Here's what I learned in ten years of writing songs in Nashville. When somebody says they have something they want to play for you, and it's obvious that time, money and emotion have been invested in the project, even if the tune is infested with monkey pox, it does no harm to praise the result. Usually, a small group of cynical guys will listen without making eye contact, and when the song is over, they'll say, "Nothin' wrong with that," giving the positive affirmation that the interested party seeks without really venturing an opinion. So, when Mitt Romney is asked what he thinks of Olympic preparedness while in London on the eve of the games, is it so hard to say, "Everything looks great and I'm sure we'll have a swell time," instead of launching into a six-tiered critique of British security? Romney's one of those guys that if you show him a new watch that you bought, he'll say, "You should have talked to me first." The mayor of London used Willard's witless gaffe as a rallying cry in front of 60,000 people in Hyde Park. The British press excoriated Romney as "worse than Palin," while tabloid headlines screamed "Mitt the Twit." Years ago during one of Dubya's hilarious trips abroad, when he gave an impromptu neck massage to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, it only creeped her out. Romney succeeded in offending an entire nation with what Winston Churchill once referred to as "arrogant pedantry." So much for "improving our unique Anglo Saxon relationship." Just move along folks-- no "Ich bin ein Berliner" here.The bad press did not prevent Romney from staging his fundraiser with the heads of all the European banks currently embroiled in the LIBOR scandal, but that's another topic. In a televised press interview, Mitt wore his frozen-smile face while deflecting questions about his dressage horse participating in the Olympics to his wife, Anne. Mitt claimed he wasn't even going to watch the event and didn't know what day it was scheduled. Imagine the number of handlers and groomsmen required to prepare and ship a horse overseas for an international competition. You can't say Romney's not a job creator, at least in the horse arena. But if he's paying the tab, don't tell me he won't find a television somewhere to see how splendidly his pony dances. The most exciting horse-related news for Memphians is that Congressman Steve Cohen's brother, Martin, has invented a new type of stirrup that is being used in the Olympics by the U.S. Riding Team. I suppose I'm allowed to promote Cohen Stirrups if everybody attached to these games is already plugging something. The only controversy I can imagine is if some Cohen stirrups wind up on a Romney horse.
Michelle Obama headed up the official American delegation, although she had to share camera time with the Romney's while waving to the entering athletes in preparation for the opening ceremonies, which were very light-hearted when compared with China's martial approach. There was a lot of drumming, but the British drummers were looser and more relaxed than the sea of synchronized drummers the Chinese used four years ago. That's because the jolly Brits were all volunteers in the production, while the Chinese conscripted young boys from their families and forced them into Olympic drum schools, nailed their feet to the floor and beat them with bamboo rods until they got it perfect. But, the British know how to do whimsy and the Queen showed such a marvelous sense of humor, she nearly smiled. In director Danny Boyle's opening film, when Daniel Craig appeared at Buckingham Palace as James Bond, I suppose I wasn't the only one to ask, "Did Sean Connery die?" The only other request that I might have had for the Royals is, would it be too much to ask Prince Harry to bring Pippa?
The journey through four decades of British music was great to a point, but I would like to take this opportunity to apologise, on behalf of the so-called "Baby Boomers," for my generation's obsession with the song, "Hey Jude." Even in Beatles history, this one was late in the game when the band was breaking up and everyone believed Paul had written an anthem that would last. Except, after the first 10,000 listenings I began to hate the freaking song and would be horrified if young listeners judged the Beatles' musical catalog by this stinker. Let's face it, they had a seventy year old entertainer singing a forty year old song, and when the "Na na nas" kicked in, the cameras showed a younger generation that knew not Paul McCartney. If they wanted to dust off the Beatles, they should have gotten Ringo's ass up there and had them play some Beatles songs. And I hate to be the one to break it to you, but Sir Paul's voice is shot. The network anchors blamed it on "emotion," but this man played a Command Performance for the Queen when he was barely 21. Why would one more sporting event make him emotional? Perhaps they should have concluded with something a little more contemporary, like the Pet Shop Boys, or Wham!
Meanwhile, the Romney circus had moved on to Israel where the campaign had arranged a major fundraiser starring the Vegas Zionist, Sheldon Adelson. Only it was the holiday of Tisha B'av, when Jews mourn the destruction of the first two temples and fast for the night, so the Romney staff quickly arranged a 50K per plate fundraising breakfast where no press was allowed. I'm certain the pot was sweetened by the remarks of Romney advisor Dan Senor, the partisan hack hired by the Bush government to give press conferences from Iraq. Senor hinted that a Romney presidency would give tacit approval for an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, creating another international flap. In an interview with ABC News, Romney's face froze into a twisted contortion resembling a grin and said that everything must be done to prevent Iran from becoming a "nuclear capability state." Well, every nation on earth is a "nuclear capability state." I tremble at the thought of Romney invading Poland, his next stop. With his distaste for trade unions, he might insult Lech Walesa.
The travelling Bush 2.0 caravan couldn't sour the celebration of the London games, however, so after a glorious public celebration of socialized medicine, the competition finally began. We settled in only to see Michael Phelps' fall from glory. Let that be a lesson to you kids not to stay too long on the bong. It makes your legs rubbery. While new American stars were being born, I've already become addicted to women's weightlifting. It's the single opportunity for an announcer to say, "her snatch looked better than her clean and jerk," and not get censored. With Mitt Romney gone until the equestrian events begin, the competition can proceed without sniping from the Savior of Salt Lake City. After the Fleet Street press scolding he received, I'd stay clear of the dressage myself. Want to know why the British media reacted so furiously over Romney's seemingly inane pre-Olympic comments? Because he displayed bad manners, and in England, manners count. From my admittedly limited interactions, the British people are simply nicer than they are here. That's why they call it civilization.
30 comments:
Romney stated that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel. Even the Israeli's do not think so and certanly the Palestinians don't. And by stating the US would stand right with the Israelis in their attack on Iran, what he does not understand that should that be the case, Russia would come to Iran's aid and there you have it, a Repulican Retard WWIII. Very possible.
Speaking of Polish gaffes, Obama announced the cancellation of the Missile Shield based in Poland, on September 17th, 2009, the 70th anniversary of of the Russian & German invasion of Poland. Poland was in favor of the shield and Russia was opposed.
To Anon. Jerusalem is considered the Capitol by Israel & the Israelis. It is also where the Knesset is located.
Is it just me or has the writer of this blog begun to develop a sharpness of point and smoothness of style the likes of which are more typically seen in mags like the New Yorker....perhaps, though, with a bit more spice and then left on the stove top maybe just that extra few seconds to bring us the crust we crave.
Bravo, chappie.
Sputnik will be happy to hear that he and Rush Limbaugh agree on MaCartney and the Baby Boomers not knowing Aey Jude.
Obummer can do no wrong, huh? He certainly is no friend of Israel's. It seems that I remember reading on this blog that Sputnik is Jewish. If so, it is certainly only in the cultural sense and not in the religious sense. I get the impression that if Obummer and Sputnik are friends of Israel, they sure as hell don't need any more enemies. For me, I have always been and will always be avidly pro-Israel and I am a Goyim. When the Jews wipe out Iran and start looking for race traitors, Sputnik had better hide under his bed.
Discerning Reader why must you rely on personal attacks? Argue points and don't get into the same game as both political parties.
Romney and his wife were given a hero's welcome in Poland today and Lech Walensa all but endorsed Romney's presidential bid. In May of 2011, Walensa declined to meet with Obama during his visit to Poland, because of his history of slights to Poland, such as reneging on missile defense, and Obama's choosing to play golf rather than to attend the funeral of Poland's president Lech Kaczynski. And, talk about improving 'our unique Anglo-Saxon relationship', how about Obama's returning the bust of Churchill to Great Britain immediatley after assuming office? Boy, how the truth scatters Sputnik's deceit. He really should be hired by the Obama spinmeisters.
I was arguing a point. As long as I have read Sputnik's commentaries, it is obvious that he is very pro-Obama, but never strongly pro-Israel. I could be wrong, but that is the impression that I get. I have tremendous respect for Israel and its history. If America had Israel's intelligence, resourcefulness, integrity, guts, tenacity, and determination we would not be in the trouble we are in today. I forgot to mention as a plus their anti-diversity stance. Multi-culturalism is the death of a majority culture and the Jews know this well. Their exclusivity is the reason that they have persisted for millenia as a coherent people. After a single generation of multi-culturalism, America as a coherent culture has vanished. I can't stand those who are anti-Israel. It is a big reason that I despise Obama. I was just needling Sputnik, but I do wish that he would reflect a more pro-Israel stance. If a Goyim like me has doubts, that is not a good sign. Even a Goyim should be allowed to express his views on this subject even though it is admittedly a family affair.
What part of Iran and Ahmadinejad's statements that they want to destroy and wipe Israel off the map, do you not understand. People with the capacity to do horrific acts tend to advertise them 1st, i.e. mein kampf.
Israel is too small to absorb a first strike and survive.
Alan, that´s pretty much the point - you nailed it.
This is lifted from ¨http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org¨:
¨On the eve of Israel's 64th Independence Day, Israel's population stood at 7,881,000 people according to figures released by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS).
Some 5,931,000 of the population (75.3%) are Jewish; 1,623,000 (20.6%) are Arabs; those not identified as either make up the remaining 4.1% of the population, or 327,000 people.¨
Me again: If you think Iran wants nukes for peaceful purposes only then I´ve got a bridge to West Memphis to sell you. The numbers above reflect the number, should Iran acquire nukes, of the next holocaust.
Not a Happy Unicorn thought, I know, but, wake up!
Except for the digs at our next President, this was an entertaining article. Particularly agree with McCartney's weak rendition of Hey Jude. Of course they couldn't have had John Lennon...now could they? I was wondering why we didn't see Sir Elton in some capacity? Probably had a schedulingconflict. One can only imagine, but IMAGINE would have been a more appropriate tune for these events. The Olympics are my faves; no artificial bs as found in some other sporting venues.
"..after a glorious public celebration of socialized medicine..."
I am rolling on the floor at that!!! What is also funny is that the GOP voters didn't catch it.
Regarding Ringo and Elton, I suspect the Olympics organizers wanted folks who "live" in the UK. You know, are resigned to paying into the tax base big time. If Linda M. were still alive and Maccaw lived in AZ, he would not have been chosen. Maccaw hasn't been able to sing in some time. On the plus side, he let his face grow out from the work he had done several years ago. Ta ra.
Are you saying, "You been a naughty boy, you let your face grow long?"
I'm sick and tired of hearing things from uptight, short sighted narrow-minded hypocritics.
I've had enough of reading things by neurotic, psychotic, pig headed politicians.
No short-haired, yellow-bellied Son of Tricky Dick is gonna Mother Hubbard soft soap me with just a pocketful of soap. It's money for dope, money for rope.
I'm sick to death of seeing things
from tight-lipped, condescending, Mama's little chauvinists.
I've had enough of watching scenes of schizophrenic, ego-centric, paranoiac, primadonnas.
All I want is some truth now.
Just gimme some truth.
All I want is the truth.
Do you really feel that you can handle the pure, unadulterated truth, Winston? Well, ready or not, and soon enough it will be force fed to everyone in the form of hot, bleeding, screaming reality. It won't be an opinion piece in some magazine. It will be more like a boot stamping on a human face forever. Most tend to misread the tea leaves until the face-stamping boot is diectly over their heads. But, the day of reckoning is close at hand. We won't have to guess much longer. It is about time for the Dance of Shiva...the merciless persecution of a race of fools. Listen closely and you can hear the creak of the wheels of the gut wagon and smell the stench of rotting flesh. Then you will be crying, no more truth! Let me go back to the comfort of sleep walking and believing the bullshit that oozes from the mouths of politicians and others who either don't know what they are talking about or who are bald-faced liars...anything but the truth!
Sorry Gerry. That's all a lot of bleating nonsense. Gut wagons? Please...
You appear to be obsessed with offal and decay, and the imagery of shit coming from people's mouths. Did you have potty training issues as a child?
And although it is interesting to note how you attempt to mix Christian and Hindu eschatologies, in the end you still come off as a terrible bore.
"The Joker laughs at YOU...
-- John Winston Lennon"
OK...forget Shiva. The rest is on the way. And, it's not Gerry, but Jerry. By saying that I am boring you are implying that you are not. Kind of presumptuous, huh? Sometimes I get carried away by poesy. Furthermore, I was just bullshiting you. Remember Jack Nicholson's rant in the movie 'A Few Good Men'? I was making a play on the 'You can't handle the truth' bit. Why else would I say such things to someone that I have never heard of? I was just feeling frisky. No offense intended.
Aesop said, "We hang petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office". Money and power are magnets for psychopaths and sociopaths. This explains the true nature of the politician and the business mogul, and why they tend to form alliances, like Obama and Wall St. Their psychopathology also explains their mass murders throughout history. Money and power trumps life and love.
I was with you until the last statement, "Money and power trumps life and love." In the short term this may appear to happen but it can never last. In the endless end, pure love conquers all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za5AH7qVlqE
Performs, we are on the same page on this issue. I know how it ends. But for the time being, as you well know, money and power take precedent in the minds of some very powerful individuals who pull the strings at the apex of the money/power pyramid. They won't rule forever, but they do for now. It is with these that money and power trumps life and love...very evil dudes, and perhaps some dudettes.
I have to explain some facts that are not being made. I have worked in the steel business for 39 years. If it was not for Bain Capitol stepping in on GST Steel they would have gone bankrupt 7 years sooner and the workers would have been laid off 7 years sooner. Stop this nonsense that Bain was the cause for the closure. GST who I sold scrap to was in dire straights before Bain, and my industry would not sell them scrap metal because of their financial position. The were desperately seeking additional financing to remain viable and Bain was the only company to offer it. End result people kept their jobs for 7 additional years.
So what are these folks talking about? Who are to be believed?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMndjLIQUFw
The NY Times says this ad is not true. That workers Wife was covered by insurance from her employer for 2 years after GST was closed. The whole Ad is a big lie. As I said I know from business I did with GST the true facts. If you use Democratic or Republican talking points for your information you will always be misinformed.
Thanks for setting these socialists straight, Alan. You can always be depended upon to be a beacon of truth, fairness, balance, and sanity. Why don't you set up your own blog? You could provide a lot of people with a good education from all that you have learned and experienced. With just about every one of your posts you clear up lies, confusion, and half-truths. I really appreciate that and respect you for it. Keep 'em coming. By the way, you do know that lying is one of the Marxists' chief weapons. They will never stop that, because they know that the average dunderhead will never check on their lies. Only capitalists from the private sector and other honest folks can reveal their lies to the average man. Thanks for doing that. Remember, Reagan said that one of their biggest lies is, 'I am from the government and I am here to help'. The government does nothing but lie and steal.
Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins p xii
Some would blame our current problems on an organized conspiracy. I wish it were so simple. Members of a conspiracy can be rooted out and brought to justice. This system, however, is fueled by something far more dangerous than conspiracy. It is driven not by a small band of men but by a concept that has become accepted as gospel: the idea that all economic growth benefits humankind and that the greater the growth, the more widespread the benefits. This belief also has a corollary: that those people who excel at stoking the fires of economic growth should be exalted and rewarded, while those born at the fringes are available for exploitation.
The concept is of course, erroneous. We know that in many countries economic growth benefits only a small potion of the population and may in fact result in increasingly desperate circumstances for the majority. This effect is reinforced by the corollary belief that the captains of industry who drive this system should enjoy a special status, a belief that is the root of many of our current problems and is perhaps also the reason why conspiracy theories abound. When men and women are rewarded for greed, greed becomes a corrupting motivator. When we equate the gluttonous consumption of the earth's resources with a status approaching sainthood, when we teach our children to emulate people who live unbalanced lives, and when we define huge sections of the population as subservient to an elite minority, we ask for trouble. And we get it.
Preforms
You need to check your facts. We are the most upwardly mobile society in the history of the world. The biggest percentage of the rich were not born there. The problem with 3rd world cultures is corrupt leaders. Look at where the profits from their natural resources go. How did Arafat manage to stash millions if not billions and not go the ordinary Palestinians. How about the oil wealth of Nigeria, where did it go. Haiti and Papa Doc. The list goes on & on. Lets put the blame where it belongs. Their populations are controlled by keeping the general population poor and under educated & through propaganda. Sort of like the Democrats fiscal and social programs. The old adage that socialist see one pie that they want to divide and the capitalist want to bake more pies. Look what has happened to industrious immigrant populations in the US. The Vietnamese, Indian, Pakistani, Chinese & countless others who came here for a chance. Not to mention the Italians, Irish, Jews and countless others from the early 1900s like my Grandparents. My Grandfather was alone and 15 when he came here from Prussia and my Grandmother was born on the boat. This could not happen under any other system. Check out who are the wealthy in Europe and you will not find the percentage of self made money. The wealthy in Europe other than Rock Stars, Entertainers and Athletes was past on and not self made.
You are right, corrupt leaders are a problem for their people. However, you ignore those who make it part of their business plan to corrupt them. And if the leader is honest and has integrity, the opposition is to assassinate him in the press or with death. It takes more than one to do this destructive tango. I dare you to read the book I quoted from above.
Capitalism had its time as did slavery and feudalism. It is now old and sick and needs replacement. For example, virtual wages in the USA went up every decade since the 1600's until the 1970's at which time it stopped even though production has gone through the roof. Sadly, greed took over and infected the culture.
We have to bring democracy into the business sector. More and more government regulations will not solve anything long term. The sooner the better. We are in a critical period where the vast ignorance, arrogance and greed being expressed will eventually break the camel's back plunging many communities, states, or the country into utter chaos and confusion with failures in transportation, communication, manufacturing, and distribution of resources.
Performs, you focus on the uber-wealthy capitalists, some of which are greedy, inhumane tyrants. What about the countless smaller, everyday capitalists who own bakeries, hair salons, grocery stores, etc? All you need to have a capitalist system is individual freedom and private property. A capitalist system evolves wherever you have those freedoms. The only way that you can stop it is to deny freedom. You paint with too broad of a brush. Most capitalists are small time operators who are just making a living. Most socialists that I know are losers who for some reason (laziness, apathy, lack of discipline, fear of risk, etc.) never developed their god-given gifts which would make them self-sufficient, so they whine about what others who are more industrious have and demand to have some of what they have earned. Intelligence is not the primary factor in success...it is a srong work ethic. In fact, most of the successful people that I have known aren't particularly bright. They were hard workers who took some risks, stayed sober and focussed, and wound up doing well for themselves as small time capitalists. It is a real drag for these people to be told that they are unfair in some way for working hard and becoming successful while the sluggards try to make them feel guilty and vote for those who will strip them of their hard earned wealth and re-distribute it to the sluggards. I am not referring to those who are poor due to mental or physical handicaps. I am referring to healthy people who would rather be on the take than to make their own money. They make bad decisions which impoverish themselves, and then want others (the collective) to pay for those bad decisions. Another thing, don't get too hung up on political and ecomomic philosophy. Some of those ideas will make you comfortable in your self-deception. If you want more money, develop a strong work ethic and forget about the books. My own poorly educated wife is a testimony to that. She took an entry level clerk's job at a bank and eventually became a vice-president and sat on the bank's board. It was not inordinate intelligence or education. No one gave her a damn thing, so screw the bull about the collective creating her success. If the collective created her success, how come the collective produces even more failures? She did it through hard work and self discipline and that makes most liberals want to vomit.
Anonymous, you have been feeding too long at the trough of shit that those “uber-wealthy capitalists, some of which are greedy, inhumane tyrants” have paid their think-tanks to create for insecure and fearful folks on which to feed. I am a capitalist of sorts in that my wife and I own our own business (15 years on my own and 14 years before that as an associate). I am a middleman providing for my treasured clients by shopping their needs from among my valued vendors.
I try to consider fairly and honestly what serves the interests of all concerned in every transaction. The capitalists, small or large, that act similarly are not a problem in our society. But when one strays far from this manner of consideration, the so-called freedom to do so impinges on the basic rights and freedoms of others to pusue their happiness, health, and security. I am sorry to tell you this but serving one own self-interest is not as glorious or holy as espoused by Rand, Reagan, GW Bush, and others that have garnered the spotlight in the media.
I am a socialist. I want the wisdom of many minds, intelligent, creative, and simple to make decisions in business. Leaving it up to people addicted to their own success at the cost of others is sheer STUPIDITY. Take your private property rights and shove them freely up your ass. Ooops, sorry I got carried away. I do not fear the weaknesses of the lazy folk you imagine, and fear that the world is filled with. It is the height of egocentricity to think that everyone is struggling to be a big success or have more than the Joneses. The struggle is there, sure, because the delusions persists, but all do not take it as seriously as you may be imagining.
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