The odd menage-a-trois of music

This short article says it all:

David Bowie provides backing vocals on two tracks for Scarlett Johansson's album of Tom Waits covers, Anywhere I Lay My Head.

He wrote on his web site: "The songs are great, really good Tom Waits stuff, and Scarlett's performances are mystical and cool." Bowie also insists his contribution to the CD is not as big as the hype.

"I've seen the press on the album and I suppose the record company wanted to spin my involvement a little more than it warrants. All I really contribute are these ooh's and aah's on a couple of tracks."

David Bowie, Scarlett Johansson and Tom Waits?

Suing For Our Civil Rights "Not Fair" According to G.W. Bush

As his days of official fear-mongering are winding down, President G.W. Bush has been trying to scare the shit out of the American public once again by throwing a fit about the House not approving the Senate's version of the Protect America Act.

Don't worry--the act, which expired on February 16th, doesn't actually protect you from anything. It deals largely with the process that government folks must go through to request a wire tap for a phone line. The Protect America act makes it a much easier and expedient process, requiring less hard evidence for a tap to be approved.

What is even more problematic is that the Senate's new version of the bill provides immunity to the phone companies who are letting the government trample all over our right to privacy. There are currently 40 lawsuits pending against various phone companies for allowing these wiretaps to happen after 9/11. Our president doesn't think Americans should get to hold these phone companies accountable at all, saying recently: “They’re getting sued for billions of dollars, and it’s not fair . . .If you’ve done something that you think is perfectly legal and all of a sudden you’re facing billions of dollars of lawsuits, it’s going to be hard to provide — with credibility — assurances that we can go forward."

The problem with this statement is that the phone companies should have known that it was NOT perfectly legal to allow these wire taps to happen. Sadly, only one phone company in the entire country told the government to bugger off when they came knocking at the door, and that was AZ's local Qwest Communications.

I am so sick of being told how scared we should be because our civil rights are NOT being violated (for once). I also get the impression from listening to G.W. that he is simply angry that he is not getting his way, despite all of his allusions to the terrorists that are hiding under our beds, waiting to kill us and our freedom.

You can read the NY Times articles that I lifted these quotes from here. I apologize that this is not such a well-written entry. It all just makes me so damn mad.

Pregnant Women Are Porkers

There was a time when only models and actresses went nude for PETA. Now it looks like the animal rights group is using barely clad pregnant women to make its point. TMZ.com reports that an expectant mother, sporting only underwear, squatted on all fours in a cage in London to protest the cramped conditions into which humble pigs are forced.

I get the point, but, by using a pregnant woman, isn't PETA suggesting that pregnant women ARE pigs?

My new favourite blog (besides this one)

garfield minus garfield


Who would have guessed that when you remove Garfield from the Garfield comic strips, the result is an even better comic about schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and the empty desperation of modern life? Friends, meet Jon Arbuckle. Let’s laugh and learn with him on a journey deep into the tortured mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against loneliness and methamphetamine addiction in a quiet American suburb.

Dumb As Posts

American teens are ignorant. At least, that’s the argument found in a New York Times article printed today. According to the article, fewer than half of American teens who participated in a phone survey knew the period when the Civil War was fought or when Columbus sailed to the New World.

So, what’s to blame? George W. Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act, according to Common Core, the group that commissioned the study. NCLB has resulted in too much teaching centered on standardized testing and not enough teaching centered on liberal arts, the group says.

The funny thing about Common Core is that it’s made up of Lefties and Righties, alike, so it’s difficult to argue that, once again, liberals are vilifying the President and his policies.

Check out the article in its entirety here.

Assassination

I thought of this when I read Nadra's recent post on her blog about the movie Crash. (Just for the record, in case you've never met me, I freakin' hate that movie.)

I have heard some rumblings that there is a significant percentage of Obama supporters who think there is a high possibility he will be assassinated if he is elected to office. And when I say high possibility, I mean I've heard some folks say, "I'm supportive, and I am voting for him, but I don't think he'll make it out of the first year alive."

I have to say that I was initially pretty shocked when I heard someone say this for the first time. My initial thought was, "I would like to think that America is too old for that." But then I set aside the rose-colored glasses that I enjoy wearing on most days and thought about it for a minute. I haven't done any recent research, but I am sure that hate crimes are alive and well, regardless of what minority you might belong to these days. While I would like to say I haven't heard a racist comment recently, in reality I hear them on a daily basis, whether it is overt (a derogatory term yelled by an idiot on the street at some poor bystander) or covert (i.e. Fox News coverage of immigration issues). Sadly, America is not close to being hate free.

This reminds me of viewing the movie Crash because when I saw the movie, I thought (and clearly still think) it was a reprehensible piece of garbage. I lived in Los Angeles for 5.5 years and the majority of the people I interacted with on a daily basis seemed normal and could at least restrain any latent prejudices they might have had so that they behaved rationally in public. But I know in my heart that all of the hate issues that are touched on in Crash (and even more that are not) exist in LA and in all of the US. I know horrible people do horrible things to innocent folks for abhorrent and ignorant reasons.

Thus, I would like to say that there is no extra threat of assassination posed to Obama, should he become President of the United States, just because of his race. But part of me also feels like to say so would be to turn my back on the issues of racism (and other isms) that we are still dealing with every day in this country.

Anyone else got some sentiments on this?

My whirliest girl-friend

Hey y'all,

Nadra's been blowing it up the last few days on her new blog as well. Check it:

Nadra's Blog

Listen 'Till You're Thin, Ladies!

While I was driving from Los Angeles to Tucson this weekend, I was listening to an independent radio station broadcasting from somewhere out in Palm Springs. The DJ came on and announced that the next track he'd be playing was off of a new CD called SkinnySongs. One of his friends is part of the production team of this new disc, he confessed, which has recently been featured on Oprah's and Martha Stewart's day time television shows. He didn't mention much about the project beyond that, but I was already alarmed and suspicious. The title of the song I heard is called "Blowin' You Off at 8". Here are some sample lyrics:

Today, I have to say, was the best day of my life
I hate to admit it -- but it sure felt nice
you pulled up a chair after checking me out
but when I looked at you, you were shocked to find out…

that this lady you’d been sizing up from behind
yeah, this lady, you’d been undressing with your mind
with this lady you were wanting to score
but she's the same girl you dumped six months before!

you dumped me at 16 now I’m blowin’ you off at 8
You told me I was fat -- now honey don’t I look great?
I’ve dropped four dress sizes down, now you're coming around
if you didn’t want me then, then you don’t deserve me now!


I was pretty disgusted at this song and the project as a whole, but I guess I am not that surprised. And of course this disc is clearly being marketed towards women (although I suppose it might also be profitable to do a SkinnySongs 2: Real Men Aren't Fat or something like that).

I have more things to say about this, but I am about to lose my internet connection. Just check out the website and try not to vomit while you're gazing upon it.

Nader enters the fray...

Ralph Nader is running again for President in '08:

Vote Nader Website

LA Marathon - Sunday 3/2

Get ready for the LA Marathon next weekend!

If you're interested in coming downtown to support the crew from Horace Mann Middle School, we would love to have you out there cheering us on. I'm shooting for finishing the race around 12:15-12:30. After the race, our school will gather at the Marriott downtown: 333 S. Figueroa Blvd. Los Angeles 90017.

If you're going, I recommend taking the metro, as parking downtown will be tricky and expensive:
LA Marathon Metro Information

I will have my cell phone on me during and after the race, if you need to contact me, or to find me. The Marriott would be a good call.

For more info on the event, check out:
LA Marathon Official Website
Students Run LA Website

Peace, y'all. And thanks for the support!

a.

A rose by any other name...

All of you should know by now, but!

"Stacie" is now "Mina" - Change your phones, your emails, and your hearts.

Explanations to come later.

-Mina

In the beginning...

"For it matters not how small the beginning may seem to be: what is once well done is done for ever." - Henry David Thoreau

This is the first post of the Official Shire Blog. Stay tuned for more soon...

Peace, y'all.

a.

(listening to Curtis Mayfield)