Thursday, October 30, 2008
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Bush wastes more of our tax-money...hooray!
This was announced yesterday...a new entity of the government...more people to pay, more time to waste. It's basically a new organization with a leader called an "Intellectual Property Czar"
It gives the Federal Government more power to take property and assets from people caught pirating...this is the new war on drugs people...and we all know how well THAT worked....
Honestly, this issue completely undermines the Justice Department, a complaint they themselves are making, it also wastes taxpayer dollars, and protects companies and an industry that have failed to serve their publics in a quality and effective manner for years...think RIAA lawsuit and MPAA rating system failures. Plain and simple, this issue should totally be a States Rights issue.
It gives the Federal Government more power to take property and assets from people caught pirating...this is the new war on drugs people...and we all know how well THAT worked....
Honestly, this issue completely undermines the Justice Department, a complaint they themselves are making, it also wastes taxpayer dollars, and protects companies and an industry that have failed to serve their publics in a quality and effective manner for years...think RIAA lawsuit and MPAA rating system failures. Plain and simple, this issue should totally be a States Rights issue.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Album Review: Heavy Heavy Low Low: Turtle Nipple vs. The Toxic Shock
That's right, I said it: Turtle Nipple vs. The Toxic Shock...weird title, however this is the first new hardcore album that I have paid any attention to in over a year....I'm not saying I stopped listening to hardcore, and it is quite possible that I did actually miss out on some good cd's but this is the first new hardcore album in a long long time that I deem good enough for me to obsess over.
This album did something that I have been waiting for a long time for a band to get right. They perfectly blended the old with the new. This album is still brutal and hard, great metalcore riffs and some killer breakdowns, but at the heart of this album, you have a flashback to real, '80s hardcore....think Black Flag meets Converge...it's pretty much awesome!
Go check it out!
This album did something that I have been waiting for a long time for a band to get right. They perfectly blended the old with the new. This album is still brutal and hard, great metalcore riffs and some killer breakdowns, but at the heart of this album, you have a flashback to real, '80s hardcore....think Black Flag meets Converge...it's pretty much awesome!
Go check it out!
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Back in the summer of...'59?
I definitely recommend you check out The Gaslight Anthem and their new album "The '59 Sound". Basically, think Bruce Springsteen if he had listened to the Clash and the Ramones. It may sound odd at first, but this album is a big leap for this band. A solid sophmore release in which they really came into their own, finding a sound that fits their skill and style, and a solid representation of their influences growing up in Jersey.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Turncoat, Killer, Liar, Thief!
This is HILARIOUS! You gotta love it when an entire political party makes asses and hypocrites of themselves...
Thursday, September 18, 2008
In response to the current situation:An essay
This is a great set of questions posed to me by one of my dear friends...I thought that my blog would be a great place to rebutt these arguments and share my views on the current situations.
"So, how does a champion of the libertarian philosophy of deregulation and a free market feel these days?
With deregulation and gloves-off, risk-taking capitalism being the primary cause of the crisis in the financial markets, do you still support more deregulation? I mean there has to be something fundamentally wrong with a system that gives freedom for CEOs to take risks (the bigger the better) but are not punished when these risks fail (and don't tell me they should be allowed to fail because the big losers there would be the people). The people didn't see any of the pay-offs from the risk takers when they were raking it in big, but now that they failed, the government and the taxes payers will have to bail them out. The Republicans are the socialists!"
First off, you're right: the Republicans ARE the socialists...however I am NOT a Republican, I agree whole heartedly that this is in a large part their fault...however at that point you seem to concede the same idea that I will further flush out...it seems like you are admitting that this is actually a government caused problem...not a capitalist problem.
The problem really goes all the way back to the fact that our government, since FDR and probably before, has provided capitalism with risk free or loss free capitalism. We have a government that is using it's own private entity (the FED) to transition money and cover mistakes. I definitely believe that people (both corporations and individuals) should not only be allowed to, but sometimes NEED to make mistakes, and more importantly they need to feel the effects of these mistakes. You told me not to, but i'm gonna say it anyways, THEY SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO FAIL. For many years now they have not been allowed to fail...it may take a second to realize this, but the FED is basically a private entity, now we have power and responsibility simply shifting from one private entity (the corporate sector) to another (the FED).
My main point is that we still really have not seen deregulation and free market to know if it would work....the Government has not let that happen....
Now let's get to the real world details, for it is here that my argument really heats up.
Let's take a look at Fannie/Freddie. Contrary to what the media is spinning on this topic, Fan/Fred are actually both Government Sponsored Enterprises or GSP's...what this means is that they are faux-private corporations sponsored by the government. In this case, congress created and watched over both corp's. The reason there are two would be because congress thought that they would want two in case one went under...hahaha.
Basically the two orgs acted as government middle men...they were the brokers between the public and the government for a majority (50-70%) of mortgages. This gave them a huge advantage and would ultimately be the deciding factor as to why they went under. Being backed by the Gov. gave the false appearance that they were solid and could not fail...obviously not true, but people definitely felt safe regardless. Being backed by the government gave these two a huge advantage in the market as well. They were being percieved as lower risk companies which allowed them to lower their interest rates. This created what economists call and "Iron Triangle" basically Regulators (the congressional members on a committe in charge of overseeing Freddie and Fannie), the Regulated (Freddie and Fannie) and the Federal Government are the three components that make up the Iron Triangle. What occured was that you had Freddie and Fannie making campaign contributions to the Regulators who had sway with the Government, they then allowed to Freddie and Fannie to continue to run out of control with limited oversight by those who were supposed to be doing just that...overseeing them. To add insult to injury, you had the Managers and CEO's of Freddie and Fannie making HUGE gains and basically stealing money in the aftermath. In my opinion they should pay every dime back to the taxpayers.
In a Free Market we would have not had this problem. In fact, the current situation is so far from a Capitalist market that it hardly even comes in to play. In a capitalist market we would have had an increased number of smaller competitors vying for individuals investments/business. The risks of actually being in a true free market would have forced these companies and their investors to make wiser decisions about their business and investment practices.
In short, I'm sitting back right now, saying I told you so...basically this is not at all a failure of capitalism or the free market because those ideas were never even given an opportunity to prove themselves. What we have right now is in fact a HUGE failure of Big Government controlling economics and capitalism. This is closer to a failure of socialism and government than it is of Libertarian/Free market views.
"So, how does a champion of the libertarian philosophy of deregulation and a free market feel these days?
With deregulation and gloves-off, risk-taking capitalism being the primary cause of the crisis in the financial markets, do you still support more deregulation? I mean there has to be something fundamentally wrong with a system that gives freedom for CEOs to take risks (the bigger the better) but are not punished when these risks fail (and don't tell me they should be allowed to fail because the big losers there would be the people). The people didn't see any of the pay-offs from the risk takers when they were raking it in big, but now that they failed, the government and the taxes payers will have to bail them out. The Republicans are the socialists!"
First off, you're right: the Republicans ARE the socialists...however I am NOT a Republican, I agree whole heartedly that this is in a large part their fault...however at that point you seem to concede the same idea that I will further flush out...it seems like you are admitting that this is actually a government caused problem...not a capitalist problem.
The problem really goes all the way back to the fact that our government, since FDR and probably before, has provided capitalism with risk free or loss free capitalism. We have a government that is using it's own private entity (the FED) to transition money and cover mistakes. I definitely believe that people (both corporations and individuals) should not only be allowed to, but sometimes NEED to make mistakes, and more importantly they need to feel the effects of these mistakes. You told me not to, but i'm gonna say it anyways, THEY SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO FAIL. For many years now they have not been allowed to fail...it may take a second to realize this, but the FED is basically a private entity, now we have power and responsibility simply shifting from one private entity (the corporate sector) to another (the FED).
My main point is that we still really have not seen deregulation and free market to know if it would work....the Government has not let that happen....
Now let's get to the real world details, for it is here that my argument really heats up.
Let's take a look at Fannie/Freddie. Contrary to what the media is spinning on this topic, Fan/Fred are actually both Government Sponsored Enterprises or GSP's...what this means is that they are faux-private corporations sponsored by the government. In this case, congress created and watched over both corp's. The reason there are two would be because congress thought that they would want two in case one went under...hahaha.
Basically the two orgs acted as government middle men...they were the brokers between the public and the government for a majority (50-70%) of mortgages. This gave them a huge advantage and would ultimately be the deciding factor as to why they went under. Being backed by the Gov. gave the false appearance that they were solid and could not fail...obviously not true, but people definitely felt safe regardless. Being backed by the government gave these two a huge advantage in the market as well. They were being percieved as lower risk companies which allowed them to lower their interest rates. This created what economists call and "Iron Triangle" basically Regulators (the congressional members on a committe in charge of overseeing Freddie and Fannie), the Regulated (Freddie and Fannie) and the Federal Government are the three components that make up the Iron Triangle. What occured was that you had Freddie and Fannie making campaign contributions to the Regulators who had sway with the Government, they then allowed to Freddie and Fannie to continue to run out of control with limited oversight by those who were supposed to be doing just that...overseeing them. To add insult to injury, you had the Managers and CEO's of Freddie and Fannie making HUGE gains and basically stealing money in the aftermath. In my opinion they should pay every dime back to the taxpayers.
In a Free Market we would have not had this problem. In fact, the current situation is so far from a Capitalist market that it hardly even comes in to play. In a capitalist market we would have had an increased number of smaller competitors vying for individuals investments/business. The risks of actually being in a true free market would have forced these companies and their investors to make wiser decisions about their business and investment practices.
In short, I'm sitting back right now, saying I told you so...basically this is not at all a failure of capitalism or the free market because those ideas were never even given an opportunity to prove themselves. What we have right now is in fact a HUGE failure of Big Government controlling economics and capitalism. This is closer to a failure of socialism and government than it is of Libertarian/Free market views.
Monday, September 15, 2008
There's No Stoppin' the Cretins from Hoppin'
Found this article while surfin' the web...makes me sad...kinda seems like Obama is more of a "Politician" than we had once hoped. It really bugs me that we have politicians arguing over this. The simple truth is that this war is unconstitutional, and not acceptable for us to be in. We need out, and it should not matter who it is that does it...whether it's our new pres, or the same old politics, we need out plain and simple.
The simple fact is that we are acting as a police state in the middle of a civil war, the surge worked...but only for a brief time, that's why it was called a surge....short bursts of energy (soldiers), but now we are back to the same situation, holding hands in a middle east civil war. Our ideals and cultures obviously clash and it should no longer be our focus to baby sit people that want to continue a conflict and self destruct.
On a lighter note, I definitely recommend you check out The Gaslight Anthem and their new album "The '59 Sound". Basically, think Bruce Springsteen if he had listened to the Clash and the Ramones. It may sound odd at first, but this album is a big leap for this band. A solid sophmore release in which they really came into their own, finding a sound that fits their skill and style, and a solid representation of their influences growing up in Jersey.
The simple fact is that we are acting as a police state in the middle of a civil war, the surge worked...but only for a brief time, that's why it was called a surge....short bursts of energy (soldiers), but now we are back to the same situation, holding hands in a middle east civil war. Our ideals and cultures obviously clash and it should no longer be our focus to baby sit people that want to continue a conflict and self destruct.
On a lighter note, I definitely recommend you check out The Gaslight Anthem and their new album "The '59 Sound". Basically, think Bruce Springsteen if he had listened to the Clash and the Ramones. It may sound odd at first, but this album is a big leap for this band. A solid sophmore release in which they really came into their own, finding a sound that fits their skill and style, and a solid representation of their influences growing up in Jersey.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
A party for two? That pretty much sucks!
Ron Paul held a press conference today, despite my high hopes of him announcing his running as a third party candidate ala Ross Perot, he did not, in fact it looks like he's still pretty adament about not doing that. Sad day, however, a lot of good did seem to come out of it, he talked heavily about the need for a better system, i.e. not a two party/same-ol'-bullshit way of politics. Also it looks like there is some sort of unified agreement among all third parties on key issues such as the war, the budget, and a few other things.
This got me excited! Think about it, as a band of super-hero(ish) representatives of American Politics, this move is a great step towards strengthening the presence of a third (or fourth or fifth) party being a viable option in the future, that is if the media ever get their heads out of their asses.
This got me excited! Think about it, as a band of super-hero(ish) representatives of American Politics, this move is a great step towards strengthening the presence of a third (or fourth or fifth) party being a viable option in the future, that is if the media ever get their heads out of their asses.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Short update: In more news stemming from the mess in Minnesota... Police for the second day have raided a house where i-Witness...an indie video company has been working. Basically the company was in the city to record and compile protests and Police Misconduct at several events surrounding the RNC (talk about irony!) The police raid forced the shut down of the company outpost and caused them to be evicted from the premises. The full story can be found here.
Also, I wanted to touch on Sara Palin's speech last night...I was actually quite impressed...she gave a firey and passionate speech...definitely opened my eyes...also, thanks to a fellow poli-sci investigator...It came to my attention that the dates surrounding the Dairy Fiasco that I talked about earlier. Basically the dates line up that the Dairy would have actually been purchased BEFORE she actually took office...changes things a little bit...in my opinion the jury is still out on her...i am waiting to see more from her in the upcoming months.
Off to the studio to record...woot!
Also, I wanted to touch on Sara Palin's speech last night...I was actually quite impressed...she gave a firey and passionate speech...definitely opened my eyes...also, thanks to a fellow poli-sci investigator...It came to my attention that the dates surrounding the Dairy Fiasco that I talked about earlier. Basically the dates line up that the Dairy would have actually been purchased BEFORE she actually took office...changes things a little bit...in my opinion the jury is still out on her...i am waiting to see more from her in the upcoming months.
Off to the studio to record...woot!
Un-Conventional Wisdom
Thought I would start off the dispatch today with a link to an interesting and funny news article regarding Joe Lieberman's speech at the RNC on Tuesday night. A speech that I found to be fairly awkward and inneffective considering Lieberman's history in politics along with his strong association to the Democratic party (Anyone Remember the 2000 election?).
In another note: Remember the "terrorist/anarchist riots" at the RNC? Well, they have charged 8 persons with felony charges of conspiracy to commit riot...could face 7.5 years in prison, oh, did I mention that this is the first time Minnesota has charged individuals in laws springing from the Minnesota version of the Patriot Act. More info on that can be found at Democracy Now!
Last but not least: awesome interview with Libertarian Presidential candidate Bob Barr where he speaks out about many issues, including holding Bush accountable for his actions (remember Barr went after Clinton for impeachment, much the same now with Bush), as well as the fact that the first Presidential debate in three weeks will not feature any independent or other political candidates. Check out the interview now right: HERE!
Oh, by the way: Pulse-A-Palooza starts tomorrow, I'm so stoked! Check out Midwest Dilemma, they play at 6 pm!
In another note: Remember the "terrorist/anarchist riots" at the RNC? Well, they have charged 8 persons with felony charges of conspiracy to commit riot...could face 7.5 years in prison, oh, did I mention that this is the first time Minnesota has charged individuals in laws springing from the Minnesota version of the Patriot Act. More info on that can be found at Democracy Now!
Last but not least: awesome interview with Libertarian Presidential candidate Bob Barr where he speaks out about many issues, including holding Bush accountable for his actions (remember Barr went after Clinton for impeachment, much the same now with Bush), as well as the fact that the first Presidential debate in three weeks will not feature any independent or other political candidates. Check out the interview now right: HERE!
Oh, by the way: Pulse-A-Palooza starts tomorrow, I'm so stoked! Check out Midwest Dilemma, they play at 6 pm!
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
White Riot, I wanna Riot, White Riot, I wanna Riot alone!
I found this news to be quite troubling: This is pulled from a site called Twincities.com it's news coverage of an event surrounding the RNC...I urge you to read the whole article, I have copied below the part that got me all riled up. Democracy Now! is a great...nay AMAZING indie Political news show...its a shame that this happened to them...basically they were arrested as protesters at the RNC...
Amy Goodman, host of the independent news program "Democracy Now!," questioned Harrington about why police arrested her and two of her producers. The producers had been reporting on Monday's arrests when they were swept up in the arrests themselves, she said.
She rushed from interviews with delegates at the Xcel Energy Center when she heard the producers had been arrested and were bloodied, Goodman said. She said she asked officers why the journalists were being detained, and they arrested her.
Goodman was cited for obstructing legal process; the producers were arrested on suspicion of felony riot.
"What is your policy with the press?" Goodman asked Harrington. "How is the press to operate in this kind of environment?"
Harrington said "if there's an unlawful assembly or we're in the midst of a riot," police announce loudly that people need to leave the area.
"If reporters fail to do that, if they are in the midst of the riot, we can't protect them," he said. "It would be very difficult for us in a moment of that kind of chaos to be able to make those kind of fine distinctions."
Pretty crazy stuff...sad that a non-mainstream political media org. like Dem. Now! is dragged down like this. The story as a whole is interesting.Tuesday, September 2, 2008
An introduction, a rant, and a music review...what a way to kick off the blog
Hello world!
So i'm going to do my damndest to make this here deal into a regular occurrence. I've been meaning to get a bit more proactive about my stuff...hope this all helps.
For those of you who know me, I guess I need no introduction, but I guess this internet thing is quite the big deal, so i suppose that at some point, there may come a time when someone who has no idea who I am will stumble upon this page and ultimately get so intrigued that they read to this point...if they read further they will find out that I am a college student, a punk/hardcore kid at heart, a music junkie, a collector of vinyls and video games, and a person generally interested in the well-being of myself, my friends and family, my country, and humanity.
So, let's kick things off with a bang....i'll have to wait a few months to see if this initial assessment was correct, but i'm saying it right now, and some of you have heard me say it before: McCain just shot his chances right into space. Alaskan Governor Sara Palin is a joke. I know this is old news...and the ever "trusty" (I will be using sarcasm in abundance in this blog...just ask if you aren't sure...in this case, the comment about trusty was definitely sarcastic)...anyways, the ever "trusty" news media has probably already flooded the airwaves with a bunch of personal stories exposing Palin. I'll be blunt....in 15 minutes of internet browsing and fact checking I discovered several instances that seemed to disrobe the Alaskan Governor as another faux Republican...something that i'm not even sure the party cares about any more. Basically, there are several instances including the purchase of a dairy that was turned into a government-run dairy, and a hilarious comment about not knowing what it is a VP actually does (see: this video) In short, I don't see this ending well for McCain...
Oh, you need to check out this band: I Heart Hiroshima.
This is one of the first albums in a long time that I have REALLY gotten into. Their new album Tuff Teef has a great mix of sounds. The great play of both male and female vocals give it such a great conversation running through the album...I really dig it, think Modest Mouse meets ACBTLD era Thursday with a twist of Joy Division.
Thats all for now,
savestheclash
So i'm going to do my damndest to make this here deal into a regular occurrence. I've been meaning to get a bit more proactive about my stuff...hope this all helps.
For those of you who know me, I guess I need no introduction, but I guess this internet thing is quite the big deal, so i suppose that at some point, there may come a time when someone who has no idea who I am will stumble upon this page and ultimately get so intrigued that they read to this point...if they read further they will find out that I am a college student, a punk/hardcore kid at heart, a music junkie, a collector of vinyls and video games, and a person generally interested in the well-being of myself, my friends and family, my country, and humanity.
So, let's kick things off with a bang....i'll have to wait a few months to see if this initial assessment was correct, but i'm saying it right now, and some of you have heard me say it before: McCain just shot his chances right into space. Alaskan Governor Sara Palin is a joke. I know this is old news...and the ever "trusty" (I will be using sarcasm in abundance in this blog...just ask if you aren't sure...in this case, the comment about trusty was definitely sarcastic)...anyways, the ever "trusty" news media has probably already flooded the airwaves with a bunch of personal stories exposing Palin. I'll be blunt....in 15 minutes of internet browsing and fact checking I discovered several instances that seemed to disrobe the Alaskan Governor as another faux Republican...something that i'm not even sure the party cares about any more. Basically, there are several instances including the purchase of a dairy that was turned into a government-run dairy, and a hilarious comment about not knowing what it is a VP actually does (see: this video) In short, I don't see this ending well for McCain...
Oh, you need to check out this band: I Heart Hiroshima.
This is one of the first albums in a long time that I have REALLY gotten into. Their new album Tuff Teef has a great mix of sounds. The great play of both male and female vocals give it such a great conversation running through the album...I really dig it, think Modest Mouse meets ACBTLD era Thursday with a twist of Joy Division.
Thats all for now,
savestheclash
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