Paris Hilton Video

Air America Debuts

2004-04-01T14:58:00.000-08:00

So, I'm listening to Air America. Specifically Im listening to Randi. Apparently she's been doing radio in Florida for awhile. I don't know, I'm happy that there's a liberal voice on the radio/media, but I'm unexcited about their execution. I'm a little turned off by the liberal hyperbole and insult throwing at the Republicans. I guess its entertaining and they need to entertain, but I think liberal America really wants solid information thats at a higher level. Liberal America needs talking points.
So, I think that Air America Radio needs research assistants that dig up solid facts and information and feed them to the 'on-air' personalities. You think Rush comes up with all of his own material? Don't make me laugh. Bill O'Rielly probably has a huge research staff as well. It's clear that Air America Radio needs to bring the same professionalism to their operations as well.

Mash-Ups...yeah, yeah, I know I'm late to this meme

2004-03-11T19:22:00.000-08:00

Hell, it's already been written up in Salon. I'm way late on this deal. However, how many of you have heard the TOP 10 here? There is also an excellent dj game on this site. Damn fun.

Libertarian Credentials Test

2004-03-11T18:09:00.000-08:00

Apparently, I am a soft-core libertarian. I took the Libertarian test at this site and I guess I believe that we need government in some form. I kind of figured that it would turn out this way when I answered no to almost all of the questions that got progressively more hard core libertarian.

Bestest Newest iTunes Addition I'd Never Heard Of

2004-03-11T17:49:00.000-08:00

Dice by Finlay Quaye - Great song. Reminds me of the movie The Cooler, but better. If you have iTunes, pick up this song. It's a good one.

Ooh ooh, also get Channel Surfing by Feature Cast. One of the most boogienest songs I've heard in a long time. Wicked scratching thrown down on top of killer beats. And I don't even talk like that!

Politics: I'm scared to see what happens when Bush starts to spend his 200+ million dollars on ad spending. Media controls politics and 200+ million is serious cashish. I kinda think Bush will win because of his money because that's the way things work in our beautiful country.

The Credit Score Scam

2004-03-09T08:36:00.000-08:00

So I recently took Suzi Orman's advice and paid $40 to see my credit reports from the major agencies: TRW, Experian and some other scam company. It is extremely clear that the Credit Score game is a con to get extra money from consumers. Basically, if you've ever had a late payment, then you get a higher score which means that you'll pay more in interest. What confuses me is this: I have had a couple of greater than 30 day payments and one greater than 90 days but I have never defaulted on my credit. IN FACT, I pay exorbitant fees for late charges so therefore I represent an even better customer to a potential lender.
My contention is that if they are making more money off of me because of late charges, then why should I have to pay a higher interest rate? It should be either/or -- not both. Talk about being screwed coming and going. It's clear that the credit providers and the rating agencies have set up this little scam to get the average consumer on both ends.
To reiterate, if someone misses a payment, not only do they have to pay a huge late fee to the credit company, but then their credit score is lowered so that if they get a loan, their monthly fees from higher interest charges will be sky high.
Just another example of how corporate america fucks you both ways.
Average Joe, grab them ankles buddy.

Watching a Bush Fundraiser on C-SPAN

2004-03-07T22:16:00.000-08:00

So, I'm sitting here watching Bush at a fundraiser talking about the Iraq war amongst other things. He thinks that attacking Iraq resolved the Al Qaeda threat. Therefore, destroying Iraq was an act of national self-defense. Really? Iraq was ready to destroy America? I'm sorry, I'm pretty certain the evidence that we've gathered after our invasion of Iraq demonstrates a couple of things: A. The connection between Iraq and Al Qaeda is actually fairly weak, and B. Iraq was weakened to the point of posing NO CREDIBLE THREAT to America. Sound familiar? If anyone remembers the evil threat that the USSR represented soon found out how much of that threat was outright bluster.
So, it seems that George is willing to ignore the facts and hold onto outdated and erroneous beliefs in order to support his decision to invade a weak third-world country, kill tens of thousands of their citizens and lose hundreds of young American soldiers in the process. I feel like this is a bad movie.
His speech is littered with sweeping generalizations and weak associations that bind his, and the Republican party's, thinking.
The thing that really pisses me off is that I have two friends who are women that are supporters of Bush. Outside of this they are fairly intelligent people. However, it's apparent that when it comes to complicated national issues, their thinking is woefully underdeveloped. They are willing to believe what they hear in the media and go along with the opinions of their friends. This is decision making? God, this makes me want to rage against the absurdities of our society, but that won't help me. The key to dissent in America is to play the game. Play it better than the best real players and then demonstrate leadership from the top. I call it the Gorbachev Game. He rose to the top of the Communist party in Russia by being a consummate party man. Then, when he got to the top, he pulled the plug on the entire charade. I hope that we can be so lucky here in America.
Otherwise, I foresee a bad ending at the hands of an international community that is gaining power everyday and growing weary of the US arrogance and missteps. I do not want to see this movie.

Peggy Noonan's Backhanded Support of Bush

2004-02-09T11:23:00.000-08:00

I just finished reading Peggy Noonan's oped piece in the Journal regarding Bush's recent Tim Russert interview. At first, the article appears to be critical of Bush claiming that he, "seemed tired, unsure and often bumbling. His answers were repetitive, and when he tried to clarify them he tended to make them worse. He did not seem prepared. He seemed in some way disconnected from the event." Wow, she's really laying into him! Or so it would seem.
Peggy then transforms her criticism of Bush's performance by saying that Republicans do not give good interview because they ground all of their actions in philosophy and perform better in "real life". She starts by saying that there are two types of interviewers: those who can and those who cannot remember talking points. Apparently, Republicans cannot remember talking points. John Kerry on the other hand, "does good talking points. In interviews he's asked for his views on tax cuts and he has it all there in his head in blocks of language that cohere and build." Wow, policy that logically fits with the reality surrounds it; must lack a grounding in philosophy, eh Peg? She asserts that George Bush is as bright as John Kerry and that Ronald Reagan (another bad interviewer) was as smart as Walter Mondale. I don't know what the IQ scores of Ronald Reagan and Mondale were, but boy, I think I want the action on that first line. My Republican friends all bring up the fact that GWB went to HBS (Harvard Biz School); ergo, he must be smart. This is laughable, anyone knows that the son of a politically connected Skull & Bonesman (as well as being one himself) is likely to make it into Harvard easily. In fact, I've heard his grades sucked (unconfirmed).
But what about the rest of George Bush's resume. Hmm...he ran an oil company into bankruptcy. Nicely done. Then he ran a baseball team and became the governor of Texas. Let's see the baseball team made one of the largest financial mistakes in inking a $250MM deal for Alex Rodriguez -- albeit performance-clause driven. And Texas' educational miracle is being revealed as the bullshit that it was. (Thank god the administrator from Texas in charge of the school record fraud is now leading our education effort nationally!)
But, back to the topic at hand.
Peggy is engaging in the subtle art of spin that the Republican media machine has perfected to an art. It's the old criticism that's really compliment. Remember, the business world is where when asked at an interview what your greatest weakness is, you respond with, "I'm so good at my job it often makes the rest of the organization look bad and therefore I often find myself doing extra work to ensure that the rest of the organization rises to my level while deferring praise to those around me!" In other words, anything but the truth. Peg believes that George's lack of ability to defend his decisions is because, as a Republican, George is deeply rooted in a philosophy and he is made tired from superior execution on the job. She also notes that Democrats are better talkers with implication being that they are inferior in the 'real world'.
Peggy, your article is weak. George is unable to articulately defend his actions and policies because they lack logical links. He attacked Iraq because Saddam put a contract out his father, he can't find Osama, he can't tell difference between speculation and evidence and he is easily manipulated by higher intellects like Cheney and Wolfowitz.
Peggy is right that his performance will be criticized, however her spin as to why should ignored. Actually, I hope it's thoroughly criticized as it rightly should be.

Liam Lynch: The United States of Whatever

2004-02-04T09:28:00.000-08:00

This guy nails what the U.S. is all about right now. Whatever! Go to this site, click the "Watch this video" link. One of the best songs ever. And I don't say those types of things lightly.

Some of you may recognize Liam as the creator of Sifl & Ollie, two really dry but funny sock puppets. Yes, sock puppets. I think they do the lead in to that one song where they talk about 'butter tarts'. WTF are butter tarts?

Ooh, ooh, there's a Sifl N Olly website. Check it, don't wreck it.

JabberWacky Rocks!!!

2004-02-03T16:51:00.000-08:00

Okay, I just got done blowing a couple of hours chatting with an AI bot that is fricking hilarious. It's called Jabberwacky. Check it out. Actually, check out some of the saved conversations they have on the site. I think that it's a testament to the humor of people who chat with AI bots!

Digital Music Services Have a Way To Go

2004-02-02T20:39:00.000-08:00

So, I'm a big fan of iTunes. I used sub to Rhapsody and Napster as well, but I like the iTunes interface much, much bettah. But, I think these guys have a ways to go yet.

Why?

Because people can still download whatever they want off the internet. My roommate asked me to set up her mp3 player and then proceeded to download whatever she wanted off the net. I joked about getting sued, but I thought about it and I don't think she'll really get sued. Until that threat is real, however, I don't think the music industry will have much success in getting people to pay for what is free.

I could be wrong. I hope they don't sue my roommate. She's really nice.

'Sleeping On It' Proven To Work

2004-02-02T20:34:00.000-08:00

I've been a little worried the last few years that I don't really remember any of my dreams. I think it has something to do with stress. (Don't ask.)

Now I'm really worried.

Apparently, some German scientists have proven that you have genius breakthroughs while sleeping! It's a pretty ingenious test and it looks solid.

So this means my lack of dreaming really puts me at a disadvantage. Frickin' great! Just what I needed, something else to fret about.

So, next time you're working on particularly hairy problems; relax, and get some sleep. Hopefully the answer will come to you!

Bold Faced Lying

2003-12-05T19:03:00.000-08:00

What is up with American corporations lately? Okay, maybe it's not lately, but none-the-less I think companies are becoming increasingly comfortable with bold faced lying. What am I talking about? I'm watching a show on PBS and it was 'sponsored' by SBC. Their little 'we sponsored this' tagline said that SBC is, "committed to provided Americans with more options for getting broadband". Wha...tha...fa...? SBC isn't committed to increasing the public's choice in broadband, it's committed to trying to get the most consumers to pay the highest possible price for their service. I can not get over a company's duplicitousness in attempting to convince me that they're doing a public service. Please! Companies don't do anything that they don't feel doesn't maximize shareholder value. For SBC to imply otherwise is total bullshit.
Aparrently, SBC is fine with spewing total bullshit.
I am beginning to hate corporations more and more by the frickin' day.

Another good album...

2003-12-04T12:49:00.000-08:00

Ryan Adams. No, not Bryan Adams, Ryan Adams. His album "Love is Hell, Pt. 1" is luscious. I particularly like his cover of Oasis' Wonderwall, but that's probably because I'm unoriginal and I really enjoy derivative shit and I thought that the original was one of the greatest songs of all time and I enjoy the fact that someone else thought enough of it as well.
Hey, consider yourself lucky I'm on a music kick. Everyone should be so lucky.

Why are Gala apples squishy?

2003-12-03T22:06:00.000-08:00

Who gives a fuck! Let me tell you about a great band: Bear vs. Shark
First of all, great name.
Second of all, they're apparently part of the whole 'emo' thing, but pay no attention because they're great. They rock hard and the singer has an amazing voice. He has a scream that reaches out and grabs your attention. This is seriously good stuff. The songs aren't just thrash, they stop and start and display musicianship throughout that is surprising but refreshingly raw. You will hear more about this band.
Go buy the CD. It's worth it. Plus, show the music industry that their Brittany Spears and other bullshit is just not appreciated anymore.
Speaking of, what is up with Brittany Spears' new album? Could that cover scream Debbie Gibson anymore? Don't think so. Brittany, the early 80's are not old enough for a revival. Judging by the state of affairs, that's the last fucking decade anyone wants to relive right now.

Idea Laundering

2003-11-28T14:03:00.000-08:00

Wow. I have just stumbled onto the name of a concept I have been milling around in my head for awhile now: Idea Laundering. The basic premise behind Idea Laundering is this: Pay someone to advocate for you but obscure the fact that you have funded the advocacy effort. That's a pretty theoretical way to describe it but there are very real world examples of what it means. Companies want to influence Congress, but they don't want their name behind the effort because then it appears as the crass commercialism that it is. So, what to do? Well, they hire a company like Burson-Marsteller to create a non-profit that will hire people to write op ed letters and man phone banks. We all know that non-profits are independent and objective, right?
I stumbled into this idea by following a recent line of thought; all lot of the so-called independent equity research that is being created isn't independent. Much of this new equity research is paid for by the companies that are being written on. I'm sure there is some type of word for calling something the exact opposite of what is in order to change a person's perspective. My simple mind can only come up with: lying, obsfucation, misdirectionism.
But anyways, check out this article in Washington Monthlywhere I first saw the word Idea Laundering. I Googled the concept and I've found that this meme is gaining traction. Here is the article that discusses the concept's genesis within the world's largest pr firm: Burson-Marsteller! The article discusses how gene therapy is being advocated by firms through the funding of non-profit organizations. These NPOs then turn around and fund art exhibits that "generate enthusiasm" for gene therapies.
So, why am I so worked up by this? Because it's another example of money exerting influence on our political society. I believe that the role of government (at least in the U.S.) is to protect its citizens from the capitalist machine. I do not believe that capitalism solves all societal problems; in fact, it probably creates many of them. But allowing the icons of capitalism, companies and the fat, overpaid executives who lead them, fund these advocacy groups who are willing to night/day and day/night really scares me. I think that these organizations are able to influence our political system into actually harming its citizens. Think about the intellectual level and academic abilities of politicians. They're not mental giants. And when faced with well-constructed arguments that distort reality, I seriously begin to doubt our government's abilities to make good decisions.
The concept of Idea Laundering encompasses a lot of ideas that I've been mulling lately. And it comes down to money is controlling our government. I guess if you're a Darwinist and you believe that survival of the fittest is the best way to run a society, then this appeals to you. However, I'm worried about temporary inefficiencies that put resources (money) in the hands of the wrong people who then buy influence and push our country down the wrong path. Idea Laundering is a playbook on how to do exactly that.

Why our society sucks ass:

2003-11-16T15:04:00.000-08:00

Football players make more than armed service men and women. Again, WTF? Here we have people fighting wars, living in tents in very hot conditions, and dying for our country. Yet, in all of our sagaciousness, we feel it's appropriate that pay football players millions of dollars. We pay our service members horribly. Have you heard the stories about how families of service members have to live off of food stamps? I have and I think its bullshit.

WTF is up with Enron?

2003-11-15T13:32:00.000-08:00

Are they ever going to fry those freaks at Enron? I mean, what the f*ck? It's clear they did it. Everyone knows they did it, but these punks get to run around spending their millions that they stole from investors and the people of California. It's time to nail some peoples asses to the wall. Where is the SEC? Where are the prosecutors? Why hasn't anything substantial been done to fry these *ssholes?
Life is so unfair. I know I should be used to it and accept it for what it is, but this really gets to me sometimes. Here I am, trying to make a living, and you have these people who made millions of dollars through unethical and illegal means living the highlife. Has anyone gone to jail yet? No. Has anyone declared bankruptcy yet? No.

No Paris Hilton Sex Video Here

2003-11-14T17:22:00.000-08:00

Humans are so predictable. A mention of the Paris Hilton Sex Video (yes, title caps) will bring'em runnin'! Is this how pathetic things have gotten? I guess so considering that I'm one of the leches that would love to see this little rich-kid waif getting the bejeezus f'd out of her by some lowlife Hollywood wanna-be player. Thank god rich people destroy their lives too! Anyways, if you have the video, send it on down. I could use some new 'material'.

Speaking of public porn videos: anyone else wonder how many potential women presidents are self-destructing by waving their titties on a Girls Gone Wild video?

Sam Donaldson on Meet the Press: "Well, Ms. Jenkins certainly looked like the front-runner for the party candidacy until the video came out this week. Damn, did she have a nice rack when she was 18 or what?"

Tim Russert: "I know I went through a box of kleenex."

James Carville: "I couldn't get my all-y-gay-tor boots off fas'enuf to slap that pickle with a bit of the Looziana knuckle rub!"

But I digress. Wait, no I didn't, I think I started this low. Anyways, I can't wait to what additional disturbed stuff I come up with in the future!