"Man oh man, 'Dr. Menlo.' Now there's an alternative blog. Kindness to animals, Seattle anarchists, nudism galore, SubGenius, anti-Bush black propaganda, jeez louise, Doc, that thing sure is happenin'." --Bruce Sterling, Schism Matrix
"Dr. Menlo is one smart guy, with a sharp eye for images sacred, profane, and in between. Sometimes the doctor riffs on them, sometimes he leaves you to connect the dots." -- Killing the Buddha
I just read this book, and it's fan-fucking-tastic. I think I want to read it over again. It explains in a fast-paced, extremely engagingly way how the right-wing spent 50 years building their juggernaut and then used September 11th to accelerate it. An excerpt:
It has taken more than half a century for the right wing to achieve the power that it now enjoys in American politics, and it is unrealistic to imagine that its successes can be quickly reversed. There is no reason, however, to expect that turning the tide will take another half century. Information and events move quickly today, and people possess tools for organizing that did not exist in the past, such as the Internet. Solutions often do not become clear until after the fact, but hopefully some lessons can be drawn from studying how the right has organised itself.
You can start studying with this book. Read an excerpt here and also check out the authors Sheldon Rampton and John Stauber's website PR Watch.org here.
8,000 years ago the Earth was covered by approximately 14.8 billion acres of forest. The world's forest area has now shrunk to 8.6 billion acres as a consequence of human exploitation. There are 3.5 billion acres of tropical forest left now.
Experts estimate that the last remaining rainforest could be consumed in less than 40 years. [more]
Please go check out this site to see the original of this, as I had to edit it horribly to fit onto this blog without terribly downsizing the quality of the image. Also, of course, there's a lot of other great stuff there, too . . .
Would you like to see any of these people have an orgasm? Click on the picture of their face and you will! Each face above leads to a zip of a Quicktime movie of that person experiencing an orgasm . . . or, as the French like to put it: "the little death."
A military contractor has fired Tami Silicio, a Kuwait-based cargo worker whose photograph of flag-draped coffins of fallen U.S. soldiers was published in Sunday's edition of The Seattle Times.
Silicio was let go yesterday for violating U.S. government and company regulations, said William Silva, president of Maytag Aircraft, the contractor that employed Silicio at Kuwait International Airport.
"I feel like I was hit in the chest with a steel bar and got my wind knocked out. I have to admit I liked my job, and I liked what I did," Silicio said.
Her photograph, taken earlier this month, shows more than 20 flag-draped coffins in a cargo plane about to depart from Kuwait. Since 1991, the Pentagon has banned the media from taking pictures of caskets being returned to the United States.
That policy has been a lightning rod for debate, and Silicio's photograph was quickly posted on numerous Internet sites and became the subject of many Web conversations. Times Executive Editor Michael R. Fancher yesterday appeared on ABC's "Good Morning America" news show with U.S. Rep. Mike Castle, R-Del., who supported the Pentagon policy prohibiting such pictures.
As a result of the broader coverage, The Times received numerous e-mails and phone calls from across the country — most of which supported the newspaper's decision.
Pentagon officials yesterday said the government's policy defers to the sensitivities of bereaved families. "We've made sure that all of the installations who are involved with the transfer of remains were aware that we do not allow any media coverage of any of the stops until (the casket) reaches its final destination," said Cynthia Colin, a Pentagon spokeswoman. [more]
When the Pentagon says that their policy "defers to the senstivities of bereaved families"--they are, of course, completely full of shit. And while the policy was made back in the early nineties, it wasn't enforced until the Bush administration. Why? Because the Bush administration doesn't want you to see how many Americans are dying because of their lies, of course.
Once again then, let's show that pic:
(Hm, this pic doesn't seem to enlarge on the Seattle Times site when you click on it . . . Also, is this from the same series which Benedict gave us here which he got from the great Bartcop?)
At any rate, in honor of the woman and her husband who lost their job--it behooves you all to show this photo and share this story far and wide.
Winner gets 3 nights accommodations in New York City during the Republican National Convention later this year . . . sponsored by High Times magazine, who will also throw in VIP access to all High Times events.
I believe that New Yorkers are going to show the Republicans quite a protest during that convention, and if the cop-work down in Miami for the FTAA meetings recently was training for anything, it was certainly this . . . the result is not going to be harmonious, to say the least.
. . . I haven't smoked in a long time myself. I find that I get more done but enjoy life less; I miss it.
OK, you ask me a question and I'll pretend I'm Bush:
You: Mr. President, can you ever admit to making any mistakes?
Me as the President: Saddam Hussein was a bad man. A real evildoer. And we're about freedom. Terrorists don't like freedom. Freedom makes terrorists feel all sick inside, like they got the flu and the mumps combined. That's why we need the Patriot Act. For the freedom of all Americans and the world. We don't want to feel like we got the mumps and flu, either. Nobody wants that. Especially the people that Saddam Hussein gassed--his own people. When I wake up in the morning the first thing I think about is freedom. And then I think about Fruit Loops. But freedom, first. Freedom always comes first. Even before Fruit Loops.
We just happened to watch the "press conference" on CBS, so Dan Rather comes on after with his assessment: "The President was steady and confident."
Nice blowjob, Dan. What the President was was forthcoming only on his stupidity and ability to repeat several key phrases, as the last questioner aptly pointed out. Most chilling moment: when Bush mentions the "All-mighty."
But the President is right about one thing: the American people can vote him out this Fall . . . unless, of course, they're using the GOP-controlled Diebold machines to vote. Then they've got no choice at all.
Mr. President, can you joke about them six hundred plus American kids you sent off to die some more? That sure is some funny stuff! And all them dead Iraqis, too? Hee-haw! I'm busting a gut over here, pardner!
I was inspired to build this quiz when I noticed that comments on Littlegreenfootballs.com (a popular warblog) tended to be indistinguishable in tone and content from the writings of Adolf Hitler, Heinrich Himmler, and the other architects of the "final solution."
Always indistinguishable? Well, maybe not - but close enough and often enough to be pretty disturbing. Yes, the quotes I've used here are all "cherry-picked" - from LGF and the Nazis both - but since the webmaster patrols LGF pretty thoroughly it's fair to say that his site is as defined by what he allows (e.g., calls to "sterilize" the "subhuman" Palestinians) as it is by what he doesn't (e.g., criticisms of Israel or George W). [more]
Hey Jack--I didn't see your email addy anywhere but if you see this--you are welcome to free hosting by me. It's a noble cause, man. LGF is the number one Hate Site on the internet, and needs all the exposure it can get. I'd do it myself, but I'm taking a break from wading into sewers . . .
UPDATE: Metafilter has an interesting thread on this here.
UPDATE 2: It seems Matt of Metafilter has already deleted the thread. The last thing I remember on the thread, LGF defenders were asking him to delete it, and there you go. I remember Matt said once [pp], "I have no problem with the way LGF is run."
You mean you have no problem with a moderator (Charles) who deletes anything anti-Bush or anti-Israel's policy toward the Palestinians but keeps in comments like "If every subhuman piece of excrement in the . . . camp dies slowly and painfully of starvation, I'll have a great [holiday]!"?
There was a good discussion going on in that thread--why was it deleted? Oh hey, the link still works, and if Matt's given reason for why he deleted the post: "not another pissing match, sheesh" [OK, Beav] is the actual real reason why he deleted it, then I've got an architectural structure to sell you spanning a waterway. The next to last comment is telling: only after three other points defending LGF does it also recommend deleting the thread because it's a "pissing match"--utter horseshit.
There is no comparison between a site like Metafilter and LGF, or any other blog and LGF for that matter. LGF is a pro-ethnic-cleansing cesspool of racism and hatred, and a successful one at that. So truly then, we wonder, Matt: why was the thread deleted?
Why doesn't one reporter with balls get up and ask Bush if this is what he meant when he said "Bring it on"?
Where is the fucking anger at Bush for lying to the country and world into getting us into this? Not to mention getting us into this while his FAMILY AND FRIENDS MAKE BILLIONS?
This is a great letter I got yesterday from one of our Canadian readers:
just finished watching the nightly news coverage of the iraqi intifada on
cbc: chaos in the streets, steet fighting, us soldiers dead and bloody,
injured, knives up to hostage's throats, allah's armies cheering with
rocket launchers . . . cbc reporter there says it's chaos, the US not in
control, US soldiers scared and wanting to go home, the iraqi people
supporting the resistance movement . . .
moving stuff - nothing like that on fox or cnn (which we also get up
here) - or nothing like that on the net, even - im sure al jazeera is
more powerful - this (y)our vietnam
why do i feel like the US is living in some kind of the bubble? the rest
of the world is watching uncut footage of the occupation while the
citizens of the US get watered down defence department press releases
spun by right wing insta-hacks?
has anyone learned anything from 9/11?
The President is a brave man knowing he is protected by the Secret Service, right? "Bring it on!" he blusters!
America has never had a greater fool at it's helm. As long as Bush is in charge, this is a country of fools.
Meanwhile, George Bush Sr. rallies to his son's defense, while making a literal killing via his holdings in the Carlyle Group. Chalabi makes a mint providing mercenaries to guard Iraq's (yea, right) oil and for his (cough) advisory capacity--when he is a known criminal and proven liar, with your American tax money. Dick Cheney's old company makes a mint. All the upper echelon Bushites and their friends are makings billions.
While American soldiers and civilians die. While Iraqi civilians die.
Perhaps this avenue of context is the biggest thing missing from the mainstream media's coverage of these events: just how rich this Iraq 'war' is making Bush and Co. On the backs of the American poor. And that sonofabitch can't even attend ONE AMERICAN SERVICEMAN'S FUNERAL. And he JOKES ABOUT NOT FINDING THE WMDs--THEIR WHOLE ARGUMENT FOR THE INVASION IN THE FIRST PLACE. "600 hundred dead but I got a good laugh from them press people, and of course made our family and friends stinkin' rich, pretty good tradeoff I reckon . . . "
There is nothing more indecent than that.
Meanwhile, that portion in America known as the Fundamentalist Asshole-Farm throws a Fit over a Tit . . .
Seriously, if I had never gotten into a Driveaway truck and driven across the country with a couple hundred dollars and nobody to call if I ran out, I would never have become a serious writer.*
Timelock: if by April 1st, 2005--one year from the formal launch of this site--I don’t sell a book, script, ten short stories, get a play produced or get a decent job writing, I will commit Hari-Kiri live on the net. Sounds gimmicky, doesn’t it?
This is the daily one-year journal of that gimmick.
