Sunday, November 28, 2004

Things that amaze me about Columbia, TN...

1.) How, at 2pm on a Sunday, the Cracker Barrel (barell, barrell???) in the middle of nowhere between Columbia and I-65 can be so packed that people are parking in the overflow lot with the truckers.

2.) How people continue to call the county "Murry" when it is spelled "Maury"...surely there are other educated people in Columbia that this pisses off also.

3.) The library is closed on Sunday. Not that I would go, but I remember the SA library being open all week. Seems logical, right?

4.) They have Sun-Drop flavored Icee's at the movie theater. Personally, I think that is awesome.

5.) The mullets are beyond compare. It's not even ironic anymore.

-ed

Thursday, November 11, 2004

Sometimes I think "Liberals" don't really think out their arguments...

And of course the same can be said for conservatives. But anyways, take the case of an article written by Mike Greenberg on the SA Express News, the arts and entertainment editor. Here are some excerpts from his writing, and my take on it.

The consistent message of exit polls last Tuesday was that Bush voters, the conservatives, were heavily motivated by fear — specifically, fear of terrorism and of same sex marriage, but more generally fear of ambiguity, the unknown and change.

Ok, this is partially true. But after his first two valid points Greenberg then proceeds to give a dictionary definition of conservatives...afraid of change. Personally, I don't think it's fear of change in it's basic terminology that drive conservative voters. It's more fear of things that they believe are morally wrong. Change is all fine and well if it benefits society in some way. Allowing gays to marry, which the majority of America believes is wrong, despite what hollywood would have you believe, is just a "change" that has really no benefit to society besides allowing gays to feel "accepted" even though they do everything else they can to show that they are "different."

By contrast, Kerry’s voters were motivated by opportunity — hope for economic opportunity and equality of opportunity in particular, but more generally the opportunities for experience and growth that are associated with ambiguity, the unknown and change.

Opportunity? Are you serious? The many Kerry voters I have spoken to haven't a clue what Kerry's agenda was, beside the sole fact "He's not Bush." Liberals aren't striving for "opportunity," liberals are motivated by hate, to be really honest. The hatred they had for Bush was more driving than "opportunity." And seriously, what opportunity was John Kerry going to bring to them? A hope for higher taxes and an ineffective social security reform? Perhaps.

The conservative attitude is insular and closed. The liberal attitude is cosmopolitan and open.

Man, don't even get me started, Mike.

The arts thrive in such cities — and most artists are politically liberal — because the rapid, broad and fearless exchange of ideas is crucial to the arts.

Mike, you want to know why most artists are liberal? Because it's trendy. No shit. The only coherent artist I've ever heard speak on behalf of liberals is Moby. That's it. Everyone else is dumped into "Bush bad" camp. Artists latch onto liberalism because it is ingrained in them to be nearly mindless in their political policies. "Fearless exchange of ideas"...Mike, I do believe you are dramatizing things a bit too much. It's one thing to keep an open mind. It's another to be "fearless" and seriously Mike, have you ever noticed the widening gap between "art" and real "society?" How what is cutting edge on the theaters on NY would never run on a stage to more than 20 people in any other city? Is it because you are so open, or the fact they have lost touch with society. There used to be a time when art did not exist to needlessly "challenge" us and instead existed to inspire us. Do you remember? As a musician who does not buy into the wholesale liberal agenda, this distresses me.

enough.

-ed
..Oh Man, Oh Man...

So there's this "Dance Party" in the basement of Heron Hall on Saturday night. I asked Kibbe if I could be a guest DJ and of course she said yes. There's nothing better than subjecting people to your bad music, and thus I will be Saturday night. Here's the track listing, heavy on the remixes:

  1. Doing the Stand Still - The Dismemberment Plan
  2. Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) - The Arcade Fire
  3. Y Control (Faint Remix) - The Yeah Yeah Yeahs
  4. Wonderful People - Q & Not U
  5. I Need Your Love (Ewan's Stay in School Remix) - The Rapture
  6. Breathe In - Frou Frou
  7. Take Me Out(Morgan Geist Remix) - Franz Ferdinand
  8. Deceptacon - Le Tigre
  9. Me and Guiliani Down by the School Yard - !!!
  10. Glass Danse - The Faint
  11. Such Great Heights (Remix) - The Postal Service
  12. The City - The Dismemberment Plan
  13. Still In Love Song (Extended 12" Remix) - The Stills
  14. Everything is Everything - Phoenix
  15. Hardcore Days and Softcore Nights - Aqueduct
  16. Jenny Was A Friend of Mine - The Killers
  17. One With the Freaks - The Notwist
  18. Crumble - The Russian Futurists
  19. Evil - Interpol

And there you have it...my dance mix.

-ed


So what ever happened to...

The Old Testament God who smited everyone? This benevolant God just isn't striking fear into anyone's hearts. Maybe he should, you know, smite someone in a high profile position in full public view, I'm not saying who or how, but maybe a spontaneous combustion, just to get everyone's attention. Not trying to tell you how to run the world Lord, but what's a combustion here and there? As long as it's not me, ok?

-ed

Saturday, November 06, 2004

Rushmore...

That was an absolutely amazing film. In some ways it reminded me of SMH (you know, with girls added, of course) with the people throwing money at stupid crap just to get their names on a building. And of course, the stupid clubs...robotics club anyone? Oh, the hillarity ensues. I was just glad to finally see a film that showed a school that resembled the one I went to, quasi-religious (chapel?) but firmly secular in its actions. Man, I'm gonna send my kids to public school I think, just so I don't get sucked into any of that. Kudos to my parents for staying out of the inner workings of SMH.

-ed

Wednesday, November 03, 2004

Ok, seriously...

The Texas Department of Transportation offices are total shit. I just got my new Tennessee drivers license and the building in Columbia is freaking amazing. All the Texas ones are these pint-sized boxes where everyone is pissed off and nothing ever works or something is always wrong. The one in Columbia had windows and natural light, a courteous secretary, and an actual waiting room and nice people to get me my license. And they joked with me, and I made up stories of my Polish grandmother who came over on Elis Island and narrowly avoided the holocaust. And the woman believed me, which was even more amazing. Gotta love TN education.

-ed

Monday, November 01, 2004

To Everyone Who is Voting For Bush and Kerry...

Are you serious? How the hell can you justify your vote? These are both HORRIBLE candidates. How can Republicans back a president who has sunk us into even more debt and got us into an unwinnable war? It sickens me when I see kids my age with stupid "W" things in their AIM profiles...they don't get it. They are most likely doing that because their parents are doing it. And then if not, they try to pull a "Christian" slant. Utter crap. There is nothing remotely "Christian" about anything Bush has done this year. Go to war? Kill innoncent people? Weapons of Mass what? Bush is a bad president. He needs to go.

HOWEVER

As I've writen before, John Kerry is a douchebag. Of the highest caliber. There is no way I can vote for him because he is a political oportunist with no real plan for anything but to throw more money and soliders at it. What a shitty strategy. I will spend no more time on him.

So who am I voting for? Ladies and Gentlemen, I am voting for the Libertarian candidate, Michael Badnarik, because they have more common sense than anything the other two parties throw out there. I mean, there's no chance in hell that they will win. But any party that advocates free immigration, totally free press, free international trade, repealing totally useless drug laws, and the disbanding of Social Security, people, I can put my stamp of approval on that. Now, I now that my voting for Badnarik could lead to Kerry winning, such as how Nader destroyed Al "I invented the internet" Gore's hopes and let Bush in. But, hey, one of those two are going to win, I might as well be able to say I didn't back either of them.

-ed