Pimpin' ain't easy

Hooray for the return Of the Gonzo Journalist! Kevin! What's life like inside the media curtain? How much unreality can we take! Very few things on TV have any relevance to any of our lives. I just wanna know what it is like to be the Wizard.

Which is dumber? The Joe Millionaire, or Joe Millionaire? The show is watchable, but I stopped watching after he eliminated all but three buxom babes. But you will find that Joe is as "dumb as they come," according to one of his ex-girlfriends.

oh yeah.,..and this is Kevin again....who is Vance Anderson?

So speaking of that whole "Joe Millionaire" fiasco...who did he finally pick? and does anyone else think its funny that one of the finalists appeared in a series of bondage films...including "Hogtied" and "Novices in knots." Films that I rather enjoyed....and she also appeared in a series of foot fetish films as well. Well, that about tells you the quality of Fox Television... the same newsnetwork that brought you Geraldo Rivera (who lied about being wounded in Afghanistan)

This blog is from the infamous Gonzo Journalist...Kevin Hankis


P.S. I'm all about bondage flicks...just not Geraldo

has anyone here ever watched "the bachelorette?"
i tuned in tonight for the first time and i'm fascinated by how DUMB it is. Joe Millionaire has my vote.

he he "BITS STULTS" that's me

We all become our porn names.

I already have a porn name though.

No comments:

those people know nothing of my teachings. how they ever got their degree in communications is beyond me.

if thier is one form of communication where a person can achieve a discarnate state it is with written words on a paper. nor would i assume simutunaity is synonymous with discarnation.

take the bin laden tapes for example. they were released to the public simutaneously. if the transcripts of his words were sent to everyone in the united states, do you think the public would cognitively process his message in a more "intimate and all-encompassing" manner. yes. the act of reading something better allows people to lose themself in the message.

i'm not sure what bob and scott are talking about exactly, but I usually associate people who quote McLuhan as part of the pseudo-intellectual seventies yuppies.

across the universe

scott: Here's a different train of thought: is writing a discarnate experience?
bob: On the internet.
scott: But putting words on a piece of paper--are you not out of your body?
bob: No, discarnate is simultaneity, you're communicating immediately with everybody else, and you don't do that with writing. When you're on the telephone, or on TV or radio, you've got millions of people sharing that electric space, so, no, all technologies up to the telegraph are not discarnate. The telegraph is the beginning of discarnate writing. McLuhan defines the telegraph as the electrification of writing, or the simultaneity of writing, and e-mail is the satellite version of the telegraph. That's why my chart begins with the telegraph.
scott: But even the book that's out there, with 1,000s of readers all reading it, that's not discarnate?
bob: No...
scott: Because it's not simultaneous.
bob: And it's not LIVE. See electric technology is alive, it's organic. All mechanical technologies, like the book, which is the mechanization of the handicraft of the wine press--in technologically historical terms--they are not talking to you. Anything that doesn't talk to you, you can't hear, is mechanical. But a radio you can hear, television you can hear, computers you can hear now. When computers came in in the '70s and '80s, they were visual, you typed on them, they actually brought back the Gutenberg values temporarily. And that may be why the '70s created the yuppie: it retrieved that visual, 19th century bias temporarily. But then once you get into virtual reality or CD-ROM, there's a voice speaking to you. And speech is the first human technology, it's the most intimate, most all-encompassing medium. When we get into the world where objects aren't speaking to you, that's the mechanical phase. In our time, it's from the book up to...just before the movie, I guess. The book and the newspaper, and machines--a lump of steel--doesn't talk to you.

The future of man CAN be predicted - to a certain extent - by predicting the future of man(n)'s technology.
Also, we all become our names. Michael Mann = My Call Man. Monica Maher = Money Coma Her. Joseph Natale = Yo self Not Telling. What are you not telling us, Joe? Monica, Wake up, and gimme dat cash! Michael, thanks for being there for me, bud. 'Preciate it.

My bosses name is Margeret Niederer. Knead er er. Knead: to work and press into a mass with or as if with the hands.
She has been working for three years advocating for residents' rights for people in nursing homes, and today she informed me that the Illinois General Assembly is dangerously close to finally passing legislation (HB1240, HB1484, HB1207) that will make the Ombudsman program independent - away from conflicts of interest that abound within the Agency on Aging it is under now.
Now to accomplish such a difficult task, she has been PRESSING this issue into the MASSes, kneading it, if you will, into any agency, legislator, or citizen's advocy group that will listen.

we all become our names

Vance Anderson.
Vance: Old English name meaning "marshland," "dweller at the windmill"

I am so high right now. Yeow! And I've only been drinking coffee. Eric and I have a double dinner date for Thursday, but he is reluctant to go. I'm going make him - I don't want him ruining this rare chance I get to hang out with grrls.

Put your STEAK KNIVES down, my people! Follow me. I tell you to lead yourselves! Ignore the Bin Laden tapes! His physical body is dead but his TV body will live a long, long time. Don't participate with the mainstream media!

Brian you's a wanksta, cause you always frontin. You've been in the game a long time, but you still ain't got nothin.

Fo' Sheezy

I washed all of my knives today so that I was prepared.

Let's all hear it for Vance........... VANCE! Give me a V. Give me an A. Give me an N. Give me a C. Give me an E. And what does that spell? VANCE!!

Wow!

This Vance Anderson guy is fantastic.

Hey Vance. I got some pretty big knives too. What should I do with them?

Yes, a steak knife will work.

Does anybody know how to drop out of society? I really really need to. Or more precisely, is dropping out a mind game or a physical game?

As you can see I changed my name. On the Internet, we can be anyone we want.

like a steak knife?
I have no problem staying home

I'm going to advise you to stay home until this blows over.
And carry a kitchen knife on you at all times.

So the Psycho Stalker of a few months ago has made an "encore appearance" so to speak. He started calling me a few days ago and driving through the parking lot at the video store. And to top it all off, i was at the 6th street store the other day and he dropped off the movie (this is pretty frightening) FATAL ATTRACTION-------- Let's hear it for irony folks.

Thanks a lot, Mr. N 5, for contributing to the economic and moral collapse of the United States.

Mr. Lanter keeps suggesting political blog to read, but I'm usually to drunk to remember the URL. Please post it.

LaRouche in 2004

Check out the band, Enon. Yum!

coming into town sunday nite.

the point where winter stops, and then spring begins. it's the greatest day of the year. i feel sorry for people who live in arizona.

I'm wearing a dead man's robe

The medium is the message.

The medium needs a massage.

Matt, i am just checking that you made it to work on time this morning. Hope you didn't have any trouble getting out of bed. Same for Eric. Hope he made it to class okay. Sorry to keep you guys out so late.

I've also got a dead man's check sitting on my dashboard. I hope the fbi isn't reading this.

matt! wake up.

i talked to your Grandma a few days ago. she said blah blah blah. i told her when i was younger i used to blah blah blah and sneak into the basement and blah blah blah. she told me to tell you that she used to touch herself too, so you shouldn't be ashamed when she's watching you.

do they have cracker barrels in new york city?

Where am I? OK, things are hazy...I'm at "work." I'm very sleepy. Hung over.

Dead men tell no tales. Dead men have no tails, either. Actually, it is possible to communicate with the dead, but I don't recall any good dead storytellers. They all like, "Blah, blah, blah. I watching you." Sometimes I think my Grandma is watching me when I touch myself. I don't think she cares, though. I wonder how her perspective on life changed since she has died.

I'm going back to sleep at my desk now. Wake me if the boss comes by.

i drove around with that dead man's ghost for seven days

i had a dead man's flag in my truck for the last week

I'm having trouble talking to people, especially girls. I just stare at people. I have to train myself to say "Hello" to people as my first reaction upon meeting them, instead of just staring at them. My lesson here is to learn how to communicate, and I have to get past the fear of sounding or looking stupid.

Eric wants to go out tonight. Wanna come?

How is everything else going?

Matt, that sounds beautiful. Too bad about the 9 pointer.

How y'all feelin' today? Good? Good!

Me? Oh, uh, I'm alright. Can't complain. Well, I am a little choked up right now. [Cough]

I'm looking out the window of my "office" (more like a bank of computers with no seperation between people) into the field beyond the soccor field and I can see a line of ducks waddling along. So beautiful! {Sniffle}

Every once in a while I can spot deer. My boss is a bow hunter. He had a buck head in his truck yesterday; nine points, someone said.

my favorite thing about the porn room is when i'm putting movies away back there and people ask me if i know which ones are good. which ones have really good plots. I just have to laugh. I always always ALWAYS reccommend "the OZZPORNS"

Joe I think that is a great story. I wish i HAD been there.

stop it you are embarrassing me. I guess you associate me with porn b/c of the video store as do most people.

Monica, I was always amazed at your fame around Springfield - jealous even. EverYboDy DoeS SeEm to KNoW You.

You are just a charmer you. We visited Jim last night, and gave him a couple of bucks for beer and porn. And somehow your name came up.

Matt, I became acquainted briefly with someone who i assume that you know as he mentioned that he heard of me from you (and Eric). his name is James Folkerts. He rented from me today. He didn't say much but seemed like a nice kid. So what I really need to know is WhAT are you SaYinG aBouT mE whEn I'm nOT ArouNd? People seem To KnoW mE.

I just want to start out by saying i'm gay to be back (as in happy.) this last week has been awful. It took verizon 10 days to get me reconnected to the internet. The most harrowing to those days were six, seven, and eight, when verizon was customarily trying to convince me that it was not their fault, but mine, that I couldn't get connected to the interent.

Tis true - I had a formidable cold, but I came out on top, and again I am a healthy person. There are, however, still some lingering side effects - such as snot.

Matt, I looked at the revamped lamp shade site. I am appalled by the colors. What are you blind man? I did find the interface to be simple and user-friendly, and very similar to other web-sites. I give you a B- on the project, with a "see me" at the bottom concerning the colors.

More on me: there been a late breaking development lately concering my personality and personal tastes. I've started to listen to digital music. I don't know if that's a direct result of being estranged from my cyber-mates, or if it's just a side-effect of the cold. However, I think it's going to be an interesting and fun new me for the next 48 hours or so.

if someone came up to you who was 15 times your size and said, "I'm going to kick your ass," would you let him search you for weapons first?

guess who's back

Matt Bright writes:

Hey Matt

I hear that you guys might be going to see sleater Kinney on February 22nd. Eric was bugging me to go to that show, but i told him that i didn't think that i wanted to because it was too much driving for me for one weekend. However, I am going to be down there that weekend anyway for a class reunion. Now that i think of it, i sure as hell don't want to be stuck in springfield while you guys are off kicking it in champaign. So, in conclusion, if I were able to hitch a ride with one of you kind folks, I would be quite interested in going. Please pass it on to Eric, as I am too lazy to call. If he has not bought tickets already and they are of reasonable price, please tell him to pick me up one...given that the above proposition is accepted by one of the two of you. Please sign below. Fifteen times. okay bye

And to make things more confusing, interface metaphors have multiple purposes. Not only are interface metaphors a guide through a new system, but they also help mask an abstract concept with a "real world" object.

Interface metaphors work as user introduction to an unfamiliar system. They are a shortcut, and method of flattening the learning curve for a new user to USE the system. Interface metaphors use terms from one system, and apply them to another, and by doing so, hasten usablity.

Interface metaphors have another seperate function, which is to mask complex processes in simple, concise terms, thereby controlling complexity. Something as terse as a pipe [ | ] in UNIX obscures the fact that the operating system is performing a complicated series of commands that spawns Input/Output redirection. Heck, most times we don't want to know exactly what is happening behind the metaphor.

Each of these purposes comes with its own set of problems, its own set of questions.

What happens when, after becoming proficient with a system, the metaphors that were used to learn the system start to fall apart?

What happens when the system in which the metaphor was modelled after becomes obsolete? Let's say for the sake of argument that human being no longer used trash cans, but the trash can on the PC desktop was still used? The metaphor loses it's meaning.

With computer systems getting more and more complex, there are layers and layers within layers of metaphors. Is it any wonder this gets confusing?

Check out this search engine:

www.kartoo.com

Rather than display a *list* of links, this search engine
displays a *map* of websites, based on relevance. I am not
sure how the selected websites are weighted, but it appears
that the search engine shows more heavily weighted sites
as a bigger icons on the map. This is a new, interesting
twist on the whole search engine motif.

Here is a post that I put up on the discussion board for my online Graphical User Interface/Human Computer Interaction course.

Interface Metaphors

As discussed in the text, some interface metaphors have been shown to be useful, while others have lots of detractors. Please either introduce (or reply to a thread) a particular interface metaphor from web design or interface design that you either like or dislike. Give some detail on your opinion."

Cell phones and strait jackets

The first few times I used a cellular phone, I could not make the call without asking for help. I could not understand the interface. I had trouble turning the phone on, inputing the number I wanted to call, and getting the call to connect.
As a user, I was using the interface metaphor of a hard line telephone and applying what I knew about land-line phones to interacting with the wireless phone. I was expecting cellular phones to operate and have the same interaction language as a land-line phone. I thought this would be the obvious metaphor that the designers of cellular phones would use when introducing the public to this new peice of technology. I found that this was not exactly the case, and as a user, I was frustrated.

When dialing from home or an office using a land-line phone, one picks up the phone, listens for the dialtone which automatically appears, types in the number, and after the last digit is entered, waits while the phone connects and rings.

With cellular device, the sequence is different. One has to turn the phone on, dial the number, then press the TALK or SEND button, or some variation thereof. The process is not as one who is used to making phonecalls would expect. As a user with clear expectations on how a telephone should work, one does not expect changes. There is no dialtone. It is not intuitive to press TALK or SEND to start the connection process. It is not expected that a device that looks like a phone to behave like a personal data assistant, calculator, or dictionary.

I still wonder why the designers of cell phones never modeled the cell phone more closely to the phones most people were used to using. It would not be difficult, to make a cell phone behave nearly identical to a land-line phone, and it would certainly create less confusion for new users. Cell phone designers could keep the sequence of dialing the same: Turning the phone on, dialing the number, and waiting for the person on the other line to pick up.

I realize now that I took the land-line metaphor too seriously. That a wireless network behaves differently than a land-based telephone network and that users must interact differently with it. This is where metaphors break down - when metaphors are taken too literally. Metaphors are a guide through new territory, but they can only take you so far.

Matt K. your hair looks good too. We have to get out more often.

I'm glad to know Mike is alive and well. Thanks for the update Joe.

Mike called me yesterday afternoon. Since he is no longer a student, they took away his DSL Internet connection. He is stranded outside of the electonic firestorm.

Monica, what are ye doing this weekend?

Those all seem like good theories Matt.

Brilliant, Joe! Bravo!
And as Joyce might also say, Tip. Baruung. Baruung.

I think Mike is on a mission from the CIA, like that guy Chuck Barris from the Gong Show. No, Mike is actually busy in his secret lab, cloning dirty socks.

I had a hankerin' fer Thai food, and I went to Tai Pan, but that ain't Thai food, dadgummit.

and has anyone seen Michael Mann or heard if he's still alive. I've not seen him around for a week.

i'm hungry right now. Any ideas for lunch?

That sounds great. I must be starving. Hey! Shouldn't you be working, JOE? That is what I'm doing right now. Working. And trying to read an essay on Marshall Mcluhan and James Joyce and the prediction of cyberculture.

Has anybody ever had to read Finnegans Wake?

I normally don't talk about food, so it is past time that I made a mention of it.

FOOD. EAT.

Eat a lot. eat a little. Just eat. Or don't.
Suck in the enzymes, amimo acids, vitamins, minerals, trace minerals, proteins, carbohydrates, bacteria, hormones, and whatever else you put inside your body. Are you even paying attention to what you are putting in your mouth?

Beef and cherries. That sounds oddly delicious. Wrap it in seaweed cultivated off the icy coast of Northern Canada, and I'll eat it.

(Now where is my T. S. Eliot? That's right, I don't have one.)

Did you all enjoy the electronic imagery and sound wave spectacle that was the State of the Union Address? Wow. How inspirational. If any of you out there are pollsters, give the Man 20 percentage points from yours truly.

Matt, that idea is so crazy . so crazy it just might work.

My proposal for the next halftime show - Uncomfortable silence. One half hour of complete media silence. Humans would have to TALK to each other, what a concept.

Bob Dobbs talks about this as a solution to the drama of cognition as played out by the Android Meme. It would have to be a collective tune-out to all electronic media. Can you imagine? It would cleanse to constant collective chatter and give us a chance to apply solutions, instead being trapped in the never-ending debate that all media perpetuates. With media, their are no solutions, only arguments.

How are you guys liking my postmodern rants? It is my new thing.

Matt, Thanks for your everlasting words of wisdom. "we are all safe EXACTLY where we are" that would look great needlepointed onto a pillow don't you think? I didn't watch the game either. I just happened to catch the halftime show.

Monica, we are all safe EXACTLY where we are, no matter where we are. Do not live in fear.

I heard that a drunken tree jumped out in front of Billy Joel's car. Bastard oak tree.

I tried watching football. I got bored. I don't have the attention span. I really want to like sports so I can stop being a girly man. I am happy for the Bucs, though. I'm told few expected them to win.

Society scares me....... Matt will you let me know when it is safe to ascend from hiding?

awwwwww . It's nice to know i'm missed. To all of those who care, I am in deep hibernation mode. I've been sick sick sick and sleeping as much as possible. I slept for three days straight and never left the house. I thought maybe i was dead. Brian is right about the hibernating. I'm almost feeling it's safe enough to resurface. just a few more days.

Greetings from inside the Matrix! I got lost amidst the Android Meme. Good to hear you are back Monica. Long time, no see/hear/taste/feel. People have been asking about you, and I've told them that you go underground every once in awhile, and resurface when it is safe. Brian says you hibernate.

So, I recommend checking out these radio programs. Counter-propaganda just died, but the links should be up until the sight suddenly dissappears one day. Hundreds of hours of excellent archives of dis-misinformation. Great researchers and communicators like Sherman Skolnick, David Icke, Alex Jones, Dr. Stan, Jeff Rense, Lenny Bloom, and Bob Dobbs. The latest I have found fascinating is this station out of Toronto that hosts a show called Cloak and Dagger - Talk radio for Spies. Most fascinating is Bob Dobbs. What a mind fuck this guy brings. He either genius or insane, probably both. Try perusing some of the related Bob material:

• About Bob


• Bob's Radio


• nowhere to run, nowhere to hide: an interview with bob dobbs


• Synchronistic Linguistics in The Matrix Or How Bob Dobbs Became the Tetrad Manager


• I first heard him on Cloak and Dagger show number 7. Highly recommeded!

I miss human contact. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the digital versions of you, my friends, but in the flesh is where true important interaction takes place. Real interaction, of the physical, emotional, psychic, intellectual. I hope to see you soon.

P.S. And Hey! I revamped the Quality Lamp Repair website to make it more informative and make it an online store! Please check it out and tell me your user experiences. What was confusing? What was missing? It still needs a Custom Orders page where step by step instructions on how to request a custom lamp shade are given (Step 1: Choose the Frame. Step 2: Choose the Fabric. Etc.)

are there any beavers out there?

BOOOO!

how bout that half time show?

Our work here is done.

I am everywhere and nowhere

I can taste colors

Stay off the acid Matt.

We are all living inside of each other. Radio, television, and the Internet have destroyed the physical boundaries between our minds.

The next time you listen to the radio, know that what you are hearing is inside you.

When you watch TV next, feel those other characters and talking heads jostling for a foothold in your brain.

As you read my words off the Internet, say hello to my presence inside your body.

Everyone lives inside everyone else these days. The world is no longer what it used to be.

the white stripes were on the local "rock station" tonight. "dead leaves on the dirty ground" the dj was doing a vote between the stipes' song and some angry aggro-metal head-fuck band. the stripes won. the dick dj said he was suprised the stripes won. me too. still, he (the dj) pissed me off, because he acted like the stripes song was shit.

anyway, hearing the stripes on a bloomington station completely rejuvunated me. i was depressed all night. i guess that's what angy aggro-metal head fuck songs does to a man.

i feel you Matt. i've never understood the difference between and stong safety and a free safety.

a quote from the White Stripes (or possibly Citizen Kane): "it's easy to make a lot of money, all you gotta do is want to make a lot of money."

They predicted the Bucs weren't going to be great for another couple of year under Gruden. Other then those goofy looking uniforms, they're looking pretty good now.

Go football team! (I never watched football. I don't understand it - too complicated.)

Brian and I are having a raging e-mail debate at the moment. Maybe I'll post it, cause it is great stuff. I'll have to get his permission first.

Matt marched for Stalin. Way to go dumbass. Now you're never going to get a real job.

There's been a lot of editorials linking the anti-war, anti-WTO protesters to Stalinism, and the Communist Party. I would agree that there is a Communist threat out there, but I don't believe it manifested itslef at the DC or Seattle protests. Matt, did you ever cash in a check by the Communist Workers World Party for protesting? Who paid for the gas to get you out to DC? Who bought your bottled water while you were out there?

How much money does it take to sponsor a voluntary march, and who really cares where it came from?

I don't hate anybody. I am full of love and light.

Until Brian called me a pinko. He wrote:


-----Original Message-----
From: bwanless
To: mkoma01s@uis.edu
Sent: 1/23/03 10:16 AM
Subject: you pinko

"The marches in Washington and San Francisco were chiefly sponsored, as was last October’s antiwar march in Washington, by a group the Times chose to call in its only passing reference "the activist group International Answer." International A.N.S.W.E.R. (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) is a front group for the communist Workers World Party. The Workers World Party is, literally, a Stalinist organization."

Don't get suckered by the Left or the Right, I say. They have both been infiltrated by the CIA. "Liberal" news outlets like The Nation and NPR are thoroughly censored to keep out any information regarding critisicm on corporate power and Big oil. The Right owns FOX news and the majority of Talk radio.

There is no Liberal bias in the media either; Not since Nixon was President. The media is tightly controlled. The Telecommunications Act of 1996, signed by Bill Clinton, has helped to consolidate media power into fewer hands. "Diversity" of programming is bullshit. Whether you watch CNN or Fox news, you still won't get the full truth.
On Media Giantism
Ultra Concentrated Media

These petty squabbles are meant to keep the American people divided and fighting amongst themselves while the thieves quietly steal our freedoms, money, and dignity.

George Bush is a globalist traitor, and so is Bill Clinton. I refuse to play the game of "My side is right, yours is wrong." They are all in on it.

You wanna know what really pisses me off? It is people who say they hate stupid people. It's kind of like saying, "I hate likeable people." Well no it's nothing like that, but I think you get the point.

And then you got those people who hate arrogant people. And the people that don't like stupid people again. Who are all these people and why are they so full of hatred.

I think it's our President. What would Ari say if a reporter asked if the President hated stupid people.

Personally I enjoy the company of stupid people. I consider myself pretty stupid sometimes, and just being around other stupid people makes me splendidly happy.

I just finished surfing through a few of the hundreds of thousands of blogs that are out there. What a bunch of pompous windbags! One blogger at The Daily Pundit states that he came up with the term "Blogosphere." WHO CARES!

(Oh no. Now I am officially a blogger if I have sunk so low as to complain about other bloggers. I shall mark this sad day on my calendar.)


Oh, and apparently it is cool to have a Paypal donations button to give worthless losers who rant in cyberspace money.

[I'll split the money with all my fellow wily beavers.]

are you ready for the suburu? the house? the family? Those are the things we need to find out.

Mike, Your pancreas is very opinionated.

Has anyone else had a dream that they got a postcard from one of their internal organs?

Well, I just got one in real life - from my pancreas. How wierd is that?

2003 is the year of the sell-out. I just found out that i could double my salary tommorow by becoming an Olive Garden manager - 40 k a year starting out. All because I have a degree.

I need help beavers. 40,000 - That's a house, a family, and a suburu.

Darden is not the eviliest of corporate entities - right?

And Working for the Olive Garden - Joe N, and Joe L,, I need your help here, Can I still run for Congress when I get older? Will the voters respect a former Of mgr? (My answer: a defiitive NO!)

Post your favorite links, Joe, and I'll put 'em up. Elite democracy at it's finest.

I love this nasa photo gallery. They make great wallpaper. I set a new one several times a week.

2003 is Year of the Goat (black sheep). It begins on Feb. 1.


Seriously.

Just noticed that 3 of my four most recent posts includes variants on nest feathering. Maybe I am in some sort of mind meld with your mom, Matt. Is this the year of the Crow or something?

I'd say a good deal more than three years in toto, though Ryan hopped the bandwagon relatively late in the game. The Northwestern J-School helped to start this movement (and probably merits the prize more than any pol) which now even includes a downstate "Innocence Project" at our very own UIS (albeit one which does not deal with capital crimes). I agree that Ryan did a good thing, but the Nobel Prize? That would be like giving it to Nixon or someone of that ilk, although Ryan is a good deal more petty than ol' Tricky Dick. It is a rare thing when a lame duck does anything but feather his cronies' nests. Ironic that, during this generous gesture, George was busy setting up his friends with lucrative state appointments which Blago is now attempting to terminate. Social justice and politics as usual make strange bedfellows.

Here here. The public has a misconception that Ryan did this as he was walking out the door of office. He DID, but there were three years of research and a "distinguished" panel that looked into this issue. Oh, and if Bill O'Reilly hates Ryan's decision then I know that I like it. I don't care about his motives -- If he is a megalomaniac or if he is a sadist. He did a good thing.

Ryan gets the Democrat of the year award. And Blago gets my Republican of the year award for the symbolic cleaning house of state government. Congratulations guys, for continuing to make the distinction between political parties meaningless. Keep up the good work!

According the my astrological chart, 2003 is a year of change, and so far it is living up to the hype.

There's been a lot of shit talking lately about the Noble Prize, particularly with Arafat winning and then Jimmy Carter. Now the "Give Death a Chance" posse is attacking Ryan, questioning his motives and the way he went about granting blanket clemency.

Personally I'm inspired. He researched the death penalty, and realized his pro-capital punisment position was wrong. How cool is that? - a politician admitting he was wrong, and actually doing something about it (and it was a Republican.)

Congratulations on falling out of your chair on the air.

Hefner is pretty great. Hymns to cigarettes and alcohol! Not to mention the postal service. Best album is The Fidelity Wars.
BTW, Laura and I were on the radio with Sara on Friday. I got to do a station announcement and promptly fell out of the chair on air.

I believe that Ryan is turning traditional political mores on their head with his move. His hatred of Chicago Dems goes back to Daley's obstructionist tactics. He also is no longer enamored with the Republican party, feeling (correctly, I think) that the Repubs sold him out when the bribery scandal hit. It's not as if there hasn't been a history of corrupt campaigns in Illinois. Ryan had to pay the piper for the sins of those before him, and his loyal hack-soldiering left him out to dry. Ryan can get back at suburban republicans, the corrupt Chicago machine and whinging downstaters (embodied by Jim Ryan's disloyalty) in one fell swoop, along the way garnering a nomination for the Nobel prize and a probable academic appointment with which to further feather his nest.

That has to be difficult. I feel for 'em.

I wanted to recommend two bands: Interpol and OK Go.
Interpol sounds like Joy Division, except not as morbid, and OK Go is a clever poppy rock outfit from Chicago. I think all beavers will like these bands.

Here are the lyrics to the Interpol song, NYC, which is my current favorite:


I had seven faces thought i knew which one to wear
I'm sick of spending these lonely nights training myself not to care
the subway is a porno pavements they are a mess
i know you've supported me for a long time
somehow i'm not impressed

New York Cares (got to be some more change in my life)
New York Cares (got to be some more change in my life)
New York Cares (got to be some more change in my life)
New York Cares (got to be some more change in my life)

subway she is a porno and the pavements they are a mess
i know you've supported me for a long time
somehow i'm not impressed

It's up to me now turn on the bright lights
It's up to me now turn on the bright lights

New York Cares (got to be some more change in my life)
New York Cares (got to be some more change in my life)
New York Cares (got to be some more change in my life)
New York Cares (got to be some more change in my life)

It's up to me now turn on the bright lights
(got to be some more change in my life)
oh, It's up to me now turn on the bright lights
(got to be some more change in my life)

* From the album, Turn on the Bright Lights

Check out the song, Get Over It, by OK Go.


Military guys that I have met have always been way sharper than I gave them credit for. Leon Deltoro was the first guy I had heard to ever question the Standard Operating Procedure of scrambling fighter jets during a hijacking that was NOT done on September 11, 2001. (Leon lived in D.C. at the time.)
He was also blunt about military service: Most are in it for scholarships and to get paid, to die if necessary, and they are very aware of that.

Leave it to Mike to come up with the hard edgy news that other papers shy away from. Mike asks the qeustions that other journalists don't ask. Every article I read on the commutation of death sentences by Ryan has asked the question, "What were Ryan's motives?" But Mike Mann boldly answers that question by saying "ryan's blanket clemeney is a direct attack against chicago, and it's political machine and police force." Brilliant. Insightful. I agree.
But why do you think Ryan has a vendetta against Chicago?

And I have to mention Rod "The Bod" on the cover of the SJ-R yesterday jogging in front of the Old state Capitol. It's time for a change! It's time for a sexy Governor.

My cousin's Marine unit got called up and they depart for california this a.m. and then off to the middle east tomorrow. He's handling it okay but his fiancee is freaking out. She doesn't like GDub right now.

does anyone else agree with me that ryan's blanket clemeney is a direct attack against chicago, and it's political machine and police force?

i told my born again friend at work that my bumper sticker that says "NO!" is an anti-war sticker, and after a couple of ane coulter huff and puffs he asked me what i would think we should do if we found out a country gave money to a terrorist organization that attacked the united states.

this guy is getting on my nerves.

i told him as a christian myself, we should reach out our collective hands and hug.

he dutifully informed me that if i found myself in an arab country they would not hesitate to chainsaw my head off. Then he called me a pacifist, and did a little hippie dance to mock me.

Later on that night i talked to a thick-neck consevative, ex-military type, and he told me that he thought G dub is going to go down as the absolute worst president this country has ever had.

i think it's great that the military guys are finally getting smarter then the fundametalist chirstian war-mongers.

is it too late to vote for King George?

in the old ages he would have been be-headed.

Welcome to Springfield Governor Blago.

This is a great video by the Faint called 'Agenda Suicide'. It reminds me of a combination of a Radiohead video and the Sims video game. You would think these guys are from Manchester in the 80's, but they are actually from Omaha, Nebraska (with the likes of Bright Eyes and Cursive) of the 00's. Their sound is much poppier than this video suggests. It happens to be a dark video (which is why I like it), and I'm told most of their songs are about sex and death. But i listened to a cd a friend gave me over the summer and all the Faint songs are sugary and sweet.

On another Bright Eyes note, Sarah from the Acryllic Afternoon Friday radio show on WQNA loves to play Bright Eyes. Every freakin' week I tune in I hear it. She has a sense of humor though. Afterwords she'll give out the Suicide Hotline number.