...more recent posts
The San Jose Mercury (aka Murky News) printed three letters to the editor which questioned the Bush administration's bombing of Afghanistan. Wierd. Is this a sign that it's safe to be rational in America?
I'm hitting the road to see the Butthole Surfers tonight. Blue moon, Holloween, the Butthole Surfers, Knitting Factory LA -- seems like some kind of harmonic convergence.
Steve, if you want to reach me, my cell is the best choice. 408 892 0826
For the first time in 46 years, Halloween ghosts and goblins can trick-or-treat by the light of a full moon. They won't get another chance until 2020, astronomers said.
Wednesday's full moon will look like an orange jack-o-lantern rising from the east at dusk, said Jack Horkheimer, executive director of the Miami Space Transit Planetarium.
(from LKB)
So, is this like the "credible threat" against airforce one, or is this the other kind? Why can't they just say what it is? I guess because it's something like "Mossad says so."
Anyway, I'm moving the /treehouse to highest alert. So you know what to do. Or not.
And what's up with this? Mushroom clouds north of Kabul? Not good. I've been saying it privately but I'll go on the record here - we are going to drop some nuclear weapons on someone, real soon. Here's the formula:
"Experts" and various other talking head types - including many politicians - sense a chance to gain some points in the American public's mind by hitting Bush for being too timid. McCain, to take one example, is strongly calling for ground troops to take and hold land in Afghanistan. Thomas Freidman is calling for similar action (what's up with this guy - he's starting to scare me.) In any case, Bush is going to be forced to do something to seem strong, but as soon as we send ground troops into Afghanistan they will immediately and soundly get their asses kicked. We have the technology, but I'm guessing that doesn't mean much in the chaos of battle. Being accustomed to battle conditions is the only thing that matters, and these people are clearly accustomed. The US military would have to take 10 years of strong defeats before we'd be toughened up enough to really duke it out with a nothing-to-lose islamic fundamentalist army with decades of experience fighting on their home soil.
So, after we lose a couple Somalia style battles (with our soldiers being tortured, gutted, beheaded, and otherwised dragged through the streets of Kabul) our people, goaded by the McCain types, will demand blood. They will demand a victory that our conventional forces will be unable to deliver. So Bush will have no choice but to use nuclear weapons. Even if it's clear tactically that they won't do much good. They will appease the psychic need for a big hit.
(And two days later the Russians will drop one on Chechnya.)
Hope I'm wrong.
I just checked my old e.mail address and found the same e.mail (to the original circle of five friends and family he started out with) message from Jim Louis about "seeing you next year", so I think he's pissed off at the world not just us or not pissed off at all. But I'm already missing him and Rachael. Good to see Mark kicking in again and Steve from afar. Who's anonymous ?
archived web pages at the internet archive wayback machine
WOTD
Gound (Noun)
Pronunciation: ['gawnd]
Definition 1: The extraneous matter that collects in the corners of the eyes during sleep.
go yankee's
peter pan finds tinkerbell
Forced by the Freedom of Information Act, the EPA now admits that toxic releases at the WTC site are worse than had been reported. I'm not happy about working down there, and can only hope that things are not too bad where I am, about seven blocks away (they claim concentrations are only troublesome at "ground zero"). I certainly don't have much trust in the authorities, but I'm not inclined to wear a respirator. Long term effects are left to the imagination, while the lingering stench of war and death causes depression in the here and now.
Anyone going to a Butthole Surfers show on the west coast? I'm looking around for tickets. SF seems to be sold out, but Portland still looks available.
containment policy
America the Graphical! Click here to view a three page "curated collection" of media banners related to 9/11. Fair warning: pop-ups await you.
Will the real stooge please stand up?
Our pal Steve DiBenedetto is constantly mistaken for actor Evan Handler, who played Larry in the Three Stooges movie.
The New Yorker has a short article on trucking into Manhattan, a long-standing problem that's been brought to a head by recent events. I'm having trouble getting shipments into the Bookstore. As usual, blame it on Robert Moses.
Also a useful piece (not online) by Nicholas Lemann on What Terrorists Want, contrasting military and academic views of terrorism with understandings derived from the study of civil wars. Wide-spread civil war makes sense as USAma's realistic goal, and these wars don't necessarily proceed in the way you might think.
An article in yesterday's (or was it Sunday's?) Buenos Aires Herald addressed the Latin American ambivalence about Bush's call to arms. This jist of it is this: "We're all behind you on this counter-terrorism thing, but to a point. We remember your counter-communism thing and all the havoc your policies wreaked on Latin American nations."
These shades of gray seem to be lost in US media output.
If you're tired of being reamed out for your “wimpy” or “traitorous” left-wing views about the Bush bombing campaign, you might feel better to learn that your ideas are shared by many counterterrorism experts, as discussed in this article by David Corn. The real revelation, for me at least, was learning that Jeff "Skunk" Baxter, erstwhile guitarist for Steely Dan and the Doobie Brothers, now makes his living as a "military-technology expert," flakking high-tech terrorism solutions to the defense industry. I couldn’t help it, as soon as I saw his name I started humming Bodhisattva.(Would you take me by the hand/Can you show me/The shine of your Japan/The sparkle of your china...?)
what does dave do on this night which makes it unlike other nights? he listens to the concert for daves america on the transmission wire while he watches the men hurl things and brandish finely tooled sssslabs of wood on the moving picture box.. he wishes to comment on the proceedings and he calls upon you, those that bow down before him (and sometimes after him) to take heed of his words (and then to unheed them soon after).
dave thinks somethings are better heard and not seen (and sometimes not heard as well) the backstreet boys and melissa ethridge are fine examples dave might mention.
dave thinks despite the majority of his movies adam sandler can still be funny. his performance tonight dave thought was an instant classic. i dont know if rudy was there but the whole crowd hooted down mark green and soon after lovingly crooned 'guiliani' en sotto voce.
it is true what dave says, that lands exist beyond the waters. legend has it that once on The Far Shores he takes on new form as a dark red taurus, the color of blood, and can travel at magnificient speeds. it is a wonder he is not torn apart by the brute forces of nature. but that is what makes him dave.
dave now listens to a cacophony over the transmission wire as the assembled chant as one a sound much like an owl. he wonders why he did not think this concert was worthy of his Presence.
we are reminded of the wonders that dave speaks of from his wonderous travels across the water. here he is reacquainted with "rock blocs" emanating from teenage wastelands from The Early Years from The Time Beffore. also there are men (and sometimes women) who speak only of lewd and procreative acts (my love is vengence) in a frenzy of words and beats that can only hope to enliven and debase the spirit at once. this lesson is not lost on dave during his journey (to only dave know where). he too had trouble reading the signs even though the directions were within reach at all times. were it not for the fortuitousness of the turns that he did make would he not have reached his destination? (if he ever had one. it is said he is rootless, unlike the root which is rooted.)
Will We Not Get Fooled Again?
now the Lipps thats Curled (and now curdled). dave asks if it is ever possible to know which mick was finer at his craft, the one they call Mantle or the one who is Jagger. one thing that dave would say is that despite all the orgies of masculine nakedness that both of the micks endured, he is sure that the Jagged One handled his bat in an entirely different manner than the one who wielded one for the damned yankees of the forbidden zone.
dave reaffirmed on his visit to The Far Shores that watching the visual text he calls Meet The Parents causes The All Unknowing One physical discomfort to the degree where he can no longer endure the psychic sensation and must alter his visual text in order to mitigate his circumstances.. this torture he has termed 'humor' and it is his achilles heel or it would be called as such if dave had any respect for achilles. but seeing as achilles was a hopeless prevaricator and merely an "enhanced" humanoid, dave would not like to associate himself with such a hero.
what does kid rock have to say to the children? dave wants to know. he also wants to know how can people actually refer to another humanoid as p. diddy without losing a thing the humans know as dignity?
dave thinks macy gray did justice to Little Help From My Friends, especially considering she must follow The Jagged ONe.
The Crowd in the Garden does not like the one they call Hillary, even with the one they call Bill looking on. now even the Bill is met with a chilly reception. these people in The Forbidden City must have come from the Rebulica Hinterlands. but the Bill can win over The Crowd like the one they call HIllary never will.
WHo let James Taylor back in? dave becomes nostalgic for a time that never was. the men in uniforms continue to partake of sport, the pursuit has become meaningless without the words.
dave enjoyed the firefighter who taunted The Evil One. the fireman ended his taunt with "and i live in Rockaway and this is my face, bitch!"
The Rudy speaks in his platitudes to His people. The Crowd cheers for Yankee roundballers from The Forbidden Zone. There the Rudy is King for Another Day.
if only Sinatra were alive, it would all be ok. but it isnt.
its the melloncamp with a terrible new jingle. it is thought that dave once lived in The Pink House.
dave waits for the Walrus (what would john think?) and then he will be no more. and we can all (once again) praise dave for that.
Set list:
BLIND MAN
1401 (aka THE COLORED F.B.I. GUY)
HEY
DUM DUM
PITTSBURG TO LEBANON
HUMAN CANNONBALL
ROCKY
GET DOWN
I SAW AN X-RAY OF A GIRL PASSING GAS
CHERUB
SHAME OF LIFE
THEY CAME IN
22 GOING ON 23
DRACULA FROM HOUSTON
PEPPER
JIMI
DUST DEVIL
ENCORES
WHO WAS IN MY ROOM LAST NIGHT
THE SHAH SLEEPS IN LEE HARVEY'S GRAVE
Cool optical illusion (via metafilter)
"If you're all alone when the pretty birds
have flown..." could it be worse as a midi?
homegrown terror
Russian military suspected as source of anthrax
question time
Photoshop humor from abroad. (Someone I know received this by email from a friend in Europe.)
Following that most interesting Moody thread last week. I offer this from TheNew Yorker. TM has located a couple of interesting sites searching Google for "history Israel". Any interested parties will please post comparative histories here.
Support grows for Ellison's national ID card proposal
down in the boondocks
Colonies in space may be only hope, says Hawking
I'm posting this here as well as in /systemnews in case you are smart and don't read that page:
A few problems this afternoon around 2:30. Should be fixed now. This was a temporary situation as I put the "big fix" in place that should (I haven't been able to confirm yet) fix the massive problem with some versions of IE and Opera on the MacOS. Let me know if you notice anything screwy. Thanks.
You were probably unable to post or edit for several minutes and there was some weirdness with some of the photos. Should be fixed now.
For Linda: Oink!
calling all preppies. anyone who wants 30% off this weekend at j. crew can download this page.
looks like i have to cancell my grand idea of going to providence for the first butthole usa show in 5 years which was a place i could get backstage and hook up with the band, nyc more tough--jim just more proff the WPFT is fading:>)!!
I was afraid that the president might order the Butthole Surfers tour canceled. Not for any specific reason, but because it’s just not the sort of thing America needs at the moment...
They always have at least one intolerable song on each album, and this time it’s Jet Fighter. Rendered timely by recent events, it’s a sort of Sky Pilot turned inside out for the new war. If they have any sense of propriety they won’t be playing it live.
Ha!
Jet Fighter
Jet fighters never die...
Mikey was a little boy he loved to watch the clouds
He was born to fly
Mikey joined the navy his father was quite proud
Mother never wanted it that way
He got into the cockpit and rose up in the sky
Set his sights on Beirut then he let his missiles fly
Boom boom
Jet fighters never die
I don’t know but I’ve been told
It’s been said that god is dead
Jet fighters never cry
Jet fighters never die
The general smoked a Cuban blunt hand rolled by the Reds
Then he poured a glass of scotch and tallied up the dead...
The fighter banked into the night then he caught a SAM
He rose up into heaven with Jesus in his hand
Scenery was so beautiful could not believe his eyes
Then he spotted John Wayne he knew he had arrived
Jesus interrupted him he had something to tell
They had to speak with Allah and he sent them both to Hell
Boom boom
Bum rush for return to Irony
Ironic Times
New York anthrax case confirmed
An NBC employee in New York has tested postive for anthrax, network officials have told CNN. Details soon -
"anthrax is not cool anymore. we're changing our name to ebola."
Ode to the Middle of Nowhere
What is it about Central Asia?
From the so-called Aryans, to the Huns and the Hordes, not to mention Timur the Iron Limper; there's always some threat to civilization issuing from this inhospitable zone. Alexander the Great turned back there, along with Kipling's Britain (check the last verse). I can see why people want to leave, but what are they doing there to begin with? History's losers, forced beyond the margins, until they've grown as hard as the country? We're talking about people whose favorite sport involves a bunch of guys on horseback and a goat carcass. People expect the world to end in the Middle East, but I say keep your eye on Central Asia. Maybe we should ask Pynchon about it.
Anyway, the point I'm getting to is that the area provides the perfect name for the current military campaign. This has been a problem, as Operation Infinite Justice was dumped, supposedly in deference to our Moslem friends. Actually, it's got a ring to it, and will likely turn up as the title of a Schwarzenneger movie next year. Enduring Freedom, or whatever it is now, is no good. Clumsy, and whose freedom are we talking about? And forget Muslims, it ought to be objectionable to Christians. Doesn't the Bible teach that the works of man are passing, and only God endures? As far as I know, heaven is not a democracy.
I'm proposing Operation Baluchitherium, named after the largest land mammal ever to walk the earth. Imposing animals have a long tradition as totems and military mascots. I think a giant, extinct, hornless rhinoceros makes a fine symbol for our present deployment. And where's it from? You guessed it; Central Asia.
What is it with that place?
Our office building at 26 Federal Plaza was just evacuated. One of my clerks said he heard banging noises and then saw people running from the building. I looked into the hall and saw the staff of the security office next door running out. No PA announcement, no evidence of standard fire-drill type emergency procedures. It turned out to be noise from some construction equipment. They let us back in after about twenty minutes, and made an announcement that construction noises on the 14th floor may be ongoing. Didn't tell us how to distinguish between construction and terror noises. People are a bit edgy around here.
WWMD: What Would MacGyver Do?
now if only the rest of america didnt have to hear him.......
Random bird story for Alex: American oriole wings its way across Atlantic to Baltimore, Ireland
This item is in Slate's "Today's Papers" feature for 10/9/01. I can't find reference to it elsewhere. Are there any more details? It sounds like a major story if it's true.
"USAT fronts and everybody else stuffs word that yesterday a man broke into the cockpit of a Los Angeles to Chicago airliner. After a struggle during which the plane rocked violently, the man was subdued by passengers and, escorted by Air Force fighters, the aircraft then made a safe landing in Chicago."
From the L.A. Times (link via liberalartsmafia)
Winding up a speech, Bush said America will be tough and resolute to defeat terrorists so future generations can live in peace. "And there is no doubt in my mind, not one doubt in my mind, that we will fail," the president said.Can't they get some animatronics or something so this guy doesn't have to speak for himself in public?
John Lilly died 09-30-01. Here's the Times obit.:
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/10/07/obituaries/07LILL.html?searchpv=nytToday
we have begun bombing and i dont really know what we can do to have peace on earth, or what is best to do in this situation (i am just a wine dealer) but i fear that life will never be the same again, of course i am not knowledgable enough to agree with all of this but think he makes some good points (originally posted by dratfink)....
this probably seemed like a better idea a month ago.
all your opinions belong to us
I recieved this email today. Jim, what's the scoop on this supposed virus which attacks mac's as well as pc's?
Very Urgent!!!!!!!
PASS THIS ON TO ANYONE YOU HAVE AN E-MAIL ADDRESS FOR.
If you receive an email titled:
"It Takes Guts to Say Jesus"
DO NOT OPEN IT.
It will erase everything on your hard drive. This information was announced yesterday morning from ; AOL states that this is a very dangerous virus, much worse than "Melissa," and that there is NO Remedy for it at this time.
Some very sick individual has succeeded in using the reformat function from Norton Utilities causing it to completely erase all documents on the hard drive. It has been designed to work with Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer. It destroys Macintosh and IBM compatible computers. This is a
new, very malicious virus and not many people know about it. Pass this warning along to EVERYONE in your address book ! and please share it with all your online friends ASAP so that this threat maybe stopped. Please practice cautionary measures and tell anyone that may have access to your computer.
Forward this warning to everyone that you know that might access the Internet.
Joyce L. Bober
IBM Information Systems Pittsburgh Mailing Systems
412 - 922-8744
guess i just inadvertently got as close to the president as i ever will. if youre keeping track that would be approximately 10 feet. his motorcade drove across grand st and then turned north on the bowery. as everyone was forced behind the baracades and blockaded onto the sidewalk, i wasnt going anywhere so i stood and watched like everyone else who was stuck between bowery and christie and beyond. as the motorcade made its way down the block, i was thinking it must have been a pretty odd sight from within the heavily armored oversized limo that carried the dignitaries to see the street lined four deep with asian americans many with flags outstretched. but maybe thats the type of scene you become immune to if you are often stumping across the highways/byways of america. but i would think now with the events at hand its hyperrealized.
i cant actually say i saw the shrub . the windows were semitranslucent and the only person i could make out was an older gentleman who wore large framed glasses as he waved to the onlookers. he looked like an investment banker or an ambassador -- old rich and familiar with the trappings of power.
the last police escort finally moved through and eventually all the cruisers that were blocking the intersections disengaged and finally the barricades were released and everyone sputtered on their way.
I ran an estate sale for my boss over the weekend. I now have a 70's style beigh leather sectional sofa (cheezy yet cool) , a set of 60's italian stainless steel pots and pans with cool handels (industrial chic) a new HP PC "pavilion" (super hotrod) and a 1972 pinball machine "wild lIfe" cartoon tarzan and jane motif (one busted rubberband, otherwise fully opperational) and a small bit of pay. Pinball competition anyone ?
now theyve really gone too far. strom thurmond just collapsed on the senate floor. (damn those terrorists!) can jesse helms be far behind?
my email and internet explorer are dead or so it seems, i opened an attachement from hungary and got the goo lash virus, jim what can we do if any thing, nortan antivirus zip disked in by linda has found 38 infected programs and 3 common virus's but could delete only 4 programs and one virus the 34 on my restore part of C disk cant be helped per nortan and i cant iE, OE but can use the rest of the computer......OUCH
wasnt someone yacking about david halberstam at aka? heres an interview with salon regarding the current crisis and the attitudes that helped it along.
i was just watching a little of the cbs sunday morning show. the human muppet aka senator lieberman was droning on about something. then they cut to the jingoistic insert before going to a commercial. as the music swells, bush gazes over a sea flag waving admirers. it looks like they are of the military persuasion. and i got nauseous and muted the sound while channeling i cant close my eyes and make it go away. and i thought, what song is that from? the subconscious radio station is always on.