Kennedy

A quote from a book I'm reading now, A Good Life, by Ben Bradlee:

"We can prevent one nation's army from moving across the border of another nation. We are strong enough for that. And we are probably strong enough to prevent one nation from unleashing nuclear weapons on another. But we can't prevent infiltration, assassination, sabotage, bribery, any of the weapons of guerrilla warfare." -- JFK, prior to our escalation into the Vietnam War.

Very relevant in today's climate and another example of how we don't learn anything from the past. We are always doomed to repeat our past mistakes.

Just a few morsels proving it:

• "America is a Nation with a mission - and that mission comes from our most basic beliefs. We have no desire to dominate, no ambitions of empire. Our aim is a democratic peace - a peace founded upon the dignity and rights of every man and woman."
• "Every nation in every region now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists. "
• "For all who love freedom and peace, the world without Saddam Hussein's regime is a better and safer place. "
• "For diplomacy to be effective, words must be credible - and no one can now doubt the word of America."
• "Hundreds of thousands of American servicemen and women are deployed across the world in the war on terror. By bringing hope to the oppressed, and delivering justice to the violent, they are making America more secure. "
• "I can hear you, the rest of the world can hear you and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon. "
• "I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we're really talking about peace."
• "Our nation is somewhat sad, but we're angry. There's a certain level of blood lust, but we won't let it drive our reaction. We're steady, clear-eyed and patient, but pretty soon we'll have to start displaying scalps."
• "The terrorists and their supporters declared war on the United States - and war is what they got. "
• "The terrorists are fighting freedom with all their cunning and cruelty because freedom is their greatest fear - and they should be afraid, because freedom is on the march. "
• "The tyrant has fallen, and Iraq is free. "
• "With those attacks, the terrorists and their supporters declared war on the United States. And war is what they got. "
• "Bring them on."

You can easily guess the author of these quotes.

Do you feel safer? I don't.

Nietzsche Quote of the Day

"In heaven all the interesting people are missing." -- Friedrich Nietzsche

MTV won't bite the hand that feeds ...

Like every other mainstream media outlet, MTV is too chicken-shit to take a stand:

Nine Inch Nails Cancel 'MTV Movie Awards' Appearance Over George W. Bush Backdrop

Conservatism/Religion

I heard this great quote and the source of it will surprise you:

"However, on religious issues there can be little or no compromise.
There is no position on which people are so immovable as their religious
beliefs. There is no more powerful ally one can claim in a debate than
Jesus Christ, or God, or Allah, or whatever one calls this supreme
being. But like any powerful weapon, the use of God's name on one's
behalf should be used sparingly. The religious factions that are
growing throughout our land are not using their religious clout with
wisdom. They are trying to force government leaders into following
their position 100 percent. If you disagree with these religious groups
on a particular moral issue, they complain, they threaten you with a
loss of money or votes or both. I'm frankly sick and tired of the
political preachers across this country telling me as a citizen that if
I want to be a moral person, I must believe in 'A,' 'B,' 'C,' and 'D.'
Just who do they think they are? And from where do they presume to
claim the right to dictate their moral beliefs to me? And I am even
more angry as a legislator who must endure the threats of every
religious group who thinks it has some God-granted right to control my
vote on every roll call in the Senate. I am warning them today:
I will fight them every step of the way if they try to dictate their
moral convictions to all Americans in the name of 'conservatism.'"

Sounds like some secular liberal, eh? Nope ... Barry Goldwater. You know today's neo-cons are way out there when Goldwater sounds like a liberal. :-)

Nietzsche Quote of the Day

"But thus do I counsel you, my friends: distrust all in whom the impulse to punish is powerful!" -- Friedrich Nietzsche, Also Sprach Zarathustra, Chapter 29

Nietzsche Quote of the Day

"In Christianity neither morality nor religion come into contact with reality at any point." -- Friedrich Nietzsche, The Antichrist, section 16

Suns Lose ... dohhhh!

The result of the game was not good but the game itself and the experience was. Alex and I attended tonight's game and had a good time despite the Suns losing:

Suns lose a close one to Spurs, fall to 0-2

Some pics:

Pat Tillman

Makes you admire Pat Tillman and his family even more that they are not afraid to call it like it is. Yet another brick in the wall of the mess this administration is creating:


Parents: Army disrespected Tillman's memory

Darth Vader ... George Bush?

Today's release of Star Wars brings to mind some startling parallels between the story of Darth Vader and our own country. Some quotes from the movie:

• "This is how liberty dies. With thunderous applause," bemoans Padme Amidala (Natalie Portman) as the galactic Senate cheers dictator-in-waiting Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) while he announces a crusade against the Jedi.
• "If you're not with me, then you're my enemy," Hayden Christensen's Anakin — soon to become villain Darth Vader — tells former mentor Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor). The line echoes Bush's international ultimatum after the Sept. 11 attacks, "Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists."
  
  
  'Star Wars' Raises Questions on US Policy

"Ghost of Tom Joad" -- RATM - lyrics by Bruce Springsteen

Man walks along the railroad track
He’s goin’ some place, there’s no turnin’ back
The highway patrol chopper comin’ up over the ridge
Man sleeps by a campfire under the bridge
The shelter line stretchin’ around the corner
Welcome to the new world order
Families sleepin’ in their cars out in the southwest
No job, no hope, no peace, no rest, no rest!

And the highway is alive tonight
Nobody’s foolin’ nobody is to where it goes
I’m sitting down here in the campfire light
Searchin’ for the ghost of tom joad

He pulls his prayer book out of a sleepin’ bag
The preacher lights up a butt and takes a drag
He’s waitin’ for the time when the last shall be first and the first shall be last
In a cardboard box ’neath the underpass
With a one way ticket to the promised land
With a hole in your belly and a gun in your hand
Lookin’ for a pillow of solid rock
Bathin’ in the cities’ aqueducts

And the highway is alive tonight
Nobody’s foolin’ nobody is to where it goes
I’m sittin’ down here in the campfire light
With the ghost of old tom joad

Now tom said; ma, whenever ya see a cop beatin’ a guy
Wherever a hungry new born baby cries
Whereever there’s a fight against the blood and hatred in the air
Look for me ma’
I’ll be there
Wherever somebodies stuglin’ for a place to stand
For a decent job or a helpin’ hand
Wherever somebody is strugglin’ to be free
Look in their eyes ma,
You’ll see me! (repeat 8 times)

And the highway is alive tonight
Nobody’s foolin’ nobody is to where it goes
I’m sittin’ down here in the campfire light
With the ghost of tom joad.

PBS

This is a great speech by Bill Moyers on how the administration and right-wingers are trying to take over public broadcasting:

Take Public Broadcasting Back

Mesa Southwest Museum

We had a fun Sunday as we went to the Mesa Southwest Museum. Alex is huge into dinosaurs and he was not disappointed. I was impressed with how big the museum is. Very reasonably priced ($6 for adults, $3 for kids). Plus the 2nd Sunday of the month is free admission. It's in downtown Mesa and is not too bad to get to (202 east to Country Club, south to downtown). Here are some pics. Click on images to get larger picture.

Future NBA All-Star

Going up for the thundering dunk ....

Click thumbnail for larger pic

Eminem -- "Mosh"

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America
And to the Republic for which it stands
One nation under God
Indivisible...
It feels so good to be back..

I scrutinize every word, memorize every line
I spit it once, refuel and re-energize and rewind
I give sight to the blind, my insight through the mind
I exercise my right to express when I feel it's time
It's just all in your mind, what you interpret it as
I say to fight, you take it as I'mma whip someone's ass
If you don't understand, don't even bother to ask
A father who has grown up with a fatherless past
Who has blown up now to rap phenomenon that has
Or at least shows no difficulty multi-task
And in juggling both perhaps mastered his craft
Slash entrepreneur who has helped launch a few more rap acts
Who's had a few obstacles thrown his way through the last half
Of his career typical manure moving past that
Mr. kisses ass crack, he's a class act
Rubber band man, yea he just snaps back

[Chorus:]
Come along follow me as I lead through the darkness
As I provide just enough spark that we need to proceed
Carry on, give me hope, give me strength
Come with me and I won't steer you wrong
Put your faith and your trust as I guide us through the fog
To the light at the end of the tunnel
We gonna fight, we gonna charge, we gonna stomp, we gonna march
Through the swamp, we gonna mosh through the marsh
Take us right through the doors (c'mon)

All the people up top on the side and the middle
Come together lets all bomb and swamp just a little
Just let it gradually build from the front to the back
All you can see is a sea of people some white and some black
Don't matter what color, all that matters we gathered together
To celebrate for the same cause don't matter the weather
If it rains let it rain, yea the wetter the better
They ain't gonna stop us they can't, we stronger now more than ever
They tell us no we say yea, they tell us stop we say go
Rebel with a rebel yell, raise hell we gonna let em know
Stomp, push, shove, mush, Fuck Bush, until they bring our troops home (c'mon)

[Chorus]

Imagine it pouring, it's raining down on us
Mosh pits outside the oval office
Someone's tryina tell us something,
Maybe this is god just sayin' we're responsible
For this monster, this coward,
That we have empowered
This is Bin Laden, look at his head noddin'
How could we allow something like this without pumping our fists
Now this is our final hour
Let me be the voice in your strength and your choice
Let me simplify the rhyme just to amplify the noise
Try to amplify the times it, and multiply by six...
Teen million people, Are equal at this high pitch
Maybe we can reach alqueda through my speech
Let the president answer a higher anarchy
Strap him with an Ak-47, let him go, fight his own war
Let him impress daddy that way
No more blood for oil, we got our own battles to fight on our own soil
No more psychological warfare, to trick us to thinking that we ain't loyal
If we don't serve our own country, we're patronizing a hero
Look in his eyes its all lies
The stars and stripes, they've been swiped, washed out and wiped
And replaced with his own face, Mosh now or die
If I get sniped tonight you know why,
Cause I told you to fight.

[Chorus]

And as we proceed,
To Mosh through this desert storm,
In these closing statements, if they should argue
Let us beg to differ
As we set aside our differences
And assemble our own army
To disarm this Weapon of Mass Destruction
That we call our President, for the present
And Mosh for the future of our next generation
To speak and be heard
Mr. President, Mr. Senator
Do you guy's hear us...hear us...[laughing] (Hailie)

Steve Nash

In a refreshing change to the normal rah-rah Go USA athletes that you hear about, Steve Nash, an early and vocal opponent of the war in Iraq, won the NBA's MVP award this weekend.

Steve Nash Wins the MVP - And It Feels So Good

Pioneer Spirit

I went and helped my folks put the trusses on the shed that they were building this weekend. Here they are, Dad 60+ and Mom pushing 60, having already built a house on their own and eager to start more projects. They’re great.

They almost live "off-the-grid". They have no debt of any kind. They paid for their current property in cash and have bought and sold two previous properties in a similar manner. They own two vehicles and two tractors free and clear.

They are largely apolitical but probably tend towards libertarian ... even though they wouldn't even know what that meant. They probably think that I'm a bit too "big-city" but they can hopefully see in me their best characteristics: personal responsibility, integrity, honesty, not judging people by their race or station in life, frugalness, enjoyment of nature, etc.

They, I believe, voted for Bush in the past election but not out of any evangelical fervor (they’re agnostic) but rather they probably felt it was the patriotic thing to do. Dad was in the Vietnam War and my brother was in the first Gulf War. They don't read underground internet blogs or read alternative news sources but get their news from their local network news and the Arizona Republic. And we all know that you won't really learn what's going on in the world there. It brings to mind a conversation I had with Mom concerning Michael Moore. I had mentioned that they should see "Bowling for Columbine" or "Fahrenheit 9/11" and she had commented that wasn't he that disheveled guy who hated the U.S.? Well, she was half-right. The point is that she didn't come to her conclusion from having actually seen one of his movies but rather from some unflattering biased TV show. I truly believe that if she had seen one of those movies, she would have a different opinion. Most people will believe what they are told from the government and the mainstream media. And who’s to blame them? In a perfect world, they should be able to believe those sources.

I usually don't broach political subjects with them because I know there may be a disagreement and that they really don't like talking about politics. But in the case of Terry Schiavo, I was pretty sure that our opinions were not that different. My folks like to kid that if one of them ever got terminal cancer and were suffering, the other one would take them out in the desert and end it right there for both of them. Kind of dark, admittedly. But it illustrates several points: 1. They would not want to continue in a suffering state 2. They do not want to be a burden on anyone 3. They want that final important decision to rest with the person who knows them best ... their spouse.

Anyway, didn’t mean to get all serious. Alex and I had a great time at their place this weekend and I was able to help Dad with the shed. Here are some pics from the weekend. Click on any of them to get a larger image.

Actiivism Works

The Drop the Hammer campaign successfully influenced major corporations to stop donating to Tom Delay's legal defense fund.

Major Corporations End Support For DeLay Legal Defense Fund

Brazil turns down US Aids funds

In a perfect example of how the US, and specifically the Religious Right element of our current government, is using God and morality (their idea of morality ... not mine) to dictate where the bucks go, worldwide AIDS funding is being given with an asterisk. A lot of the money is being use to fund programs that advocate abstinence, instead of condom use, and cannot be used for abortions or to treat prostitutes. Time and time again, abstinence-only education has been proven to be ineffective at the very least and dangerous in most cases.

In a refreshing slap in the face to such social conservatives, Brazil declined US aid. Having to meet the US requirements would cripple a program that had successfully lowered the infection rate.

"B.Y.O.B" -- System of a Down

This song absolutely kicks ass. It's one of the best songs I've heard lately. And it will be a perfect song to expose the hypocrisy and ignorance of the vast majority of people that like it. For the uninitiated, B.Y.O.B. stands for bring your own bombs.

• Why do they always send the poor?
  My God is of Bible blood with pointed ears
  Victorious, victorious steel
  Can your spending kneel?
  Marching forward hypocritic
  And hypnotic computers
  You depend on our protection
  Yet you feed us lies from the tablecloth
  La la la la la la la la la la
  Everybody is going to the party
  Have a real good time
  Dancing in the desert
  Blowing up the sunshine
  Kneeling roses
  Disappearing into Moses' dry mouth
  Breaking into Fort Knox
  Stealing our intentions
  Every city, gripped in oil
  Crying freedom!
  Handed to obsoletion
  Still you feed us lies from the tablecloth
  la la la la la la la la la la
  Everybody is going to the party
  Have a real good time
  Dancing in the desert
  Blowing up the sunshine
  Everybody is going to the party
  Have a real good time
  Dancing in the desert
  Blowing up the sunshine
  Blast off, it's party time
  And we all live in a fascist nation
  Blast off, it's party time
  And where the fuck are you?
  Where the fuck are you?
  Where the fuck are you?
  Why don't presidents fight the war?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Why don't presidents fight the war?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Kneeling roses
  Disappearing into Moses' dry mouth
  Breaking into Fort Knox
  Stealing our intentions
  Every city, gripped in oil
  Crying freedom!
  Handed to a obsoletion
  Still you feed us lies from the tablecloth
  la la la la la la la la la la
  Everybody is going to the party
  Have a real good time
  Dancing in the desert
  Blowing up the sunshine
  Everybody is going to the party
  Have a real good time
  Dancing in the desert
  Blowing up the sun
  Where the fuck are you?
  Where the fuck are you?
  Why don't presidents fight the war?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Why don't presidents fight the war?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  Why do they always send the poor?
  They always send the poor!
  They always send the poor!

Alex

Sometimes Alex just slays me:

Green Day

Today, you get a two-fer. Two politically charged tunes from Green Day's latest album, American Idiot:

• "American Idiot"
  
  Don't wanna be an American idiot.
  Don't want a nation under the new mania.
  And can you hear the sound of hysteria?
  The subliminal mind fuck America.
  
  Welcome to a new kind of tension.
  All across the alienation.
  Everything isn't meant to be okay.
  Television dreams of tomorrow.
  We're not the ones who're meant to follow.
  For that's enough to argue.
  
  Well maybe I'm the faggot America.
  I'm not a part of a redneck agenda.
  Now everybody do the propaganda.
  And sing along in the age of paranoia.
  
  Welcome to a new kind of tension.
  All across the alienation.
  Everything isn't meant to be okay.
  Television dreams of tomorrow.
  We're not the ones who're meant to follow.
  For that's enough to argue.
  
  Don't wanna be an American idiot.
  One nation controlled by the media.
  Information age of hysteria.
  It's calling out to idiot America.
  
  Welcome to a new kind of tension.
  All across the alienation.
  Everything isn't meant to be okay.
  Television dreams of tomorrow.
  We're not the ones who're meant to follow.
  For that's enough to argue

• "Holiday"
  
  Hear the sound of the falling rain
  Coming down like an Armageddon flame (Hey!)
  The shame
  The ones who died without a name
  
  Hear the dogs howling out of key
  To a hymn called "Faith and Misery" (Hey!)
  And bleed, the company lost the war today
  
  I beg to dream and differ from the hollow lies
  This is the dawning of the rest of our lives
  On holiday
  
  Hear the drum pounding out of time
  Another protestor has crossed the line (Hey!)
  To find, the money's on the other side
  
  Can I get another Amen? (Amen!)
  There's a flag wrapped around a score of men (Hey!)
  A gag, A plastic bag on a monument
  
  I beg to dream and differ from the hollow lies
  This is the dawning of the rest of our lives
  On holiday
  
  "The representative from California has the floor"
  
  Zieg Heil to the president gasman
  Bombs away is your punishment
  Pulverize the Eiffel towers
  Who criticize your government
  Bang bang goes the broken glass and
  Kill all the fags that don't agree
  Trials by fire, setting fire
  Is not a way that's meant for me
  Just cause, just cause, because we're outlaws yeah!
  
  I beg to dream and differ from the hollow lies
  This is the dawning of the rest of our lives

Springsteen Concert

Michelle went to Bruce's concert Saturday night at the Glendale Arena and had a great time. Here's the Republic's review, including pics:

Springsteen captivates Glendale crowd with acoustic show