I just spit all over my screen

Because of this video. Holy crap. Off to grab a towel and wipe my MacBook down. Enjoy, and say thanks to FREEwilliamsburg.

Finally made it to the airwaves!

Was listening to NPR (yeah, don't all roll your eyes at once), Sound Check with John Schaefer as he was interviewing Iain Ellis about his new book, "Rebels Wit Attitude: Subversive Rock Humorists," about the history of humor in rock. Not the most obvious topic, but he made a good case. As usual, they asked for online comments. So I wrote:

[3] dan from bed-stuy January 22, 2009 - 02:18PM

I know this will probably show up in his Brit book, but Rob Halford of Judas Priest was himself one big joke, or rather he pulled off a joke on all his testosterone, hetero gay-bashing fans by getting them to sing along with essentially gay sex anthems. Heavy metal, heavy irony.

Schaefer chose to read it on air, struggling to hold back his laughter, while his guest--who is a Brit--laughed loudly and then said, "Brilliant! I couldn't agree more."

Born to Hulu

FYI, folks, in case you didn't know: today is a new era. An historical landmark, a new beginning, a breathe of fresh air has swept through the land--and it smells good. I'm talking about the change that has finally come, before our very eyes, and the hope engendered by the progress made on a journey started long ago. Of course, I'm talking about, none other than the freedom to watch The Daily Show with Jon Stewart without cable hookup, online, for nothing, and with even less commercials than there are normally. And who is to thank for this day to rejoice? No, not President of the United States, one Barack Hussein Obama (although something this good must have had him involved somehow), but something called Hulu. What does it mean? Who the hell cares. Now, you can watch the best fake news around. Yep, The Colbert Report, too. Happy day, oh happy day!

BTW: The first black president was inaugurated yesterday to much fanfare. That's right, a black guy is now the Man. These are indeed confusing times we live in. I heard Public Enemy's "Fight The Power" has become Rush Limbaugh's new theme song. I can die happy now.

Flashback to a cold water plane incident, Wash D.C.

Holy shit! A plane just crashed into the Hudson river: 151 people aboard, no word on rescues; though there is video footage of many being rescued. Strike that, it was an intentional landing, doesn't look too bad. But it's balls cold out there. Damn geese. Apparently that's what caused the need to land.

The Hundred Year Squeaky Wheel

Do you think this era's Shakespeare (assuming there will be one--probably not, theater being just one of many mediums for dramaturgy, and not the most widespread and common as he was in his day) will be writing scores of plays about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?

It is perhaps, in part, because of the historical (of course, more topical to their original audiences) significance of Shakespeare plays, revolving around England and France's 100 years war, that they have stuck around so long? No doubt this can be a good thing. Would I know of Henry V or Richard II, if not for The Bard? Of course it is the style, wit, and narrative that has helped keep him in the hands of high-school students to this day, but does not the authenticity of the events stir our collective call to "Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more" (Act III, scene I)?

Really, if film can be seen as the true people's medium of the last hundred years--it can--then at this point you would have to look at WWII as the crowning, defining dramatic representation of war for our times. Well, then, where are all the movies of this conflict? To be sure, there are more reasons than I don't care to go into here: from the difference in scale of the conflicts to the indifference of an American audience not directly involved; indeed, Jews, who have had a disproportionate influence in Hollywood, are to be found in both sagas--though with the differing roles of simply and strictly the victim to the more complex persona of victim and aggressor.

Most important, though, is the cushion of time removed from the events: how is one to make a sprawling decades long cinema classic if we don't even know what happens in the end? Hollywood, like any good epic/epoch maker, needs a conclusion. It need not be tidy; in fact messy makes for more interesting. So for god's sake, or at least for Oscar's, get it over with already. I want my DVD box set, with running commentary from the director--I'm looking at you Scorsese.

What's the hub-bub, bub?

So now that Obama-rama is almost upon us, one of the first questions to be answered, raised by one of the first issues we've been promised will dealt with by the New-Man, the closing of Guantanamo prison: what is to be done with all those meanies?

Well, brought onto American soil would raise the messy issues of habeas corpus and other Latin legalese. Eh. That seems like a lot of trouble. Especially, as is often the case, there's no smoking guns for the good folks at CSI: Miami to get evidence from. Hell, there's not even any rape-kits. Remember, this isn't Abu-Grahb and we're not talking about prosecuting American soldiers--hey, watch it, buddy.

Of course, we could try returning them to their countries of origin, or even where they were captured, mostly in Afghanistan and Iraq. Why not? Undesirables have been routinely shipped off to these types of countries (you know: lots of sand, oil, and Muslims) for years. And they--the new jailers--don't even have to worry about ball-torture retribution from the public, as balls are fair game! Then again, if we're to believe these guys are such bad-asses, why would they want them? And, better still, why do we want to give them up?

I've got the answer: the sea. Either a decommissioned, or unused, aircraft-carrier should do the trick, right? Not our land, not theirs. Even better, for the prisoners and guards anyway, how about an ocean-liner? You know, a cruise ship! Nothing fancy, of course. But I'm sure there's plenty sitting in dry-dock these days, the way the vacation industry has been giving it away lately. Christ, even my parents are going on a cruise in a couple of weeks--so it can't cost more than an Econo-lodge per-night. I'd spring for that. Plus, how angry a terrorist can you be if you're being tooled around the Gulf of Mexico, drinking pina coladas? Virgin pina coladas, of course. Very virgin, most likely.

The Day After: my angry post (or: a little levity)

Speaks for itself. Enjoy. And, as always, props to the stats dept. at The Economist.

Burn, Oakland, Burn!

Fuck the police, comin' straight outta Oakland!

I just saw three different videos of an unarmed man, face down with a police officer's knee on his neck get shot in the back and killed by another officer standing above the two. WTF!?!

There is nothing "inconclusive," which was the reaction from Oakland's chief of police, calling for calm until further investigation, about the footage I saw. The dead man is seen for some time on his knees, then for no apparent reason, he is forced face down onto the ground, completely prone. Next, one of the two officers who did this is seen standing up, at this point not touching or being touched by anyone, including the dead guy, pulls out his gun, points downward and then a sharp report is heard. It is clear as day. (Well, as clear as cell phone/small digital cameras can be.)

Jesus. I haven't felt hatred toward the police like what I feel right now in years, maybe since I was a testosterone-fueled teenager, singing along with N.W.A. My gut reaction? I wish I had been there, and along with everyone else would've rushed all of those cops, grabbed the one responsible and ripped him limb from limb. But maybe I'm overreacting.

There is plenty of footage on YouTube, from many different angles. Watch a few. Here, a reporter shows a police spokesman, visibly disturbed, the footage for the first time.

Oh, did I mention it was a black young man shot by a white police officer, all of a two-year veteran? But you could've assumed that much, I suppose. Sick of my sarcasm yet? I am.

(No pic for this post, I'm too upset to bother.)

She Told You! Hm!

Where is the great Arab culture we have learned about in school? Why don't they [other Arab nations] help us [Palestinians]? Shame on them!

- displaced Palestinian mother in Gaza recently on World Focus, PBS

From Russia with masochistic love

In a countrywide vote of 5m people, Russians chose Alexander Nevsky, a medieval prince, as the greatest Russian of all time, only a little ahead of Joseph Stalin, the front-runner in early polling
-The Economist

A seeming paradox, but indeed, despite espoused ideology both historical figures share Orwell's image of "a boot stomping on human face -- forever."