Mickey Z

Cool Observer

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Death, Glory, & Sanctity of Human Life

Posted by Mickey Z on 01/21 at 07:36 AM

Hellos to all…
I am catching up here from last night. David says, “...I don’t think all the diplomacy in the world would’ve stopped Hitler. Those who gave him what he wanted still were trampled by him. I know most of you disagree with me about that...”. I agree that sometimes “war” is the solution. The problem is that the usa rules of engagement usually allow the slaughter of civilians. War should be used to capture and Try the source of the evil....that should be the desired outcome of any “war”. The usa invaded Iraq under the pretense that the reason for the invasion was that Saddam had “Killed his own people”; so then the usa attacked and killed even more of the people there. Any Head of State who sends military forces into another sovereign nation and kills people there should be Tried for War Crimes.

About reaching out to those in prison, sounds good to me. There are all kinds of prisons. I have been in contact just in the past few weeks with people who are totally isolated within the community. The elderly and poor really have a bad situation in our culture. I was talking with an 80 year old man, very intelligent, was a doctor when he was younger...he now is totally isolated, no car, no TV, no computer, no family. Hidden in plain site and no one cares. I have had the idea that one of the many needs of people is to have a system of “Medical Advocates”. Not just living wills, but someone to accompany the person on medical appointments, check the medical records, etc. This probably would save lives that might be lost because of medical errors. Remember what happened to my Mother this summer?

The list of candidates is growing. Not one on the list considers all life to be sacred. Kucinich goes back and forth on the anti-war issue. None of the others even come close. Elections are just a scam used to uphold the myth that the people have power. If we had a national lottery to select our president, maybe we would get a blue collar from the working class once in a while. Think of how refreshing that would be.

I am off to a VFP meeting today. Should be fun.

Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 01/21 at 09:13 AM

Hello RMJ and all other Expendables and guests. It’s not as cold and windy here today.

RMJ: I’m glad you brought David’s comments back today. I didn’t have a chance to reply last night. I’d like to suggest that the West did not “appease” Hitler. It was more like collaboration:
http://tinyurl.com/34l5no

So...what are you guys listening to today?

Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 01/21 at 11:38 AM

Man, it’ll be awhile before we see another Clash come around. If there’s one out there now, I haven’t been able to follow current music enough to notice them. Amount of their stuff that feels relevant today is vast, but Lost in the Supermarket and Magnificent Seven come to mind now… heading out soon so don’t have time to link to lyrics.

Plato the Greek or Rin Tin Tin-- who’s more famous to the billion millions?

Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 01/21 at 12:03 PM

Ah, the Sunday Comics. Here’s another:
http://www.gocomics.com/tomtoles/2006/12/28/

I will be returning to the gym today after a 10 day layoff - I feel like crap and haven’t been eating right, either. So today’s music is the “Get Up Go” collection with Janes’ “Stop!”, Everclear’s “Heroin Girl”, White Zombie’s “More Human Than Human”, Godsmack’s “Whatever”, Smithereens “Blues Before And After”, etc. Real caffeinated music for the flabby of body and spirit.

re: Sanctity of Lies Day: I’m declaring tomorrow “Cluster Bomb Monday.” There will be 2-for-1 specials for darker-skinned people in countries with an attitude problem. Delivery is free - all you have to do is speak up. (Conditioning may apply. Void where we don’t approve.)

Amazing Climate News: my broad-leaf parsley has *finally* gone dormant for the “winter.” The curled-leaf plants are still green, though compact and low to the ground.

Posted by Zenprole on from Urth 01/21 at 12:24 PM

James: Do you think The Clash would even get a record deal today?

Zen: I must say I truly enjoy reading your comments. You know how to turn a phrase, as they say.

Heading out soon. See everyone later.

Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 01/21 at 12:33 PM

Maybe for Combat Rock, but not for a double album London Calling thing, or triple like Sandanista. Let alone something with a name like Sandanista! Friend invited me to go see the Perfume movie at the Anjelika, then lunch at the 4th Street Dojo’s-- did you know the St. Mark’s Place one closed? What’s the world coming to?

Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 01/21 at 12:39 PM

Didn’t know that about Dojo’s. Well, just another reason to never set foot on St. Mark’s Place.

Do you remember when St. Mark’s Bookshop was actually on St. Mark’s Place?

Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 01/21 at 12:44 PM

Hi Every Expendable!

On the subject of Presidents I thought this was an interesting read on Rense today.
http://www.rense.com/general75/nextp.htm

His description come to life would be a great argument for believing in God because it would take a divine power to pop this person into existence. Unfortunately I feel the majority of the population would have a hard time agreeing on all the facts involved in how screwed up the USA is, let alone getting a respectable candidate together that could potentially fix everything.

Sadly I’ve become to much of a political conspiracy talk show junkie and rarely listen to any music anymore. However last week on the drive home I listened to a swing band called the “Asylum Street Spankers” before that one late night I wipped out an old “Oingo Boingo” cassette cause I desperately needed to hear “Cinderella Undercover” for some reason…

I lean to much to the thought that all war is orchestrated to believe nothing other then control issues are ever solved by conflict. And usually the control issue solved is how do we maintain it?

Peace and love,
The Eternal Lurker Luna

Posted by Luna_C on from the Delta 01/21 at 02:05 PM

today, first laze-about-house-day all week, is Kodaly for cello and violin, Disco Volante by Mr. Bungle, Where the Young Grass Grows by some Mongolian throatsinging group and a tango record by Carlos Gardel.

Posted by owen on from schmarcelona 01/21 at 02:34 PM

rmj, what a great point about medical advocates and prisons not necessarily being of the concrete type. I’m going to encourage my mom (a retired nurse) to volunteer in the community for that type of thing. She would be good at it - she’s her own medical advocate, after all, and knows well how to filter through the bull handed out by doctors.

And my dad...he’d be good at doing the same for financial issues.

We should all exchange information and ideas on how to reach out and help form communities with people who can’t necessarily take the first step themselves. I got a lot of my information from will potter’s blog (http://www.greenisthenewred.com) and from ecoprisoners.com.

My music today is a bit varied. A bit of ani difranco and some front line assembly. FLA’s “victim of a criminal” seems apt.

here’s part of it:
As the states raid and invade another land
Hatred (?) for Sam
The Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan
Winners goal: To control, be number one
Making modern day slaves of everyone
That’s their plan: To protect, infect
(?) brothers in combat
To kill another man from another land
Man’s ashamed being a pawn in the games of a rich gang
Another murder in the name of democracy
Land of the free with policies of slavery
I’m laughing hard - The draft card I watch it burn
They want to see my ass dead, well it’s his turn
That’s why they’re calling me a communist, a socialist
Ain’t that a bitch?
I’d rather be a commie than a fascist
I fight the system of oppression who’s profession
Is discretion another ? for the possession of money

You can read the rest here if you’re interested: http://tinyurl.com/3aswjk

I’m reading “vision on fire” by emma goldman, about the spanish revolution in the 30’s.

captcha says “college” and indeed, I’m in an intense period of self-education! Learning all the stuff they neglected to teach in college…

Posted by Deb on from NoVa 01/21 at 04:30 PM

Oh, and forgot to say: good afternoon all! snowy, dangerous, and cold in the shadow of the pentagon.

was it JOS who said I’d find a new place by Sunday? I think he’s right. I have a couple great options, just have to decide which will work best.

Posted by Deb on from NoVa 01/21 at 04:34 PM

Enjoyed watching the sidewalk surfer clip-- kind of out of the loop about the latest rock n’ roll music-- I’ve heard of the Clash-- but that was the first time I listened to a song by them.

My musical taste is pretty eclectic if not lagging on the cutting edge--

this week I’ve been humming “Y`en a marre” by Tiken Jah Fakoly--

caught it from Streamcast Radio Blagon

***

Never tire her of listening to Karl Haas reruns.

Karl Haas was wise-- and seldom cynical.

About Haas (great streaming video of humanist promoter of good music-- he always said there are only two types of music-- one being “good"-- http://tinyurl.com/39ezu6)

Was hugely saddened when he passed away-- he was a real hero.

Listen to Karl’s programs on weekdays if you can-- very handy access site (helps you know when Adventures in Good Music is playing anywhere in the country):

http://tinyurl.com/2bt3cn

This past week AIGM played a rerun in honor of MLK highlighting talented African American composers-- real “gold"-- virtually unkown in our commercially driven pop culture.

Every program takes up a theme-- but the focus is always “Humanist”

Posted by Robert B. Livingston on from San Francisco, California 01/21 at 04:43 PM

Hello, Mickey (and thanks for another great post btw - you live up to expectations each and every day!), Rosemarie, zenprole, James, Luna_C, Owen, Deb and Robert C. Livingston.

Just head on the news: fresh troops have arrived in Iraq - so the Dems did nothing to stop GWB’s ‘exit stragegy’? LOL.

It has been a wet weekend, but not wet enough to break the worst drought in living memory.

Posted by Helga Fremlin on from Daylesford, Australia 01/21 at 05:48 PM

Re what Helga is going to listen to: G F Handel probably - I am a bit of an opera buff and recently bought the DVD of Handel’s opera ‘Giulio Cesare’ as staged at Glyndebourne in 2005. But - I also like Rufus Wainwright, Edith Piaf and others ..

Posted by Helga Fremlin on from Daylesford, Australia 01/21 at 05:53 PM

I hope everyone had a great Sanctity of Human Life Day. I know we did. We were especially careful not to kill anyone...at least not on purpose.

Thanks for the great comments. Asking people about music never fails to result in a wide range of tastes. Of those mentioned above, Ani DiFranco would be my favorite.

Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 01/21 at 06:13 PM

Ooh, good because I love ani! lol.

ani and elevators: “the people in charge up there had better take the elevator down and put more than change in our cup or we are coming up.”

ani more realistically on change: “the system gives you just enough to make you think you see change, and then screws you just the same.”

I didn’t kill any one today either, though if I’d driven much more it is possible I would have, accidently.

Posted by Deb on from NoVa 01/21 at 06:40 PM

Music! I love the Clash. There first eponymous album, UK version being essential, as long as you can tack on Complete Control and White Man in Hammersmith Palais.

If you want more like the Clash, you must must must listen to Gang of Four. Another political band who have not dated at all. Check out their first album.

Then listen to Wire, starting with the first album and then continue onwards to perpetual genius. And Pere Ubu. (Do early Ubu.)

Do a stop-over with Magazine, a postpunk offshoot of the Buzzcocks.

That’s a place to start.

I’m digging the No New York comp by Eno.

German funk-psych Can and trippy Faust.

Too much to love. I’m not hip about the newest bands, except the Canadian gloomies like Godspeed You Black Emperor! and Broken Social Scene, both excellent and quite different from each other even though they share a bandmate or two with one another.

For hip-hop, I’ve been digging DJ Danger Mouse.

Posted by sarcasmus on from Seoul 01/22 at 04:31 AM