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Border Patrol

2010-02-26T11:21:00.001-08:00

Border Patrol

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My first completed music project....

2009-12-22T14:34:00.000-08:00

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Global warming for the last 100 years....

2009-12-03T08:02:00.001-08:00

2009-12-02T15:19:00.000-08:00

Many of you who have been reading my blog for a while know that the global warming subject is and has always been my pet-peeve (you can go back to the beginning of this blog and see all of the posts). With the revelations this week, I felt I had to return after a long absence and give my opinion on the developments in the news. I won't say I told you so (I DID, I DID, I DID), but I will offer this version of a news-article which encompasses much of the obsurdity that has surround the belief that Cow flatulence, Ford trucks, and halitosis are destroying our planet, (that is of course after the ice-age of the 1970's and acid rain of the 1980's failed to). Remember, I AM A LONG-TIME ENVIRONMENTALIST. BUT, I believe, with AMPLE proof that the whole movement has been nothing but a socialist scheme to redistribute the wealth of the Western world- and this has NOTHING to do with the health of the planet...

Global Norming Concensus Proves Climate Strange Is Real
December 2nd, 2009
Using a highly reliable measuring system know as the five senses, human beings in their billions have come to the conclusion, that the only certainty about the weather on planet earth, is that it keeps on changing in very strange ways. Some times hot, sometimes cold, sometimes wet, sometimes dry. This mind blowing discovery that affects all our lives has been dubbed Global Norming. Otherwise know as Climate Strange. What effects this will have on future generations nobody knows, but one thing everyone agrees on is that the effects of Global Norming will be devastating.
To help alleviate the terrifying effects of Climate Strange a panel of experts has been formed to collate scientific research from around the world into a series of reports to the United Nations, detailing exactly how strange Global Norming might be. As a result it has been found without doubt, through a data modelling process called normalisation, that the normality of strange climatic behaviour will continue for ever.
Everyone with a brain and even those without, now agree that this will result in the complete annihilation of mankind at an unknown point in the future. To ensure that this does not occur a system of global governance or Globatorship has been formed to organise the pre-annihilation of all peoples likely to be affected by the devastating effects of Climate Strange – which politicians agree will occur in direct relation to the amount pigmentation in their skin and/or money in their bank account or pocket.
This is to be financed by a Hardon tax that will help facilitate the study of the constantly rising and falling temparature and moisture levels at the very center of the Global Norming phenomena. But opposition is mounting as humans and animals alike, complain that Hardon is essential to all life on earth. But the absense of Hardon in the creation of plant life and in the upper atmosphere has left the pro-human lobby without a voice at the negotiating table.
Agreement on action to combat Climate Strange, is being sought at the highest levels at a summit in Copenhagen, where world leaders are meeting to discuss how far they are willing to go to save the planet. Through a show of normal behaviour that includes blocking out all information to the five senses, while demonstrating their own Hardon emission limits, they hope to convince each other and the world that Climate Strange can be controlled by the members of a coming Globatorship.
However concerns are growing that Global Norming theory is a sham after scientists were caught acting extreme abnormally themselves, by falsifying results and corrupting the review process to get more funding. The climatology community has rallied round, stating that this is in fact perfectly normal behaviour for scientists and therefore confirms the Global Norming hypothesis, even as their credibility continues to melt.
Despite this, world leaders are attempting to reassure the public that should Hardon emmissions exceed mandated levels, the merging of the EU and the UN into an EUgeNic Globatorship will guarantee pre-annihilation for all, after the capture and trading of emissions, before Global Norming gets out of control and things become even more strange.
Please forward this message via links and emails to all the presidents, prime-ministers, senators, commissars, member of parliament, ambassadors, rabbis, priests, imans, gurus and real people that you know, to help them understand the absurdity of the United Nations climate change agenda and open their senses to the strange climatological normality that is the weather.
The Truthorator
Truthorator.com
Global Norming Concensus Proves Climate Strange Is Real
December 2nd, 2009 by admin
Using a highly reliable measuring system know as the five senses, human beings in their billions have come to the conclusion, that the only certainty about the weather on planet earth, is that it keeps on changing in very strange ways. Some times hot, sometimes cold, sometimes wet, sometimes dry. This mind blowing discovery that affects all our lives has been dubbed Global Norming. Otherwise know as Climate Strange. What effects this will have on future generations nobody knows, but one thing everyone agrees on is that the effects of Global Norming will be devastating.
To help alleviate the terrifying effects of Climate Strange a panel of experts has been formed to collate scientific research from around the world into a series of reports to the United Nations, detailing exactly how strange Global Norming might be. As a result it has been found without doubt, through a data modelling process called normalisation, that the normality of strange climatic behaviour will continue for ever.
Everyone with a brain and even those without, now agree that this will result in the complete annihilation of mankind at an unknown point in the future. To ensure that this does not occur a system of global governance or Globatorship has been formed to organise the pre-annihilation of all peoples likely to be affected by the devastating effects of Climate Strange – which politicians agree will occur in direct relation to the amount pigmentation in their skin and/or money in their bank account or pocket.
This is to be financed by a Hardon tax that will help facilitate the study of the constantly rising and falling temparature and moisture levels at the very center of the Global Norming phenomena. But opposition is mounting as humans and animals alike, complain that Hardon is essential to all life on earth. But the absense of Hardon in the creation of plant life and in the upper atmosphere has left the pro-human lobby without a voice at the negotiating table.
Agreement on action to combat Climate Strange, is being sought at the highest levels at a summit in Copenhagen, where world leaders are meeting to discuss how far they are willing to go to save the planet. Through a show of normal behaviour that includes blocking out all information to the five senses, while demonstrating their own Hardon emission limits, they hope to convince each other and the world that Climate Strange can be controlled by the members of a coming Globatorship.
However concerns are growing that Global Norming theory is a sham after scientists were caught acting extreme abnormally themselves, by falsifying results and corrupting the review process to get more funding. The climatology community has rallied round, stating that this is in fact perfectly normal behaviour for scientists and therefore confirms the Global Norming hypothesis, even as their credibility continues to melt.
Despite this, world leaders are attempting to reassure the public that should Hardon emmissions exceed mandated levels, the merging of the EU and the UN into an EUgeNic Globatorship will guarantee pre-annihilation for all, after the capture and trading of emissions, before Global Norming gets out of control and things become even more strange.
Please forward this message via links and emails to all the presidents, prime-ministers, senators, commissars, member of parliament, ambassadors, rabbis, priests, imans, gurus and real people that you know, to help them understand the absurdity of the United Nations climate change agenda and open their senses to the strange climatological normality that is the weather.
The Truthorator
Global Norming Concensus Proves Climate Strange Is Real
December 2nd, 2009 by admin
Using a highly reliable measuring system know as the five senses, human beings in their billions have come to the conclusion, that the only certainty about the weather on planet earth, is that it keeps on changing in very strange ways. Some times hot, sometimes cold, sometimes wet, sometimes dry. This mind blowing discovery that affects all our lives has been dubbed Global Norming. Otherwise know as Climate Strange. What effects this will have on future generations nobody knows, but one thing everyone agrees on is that the effects of Global Norming will be devastating.
To help alleviate the terrifying effects of Climate Strange a panel of experts has been formed to collate scientific research from around the world into a series of reports to the United Nations, detailing exactly how strange Global Norming might be. As a result it has been found without doubt, through a data modelling process called normalisation, that the normality of strange climatic behaviour will continue for ever.
Everyone with a brain and even those without, now agree that this will result in the complete annihilation of mankind at an unknown point in the future. To ensure that this does not occur a system of global governance or Globatorship has been formed to organise the pre-annihilation of all peoples likely to be affected by the devastating effects of Climate Strange – which politicians agree will occur in direct relation to the amount pigmentation in their skin and/or money in their bank account or pocket.
This is to be financed by a Hardon tax that will help facilitate the study of the constantly rising and falling temparature and moisture levels at the very center of the Global Norming phenomena. But opposition is mounting as humans and animals alike, complain that Hardon is essential to all life on earth. But the absense of Hardon in the creation of plant life and in the upper atmosphere has left the pro-human lobby without a voice at the negotiating table.
Agreement on action to combat Climate Strange, is being sought at the highest levels at a summit in Copenhagen, where world leaders are meeting to discuss how far they are willing to go to save the planet. Through a show of normal behaviour that includes blocking out all information to the five senses, while demonstrating their own Hardon emission limits, they hope to convince each other and the world that Climate Strange can be controlled by the members of a coming Globatorship.
However concerns are growing that Global Norming theory is a sham after scientists were caught acting extreme abnormally themselves, by falsifying results and corrupting the review process to get more funding. The climatology community has rallied round, stating that this is in fact perfectly normal behaviour for scientists and therefore confirms the Global Norming hypothesis, even as their credibility continues to melt.
Despite this, world leaders are attempting to reassure the public that should Hardon emmissions exceed mandated levels, the merging of the EU and the UN into an EUgeNic Globatorship will guarantee pre-annihilation for all, after the capture and trading of emissions, before Global Norming gets out of control and things become even more strange.
Please forward this message via links and emails to all the presidents, prime-ministers, senators, commissars, member of parliament, ambassadors, rabbis, priests, imans, gurus and real people that you know, to help them understand the absurdity of the United Nations climate change agenda and open their senses to the strange climatological normality that is the weather.
Scotty-D
with permission from the Truthorator

What happened to global warming?

2009-10-12T10:46:00.000-07:00

even the Brits are starting to catch on to the fact that all may not be as simple as a movie hosted by a former presidential candidate who was caught lying 6 times during his debate.....will we figure it out before the cap-and-trade bill mortally wounds our economy and our way of life....?

By Paul Hudson
Climate correspondent, BBC News

Average temperatures have not increased for over a decade
This headline may come as a bit of a surprise, so too might that fact that the warmest year recorded globally was not in 2008 or 2007, but in 1998.
But it is true. For the last 11 years we have not observed any increase in global temperatures.
And our climate models did not forecast it, even though man-made carbon dioxide, the gas thought to be responsible for warming our planet, has continued to rise.
So what on Earth is going on?
Climate change sceptics, who passionately and consistently argue that man's influence on our climate is overstated, say they saw it coming.
They argue that there are natural cycles, over which we have no control, that dictate how warm the planet is. But what is the evidence for this?
During the last few decades of the 20th Century, our planet did warm quickly.

Recent research has ruled out solar influences on temperature increases
Sceptics argue that the warming we observed was down to the energy from the Sun increasing. After all 98% of the Earth's warmth comes from the Sun.
But research conducted two years ago, and published by the Royal Society, seemed to rule out solar influences.
The scientists' main approach was simple: to look at solar output and cosmic ray intensity over the last 30-40 years, and compare those trends with the graph for global average surface temperature.
And the results were clear. "Warming in the last 20 to 40 years can't have been caused by solar activity," said Dr Piers Forster from Leeds University, a leading contributor to this year's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
But one solar scientist Piers Corbyn from Weatheraction, a company specialising in long range weather forecasting, disagrees.
He claims that solar charged particles impact us far more than is currently accepted, so much so he says that they are almost entirely responsible for what happens to global temperatures.
He is so excited by what he has discovered that he plans to tell the international scientific community at a conference in London at the end of the month.
If proved correct, this could revolutionise the whole subject.
Ocean cycles
What is really interesting at the moment is what is happening to our oceans. They are the Earth's great heat stores.

In the last few years [the Pacific Ocean] has been losing its warmth and has recently started to cool down
According to research conducted by Professor Don Easterbrook from Western Washington University last November, the oceans and global temperatures are correlated.
The oceans, he says, have a cycle in which they warm and cool cyclically. The most important one is the Pacific decadal oscillation (PDO).
For much of the 1980s and 1990s, it was in a positive cycle, that means warmer than average. And observations have revealed that global temperatures were warm too.
But in the last few years it has been losing its warmth and has recently started to cool down.
These cycles in the past have lasted for nearly 30 years.
So could global temperatures follow? The global cooling from 1945 to 1977 coincided with one of these cold Pacific cycles.
Professor Easterbrook says: "The PDO cool mode has replaced the warm mode in the Pacific Ocean, virtually assuring us of about 30 years of global cooling."
So what does it all mean? Climate change sceptics argue that this is evidence that they have been right all along.
They say there are so many other natural causes for warming and cooling, that even if man is warming the planet, it is a small part compared with nature.
But those scientists who are equally passionate about man's influence on global warming argue that their science is solid.
The UK Met Office's Hadley Centre, responsible for future climate predictions, says it incorporates solar variation and ocean cycles into its climate models, and that they are nothing new.
In fact, the centre says they are just two of the whole host of known factors that influence global temperatures - all of which are accounted for by its models.
In addition, say Met Office scientists, temperatures have never increased in a straight line, and there will always be periods of slower warming, or even temporary cooling.
What is crucial, they say, is the long-term trend in global temperatures. And that, according to the Met office data, is clearly up.
To confuse the issue even further, last month Mojib Latif, a member of the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) says that we may indeed be in a period of cooling worldwide temperatures that could last another 10-20 years.

The UK Met Office says that warming is set to resume

Professor Latif is based at the Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences at Kiel University in Germany and is one of the world's top climate modellers.
But he makes it clear that he has not become a sceptic; he believes that this cooling will be temporary, before the overwhelming force of man-made global warming reasserts itself.
So what can we expect in the next few years?
Both sides have very different forecasts. The Met Office says that warming is set to resume quickly and strongly.
It predicts that from 2010 to 2015 at least half the years will be hotter than the current hottest year on record (1998).
Sceptics disagree. They insist it is unlikely that temperatures will reach the dizzy heights of 1998 until 2030 at the earliest. It is possible, they say, that because of ocean and solar cycles a period of global cooling is more likely.
One thing is for sure. It seems the debate about what is causing global warming is far from over. Indeed some would say it is hotting up.

MUSE....where on earth have I been?

2009-09-16T19:23:00.000-07:00

After wandering in the Pop desert for 20 years, I have finally found the oasis of pure pop music. I have often wondered why the greats like Depeche Mode, U2, Tears for Fears, and the Smiths had not produced even ONE band that gave homage to the genre and made it proud. That is a thing of the past- I discovered the new album "the Resistance" from Muse. I have never heard them before, but heard about them on a radio show which shall remain nameless. I wish I could sum up this album in one word, but I can't. Brilliant, a Masterpiece, beautiful and haunting,a timeless classic...these are all descriptions I would use in an official review of this album. The album opens with a catchy rocker called "Uprising" and beats you across the brain and intellect with both catchy,complicated musicianship, and poetic lyrics that would make Morrissey proud. There is an impressive homage to Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" called the "the United States of Eurasia" as well as a masterful 3 part Opus of orchestration and rock called the "Exogenesis Symphony" that I can only compare to the last part of Extreme's "III Sides to Every Story" album. I have read some reviews of long-time fans, and they range from best album - to worst album. My first thought was, "if this is their worst album, and its one of the best I've ever heard in ANY genre, how good are the ones before it?" I have yet to find out, but rest-assured, I will have the next best album in my collection VERY soon. Here is a promotional recording of the album followed by a VERY impressive live version of an older song of theirs called "Hysteria" (not the Leppard song).
Finally, since bands like the pop legends mentioned above left the spotlight (with the exception of U2), the pop universe in the United States has been dry- not any more. If you value your eardrums, pick up a copy of "the Resistance". You won't be disappointed.

did you hear the one about the Pimp and Hooker who got a housing loan to start an Under-age brothel with girls kidnapped from South America?

2009-09-10T15:04:00.001-07:00

"Beck" to basics..Glenn lays out the undisputed facts about the Communists is the White House

2009-09-04T11:35:00.001-07:00

2009-09-04T11:35:00.000-07:00

owe my soul to the company store....

2009-08-20T08:37:00.000-07:00

We the People....mean nothing to our elected representatives...

2009-08-12T09:50:00.001-07:00

2009-08-07T10:24:00.001-07:00

behind the music of the coolest band ever....LOL warning EXTREMELY VULGAR

2009-08-04T23:04:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcbLhI1dkrc

I am SOOOO glad I am not alone in my outright HATRED for Transformers 2

2009-08-03T15:15:00.000-07:00

I watched this movie, and sat their ANGRILY as I subjected myself to this retarded excuse for a movie...I won't go into too much detail, because these guys say it better than I ever could- but if you've ever had ANY desire to see a robot speak ebonics...or even worse TWO robots speaking ebonics, then this movie is for you. If you have a thinking braincell in your head, I HIGHLY recommend that you steer clear of this piece of trash..I usually don't mention movies on here, but I felt SO slighted by this movie, that I had to say something...so enough with my rant- these guys say it perfect....

My pet peeve issue should be a dead issue...

2009-07-29T08:49:00.000-07:00

Many of the most noted scientists in the world are coming forward and calling man-made global warming a bunch of B.S, and now the majority of ALL climatologists believe the same thing...so why is congress trying to cap and trade anyway??? Not to be a conspiracy nut, but you have to admit something stinks in suburbia....
Below is an article from yet ANOTHER world respected scientist, in fact, he is the most respected scientist on the continent of Australia, one of the places Mr. Gore claims is being hurt by "us"...Again, I must say clearly, that there is nothing wrong with wanting to protect the environment.I AM a nature-lover,hell I'm even a vegetarian, and I recycle whenever possible and take bags to the natural foods store to re-use. NOTHING WRONG with being a naturalist.. But there IS something wrong with pushing a false agenda to combat something which is nothing more than a myth, and limiting our personal and economic freedom in the process...

Global warming is the new religion of First World urban elites

Geologist Ian Plimer takes a contrary view, arguing that man-made climate change is a con trick perpetuated by environmentalists

By Jonathan Manthorpe, Vancouver SunJuly 28, 2009

Ian Plimer has outraged the ayatollahs of purist environmentalism, the Torquemadas of the doctrine of global warming, and he seems to relish the damnation they heap on him.

Plimer is a geologist, professor of mining geology at Adelaide University, and he may well be Australia's best-known and most notorious academic.

Plimer, you see, is an unremitting critic of "anthropogenic global warming" -- man-made climate change to you and me -- and the current environmental orthodoxy that if we change our polluting ways, global warming can be reversed.

It is, of course, not new to have a highly qualified scientist saying that global warming is an entirely natural phenomenon with many precedents in history. Many have made the argument, too, that it is rubbish to contend human behaviour is causing the current climate change. And it has often been well argued that it is totally ridiculous to suppose that changes in human behaviour -- cleaning up our act through expensive slight-of-hand taxation tricks -- can reverse the trend.

But most of these scientific and academic voices have fallen silent in the face of environmental Jacobinism. Purging humankind of its supposed sins of environmental degradation has become a religion with a fanatical and often intolerant priesthood, especially among the First World urban elites.

But Plimer shows no sign of giving way to this orthodoxy and has just published the latest of his six books and 60 academic papers on the subject of global warming. This book, Heaven and Earth -- Global Warming: The Missing Science, draws together much of his previous work. It springs especially from A Short History of Plant Earth, which was based on a decade of radio broadcasts in Australia.

That book, published in 2001, was a best-seller and won several prizes. But Plimer found it hard to find anyone willing to publish this latest book, so intimidating has the environmental lobby become.

But he did eventually find a small publishing house willing to take the gamble and the book has already sold about 30,000 copies in Australia. It seems also to be doing well in Britain and the United States in the first days of publication.

Plimer presents the proposition that anthropogenic global warming is little more than a con trick on the public perpetrated by fundamentalist environmentalists and callously adopted by politicians and government officials who love nothing more than an issue that causes public anxiety.

While environmentalists for the most part draw their conclusions based on climate information gathered in the last few hundred years, geologists, Plimer says, have a time frame stretching back many thousands of millions of years.

The dynamic and changing character of the Earth's climate has always been known by geologists. These changes are cyclical and random, he says. They are not caused or significantly affected by human behaviour.

Polar ice, for example, has been present on the Earth for less than 20 per cent of geological time, Plimer writes. Plus, animal extinctions are an entirely normal part of the Earth's evolution.

(Plimer, by the way, is also a vehement anti-creationist and has been hauled into court for disrupting meetings by religious leaders and evangelists who claim the Bible is literal truth.)

Plimer gets especially upset about carbon dioxide, its role in Earth's daily life and the supposed effects on climate of human manufacture of the gas. He says atmospheric carbon dioxide is now at the lowest levels it has been for 500 million years, and that atmospheric carbon dioxide is only 0.001 per cent of the total amount of the chemical held in the oceans, surface rocks, soils and various life forms. Indeed, Plimer says carbon dioxide is not a pollutant, but a plant food. Plants eat carbon dioxide and excrete oxygen. Human activity, he says, contributes only the tiniest fraction to even the atmospheric presence of carbon dioxide.

There is no problem with global warming, Plimer says repeatedly. He points out that for humans periods of global warming have been times of abundance when civilization made leaps forward. Ice ages, in contrast, have been times when human development slowed or even declined.

So global warming, says Plimer, is something humans should welcome and embrace as a harbinger of good times to come.

jmanthorpe@vancouversun.com
© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

A mid-summer night's dream 2009 by Scotty-D

2009-07-22T11:38:00.000-07:00

We had our night of drunken revelry, We won! We won! We won! Now it is the morning after and the bleary eyed liberals are waking up to find they have married the village idiot, and he ain't looking so good.

On the nightstand is our empty wallet. The house is a mess and a lot of stuff seems to be missing. The phone rings, it is our bank manager, someone has mortgaged our home for the next 50 years and our credit cards are maxed out. Looking outside we see the repo man leaving with our car. When we call our business a stranger informs us that all our interests have been sold to China for Monopoly money. Not only are we not the owner any more but a guy from the DMV is running things.

This news makes us violently ill, no car so we have to walk the 23 blocks to the hospital. After waiting in line for over 2 hours we are admitted to the waiting room. We recognize the administrator, he used to work a desk at the DMV. Another 3 hour wait and then we are informed that the union doctor is not expected back until next week and that until then we need to fill out forms, and of course, pay the waiting room tax.

We contact some old friends and are greeted with explicit language telling us how our new spouse has been very busy insulting them, we get no help there. The dog doesn't even want to associate with us. Then our new spouse shows up with some gang members from across town, it seems they will be living with us and be our new best friends.

Bad dream? You ain't seen nothing yet!

this is what happens when congress doesn't read their own 1000 page creation...you should be outraged America

2009-07-20T10:33:00.001-07:00

SPENDING SCARED: WHITE HOUSE PUTS OFF RELEASE OF BUDGET UPDATE...
RECOVERY.GOV // AWARDED: $2,531,600 FOR 'HAM, WATER ADDED, COOKED, FROZEN, SLICED, 2-LB'...
RECOVERY.GOV // AWARDED: $1,191,200 FOR '2 POUND FROZEN HAM SLICED'...
RECOVERY.GOV // AWARDED: $351,807 FOR 'REPLACE AND UPGRADE THE DUMBWAITER'...
RECOVERY.GOV // AWARDED: $1,562,568 FOR 'MOZZARELLA CHEESE'...
RECOVERY.GOV // AWARDED: $5,708,260 FOR 'PROCESS CHEESE'...
RECOVERY.GOV // AWARDED: $16,784,272 FOR 'CANNED PORK'...
RECOVERY.GOV // AWARDED: $1,444,100 FOR 'REPAIR DOOR BLDG 5112'...
RECOVERY.GOV // AWARDED: $541,119 FOR 'INSTALL TRAFFIC SIGNAL'...

Agriculture Sec. Vilsack: 'Purchased 760,000 Lbs of ham at cost of approximately $1.50 per pound'...
FOOD LION: $.79 Lb...

an Interesting commentary on the Middle-east from Reason magazine, the Libertarian version of the New Republic...

2009-07-17T07:47:00.000-07:00

Their Audacity to Hope
Brave Individuals who challenge the status quo in authoritarian societies—and expect our support

Michael Young | July 15, 2009

To judge by the gush of many commentators, President Barack Obama can do no wrong in the Middle East—in contrast, it is said, to George W. Bush, who supposedly could do little that was right. But when it comes to advancing political liberty in the region, the current president has been more ambiguous than his predecessor.

Take Mr. Obama's recent speech in Cairo, hailed as a foundational moment for a new American approach toward Arabs and Muslims. Mr. Obama uttered generalities about democracy and political liberty. Some of it was confusing. He admitted that Iraqis were "ultimately better off without the tyranny of Saddam Hussein," but he added that the Iraq war had shown why diplomacy and international consensus were preferable. Yet since neither diplomacy nor consensus would have ever rid the world of savage Baathist rule—which war did—what lesson did Iraq hold for American policy? Mr. Obama could not explain.

Such confusion is not new. Indeed, the Cairo speech inadvertently captured a long-standing problem of U.S. policy in the Middle East: America's allies and interlocutors in the region are often autocrats sitting atop decaying, illegitimate regimes. Mr. Bush, to his credit, removed a mass murderer from power in Baghdad and helped end 29 years of Syrian hegemony over Lebanon. Mr. Obama has shied away from endorsing any such action: "America does not presume to know what is best for everyone," he insists.

Joshua Muravchik has no qualms about presuming that liberalism and democracy are best for everyone. In The Next Founders he offers admiring profiles of seven individuals who have thought and behaved as liberals in Middle Eastern societies where that kind of thing can be dangerous. The result is a engaging work of group portraiture that is especially welcome at a time when there is otherwise so little interest in making democracy an American priority overseas.

Mr. Muravchik believes that "there is no reason why the democratic idea cannot have a rebirth in the Middle East," where democracy has been "upstaged by the false promises of utopian ideologies." A democratic rebirth, he says, will depend on courageous individuals, and America's role must be to "encourage and assist them and to protect them from persecution to the extent that we can." With help, he believes, democracy can come to the Middle East within a generation. If it does, the democrats he writes about may be among the region's "founders."

Such a scenario may seem simplistic in its optimism, but Mr. Muravchik has caught just how simple the essence of the democracy debate really is. When all it said and done, it is really about individuals who have the audacity to hope that they can break free from the oppressive institutions governing them and who expect that they can count on assistance from like-minded comrades in democratic countries.

Mr. Muravchik introduces us to Wajeha Al-Huwaider, a female Saudi activist who has fought for women's rights in the kingdom against hopeless odds; and Bassem Eid, a Palestinian human-rights activist and journalist who has investigated Israeli human-rights abuses over the years but also the abuses of the Palestinian Authority. There is also Rola Dashti, who played a key role in helping Kuwaiti women earn the right to vote in 2005; and Mohsen Sazegara, an Iranian once close to Ayatollah Khomeini. He turned against the post-Revolution system when he headed a state-owned conglomerate, where he saw the inefficiencies of a command economy. He came to reject Iran's statist economic principles and then moved to a deeper embrace of liberal thought in general. All the democrats in Mr. Muravchik's narrative have been harassed or threatened by the governments they live under, or indeed pressured by members of their own families.

What The Next Founders says, without saying it, is that at the heart of Middle Eastern despotisms are stunted societies that never create a sense of shared purpose for their citizens. Considerable attention has been paid to how such societies breed Islamists, sometimes dangerous ones. Mr. Muravchik prefers to highlight the liberal rejoinder—the citizens who reject the status quo on behalf of freedom and human rights.

Mr. Muravchik's group portrait helps to counter an idea that is gaining ground—that Western governments must engage Islamists to better advance Western aims. He asks that we spare a thought for the fragile liberals who would pay a high price if international legitimacy were to shift decisively to autocratic religious parties.

Mr. Muravchik might have said more about why Western states should support liberals, in all their vulnerability. Take the Syrian dissident Ammar Abdulhamid. Audacious and articulate, Mr. Abdulhamid abandoned a life of privilege in Syria (he is the son of a famous actress) and chose exile in the U.S. so that he could give full force to his criticism of the Assad regime. Yet like many of those described by Mr. Muravchik, he has committed himself to a liberal ideal, and sacrificed a great deal, in return for very little so far. When Western governments revert to so-called reasons of state—where "realism" and supposed self-interest often triumphs—Middle Eastern liberals become a vanguard easily discarded.

The Middle East does not need generations of democratic practice to absorb democracy. That argument, beloved of political realists, is a convenient device for allowing the U.S. to spurn a pro-democracy agenda, which is often seen as undermining national interests. It is an argument that Mr. Muravchik convincingly dismisses. But The Next Founders might have itself argued more strongly that, by ignoring what liberalism there is in the region, the U.S. not only abandons a part of itself; it also makes more likely the proliferation of violent Islamists pining to take revenge against America, the too-frequent defender of their despotic tormentors.

Michael Young is opinion editor at the Daily Star newspaper in Beirut and a contributing editor at Reason magazine. This article originally appeared in The Wall Street Journal.

this is how Universal Healthcare works in a country with 1/10th of our population- this is the side that Michael Moore DOESN'T show you in "Sicko"....

2009-07-16T12:53:00.001-07:00

Even the Canadian Healthcare system's CREATOR considers it "in crisis" and is recommending a move toward American-style Healthcare. SO, while the REST of the Western world (including much of Europe) is moving towards OUR system....our esteemed leaders are taking us the OTHER way, into a FAILED system...hmmmm.

wit and wisdom from the folks at the Onion...wish the movie was as funny as these short pieces...

2009-07-14T10:37:00.000-07:00

New BabySafe Ball Makes Shaking Your Infant Guilt And Injury Free

As disgusting as it may be....I can't wait for this album, or the tour to follow....STEEL PANTHER!!!!

2009-07-08T21:33:00.001-07:00

and the band member's resume...in their own words....

MICHAEL STARR: I Started singing in kindergarten doing school plays. I also sang to my baby sitter so she would hug me and I could be next to her boobs. As a freshman I moved to L.A. with my mom cause she met this guy who sold drugs and produced a TV show in Hollywood. I Started my first band called "Free Beer"I had to change the name cause people always wanted to drink our beer that we had and that sucked. So I changed the name to "Black Panther," cause chicks dig cats and black cars. We played keg parties and school talent shows. We came in 10th place in the talent show and that's when the chicks started coming. Anyway, the keg parties were way cooler cause we got free beer all the time and we could get high on stage, plus we could steal food from the house we played and sleep there too. ( with chicks of course)

SATCHEL: I was raised in the entertainment business. My mom was a waitress at one of the first Chuck E. Cheese's to be built in Fresno, Ca., and my Dad auditioned for the Gong Show twice. Also, my Grandma is from Switzerland, and apparently there is quite a long line of yodelers on her side of the family. I think yodeling is for dicks, but with all the talent in my family, it's really not surprising that I'm a shredding guitarist.

LEXXI FOXXX: I'm Lexxi Foxxx. The extra "X" is for extra SEX! I like my name because Lexxi rhymes with sexy. And Foxxx rhymes with box, which is another name for a Vagina. Vaginas are cool becaue me and the guys stick our penises in them all the time. Michael says that if you put your penis in a dirty vagina, you can catch an SUV like herpes or The Clap. That one makes it burn when you pee. That can also happen if you masturbate with soap and it gets in your penis hole.

STIX ZADINIA: Some drummers hit. Some drummers tap. When it comes to drums and hash pipes, nobody hits that shit harder than me. The only tapping I'm doing is when I'm tapping some dirty bitch's ass in the dressing room. I was raised in Jersey by my grandmother. She lived through the great depression. It must've really left an impression on her, cause growing up she never let me leave the dinner table without finishing every scrap of food on my plate. It was always high carb stuff, too. This led to me being morbidly obese by the third grade. I once missed the opportunity to audition for Bon Jovi by being over the weight limit by 230 plus lbs.

A question for Obama supporters..what is noble about forced service to others..isn't that called slavery?

2009-07-01T08:08:00.000-07:00

Collectivists see "self-interest" and falsely call it "greed". It is not greedy or morally wrong to expect to keep the fruits of one's labor and use it as he or she desires. What IS greedy is expecting someone else to pay for your own needs, whether they want to or not. When collectivists claim everything is a right, they force accountability for the provision of those "rights" onto others against their will. What's moral about that?

CCR live.....

2009-06-28T10:10:00.000-07:00

..like modern rock has its alternative version (in underground AOR in my opinion), and 80's metal had it's alternative in the Cure and Depeche Mode- country music has its alternative in "Red Dirt" music...the leader of this Genre is Oklahoma's own -Cross Canadian Ragweed, whom I was privledged to experience live for the 3rd time Saturday night. Anyone who can appreciate King's X as the musician's metal band should be able to appreciate CCR as the musician's Country band- except that the only resemblance to country is the occasional reference to their heroes Johnny Cash and Ray Wylie Hubbard. Completely shunned by the Nashville music establishment, Ragweed offers their middle finger to the glossy, pop-oriented trendiness of modern mainstream country music, by staying as raw and rugged as possible- Lynryrd Skynyrd, Kid Rock, Hank Williams Jr., and the late-great Johnny Cash count themselves among their best fans. Being fan these guys truly does help me to understand how the alternative music fans of the 80's hated the prevailing glam-metal, although, I LOVED it.
I started listening to bands like CCR, Stoney LaRue, and the Drive-by-truckers back when I WAS a trucker, and was bored to tears with bands like Rascal Flatts (country's New Kids on the Block) and Kenny Chesney (country's lamest cowboy) being the only music I could hear no matter what state I was in. I used to love running through Texas and Oklahoma, because next to the boring mainstream country stations I could normally pick-up without a problem, I could hear the local radio stations playing real music from bands like this- bands who are closer to the legacy of Hank Williams (Sr. and Junior), and Johnny Cash than ANY country artist who is popular now. The modern establishment of country, (dare I call them POSEURS?) has done a lot to diminish the rebel attitude of it's roots- CCR is reviving them...
a bootleg version of CCR's audience favorite...the middle-finger anthem of the haters of modern country. "leaving Tennessee", which sounds alot like Johnny Cash..
Unfortunately, all of the YouTube video that is of decent quality has been disabled, so these bootleg recordings are the best I can post- so I'm not doing these guys justice. CCR is one of the best live bands I have every seen or heard, and whether you are a fan of country music or not if you Love it, Hate it, despise new country (as I do)- if you are a fan of rock music at all, you can't miss Cody Canada and the Cross Canadian Ragweed experience....here they are covering a Primus classic...Wynnona's Big Brown Beaver..

HERE WE GO AGAIN....

2009-06-24T09:52:00.000-07:00

Barny Frank is at it again....You may blame the current economic crisis on Bush...NOT true. You may blame it on Obama, not a fan of him myself, but also not true. Who's fault is this? The Senate ways and means committee- they are the ones who pull the purse strings of the government. They were the ones that FORCED mortage companies into subprime lending or risk heavy fines, and potential Socialization. They were the ones who BLOCKED former president Bush when he called for reform 3 years ago when he forsaw this crisis happening- these very same people who spent the last 3 years sticking out their feet to trip Bush, and blaming him when he fell, are now looking at doing it YET AGAIN. Sometimes I think these people want this country to fail- there is no other explaination for their blatant disregard of the facts. The man who's face is shown above is the head of the Ways and Means committee...Barney Frank. Remember it, know it,and when this economy continues its downward spiral, don't blame the man who tried to help several years ago but was blocked- don't blame president Obama- blame the man who called all attempts at reform of Freddie and Fannie "racism" and "class warfare". Blame the man who controls the money- Blame Barney Frank- the below artice should REALLY piss you off.

Fannie, Freddie asked to relax condo loan rules: report
Mon Jun 22, 2009 10:48am EDT
Email | Print | Share| Reprints | Single Page[-] Text [+]
1 of 1Full Size(Reuters) - Two U.S. Democratic lawmakers want Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to relax recently tightened standards for mortgages on new condominiums, saying they could threaten the viability of some developments and slow the housing-market recovery, the Wall Street Journal said.
In March, Fannie Mae (FNM.N)(FNM.P) said it would no longer guarantee mortgages on condos in buildings where fewer than 70 percent of the units have been sold, up from 51 percent, the paper said. Freddie Mac (FRE.P)(FRE.N) is due to implement similar policies next month, the paper said.

In a letter to the CEO's of both companies, Representatives Barney Frank, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, and Anthony Weiner warned that a 70 percent sales threshold "may be too onerous" and could lead condo buyers to shun new developments, according to the paper.

The legislators asked the companies to "make appropriate adjustments" to their underwriting standards for condos, the paper added.

In an interview with the paper, Weiner said the rules have "had a real chill on the ability to get these condos sold," at a time when prices of condos have fallen enough to attract potential buyers.

In addition to the 70 percent sales threshold, Fannie Mae will also not purchase mortgages in buildings where 15 percent of owners are delinquent on condo association dues or where one owner has more than 10 percent of units, as the firm sees these as signals that a building could run into financial trouble, the paper added.

Both Fannie and Freddie are preparing a response to the lawmakers, according to the paper.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could not be immediately reached for comment by Reuters.

(Reporting by Chakradhar Adusumilli in Bangalore; editing by Simon Jessop)

© Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved

video of the tornado hitting Southlands Mall as we were hiding inside the the theater

2009-06-11T12:29:00.000-07:00

I don't need to say anything more..

2009-06-09T17:48:00.000-07:00

I Want To Be Banned From England Like Michael Savage

2009-06-02T08:56:00.000-07:00

I don't always agree with Michael Savage,in fact, I find him extremely abrasive and often comes across as hateful, but yesterday we learned that the San Francisco-based radio talk-show host was barred from entering Great Britain because of his opinions. If you don't think we aren't close to the same liberal facism here in America, think again. The president and his willing filibuster-proof socialist/facist (yes they are the same thing)allies in congress are in the process of trying to implement the fairness doctrine on such dangerous thought-criminals as Rush Limbaugh, Shawn Hannity, and Laura Ingraham.
You lefties were all concerned about your civil liberties when Bush was spying on potential terrorists after we were attacked on our own soil- where is your outrage when your own guy REALLY DOES attack the civil liberties of his vocal opponents? There have been many regimes in the world that has tried to silence its critics; Chavez, Castro, Hitler, Pol Pot, Kim Jun Il...etc. In American, this is new. The Bush administration NEVER tried to silence its critics- otherwise John Stewart and Keith "the bitch" Olberman would be out of jobs. Obama IS trying to silence his critics, and with a supermajority in congress- he can't be stopped...and nobody seems to CARE?!??!
My letter to the REAL establishment..

So, Michael Savage is a thoughtcriminal. I humbly beseech with shovel in hand for Commissar Obama to place me on the banned list with Michael Savage.

Here are my thought crimes:

I voted for Sarah Palin in the last presidential election.
I mortally fear Obama and The Party.
I don't own a gun, but I feel safer when other people do.
I'm a tea partier who created this sign: "Don't Tread On Me: Taxed Enough Already."
I believe government officials should answer to the people - not the other way around.
I've read the US Constitution.
I've read the US Constitution more than once.
I own a copy of the Federalist Papers, Wealth of Nations, and Atlas Shrugged.
My conservative views border on Libertarian.
I listen to Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity on the radio every chance I can.
I watch Glenn Beck on Fox News whenever possible.
I do not want to pay for abortion through taxes.
My friend fought in Iraq and I'm proud of it.
I don't believe waterboarding is torture, especially because the military does it to enlisted men as part of training.
Thank you for consideration of my request. I'll never understand why we broke away from Great Britain and am so grateful to Jackboot Jacqui Smith who, along with Dear Leader Obama, will correct the mistake. I look forward to a long and deserved rail trip through the countryside.

Unredeemed American thoughtcriminal,
Scotty-D
Denver,Co

WOW- couldn't have said this better myself...I have a new hero in the fight to retain common sense in this country....

2009-05-26T14:29:00.000-07:00

perfect framing of the American ideal..Hanna Barbara style...

2009-05-20T16:24:00.000-07:00

FINALLY- some REAL video is released of the guitar gods concert I went to in California

2009-05-13T18:16:00.000-07:00

Richie Kotzen tearing it up on a Hendrix classic...

How are the folks who CAUSED the economic meltdown really going to FIX it?

2009-05-11T15:16:00.001-07:00

This crisis was caused by political correctness being forced on the mortgage lending industry in the Clinton era.
Before the Democrats' affirmative-action lending policies became an embarrassment, the Los Angeles Times reported that, starting in 1992, a majority-Democratic Congress "mandated that Fannie and Freddie increase their purchases of mortgages for low-income and medium-income borrowers. Operating under that requirement, Fannie Mae, in particular, has been aggressive and creative in stimulating minority gains."
Under Clinton, the entire federal government put massive pressure on banks to grant more mortgages to the poor and minorities. Clinton's secretary of housing and urban development, Andrew Cuomo, investigated Fannie Mae for racial discrimination and proposed that 50 percent of Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's portfolio be made up of loans to low- to moderate-income borrowers by the year 2001.
Instead of looking at "outdated criteria," such as the mortgage applicant's credit history and ability to make a down payment, banks were encouraged to consider nontraditional measures of credit-worthiness, such as having a good jump shot or having a missing child named "Caylee."
Threatening lawsuits, Clinton's Federal Reserve demanded that banks treat welfare payments and unemployment benefits as valid income sources to qualify for a mortgage. That isn't a joke – it's a fact.
When Democrats controlled both the executive and legislative branches, political correctness was given a veto over sound business practices.
In 1999, liberals were bragging about extending affirmative action to the financial sector. Los Angeles Times reporter Ron Brownstein hailed the Clinton administration's affirmative-action lending policies as one of the "hidden success stories" of the Clinton administration, saying that "black and Latino homeownership has surged to the highest level ever recorded."
Meanwhile, economists were screaming from the rooftops that the Democrats were forcing mortgage lenders to issue loans that would fail the moment the housing market slowed and deadbeat borrowers couldn't get out of their loans by selling their houses.
A decade later, the housing bubble burst and, as predicted, food-stamp-backed mortgages collapsed. Democrats set an affirmative-action time bomb, and now it's gone off.
In Bush's first year in office, the White House chief economist, N. Gregory Mankiw, warned that the government's "implicit subsidy" of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, combined with loans to unqualified borrowers, was creating a huge risk for the entire financial system.
Rep. Barney Frank denounced Mankiw, saying he had no "concern about housing." How dare you oppose suicidal loans to people who can't repay them! The New York Times reported that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were "under heavy assault by the Republicans," but these entities still had "important political allies" in the Democrats.
Now, at a cost of hundreds of billions of dollars, middle-class taxpayers are going to be forced to bail out the Democrats' two most important constituent groups: rich Wall Street bankers and welfare recipients.
Political correctness had already ruined education, sports, science and entertainment. But it took a Democratic president with a Democratic Congress for political correctness to wreck the financial industry.

Contradictions of Socialism (I saw the future & ran away)

2009-05-07T09:40:00.000-07:00

A dissertation from a refugee from the former USSR- I remember befriending a Russian girl named Marla when I was at the beautiful Gateway High School. We had an oral communication class in which she would constantly shout down the teacher's "progressive" notions as the very same theories and ideas that her family had just rescued her from- and she actually used the term "how dare you". "How dare you act like these ideas are good and just". "How dare you act as if what you are teaching isn't dangerous...". I loved Marla, she had alot of spunk and drive, big Metallica fan- when I pressed her on it, she told me she believed that the song "creeping death" was about Socialism....so then I became a fan.I often wonder what happened to her, especially in light of recent events in America. Putin is now warning OUR president, and Britain's Prime Minister Brown to stop going down the path to Socialism...not the other way around.
I wonder if she has gone back to Russia yet, as in less than a decade, they will have more freedom than we Americans, and most of Europe will have. Its a very sick, but very REAL irony- my generation grew up at the end of the Cold War, and watched Socialism collapse under the weight of its own injustice, and now we are bringing that same injustice home. I do believe we have failed in our stewardship of this wonderful country, and some day a future generation will look back on us, as Marla looked back on Stalin, and say "what the hell were you thinking, Mom...Dad...Grandmother...Grandfather? How could you let this happen" The only difference is, the Russians didn't have the benefit of watching another proud country fall to the Spectre of Marxism..WE DID- which makes our mistakes EVEN WORSE-

There was a time in recent American history when certain Soviet jokes didn't work in translation - not so much because of the language differences, but because of the lack of common sociopolitical context. But that is changing. As President Obama is preparing us for a great leap towards collectivism, I find myself recollecting forgotten political jokes I shared with comrades while living in the old country under Brezhnev, Andropov, and Gorbachev. (I was too young to remember the Khrushchev times, but I remember the Khrushchev jokes.) I also noticed that the further America "advances" back to the Soviet model, the more translatable the old Soviet jokes become.
~
Not all Soviet advancements have metastasized here yet, but we have four more glorious years to make it happen.

One of my favorite political jokes is this:

The six dialectical contradictions of socialism in the USSR:

There is full employment - yet no one is working.
No one is working - yet the factory quotas are fulfilled.
The factory quotas are fulfilled - yet the stores have nothing to sell.
The stores have nothing to sell - yet people got all the stuff at home.
People got all the stuff at home - yet everyone is complaining.
Everyone is complaining - yet the voting is always unanimous.
It reads like a poem - only instead of the rhythm of syllables and rhyming sounds, it's the rhythm of logic and rhyming meanings. If I could replicate it, I might start a whole new genre of "contradictory six-liners." It would be extremely difficult to keep it real and funny at the same time, but I'll try anyway.

Dialectical contradictions are one of the pillars in Marxist philosophy, which states that contradictions eventually lead to a unity of opposites as the result of a struggle. This gave a convenient "scientific" excuse for the existence of contradictions in a socialist society, where opposites were nice and agreeable - unlike the wild and crazy opposites of capitalism that could never be reconciled. Hence the joke.

Then I moved to America, where wild and crazy opposites of capitalism were supposedly at their worst. Until recently, however, the only contradictions that struck me as irreconcilable were these:

Economic justice:

America is capitalist and greedy - yet half of the population is subsidized.
Half of the population is subsidized - yet they think they are victims.
They think they are victims - yet their representatives run the government.
Their representatives run the government - yet the poor keep getting poorer.
The poor keep getting poorer - yet they have things that people in other countries only dream about.
They have things that people in other countries only dream about - yet they want America to be more like those other countries.
Hollywood cliches:

Without capitalism there'd be no Hollywood - yet filmmakers hate capitalism.
Filmmakers hate capitalism - yet they sue for unauthorized copying of their movies.
They sue for unauthorized copying - yet on screen they teach us to share.
On screen they teach us to share - yet they keep their millions to themselves.
They keep their millions to themselves - yet they revel in stories of American misery and depravity.
They revel in stories of American misery and depravity - yet they blame the resulting anti-American sentiment on conservatism.
They blame the anti-American sentiment on conservatism - yet conservatism ensures the continuation of a system that makes Hollywood possible.

I never thought I would see socialist contradictions in America, let alone write about them. But somehow all attempts to organize life according to "progressive" principles always result in such contradictions. And in the areas where "progressives" have assumed positions of leadership - education, news media, or the entertainment industry - contradictions become "historically inevitable."

If one were accidentally to open his eyes and compare the "progressive" narrative with facts on the ground, one might start asking questions. Why, for instance, if the war on terror breeds more terrorists, haven't there been attacks on the U.S. soil since 2001? Why, if George W. Bush had removed our freedom of speech, was nobody ever arrested for saying anything? And if Obama has returned us our freedoms, why was a man harassed by police in Oklahoma for having an anti-Obama sign in his car? Why would anyone who supports free speech want to silence talk radio? And why is silencing the opposition called the "Fairness Doctrine"?

After the number of "caring," bleeding-heart politicians in Washington reached a critical mass, it was only a matter of time before the government started ordering banks to help the poor by giving them risky home loans through community organizers. Which resulted in a bigger demand, which resulted in rising prices, which resulted in slimmer chances of repaying the loans, which resulted in more pressure on the banks, which resulted in repackaging of bad loans, which resulted in a collapse of the banks, which resulted in a recession, which resulted in many borrowers losing their jobs, which resulted in no further mortgage payments, which resulted in a financial disaster, which resulted in a worldwide crisis, with billions of poor people overseas - who had never seen a community organizer, nor applied for a bad loan - becoming even poorer than they had been before the "progressives" in the U.S. government decided to help the poor.

As if that were not enough, the same bleeding hearts are now trying to fix this by nationalizing the banks so that they can keep issuing risky loans through community organizers. In other words, to prevent the toast from landing buttered side down, they're planning to butter the toast on both sides and hope that it will hover in mid-air. Which also seems like a sensible alternative energy initiative.

If that doesn't fix the problem, there's always the last resort of a liberal: blame capitalism. It's always a win-win. Today government regulators may be blaming capitalism for the crisis caused by their dilettantish tampering with the economy, but who do you think they will credit after market forces resuscitate the economy?

Years ago, living in America made me feel as though I had traveled in a time machine from the past. But after the recent "revolutionary" changes have turned reality on its head - which is what "revolution" literally means - I'm getting an uneasy feeling I had come from your future.

As your comrade from the future, I also feel a social obligation to help my less advanced comrades in the American community, and prepare them for the transition to the glorious world of underground literature, half-whispered jokes, and the useful habit of looking over your shoulder. Don't become a nation of cowards - but watch who might be listening.

Let's start with these few.

People's power:

Liberals believe they're advancing people's power - yet they don't believe people can do anything right without their guidance.
People can't do anything right - yet the government bureaucracy can do everything.
The government bureaucracy can do everything - yet liberals don't like it when the government takes control of their lives.
Liberals don't like it when the government takes control of their lives - yet they vote for programs that increase people's dependency on the government.
They vote for programs that increase people's dependency on the government - yet they believe they're advancing people's power.
Bush and the media:

The media said Bush was dumb - yet he won over two intelligent Democrats.
He won over two intelligent Democrats - yet the media said his ratings were hopeless.
The media said his ratings were hopeless - yet the 2004 electoral map was red.
The 2004 electoral map was red - yet the media said his policies failed.
The media said his policies failed - yet the economy grew and the war was won.
The economy grew and the war was won - yet the media said we needed "change."
Public education:

Liberals have been in charge of education for 50 years - yet education is out of control.
Education is out of control - yet liberal teaching methods prevail.
Liberal teaching methods prevail - yet public schools are failing.
Public schools are failing - yet their funding keeps growing.
Their funding keeps growing - yet public schools are always underfunded.
Public schools are always underfunded - yet private schools yield better results for less.
Private schools yield better results for less - yet public education is the only way out of the crisis.
Foreign radicals*:

Foreign radicals hate America - yet they're all wearing American blue jeans.
They're all wearing American blue jeans - yet they disdain American culture.
They disdain American culture - yet they play American music, movies, and video games.
They play American music, movies, and video games - yet they call Americans uncivilized.
They call Americans uncivilized - yet they expect Americans to defend their civilization.
They expect Americans to defend their civilization - yet they think American capitalism is outdated.
They think American capitalism is outdated - yet most of their countries require American handouts.
(* Some US politicians have similar opinions about their redneck constituents - yet they won't shut up about how proud they are to have their mandate.)

Liberals and taxes:

Liberals want to help the poor - yet they won't give money to charities.
They won't give money to charities - yet they'd like the government to become a gigantic charity.
They'd like the government to become a gigantic charity - yet the money has to be taken from people by force.
The money has to be taken from people by force - yet they call it welfare.
They call it welfare - yet higher taxes make everyone poorer.
Higher taxes make everyone poorer - yet liberals find ways not to pay taxes.
Liberals find ways not to pay taxes - yet they get to be chosen to run the government.
Liberals and the CIA:

The CIA is a reactionary institution - yet its agents always leak information that helps liberals politically.
CIA agents always leak information that helps liberals politically - yet liberals say the CIA is clueless.
Liberals say the CIA is clueless - yet in their movies the CIA is running the world.
In their movies the CIA is running the world - yet they tell us that better intelligence could have prevented the war.
Better intelligence could have prevented the war - yet "enhanced interrogations" of captured terrorists must not be allowed.
Love and marriage:

Sex differences are the result of social conditioning - yet homosexuality is biological.
Homosexuality is biological - yet everybody is encouraged to experiment with it.
Everybody is encouraged to experiment with it - yet venereal diseases are treated at the taxpayers' expense.
Venereal diseases are treated at the taxpayers' expense - yet taxpayers have no right to impose standards since there are no moral absolutes.
There are no moral absolutes - yet gay marriage is an absolute must.
Gay marriage is an absolute must - yet family is an antiquated tool of bourgeois oppression.

What do the Russians who fled their homeland to the land of the Free think now?

2009-05-06T15:17:00.000-07:00

From the Blog of a Russian dissident...quite a lament. I never thought I would see this in my lifetime- he even brings forth some things that have happened recently that I wasn't aware of, and I PAY ATTENTION like a good American should...

American capitalism gone with a whimper
English Pravda ru ^ May 4, 2009 Mat Rodina

Posted on Monday, May 04, 2009 7:28:24 AM by HighlyOpinionated

It must be said, that like the breaking of a great dam, the American decent into Marxism is happening with breath taking speed, against the back drop of a passive, hapless sheeple, excuse me dear reader, I meant people.

The ultimate perfection More...

True, the situation has been well prepared on and off for the past century, especially the past twenty years. The initial testing grounds was conducted upon our Holy Russia and a bloody test it was. But we Russians would not just roll over and give up our freedoms and our souls, no matter how much money Wall Street poured into the fists of the Marxists.

Those lessons were taken and used to properly prepare the American populace for the surrender of their freedoms and souls, to the whims of their elites and betters.

First, the population was dumbed down through a politicized and substandard education system based on pop culture, rather then the classics. Americans know more about their favorite TV dramas then the drama in DC that directly affects their lives. They care more for their "right" to choke down a McDonalds burger or a BurgerKing burger than for their constitutional rights. Then they turn around and lecture us about our rights and about our "democracy". Pride blind the foolish.
Then their faith in God was destroyed, until their churches, all tens of thousands of different "branches and denominations" were for the most part little more then Sunday circuses and their televangelists and top protestant mega preachers were more then happy to sell out their souls and flocks to be on the "winning" side of one pseudo Marxist politician or another. Their flocks may complain, but when explained that they would be on the "winning" side, their flocks were ever so quick to reject Christ in hopes for earthly power. Even our Holy Orthodox churches are scandalously liberalized in America.

The final collapse has come with the election of Barack Obama. His speed in the past three months has been truly impressive. His spending and money printing has been a record setting, not just in America's short history but in the world. If this keeps up for more then another year, and there is no sign that it will not, America at best will resemble the Wiemar Republic and at worst Zimbabwe.

These past two weeks have been the most breath taking of all. First came the announcement of a planned redesign of the American Byzantine tax system, by the very thieves who used it to bankroll their thefts, loses and swindles of hundreds of billions of dollars. These make our Russian oligarchs look little more then ordinary street thugs, in comparison. Yes, the Americans have beat our own thieves in the shear volumes. Should we congratulate them?

These men, of course, are not an elected panel but made up of appointees picked from the very financial oligarchs and their henchmen who are now gorging themselves on trillions of American dollars, in one bailout after another. They are also usurping the rights, duties and powers of the American congress (parliament). Again, congress has put up little more then a whimper to their masters.

Then came Barack Obama's command that GM's (General Motor) president step down from leadership of his company. That is correct, dear reader, in the land of "pure" free markets, the American president now has the power, the self given power, to fire CEOs and we can assume other employees of private companies, at will. Come hither, go dither, the centurion commands his minions.

So it should be no surprise, that the American president has followed this up with a "bold" move of declaring that he and another group of unelected, chosen stooges will now redesign the entire automotive industry and will even be the guarantee of automobile policies. I am sure that if given the chance, they would happily try and redesign it for the whole of the world, too. Prime Minister Putin, less then two months ago, warned Obama and UK's Blair, not to follow the path to Marxism, it only leads to disaster. Apparently, even though we suffered 70 years of this Western sponsored horror show, we know nothing, as foolish, drunken Russians, so let our "wise" Anglo-Saxon fools find out the folly of their own pride.

Again, the American public has taken this with barely a whimper...but a "freeman" whimper.

So, should it be any surprise to discover that the Democratically controlled Congress of America is working on passing a new regulation that would give the American Treasury department the power to set "fair" maximum salaries, evaluate performance and control how private companies give out pay raises and bonuses? Senator Barney Franks, a social pervert basking in his homosexuality (of course, amongst the modern, enlightened American societal norm, as well as that of the general West, homosexuality is not only not a looked down upon life choice, but is often praised as a virtue) and his Marxist enlightenment, has led this effort. He stresses that this only affects companies that receive government monies, but it is retroactive and taken to a logical extreme, this would include any company or industry that has ever received a tax break or incentive.

The Russian owners of American companies and industries should look thoughtfully at this and the option of closing their facilities down and fleeing the land of the Red as fast as possible. In other words, divest while there is still value left.

The proud American will go down into his slavery with out a fight, beating his chest and proclaiming to the world, how free he really is. The world will only snicker.

Stanislav Mishin

The article has been reprinted with the kind permission from the author and originally appears on his blog, Mat Rodina

http://mat-rodina.blogspot.com/ This is an excellent blog for the Russian Viewpoint.

Follow the money .....

2009-05-04T20:35:00.000-07:00

OUTRAGEOUS!!!! Politicians accept funds from AIG After BAILOUT !!!
Everyone is pocketing our money except us. This is infuriating! The majority of Americans were against the Bailout and now the government is adding insult to financial injury!

The below listed politicians accepted the listed amount of funds from AIG after bailout funds were provided out of our taxes.

Office Name Amount
President Barack Obama $107,332.00
Vice President Joseph Biden Jr. $ 41,350.00
Senate Chris Dodd (D. CT) $280,238.00
Senate Chuck Schumer D NY) $111,875.00

Senate John McCain (R AZ) $ 99,249.00

Senate Max Baucus (D MT) $ 90,000.00
Senate John Kerry (D MA) $ 85,000.00
Senate Joe Lieberman (D CT) $ 57,900.00

Senate John Eensign (R NV) $ 44.569.00

Senate Evan Bayh (D IN) $ 43,700.00
Senate Tom Carper (D DE) $ 37,312.00

Senate Richard Shelby (R AL) $ 31,250.00
Senate Jack Reid (D RI) $ 30,600.00

Senate Chuck Grassley (R IO) $ 27,750.00

House Charlie Rangel (D NY) $ 53,582.00
House John Larson (D CT) $ 43,000.00
House Nita Lowey (D NY) $ 31,800.00

House Michael Castle (R DE) $ 29,350.00

House Garry Ackerman (D NY) $ 27,750.00
House Jerrold Nadler (D NY) $ 26,000.00
House Earl Pomeroy D ND) $ 20,720.00
House Carolyn Maloney (D NY) $ 19,200.00
House Joseph Crowley (D NY) $ 18,500.00
House Howard Berman (D CA) $ 18,000.00
House Edwin Perlmutter (D CO) $ 14,650.00
House Steve Israel (D NY) $ 13,950.00

Thanks for your attention!
A2Z Publications LLC
http://www.a2zpublications.com/
_________________

And more reason to be infuriated!!!!

German and French banks got $36 billion from AIG Bailout

Posted by: Michael Mandel

We officially moved into the next stage of the crisis today. AIG, likely under pressure from the administration, decided to come clean about where most of the bailout money was going. In a press release with several attachments, the struggling insurer detailed which counterparties had gotten about $100 billion of the bailout funds.

I added up the various lists provided by AIG by country (see below), and the results were quite revealing. About $44 billion went to counterparties headquartered in the U.S., such as Goldman Sachs and states such as California and Virginia.

But as I expected, the majority of the funds—$58 billion—went to banks headquartered outside the U.S. The big winners were French and German banks, which pulled in $19 billion and $17 billion respectively.

To put these numbers in perspective, remember that the U.S. fiscal stimulus bill passed in February provided only $27.5 billion for highway and bridge construction.

In effect, the U.S. Treasury and Fed have been bailing out the rest of the world, to a massive degree. Is this a good thing? Perhaps.

But the U.S. cannot be the banker for the entire world. Now that the list are public knowledge, Congress is going to balk at providing any more open-ended financing for foreign counterparties. We are faced a global crisis, and it can only be solved through global action.

Here’s the country table. The detailed bank table is under the break.

Country AIG-related payments

billions of dollars
US 43.5
France 19.1
Germany 16.7
UK 12.7
Switzerland 5.4
Netherlands 2.3
Canada 1.1
Spain 0.3
Denmark 0.2
101.3

AIG-Related Payments
Country
Bank Amount Total Country
billions of dollars
Bank of Montreal 1.1 1.1 Canada
Danske 0.2 0.2 Denmark
Société Générale 11.9 France
BNP Paribas 4.9 France
Calyon 2.3 France
19.1 France
Deutsche Bank 11.8 Germany
Dresdner Kleinwort 2.2 Germany
Deutsche Zentral-Genossenschaftsbank 1 Germany
DZ Bank 0.7 Germany
KFW 0.5 Germany
Dresdner Bank AG 0.4 Germany
Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg 0.1 Germany
16.7 Germany
ING 1.5 Netherlands
Rabobank 0.8 Netherlands
2.3 Netherlands
Banco Santander 0.3 0.3 Spain
UBS 5 Switzerland
Credit Suisse 0.4 Switzerland
5.4 Switzerland
Barclays 8.5 UK
HSBC Bank USA 3.5 UK
Royal Bank of Scotland 0.7 UK
12.7 UK
Goldman Sachs 12.9 US
States and Cities 12 US
Merrill Lynch 6.8 US
Bank of America 5.2 US
Citigroup 2.3 US
Wachovia 1.5 US
Morgan Stanley 1.2 US
AIG International Inc. 0.6 US
JPMorgan 0.4 US
Citadel 0.2 US
Paloma Securities 0.2 US
Reconstruction Finance Corp 0.2 US
43.5 US

Just in case you don't believe it... read all about it........here

WARNING- NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART- so if dirty language offends you, don't click this video-

2009-04-30T09:00:00.000-07:00

This is one of the greatest things I have seen in ages...BURYS Flight of the Concords

STEEL PANTHER

Andrew Lloyd Webber....singing a sad..sad song

2009-04-27T12:30:00.000-07:00

The legendary creator of some of the greatest epic musicals in history is threatening exodus from his own country due to...guess what? Taxes! Britain is about to impose a 50% tax on "the wealthy"....50%?!?! I don't care how liberal you are, if you can't admit that this is theft and fiscal slavery, then you probably don't deserve the freedom that you experience today...at least until the left in this country does the same thing, but on a much GRANDER scale...this says ALOT..

Mr. Webber sings the blues...

OVER WEIGHT? Guess what?

2009-04-21T13:50:00.001-07:00

According to the scientists (and I use that word loosely- zealots would be more accurate) behind the scam- YOU are now part of the cause of global warming...is this a precursor to Eugenics? If this isn't proof positive that these people TRULY do not know what they are doing, then I don't know what is...read all about it HERE . Think Al Gore had this in mind when he signed on to be the torch-bearer for these very same people?

big government liberals pay attention- this is going to happen more and more-

2009-04-14T20:55:00.000-07:00

pay CLOSE attention to what this governor says. The United States is a REPUBLIC, NOT a democracy...freedom-loving libertarians like me know it...the south knows it...the state of Texas knows it... and they will soon be their own country if you don't stop voting according to what Hollywood, Rolling Stone, and 90% of the mainstream media tells you to. How long will the US last without the industrial powerhouse that is the south? Is socialized medicine really worth tearing the country in half over? Is robbing Peter to pay Paul really what our forefathers wanted for us?
The biggest state in the union is giving you liberals fair warning, BACK THE HELL OFF OR WE ARE OUT OF HERE....remember this day in history

Help me decipher some confusing lyrics

2009-04-13T16:37:00.000-07:00

Harem Scarem has quickly become my favorite band- they are one of the most original and creative bands to come out of the late 80's...sometimes creative though, can be confusing...I have been trying to figure out what the song "The Paint thins" is about...great, rockin song....here is a live video- the solo is especially good...

and here are the lyrics...
Harem Scarem The Paint Thins Lyrics:
(Hess/Lesperance)
Rage, your involuntary martyr
Caged by the conscience and the throne
Gotta fight for what you need
But be careful what you breathe
Staged by the puppets and the trolls
Fame for the power hungry mongers
Enslaved by the towers made of stone

Will the Virgin Mary grieve
For the parting of the sleaze
Insane in every sense of the word
A pending haze on this trite sinned world
Wait til we lay still
Dare we stray to this right wing world
We gave in - the paint thins
Claims to a sacreligious other
They dangle the carrot in front of me
And the acid burns the keys
To the doors that house the weak
Only saved by exile to kingdom come
Now, I consider myself of average to above-average intelligence, but I am confused as to what this song is about, and it has been driving me CRAZY...what the hell are paint thins anyhow...any ideas anyone?

I wish this weren't so accurate- the guy does Billy Bob great though...

2009-04-10T07:28:00.000-07:00

Why would the leader of a "free" country refuse repayment of bailout money?

2009-04-04T16:57:00.000-07:00

It should be as plain as the nose on your face. This truly trancends politics- it should scare every freedom-loving American that the President is refusing 4 large banks efforts to repay the T.A.R.P. money given to them...is this article from the Wall Street Journal enough to rattle your cages? The Wall Street Journal has long stood as a beacon and defender of the American free market principles that made us great. If they are worried, maybe we should be too? Read all about it

2009-04-02T10:37:00.000-07:00

Those of you who think that guys like me are exaggerating the threat of socialism in America- don't take my word for it, let this fellow traveler tell you in her own words what the modern Democratic party wants to do...this ain't your daddy's Democratic party....

Find more videos like this on We Surround Them USA
Voting-wise, the new president is more liberal than her?!?! If she is an admitted socialist, then what does that make him???

2009-04-01T09:36:00.000-07:00

A guy walked into the local welfare office to pick up his check.

He marched straight up to the counter and said, "Hi. You know, I just HATE drawing welfare. I'd really rather have a job."

The social worker behind the counter said, "Your timing is excellent. We just got a job opening from a very wealthy old man who wants a Chauffeur and bodyguard for his beautiful daughter. You'll have to drive around in his 2008 Mercedes-Benz CL, and he will supply all of your clothes. Because of the long hours, meals will be provided. You'll also be expected to escort the daughter on her overseas holiday trips. This is rather awkward to say but you will also have as part of your job assignment to satisfy her sexual urges as the daughter is in her mid-20's and has a rather strong sex drive. A two-bedroom loft type apartment with plasma TV, stereo, bar, etc. located above the garage, will be designated for your sole use and the salary is $200,000 a year."

The guy, just plain wide-eyed, said, "You're bullshittin' me!"

The social worker said, "Yeah, well, you started it."

A proud New York Tradition...

2009-03-14T10:10:00.000-07:00

Funny spoof on the Blair Witch.....someone had to do it!

2009-03-12T10:39:00.001-07:00

I just had to post this...while other kids his age are PLAYING guitar hero, this 8 year-old is...

2009-03-12T08:57:00.000-07:00

Magnafux rocks...

2009-03-11T15:39:00.000-07:00

I have a thing for Punk Rock... there are some good, talented bands out there like Bad Religion, the Misfits, and of course Henry Rollins, who actually have some decent musicians in the band. This band..I just had to give a listen. I found them on the website Conservativepunk.com . The band picture alone made it worth the effort to find out more about them...who doesn't appreciate musicians who can have fun. Musicians since the time of John Lennon have often taken themselves WAAAAYYY too seriously, and although many musicians DO actually have some decent insight into human nature, they forget what fun is (Greenday,Nirvana, REM.etc). Magnafux actually has some decent talent, a little bit to say, and obviously have fun doing it- I dug this video up called Miss America...Keep in mind, it is Punk Rock,so it'll be noisy, but all said, its a pretty catchy tune with a good singer and a memorable guitar riff....

How is it that suddenly the product below has suddenly become acceptable in American society?

2009-03-10T15:19:00.001-07:00

You think this could be someway to desensitize us to the evils of Marxism? Yes, this is indeed Adidas' idea of style-Besides the fact that the philosophy it represents is responsible for the poverty of HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS TODAY, it is the emblem of a dead empire responsible for the death of millions around the world. It's called "Marx A-Flex". We also have a movie glorifiying Ernesto "Che" Guevarra, and the U.S. warming up to Castro, all in the last month- the Marxists are on the march in America, if you doubt it, just take a look around you..... Bravo Adidas, bravo, you've just lost THIS consumer's business...

keep this in mind as the Republic teeters on the brink of full-blown Socialism- how did we get here...

2009-03-06T09:42:00.000-08:00

You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the wealthy out of freedom. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is about the end of any nation.
You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it."

The late Dr. Adrian Rogers , 1931 to 2005 ~~~

Guitar Generations....WOW

2009-03-04T16:50:00.001-08:00

A sample of all three guitarists jamming at the end of the show. For those of you whol don't know who he is (that is a crime in itself), the one who sings is Richie Kotzen...George on the Right doing what George does best...ripping it up. The guy in the middle and FREAK OF NATURE is Paul Gilbert...I have seen everyone, and have never...NEVER seen anyone play the instrument as well as this guy..His mother must have had a difficult time at childbirth, what with the guitar he was obviously born with....
And what an entertaining guy as well...just Paul trying out a new song on the audience....and yes what a shredfest it is....

the greatest guitarists in the world...night 1

2009-03-02T16:17:00.001-08:00

Myself...RICHIE KOZEN..and my new friend Estevan, Richie's Panamanian manager and roommate... The rest of my pics were HORRIBLY out of focus, and both my camera, and camera phone died, so I am staying for the repeat show at the House of Blues Annaheim tonight with a fully charged camera... for a hopefully even better evening!

The stars have aligned.....

2009-02-26T07:16:00.000-08:00

My three favorite rock guitarists of ALL time are together in one action-packed show...this is so huge for a guy like me, that I am actually going to fly to Hollywood this weekend just to see it?!? George Lynch, Paul Gilbert, and Richie Kotzen- my favorite three,in that order respectively, have NEVER shared a stage before, and may never do it again (even though they claim that this is a tour),so I am going to watch musical history. Here is George RIPPING it outside his desert studio in Arizona...

Richie ripping it live... very few guitar gods who can sing as well as they play.

And Maestro Paul Gilbert doing a little Haydn...

2009-02-20T11:35:00.000-08:00

It's about time someone said it!! There already has been 50 years of government handouts and what do we have to show for it besides $11,000,000,000,000 of debt. Those that play by all the rules once again get the wrong end of the stick. The correct day for the tea party should be July 4 to remind everyone why this country was formed. The Obama administration is brushing this off as the rantings of an idiot (being compared to Castro has to sting), but the polls supporting this man are running at about 92%.

Join the rest of the country and take the Chicago Tea Party Poll here

My favorite enigma FINALLY releases his new album

2009-02-18T07:55:00.001-08:00

Morrisey-

Years of Refusal

I own every album that Morrisey has every put out, including his late, great band, The Smiths. One thing that is obvious about every album, is that he writes his lyrics to provoke DEEP thinking. He doesn't want you to listen once, and then forget. You can't listen to one song one time, and immediately figure out what he is talking about- thats what makes him so different. Imagine a beat poet singing for a rock band, much like a Jim Morrison-type, and you will begin to understand his draw. Morrissey has developed a following that see him more as a religious leader than a rock star (myself EXcluded ,however).
This album definately has a harder edge to it, and has immediately gone to the top of my Morrisey list of favorite albums. See a live version of his opening song here.

and the video for the first single Throwing My Arms Around Paris.

Good to see the man back in action with his voice stronger than ever- its always good to have a creative genius stick around as long as he has (35 years) and not burn out or overdose.

I love this show more every week...

2009-02-16T07:04:00.000-08:00

2009-02-11T21:09:00.000-08:00

Milton Unleashed

2009-02-10T20:39:00.000-08:00

One of my historic heros takes apart an American Big-government icon

The Demon Steed of Denver

2009-02-10T09:56:00.000-08:00

When is the last time you have been to DIA? The glowing red eyes of this Demonic stallion will follow you as you approach and pass it...more reminiscent of the mustang the Headless Horseman terrorized Sleepy Hollow with than a noble wild stallion of the western plains, this work of "art", which claimed the life of its creator, has become something of a controversy in the Front Range. The legendary nightmare has reached as far as the Wallstreet Journal's top stories page.
Alternate names to the Mustang have been “Bluecifer,” “Devil's Steed” and “Blue Devil Horse.” Sculptor Luis Jimenez died during the creation of the “Mustang” sculpture when it fell on him in his NM studio and completed by his two sons, prior to the 2008 unveiling.

I had a hard time believing the hype, until I drove past it one gloomy afternoon on a business trip to California. This thing is horrible, and I don't say that lightly. The eyes glowed red and seemed to follow me until I was well past it, almost to the terminal. My question to the people who approved it's placement there is....what the hell were you thinking? Have you guys been drug tested lately? You would have to be whacked out on meth in order to think that this should be the first and last thing that visitors see when in Denver.
I would encourage anyone who has seen (and been startled by) this atrocity to get involved in some organization to get rid of it. After all, New Jersey doesn't have a Devil (hockey team) greeting people who arrive at their airport, nor does New York City have a model of the Statue of Liberty with glowing eyes greeting people at La Guardia. This thing is ridiculous, and this should not be something that is allowed to exist merely because it is art. I'm sure that the ACLU will get involved if it does become an issue, but come on...don't let them destroy the concept of good taste either.

The way things were!

2009-02-10T08:36:00.001-08:00

To prove my guitar shredding/hairband credentials, I had an old friend send me a picture circa 1990...man I was COOL...love the leather jacket!

Why I think the way I do....

2009-02-06T09:19:00.000-08:00

I am not a progressive...
I am not a conservative..
I am a pragmatist...

The picture to the left links you to an incredible article from the Wall Street journal, which goes into depth about the vision of the Philosopher/Author, Ayn Rand and how it relates to the economic turmoil that we are facing today. The skinny on the matter is, half a century ago when it was published, Atlas Shrugged gave a somewhat tongue in cheek portrait of society, what could be...and unfortunately today, IS. It is not a political book, but rather a history book, that was written BEFORE the events in the book actually unfolded...I believe we are at the stage of society where Ms. Rand STARTED the book - where people were looking around at the economic turmoil around them, wondering how they got there, and were beginning to ask the question, "who is John Galt"..(the very question I have had posted at the top of my blog since the day I started it.If you want to know what it means, read the book- it can be a life-changing experience.) According to many polls taken in the last 30 years, "Atlas Shrugged" is second only to the Bible in its importance to society...and now, staring at the economic tragedy in front of us- society needs to pay attention....Ayn Rand has been SPOT ON about how life would be in the future..so far.If we don't want to end up like the end of her book (if you haven't read it, its not good), maybe we should take her warnings to heart and pay attention? She was a wise woman who studied the USSR and how it came to be- and wrote a warning to the Western World in the form of a novel. Just some food for thought for all you fellow thinkers out there....

what happens to aging rockers once life brings them back to reality?

2009-02-05T16:44:00.000-08:00

"Dizzy" Dean Davidson of Britny Fox has taken a different path...as far away from "Girlschool" as possible...

Stimulate THIS

2009-02-03T08:48:00.000-08:00

Say it isn't so?!?The stimulus bill that is being pushed upon us is shaping up to be the biggest handout in American history.Just how outrageous is this shameful $819 billion stimulus?

For starters — and this will shock you — both the House and the Senate programs have a loophole that even gives illegal aliens cash payouts.

Here’s how The Associated Press explained it: “Undocumented immigrants who are not eligible for a Social Security number can file tax returns with an alternative number. A House-passed version of the economic recovery bill, and one making its way through the Senate, would allow anyone with such a number, called an individual taxpayer identification number (TIN), to qualify for the tax credits.”

In case you didn’t know it, any illegal can get a TIN number from Social Security, no questions asked.

This means illegals who broke the law to get here will be eligible immediately for federal cash — up to $1,000!

It gets worse. Let me detail for you some facts from the “stimulus”:

More than $4 billion is earmarked for "neighborhood stabilization activities" — money that will go to groups like ACORN, which worked closely with the Obama campaign, the same group accused of massive voter fraud.
Almost half of the proposed spending will directly benefit the Service Employees International Union, federal, state, and municipal employee unions, or other Democratic-controlled unions, according to writer Ben Stein.
$600 million goes for news cars for top government bureaucrats.
Obama promised major infrastructure projects — yet only 5 percent of all the money goes for this.
$50 million for the National Endowment for the Arts.
$75 million to fund anti-smoking programs.
$650 million for the switch from analog television to digital.
$335 million to help prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.
$600 million for “climate change” research programs.

This is just a small part of the long laundry list of trivial, weird, and simply outrageous programs being funded in the Obama stimulus bill, which goes on for 680 pages — so long no one in the House was believed to have read it before voting for it!

Just to show you the tremendous waste, there is so much money appropriated in this bill you could give every unemployed person in the nation a check for $75,000 for the amount being spent.

This will stimulate NOTHING but the economic situations of the Unions and PAC's that supported the president in the election...please Mr President, don't start off this way...you seem to be an exeptional person, why would you reward mediocrity, laziness and just plain weirdness using other people's money? GOD, I hate being right all the time....

Buckethead/Paul Gilbert - one and the same?

2009-02-02T15:32:00.000-08:00

As a fairly accomplished guitar player, I am not easily impressed by very many of the "new" generation of guitarists. I came across this backyard video from the infamous guitarist for Guns 'n' Roses..Buckethead..see if you can figure out why he is called that. After watching over and over and over, and pulling my hair out, I noticed that Senor Head looks an awful lot like the legendary Mr. Big guitarist, Paul Gilbert- especially with the way he cross-picks instead of sweeps on the fast runs. This is just a theory on my part, but it would be pretty ingenious of Mr. Gilbert to masquerade like this to play anything he wants, unnoticed. As a creative genius, I wouldn't put it past him....the first part of this solo is alot of noise, but suddenly at around 1:45 it becomes mind-blowing...how someone can play this well and make it look so boring- completely improvised, and completely AMAZING- I'd have to say one of the best guitarists of the last 15 years...

See what happens when a bunch of know-it-all environmentalists stick their noses into places they don't understand? Businesses go under of course!

2009-01-30T10:18:00.000-08:00

the laws of unintended consequences always seem to be proving themselves to be pretty powerful in the state of California. This is the last thing that a state teetering on the edge of oblivion needs...gas stations shutting down because of UNNECESSARY environmental laws....

A link to the story is right HERE. This is important because, as goes California, so goes the rest of the country...we should take a lesson from what has been going on out there for years, since Reagan was governor really- big government doesn't work, and you can't regulate everything you don't agree with. Hopefully their retarded politics don't spread to the rest of the country..unfortunately, I fear, they already have..
The idiot faction in Colorado is growing at an unbelievable pace... we actually elected a governor who just 6 months before winning the election, fought to have an illegal alien (who was a refugee from the laws of Mexico) released. Upon being released, he promptly killed a Coloradan by dragging her to her death behind his car.... Colorado decided that the poor judgement and lack of wisdom that Bill Ritter had shown then (which caused this to happen), is exactly what Colorado needed to run the state. The polls afterward ACTUALLY said that he was elected largely due to his LOOKS. Colorado thought that the other guy (Beauprez) had more experience, but Ritter had the charisma and charm..(sound familiar?). Since then, he has done such wonderful things as raise property taxes and overturn the popular (and economically VITAL) right-to-work law. The next thing he is going to do is try to enact the VERY SAME LAW mentioned in the story above that is destroying so many businesses in California right now. And, like California activists, he opposes plans to drill for natural gas, a clean, viable alternative to oil, and a resource that we are rich in- read all about it. I don't know how a man with California politics became governor of the great state of Colorado, but I hope he doesn't bring the same destruction that we are seeing right now. The one thing I would ask of all of the California refugees who will certainly be fleeing the bankrupt state and settling here in the next few years is this...remember the politics, parties,and groups that you may have voted with that brought the golden state to its knees...and leave them THERE, or surely we will suffer the same fate HERE.

This turned out to be more of a project than I had planned...

2009-01-23T16:37:00.000-08:00

left picture and below: after removing the pick-guard, I find what? Hollow Space with wires.wasn't expecting that..I removed them and sanded down the finish..filled the empty cavities after carefully constructing a new compartment for the volume switch....
very bottom pics: What it looked like after I removed the hardware and sanded the finish....all of this in 2 weeks...

If These two can do it...whats our problem?

2009-01-22T14:05:00.000-08:00

Watch CBS Videos Online

Why do all important events happen together?

2009-01-20T14:55:00.000-08:00

As much as I'd like to let Obama have this day 100 percent to himself, just out of respect, I couldn't hold off on this event that was unfortunately overshadowed by the inauguration hoopla of the last few weeks. Those of you that are new to reading my blog (I know there are a bunch of you as of last week) will soon find out that I have one MAJOR pet peeve, and that is the Global Warming movement. My opinion is that it is a concocted load of nonsense designed by folks who don't have America's best interest at heart, and would like nothing more than to steal more (or whats left) of her wealth. I believe that good people with good intentions and true concern for the environment have been duped by the largest Ponzi scheme that has ever existed in the history of the world. I don't want to go into ALL of the details of why I believe this so firmly, but I will share with you the most recent event that is proving me right.

If you're wondering why North America is starting to resemble nuclear winter, then you missed the news. At December's U.N. Global Warming conference in Poznan, Poland, 650 of the world's top climatologists stood up and said man-made global warming is a media generated myth without basis. Said climatologist Dr. David Gee, Chairman of the International Geological Congress, "For how many years must the planet cool before we begin to understand that the planet is not warming?" I asked myself, why would such obviously smart guy say such a ridiculous thing? But it turns out he's right. The earth's temperature peaked in 1998. It's been falling ever since; it dropped dramatically in 2007 and got worse in 2008, when temperatures touched 1980 levels. Meanwhile, the University of Illinois' Arctic Climate Research Center released conclusive satellite photos showing that Arctic ice is back to 1979 levels. What's more, measurements of Antarctic ice now show that its accumulation is up 5 percent since 1980. In other words, during what was supposed to be massive global warming, the biggest chunks of ice on earth grew larger. Just as an aside, do you remember when the hole in the ozone layer was going to melt Antarctica? But don't worry, we're safe now, that was the nineties. Dr. Kunihiko, Chancellor of Japan's Institute of Science and Technology said this: "CO2 emissions make absolutely no difference one way or the other ... every scientist knows this, but it doesn't pay to say so." Now why would a learned man say such a crazy thing? This is where the looney left gets lost. Their mantra is atmospheric CO2 levels are escalating and this is unquestionably causing earth's temperature rise. But ask yourself -- if global temperatures are experiencing the biggest sustained drop in decades, while CO2 levels continue to rise -- how can it be true? Ironically, in spite of being shown false, we must now pray for it. Because a massive study, just released by the Russian Government, contains overwhelming evidence that earth is on the verge of another Ice Age. Based on core samples from Russia's Vostok Station in Antarctica, we now know earth's atmosphere and temperature for the last 420,000 years. This evidence suggests that the 12,000 years of warmth we call the Holocene period is over. Apparently, we're headed into an ice age of about 100,000 years -- give or take. As for CO2 levels, core samples show conclusively they follow the earth's temperature rise, not lead it. It turns out CO2 fluctuations follow the change in sea temperature. As water temperatures rise, oceans release additional dissolved CO2 -- like opening a warm brewsky.

To think, early last year, proponents suggested we spend 45 trillion dollars and give up five million jobs to fix global warming. But there is good news: now that we don't have to spend any of that money, we can give it all to the banks.

Congratulations Mr. President

2009-01-20T11:38:00.000-08:00

Hopefully some of the promises will come true, hopefully some will not. As an Independent-minded soul, I didn't particularly care to see either of you in office, but we live with the choices that are made. You mentioned my particular pet peeve in your speech, and alluded to policy based on it..... Please sir, whatever you do, don't make laws based on "The Spectre of a Warming Planet", because the idea that Global Warming is caused by us (if it is even happening- we've been cooling since 94) is the biggest scam ever pushed upon the sometimes naive folks in this country. You are the first Black President, and you were sworn in at a time when your new home has been experiencing some of the coldest temperatures in history.

Please use your time in office to tackle some of the REAL problems that face our country, not the MADE UP ones. Good luck, and God Bless..

What does it look like when a young guitar hero takes lessons from a legend?

2009-01-19T12:35:00.000-08:00

Pretty cool clip of Dave Navarro, who is a fantastic guitarist in his own right taking a guitar lesson from Mr. Scary himself, Sir George Lynch. They had some interesting things to say about their own knowlege of music Theory, or lack-thereof. I have been trying to grasp theory myself for about 21 years, and it is still a struggle, so it is pretty comforting to see that one of my idols (Lynch not Navarro) isn't necessarily that good at it either....

whats wrong with the world today?

2009-01-15T12:41:00.000-08:00

I couldn't help it, sorry....another Flight of the Concords song..this one slays me..."they're turning kids into slaves just to make cheaper sneakers...but whats the point, cause the sneakers aren't much cheaper..."

God I love the Onion.....

2009-01-15T11:24:00.000-08:00

January 15, 2009

Jake Delhomme Throws Keys To Wrong Valet

CHARLOTTE, NC—Claiming that he felt "rushed," Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme failed to connect on a 5-foot pass to his Capital Grille restaurant valet Sunday, instead sending his car keys into the hands of the wrong parking attendant. "It's frustrating, because I knew as soon as I let go of the keys that the throw was off target," said Delhomme, adding that he should not have been throwing off his back foot. "I don't want to make excuses, but I may have injured my throwing hand on the sharp edge of a key while I was in the pocket. Hopefully, I can watch film from the valet's security camera and correct that next time." Once inside the restaurant, Delhomme fumbled a steaming hot dinner roll, kicked it across the dining room while trying to pick it up, and was blocked into a side table by a busboy, who eventually recovered the baked good.

HUGE project for an unskilled guy like me

2009-01-12T08:27:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I have been trying to find a new hobby to keep my attention on something other than business, and I think I may have found it....I'm going to re-design, re-wire, and restore an electric guitar.
I purchased this guitar for $50 at a pawn shop, and it looks like it has a perfect finish to start with. As a guy with very little experience, I don't want to have to fill cracks and use wood-sealer my first time. This is a trial run, so the simpler the better. I have never heard of the brand-Indiana, but the fretboard feels comfortable for a guitarist like me- I'm kind of a shred player,and I like to play quick, progressive jazz licks, so I like my action low, with very little pressure needed to fret a note. The tremolo on this thing is shot, In fact, it is missing the springs inside, so the strings have pulled the bridge up out of the base, rendering the entire guitar useless as it sits.

The idea is to have the guitar end up looking something like the tiger-striped one at the top right corner of the page- A George Lynch Custom ESP Tiger-1. George is hands-down one of my top three favorite guitarists, and he has been playing this thing since Dokken's "Breaking the Chains" came out circa 1983. I love the design, but I will probably change the color to something a little more modern. I have an instruction guide on how to do this, so lets see how well I handle direction....

A little humor to start the year off right

2009-01-08T12:56:00.000-08:00

I'm not one to push TV, but I was recently introduced to a show called "Flight of the Concords" on HBO.
There isn't much redeeming programming on TV these days, its mostly reality shows and , well....its pretty much all reality shows, so when I was introduced to these guys about 3 weeks ago I was immediately hooked. They are an actual Grammy award-winning comedy team from New Zealand. They are witty, clever, creative and ingenious...I see them as possibly being the next Cheech and Chong...without all of the drugs. Just had to pass it on...one of the funny musical clips they have in each episode....

What is wrong with this picture?

2008-12-31T11:48:00.000-08:00

This is a movie poster of a funny flick from the 70's in which a group of union members hatch a scheme to rob the safe of the Union they work for...In retrospect, not such a bad idea.
At a time when the auto industry has been suffering tremendously from high fuel costs and a credit crunch, a contributing reason for industry failure-the labor union- shows itself to be richer than the companies that employ its members?
United Auto Workers Union Worth $1.5 Billion in 2007

Many may disagree with me, because labor unions try to pass themselves off as being as American as apple pie, and thats fine, because they once were. The fact is that in this day and age, labor unions are responsible for the demise of some of the country's largest and most successful companies.

American Freightways was second in size only to UPS 5 years ago and today? GONE. The competition bought them out because the union wouldn't budge on its salary and benefit demands and was ultimately kicked out as a part of the take-over by Fed-Ex freight.

NW Freight is a local example of the same thing for Coloradans reading this, except that the owner in that instance pulled a John Galt. He said "screw you" to the overreaching union that was telling him how to run his business, closed up shop, liquidated his assets, and disappeared, leaving thousands of employees left to wonder what had happened.

Why do unions do this to American business owners? Its not that their intentions are bad, immoral, or even unnecessary. The problem is that the people who head these organizations are more often that not completely oblivious to how businesses operate, the laws of supply and demand, and capitalism in general. Often they are attorneys who have never written a paycheck or had to make important decisions that could make or break the future of a business they head.

These labor Unions demonize the companies that the members work for so badly, that the members are often more dedicated to the Union than they are to the company that actually employs them and allows them to have a decent life in America. As a former member and steward of a Union shop, I have sat through many a meeting in which the members in attendance are told "this is how the company is trying to screw you this time.." "its us against them...". As a man who has been self-employed since 1999, I can tell you, nothing is further from the truth. Most business owners walk a difficult line between what is best for the employees NOW and what is best for the entire company and its future LONG TERM.

I am in a profession where I have to explain to alot of folks (mostly truck drivers) almost daily how the oil industry actually works. I have to justify fuel surcharges and the question always comes up, "what about the record profits?". "Why are they not giving that money back to the employees, or cut the price of fuel at the pump?" The answer is very simple. First of all, the "record profits" that our "honest" and "balanced" media tells you about are GROSS profits- ie; before all expenses such as drilling, transportation, refining, distribution, labor, and administration. When it is all said and done, the oil companies will see a NET profit of about 4 cents per gallon and with fuel as high as $4.50 over the summer, this is a net profit of less than .01 percent. This is hardly an outrageous or greedy number,(frankly, as a business owner, if I spent 99.99% of my revenue just to operate, I would throw in the towel, because it isn't worth the hassle). The sick fact is that the government at the state and Federal levels confiscate up to ten times that amount in fuel taxes, sales taxes, and miscellaneous environmental taxes imposed on each gallon consumed-Not to mention the tax on the actual NET profit that the oil company receives per quarter. After all of this, the company is ultimately putting .0070 percent of their total revenue in their pockets, and most of that is actually used for exploration, and investment in the company's future.

The terms "Big Oil" and "evil corporate greed", for the most part, are propaganda lines created by Marxist professors of today, Hippies of the 60's, and have been injected into the American dialog via the mainstream media and Hollywood. If you doubt this fact then ask yourself this; when Hollywood remade the movie "The China Syndrome" in 2005, why did they make the conspirators an international corporation instead of a Communist regime, as it was originally written and filmed in the 60's?

Are there companies out there who's executives take outrageous golden parachutes? Absolutely, and in alot of cases it is wrong, in others (such as Lee Iacocca's resurrection of G.M.) it is completely justified. As much as we want economic equality in this country, it is not a RIGHT to have a job, or to have alot of money and be successful,but it is your RIGHT to TRY. As long as nobody hurts you or does anything illegal to stop you during your pursuit of happiness, it is THEIR right to try to beat you in the marketplace.

Competition is what economic freedom is all about, and (circling back to the original point of this posting), competition is exactly what greedy unions destroy. They demand raises when the company isn't raising gross revenue, and they refuse to give any ground back when that same company is losing money, or getting beaten because the competition offers up a similar or higher quality product at a better price. They squelch competition between employees by stressing seniority and grievances, rather than skill, ingenuity, dedication, or motivation, and this in turn produces a mediocre product to market. The only group of laborers who produce lesser-quality products than many modern-day Union workers are those who are forced to labor, such as in China and in parts of South America.

This is not meant to be a dig on the ideals and beliefs or skills of the workers themselves, but a chastising of what the once-necessary American Union has become....a home for failed politicians, lawyers, Marxists, and fiscal leaches. When a Union has more money in its coffers than the companies who produced the money in the first place...BILLIONS more, and workers are still getting laid-off and having to collect unemployment, isn't it time to question why Hollywood doesn't make a movie about the greed and corruption of "Big Labor", and why "60 Minutes" hasn't release an explosive expose about the lavish lifestyle of James Hoffa Jr.?

Fellow travelers are often ignorant of where the road they are taking is leading them...history should be their road map, but they choose to ignore it hoping that the destination will somehow be different than where it lead previous generations. Why do union leaders think that THEIR travel down the road to a worker's army will end up any different than the USSR's or Cuba's?

What will you remember 2008 for?

2008-12-28T20:15:00.000-08:00

For me, it will be this....http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/christopherbooker/3982101/2008-was-the-year-man-made-global-warming-was-disproved.html

If this fallacy is proven for what it is, then this whole horrid year will not have been for nothing...

Bollywood as clueless as Hollywood

2008-12-24T07:34:00.000-08:00

One might think that an attack like Mumbai just suffered, in which as many as 300 died, might tend to focus the minds of Indians on the true definition of terrorism. Not according to Bollywood, India’s film industry, which apparently has more in common with Hollywood than just a clever twist on the name, they also share a common form of mental and political retardation:
On the evening of Nov. 26, the biggest names in Bollywood walked the red carpet at the Bombay premiere of “The President Is Coming,” a comedy about six 20-somethings vying to win the right to shake hands with President Bush.
Among those in attendance at the star-studded premiere Wednesday evening was Bollywood’s “new heartthrob” Imran Khan, who proudly posed for paparazzi donning a T-shirt with Mr. Bush’s face sandwiched between the words “International Terrorist.”
Mr. Khan - a member of India’s Muslim minority - chose not to mock international terrorists who kill in the name of Allah. He and his co-religionists know the deadly results for those who do.
At the precise moment Mr. Khan and hundreds of others making their fortunes in the multibillion-dollar Indian movie business were watching “The President Is Coming,” only a few blocks away, 10 20-something Muslim extremists began a horrific three-day terror spree.
Azam Amir Kasab, the sole surviving terrorist, told his saviors, “I was told to kill to my last breath.” The 21-year-old Pakistani stated that the group’s goal was to kill 5,000 people. Overall, at least 174 people died and more than 300 were injured.
Andrew Breitbart reports that Khan wore this shirt despite the deaths of family members of other members of the Bollywood community. Khan’s shirt may have been the most obvious evidence of cluelessness — and the most crass — but he was hardly alone. They’re busy blaming the police for their ineptitude rather than the terrorists themselves (with some justification) while declaring the terrorists insane and demanding that the same authorities chase after them with butterfly nets rather than guns, which seems wildly contradictory to everyone outside of Bollywood … and Hollywood.
Interestingly, George Bush has a much higher approval rating in India than in the US. Forty-five percent approve of his job performance, while 34% disapprove. I’d bet that number rises in the wake of Mumbai as the people of India have more sense than their film industry and realize who the real terrorists are — and which leader has managed to keep his own nation safe from them since 9/11. Part of that success comes from recognizing who the real terrorists are, and ignoring the pop-culture twits who can only take cheap shots at the safe targets from the sidelines.

Arrogance? .....I'd agree with that assesment on Global warming

2008-12-19T13:22:00.000-08:00

From CNN....not exactly FOX news right?
It gets sweeter and sweeter....http://businessandmedia.org/articles/2008/20081218205953.aspx

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow...

2008-12-18T11:01:00.000-08:00

Need I say more? Its so friggin hot these days...better trade my Ram in for a Smart-Car before we cause the new Ice-Age! (oh I forgot, that was supposed to happen in the 80's)

http://www.lasvegasnow.com/global/story.asp?s=9533950

absurd, absurd,absurd absurd...are we children here?

2008-12-15T10:28:00.000-08:00

To piggy-back a little on my last post on the global warming fiasco, as you all have probably gleaned from my many postings, this particular issue is my pet peeve-and has been for years. You may wonder why I take such a sharp stance on this thing, after all, "whats wrong with protecting the environment?". There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with protecting the environment- there isn't a bigger TRUE environmentalist than me. During the summer 50% of my free time is spent hiking the mountains and climbing 14'ers.I visited 8 alpine lakes last summer-that is about 2 per month. The problem with the whole thing is, that it is based on false science, and their solutions to it such as the Kyoto Protocol are geared toward the destruction of capitalism. This has been proven consistently over the last several years. I was originally a believer in this warming myth(long before Al Gore's movie). For years, I dated an Aerospace engineer(many of you probably remember her, and happily choose to forget her as I have), who's JOB it was to study the atmosphere so that the folks who build satellites, rockets, and planes- can design them so that they won't burn up in the atmosphere, or hit an extreme pressure front and fall out of the sky-and she was firmly of the belief that this whole thing is a crock of shit, and of course she convinced me too. Does the hole in the ozone exist? You bet, and its SUPPOSED to be there to balance atmospheric pressure, but certain political fringe groups would have you believe that is our fault too.This inconvenient truth just isn't true. She even went so far as to call Dr. Hansen (Gore's buddy from NASA) an embarrassment to Rocket Scientists(which she was). Why am I bringing this up again? I just ran across and associated press article that goes quickly to prove my long-argued point. Those who are feeding this lie to the public, are intellectually dishonest, and can't even admit that the fact that the planet is COOLING proves that it isn't WARMING. You can't have it both ways- we are talking the laws of physics here. In fact, this idiot reporter actually says that we have been having record COLD temperatures all over the planet for the last 5 years, BECAUSE the planet is warming....WHAT????? That's like saying that someone got frostbite because of a sunburn, heat stroke from an avalanche, anorexia from eating too much, and GAINED braincells from inhaling paint thinner!??!? Disagree with me or not on whether the subject is true... you have to admit-this guy is retarded....http://apnews.myway.com/article/20081214/D952LKP00.html

If you are going to hold an opinion and act as if it is "accepted fact" as Al Gore says in his inconvenient movie, at least be intellectually honest once your facts and opinion are challenged. I'm not always right, and neither is Al Gore. Now, for the first time in many years the majority of scientists are global warming sceptics, rather than proponents-and I suppose that makes many of the people who have been profiteering from the whole green-craze (there is a company that you actually PAY to help you reduce your "carbon footprint"), and politicians who have been profiting politically,very nervous that they are about to be exposed internationally....I say Name their names, take their jobs away,and make them find other ways to rip-off the public.

Now more Scientists at the U.N. believe Global Warming is a scam than believe it is real!

2008-12-10T14:01:00.000-08:00

The tide is finally turning at the U.N.- lets just hope and pray that they finally fess up to the scam before international economies are turned on their heads,the carbon tax is implemented, and Westerers are forced to walk...I know it sounds drastic, but they have admitted that this is what they are after..
UN Blowback: More Than 650 International Scientists Dissent Over Man-Made Global Warming Claims

Study: Half of warming due to Sun! –Sea Levels Fail to Rise? - Warming Fears in 'Dustbin of History'
read the rest here.... http://epw.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Minority.Blogs&ContentRecord_id=2158072e-802a-23ad-45f0-274616db87e6

A final interview surfaces with one of my long-time heros, Johnny Ramone

2008-12-09T23:36:00.000-08:00

Yes, its political- but is is also interesting. Johnny explains the very complicated dynamic between punk rock of the late 70's, which he was a part of, and the current state of punk rock, and regular rock-n-roll. This is one of the last interviews with a music legend..you may not agree with what he has to say, but it is a very informative interview. As a Libertarian, I don't agree whole-heartedly with what he says, but I think he is in the ball-park, which has become unusual for the modern-day punk Icon... http://www.geocities.com/robertofotografie/jr.html

"I wanna be sedated...."

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)- Honorable Mentions...

2008-12-09T21:29:00.001-08:00

This was a TOUGH countdown, because there were many intangibles, and sooo many great artists who should have had their day in the sun...but I gave you my list. These artists were ones that I struggled with every time I had to decide who to put next on the countdown...I'll cover them quickly and in one posting...

Harem Scarem- Human Nature
If there was a band that was completely ignored by the record execs, it was this band. Easily the greatest band to come from Canada (besides RUSH), HS looked too much like a glam band when they came out, but weren't. I am going to take a little liberty here, and give you a little extra taste of a band that should be HUGE.They are very progressive, and guitarist Pete Lesperance, could easily be one of the top ten..creative, talented, and incredible live..turn it up..... for you guitar enthusiasts out there...SeeSaw...

and the live version of the awesome title track..the harmonies are incredible, especially for a metal band....12 albums since their start, they have NEVER released a bad album...

Hanoi Rocks-two steps from the move
The ORIGINAL glam rockers- around since 1979, and direct products of T-Rex, Mott the Hoople, David Bowie,the Rolling Stones, and Sweet. The band was,by all acounts, destined for super stardom, until tragically-their drummer, Razzle, was killed in a car accident involving Vince Neil of Motley Crue (Vince served prison time for the incident). The rest of the band fell apart..singer Michael Monroe tried to carry on solo, but didn't have any success state-side. They have since reunited, and are touring the entire world, (except the US of course). Known for their live performances, look them up on youtube, and then ask yourselves why our record company execs tossed them aside?

House of Lords- Sahara
easily one of the greatest gathering of musicians in AOR history, House of Lords had moderate success with this album, but was never given the airtime they deserved. An INCREDIBLE sounding live band, House of Lords continues to tour the rest of the world to this day, and seeing them live is an experience not soon forgotten...

Warrant- Dog Eat Dog
The album achieved "gold" status in the United States, but was significantly less successful in a commercial sense than the band's first two albums. It is, nonetheless, regarded by most critics as Warrant's strongest record, and a favorite among many devoted fans, including myself. The tone and style of the album could be said to be the last stage of the glam metal style during the 80s, when they were actually starting to expand their musical abilities, and "get serious". This may have been their greatest recording. Unfortunately, like Winger, Warrant was one of the bands intentionally destroyed for the sake of grunge..

Blue Murder...
What can you say about the guitarist/songwriter responsible for the success of Whitesnake? John Sykes and David Coverdale stopped getting along just before WS hit it big in the states with "Still of the Night". This album shows very clearly, who was the brains and talent (other than vocally) behind Whitesnake. It is unfortunate, that the marketing folks in the record industry chose not to sell him as the SNAKE in Whitesnake, but rather, made him start over at the beginning while David Coverdale rode his incredible songs to international stardom

Morrissey...Viva Hate
Morrissey is the perfect example of an enigma. I have been listening to him for years. I was first turned into a fan when his band The Smiths released "Louder than Bombs" in the 80's. In my opinion, the songwriting is as great as the Beatles, and the lyrics that Morrissey creates are poetic-on the level of Jim Morrison. It is simply incredible to follow a man's thought process, personal reflection and inner turmoil for twenty years because he dictates his life in his songs. You actually feel like you know the man personally, grow up as he grows up, face challenges as he does... and that is what GREAT song writing is all about- it becomes spiritual. One of his earlier songs about shyness personally helped me climb that wall in my own psyche when I was in high school. Is he straight? Is he gay? Is he Liberal? Is he Conservative? No one really knows, including Morrissey himself, which is what makes him one of the most fascinating personalities-and talented musicians of the last 20+ years. If you want to be intellectually challenged, as well as have some great pop/rock to listen to..pick up ANYTHING by Morrissey...coming from a metalhead, this says alot. He is the Ultimate Enigma.

Sublime...40 ounces to freedom...
Love 'em or Hate 'em, Sublime actually created a new style of music- the first since the Punk explosion of the late 70's. They were all decent musicians, but the heart of their genius was within their late, great, singer/songwriter- Bradley Nowell. Brad visited Jamaica with his father in the mid-80's, went to Trenchtown, and the Bob Marley museum, and was forever changed- basically he arrived there a punk-rocker, and left there inspired. Fusing the fast rythm and rebellion of punk with the clean and extremely melodic Reggae of Marley- he combined the two for a masterful creation that has spawned an entire industry since his tragic death in 1996. Sublime's follow-up self-titled album has since gone 5x platinum. This is the one that started it all...

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-12-08T21:31:00.000-08:00

#1 Pretty Boy Floyd...Leather Boys With Electric Toys...

JUST KIDDING......

#1 Winger....PULL

Winger is easily the most maligned metal band in history. Wiped out by Nirvana, ridiculed by Beavis and Butthead, singled out for hostility by Metallica. In part, they deserved it. The pretty boy dancing in the videos, the big hair, Kip's unfortunate turn in Playgirl magazine. "She's Only Seventeen" will haunt them forever.

Forget all of that. Forget that you even know what these guys look like or sound like. This album contains what is arguably 10 of the most well crafted metal songs of the 90's. Incredible musicianship (as always), pop-sensible songwriting, and choruses and riffs so memorable it would make Lennon and McCartney proud.

Stop and consider who these guys are without all the hairband MTV hoopla. Kip Winger - Alice Cooper's bass player. Reb Beach - classically trained virtuoso who stepped up to fill the gigantic shoes of George Lynch in Dokken. Rod Morgenstein - drummer of the 70's prog-fusion masters The Dixie Dregs (not to mention drummer for Jelly Jam with John Myung (Dream Theater) and Ty Tabor (King's X). These are three incredibly accomplished musicians and one of the tightest trios ever assembled. It shows on every tune, as does the hit making magic of the Winger/Beach writing team.

"Pull" was a masterpiece, and because of one man, their mortal enemy Mike Judge (creator of Beavis and Butthead) it remains to this day,just a warm memory in the hearts of metal fans who dream of what metal should have become...but sadly never did. The closest metal would get to reaching this level would be Creed, and eventually Nickleback..not even close to this level of musical mastery. to quote the opening song of the album, Behold....

and here is a live version of the same song "Blind Revolution Mad"...so you know they were not made up of studio special effects and polishing...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIp_EaCUMmI&eurl=http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=2812483588116233415&postID=4600584033012283415&feature=player_embedded

check out the live version of the tough-as-nails song "Junkyard Dog"

and, probably my favorite Winger song..."Who's the One"..keep in mind, this BASS-player is the "pretty boy", "Poseur", "fag" and whatever else they could possibly call him-playing guitar probably better than anyone in modern rock today...this is the level we expected OUR musicians to play at to gain our respect...

There were alot of albums to choose from in this list- it was very hard deciding who would be here, and who would not. I have a list of honorable mentions that I am going to post next-These will be popular, and some not-so popular bands.Unfortunately, the music business has often neglected the deserving, and praised the fools, but over-all, the bands who made the albums that were truly great, know who they are. The bands who made the stinkers who's success was totally dependent upon timing, and whatever chip the current movers-and-shakers in the music industry had on their collective shoulders,also know who they are. This list means absolutely nothing in the grand scheme of things, but at least,many of the great bands of the last 30 years have at least one fan who appreciated them for what they were and still are....great musicians, and not trendy playing pieces in a record executive's game of chance...

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-12-08T18:56:00.000-08:00

#2 Europe
Prisoners in Paradise
Now before you use the words I know you are probably thinking, Europe...EUROPE?!? I have to ask you. Have you ever heard this album? After releasing 4 albums in the 80's, 2 of which were the platinum vehicles that launched the Pop/Rock hits, "Carrie" "Rock the Night", of course the classic "The Final Countdown", and many other moderately popular hits, the boys in Europe decided to get serious again. Prisoners is much more in line with the debut self-titled album, and their sophomore "Wings of Tommorrow", which are the albums that came before the bubblegum rock albums you all know, (and probably love). Prisoners is one of the best written albums that I have in my collection. The sound is perfect, a little less keyboard oriented, and alot more Zeppelin. Prisoners is the album that they wanted to release right after The Final Countdown made them household names, but the record company wouldn't have any part of it. It was too raw, and the lyrical content was too deep (Joey Tempest was, and is sort of a conspiracy theorist. The New world Order is the over-all theme of this album, and the latest album, "Secret Society" is very "Skull and Bones" themed). Prisoners had the perfect balance of serious, thought-provoking songs, like "The Girl From Lebanon" and of course the title track, as well as some fun songs, like the blistering opener "All or Nothing"..heard here...

My favorite song on this album, and perhaps one of my favorite songs of all time, would have to be the title track, "Prisoners in Paradise", and epic sounding ballad...seen and heard here... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXatVNtQlgM.
and an awesome live version...and as you can hear, they are still loved in Europe...and if you notice, the bass player BITES it at about 3:04..and then recovers in front of the camera with an ultra-cool smirk...LOL

Their latest album, "Secret Society" is by far my favorite album they've ever put out. It is as heavy as any American band has on the radio today. Unfortunately, Europe's day under the American sun has passed. This is a tragedy, because their best music came AFTER they went plantinum here...one of their newer songs..

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-12-03T09:53:00.000-08:00

#3 Def Leppard SLANG

As the first album by this band NOT to go platinum in the United States. This is probably due to the fact that during 1996, radio stations weren't playing music from 80's rock bands, so therefore, no one knew it came out, unless they were already fans. This is a shame, especially with this album. SLANG was one of Def Leppard's most innovative, and creative albums. The raw guitar tone reminds me of early punk guitar, and even modern bands such as Rancid. The influence of this album can be heard in many bands of today, such as Fallout Boy, and the All American Rejects. SLANG had a perfect mix of darkly-tinged metal songs, and more upbeat songs like the title track. For anyone looking to find an album that defines why today's music sounds the way it does- look no further than the 12-year-old SLANG.

Here is a video for "All I Want is Everything"><

and the very upbeat, and my personal favorite...the title track- SLANG

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-12-02T19:41:00.000-08:00

#4 Tesla- Bust a Nut..

1994...Grunge has well embedded itself into the national psyche.. and along comes Tesla. Those of us who have been fans all along know that they never made a bad album. We weren't let down in this case either. The powers that be didn't want this album to see the light of day any more than they wanted to see another Poison album do well....especially unfair in relation to this band, who always separated themselves from the pack, and still sold over 16 million albums (to date). "Bust a Nut" was packed with potential hits such as "Need your Lovin'", the very cool "alot to lose", and my personal favorite "mama's fool". In my opinion, this was one of their best albums, but unfortunately it was the most over-looked, purposely, for the most part. The music industry of the early 90's tried its best to kill all things 80's..like a fascist version of David Geffen. What they failed to acknowledge, was the fact that, had we had a choice in the matter, we probably would have listened to Pearl Jam's "VS." as well as "Bust a Nut". Videos from this album are mostly locked, so here is the link to one of my favorite Tesla songs... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxniKXoJtTw ...and the very cool, "rubberband"...Long Live the Kings of real rock and roll-
"No Machines!"..

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-12-01T17:16:00.001-08:00

#5 XYZ..
Hungry
XYZ was a band of nothing but talent,and raw energy- but at the time this album was released, they were already being written off by some as clones of Dokken, but one listen to this amazing album would soon dispell that myth. Hungry starts off with the sleazy and raw "Face down in the Gutter", and ventures a little deeper lyrically with "Off to the Sun", and "The Sun Also Rises in Hell". The only thing Dokken here was the myth, and the fact that Don Dokken produced their first album.
Starting off as the defacto house band of The Whiskey-a-go-go, XYZ soon forged their own distinct sound, and Terry Ilous soon set himself apart as one of the great singers of the era. 1991 saw the end of XYZ's most famous line-up, and as most of the bands of the 80's, they went off quietly into the sun, releasing only one more album 12 years later. One of my favorites- "Face Down in the Gutter"

and of course, the video for the song they are most famous for..."Inside Out"..

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-11-30T16:09:00.000-08:00

#6 Lillian Axe "Love and War"

Lillian Axe was, and is New Orleans' greatest contribution to hard rock music. Guitar god Stevie Blaze had his pick of some of the greatest musicians in the U.S.A., and he assembled this band in 1985. MCA records picked them up in 1987 as an experimental band. They released a self-titled album which had NO airplay, but was a masterpiece. "Love and War" was the album that was supposed to put them over the top, but rumor has it that one of the band members rejected advances by a male record company executive, and they were quickly thrown under the bus..which one, I'm not sure (check out the picture, and see if you can figure it out). They were ultimatley dropped by MCA Records.
Lillian Axe is still around, and quite frankly, my favorite album of theirs (and one of my favorites of all time) is "Poetic Justice", released after "Love and War" and LONG after the MCA incident. "True Believer" SHOULD be up there with "Here I Go Again" and "Wait" from White Lion, but unfortunately, the politics behind the scenes prohibited the song from even being promoted. A few stations such as our local metal station KBPI, gave it moderate airplay, but it never reached the mainstream market. I love every album from this band, but the one that stuck out in my mind as truly groundbreaking was "Love and War", which went out of print six months after it was released. The first and only video from this band was "Show A Little Love"- a great song, but quite frankly, as a regular viewer of "the Headbangers Ball", I never saw...here it is

Another would-be classic is "Dianna",which they still play live to this day, but as I mentioned earlier, they were pretty much black-listed. Here is the album version....
Here is an acoustic version of what SHOULD be a greatest hit..."True Believer"..

Stevie Blaze is one of the greatest guitarists in hard rock, rivaling John Petrucci of Dream Theater in his technical mastery...although this isn't the greatest version of the National Anthem I have have heard, I'm sorry.... this KILLS, Hendrix's version...

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-11-28T16:22:00.000-08:00

#7 Enuff Z Nuff Strength

What can be said about Donnie Vie and Chip "Z" Nuff, except that, they got screwed-they should be legends-the record industry killed the goose with the golden egg, and that goose was Enuff Z Nuff. As two of the most talented songwriters to come out of the 80's, Chip and Donnie crafted music in the Beatles-style of writing. Every song was different,creative, and interesting. Enuff Z Nuff got trapped in the glam look, when in actuality, nothing about them fit the genre. They were unfairly crucified by Beavis and Butthead and thrown in the trash-heap of the 80's, when in actuality, they should have been considered Alternative. Alternative in the sense of experimental songwriting and populist lyrics, not in the sloppy, noisy, grunge movement.
A live version of their underground hit "baby loves you" from Strength..

And a promotional video for Strenght, entitled "Mothers Eyes"

a heart-warming thanksgiving story....Thanksgiving with a Space Alien

2008-11-26T10:02:00.000-08:00

http://www.thepeoplescube.com/red/viewtopic.php?t=980&start=0&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=&sid=50c010f1b46b649c90300f3d87b450a9

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-11-26T00:50:00.000-08:00

#8
Badlands
Right at the end of the 80's glam music heyday, a superstar band was born. Jake E. Lee (who was Ozzy Osbourne's replacement for the late Randy Rhodes) joined forces with legendary singer Ray Gillen (Black Sabbath) and Eric Singer (Kiss) to form Badlands. Everything about this self-titled album screamed platinum record sales- Everything except for the actual number of records it sold. Badlands had a unique, if not nostalgic 70's sound, except ALOT heavier. The former Ozzy shredder laid down some of the rawest, most intense guitar heard in that era, and it was highlighted by one of the strongest rock voices in the world. Ray Gillen was rivaled only by David Coverdale of Whitesnake in terms of the strength, quality, and sheer emotion his voice added to every song. "Dreams in the Dark" was the first single from this album, and had decent rotation on MTV...

Badlands was one of those rare bands that would actually sound BETTER live than on record. The closest band to the Badlands sound was probably Tesla, and just like Tesla, they didn't believe in using alot of special effects, and they had the talent to make it sound great anyhow... check out the very Zeppelin-ish "High Wire"...killer guitar intro, and the late, great Ray Gillen at his best. R.I.P.

Rock 'n' Roll lost one of it's greatest voices when Ray died suddenly in 1993 from AIDS.

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-11-25T16:06:00.001-08:00

#9 KIX "Midnight Dynamite"
This is the "biggest little band in the world". Having been around since the late 70's, Kix is the band that put out perfection and energy, and got nothing back in return. Their follow-up album "Blow My Fuse" did have some success with the song, "don't close your eyes", but "Midnight Dynamite" was the one that should have made them HUGE...Kix was a very AC/DCish band, but with a little more grit and alot more talent. My personal favorite off of this album was "Cold Shower"....

Kix has been, and always will be known for their live performances. Here is a classic KIX song "Loco-Emotion", live circa 1983....

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-11-25T14:59:00.000-08:00

#10
King's X
Gretchen Goes to Nebraska

King's X is a legendary band amongst musicians, but among the general public...King's who? This, their 2nd album, was a defining moment in Rock history. Whether they are given credit or not, King's X was the first alternative rock band to also showcase incredible musicianship. In the Alt/Rock world, you rarely get both. This album has been said to have influenced bands like Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, and Pearl Jam. The latter's singer Eddie Vedder once described the Seattle Sound as "a bunch of bands trying to copy King's X but failing miserably".

It just so happens that one of my favorite songs of all time also happens to be a King's X song. My old band used to cover this song before it was fashionable to love King's X, and I must say, we did a decent job of it. One of the great tragedies in Rock music history is that, although they met with a little success with the "Faith, Hope, and Love" album..one of the greatest 3 piece bands ever, will never achieve the success they deserve.
Check out "Over My Head"

Another memorable tune from this album is "Summerland"..see it here

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-11-25T10:49:00.000-08:00

#11 Giuffria,
Silk and Steel
Giuffria started out as a promotional vehicle for superstar keyboard player Greg Giuffria (of the 70's band "Angel"). "Silk and Steel" was the 2nd album by this band who's only hit up until then was a keyboard-laden song called "A Call to Your Heart". After the "Silk and Steel" tour was over, much of the band, including its namesake Greg Giuffria, formed the incredible "House of Lords"- who's story is for later.But first they left behind this album, which has some of the best-written, catchy, and masterfully performed songs of its day...

Check out "I Must Be Dreaming"...

and their one and only hit "Call to your heart"...

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?)

2008-11-24T17:35:00.000-08:00

#12 Crimson Glory- Strange and Beautiful

Crimson Glory was one of those bands that was just TOO good. Much like Queensryche, they appealed to an advanced musical audience. Strange was their 3rd album, and it was also their most commercially appealing. Combining the progressive metal they were know for, with melodic taste worthy of radio airplay, Strange and Beautiful was one of the most complete metal albums of its generation. This 1991 release was one of the many brilliant albums that was pushed to the side by radio stations in favor of the grunge movement. From Strange and Beautiful, a more commercial song....

and a a little closer to the progressive style they were known for....yes those are metalic masks they are wearing, that was their gimic in the beginning, as if they needed one..

Top 15 albums that should be considered classics(but for some reason aren't?!?!)

2008-11-21T15:15:00.000-08:00

#13 GUN Gallus

They could've been..should've been...how can they not be superstars?
GUN was a Scottish band that was signed to A&M Records in 1989 and released the INCREDIBLE album, "Taking on the World", which included the single, "better days". I would have put this album in place of Gallus, but Gallus was so much tighter and perfect. GUN is like a cross between The Cure,The Cult, and Bon Jovi- A little rock, a little dance, a little Alt/rock...basically whatever they were feeling at the time they wrote the song is what came out. The main reason they couldn't break through, is that, in the day of spandex and hairspray, Gun simply didn't look the part. What a shame, because of the three albums I own from them THERE ISN'T A BAD SONG TO BE HEARD. The perfect band that got perfectly ignored...from Gallus..Don't say its over"

Check out the incredibly written and performed first single- "Better Days"... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlMG2eijWy4
and their one and only "lukewarm" hit in the states ...the cover of Cameo's "word up"

Gun has recently entered the studio for another shot at would-be stardom, and if this album is ANYTHING like the 1st three, it will have been worth suffering through the horrible music of the 90's..

Top 15 albums that should be considered Classics (but for some reason aren't?!?)

2008-11-21T09:18:00.000-08:00

#14 T-Ride

T-Ride was a California-based heavy metal band whose only album shared the same title. Noted for its wildly complex instrument and vocal arrangements, it featured guitar playing by Geoff Tyson, a top student of Joe Satriani. Songs from the album were used in various motion pictures and television shows including "Luxury Cruiser" in the soundtrack of 1992's Encino Man, "Zombies from Hell" in the movie "Captain Ron" and "Bone Down" in an episode of Baywatch, "Forbidden Paradise-part 2". Drummer/producer Eric Valentine went on to became a multi-platinum selling producer, producing acts like Smashmouth, Queens of the Stone Age, Satriani, Third Eye Blind, LostProphets, Good Charlotte, Nickel Creek, John Fogerty and more.
T-Ride hit the radio in 1991 with the single "Backdoor Romeo" which included an electronic dance groove, topped with shredding guitar, and layered vocals. At the time(along with bands like I Mother Earth), they were considered to be the future of hard rock music. Top musicianship, creativity, and fun- all qualities lacking in the very movement that squelched their careers as rock stars. Having released their debut album at the same time as Nirvana's "Nevermind", T-Ride were direct victims of what I like to call "the Curt Cobain Fart"- a tasteless, talentless, soulless, smelly pile of sonic excrement that did nothing to help the evolution of music,the funk of which still lingers over American radio airwaves to this day. That said..check out the creative groove of "Zombies from Hell"...

Top 15 Albums that should be considered Classics (but for some reason aren't?!)

2008-11-20T17:02:00.000-08:00

This next section I'm doing is going to highlight alot of obscure albums. Some of them are from bands you may know, and some of them aren't. For one reason or another, whether its because of the time they were released or because the band itself was too outside the mainstream,they produced an album that should be considered a classic (by popular standards, and not niche-lovers), but isn't. Take it for what it's worth, but alot of would-be legends have been passed over in the last few decades, for no logical reason other than no one bought the album?! Feel free to add your own comments to this- I have pretty outside-the-mainstream tastes, and what I consider great, others say "what planet are you from?" So here you are...

#15 Fishbone, "Give a Monkey a Brain and He'll Swear he's the Center of the Universe"

Fishbone is THE original alternative band,mixing all styles from punk,jazz,rock,and ska since the late 1970's. Their guitarist Kendall Jones was a jack of all trades when it came to musical styles, and this album represents some of the most creative rock music around at the time....check out servitude... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0O1Gmm286E ...unfortunately, the song they are most famous for is a cover of another great band, Sublime...one of my all time favorites.
Fishbone produced an incredible version of the Sublime classic "Date Rape"
That version is not available to put on this site, so here is the live version- ok quality, but you get a good idea of how this band grooves....

At last, some intelligent conversation about America's financial crisis!

2008-11-20T10:20:00.001-08:00

In The Know: Should The Government Stop Dumping Money Into A Giant Hole?

It doesn't matter who America's president is, as long as this is going on...

2008-11-19T08:43:00.000-08:00

Guess who owns and runs the Port of Los Angeles? Not Us!?!?

We are just digging our own graves at this point in History, and if we aren't careful, we will end up being the short-lived Great Experiment in Democracy