That big sucking sound.
Last night on the way home from a lovely dinner with family I was trying to find something to listen to on the radio. After a few minutes it became very apparent, radio really sucks sometimes!
K-Rock had the Booker show on which is just horrible and in terms of music on other stations there wasn’t much to choose from. Lots of people on the radio nowadays are trying to be Stern (or to a lesser extent Imus). It’s soooo forced and soooo bad. Nevermind that they screw around with the board so much to make everyone’s voice sound so damn perfect. So perfect in fact, it sounds anything but. Booker’s show had the main guy (Booker, I imagine), some other guy and some women all working really, really hard to be funny. Lots of laughing at just bad, bad jokes. Ever listen to someone tell you a bad joke and laugh too long or too loud after it even though it wasn’t funny? That’s what it was like.
WCBS is gone now too so that big echoey FM sound with all those fifties/sixties/seventies pop is gone. I wasn’t in classical more either and listening to some rap just doesn’t seem like an after dinner kind of thing to do - I just can’t think that rap helps with the digestive process.
So, it’s pretty slim pickings.
AM had nothing but a couple of basketball or hockey games, the newsradio channels and I think there was some kind of health show on one of the stations.
I wasn’t in the God Power Hour mood either (not that I ever was a big fan of the whole Jeez-us radio).
Scary thing is, I’m in a large metro area - what is it like if you’re out in the sticks?!?
Feb 5, 2006
Feb 4, 2006
Further reading.
If you haven’t heard about the cartoon controversy and would like to read more look at the following places (you can even see the offending images):
If you haven’t heard about the cartoon controversy and would like to read more look at the following places (you can even see the offending images):
The cartoon series appearing on this page that sparked a global controversy was commissioned and published by a Danish newspaper as a deliberate challenge to Muslim insistence that their religious feelings must be given special consideration.
“It’s important for our readers to see what the fuss is about and to make up their own minds. Ours is a secular society based on Western ideals of tolerance and open debate, even if that may occasionally offend.”
“We do not wish to be deliberately provocative but neither should we allow ourselves to be intimidated.”
“If we allow Christianity and more particularly the Catholic Church and the Pope to be satirised, and we do, should Islam be treated differently?”
“In its pure form Islam is a religion based on peace and tolerance. This is a test of that tolerance.”
Newspapers in France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland and Hungary have reprinted caricatures originally published in Denmark, arguing that press freedom is more important than the protests and boycotts they have provoked.
Up to 300 militant Indonesian Muslims went on a rampage inside the lobby of a Jakarta building housing the Danish embassy yesterday in protest over cartoons that Muslims say insult Islam and the Prophet Mohammad.
Iraq’s top Shia Muslim cleric Ayatollah Ali Sistani condemned the publication, but said militant Islamists were partly to blame for distorting the image of Islam
Newspapers across the globe debate the controversy over cartoons satirising the Prophet Muhammad, with Denmark’s Jyllands-Posten, which originally commissioned the drawings, blaming some Muslim religious leaders for spreading “lies and misinformation.”
Cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad published in several European newspapers have caused outrage among some Muslims. The BBC News website looks at the key questions behind the row.
There is no specific, or explicit ban on images of Allah or the Prophet Muhammad - be they carved, painted or drawn.
However, chapter 42, verse 11 of the Koran does say: “[Allah is] the originator of the heavens and the earth... [there is] nothing like a likeness of Him.”
This is taken by Muslims to mean that Allah cannot be captured in an image by human hand, such is his beauty and grandeur. To attempt such a thing is seen as an insult to Allah.
The cartoons heard ’round the world.
Okay, I admit it. It’s nice to see them burning someone else’s flag for a change.
Is anyone really shocked by displays like this? I mean, really? How many times have you been watching the news only to see a bunch of people from the Middle East burning a flag. Wasn’t it the Palestinians who were out there shooting off guns, celebrating and burning American flags on September 11th?
I even came across a site which seems to be entirely devoted to all the flag burnings of the American flag (and there are many). So, the Muslim world is mad at the West - what else is new?
Like, the very people who are the most upset by this, your zealous Islamic fundamentalists, what, they were particularly enchanted with us to begin with? I mean, what are they going to do? Fly jet planes into buildings? Blow themselves up? Kill innocents? Destroy other religions’ sacred sites?
Oh, wait.
That’s right... they’ve done all those things.
So, excuse me if I am not impressed by their righteous outrage.
I probably would be more concerned if there was a long history of friendship and tolerance between our societies. Yet, it doesn’t seem as if that’s the case. If people are offended, that’s bad and unfortunate. In this instance they deserve at minimum an apology but, when you start threatening people with violence and death, well... to put it mildly, fuck you.
Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck you.
Now, I’?m not talking about people who are adherents of Islam, people who find comfort and solace in their faith. I do however have an enormous problem with anyone who uses their religion to hold themselves out as better than the rest of us. Be they Muslim, Christian or Jewish (or whatever religion you want to choose). The thing I fail to understand, the thing that escapes me whenever I read or hear of something like this boils down to one simple fact: If these people are so holy, so devote, so pious, so humbled and in awe of their chosen deity, how could they possibly take it upon themselves to speak for such a divine entity?
You remember the old Ken-L-Ration commercials? My dog is better than your dog and all that went the tune. Just swipe out the word dog for the word God (cap "G", G) and it gives you a sense of where this whole argument stems from...
My God is better than your God,
My God’s better than yours...
My God’s better ’cause it’s my religion yeah,
My God’s better than yours!
It’s great when religion makes a person feel better about themselves, about their place in the world but, is it so necessary to feel better about yourself by feeling superior to everyone else who doesn’t share your beliefs? I guess, if I am going to speak about respecting others’ views, I should take into account how it really is sacriligeous to create images of the Prophet Mohammed. Under that measure I can understand why people are upset and acknowledge their right to be upset. Yet, there are a myriad number of ways for them to voice their displeasure.
Further, in some instances, what are probably considered the most profane of the cartoons have views which are only confirmed by the tenor of the demonstrations and the character of the rhetoric raised in opposition.
Like the old saw goes, “Can’t we all just get along?”
Maybe, I’m a bit obtuse about the whole thing. I just find it somehow interesting that the three western monotheastic religions all share common origins but, still use their differences as the excuse to belittle one and other instead of focusing on those things which join them to each other.
It’s just very, very sad. If anything it reinforces how far we have yet to go before obtaining any kind of divine wisdom and paradise for us all.
Okay, I admit it. It’s nice to see them burning someone else’s flag for a change.
Is anyone really shocked by displays like this? I mean, really? How many times have you been watching the news only to see a bunch of people from the Middle East burning a flag. Wasn’t it the Palestinians who were out there shooting off guns, celebrating and burning American flags on September 11th?
I even came across a site which seems to be entirely devoted to all the flag burnings of the American flag (and there are many). So, the Muslim world is mad at the West - what else is new?
Like, the very people who are the most upset by this, your zealous Islamic fundamentalists, what, they were particularly enchanted with us to begin with? I mean, what are they going to do? Fly jet planes into buildings? Blow themselves up? Kill innocents? Destroy other religions’ sacred sites?
Oh, wait.
That’s right... they’ve done all those things.
So, excuse me if I am not impressed by their righteous outrage.
I probably would be more concerned if there was a long history of friendship and tolerance between our societies. Yet, it doesn’t seem as if that’s the case. If people are offended, that’s bad and unfortunate. In this instance they deserve at minimum an apology but, when you start threatening people with violence and death, well... to put it mildly, fuck you.
Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck you.
Now, I’?m not talking about people who are adherents of Islam, people who find comfort and solace in their faith. I do however have an enormous problem with anyone who uses their religion to hold themselves out as better than the rest of us. Be they Muslim, Christian or Jewish (or whatever religion you want to choose). The thing I fail to understand, the thing that escapes me whenever I read or hear of something like this boils down to one simple fact: If these people are so holy, so devote, so pious, so humbled and in awe of their chosen deity, how could they possibly take it upon themselves to speak for such a divine entity?
You remember the old Ken-L-Ration commercials? My dog is better than your dog and all that went the tune. Just swipe out the word dog for the word God (cap "G", G) and it gives you a sense of where this whole argument stems from...
My God’s better than yours...
My God’s better ’cause it’s my religion yeah,
My God’s better than yours!
It’s great when religion makes a person feel better about themselves, about their place in the world but, is it so necessary to feel better about yourself by feeling superior to everyone else who doesn’t share your beliefs? I guess, if I am going to speak about respecting others’ views, I should take into account how it really is sacriligeous to create images of the Prophet Mohammed. Under that measure I can understand why people are upset and acknowledge their right to be upset. Yet, there are a myriad number of ways for them to voice their displeasure.
Further, in some instances, what are probably considered the most profane of the cartoons have views which are only confirmed by the tenor of the demonstrations and the character of the rhetoric raised in opposition.
Like the old saw goes, “Can’t we all just get along?”
Maybe, I’m a bit obtuse about the whole thing. I just find it somehow interesting that the three western monotheastic religions all share common origins but, still use their differences as the excuse to belittle one and other instead of focusing on those things which join them to each other.
It’s just very, very sad. If anything it reinforces how far we have yet to go before obtaining any kind of divine wisdom and paradise for us all.
Don Rumsfeld, a regular guy?
I keep seeing these pictures of Donald Rumsfeld
our current Secretary of Defense...
...and every time I see the man’s picture...
...the thought that always occurs to me...
...is how different things might be...
...if poor ole Don could just take a decent dump.
Somebody, please get this man some fiber!
I keep seeing these pictures of Donald Rumsfeld
our current Secretary of Defense...
...and every time I see the man’s picture...
...the thought that always occurs to me...
...is how different things might be...
...if poor ole Don could just take a decent dump.
Somebody, please get this man some fiber!
Nothing is more contemptuous.
Than people who post streaming audio files on their pages - whether it be MySpace or something else. I sit here quietly surfing away land on a page and all of a sudden find myself accosted by music with the volume on 11. Of course, this causes a start and very shortly after realizing what happened a closure of the offending page without taking the time out to read any of the content.
Than people who post streaming audio files on their pages - whether it be MySpace or something else. I sit here quietly surfing away land on a page and all of a sudden find myself accosted by music with the volume on 11. Of course, this causes a start and very shortly after realizing what happened a closure of the offending page without taking the time out to read any of the content.
Feb 3, 2006
Singing the praises of the Scooter.
Few people hold as special a place in my heart as “The Scooter” does, before switching allegiances to the Mets, I was very much a Yankee fan and relished listening to Phil Rizzuto broadcast Yankee games.
I grew up in what I considered a golden age of broadcasting listening to Bill White, Frank Messer and Phil Rizzuto do the Yankee games. All this and Bob Murphy too (doing Mets games)! What incredible voices all these men had, a glorious age of summer afternoons, spent lounging away in the sun with a baseball game providing the perfect backdrop to the days activities.
The Scooter’s dulcet tones were comforting and heartwarming. His voice familiar and his humor took on an even greater aspect through the years - culiminating in the wondeful wordplay between him and Tom Seaver, his last partner in the booth.
There are so many funny moments in Phil Rizzuto’s life, moments of entirely accidental comedy which seemed to trail him. Scooter, who was honored with his own day at Yankee stadium, even did battle with a cow bought to the event because of his traedmark line. It was a pure Rizzuto moment as the sedate beast moved it’s lumbering girth closer to Rizzuto and the two got tangled up, causing momentary alarm over Scooter’s resultant pratfall. It was just another part of Rizzuto’s legacy.
Funny thing is, as the years mount up since he has done any broadcasting, his stature has only grown in my estimation. It’s always good to see mention of The Scooter, he’s a real Yankee treasure and the oldest living hall of famer out there.
“Uh-oh, deep to left-center, nobody’s gonna get that one! Holy cow, somebody got it!”
“All right! Stay fair! No, it won’t stay fair. Good thing it didn’t stay fair, or I think he would’ve caught it!”
“Bouncer to third, they’ll never get him! No, why don’t I just shut up!”
“Oh, these Yankees can get the clutch hits, Murcer. I might have to go home early, I just got a cramp in my leg.”
“I’m very nervous here with this,” he said at the microphone.
He said he was “doing real good,” and one of his daughters said he still played golf, although no longer a full 18-hole round.
Few people hold as special a place in my heart as “The Scooter” does, before switching allegiances to the Mets, I was very much a Yankee fan and relished listening to Phil Rizzuto broadcast Yankee games.
I grew up in what I considered a golden age of broadcasting listening to Bill White, Frank Messer and Phil Rizzuto do the Yankee games. All this and Bob Murphy too (doing Mets games)! What incredible voices all these men had, a glorious age of summer afternoons, spent lounging away in the sun with a baseball game providing the perfect backdrop to the days activities.
The Scooter’s dulcet tones were comforting and heartwarming. His voice familiar and his humor took on an even greater aspect through the years - culiminating in the wondeful wordplay between him and Tom Seaver, his last partner in the booth.
There are so many funny moments in Phil Rizzuto’s life, moments of entirely accidental comedy which seemed to trail him. Scooter, who was honored with his own day at Yankee stadium, even did battle with a cow bought to the event because of his traedmark line. It was a pure Rizzuto moment as the sedate beast moved it’s lumbering girth closer to Rizzuto and the two got tangled up, causing momentary alarm over Scooter’s resultant pratfall. It was just another part of Rizzuto’s legacy.
Funny thing is, as the years mount up since he has done any broadcasting, his stature has only grown in my estimation. It’s always good to see mention of The Scooter, he’s a real Yankee treasure and the oldest living hall of famer out there.
Getting older.
Getting older means purchasing take out the night before, waking up the next morning only to find the bag the side came in lying on the kitchen counter and trying to remember if you refilled a prescription the day before. Until you go and feel the bag, realizing there are pieces of cornbread in it and not a prescription bottle.
Getting older means purchasing take out the night before, waking up the next morning only to find the bag the side came in lying on the kitchen counter and trying to remember if you refilled a prescription the day before. Until you go and feel the bag, realizing there are pieces of cornbread in it and not a prescription bottle.
Heartfelt condolences.
Seth Fisher
1972 - 2006
A wonderful talent taken far too soon, prayers go out to his loved ones.
Seth Fisher
1972 - 2006
Comic Books
DC Comics: Green Lantern: Willworld, Flash: Time Flies, Doom Patrol (#13-14), Batman LotDK: Snow (#1-5) (not yet released)
DC Vertigo: Vertigo Pop Tokyo (#1-4)
Happydale: Devils in the Desert
Paradox Press: Big Book of Vice, Big book of Grimm ...more
Heavy Metal: Lift, Sacrific, Lifeblood ...more
CD Covers: SQUAREMEAT (Finland), Bank$ (Japan)
Video Game Design Presto Studios: Concept Design for Myst III
Illustration: Cricket Magazine, Cicada Magazine, Dentsu (Japanese Ad Agency), Artist's & Graphic Designer's Market, Penny Farthing Press (Comic Cover Illustration), Frank Frazetta Fantasy Illustrated (comic magazine), QuickJapan (magazine)
A wonderful talent taken far too soon, prayers go out to his loved ones.
Jan 31, 2006
Jan 30, 2006
You can’t make stuff like this up.
The strange and interesting story of Le Pétomane:
Joseph Pujol was born in Marseille. He was one of five children of François (a stonemason and sculptor) and Rose Pujol. Soon after he left school he had a strange experience while swimming in the sea. He would put his head under the water and hold his breath whereupon he felt an icy cold penetrating his rear. He ran ashore in fright and was amazed to see water pouring from his anus. A doctor assured him that there was nothing to worry about.
The strange and interesting story of Le Pétomane:
Joseph Pujol was born in Marseille. He was one of five children of François (a stonemason and sculptor) and Rose Pujol. Soon after he left school he had a strange experience while swimming in the sea. He would put his head under the water and hold his breath whereupon he felt an icy cold penetrating his rear. He ran ashore in fright and was amazed to see water pouring from his anus. A doctor assured him that there was nothing to worry about.
The rules.
Got an email from Carmine today attributing this to George Carlin, actually turns out to be from Bill Maher but it’s still very funny - just one of many new rules for ’06:
The more complicated the Starbucks order, the bigger the asshole. If you walk into a Starbucks and order a “decaf grande half-soy, half-low fat, iced vanilla, double-shot, gingerbread cappuccino, extra dry, light ice, with one Sweet-n’-Low and one NutraSweet,” ooh, you’re a huge asshole.
Got an email from Carmine today attributing this to George Carlin, actually turns out to be from Bill Maher but it’s still very funny - just one of many new rules for ’06:
The more complicated the Starbucks order, the bigger the asshole. If you walk into a Starbucks and order a “decaf grande half-soy, half-low fat, iced vanilla, double-shot, gingerbread cappuccino, extra dry, light ice, with one Sweet-n’-Low and one NutraSweet,” ooh, you’re a huge asshole.
And you thought your job sucked...
“We have to wade through a lot of poop,” concedes Michael Doyle, the center’s director. “If you want to get the manure, you’ve got to grab it. Even when you wear gloves, the fecal smell tends to get embedded in your skin.” Hog poop smells the worst, Doyle says, but it’s chicken poop’s chokingly high ammonia content that brings tears to researchers’ eyes.
Popular Science’s Ten Worst Jobs in Science – Manure Inspector clocks in at number 2 (of course).
“We have to wade through a lot of poop,” concedes Michael Doyle, the center’s director. “If you want to get the manure, you’ve got to grab it. Even when you wear gloves, the fecal smell tends to get embedded in your skin.” Hog poop smells the worst, Doyle says, but it’s chicken poop’s chokingly high ammonia content that brings tears to researchers’ eyes.
Popular Science’s Ten Worst Jobs in Science – Manure Inspector clocks in at number 2 (of course).
Jan 28, 2006
The folk wisdom of labor.
Point here being, as much of an afterthought transit workers may have been before the strike, they obviously have a great impact on the day to day operation of the city. Nobody thought much of transit workers before the strike but, when they weren’t there doing their job all the other parts of the city had a rough go of it.
Yes, I sided with labor during the last month’s transit strike, even after spending the better part of the day schlepping around Manhattan as evidenced by my travels:
GCT to 34 & 3rd
34th & 3rd to Herald Square
PATH to 9th Street
9th & 6th to Mercer & Spring
Mercer and Spring to Union Square
Union Square to 23rd & Madison
23rd & Madison to 29th & Park
29th & Park to GCT
Needless to say, the load got heavier as the day progressed but, even so I couldn’t find it in myself to curse the transit workers. You’ll remember most of the media outlets ran stories on the strike by pasting the word ILLEGAL in very large letters every time they showed a story on TV, mentioned it in the radio or ran it in the paper. Wow. I guess they want us to think these guys are crooks! They are stealing from us somehow. How dare they! What unmitigated gall they have!
Let us not forget the people they’re bargaining with:
There has been quite a bit of discussion about last month’s transit strike. I read a story about a potential contract near to being ratified and most of the discussion centered around whether or not the transit workers in fact helped or hurt their cause by going out on strike. A lot of the stories center around the bad publicity for the workers and the very little they did manage to gain from the proposed deal.
Then again, Metro North employees haven’t gone on strike and they’ve been without a contract now for three years, so what does that say about good faith negotiations and the MTA?
Are we watching the dismantling of every gain won by the labor movement over the last century?
Maybe.
I heard a lot of griping by people during the strike, griping about things like pensions, medical benefits and retirement at 55.
Damn those uppitty transit workers, damn them for expecting to get a pension! It wasn’t too long ago that a pension was something of the norm somehow this benefit has become a means to villify workers.
I’m trying to figure out the logic of a world where a company like Enron can use the deregulation of electric power supply to cause blackouts and drive up the price of energy artificially, a country where our government can say there is wisdom in pumping over 18 billion dollars into a foreign country in an effort to build a democracy but, can’t find the money to educate its own.
War on terror? I’ll tell you what, as many people who were physically hurt by the events of September 11th are so small in number as to not even compare to the number of people who will be harmed by the dismantling of the social safety net of benefits in this country.
Maybe instead of damning the transit workers for the benefits they get, we should be asking ourselves why we’re all of us not getting the very same benefits - it used to be the norm not the exception. It’s an issue we all should pay closer attention to especially in light of recent discussions about the privitization of Social Security.
One day all the different body parts started arguing amongst themselves about which of them was the greatest/strongest/most important part of the body...
“I am” said the brain....
“No, I am” said the eyes....
“You’re both wrong, *I* am the most important,” said the ears...
“No, it’s me,” said the heart...
The stomach, lungs, and knees also joined the argument, each arguing why it was the most important body part...
The argument grew quite raucous, as not one body part was willing to concede its importance to another...
Finally the anus, who hadn’t joined the argument and growing weary of the racket, decided to stop working...
Soon the brain started aching, the eyes grew blurry, the ears started ringing, the heart started racing, the lungs grew weak, the stomach grew queasy, and the knees gave way...
So they finally all agreed — the asshole was the greatest/strongest/most important part of the body...
Point here being, as much of an afterthought transit workers may have been before the strike, they obviously have a great impact on the day to day operation of the city. Nobody thought much of transit workers before the strike but, when they weren’t there doing their job all the other parts of the city had a rough go of it.
Yes, I sided with labor during the last month’s transit strike, even after spending the better part of the day schlepping around Manhattan as evidenced by my travels:
34th & 3rd to Herald Square
PATH to 9th Street
9th & 6th to Mercer & Spring
Mercer and Spring to Union Square
Union Square to 23rd & Madison
23rd & Madison to 29th & Park
29th & Park to GCT
Needless to say, the load got heavier as the day progressed but, even so I couldn’t find it in myself to curse the transit workers. You’ll remember most of the media outlets ran stories on the strike by pasting the word ILLEGAL in very large letters every time they showed a story on TV, mentioned it in the radio or ran it in the paper. Wow. I guess they want us to think these guys are crooks! They are stealing from us somehow. How dare they! What unmitigated gall they have!
Let us not forget the people they’re bargaining with:
Knew well in advance the contract would be ending in December.
Raised fares two years ago crying poverty when in fact they had a surplus.
There has been quite a bit of discussion about last month’s transit strike. I read a story about a potential contract near to being ratified and most of the discussion centered around whether or not the transit workers in fact helped or hurt their cause by going out on strike. A lot of the stories center around the bad publicity for the workers and the very little they did manage to gain from the proposed deal.
Then again, Metro North employees haven’t gone on strike and they’ve been without a contract now for three years, so what does that say about good faith negotiations and the MTA?
Are we watching the dismantling of every gain won by the labor movement over the last century?
Maybe.
I heard a lot of griping by people during the strike, griping about things like pensions, medical benefits and retirement at 55.
Damn those uppitty transit workers, damn them for expecting to get a pension! It wasn’t too long ago that a pension was something of the norm somehow this benefit has become a means to villify workers.
I’m trying to figure out the logic of a world where a company like Enron can use the deregulation of electric power supply to cause blackouts and drive up the price of energy artificially, a country where our government can say there is wisdom in pumping over 18 billion dollars into a foreign country in an effort to build a democracy but, can’t find the money to educate its own.
War on terror? I’ll tell you what, as many people who were physically hurt by the events of September 11th are so small in number as to not even compare to the number of people who will be harmed by the dismantling of the social safety net of benefits in this country.
Maybe instead of damning the transit workers for the benefits they get, we should be asking ourselves why we’re all of us not getting the very same benefits - it used to be the norm not the exception. It’s an issue we all should pay closer attention to especially in light of recent discussions about the privitization of Social Security.
¿Dónde ésta el gato?
Or what ever happened to Friday cat blogging?
Seems there’s no shortage of taking pictures of the glorious beast but, having done something stupid with the laptop last week - I am forced to put uploading all pictures on hold before I correct the problem (which involves aluminum foil of all things - don’t ask). So, all the pictures I’ve taken in the last few weeks are on hold.
I’m going to be uploading a bunch of shots from the bigger camera - including a series from MoSex from last year - just one more thing for the to do list.
Or what ever happened to Friday cat blogging?
Seems there’s no shortage of taking pictures of the glorious beast but, having done something stupid with the laptop last week - I am forced to put uploading all pictures on hold before I correct the problem (which involves aluminum foil of all things - don’t ask). So, all the pictures I’ve taken in the last few weeks are on hold.
I’m going to be uploading a bunch of shots from the bigger camera - including a series from MoSex from last year - just one more thing for the to do list.
Saturday morning sex.
I find myself a frequent reader of Audacia Ray’s Waking Vixen blog.
She often has some very interesting things to say and there’s the added bonus of visual stimuli accessible through the website.
She just updated her modeling portfolio and some of the shots are incredible. Definitely worth a gander if you like looking at naked ladies (nsfw).
There’s something about her in-your-face, no prisoners-no apologies approach towards life I find myself very envious of.
I find myself a frequent reader of Audacia Ray’s Waking Vixen blog.
She often has some very interesting things to say and there’s the added bonus of visual stimuli accessible through the website.
She just updated her modeling portfolio and some of the shots are incredible. Definitely worth a gander if you like looking at naked ladies (nsfw).
There’s something about her in-your-face, no prisoners-no apologies approach towards life I find myself very envious of.
The museum in Nazareth.
Just an interesting story worth reading that’s a reminder no matter how pessimistic we can be about peace, there is always hope.
Just an interesting story worth reading that’s a reminder no matter how pessimistic we can be about peace, there is always hope.
Many Arabs believe that Israel uses sympathy for Jewish suffering during the Holocaust to gain support from the West, Mr Mahameed says.
Arab leaders, he says, think that by giving credence to the Holocaust they are legitimising Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians.
“But when Palestinians learn about the Holocaust they will understand the Jewish people better and can begin to develop a shared history,” says Mr Mahameed enthusiastically.
The truth on the ground.
Ironically, today was the first international day commemorating the Holocaust. Yet, it came during a week which saw Hamas gain a majority in the recent Palestinian election.
The question of how to deal with organizations like Hamas is nothing new:
Now that Hamas has won a majority what does this victory portend for the future?
Surprisingly enough, comparisons are being drawn between Hamas and Israel’s Likud party:
Hamas has long been an outsider in the peace process but, now with the election win the question becomes whether or not Hamas will soften it’s rhetoric. If it doesn’t, there will be a high price to pay:
Our world is daily becoming a smaller and smaller place. It is easy to recognize Hamas victory and the resultant events spawned by that victory will have repercussions throughout the region. Let’s hope for the best.
Ironically, today was the first international day commemorating the Holocaust. Yet, it came during a week which saw Hamas gain a majority in the recent Palestinian election.
The question of how to deal with organizations like Hamas is nothing new:
The first is that their stated aims are completely uncompromising. But there have been a number of times in the past when it is clear that there were deep, profound differences between different wings and different leaders and different trends within Hamas over whether to come to terms with the PA, indeed, even whether to comes to terms with Israel, at least in the short-term.
Now that Hamas has won a majority what does this victory portend for the future?
For years, there has been growing discontent among Palestinians with Fatah’s corrupt and ineffective governance. In going to the polls, many voters were expressing their frustration with the ruling party’s failure to deliver peace, implement reforms, improve living conditions or free the Palestinians from their shackles of poverty and unemployment. By casting votes for Hamas, many voters were hitting back at Fatah for its failures, rather than expressing their support for the Islamist party.
Surprisingly enough, comparisons are being drawn between Hamas and Israel’s Likud party:
Ladies and Gentlemen, may we introduce ... Hamas - the new Likud. It’s 1977 all over again, People of Israel. Once again, everything we knew, is wrong.
Hamas has long been an outsider in the peace process but, now with the election win the question becomes whether or not Hamas will soften it’s rhetoric. If it doesn’t, there will be a high price to pay:
Former President Carter said the United States, by law, would have to cut off direct funding to the Palestinian Authority as soon as Hamas takes control, but it should look for other ways to give money to the Palestinians, such as through the United Nations. Hamas has been branded a terrorist group by the U.S. and Europe.
“United States law would require that the money would be cut off if Hamas is in the government, so that’s a foregone conclusion,” Carter told The Associated Press.
Our world is daily becoming a smaller and smaller place. It is easy to recognize Hamas victory and the resultant events spawned by that victory will have repercussions throughout the region. Let’s hope for the best.
There is no doubt that the surprising Hamas victory in the Palestinian Authority elections has created a new reality in the region, which also has international implications. Everyone who has anything to do with the conflict, and every country that is concerned with matters of Islamization, will have to examine what has happened -especially Israel.
Israel will be the crucial factor in determining the international attitude, and even the attitude of the Arab world, with respect to this new development. Everyone will be waiting for Israel's reaction with bated breath. Any mistake it makes in the analysis of the situation and the response it necessitates will determine the nature of the others' reaction.
Another home run.
Erik Larsen manages to hit another one right out of the park in this week’s column:
Erik Larsen manages to hit another one right out of the park in this week’s column:
How many times are you guys going to fall for the whole “Spider-Man’s getting a new costume that sucks and it’s going to replace the old one that rocks” trick? Marvel has been pulling this one off for decades now and every time you guys take the bait—every time.
This is not going to replace the old costume for the long haul. You will not see this costume on Spider-Man in 10, 20, 30 years—by then he’ll be wearing some other shitty costume and you’ll be moaning about that.
Jan 27, 2006
Let’s play RISK.
Let’s see now, I’ve got my armies on your western border and your eastern border. I have alliances with the other country on your eastern border. A short hop across the body of water on your west I have a strategic military base. You are surrounded, should you be afraid?
But, are things really that simple?
In the coming months, Iran will take center stage in a way North Korea has yet to. American troops are on the ground in Afghanistan and Iraq, there is implicit military cooperation between the US and the government of Pakistan and then there is the question of oil. Iran hiccups and the world gets nervous. Still, other noises coming from Iran recently have given many cause for concern:
Well, should we even pay attention to statements like this?
The thing is, we are on the outside looking in. There are regional concerns beyond the dynamic between Israel and Iran.
These are serious questions facing American foreign policymakers in the coming months. Issues which will undoubtedly be placed in the forefront as midterm elections grow ever closer. What we are going to have to ask ourselves and what the world community will also have to ponder is basically by standing by and allowing Iran to continue to make progress in their nuclear program are we in essence making the same mistake committed in the Munich Agreement?
How can we avoid making the same mistakes Neville Chamberlain made?
We are at a crossroads. We need to differentiate between the government of Iran and its people.
It will be interesting to see how our current administration handles this conundrum. We cannot simply invade Iran.
Many in our government though, are increasingly speaking about military intervention as an option:
Confusing Iran with Iraq would be a big mistake.
We are also confronting other interests that don’t want to see the US expand their role in the region. I think the challenge we are now facing is simply put whether or not we can show restraint. Will our foreign policy be marked by hamhanded decisions ultimately making matters worse or will we allow the world community to recognize the threat for what it is and find ways to effect change in Iran. How deftly can we handle the coming crisis? This is a watershed moment for George Bush, stay tuned.
Let’s see now, I’ve got my armies on your western border and your eastern border. I have alliances with the other country on your eastern border. A short hop across the body of water on your west I have a strategic military base. You are surrounded, should you be afraid?
The first embassy bombing [in April 1983] I think they were involved in; the Marine [barracks] bombing in October 1983; September 1984, the second embassy bombing. And you know what? The Americans [then] leave. This is a successful policy for them [the bombers]. And what comes in place [after that]? Hezbollah is found in 1985. It’s an alternative to the Lebanese government; it’s an Islamic party. It mirrors the government in Tehran. ... And then you add on to this that Hezbollah drives Israel out of Lebanon, the first victory against the Israelis ever.
So what we have today, if you want to expand this analysis, [is] Hamas, the Islamic Jihad in Palestine and Gaza carrying out war successfully against Sharon. And the Iranians back in Tehran say, “We’re winning. This is the way you fight a war. This is how you defeat F-16s, this is how you defeat aircraft carriers. We beat the United States, we beat the Israelis in Lebanon, and we're going to beat ’em in Palestine.”
This is a strong message. I don’t care how secular Iran becomes. They still look at the United States, Britain, and France as colonizing powers, and this is the final war ending colonization in the Middle East, using Islam. So for the Iranians, it’s very, very logical. We as Americans say, “Well, it’s not. We were peacekeepers in Lebanon.” They don't look at it that way. Or as Americans, we say, “You can't kidnap innocent people, journalists, priests, people like that. It’s wrong.” They look at it differently. It’s a war of civilizations for them. And it was very successful, frankly, and cheap.
But, are things really that simple?
First of all, Iran was the only country in the region whose people came out in droves (over 40,000) to light candles in support of the U.S. after Sept. 11, and since then they have had many demonstrations in Tehran, Isfahan, and other cities, staged by students, workers, and teachers. The main slogans have consistently been: “Death to Taliban,” “Death to Terrorism,” “Free all political prisoners,” “Khatami, Khatami, Honesty.” There have been demands for freedom of expression and freedom of press, and even a demand for a referendum on the constitution and the Islamic rule. This is why it is of utmost importance to differentiate between the people and the government.
In the coming months, Iran will take center stage in a way North Korea has yet to. American troops are on the ground in Afghanistan and Iraq, there is implicit military cooperation between the US and the government of Pakistan and then there is the question of oil. Iran hiccups and the world gets nervous. Still, other noises coming from Iran recently have given many cause for concern:
“For over half a century, those who seek to prove the Holocaust have used every podium to defend their position. Now they should listen to others,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Hamid Reza Asefi, was quoted as saying Tuesday by the official Islamic Republic News Agency.
Ahmadinejad already had called the Nazis’ World War II slaughter of 6 million European Jews a “myth” and said the Jewish state should be “wiped off the map.”
Well, should we even pay attention to statements like this?
Jane’s Defence Weekly, the Bible of intelligence and defense industry matters, reported last month that Iran had acquired ballistic missiles from North Korea with a range of at least 2,500 kilometers, or about 1,550 miles, which means they could easily reach Israel.
Its sister publication Jane’s Intelligence Digest said as the New Year began, “We predict that the likelihood of pre-emptive military action by either the U.S. or Israel — or both — will be far higher in 2006.”
The thing is, we are on the outside looking in. There are regional concerns beyond the dynamic between Israel and Iran.
The nuclear crisis is focused on Iran. But the truth is that is not how the conflict should necessarily be seen. Strategically, the crisis should be regarded from a regional perspective. It is not enough to ask if extremist Shi'ite Iran will go nuclear but whether the Middle East will be transformed in its wake into a region with a number of nuclear countries. Not a bipolar nuclear region, but multi-polar, including perhaps terror groups which raises doubts whether it would be possible to prevent the use of nuclear weapons in the region.
These are serious questions facing American foreign policymakers in the coming months. Issues which will undoubtedly be placed in the forefront as midterm elections grow ever closer. What we are going to have to ask ourselves and what the world community will also have to ponder is basically by standing by and allowing Iran to continue to make progress in their nuclear program are we in essence making the same mistake committed in the Munich Agreement?
How can we avoid making the same mistakes Neville Chamberlain made?
Iranian leaders are in no small measure responsible for the changing tide of opinion against them. Their handling of the nuclear issue has changed radically since only a little over a year ago. At the end of 2004, in Paris, they agreed to a voluntary halt in their uranium enrichment activities until an agreement over the issue could be struck with the Troika. Contrary to the claim of current Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, that move was not a “compromise,” but rather a very astute manoeuvre at the appropriate time. As long as Iran was involved in negotiations with Europe, regardless of how wildly they fluctuated between near success and near failure, Tehran enjoyed a form of international cover, which protected it from the escalating onslaught from Washington and beneath which it could strengthen its hand against the US by consolidating its regional influence and, more importantly, securing allies in positions of power in Iraq.
We are at a crossroads. We need to differentiate between the government of Iran and its people.
...some 4,000 Iranian student activists were arrested after protests in Tehran and other cities in June 2003 and at least 500 remain in prison for their democratic beliefs. Amir Fakhravar, a student movement leader and hero, is among the men and women Kokan will attempt to make contact with while in Iran. Punished for writing a book promoting democracy and free speech, Fakhravar is serving an eight-year prison sentence at Qasr Prison in Tehran.
It will be interesting to see how our current administration handles this conundrum. We cannot simply invade Iran.
Iran, the world’s fourth-largest oil producer, is ringed by mountains, is roughly four times the size of Iraq and has almost three times its population. Its military numbers almost 900,000 soldiers and reservists and has long-range missiles that can reach Israel or Europe.
Many in our government though, are increasingly speaking about military intervention as an option:
The Bush administration—and, increasingly, leading Democrats—have been speaking out with growing urgency about preventing Iran from becoming a nuclear threat. What is not stressed enough is that Iran is not just a potential menace -- it is a clear and present danger right now. The radical Islamists in Tehran bankroll the world's deadliest terrorists. They foment violence in Iraq. They lied for 18 years about their nuclear activities.
Those concerns were heightened in 2002, when a dissident Iranian group, the National Council of Resistance of Iran, helped expose clandestine nuclear facilities at Natanz and Arak.
This exposure forced Iran to declare the facilities to the IAEA, as Tehran is a signatory of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. It was not just the secrecy that set off alarms in the US, but the nature of the newly revealed sites - and Natanz, in particular.
Confusing Iran with Iraq would be a big mistake.
Islamic fundamentalists believe that the only guarantee to fulfill their so-called Islamic mandate—such as regressive, cruel and inhuman social relations and in particular their well-known misogyny—is the acquisition of unchallenged political power. In their drive for such power they misuse the Muslim masses’ religious sentiments quite skillfully as the Nazis misused the pent-up German desire to make-up for Germany’s defeat in the First World War.
We are also confronting other interests that don’t want to see the US expand their role in the region. I think the challenge we are now facing is simply put whether or not we can show restraint. Will our foreign policy be marked by hamhanded decisions ultimately making matters worse or will we allow the world community to recognize the threat for what it is and find ways to effect change in Iran. How deftly can we handle the coming crisis? This is a watershed moment for George Bush, stay tuned.
Jan 24, 2006
The trade.
Baseball season is closing in now, which makes me very happy. Sorry to see Kris Benson go - same goes for Bredon Looper, Mike Piazza, Jose Offerman, Roberto Hernandez, Jae Seo but, that’s baseball these days.
I hope Omar isn’t finished though. One thing I would like to see if he could pull off would be Victor Zambrano to Boston, David Wells to Oakland, John Maine to Oakland and Barry Zito to New York. Zambrano was known as something of a Yankee killer during his days with the Devil Rays - he’s younger than Wells and Well’s wants out of Boston (to play on the West coast). The A’s get Wells (his West Coast team) and Maine who I have heard they were hungry for and have something to show for Zito before he escapes due to free agency.
Baseball season is closing in now, which makes me very happy. Sorry to see Kris Benson go - same goes for Bredon Looper, Mike Piazza, Jose Offerman, Roberto Hernandez, Jae Seo but, that’s baseball these days.
I hope Omar isn’t finished though. One thing I would like to see if he could pull off would be Victor Zambrano to Boston, David Wells to Oakland, John Maine to Oakland and Barry Zito to New York. Zambrano was known as something of a Yankee killer during his days with the Devil Rays - he’s younger than Wells and Well’s wants out of Boston (to play on the West coast). The A’s get Wells (his West Coast team) and Maine who I have heard they were hungry for and have something to show for Zito before he escapes due to free agency.
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