Myth dispelled: Shoe size, penis size not linked [Reuters Health eLine]

Boy, I sure am glad they cleared this up.

Say What? [] 10:29:44 PM  Permalink  

My past life as a dog

For 12 years, Buddhist nun Tenzin Palmo meditated alone in a tiny cave in Tibet. Now she wants to elevate the status of other Buddhist women, believed to be reincarnated as females as punishment for past mistakes. (Salon)

this was exactly the perspective i needed at this time.

Say What? [] 1:31:19 PM  Permalink  

Coming on Christmas Day: `Regime Change.'

HIS TELEGRAPHED war on Iraq belongs on a cineplex trailer. ''An obedient son, mopping the floor for his father (1991 clip of fleeing remnants of the Republican Guard) ... a defense secretary trying to annihilate the 1960s (clip of Kent State) ... a secretary of state frozen out in a Cabinet Cold War (clip of a black man being passed by taxi cabs) ... a vice president who has not been seen since the Florida recount (clip of an empty chair) ... a security adviser who could scare Cleopatra Jones out of her Afro (blaxploitation clip of Jones gunning down criminals). (Boston Globe)

Thanks to Evelyn Rosenthal in Somerville, Mass for the link. I think, I hope, that the Vietnam analogy is taken too far.  But we need as much gallows humor as we can get - so bring it on.

Say What? [] 12:29:50 PM  Permalink  

Soul singer White needs kidney transplant

 

 "Barry White, the soul singer, may need a kidney transplant, his record label said yesterday."

Oh baby...

Say What? [] 2:37:57 PM  Permalink  

Dog Bites Dog

 

Marc Gold sent me this link from the NY Times Magazine. Scary stuff, but appropriate, since we've been so busy trying to get this ongoing dog problem addressed. I wrote the text below for the October neighborhood council newsletter. It'll go to 5,000 homes.

 

----------------------------

It's been more than a year since 10-year-old Shawn Jones was horribly disfigured and almost killed by three pit bulls in Richmond.  He'll endure many years of physical and emotional rehab. At the time, public outcry was deafening and media coverage was extensive.  The City Council and the mayor pledged stricter laws and increased funding for those in charge of upholding them. 

 

But vicious dogs still remain a serious problem in Richmond, and not just anywhere. I'm talking about in your backyard, our community, North & East. I know this first hand. One evening in late July, while my wife was taking her for a walk, our dog was brutally attacked by a pit bull that was off leash.  There was no owner in sight.  Several courageous neighbors responded to my wife's screams and saved our dog's life. This experience was bad enough of a shock.  The second shock occurred  when Animal Control, after taking an hour to show up, gave the dog directly back to its owner.

 

North and East Richmond is a great place to live.  People take pride in ownership.  Home values have increased greatly in the last few years.  So it's a real shame to discover that our neighborhood is under siege by dangerous dogs and their irresponsible owners.

 

In response to this recent incident, dozens of concerned citizens have joined together to form the North and East Animal Association (NEAA). Several people in this group have had a pet attacked or killed by dogs belonging to the same owner.  A search of Animal Control records by our group has revealed that this has been going on in the North & East for at least five years. Incredible as it seems, the authorities have done virtually nothing about it.

 

The NEAA is working closely with local law enforcement to change that.  We have several goals.  If the laws that are currently on the books were enforced, it would be a good start.  Eventually, older animal laws that do not adequately address today's needs have to be changed and new laws will have to be created.

 

If you'd like to find out more about what we're doing, and how you can help protect our children, our pets, and our neighbors from future attacks, call Michael or Ann at 232-9020 or send email to mbritten2@attbi.com or ann@eecs.berkeley.edu.

Say What? [] 12:16:11 PM  Permalink  

Currently in my cd player:

Beth Orton

* Daybreaker (2002)
* Trailer Park ('97)
* Central Reservation ('99)

I've been wanting to tell you about this music for a long time, but it's so elusive, so dreamlike, I just haven't found the words.  When I'm in pain (of whatever variety) - I often put on some Orton and ride the waves 'til I wash up, intoxicated, on the far shore. 

Mark Knopfler

* The Ragpicker's Dream - this won't be released until October 1st, but I've been listening to it constantly for over a week (if I tell you, I'll have to kill you).  This is only his third album since the dissolution of Dire Straits in the early nineties.  It is by far his best.  Highly recommended.

Steve Earle, Jerusalem
Solomon Burke, Don't Give Up on Me
Dixie Chicks, Home
Bruce Springsteen, The Rising
The Blind Boys of Alabama, Higher Ground
Peter Wolf, Sleepless

Say What? [] 11:06:11 PM  Permalink  

California Governor signs embryonic stem cell bill

"We are going to be the only state in the nation to say it is appropriate for the state to embark on stem cell research and not limit it to adult stem cells," the Bill's author, state Senator Deborah Ortiz told a news conference on Sunday. (express india)

I don't know yet whether or not Gray Davis has said he'll sigin this.  As the November election draws near, you have to remember that, aside from the Bay Area, California is a very conservative state.

If it is passed and signed, it's only a matter of time before the Feds do something to undermine it.  If they wont let somebody with terminal cancer smoke a joint to ease their pain, they sure as hell aren't going to go for this.  If they did, it would open up all kinds of doors, including one that leads to assisted suicide in Oregon.

Say What? [] 12:50:45 PM  Permalink  

New Google News [bOing bOing]

excellent!

Say What? [] 11:43:20 AM  Permalink  

 Janis Ian interviewed on Slashdot [bOing bOing]

As mentioned here previously, Ms. Ian possesses uncommon wisdom.

Say What? [] 11:42:47 AM  Permalink  

"That Thin, That Wild Mercury Sound....

...it's metallic and bright gold with whatever that conjures up. "

Someone has transcribed and posted the 1978 Dylan Interview in Playboy Magazine, in which Bob used that wonderful phrase, speaking with Ron Rosenbaum. It's a pretty remarkable interview, and a couple years ago Rosenbaum wrote a nice memoir of doing the interview. The two go together.

In Rosenbaum's memoir, he mentions something often ignored, that Bob elaborated some on the sound he heard:

 That ethereal twilight light, you know. It's the sound of the street with the sunrays, the sun shining down at a particular time, on a particular type of building. A particular type of people walking on a particular type of street. It's an outdoor sound that drifts even into open windows that you can hear. The sound of bells and distant railroad trains and arguments in apartments and the clinking of silverware and knives and forks and beating with leather straps. It's all-it's all there

Alas, a lot of the interview is about Renaldo & Clara, and try as I might, I just can't reconcile myself to this disaster. Still Rosenbaum does get some more interesting stuff out of Dylan:

 How many singers feel the same way ten years later that they felt when they wrote tile song? Wait till it gets to be 20 years, you know? Now, there's a certain amount of act that you can put on, you know, you can get through on it, but there's got to be something to it that is real-not just for the moment. And a lot of my songs don't work. I wrote a lot of them just by gut-because my gut told me to write them-and they usually don't work so good as the years go on. A lot of them do work. With those, there's some truth about every one of them. And I don't think I'd be singing if I weren't writing, you know. I would have no reason or purpose to be out there singing. I mean, I don't consider myself . . . the life of the party. [Laughs]

The stuff about the singing, now nearly 25 years  and, what, 1500+ concerts, since that interview is fascianting. But that "life of the party" line is rich.

[Steve's No Direction Home Page]

I can't believe I've never read, or more likely can't recall, the original interview.

Say What? [] 7:28:20 PM  Permalink  

Attack of the Chickenshits

xtry, extry: "Nashville Ex-Junkie Makes Nice to Traitor, Is Picked On by Nashville Talk Show Host!" That's what I call dog bites man. And also what I call great hype. I don't think Steve Earle wrote "John Walker's Blues" as a publicity stunt. I think he wrote it as a politically inclined guy with an idea for a song. But that doesn't mean he minds whatever attention he gets out of it. He's an artist, folks. Artists are supposed to get our attention.

I've been listening to an advance copy of the cd for the last two weeks.  It's a really great  album and I think that, if you've enjoyed Earle's work in the past, it would be a cryin' shame to miss it because of one song. 

Especially a song that you haven't heard.  That scenario makes me think of Southern fried fundamental Christians walking a picket line in front of a movie theater showing "The Last Temptation of Christ." None of them have seen it.  None of them ever will.  It was probably a lot of the same people who burned Beatles records when John Lennon said that dumb thing about them being more popular than Christ. How about when Ed Sullivan refused to let Dylan play "Talking John Birch Paranoid Blues" because it was libelous just to utter those words? 

I know, I know - none of this stuff involved the murder of 3,000 innocent Americans.  But until you've actually listened to the song, you just won't get it that Earle is not sticking up for the creep.  He just isn't.

Scaremongers notwithstanding, Earle hardly glorifies Lindh, and he also doesn't compare him to Jesus—merely illustrates the poor sap's mania by having him compare himself to Jesus (who is, after all, one of Islam's prophets). In fact, the song is so measured and literary I find it hard to believe the brouhaha will reach Wal-Mart when the album is released September 24.

Anyway, if I were Robert Christgau, I would be really pissed off that the Village Voice didn't see to it that a copy editor got his hands on this piece before it went to press.  Be that as it may, this is very thoughtful.  And as far as I can see, thoughtful is exactly what we need a lot more of these days.

What has been the chief domestic casualty of this war on terrorism that keeps changing its spots? The Bill of Rights as exemplified by political dissent, most believe. How to fight back? Exercise the right to dissent. That's the joy of this record, which, with a crucial push from drummer Rigby, gives off a sense of freedom and defiance that's rock and roll, not protest music.

Say What? [] 11:46:26 AM  Permalink  

Amina Lawal Must Not Face Death by Stoning

oh man, what a world.  I was just about to switch gears and write some music stuff when, thanks to the Merton Amnesty Group, this was in my face.  I was gonna include a picture but then I started feeling like Sally Struthers or something.  What the hell -- go ahead, sign the fucking thing and have a nice day.

Say What? [] 11:16:32 AM  Permalink  

Bush Planned Iraq 'Regime Change' Before Becoming President

A SECRET blueprint for US global domination reveals that President Bush and his cabinet were planning a premeditated attack on Iraq to secure 'regime change' even before he took power in January 2001.

This is too creepy. It gives me the same kind of sick feeling I get whenever Shrub is on TV.  If you're suspicious about the Goings-on around here, I'd definitely give this a read. (Common Dreams) via [Robot Wisdom]

Say What? [] 12:39:56 PM  Permalink  

When I was young it was more important to play more games and  laugh alot louder

when I was young 

Pete Macchia, 1972

Say What? [] 12:44:55 AM  Permalink  

Paying People to Work, but Not Enough to Live. The national problem of grossly underpaid workers is at the heart of the struggle of the health-care workers' union in New York City. By Bob Herbert. [New York Times: Opinion]

I've visited this issue recently. Is it any more of an outrage than anything else? Yes, I think so, and it bears repeating.

Say What? [] 11:04:07 PM  Permalink  

Shoju sat all night in the graveyard
among wolves who sniffed his Adam's apple.
First light moving in the air
he arose, peed, and ate breakfast.

Jim Harrison

Craig's mother died a week ago today.  We just had to a heart to heart conversation about it.  It's never easy.  Don't listen to well meaning people who say  "you should be over it by now."  They don't get it. It's okay. My friend and teacher Frank calls it Everyday grief.

This reminds me, I've been meaning to tell you that Erma Franklin died. Sock it to me and R.I.P.

Say What? [] 5:41:00 PM  Permalink  

Yes, okay, we're all horrified that the U.S. State Department may be helping oil companies cover up terrorist acts... [Memepool]

It's even worse than you think..............

Say What? [] 1:39:12 PM  Permalink  

More Proof, If Needed, That Funk Still Works. What worked in the 1950's, 1960's and 1970's is good enough for Soulive, which set a packed house dancing at the Mercury Lounge on Thursday night. By Jon Pareles. [New York Times: Arts]

This is the shit. I may have started guitar with a synthesis of "On Top Of Old Smokey", "Kathy's Clown", and "Rebel Rouser", but after everything under the sun in between, I'm proud to say that I ended my performing carreer with "Green Onions" and "Back At The Chicken Shack." 

Say What? [] 12:05:54 PM  Permalink  

William Phillips, Co-Founder and Soul of Partisan Review, Dies at 94. William Phillips was the co-founder and longtime editor of Partisan Review, the forum for the brilliant and contentious stable of writers known as the New York Intellectuals. By Joseph Berger. [New York Times: Arts]
Say What? [] 11:49:23 AM  Permalink  

Diagnosis reawakens Zevon's philosophy

 "Well I went to the doctor / I was feelin' kinda rough / Let me break it to ya son / Your shit's fucked up."   from 2000's absolutely brilliant CD, Life'll Kill Ya. I'm so sorry, man. Your attitude is uplifting.

Say What? [] 10:12:03 AM  Permalink  

The Invisible Women

They have names like Peggy Turner and Angela Muniz and Elena Susana. They are the invisible women who fan out across the city each day, mostly traveling by subway, to go into people's homes and do the grunt work of caring for those who are sick or infirm.

My "attendant", as they are known around here, is easily one of the finest and most remarkable  people I have ever met in my life.  Her name is Evelyn Johnson, and she comes from a family of ten children in rural Alabama. She's family, in the best sense of that word, and I don't know how we could live without her.

There are thousands of home health aides in New York City and they work hard, taking on the tasks that most people, even close relatives, shun. "We bathe the clients, and feed them and dress them and give them their medication," said Mary Toni, an aide who lives in the South Bronx. "We run errands and take them to their doctors' appointments. Whatever is necessary, that's what we do."

Let's see, what else?  Well, in my case you can include various forms of grooming, intimate skilled nursing help with moving my bowels and bladder because these things don't work on their own any more.  Folding clothes, walking the dog, singing gospel (Evelyn goes to church every night of the week and is the president of her choir).   And most importantly of all, she talks mess to me.  We laugh together. Plus, she's a great friend to Ann.  They hang out together and talk heart to heart.

Most are paid a pathetic $6 or $7 an hour. Some are paid less. Nearly all of the workers are women, and most of them receive no health care, no sick pay, and get no vacation.

For that kind of money around here you probably are going to end up with someone right out of  prison.  Seriously, someone of Evelyn's caliber, and there are very few, simply has to be taken care of.  We've paid people more who can do a lot less.  So thanks to those friends who are able to help us out financially, Evelyn gets $17 an hour, paid vacations, and through another client's business, health insurance.

Say What? [] 12:35:34 PM  Permalink  

It's 1 PM on 9/11.  So far I've managed to stay away from TV and radio (including Web radio). I imagine I'll look in, starting with the evening news, especially The News Hour with Jim Lehrer and Charlie Rose. 

I'm still reading of course.  Slate has good stuff.  For a more progressive point of view, try Counter Punch.  Thomas Friedman in the New York Times is wonderful, as always.  I ordered his latest book which should be here anytime.

Mostly though, I'm listening to music.  Big surprise, huh? Primarily the crossover gospel of The Blind Boys of Alabama.  Last year, "Spirit of The Century" was a strong contender for Album Of The Year.  Just a few weeks ago they came out with "Higher Ground." It's awesome. I can not recommended it highly enough. 

 Peace.

Say What? [] 1:37:45 PM  Permalink  

One nation under a groove (Salon)

Let's face it, our national anthem blows. And "God Bless America" isn't working either. Here's a modest proposal: Curtis Mayfield's "Don't Worry (If There's a Hell Below We're All Going To Go)."

Right on brother! It gets my vote.

Say What? [] 10:58:30 PM  Permalink  

Things We Lost in the Fire

While the Ruins of the World Trade Center Smoldered, the Bush Administration Launched an Assault on the Constitution (Village Voice)

Bitter political truth in no way dimishes sweet compassion for those who grieve.

Say What? [] 5:18:59 PM  Permalink  

Say What? [] 1:21:20 PM  Permalink  

The City and the Country. Principles that are a daily reality in New York a belief in the dignity of the individual, a tolerance of differences &151; are the bedrock creed of American life. By Paul Auster. [New York Times: Opinion]

As the day of almost unimaginable sentimentality and hype quickly approaches, New York auther Paul Auster has written a beautifully thoughtful piece about the event and its meaning.

Say What? [] 1:10:26 PM  Permalink  

Al-Qaeda 'plotted nuclear attacks'. Two alleged masterminds of the 11 September attacks tell an Arab journalist they had initially planned to fly jets into nuclear plants. [BBC News | WORLD]

This is chilling. I suppose we'll know soon enough if it's true.  I suspect it is.

Say What? [] 10:23:51 AM  Permalink  

An Uncertain Trumpet. Most of us had expected the country to be in a different place by now. The fact that it is not can be attributed largely to President Bush's failure to leverage the political and moral capital Sept. 11 provided. [New York Times: Opinion]

Read it and weep.

Say What? [] 12:24:18 AM  Permalink  

Laugh-Out-Loud Computer Humor [Dan Gillmor's eJournal]
Say What? [] 12:30:06 PM  Permalink  

Apologies for my brief absence.  We've had visitors from Boston for the last week or so (Evelyn Rosenthal and her friend Jim), we've been extremely busy with duties around our new neighborhood dog association, I've had my usual share of endless doctor appointments, it was Labor Day, and on and on - plus, I just needed a break.

I've been working on some things behind the scenes: an updated Wishlist, the creation of a monthly archives page (see top of left column of links), various small User Interface tweaks, and a lot of thinking about just what I want this thing to become. I mean besides the collection of tidbits it currently is.

Say What? [] 6:37:36 PM  Permalink  

The Strut Is Carved in Stones. The Rolling Stones started their Licks tour at the Fleet Center in Boston with a set that kept coming back to manifestoes of rock and raunch. By Jon Pareles. [New York Times: Arts]

Hmm - I'm happy to admit that I apparently got it wrong. Sounds like a great show, Craig. I wanna hear all about it.

Say What? [] 11:48:04 PM  Permalink  

Genes, virus implicated in multiple sclerosis [Reuters Health eLine]
Say What? [] 2:00:21 PM  Permalink  

Get your news here
John Robb posted this incredibly useful list (for users of Radio Userland) of news feeds from professional news organizations that you can subscribe to in one click with Radio. [Scott Rosenberg's Links & Comment]

Hey Steve, don't miss this.

Say What? [] 1:58:01 PM  Permalink  

Dave Marsh on The Rising.

Excellent Dave Marsh review of Springsteen's The Rising.

 Fans commonly explain that The Rising's topic is not 9/11 but 9/12. But that's not really it, either. The 9/11 attacks and fragments of their aftermath provide Springsteen a setting but The Rising isn't trying to be Guernica or even Born in the U.S.A. The Rising's really returns Springsteen to one of his central preoccupations, the war about choosing life or death that rages in his everyman.

Indeed. One of Springsteen's best lines is "it ain't no sin to be glad you're alive," and the concerts are always about making the choice for life.

 Does Springsteen understand what it really means to encourage such people to "rise up"? It'll take an album good enough to follow in this one's footsteps to find out. Meantime, we are left, as always at the end of a gospel song, with some choices to make for ourselves.

[Steve's No Direction Home Page]
Say What? [] 10:42:08 AM  Permalink  

Our Crushing Personal Debt  David S. Broder (Washington Post)

After the parade has passed and the last political speech has drifted away on the black wind and the last hotdog has been eaten and the last special on appliances  is over...   it's hard times.

Say What? [] 10:38:45 AM  Permalink  

Rockin' to the Stones? Yeah, in Chairs. As the Rolling Stones launch their culturally irrelevant North American tour on Tuesday, a look back to an earlier Stones concert, yet also irrelevant, in 1989. By Neal Pollack. [New York Times: Arts]

I'm so glad that I saw the Stones when I did.  I was about 15 years old ('65 or '66) and they were playing in the tiny ballroom on Steel Pier in Atlantic City.  This is when Brian Jones was still alive and probably around the time that "Aftermath" first came out.  I say so because I remember them doing "Paint It Black." They were great! 

Then I saw them again at the infamous Altamont concert,  And in spite of everything horrible that happened that day, they were still great. I loved the way Mick Taylor and Kieth worked together. So I've never seen them since Ron Wood joined the band or Bill Wyman left (the only smart one?), but from what I've heard and seein, I'm not sorry.

Tofu and Zazen by the Sea. At the Green Gulch Farm Zen Center in Marin County, overnight guests can join in meditation sessions and do chores or not. By Ted Rose. [New York Times: Arts]

A beautiful place.

Two Faces of a Pianist Who Had Many. On Tuesday, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Glenn Gould's birth, a three-disc set of remastered recordings of the 1955 and 1981 recordings of Bach's "Goldberg" variations will be released. By Anthony Tommasini. [New York Times: Arts]

Say What? [] 12:29:10 AM  Permalink