- was linked in The War on Fat, part of their Flashbacks series, worth examining if just to realize how many of the serious issues of the day are, in fact, the serious issues of yesteryear.

Which isn't to say rehashing 'em is pointless -- there usually wasn't consensus back in the day, and even if there was, some things do change. . . but what often seems to be missing is a realization that this is rehashing something, and the same old arguments are trotted out, even the ones that were effectively shot down in the previous. . .

Ok, this is getting perilously close to that discussion of politics/current events I'm trying to avoid.

Posted by Aaron at 10:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Courtesy of the New York Times, you can read the first chapter of David Sedaris' new collection, 'Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim':

WHEN MY FAMILY FIRST MOVED to North Carolina, we lived in a rented house three blocks from the school where I would begin the third grade. My mother made friends with one of the neighbors, but one seemed enough for her. Within a year we would move again and, as she explained, there wasn't much point in getting too close to people we would have to say goodbye to. Our next house was less than a mile away, and the short journey would hardly merit tears or even good-byes, for that matter. It was more of a "see you later" situation, but still I adopted my mother's attitude, as it allowed me to pretend that not making friends was a conscious choice. I could if I wanted to. It just wasn't the right time.

Or, if you've already read the entire book, you can join the discussion at one of the sites listed at AllConsuming.net. Still haven't bought it myself, and after seeing Jessa Crispin's mention ("I read the first half of the book and realized I had yet to laugh."), it's not at the very top of the list.

Not that I have a list. I just sort-of make it up as I go along.

Posted by Aaron at 7:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Possessive apostrophe for the plural form, I think. Didn't ask when I was there. "There" being Martyrs' Restaurant & Pub, where I saw Happy Rhodes, and will be missing Wilco next Tuesday, the 22nd, and then Michelle Shocked the following evening, Wednesday the 23rd.

Sort of like how I missed Over the Rhine last December 14th, but they do offer a record -- or rather, MP3 Rarity of the Month -- of the event. Cover of Let It Be, which I liked, but again, I'm possibly biased. There's more music available at their MP3 Attic; I recommend All I Need Is Everything and Last Night. For whatever that's worth.

And I think Wilco is one of those bands where the name has deeply insinuated itself into my brain, but I haven't the slightest idea what they sound like.

That's a free album release party type deal, by the way. And they're on Nonesuch, which is in their favor. I think I'm going to regret missing that show. . .

. . . oh look, I missed Angelique Kidjo on Tavis on Thursday. And the show at House of Blues on Tuesday. Darn shame I can't mention Summerfest without getting yelled at. . .

I'm deliberately avoiding politics again, yes. Deal.

Posted by Aaron at 6:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

So speaks Rich Koz, better known (among the cool kids, anyway) as Svengoolie, in 25 years of Svengoolie's humor in the registration-required Trib. But you were just going to drop by BugMeNot.com to get around that pesky little detail, yes?

It was at WFLD that Koz perfected the "Svengoolie" brand of postmodern vaudeville, a combination of local jokes (few comedians have gotten more mileage out of a city than Koz has gotten out of Berwyn), song parodies (when showing the slasher film "I Saw What You Did," Koz transformed the Coasters' "Yakety Yak" into the more appropriate "Hackety Hack") and deliberately groan-inducing wordplay. The writing was as smart as the humor was silly, and the show transcended its low budget with a homemade feel (in an era before computers, Koz did nearly all of the artwork himself) and Koz's gentle humor.

"I've never been one for the ... humor at the expense of somebody else, by making them feel they're not cool or smart or as hip as I am," Koz says. "I'm just trying to give somebody a laugh."

Noticed at Gapers' Block, which name I keep leaving the apostrophe out of.

Finished the (remaindered) copy of Weaving the Web: The Original Design and Ultimate Destiny of the World Wide Web on the train yesterday. Bit dated, naturally, and (probably entirely accurately) more than a bit negative towards NCSA's behavior in the early days, but it does explain why Gopher died. Licensing issues, basically. Here I'd thought it was because Minnesotans, by and large. . . did I mention that living there convinced me that the Nation of Islam actually has some very good points?

Well, it bears repeating.

From WiKipedia:

Then, in February of 1993, the University of Minnesota announced that they would begin to charge licensing fees for Gopher's use, which scared off many people and organizations that ran Gopher servers. Some people believe this is what relegated Gopher to a footnote in the history of the Internet.

Well, it certainly didn't help. . .

Want to know more? Sir Tim Berners-Lee has a page about the book at w3.org. And there'd be some bit of business here about weblogs (those that allow comments, anyway) representing at least a part of his original vision for the Web, but there's more than enough self-congratulatory rhetoric on these damned things as it is.

Posted by Aaron at 10:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

And walked by Quimby's yesterday to buy the current issue of BUST, but didn't see it. I would have asked the woman behind the counter, honest, but saw an in-store announcement for this:

Speaking of love (read: lust), I'd like to call your attention to the new Suicidegirls coffee table book. And if you happen to be in or around Chicago in the next few weeks, Missy Suicide and ten of her girls will be doing an in-store book signing and possible burlesque show here next month.

And decided to try getting it at Women & Children First instead.

The appearance, according to the calendar,will be Friday, July 2nd at 7.

This event is a release celebration for the new SuicideGirls coffee table book that displays the women of SuicideGirls over the past few years. SUICIDEGIRLS (published by Feral House) is 124 pages and displays over 200 fun, sexy and artful color photos that has come to define the women of SuicideGirls, the book also contains journal entries selected from the site and an introduction by Missy Suicide.

In addition to Missy, 8 SuicideGirls will be present to sign copies of the book and possibly perform a short set of their punk rock inspired Burlesque Act.

Links to Feral House and AllConsuming.net added, if anyone cares. And there's a brief overview of the SG site, for fans of alternate history fiction, that I didn't bother to quote.

What?

Apropos of very little, there's a letter criticizing attacking W&CF in this week's Chicago Reader. It's also pro-Starbucks, leading me to suspect astroturf, or at least extreme stupidity on the part of the writer.

I may, however, be biased.

I remain diplomatically neutral in regards to the Gapers Block vs. Chicagoist conflict, and call upon all sides to ferchrissakes go for quality over quantity/low price on beer. I mean, damn.

Posted by Aaron at 9:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Ok, since I've never really liked running external scripts, switched back to the local Stephen Downes Referrer System. You can still download the two files necessary to do so yourself from his site. And I really should modify the style code from Mandarin Design so the background isn't lime green. . .

. . . meaning I should stop playing with Portrait Illustration Maker. . .

. . . yes, I'm several days (at least) behind on my memes. . .

Anyway, if you were wondering why that list is now much, much shorter, there ya go.

Posted by Aaron at 7:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

JUNETEENTH WORLD WIDE CELEBRATION

Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration of the ending of slavery.

From its Galveston, Texas origin in 1865, the observance of June 19^th as the African American Emancipation Day has spread across the United States and beyond.

Today Juneteenth commemorates African American freedom and emphasizes education and achievement. It is a day, a week, and in some areas a month marked with celebrations, guest speakers, picnics and family gatherings. It is a time for reflection and rejoicing. It is a time for assessment, self-improvement and for planning the future. Its growing popularity signifies a level of maturity and dignity in America long over due.

If I can shake myself of the suckage for just one day, might head to the Old Town School of Folk Music Juneteenth Celebration tomorrow. For a start, there's:

5:00 - 6:00PM
Capoeira Workshop
with Eric Johnson in Room 101
Capoeira is a martial art that incorporates rhythmic movements and acrobatics and is accompanied by music and songs. Capoeira was used by enslaved Africans to win freedom from the Portuguese in Brazil and to establish and protect free and independent colonies, or Quilombos, deep in the jungles of the Amazon.

One hour workshop ain't gonna be enough to pick up move one, I know, but I've never actually seen it performed live.

Do wish they'd either chosen a different room, or just skipped that particular number when assigning them. . .

'You asked me once,' said O'Brien, 'what was in Room 101. I told you that you knew the answer already. Everyone knows it. The thing that is in Room 101 is the worst thing in the world.'

Yes, I suppose me trying to participate in the workshop could be described that way.

Posted by Aaron at 8:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

. . . I'm afraid you have to actually hit the link to http://www.manarchypace.com/road/roadF.html to see the image, and then come back here to suggest a caption.

Or not.

Perhaps "not" is the better option.

In other news, Indigo Girls are playing at Milwaukee Summerfest on July 4th (but no Britney Spears, a tragic loss, as Rachel laments), and Rasputina will be performing recitals on the following dates, in the corresponding places:

7/26 Lawrence KS The Bottleneck all ages
7/27 Omaha NE Ranch Bowl all ages
7/29 Colorado Springs CO 32 Bleu all ages
7/30 Boulder CO Fox Theatre all ages
8/01 North Plains OR Faerieworlds Festival all ages
8/03 Anaheim CA House of Blues all ages
8/04 San Diego CA Cane's 21+ (sorry!)
8/06 Albuquerque NM Sunshine Theater all ages
8/07 Oklahoma City OK Bricktown Live all ages
8/09 TBA Tennessee? St. Louis?
8/11 TBA Ohio?

They also want information (they won't get it) [by hook or by crook. . . ok, I'll stop]:

We can't find an all-ages place to play in San Diego. Do you know of one?
Also, in St.Louis- where could we play?

Send your suggestions to. . . hell, I dunno, there's probably a contact email somewhere on their site.

What?

Oh, right, had dinner at Earwax and it was this Seitan sandwich I've forgotten the name of and it had pesto and sundried tomato and it was really good and also the vegan carrot cake that was actually moist which tends to be a problem with the vegan versions elsewhere, and the waitress kept refilling my coffee and I kept drinking it and she kept refilling it and now I'm going to be up all night, possibly writing this very sentence, the sentence that never ends, yes it goes on and on my friends. . .

Saw the URI for manrachy.pace in the absurdly glossy Dossier Magazine, a copy of which I picked up on the way out of Earwax. And noticed a card announcing a Chicago Kings performance, which I'm no doubt going to miss, so why even bother giving details? Look 'em up yourself.

Posted by Aaron at 11:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

And then I politely inform them that. . . never mind.

The links list tour continues abated. Part of the problem is going off on tangents, like the one I'm very kindly sparing you on how one (well, me) rarely sees abate, in comparison to the fairly common unabated, and isn't it interesting that the inflected/negated form is more common than the bare stem-y thingee, and. . . ok, I didn't spare you all of it, but trust me, it could have been worse. Oh so very much worse.

I'm also skipping the clean sweep assessment, linked at AllAboutGeorge.com: Mr. Blogmouth, pt. 3.

The Clean Sweep Program is a checklist of 100 items which, when completed, give one complete personal freedom. These 100 items are grouped in 4 areas of life with 25 in each group: Physical Environment, Well-being, Money and Relationships. These 4 areas are the cornerstone for a strong and healthy life and the program helps a person to clean up, restore and polish virtually every aspect of his/her life. The program takes between 6 - 24 months to complete.

I don't want to know.

Similarly, I also declined an offer of a reading from a very cute young fortune-teller yesterday. I did take a flyer.

Al-fin-la solucion a todos sus problemas están a su alcance por medio de sus Oraciones. Garantiza ayudarte en Amor, Negocios, Enfermedades y Problemas Familiares.

I may take her up on this if she does the reading in Spanish. That way I won't understand most of it.

Oh, there are enough cognates in that quoted bit for. . . again, never mind.

Right, three days, two sites, if you count this entry as covering one, and you probably shouldn't.

Well, Karin didn't manage to finish her impossible self-assigned task either. And, seeing as I just finished John Henry Days, I'm questioning the wisdom of. . . see? Tangents.

Posted by Aaron at 9:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

I've mentioned my somewhat disturbing love for Rasputina's cover of that, yes?

Any road up, I'm going to make a vague, doomed-to-failure attempt to cover all the sites in the massive list o'links over the next few days. Weeks. Over time. And speaking of Time, guess which article there is linked fairly high at Blogdex right about now.

Blogs can be a great way of communicating, but they can keep people apart too. If I read only those of my choice, precisely tuned to my political biases and you read only yours, we could end up a nation of political solipsists, vacuum sealed in our private feedback loops, never exposed to new arguments, never having to listen to a single word we disagree with.

If?

I mean, go on, guess.

Does it count as being "exposed to new arguments" when, say, Michele quotes some particularly over-the-top comment on the Democratic Underground forums or from some Indymedia site or other?

Didn't think so.

In the interests of fairness, I won't mention that Wonkette gets a mention in the Time piece. As do Jessa Crispin and Rebecca Blood, so if you're still wondering where the women bloggers are, um, there are three of them. The fairness thing extends to not making a big show of how the piece takes, um, Time to mention "when she met the first guy who linked to [her site], she started dating him" for one of them. I'm certain I just missed the bit about the dating lives of the male bloggers.

I'll focus on the race thing instead.

Posted by Aaron at 6:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Given the current site name, I really should mention you can buy Kris Dresen not-smut from the comfort of your own computer. Works like, um, Manya Potter and the. . . no, I shouldn't.

Speaking of the printed page, which we weren't really but I'm hoping no one will notice, think happy thoughts in Wendy's general direction. Which will a bit north of here for a while, but just aim for Chicago and they should make it.

Oh, and according to the new and improved boing boing, there's a Suicide Girls book on the way.

But why pre-order that when you can pre-order Jen's book instead?

That was a rhetorical question. Don't feel you have to answer. In fact, I'd prefer if you didn't, really.

And, per the boing boing link, the previously announced and much-debated SG magazine is, ah, being placed on temporary hiatus and improved to serve you better. Yes, that will do. . .

What else? The Socialism 2004 conference, being held at the Holiday Inn Chicago O'Hare June 17th through the 20th, will feature a reception with cash bar on Thursday. I realize I shouldn't be amused by this, but I am anyway. So there.

Ok, I'm done.

Update: Ok, I lied. Pixies release brand new song - NME.COM:

PIXIES have written and recorded their first new song for thirteen years, and will release it tonight through the Internet.

'Bam Thwok' will go on-sale for 99 cents at midnight (June 15) exclusively on Apple's iTunes Music Store.

Overuse of <strong> in the original, so don't go blaming me. I mention this for the benefit of the DiaryLand children, Jen and Kelly, and anyone out there who has the option of buying things at iTunes. Which, unless I missed a memo, does not include us Linux types. Bastards.

Posted by Aaron at 11:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Or something.

First off, thanks to Rachel for notifying me this:

June 16 CROSS THIS!: dykemarch/rally benefit.

across genres... Dyke March: when a parade becomes an art fest Chicago Dyke March / Rally 2004 presents---

"CROSS THIS: how LGBTQ people create/cross boundaries", an evening about jumping cultural and gender boundaries. The featured performer is Dr. Laila Farah, a Lebanese-American feminist performer-scholar, who navigates ideas of nation, gender, and sexuality with innovative performance. The political thrust of her performance comes from a critical and dynamic questioning of US imperialism, Americana, and apathy.

Also on this evening is a screening of "Little Boy Panties." The film explores gender labels in our current society, and poses the question, "Is your gender as easy to change as your underwear?" Hmm...! Be one of the first to see this innovative documentary that promises not to leave any tan-lines.

This event benefits the Chicago Dykemarch/Rally 2004. It convenes Wednesday, 16 June, at Chase Café, 7301 N Sheridan Road (Rogers Park) Chicago. The event begins at 6:30 PM. Donations are on a sliding scale, from $5 to $10.

Think I can manage the lower end of that sliding scale. And yes, this is crossposted to Chicago Lesbians Invading Taverns, because like all my threats, the one about how I wasn't going to be running the thing was completely ineffectual.

Posted by Aaron at 9:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Because the hiatus is now a permanent one, something I only noticed yesterday at Bookslut, because I'm so not paying attention. Artbomb.net's Artblog keeps on keepin' on, though.

Speaking of comics, remember Scott McCloud's lonely crusade for micropayments?

No, didn't think so. . .

Words to live by: Don't feed your racist toothpaste to the cat.

I can't judge distances/locations for shit: The temp assignment is a stone's throw from Cyberia Internet Cafe, it turns out. So I possibly could update during the day, or even edit this into coherence at some point.

Finally got the copies of my DD 214 in a letter from the government the other day (I opened and read it, it started off "Dear Sir/Madam," so they have problems with that, too, the suckers). No idea what I did with the ribbons and medals I apparently earned. Know I need to nail that story down if I ever decide to run for public office. But this does mean I can start the other paperwork for that Illinois Veteran's Grant thang. McHenry County College, the Honorable Richard J. Daley College, UIS, UIC, UIUC, so many options. And it's amazing how a shitty temp assignment will light a fire under your ass to start looking for an actual career. A motivational tool better than the motivational posters decorating the lunch area.

Where "decorating" means "stuck on walls as what one hopes is an absurdist joke, but one knows better, as The Damned rarely do absurdist humor."

And Colson Whitehead's John Henry Days makes for fine reading during lenghty commutes to and from The Damned, I must say.

Posted by Aaron at 6:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Which is an ambiguous sentence, but years of experience with the Black English/Ebonics debate have left me feeling precisely zero enthusiasm for discussing linguistics with non-linguists. Similar to the zero enthusiasm for discussing racial issues with conservative white folk; doesn't seem worth the effort to bring 'em to the point where they have something intelligent to say in the first place, so I just smile and nod. There may be eye-rolling involved. Or some facial twitching, as I bite my tongue. Good times, good times. . .

But also better days than, say, 40 years ago. From alaina is: sweet and sour: Loving Day:

It's hard to believe, but less than 40 years ago interracial relationships were illegal in many states in our country. Marriage, sex, and living together were all criminal acts. On June 12th, 1967 interracial couples became legal thanks to the Supreme Court decision, Loving v. Virginia.

[. . .] On this Saturday, June 12th, observe Loving Day by taking a moment to reflect on and celebrate your legal right to love a person of any race, and take action to see that these same rights are extended to ALL loving couples, regardless of sexual orientation.

'course, not everyone is thrilled with comparing race to orientation. I, personally, do, and think the unthrilled are morons, but enough editorializing. From Ethnic Communities Speak out Against Gay Marriage:

A recent "Rally to Protect Marriage" in Sacramento was co-sponsored by BOND (Brotherhood Organization of a New Destiny), a Christian organization dedicated to "rebuilding the family by rebuilding the man."

"If California legalizes same-sex marriages," says BOND founder and president Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, "it will destroy the family, especially the black family."

I mentioned the moron thing, yes? I'd explain why, but the article doesn't explain why the Wrong Rev. Peterson is claiming his crazy shit, so why should I have to explain mine? Onward.

Rev. Raymond Kwong, who organized the rally [to protect marriage] in San Francisco, leads the newly formed Bay Area Christians for Traditional Marriage (BACFTM). "We are sympathetic to true minorities. Gays and lesbians are not a genuine minority," he says in the AsianWeek report. "I have talked to many African American ministers and they are incensed that the civil rights bus has been hijacked by a radical group. When were there separate entrances for gays and straights? When have gays gotten worse jobs and lower pay than straight people? I've never seen any gays who had to go to the back of the bus."

Detria Thompson, in the March 19 edition of the black newspaper San Francisco Bay View, writes that many African Americans believe that race "easily trumps sexual orientation in the now crowded different-discrimination sweepstakes." But this "assumes that lesbians and gays have the option, if not a duty, to mute their behavior so as not to alarm straight people." Yet, "all gays and lesbians can't 'pass' for straight, and even if it was possible to do so, being able to 'pass' misses the point."

The Wrong Rev. Kwong (sorry, sorry) could just as easily find African Americans, ministers and otherwise, equally "incensed" by the rhetoric about hijacking and radicals, and as for the bit about gays (etc.) not facing discrimination. . . that gets back to not wanting to waste time calmly explaining things to bigots. I'd like to think they're just as capable as I am of using Google to look up statistics on hate crimes, or states where it's acceptable to fire someone for (perceived) orientation.

Whether they use that capability, or bother reading the information when someone else does the not-that-heavy lifting and presents it to them, predigested, with links to sources, is the problem.

"Class" is a dirty word, so we shall not bring this complicated factor to the discussion.

Let's leave out homophobia in communities of color, too. And racism among white GLBT types, because "white privilege" is an even nastier concept.

As long as we're Not Talking about issues, I suppose I can avoid discussing the hostility towards (hate this term) interracial couples from some sectors of the African American community, too. Convenient, that.

So. Happier thoughts. Those of you with HBO can enjoy the premiere of Six Feet Under this evening. I'd politicize this by mentioning the whole (hate this term equally well) mixed-race gay couple thing, but that would be wrong.

Oh, wait, I exist to editorialize, politicize and be wrong.

My bad.

Posted by Aaron at 8:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (9) | TrackBacks (0)

So Redpac, he tells me that one of my favoritest bands in the world, Over the Rhine, is performing today, right here in Chicago:

OtR | Tour Dates

Sat Jun 12: Chicago IL, Northcenter Ribfest, Irving Park Rd. & Lincoln Ave.

Unfortunately for me, they're performing at Ribfest.

Also unfortunately, Blues Fest is this weekend, which is why it was storming like hell last night, and despite the sunny, mild weather of the moment, is no doubt gonna storm like hell tonight.

I believe strongly in the power of positive thinking. I'm positive the rains will come.

In other news, Identity Crisis? I avoided most of the hype, so I thought it was worth the (gak) $3.95, and will be picking up the rest of the series as it comes out, rather than waiting for the trade. Also, I gots Osamu Tezuka's Buddha volume 2 and Orbiter, by Warren Ellis and Colleen Doran, from the library (interlibrary loan is your friend. . . unless you fail to return the books on time or renew then using the convenient web interface, like a tool), so at least I'll have something to keep me occupied during the hour and a half commute to me temp assignment next week.

This will also, most likely, mean fewer updates. Or less updating. Or whichever construction strikes you as least grammatical.

Unless someone knows of a free WiFi hotspot vaguely close to Earwax and Quimby's. Suggestions?

Posted by Aaron at 4:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Now that's comedy.

Speaking of whom, or which, or something from MargaretCho.com: Revolution Film Festival Screenings:

Saturday, June 12th. 8:00 pm
Gene Siskel Film Center
164 N. State St.
Chicago, IL

If you missed the photos of Margaret on the front pages of Windy City Times and the Chicago Free Press this week. 'tis a benefit screening.

In collaboration with the Sundance Channel and the Gene Siskel Film Center, we co-present a one-time-only sneak preview of comedian Margaret Cho's wickedly funny new film as a benefit for Reeling: The Chicago Lesbian and Gay International Film Festival and the educational programs of the Gene Siskel Film Center.

Filmed live at the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles, REVOLUTION captures Cho at her feisty, inimitable best, holding forth on topics including the axis of evil, her tour of the red light districts of Thailand, bartering sex for household chores, and much more. REVOLUTION will have its world premiere exclusively on the Sundance Channel on June 19 at 8:00 pm CDT.

Admission: $9 general public or $7 for members of Chicago Filmmakers or the Gene Siskel Film Center.

No, I'm not sure what "world premiere" means these days, either.

I'm also not sure about attending something called "Dyke Delicious June Jaunt."

The first person to ask why will receive a very special gift.

Update: minor edits for clarity and the adding of links (to the quoted material from Reeling) and such.

Posted by Aaron at 7:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (2)

Superiority, however, is not a necessarily inherent trait. Therefore, please listen closely -- You can have a funeral any old time. You dig a hole, you plant a coffin. I, however, cannot perform these tests next year, next month, next week or even tomorrow -- I must perform them now. [drill noise -- VEEP VEEP!] I've got a lot of cutting and pasting to do, gentlemen, so please return to your porch rockers and resume whittling!
(Puts drill to Laura's forehead and starts drilling...)

That's everyone's favorite FBI forensic scientist, Albert Rosenfield, trying to do some work with everyone's favorite dead chick, Laura Palmer, on Twin Peaks.

Oddly, the bit that's stuck in my head is, "You dig a hole, you plant a coffin."

This does not seem like a particularly difficult thing to do.

Nor, I think, does it require live television coverage.

I see I was mistaken.

Better not be my tax dollars at work paying to ship the bastard cross-country. Again. You know how much gas costs? You know how much fuel Air Force One must burn through? Couldn't they ship Mister Small Government UPS or something?

Having said that, I find Bush/Zombie Reagan 2004 to be in extremely poor taste. After all that man did to this planet for this country, I think the least we can do is bury him as deep as possible, at a crossroads, after beheading the body, and set up a defensive perimeter to prevent him ever, ever crawling out.

Or maybe we should shoot him into the sun. . .

Posted by Aaron at 1:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (2)

Only cleaner.

So Nichelle was all like:

I have visited Chicago only once, but it really didn't overwhelm me. But I am noticing a lot of buzz about the Windy City, Chicago. First, it was the Chicagoist from the makers of the Gothamist. Then I hear about Daily Candy Chicago. Now, there’s Time Out Chicago as well. Furthermore, two of my friends are going to be in Chi-Town this weekend.

It's worth noting that this was, in fact, the first I'd heard of any of those sites. Because, as has been mentioned several times previously but always bears repeating, I suck.

Any old way, Nichelle and friends have been added to the massive list of links. The one from Bloglines, saving me the trouble of trying to think up cruel charming nicknames for them.

For the time being.

Rachel is definitely going to get one, though.

Just on GP.

Posted by Aaron at 8:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (9) | TrackBacks (0)

In this case, getting distracted from Morning Edition's ongoing coverage of the flag-draped coffin (they're burying it at a crossroads, right? Just in case?) and instead hitting the link for NPR : Creators at Carnegie : Emmylou Harris:

Emmylou Harris is backed by her touring band Spyboy -- guitarist Buddy Miller, drummer Brady Blade and Tony Hall on bass, with producer Malcolm Burns sitting in with extra percussion. She's also joined during the concert by singers Julie Miller, Patty Griffin, and Kate and Anna McGarrigle.

And there's links to earlier NPR interviews with Emmylou, if you like that sort of thing.

If not, well, there's always the hagiography. I'd swear one of the pilgrims they interviewed said something about the nation being united in grief.

I'd. . . argue that contention,but get the feeling that, as was the case when Reagan was in office, the opinions of the lesser races don't count for much.

np: Bang the Drum Slowly, Emmylou Harris

Posted by Aaron at 8:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Unless I'm forgetting someone else's upcoming book, which is entirely possible, as I am a flake. Any old way:

Yes, it's more or less the day you've been waiting for. Not when you can actually buy and read the book, but rather the day you can pre-order the book. And then later, weeks after the check or whatever has cleared, you get a book in the mail. And say, "Hooray! Free book!" At least if you're me, and have the memory of a goldfish, and never, ever look at your check or whatever statements, as you find them depressing.

Yes, I suck at the sales pitch. The Author (doesn't that sound cool? The Author.) does a much finer job of it. And this flattery will, with luck, keep her from noticing the alt text for the image up yonder.

Without luck?

I expect I can bribe her with more Pixies and Robin Harris cds.

And wouldn't you want to read the thoughts of someone who likes the Pixies and Robin Harris?

Er, is anyone else out there familiar with both of 'em?

Update: And while we're not on the subject, Twin Cities readers are reminded that tomorrow night brings you an opportunity to booze it up meet and greet Abigail Garner, from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m at Kieran's Irish Pub.

And I'll refrain from making any jokes about boozing it up with Jen.

Except for that one.

Posted by Aaron at 5:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBacks (0)

Well, not a party so much as a Hellcat Hussies burlesque show, and not so much invited as asked to tag along if, y'know, I had nothing else going on, but if you're coming here expecting strictly accurate autobiographical notes, God help you.

The reading from Up All Night: Adventures in Lesbian Sex, featuring Rachel and her name isn't really girlnyc, but you probably know that, was much better than that silly old David Sedaris reading on Friday. For a start, I could actually see the people doing the reading. And met them, and they autographed my copy (oh, shut up), and had a photo taken with Rachel in front of a wall of dild-- um, in the friendly confines of Early to Bed, and have no idea how to end this run-on monstrosity, so I'll just stop.

Mind you, between that, hanging out with Wendy on Friday and catching up reading Jessa Crispin/Blog of a Bookslut, I'm starting to think I'm the only person who didn't attend BookExpo. Then again, this is not a publishing blog, and unlike, taking examples totally at random, TranceJen and Heather, I'm not working on a book, either.

I know, I know, I'm hanging out with the wrong crowd, women in publishing. Good thing I still have Tristan to feel superior to, is all I'm saying.

What, you think she's gonna write a book? The spell checker would explode. . .

Posted by Aaron at 1:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By way of Cursor, a eulogy from Greg Palast, Killer, Coward, Conman - Good Riddance, Ronnie Reagan:

You're not going to like this. You shouldn't speak ill of the dead. But in this case, someone's got to.

Ronald Reagan was a conman. Reagan was a coward. Reagan was a killer.

[. . .] The New York Times today, in its canned obit, wrote that Reagan projected, "faith in small town America" and "old-time values." "Values" my ass. It was union busting and a declaration of war on the poor and anyone who couldn't buy designer dresses. It was the New Meanness, bringing starvation back to America so that every millionaire could get another million.

I've seen several people write cautioning against saying anything bad against Reagan, for fear of giving the right-wingers ammunition for future attacks.

Children.

They're going to attack you no matter what. Haven't you worked that out by now?

And for the last time, it ain't all about the P.R. Can they score cheap points by linking to or quoting over-the-top denunciations? Yep. Does anyone, other than them, care? Not so I've noticed. In fact, I'm not even sure they care, despite the equally over-the-top complaints.

Ritualized form with no real emotional resonance on either side makes for terribly boring reading. Really. You have no idea.

Posted by Aaron at 12:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Or so claims Bush's Erratic Behavior Worries White House Aides, a piece up at Capitol Hill Blue.

In meetings with top aides and administration officials, the President goes from quoting the Bible in one breath to obscene tantrums against the media, Democrats and others that he classifies as “enemies of the state.”

Worried White House aides paint a portrait of a man on the edge, increasingly wary of those who disagree with him and paranoid of a public that no longer trusts his policies in Iraq or at home.

“It reminds me of the Nixon days,” says a longtime GOP political consultant with contacts in the White House. “Everybody is an enemy; everybody is out to get him. That’s the mood over there.”

Personally, I won't believe a word of it until I read it at Wonkette.

I mean, there were all sorts of insinuations that Reagan was senile while he was still in office, and those turned out to be. . . totally accurate, if not understating the case.

But you must admit that Nancy and her astrologer did a very good job of running the country, and we all enjoy the legacy of their decisions at that crucial time in our history.

Now normally, when Max Speak, I listen.

Respect is due the bereaved, as well as to those who have a good feeling about him. It's just the decent thing to do.

But in this instance, with all due respect, which is less than zero, fuck that noise.

Wow, that looks harsh. I should follow the example of my betters, and demonstrate as much respect for the late President Reagan as he showed towards, say, the late Martin Luther King, in his opposition to. . .

Ok, I'll stop.

Update: May as well stop, as Steve Gilliard says it all much better than I could:

Reagan also embraced Angolan UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi, the puppet of the racist South African regime. He repeatedly refused to back away from him, despite South Africa's notorious, and it later turned out, mad, racial policies. Not until 1988, when the Cuban army decisively defeat the SADF at Cuito Carnevale in Angola, did the war end. The US turned its back as the South African-sponsored Renamo massacred their way across Mozambique. No one knows how many Africans died in the wars of South Africa, but US complicity with the racist regime of South Africa helped extend their lifespan. At no point did Reagan do anything to stop this.

Children too young to remember the anti-apartheid movement, or the anti-nukes movement, or the pro-getting Reagan to say "AIDS" movement, may not understand the bitterness expressed towards the guy from some quarters.

Consider yourselves blessed, and leave us old coots to our grave-pissing, eh?

Posted by Aaron at 8:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Oh, Nigritude Ultramarine.

That's all right, then.

So, in order to prove that real content trumps all the shady optimization tricks that someone can figure out, and because I figure I deserve an iPod at least as much as the Star Wars Kid, I'm entering the contest. Do me a favor: Link to this post with the phrase Nigritude Ultramarine. I'd rather see a real blog win than any of the fake sites that show up on that search result right now.

Guess I shouldn't do an entry just for the Googlebombing hell of it. . . should I write some of my fond memories of our white folks' former President, tragically taken from them after he'd fucked shit up?

No, I suppose not.

Posted by Aaron at 7:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

. . . Reagan was still alive?

I mean, great statesman, won the Cold War, defeated the infidel Grenadanians, protecting the U.S. nutmeg supply and rescuing a bunch of yutzes who couldn't get into medical school here, etc., etc. I'm confident you can't sling a cat without finding a more fitting tribute, which may itself have been written by someone who passed away ages ago.

In other news, Two-Step number three is quite good, even if you may never look at a Mini Cooper the same way again (sorry, Jessica), and Warren Ellis further demonstrates his questionable tastes by linking to Tristan Risk again.

Who does look like an Amanda Conner illustration, actually. Or an Amanda Conner quickie convention drawing of a Wendy Pini character, anyway.

Right, think that's settled my front-of-the-line privileges in Hell. . .

Posted by Aaron at 6:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Ok, bailed on the Sedaris reading/signing. I like Unabridged Bookstore. Bought a (remaindered, hardcover) copy of Colson Whitehead's John Henry Days, and spent about an hour milling about smartly. Had I arrived with two hours to mill about, I might have had a chance of standing somewhere I could actually see the author, as opposed to sort-of over to the side, behind a bookshelf, where the staff assured us we'd be able to hear him. . .

Standing and listening to someone who frequently appears on the radio, I decided after an hour of waiting, was just a wee bit silly.

Some bookstores are set up well for such events. Women & Children First, for example, has a raised stage, and bookcases on wheels that can be cleared to create a space for chairs. Uncomfortable steel folding chairs that are actually meant to be hit wrestlers over the head with, true, but it's the thought, or the attempt, that matters.

There might have been seating in Unabridged. And a stage. I can't remember from the last time I was there, when it was possible to actually navigate the space without risking stepping on someone. I'll have to check and see next time I'm in the area.

Anyone who either got there early enough to grab good floor space, or just toughed it out, please keep it to yourself or I will track you down and shoot you like a dog in the street.

I mean, feel free to share your pleasant memories of the event in comments. Yes.

The smut reading on Sunday better be better, is all I'm saying.

Shame there won't be any Kris Dresen smut, but you can't have everything. . .

Posted by Aaron at 8:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Mostly taken from email lists, for some reason.

Schuba's:

• Thursday, June 17 - An Evening With...
  Melissa Ferrick - 7:00 p.m. (18+) & 10:00 p.m. (21+) - $15W/$18D - (F/R)
  Record release show for The Other Side. Playing her songs and taking your questions.
• Friday, June 18 - The Innocence Mission with Mila Drumke - 7:00 p.m. - $14W - (F/P)
• Saturday, June 19 - The Innocence Mission with David Dondero - 7:00 p.m. - $14W - (F/P)
• Tuesday, June 22 - Rachael Yamagata with Johnathan Rice - 7:00 p.m. - $12T - (F/R)
• Tuesday, June 22 - Rachael Yamagata with Matt Gross - 10:30 p.m. - $12T - (F/R)

Ok, I'd started this paragraph, "First I'd ever heard of Mila Drumke," but have to revise that somewhat, after looking at their biography:

The Mila Drumke Band--Mila Drumke (vocals, guitar), Lyris Hung (violin) and Elissa Linowes (bass)--perform regularly in New York City at the Mercury Lounge, Arlene Grocery, Fez and the Bowery Ballroom. They also tour clubs and colleges throughout the Northeast and Midwest.

Drumke's first release, Gathering My Name (1994 Little Pro Records), features "Someone," which she wrote and recorded as the theme song for the Samuel Goldwyn film Go Fish. Go Fish was distributed worldwide and had no other accompanying soundtrack. "Someone" is also featured on The Independent Film Channel compilation album In Your Ear (1999 Hybrid/IMI Trax), which also includes songs by Tom Waits, The Pogues and Morphine.

Since, um, I've seen Go Fish. You'd think I'd remember the music. Senior moment. S.

Rachael Yamagata got a nice write-up in Venus Zine a bit ago, so there's that. . . they're having a party at The Empty Bottle two weeks from today, by the way. And there are lots of shows there I'm not mentioning, as well as some others at Schuba's. And yes, this is much, much longer than I'd intended it to be already, so just a brief mention of Eight: 18 @ Unity, this evening and every first Friday evening, at Unity Chicago, 1925 Thome. Bellydancing, blacklight body painting, SHE DRUMS, the Women's Community Drum Circle, and lots lots more.

Really, there's lots, but I said I'd be brief, and meant to actually keep my word for a change.

Posted by Aaron at 9:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Specifically, the ones writing about sex. Or at least writing about sex in a way that doesn't make me wipe them from my memory and browser history.

This question is possibly just as silly as asking where all the women bloggers are, but that one seems to crop up regularly. There's a nice review of the latest and previous two outbreaks at Pinko Feminist Hellcat, so I'll just send you there rather than going over the details myself.

What?

Vaguely remember reading they were more than half the on-line population too, but it would require seconds to look that up, and isn't it easier to have a quick look at the blogroll of some A-List blogger or answers to some survey and start extrapolating from that?

I didn't say more accurate, I said easier. Keep up with me here.

Getting back to my original point, as much as I had one, although DazeReader and Fleshbot are all well and goo-- ok, can't even finish that particular expression in this context, and I'm fairly certain there was some long, incredibly boring paragraph about writing/blogging about pornography as opposed to writing/blogging about sex, that I'd intended to put here, but I figure if I'm bored writing it, you'd be even more bored reading it. And besides, it would mean linking even more things that probably aren't safe for work, depending on where you work.

Did I mention that some of the previous links probably aren't. . . well, I'm sure you noticed if you clicked them.

Apropos of nothing, I reset the Site Meter statistics just before posting the previous entry. I could say this was to get a more accurate idea of how many visitors the place gets in a given day, but it was more a case of, "Oh! What does this button do?"

I'm sure this will do horrible things to my Ecosystem ranking. Luckily, I'm equally sure I don't care.

Posted by Aaron at 8:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Or something like that. . .

Was in the old Main Library building in downtown Chi a few months back, and mentioned to the guy working the info desk that there seemed to be more British authors than American ones engraved in the walls. He related a lovely anecdote about how, after the Great Chicago Fire, the English graciously donated an assload of books to Our Fair City to replace those destroyed in the blaze.

And we were too embarrassed to admit that we hadn't actually had a library before the fire. . .

This weekendish brings us BookExpo America and the Printers Row Book Fair, so once again we're pretending to be much more literary than is actually the case. Last night, the keynote speaker spoke, Washington Post: Bill Clinton, Candidate for The Bestseller List :

Sonny Mehta, president and editor in chief of Alfred A. Knopf publishers, introduced Clinton. "If the law were different and he were able to run again," Mehta said to wild screams and applause, "he would win by a landslide."

[. . .] The rancor in this year's presidential campaign, Clinton said, should cause no particular alarm because we have been through it all before and the country almost always emerges stronger and more unified and more inclusive. What John Adams's supporters said about Thomas Jefferson in 1796, Clinton said, would "blister the hairs off a dog's back." About the 1960s, he said, if you think that more good things than bad things happened in the decade, you're probably a Democrat. If you think more bad things happened, you're probably a Republican.

[. . .] Knowing that his bibliophilic audience was fascinated with the writing process, he explained that he wrote the book in longhand in 20 or more notebooks, then turned them over to someone who entered the notes into a computer. He told of feeling sheepish when he ran into Mehta at a restaurant. He said he knew Mehta must be wondering, "Why did I pay you all this money if you're going to take time to eat lunch?" He played small tricks on his editor, Robert Gottlieb. In one draft Clinton arbitrarily added this sentence: Robert Gottlieb is the greatest editor in history. Gottlieb excised the sentence from the book, Clinton told the audience, "somewhat reluctantly."

Today, if you hurry (seeing as you've got like 15 minutes to get there as I type/copy/paste this), you can attend the Children’s Book & Author Breakfast:

8:00 am – 9:30 am   Grand Ballroom
Presented in cooperation with the Children’s Booksellers and Publishers Committee of the American Booksellers Association, Association of Booksellers for Children, and the Children’s Book Council. Friday morning’s breakfast will feature Jamie Lee Curtis, author of It's Hard to Be Five  (HarperCollins Children’s Books); Ursula K. Le Guin, author of Gifts (Harcourt Children’s Books); and Jack Gantos, author of Hole In My Life (Farrar, Straus & Giroux Books for Young Readers).

Or, if you manage to crawl out of bed at a decent hour Sunday:

JULIE ANDREWS
Q&A Session with Daughter Emma Walton Hamilton
1:00 p.m., Sunday
Target Reading Chair Stage

Julie Andrews Edwards is one of the most recognized figures in the world of entertainment. Perhaps best known for her performances in Mary Poppins, The Sound of Music, and Victor/Victoria, Julie is also the author of several favorite children's books, including Dumpy the Dump Truck, Dumpy at School, Dumpy and His Pals, Dumpy and His Friends on the Farm, and Little Bo: The Story of Bonnie Boadicea.

Perfect chance for a Shrek 2 tie-in, blown. Honestly. Some copywriters.

I could mention that Printers Row is open to the public, while BEA is not, but I'm confident you'd figure that out when you got there, so I won't bother.

Posted by Aaron at 7:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

That's the headline the Sun-Times used for an AP piece:

Brits paying $5.79 a gallon

In Britain, the Automobile Association said the average cost of unleaded gasoline was about $5.79 a gallon Wednesday, an increase of 14 cents from Tuesday.

But some gas stations were charging more than $6.31 per gallon for unleaded fuel, and one was selling super unleaded for $7.93.

Glad someone else ran the conversion, and I can only hope they got it right; doubt my ability to run it myself just to confirm, to be honest. Math is hard.

That appears on the same page as this longer piece, Want a hybrid? Get in line:

The rising popularity of the Toyota Prius and Honda Civic hybrids come as sales of some of the biggest gas-guzzling SUVs continue to slip. Hummer sales in 2004 are down 26.4 percent compared with this time last year, officials said. The latest Hummer, the 6,400-pound H2, gets between 8 and 13 mpg.

Have I mentioned lately how I laugh and laugh when I see one of those things cruising down the street? And the stretch Hummers? Well, I'd laugh if they weren't so fucking ugly, anyway.

If you do insist on buying an American car (remind me to check if the Prius and Civic hybrid are made here in the States, will you?), Ford's Escape is set for release in August. Followed by some from GMC and Chevrolet in 2007. Ish.

And why don't the domestic automakers have something available right the fuck now?

I'd have a look for articles from not that long ago, when gas was cheaper, hybrids were newer, and the right wing/US business class was mocking them as cars for grunchy-granola hippies. But after having a look at the entries in The Vicious Instapundit Blogroll Contest over at MaxSpeak, I'd rather avoid them for the time being, if it's all the same to you.

There was also something about obesity rates and communities designed for driving rather than walking, but that's getting rather far afield. And if I start suggesting that higher (from a certain point of view) gas prices might result in a drop in fuel consumption, less dependence on foreign sources, fewer wars and better health, people might accuse me of being a grunchy-granola hippy.

With soy milk, thank you.

And a vodka-Red Bull chaser.

Posted by Aaron at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (1)

Any sentence using the term "the Gay" must be read in Margaret Cho's mom's voice. Or at least your imitation of Margaret Cho's imitation of her mom's voice.

From the Blackfolk LiveJournal group thingee, Congress to consider June as National Caribbean American Heritage month:

The idea is floating through the halls of the Capitol, which was designed by a British Virgin Islander, in a bill that would honor the millions of Caribbean people who came to the United States over the past two centuries. The month is modeled after Black History, Hispanic Heritage and Women's History months to recognize the contributions of immigrants from all Caribbean countries, regardless of language and race.

"Caribbean Americans have influenced every aspect of American culture, society and government," said Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., who introduced the bill. "Their history is interwoven with ours."

[. . .] "This is not a partisan issue, nor is it a race issue since Caribbean Americans are of Asian, African, Amerindian and European descent," said Lee, a member of the caucus. "The Caribbean-American community is a true melting pot of languages and culture."

Aren't we all?

As for the title, June is Pride Month, and then there's that Juneteenth thing to consider, but I'm confident they can co-exist peacefully. Since, you know, there's no hositility towards either recent Caribbean immigrants or the LGBT community from the African-American community, or racism in the LGBT community, or internecine conflicts in any of these groups, like between gays and lesbians, or Haitians and Dominicans, and everyone loves bisexuals, and. . .

I shut up now.

Posted by Aaron at 11:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I was also saying "Hermione" wrong in my brain when I read the Harry Potter books, until I seen the first movie. . .

HANNA [sic] BLANK: What this particular genre tells us is that we haven't yet reached a point with feminist change, where women can set the terms by which they are defined. These characters are examining what they're taught to examine in order to be perfect by other people's standards.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: Hanna Blank writes criticism, novels and lesbian erotica. She says the heroines of chick lit all find their way to fulfillment along the same narrow path: a well-paying job, a devoted boyfriend.

HANNA BLANK: And you're not shown women who are trying to rebel against what they're given in terms of what's supposed to make a good life for a woman or what's supposed to make a woman successful.

From the (let's charitably say rushed and uncorrected) transcript of A Book for Every Girl & Boy, from On the Media (and All Things Considered) a few weeks back. Later, one hears/reads, in reference to the covers:

CRAIG BURKE: I, I don't know if that's true, but we've certainly put a lot of legs on covers. This year, for some reason, there are a lot of disembodied feet on books...

Anyone care to engage in cruel, unscientific idle speculation about the appeal of disembodied feet to the chick-lit-reading demographic? They can't all be same-sex foot fetishists, after all.

Wait, can they all be same-sex foot fetishists?

In a similar but unmentioned in the On the Media piece vein, there was a vogue for painted covers not dissimilar to those of Synthia SAINT JAMES (that's how it's capitalized on her site, dog), from Terry McMillan's novels, a few years back. Was a bit weirded out to see one on a book by Bebe Moore Campbell, seeing as she was a real writer had more of a history than Ms. McMillan, but figured if it shifted copies at retail, eh.

This will also be my attitude towards copies of Anna Karenina with the Oprah's Book Club seal of approval, next time I'm in a bookstore. Which should be tomorrow evening, at Unabridged, seeing David Sedaris, but I digress.

(Synthia SAINT JAMES also did the art for the Kwanzaa stamp the USPS graced us with a while back. I did not know that. Because I don't pay enough attention to these things.)

Don't think I've ever picked up a book because of the cover illustration or trade dress. In fact, I think I actively avoided anything with the Saint James style covers, which in retrospect might have been foolish.

Or might not. Anyone read any of the things?

Posted by Aaron at 8:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Matter o'fact:

Turns out that judges in Pennsylvania and Iowa have already banned "ladies nights", but "courts in Illinois and Washington state have said that ladies nights are permissible because they do not discriminate against men but rather encourage women to attend."

From It's Ladies Night--Unless You're in Jersey. I won't give you the details, as they're quite appallingly stupid. Instead:

• feministing.com
• Pinko Feminist Hellcat
• ms.musings

  Which links Between Planets at City Pages, where "[s]even local women [SF&F] writers talk about creating their own worlds - and the problems with life on Earth."

• Trish Wilson's Blog

I remain diplomatically silent, and toss in a list of random links having nothing to do with anything.

There may also be one or two links to sites by women in the Very Long List o'Links over to the right, only included so no one accuses me of being sexist.

Update-y thingee: Added the link to the City Pages piece, which reminded me that I managed to miss Wiscon last weekend, and rearranged the links a bit.

Posted by Aaron at 10:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

'course, I didn't say nothin' about an hour. . . but I did say it wasn't possible to effectively satirize some of the children on the other side of the ideological fence (with one caveat). This was before I saw TCS - Where Scientific Ignorance Meets Industry Lobbying:

When so-called scientists say that the Earth's average temperature is rising, it might be time to bring a few facts into the discussion. For example: temperature is not a thermodynamic variable that lends itself to statistical analysis, nor does it measure a physical quantity. Additionally, there is no such thing as an "average", and, if the Buddha is correct, the Earth itself is nothing but an illusion meant to trap us in a world of suffering. How can scientists study something which may not even exist? Why do they so blithely dismiss this ancient wisdom believed by billions throughout the centuries? Is it because the Buddha wasn't white?

Which I reached, after a bit of searching as he didn't actually link the piece, from Steve's No Direction Home Page, after doing a search for reviews of Steven Pinker's The Blank Slate.

No, I don't understand how my mind works either.

Posted by Aaron at 9:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

Yes, it's the season premiere of The Drew Carey Show this evening on ABC.

Yes, I mentioned them filming the final episode a few weeks ago.

No, I'm not watching it either. Just thought I'd mention it.

Posted by Aaron at 6:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

That's the Evolution Control Committee Public Enemy - Herb Alpert mash-up thingee mentioned in that article in the previous entry, which you can download from the preceeding link.

What does Chuck D. have to say about this?

Stay Free!: As you probably know, some music fans are now sampling and mashing together two or more songs and trading the results online. There's one track by Evolution Control Committee that uses a Herb Alpert instrumental as the backing track for your "By the Time I Get to Arizona." It sounds like you're rapping over a Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass song. How do you feel about other people remixing your tracks without permission?

Chuck D: I think my feelings are obvious. I think it's great.

Herb Alpert could not be reached for comment.

Ok, I didn't try.

Posted by Aaron at 11:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Bits of separate interviews with Chuck D. and Hank Shocklee combine to form AlterNet: How Copyright Law Changed Hip Hop, which seems appropriate somehow.

Stay Free!: With its hundreds of samples, is it possible to make a record like It Takes a Nation of Millions today? Would it be possible to clear every sample?

Shocklee: It wouldn't be impossible. It would just be very, very costly. The first thing that was starting to happen by the late 1980s was that the people were doing buyouts. You could have a buyout -- meaning you could purchase the rights to sample a sound -- for around $1,500. Then it started creeping up to $3,000, $3,500, $5,000, $7,500. Then they threw in this thing called rollover rates. If your rollover rate is every 100,000 units, then for every 100,000 units you sell, you have to pay an additional $7,500. A record that sells two million copies would kick that cost up twenty times. Now you're looking at one song costing you more than half of what you would make on your album.

It's a nice look at how external forces -- in this case, a clampdown on unauthorized/unlicensed samples -- affected the development of an art form, from what used to be called "primary sources," people actually involved at the time. Think one of the reasons I've never read much music history, or history generally, is having to wade through and process/extract the biases of the person writing the thing. Which in the US usually means patriarchal white suprmacy bullshit, and I can get enough of that from the papers, radio, television, websites, etc. discussing current events, let alone stuff that happened back in the day when people were less hesitant about expressing that sort of thing.

Or not, which is why I'm staying the hell away from Spirit of America. Yeah, whatever:

I'm a bit less patient with that sort of thing these days.

Posted by Aaron at 9:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Or some possible answers, anyway. From Turning the Tide: Bush Lying?

In brief, Eisenhower and his staff were concerned in the 1950s about the "campaign of hatred" against us in the Arab world, and understood the reasons: the perception that the US supports harsh and oppressive regimes and blocks democracy and development, and does so to gain control of the energy resources of the region. In later years, that remained true, though new reasons arose. Thus when the Wall St. Journal and others studied attitudes of "moneyed Muslims" (bankers, managers of multinationals, corporate lawyers, etc.) after 9-11, they found the same reasons, along with others: the decisive US support for vicious Israeli repression of Palestinians and robbery of their resources, and the murderous US-UK sanctions that were devastating the civilian society of Iraq. In the streets and villages, the attitudes would be far more extreme. Since Western intellectuals don't like to hear unpleasant truths about themselves, not surprisingly, we are treated instead to a stream of fantasies about "why they hate us".

That's arch-villain Noam Chomsky, at his official weblog over at ZNet.

In the interests of fairness and balance and shit, you can also read the section of criticisms in Wikipedia's Chomsky entry, and there's a page at LeftWatch.com, covering some of the same territory.

Am I meant to have some sort of emotional reaction to the accusation "anti-American"? Other than boredom, that is?

Posted by Aaron at 7:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

But really, I'd rather not. There's a nice Fuel and Diesel/Petrol prices Table for European Countries in, um, that hyperlink right there, listing 'em as of March 2004. The Netherlands was at the very top, at 79.9. You can hit the link and see the lowest for yourself; doubt you'd believe me if I told you. 60s and 70s in quite a few countries, then at the bottom of the list, by way of comparison, they quote one from the U.S. From California, which if dim memory serves me a'right, tends to run higher than most places here.

23.9 pence/litre.

Or, less than half what it runs in Po-- the one EU country with the lowest cost.

If I was actually serious about comparing these, I'd look for more recent numbers, and convert into measurements and dollar amounts that people in the US can wrap their heads around.

Of course, I'm not serious, any more than when anyone else calmly mentions that, actually, taxes here are not that high in comparison to the rest of the industrialized world.

There seems to be an aversion to those sorts of comparisons, possibly because we always come out looking bad when it comes to health care, or prison population, or infant mortality, or basic reading skills.

But, y'know, low gas prices. And low taxes. And a fractionally tiny amount spent on foreign aid.

Mind you, if you ask someone who's planning to vote for Bush about this, they'll tell you the exact opposite. And refuse to believe anything else, no matter how many statistics you toss at them.

And that's what makes them Bush voters. Simple faith, and an utter inability to process objective reality.

Even better, since the Republicans have worked long and hard at convincing people that their taxes are too high and we send zillions of dollars overseas in aid, it's impossible to have a rational discussion about either taxes or foreign aid.

Unless, unlike me, you have the patience to bring the person you're having the discussion with to a point where they actually have something intelligent to contribute. I should work on that.

Posted by Aaron at 4:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

No matter where you go, there they are: WILLblog: WILL interview archives forever

When I started this blog I vowed to focus on great stuff in the public broadcasting online world...and every once in a while throw in something embarassing. Today's feature is both: great content, but simply awful presentation. I mean it's just bad web design, more embarassing still because I set it up, long ago when I knew even less. Keeping myself humble, as if that were a challenge...

Focus 580 online audio archives stretch back to 2000.

[. . .] Local public radio and TV stations like WILL have been covering issues and people in local communities with the purpose promoting citizenship, community, and the entire set of good things we associate with civilization. If you put the best things we ever produced together in one pile, you could find some pretty great stuff. If you could effectively search and hyperlink it, you might even gain things like insight and historical understanding. If you could compile all the work from all the public TV and radio stations, put it in one online space, and make it findable down to the last jpeg, you'd have a mighty powerful tool for thought, as Howard Rheingold might put it. Can we help ourselves become better balanced in our perspective as a species, possibly more intelligent and humane? What could we do with these tools? We'd dearly like to find out.

But also, as that last bit points out, of interest to others.

Currently listening to an archived episode of Media Matters, with your host Bob McChesney, "a research professor in the Institute of Communications Research and the Graduate School of Information and Library Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign." Namely, the one from May 16, 2004 with guest Janeane Garofalo, co-host of The Majority Report.

Coming Thursday on Majority Report: Noam Chomsky.

Still haven't seen a decent critique of either Air America or Chomsky, seeing as most of them are written by people who have never listened to Air America or read any Chomsky, but, y'know, they've heard Bad Things. . .

Posted by Aaron at 2:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Seen at boing boing and over at Making Light, and I only hesitated on posting it when I saw it at the latter for fear of enabling the addicts, Law & Order: Artistic Intent:

Presented here is just a small sampling of work from "Law & Order: Artistic Intent," a group show which ran the last week of May 2003 in downtown Santa Cruz. The theme was the long-running NBC police/courtroom drama "Law & Order" and its spinoffs, "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit." This theme was inspired by my intense and somewhat recent love of "Law & Order."

My own personal favorite is Lennie Briscoe and the Immaterial Witness, but Everybody Loves Briscoe, so that ain't saying much. . .

There's a sketch of FRANK IRONWINE by Carla Speed McNeil, from the upcoming Apparat comic, over at Lying in the Gutters. If you read that sort of thing. And I wouldn't admit it in public either, except I just did. . .

Apologies for linking the suckiness that was the Buckaroo Banzai text adventure, and I hope and trust that Galatea is a more worthwhile way to spend your time:

Galatea has what I call a multilinear plot: unlike traditional [Interactive Fiction], it has no single path to victory. Instead there are a large number of endings, some more satisfactory than others, of which many could be considered "win" states. It takes only a few minutes of play to arrive at an ending, but considerably longer to find all of them.

Possibly seen linked in the comments to the Slashdot review of Twisty Little Passages: An Approach to Interactive Fiction, but that was a while ago, and I'm not sure why I didn't mention it until now. If you drop by the front page there, you can also vote on your Favorite Zero Wing Line. Can you believe "Somebody set up us the bomb." is behind. . . actually, if you have any idea what I'm babbling about, of course you believe it.

Oh, and there is a mobile/light version of this thing now, courtesy of WINKsite, but much work remains to be done. For example, editing the Atom feed so it includes full entries, and not just the extended bit, for those that have extended bits. Seeing as I hadn't even bothered creating an Atom index until this weekend, despite the reference to same in the index.html, and still have to adjust the .htaccess so the server sends the correct MIME type for the thing. . . yep, I can hear your eyes glazing over from here.

Posted by Aaron at 9:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)