Monday, January 05, 2009

Why Do People Still Care About Soulja Boy?

I'm entirely happy if these are in fact the dudes that robbed Soulja Boy. Soulja Boy is an idiot who publicly makes statements like this:

"Oh wait! Hold up! Shout out to the slave masters! Without them we'd still be in Africa. We wouldn't be here to get this ice and tattoos."

Sunday, January 04, 2009

The Lodger - The Good Old Days

Straight from Leeds, UK. This has been stuck in my head all week after discovering The Lodger on a few "Best of 2008" lists.

More VA Politicking

Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine has been chosen by President-elect Obama to head the Democratic National Committee, a Democratic official said.
[Politico]
[WP]

Why Talk When You Can Blow Stuff Up?

Efforts at diplomacy:

"We are serious in our intention to harm Hamas and we have no intention to give them legitimize them and pass messages on to them. We have nothing to discuss with Hamas." - Tzipi Livini, Israeli Foreign Minister
[Haaretz]

Terry McAuliffe Throws His Name into the Hat

Solidarity With The People of Gaza and Palestine

What follows is a full reprint of the Third World Solidarity Movement statement of solidarity with the people of Palestine:

SOLIDARITY WITH THE PEOPLE OF GAZA AND PALESTINE!!!

The Israeli armed forces, a proxy force for U.S. imperialism in the region, has began to invade Gaza after its continuing siege, land-and-sea blockade. border-occupation and captivity of the region. Aside from a criminal enforced starvation of the Gaza economy people, it has unleashed a criminal and holocaust-like mega-terrorist attack against and collective punishment of Gaza civilians, including the killing of over 100 children from bombing with U.S. aircraft, artillery, tanks, explosives and satellite assistance. And yet, it trumpets the lie that there is no humanitarian disaster in Gaza, despite the United Nations conclusion that there is.

It is Wall Street, U.S. imperialism and the neo-con Bush regime that is the principal backer, funder (4 billion dollars per year in military aid), war-technology supplier of the Zionist state, that renders non-Jews, Arabs and Palestinians as second-class citizens, refugees and colonial subjects. Bush aims to add to Iraq and Afghanistan a victim of his neocon and pro-Zionist agenda and a concentration camp of U.S., British and proxy Israeli troops. With American taxpayer money, Bush continues to bail out the Zionist aggression machinery.

Obama is now revealing his true colors as a closet neocon and pro-Zionist Bushite, nurtured by his ties to top Zionist lobbyist Ram Emmanuel and Axelrod. He virtually endorsed and gave the green light to the massacres and invasion with his statement that Israel has a right to defend itself against Palestinian rocket attacks, and his deafeningly silent acquiescence to the slaughter of the Palestinian people.

The Bush-Obama imperialist war machine and its Israeli Zionist proxy forces are able to persecute the border-occupation of Gaza and the internal occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem with the aid of their puppets and agents controlled by the Central Intelligence Agency: Mubarak of Egypt, King Abdullah II of Jordan, Karzai of Afghanistan, Malaki of Iraq, and the collaborator Mahmoud Abbas, who has utterly betrayed the Palestinian cause. The current events show that there is no Middle East solution that involves a Zionist state, and only a no-Zionist-state will solve the Palestinian problem.

We therefore call for the following actions:

1. Condemn and protest the Wall Street-Bush-Zionist megaterrorist border-occupation and invasion of Gaza!

2. Condemn and protest the Wall Street-Bush-Zionist anti-civilian atrocities against the people of Gaza and Palestine!

3. Protest the Obama continuation of and acquiescence to the neocon Bush pro-Zionism and Israeli megaterrorism!

4. Reject, boycott and storm symbols of U.S. business and imperialism, including Citibank, Exxonmobil, Chevron, McDonalds!!!

5. Reject and boycott Israeli exports, such as diamonds!

6. Condemn, reject and remove U.S.-CIA puppets in the Middle East, including Abbas in Palestine, Mubarak in Egypt, Abdullah in Jordan, Karzai in Afghanistan, and Malaki in Iraq!

7. Stop the neocon Bushite and Zionist bailout of the Israeli war machine with U.S. taxpayer money!!!

8. Reject a Zionist state solution and support a no-Zionist-state solution!!

9. Support the heroic Palestinian resistance to smash the U.S.-Israeli occupation and drive away the Zionist aggressors!!!

THIRD WORLD SOLIDARITY MOVEMENT

Saturday, January 03, 2009

Escalation

And the invasion of Gaza begins . . .
JERUSALEM — Israeli tanks and troops swept across the border into Gaza on Saturday night, opening a ground war against the militant group Hamas after a week of intense airstrikes.
[NYT]

Harold Bloom and Those Kids Today

A pleasantly charming interview with Harold Bloom ranging from the state of contemporary literary criticism (there is none) to tips on how to read Shakespeare. There's something whimsical about Bloom's standing passion for a textually focused form of criticism that illuminates the intellectual and emotional process of reading literature.

[Vice]

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Hindsight is 20/20

My favorite prediction from "The 10 Worst Predictions for 2008":

“[A]nyone who says we’re in a recession, or heading into one—especially the worst one since the Great Depression—is making up his own private definition of ‘recession.’” —Donald Luskin

[FP]

Monday, December 22, 2008

Some Holiday Reading Material

Well the end of 2008 is upon us which of course means a bevy of "Best of Lists" to fill-up the remainder of the holiday (read: phoning it in) season. My favorite thus far has been Conor Friedersdorf's "Best of Journalism 2008". From more than you ever needed to know about elevators to the intersection of B'more drug dealers and white supremacist legal theory, Friedersdorf maps out the esoteric landscape of media coverage that was 2008.

[Culture11]

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

DC Turns into a Real City for the Night


Good news DC. Inauguration Night 2009, last call shifts to 5 a.m., because it's not like you were going to be able to make it back home anyway.

Yes We Can ... Drink til 5 a.m.!

"Big Daddy" Takes Georgia (Hide Your Childrens)

Saxby Chambliss Wins Georgia Senate Runoff [NYT]

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Burn! Baby! Burn!

Looks like some folks are jumping the gun on the whole 'burning your car for warmth' heating system we're all going to be using this winter. Maybe their using the insurance money they've gained from burning the first car to buy more cars to burn?

[Washington Post]

Tuesday, October 07, 2008

Thugginest

Do yourself a favor an read this old school Noreaga interview. I would attempt to give you a description of why it's so amazing, but honestly you'll figure it out by the first paragraph.

[Cocaine Blunts]

Saturday, October 04, 2008

New York(er) Makes Its Choice


This doesn't really come as a surprise--big understatement or biggest understatement?--but The New Yorker has issued its editorial endorsement of Barack Obama. It's quite a wordy piece, but it is well worth reading as a a summation of the issues, qualities, and character traits that the American people are going to be making their judgments on this November, and why Obama--over McCain--is suited to lead our country for the next 4-years.

[The New Yorker]

Friday, October 03, 2008

Fishy Finances


Prison culture will soon spread into the the mainstream again--and not just because our future hovel apartments will look like cells--as fish will become the currency of choice, displacing the declining dollar. As your financial adviser in this "new economy", I strongly urge you to convert all of your assets into Mackerel.

[WSJ]

Thursday, October 02, 2008

Basket Teenagers

I cannot believe this actually happening. What with our impending economic destruction and all, people are actually just giving away their children?!?!? These young people are going to be valuable agents in our new world economy when their nimble little fingers will prove essential in catching the rats that are to soon make up our primary food source.

Plus, when the machines break down in the factories of our Chinese overlords, who else is going to be able to climb into the gears?

[NYT]

Sunday, August 31, 2008

Governor McAuliffe?

It's been a busy week so I ended up missing this piece of Virginia political speculation until now:

Terry McAuliffe, a former chairman of the Democratic National Committee and a key adviser to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), is considering running for governor of Virginia next year.

With Del. Brian J. Moran and Sen. R. Creigh Deeds as the only two announced candidates for the spot thus far, McAuliffe certainly adds a bit of Democratic star power to the race. Though, the best quote surrounding the possible bid thus far comes from Tucker Martin, a spokesman for current Attorney General--and likely Republican nomination candidate--Robert F. McDonnell:

Terry McAuliffe doesn't know Norton from Norfolk. If he runs, remind me to send him a Virginia state map.

Democratic Consultant McAuliffe Weighs Run for Governor

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

This is Bad

Disturbing news today on the local front:

"A 19-year-old man suspected of killing a Prince George's County police officer was strangled in the county jail two days after his arrest, the state medical examiner's office concluded yesterday.

Ronnie L. White, who was found unresponsive Sunday morning, died of asphyxiation, and two small bones in his neck were broken, according to preliminary autopsy findings. County officials said he was separated from other inmates; only seven guards and an undisclosed number of supervisors had access to the area where White was held."

I don't even know what to say about this situation beyond: this is only going to get worse before it gets any better.

Suspect in Md. Officer's Death Was Strangled

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Dr. No

Barack Obama: SPECTRE member, able to crush stone into powder. How can you stop that?!