Dave Lippman and George Shrub - The World's Only Singing CIA Agent
The most damning indictment of George W. Bush's administration occurred at Victorian's Midnight Cafe on October 17. The performance by social issue satirist and songster Dave Lippman gave new meaning to the Bush-CIA riff.
Lippman, portraying George Shrub, the world's only known singing CIA agent, invoked a political power last captured in the film "Bob Roberts." Lippman, like Tim Robbins, understands the need for singing reactionaries.
Shrub billed himself as a member of the Committee to Intervene Anywhere. The organization's philosophy sounded strikingly similar to Richard Pearl and Dick Cheney's Project for a New American Century. Shrub's explanations have that "I'm a half-wit on speed" with a low-IQ quality so reminiscent of our incumbent President. His parody of a CIA agent proves hilarious primarily because the rhetoric is so near to classic Bush-isms.
Lippman, portraying George Shrub, the world's only known singing CIA agent, invoked a political power last captured in the film "Bob Roberts." Lippman, like Tim Robbins, understands the need for singing reactionaries.
Shrub billed himself as a member of the Committee to Intervene Anywhere. The organization's philosophy sounded strikingly similar to Richard Pearl and Dick Cheney's Project for a New American Century. Shrub's explanations have that "I'm a half-wit on speed" with a low-IQ quality so reminiscent of our incumbent President. His parody of a CIA agent proves hilarious primarily because the rhetoric is so near to classic Bush-isms.
Jackson Browne's acoustic tour for everyone
Jackson Browne is a class act that keeps getting classier.
From "Running on Empty" and "Doctor My Eyes" to "For Everyman," "The Pretender" and "Late for the Sky," Jackson has been a mainstay of the rock scene for thirty years. He's also been a pillar of strength for the movements for social justice and environmental sanity. His countless benefits have helped grassroots organizations work for peace in Latin America, fight nuclear power, and much more.
Now he's on that riskiest and most demanding of musical ventures, a solo acoustic tour.
How many rock icons could sit on a stage alone and truly hold an audience for a full concert? A loud band armed with riffs and theatrics, amps and antics, can roll over a lack of real talent. Rock is an industry built on hype, short-term profits and one-hit wonders.
But with more than a dozen albums, Jackson is still writing and recording songs that resonate emotionally, politically and spiritually. He can also perform them acoustic, on a bare stage, with warmth and genius.
From "Running on Empty" and "Doctor My Eyes" to "For Everyman," "The Pretender" and "Late for the Sky," Jackson has been a mainstay of the rock scene for thirty years. He's also been a pillar of strength for the movements for social justice and environmental sanity. His countless benefits have helped grassroots organizations work for peace in Latin America, fight nuclear power, and much more.
Now he's on that riskiest and most demanding of musical ventures, a solo acoustic tour.
How many rock icons could sit on a stage alone and truly hold an audience for a full concert? A loud band armed with riffs and theatrics, amps and antics, can roll over a lack of real talent. Rock is an industry built on hype, short-term profits and one-hit wonders.
But with more than a dozen albums, Jackson is still writing and recording songs that resonate emotionally, politically and spiritually. He can also perform them acoustic, on a bare stage, with warmth and genius.
The Clean Water Act: 31 years old and rivers are still used as giant urinals
October 18, 1972, thirty one years ago, it all seemed so easy, when Congress
passed the Clean Water Act and Senator Muskie stated on the Senate floor:
"This Act simply means, that we can not use our rivers any longer to treat
our sewage".
Even tough many claim that this second largest federal public works program has been successful; neither of the Act's goals -- swimmable and fishable waters by 1983 and elimination of all water pollution by 1985 -- have been achieved.
Neither can they ever be achieved, because the regulations implementing the Act ignore 40% of the pollution caused by fecal waste and all the pollution caused by urine waste in sewage. All this is the result of an incorrectly applied pollution tests.
This pollution test is called the BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand) test, which measures the oxygen used by bacteria that feed on the organic matter in sewage. Sewage contains carbonaceous matter (fecal), which is used by heterotrphic bacteria and nitrogenous matter (urine and proteins), which is used by autotrophic bacteria.
Even tough many claim that this second largest federal public works program has been successful; neither of the Act's goals -- swimmable and fishable waters by 1983 and elimination of all water pollution by 1985 -- have been achieved.
Neither can they ever be achieved, because the regulations implementing the Act ignore 40% of the pollution caused by fecal waste and all the pollution caused by urine waste in sewage. All this is the result of an incorrectly applied pollution tests.
This pollution test is called the BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand) test, which measures the oxygen used by bacteria that feed on the organic matter in sewage. Sewage contains carbonaceous matter (fecal), which is used by heterotrphic bacteria and nitrogenous matter (urine and proteins), which is used by autotrophic bacteria.
We Were Just Talking: (Yet) another conversation about Dennis Kucinich
I was surprised by an email from an old friend, usually apolitical, who wanted to engage me about Dennis Kucinch. While I don't always put my heart into rising to such bait, I was invigorated enough by our exchange to share it with the world:
My friend began: Danny, I have to ask...if you're intent on dispensing with Bush, why are you backing Kucinich instead of a Democratic candidate with a chance? I'm not settled on anyone as of yet--I can barely keep track of who's running--but after going with Nader in 2000, I can't stomach going with a beautiful loser Democrat on election day and then watching four more years of Bush. What are your thoughts?
My friend began: Danny, I have to ask...if you're intent on dispensing with Bush, why are you backing Kucinich instead of a Democratic candidate with a chance? I'm not settled on anyone as of yet--I can barely keep track of who's running--but after going with Nader in 2000, I can't stomach going with a beautiful loser Democrat on election day and then watching four more years of Bush. What are your thoughts?
The Fire this time: Why Kucinich may be the right guy at the right time
Kucinich may be the only guy who can win this [US Presidential] election. Sounds far-fetched, right? What the Brits would call Loony Left delusional thinking. The U.S. press would just ignore the whole thing, naturally, until it's no longer possible. Just plain crazy. But is it? Every finely tuned ear has recorded the spike in interest every time someone has had the guts to speak up about various aspects of the nascent fascism we are confronting. From Gore's early comments breaking the taboo of criticizing Bush to Byrd's articulate blasts, mainstream politicians have received a grateful roar from the rabble with each thrust, the bolder the better.
36 Reasons To Vote For Bush and Republicans In 2004
Vote for President Bush and Republican Senators and Congressmen if:
You think $900/month ($10,800/year) is a fair price for a health insurance policy.
* You believe drug companies should prevent you from buying Canadian drugs at half price.
* You are a senior citizen and you think you are about to receive all your medication for free because President Bush has passed the “prescription drugs for seniors under Medicare” legislation.
* You think large tax breaks for CEO’s making over $50 million are good, but your own CEO may have to cut the company budget and eliminate your position.
* You never work or get paid for overtime so you don’t care about the recent Bush bill that will eliminate overtime pay for 8 million workers. You don’t know any of the 9 million unemployed U.S. and don’t know anyone in Iraq.
* Your state has a budget deficit of $2 billion but we should spend $600 billion in Iraq.
* You know Iraq has more oil than any other country in the world, but no one knows where it ends up after it comes out of the ground or who got the money for it.
You think $900/month ($10,800/year) is a fair price for a health insurance policy.
* You believe drug companies should prevent you from buying Canadian drugs at half price.
* You are a senior citizen and you think you are about to receive all your medication for free because President Bush has passed the “prescription drugs for seniors under Medicare” legislation.
* You think large tax breaks for CEO’s making over $50 million are good, but your own CEO may have to cut the company budget and eliminate your position.
* You never work or get paid for overtime so you don’t care about the recent Bush bill that will eliminate overtime pay for 8 million workers. You don’t know any of the 9 million unemployed U.S. and don’t know anyone in Iraq.
* Your state has a budget deficit of $2 billion but we should spend $600 billion in Iraq.
* You know Iraq has more oil than any other country in the world, but no one knows where it ends up after it comes out of the ground or who got the money for it.
Working families party update
The most important political task of our time is the defeat of George W.
Bush. There has rarely, if ever, been a President of such exceedingly
limited ability and poor moral judgement, and all the money in the world
(which he appears to have) may not be enough to save his bacon a second
time.
The most important political task, TOMORROW, is the Annabel Palma election in the Bronx. Annabel is a WFP candidate for City Council, and is taking on a very powerful Bronx political family. If Annabel wins the Democratic primary tomorrow, she will be poised to run a strong WFP-Democrat race in November against Republican and Independence Party candidates.
Starting as a health care aide to senior citizens, Annabel then became a health and safety specialist for her union, SEIU 1199. [George W. Bush didn't get a job until he was 40, and his main idea for senior citizens is to gut their/our Social Security benefits]. A product of the public school system, Annabel put herself through Bronx Community College while raising her son, now 13. [In Ann Richard's immortal phrase, George W. Bush "was born on third base but thought he had hit a triple"].
The most important political task, TOMORROW, is the Annabel Palma election in the Bronx. Annabel is a WFP candidate for City Council, and is taking on a very powerful Bronx political family. If Annabel wins the Democratic primary tomorrow, she will be poised to run a strong WFP-Democrat race in November against Republican and Independence Party candidates.
Starting as a health care aide to senior citizens, Annabel then became a health and safety specialist for her union, SEIU 1199. [George W. Bush didn't get a job until he was 40, and his main idea for senior citizens is to gut their/our Social Security benefits]. A product of the public school system, Annabel put herself through Bronx Community College while raising her son, now 13. [In Ann Richard's immortal phrase, George W. Bush "was born on third base but thought he had hit a triple"].
PETA announces victory in KFC lawsuit
In answer to PETA’s lawsuit filed in July against KFC and its parent company, Yum! Brands, accusing the corporations of lying to the public about their animal-welfare policies, KFC and Yum! Brands have made sweeping changes to their Web sites and their customer service scripts.
Lawyers for KFC provided the text of the new customer service script to PETA to review in order to determine whether they were sufficient to stop the lawsuit. The changes amount to what PETA had asked the court to require of KFC, and as a result, PETA will now end its lawsuit.
PETA’s victory in this lawsuit—which PETA believes to be unprecedented in that it is a successful suit for false representations about the treatment of farmed animals—puts corporations on notice that they cannot abuse animals and lie about it with impunity. The false claims that have now been removed from the KFC and Yum! Brands Web sites include the following:
• that chickens raised for KFC suffer no pain
• that chickens raised for KFC suffer no injuries
• that KFC suppliers use “state-of-the-art” slaughter equipment
• that humane treatment of the birds is “ensured”
Lawyers for KFC provided the text of the new customer service script to PETA to review in order to determine whether they were sufficient to stop the lawsuit. The changes amount to what PETA had asked the court to require of KFC, and as a result, PETA will now end its lawsuit.
PETA’s victory in this lawsuit—which PETA believes to be unprecedented in that it is a successful suit for false representations about the treatment of farmed animals—puts corporations on notice that they cannot abuse animals and lie about it with impunity. The false claims that have now been removed from the KFC and Yum! Brands Web sites include the following:
• that chickens raised for KFC suffer no pain
• that chickens raised for KFC suffer no injuries
• that KFC suppliers use “state-of-the-art” slaughter equipment
• that humane treatment of the birds is “ensured”
Current indie films tops in my view
1) "The Cuckoo," a humanist, pacifist, feminist, indigenist film
about a Soviet soldier, his Finnish enemy, and a Lapp woman who takes
them both in, when they have each escaped sentences of execution by
their respective armies. None of them speaks a language either of the
others can
understand. There is no preaching by any of them about anything. But
when a Russian writer or director wants to be humanist, no one of any
other nationality can hold a candle to him.
2) "Camp," not a documentary but filmed in an actual summer camp for would-be theater and other performers in their teens and younger. As performers they are so extraordinary that I think the casting directors (plural) deserve Oscars. But the film is about adolescents. There isn't a single false touch.
2) "Camp," not a documentary but filmed in an actual summer camp for would-be theater and other performers in their teens and younger. As performers they are so extraordinary that I think the casting directors (plural) deserve Oscars. But the film is about adolescents. There isn't a single false touch.
We Were Just Talking: (Yet ) another conversation about Dennis Kucinich
I was surprised by an email from an old friend, usually apolitical, who wanted to engage me about Dennis Kucinch. While I don't always put my heart into rising to such bait, I was invigorated enough by our exchange to share it with the world:
My friend began:
Danny, I have to ask...if you're intent on dispensing with Bush, why are you backing Kucinich instead of a Democratic candidate with a chance? I'm not settled on anyone as of yet--I can barely keep track of who's running--but after going with Nader in 2000, I can't stomach going with a beautiful loser Democrat on election day and then watching four more years of Bush. What are your thoughts?
I answered:
My friend began:
Danny, I have to ask...if you're intent on dispensing with Bush, why are you backing Kucinich instead of a Democratic candidate with a chance? I'm not settled on anyone as of yet--I can barely keep track of who's running--but after going with Nader in 2000, I can't stomach going with a beautiful loser Democrat on election day and then watching four more years of Bush. What are your thoughts?
I answered: