tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41499232011-04-21T13:37:12.837-05:00Ramblings on culture, politics, and whatever gets me through the nightEriknoreply@blogger.comBlogger1471100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1059428428629396582003-07-28T16:40:00.000-05:002003-07-28T16:53:10.153-05:00

This is the last post to Big E Thoughts. That's it, kaput, the end. However, all is not lost, ladies and gentlemen. No, The Big E is not riding off into the sunset like some movie star cowboy, with a wave of my hat and the rearing of my mighty steed ____ (insert your favorite mighty steed name). I hate to diasappoint, but the Big E has a new home: Erik's Trip. I'm moving to a new home, with

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1059091553393541282003-07-24T19:05:00.000-05:002003-07-24T19:07:24.950-05:00

An interesting little quiz was posted in one of the Daily Kos comments recently (no, I'm not going back to figure out which one. If you want to search the comments there it was in the last couple of days). The quiz is designed to plot your position on a new Political Compass. The rough idea being this:On the standard left-right scale, how do you distinguish leftists like Stalin and Gandhi? It's

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1059004717357025622003-07-23T18:58:00.000-05:002003-07-23T19:09:56.363-05:00

Movie sequels are a great case of more isn't necessarily better. In this summer of sequels (let's see - Matrix, X-Men, Legally Blonde, Charlie's Angels, Terminator (3rd time), Spy Kids (3rd time), Fast and Furious, Dumb and Dumber (prequel), Bad Boys, and probably more), I thought I would point out a sequel I saw on DVD recently that I think is better than the original: Shanghai Knights. This

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1058925265705838912003-07-22T20:54:00.000-05:002003-07-22T20:55:45.133-05:00

That title is from an interview with John C. Stauber by Marketplace. I heard it coming home tonight and laughed at the wonderful turn of phrase. This "information warrior" is a political PR manipulator, the man who put the little American flags in the Kuwaiti's celebratory hands in the first Gulf War. Stauber has written a book, Weapons of Mass Deception: The Uses of Propaganda in Bush's War

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1058749367916867322003-07-20T20:02:00.000-05:002003-07-20T20:02:47.826-05:00

On Friday, political activist (anyone who sues Attorney General Ashcroft qualifies for that title in my book) John Gilmore was yanked off a plane for wearing a button that says, "Suspected Terrorist." This is just bullshit. Not bullshit as in, "This didn't happen," bullshit as in, "What the fuck was British Airways doing?" I've read a bit of background on Gilmore, and that information plus the

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1058574189784347382003-07-18T19:23:00.000-05:002003-07-19T06:26:29.996-05:00

It saddens me to see the obstacles that are placed between us and our beloved leader. It hurts me that even though the media agrees to script press conferences for him, he still makes less than yearly appearances. It tears at my heart that our leader cannot see our aging Hippie population in its native state. And today, ladies and gentlemen, I shed a tear, for America the Beautiful can no

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1058492590847704482003-07-17T20:43:00.000-05:002003-07-17T20:43:10.766-05:00

I'm back. My computer has returned from it's tune-up safe and sound, and I have my ipod up and running - expect a report after a week or so (or at least a weekend). As the headline so proudly proclaims, masturbation reduces prostate cancer risk.Those who ejaculated more than five times a week were a third less likely to develop serious prostate cancer in later life.I guess all those

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1057962146667447262003-07-11T17:22:00.000-05:002003-07-11T17:22:26.653-05:00

Today is the eighth anniversary of the massacre of 8,000 Muslims in Srebrenica. As they have each year, the Muslim community held ceremonies to remember, grieve and commemorate the dead. This year, they were joined for the first time by the Bosnian Serb government. Speaking to the crowd of mourners, Bosnia Serb Prime Minister Dragan Mikerevic said:"The time has come to talk about everything

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1057876075505571762003-07-10T17:27:00.000-05:002003-07-10T17:34:07.796-05:00

Today, my loving sister pointed me to new research that theorizes that Stonehenge is a giant female fertility symbol (I really wanted to use the title of the Guardian article for my own, but they beat me to it). I was a little sceptical myself - I mean, who besides Larry Flynt would build a giant stone vulva? So I decided I needed research materials. Out there in webland, you can find a nice

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1057800308975610102003-07-09T20:25:00.000-05:002003-07-09T20:25:09.016-05:00

As may be inferred by my longer than usual absence, I have been away. Traveling, as it were. I planned to write a little journal entry each day, so that when I returned I would have a stack of goodies to post, and thoughts that were coherent and all. Well, no one should be surprised to hear that it didn't happen. Nada. But, I would like to sped a little time examining some thoughts that

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1057018742671605292003-06-30T19:19:00.000-05:002003-06-30T19:19:02.690-05:00

I've been too stinkin' hot to sit in front of my computer for the length of time it takes me to write these things (which is kind of sad - moving to Maine cut the heat index by 20 degrees. However, in Baltimore I had AC). So that's my latest excuse... but really, it's been hot. And I'm leaving on a family vacation soon so there will be another break starting Wednesday. Maybe I'll take a

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1056586550576803622003-06-25T19:15:00.000-05:002003-06-25T19:15:50.603-05:00

I could be writing about something deep and meaningful, like the further travails of our lying Resident, or my horror at hearing of the slaughter of six British soldiers by an angry mob (regardless of provocation or not, it's a miserable turn of events). At least these things can be somewhat explained, or at least fit into the parameters of western civilization. Alas, this is not the case with

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1056406414289671032003-06-23T17:13:00.000-05:002003-06-23T17:14:24.853-05:00

Like 5 million fellow Americans, I picked up Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix this weekend, and sat down Sunday and read the whole book. I was going in with modest expectations (I didn't really get excited reading Goblet of Fire), and am glad to say I enjoyed this installment much more. I'm not going to give any spoilers - I think it pretty safe to say most people reading this have not

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1056104749615596812003-06-20T05:25:00.000-05:002003-06-20T05:25:49.636-05:00

I haven't done this for a bit, so here's this week's Friday Five. 1. Is your hair naturally curly, wavy, or straight? Long or short? My hair is slightly curly or slightly wavy (pick your definition), but only really noticeable if I grow it long. I'm not sure what the second part means - is it naturally long or short, or how is it now? Well, I haven't cut it for a while, so it looks like a

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1055987211461267412003-06-18T20:46:00.000-05:002003-06-18T20:46:51.413-05:00

I'm sure by now everyone's heard or seen or read about the two Iraqi's and one US soldier killed in Baghdad today. It's tragic all around, and was just another black mark to hold against this administration. As saddened and angered as I was reading the news, nothing brought the real situation home to me like this picture. And hearing Donald Rumsfeld play down the situation makes it worse:Look,

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1055895678527963732003-06-17T19:21:00.000-05:002003-06-17T19:21:19.186-05:00

Two stories to follow, two different responses. It seems Resident Bush is having his cake and eating it too - Bush Bans Racial Profiling, With Exceptions for Security. What this is, as the article states, is rhetorical BS:"This policy acknowledges racial profiling as a national concern, but it does nothing to stop it," Laura Murphy, the head of the Washington office of the American Civil

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1055792507299310122003-06-16T14:41:00.000-05:002003-06-16T14:43:35.743-05:00

–– We were always loyal to lost causes, the professor said. Success for us is the death of the intellect and of the imagination. We serve them. I teach the blatant Latin language. I speak the tongue of a race the acme of whose mentality is the maxim: time is money. Material domination. Dominus! Lord! Where is the spirituality? Lord Jesus! Lord Salisbury. A sofa in a westend club. But

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-1055724168383865662003-06-15T19:42:00.000-05:002003-06-15T19:42:48.416-05:00

Quick note - comments have been axed due to lack of use. There have been some questions about where did I go, what's up with the more sporadic posting - I needed a break. It's been a wonderful pause for me. But, alas, it's time to rant again, and again it's the media. This particular train of thought picked up steam in a conversation with my father on father's day (we talked about other stuff

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2004134132003-06-11T13:55:00.000-05:002003-06-11T13:55:01.916-05:00

Billmon, whom I wrote about the other day, has yet another excellent post, this time commenting on the praise he's gotten, and the role of major media and the blogosphere. The entire piece is well written, but I want to quote a bit here:Keeping track of what those in power say -- and holding them accountable for it -- is not brilliance. It is (or should be) the stuff of ordinary journalism.

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2004097552003-06-10T18:52:00.000-05:002003-06-10T18:52:20.850-05:00

All the press and internet love has paid off for my favorite art comic publisher - Fantagraphics reaches immediate goal. I don't know if any of my eight readers answered my plea and ordered something to help them out, but I was glad to read that they are out of immediate danger. It made me realize that it is too easy to just count on things to be around. I haven't really kept up my formerly

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2004007262003-06-08T19:18:00.000-05:002003-06-08T19:18:42.466-05:00

Professor Lessig of Stanford Law is seeking signatures for an interesting petition; it proposes that after 50 years, a copyright holder would have to pay $1 to extend the copyright to the full length established by Congress (currently 95 years for corporate and life + 70 for individuals). The thinking being, that if anyone wants the extended copyright protection they will be willing to spend a

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003909592003-06-05T16:42:00.000-05:002003-06-05T16:42:54.300-05:00

I'm in a writing funk. Getting a little bored with political commentary, haven't watched any new movies (did see 24 Hour Party People again, which I still recommend), no new music after Yo La Tengo (which I wrote about at Devil's Radio). It's not that things aren't going well - heck, the NBA finals have started, NHL is tied up, my wife's new job means I'll see her once in a while - I just don't

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003815332003-06-03T18:22:00.000-05:002003-06-03T18:22:39.000-05:00

I love coming across stories of people biting their thumbs at convention. Today's tale du jour comes from New Zealand, where an internet site developer has built a cruise missile in his garage. The best part is it's all easily available parts, nothing the least bit illegal to own, and you can get the plans from him for a small fee. If anyone wants to try this here in the States, I would love

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003765132003-06-02T19:25:00.000-05:002003-06-02T19:25:41.240-05:00

That ellipsis in the title stands for the three attempts I've made at writing something about the FCC ruling. I tried righteous anger: "Again, partisan politics promotes the preponderance of profiteers plundering the poor!" (alliteration says "contempt"). I tried sarky: "This Blog is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Newscorp/Viacom/Disney/Clear Channel, yet will retain its independent voice

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003712112003-06-01T18:25:00.000-05:002003-06-01T18:29:23.000-05:00

This seems so familiar: American troops this past week shot up a wedding celebration, killing three and wounding seven. I feel like Chicken Little, asking over and over again, "Did you hear about this? Did you read it on the paper, or hear it on the news?"A US Army official, who asked that he not be identified by name, said the incident was under investigation. He said he could provide no

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003650852003-05-30T15:10:00.000-05:002003-05-30T15:10:43.270-05:00

It's that day again: 1. What do you most want to be remembered for? Flying a crop-duster into the belly of the mothership and redeeming my drunken trailer trash life in the eyes of my son. 2. What quotation best fits your outlook on life? "No, fuck you! Ha, showed him. Asshole." 3. What single achievement are you most proud of in the past year? Ending my flirtation with normalcy via

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003593582003-05-29T16:52:00.000-05:002003-05-29T16:54:30.000-05:00

Comic publisher Fantagraphic books needs your help. Due to a few major obstacles that the company has faced in the last two years, they will be going bankrupt if they fail to raise $80,000 in the next month. This Call to Arm$ has been posted at Ain't It Cool News and at metafilter. You can follow developments at The Comics Journal Message Boards, or at Comicon's Pulse! or Panel's Message

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003553812003-05-28T21:16:00.000-05:002003-05-28T21:16:01.490-05:00

Finally got my butt out to see Matrix Reloaded. I went in with low expectations, just looking for an entertaining action movie like the first one. I thought The Matrix was fun, with some good fight choreography and some innovative special effects. Reloaded was, unfortunately, not fun, well choreographed or innovative in it's effects. If you haven't seen it, I will probably spoil it for you so

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003498772003-05-27T19:26:00.000-05:002003-05-27T19:26:03.916-05:00

We do things different here in Maine. In fact, we make scale models of the solar system along major roads. For the past four years, volunteers have been working on the world's largest scale model of the solar system. Over the course of 40 miles, from the University of Maine at Presque Isle to the visitors center in Houlton, you can find scale models of all the planets. Jupiter is a hefty five

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003424532003-05-26T17:48:00.000-05:002003-05-26T17:48:49.280-05:00

It's Memorial Day, when we should not only honor the men and women who have died in service to their country, but perhaps more importantly that which they were fighting for; the Constitution of the United States. The US Armed Forces Enlistment Oath reads:I, _____, do solemly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003398332003-05-25T19:12:00.000-05:002003-05-25T19:12:18.770-05:00

Some recent conversations have come to the same conclusion from different starting points; mainstream journalism has failed in its mission. I always thought that when a journalist is presented with a fact or an event, the job was not to replicate the event in print or on television or the web; the job was to use that event as a starting point to find the truth. For example, the President lands

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003334452003-05-23T13:02:00.000-05:002003-05-23T13:02:17.820-05:00

It's time for the Friday Five. 1. What brand of toothpaste do you use? Mentadent. 2. What brand of toilet paper do you prefer? Anything soft, like Charmin or the Kleenex brand (the name escapes me). I'm sensitive. 3. What brand(s) of shoes do you wear? I generally wear either my Dr. Marten's Beatle boots or my low-cut Chuck Taylor's (I am just too hip for words). 4. What brand of soda do you

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003300532003-05-22T19:15:00.000-05:002003-05-22T19:19:51.000-05:00

I have changed my belief system this very day. I now believe this: White hole cosmology is a little known theory devised by the 6-day creationist and physicist Dr. Russell Humphreys. In his theory Dr. Humphreys envisions the universe proceeding from a white hole. A white hole is the theoretical opposite of a black hole, that is, instead of pulling things including light into itself, a white hole

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003244262003-05-21T17:40:00.000-05:002003-05-21T17:40:01.850-05:00

There are times when the simplest things make deep impressions on the soul. There may be a picture in your mind of a place of sanctuary, a remembrance of a sound or voice, a sweet dream of the taste of a madeleine. Sometimes this love of a place or thing, this memory, surfaces like a leaping dolphin or a breaching whale, dazzling in the sunlight. Sometimes it seeps out your pores, as seems the

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003189462003-05-20T16:34:00.000-05:002003-05-20T16:34:41.090-05:00

A number of months ago (2? 3? more?) I came across the Science Fiction Book Club's list of The Most Significant SF & Fantasy Books of the Last 50 Years. At first, I wanted to quibble about order - how could Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone be ranked even one higher than The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy? Then, I wanted to bitch about criteria - why is Dune or A Wizard of Earthsea

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003131232003-05-19T15:46:00.000-05:002003-05-19T15:46:50.870-05:00

In a moment of synchronicity, today brings us a report on the last hours of duty for Iraqi Information Minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf and the resignation of White House press secretary Ari Fleischer. It's a story of contrasts - one man lies for his government and becomes the most beloved figure of the old Iraqi regime; the other lies for his government and gets comments like this from Atrios:

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003081052003-05-18T14:03:00.000-05:002003-05-18T14:03:27.886-05:00

I think my experiment of looking at hits from "back in the day" is a wash. Though it's not my fault; the Top 40 charts don't change enough from week to week to make it very interesting. I mean, does anyone care that fifteen years ago Johnny Hates Jazz had a top ten hit? I mean, really, does anyone care about Samantha Fox's music career - or Green Jelly's Three Little Pigs (#18 a decade ago)?

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2003026262003-05-16T16:52:00.000-05:002003-05-16T16:53:24.000-05:00

I thought I would join the world of the Friday Five. I've read a few of these and was intrigued, so I figured I would join the crowd. 1. What drinking water do you prefer -- tap, bottle, purifier, etc.? I grew up in the rural hills of Vermont and I have a definite taste for old-fashioned well water. Natural spring water doesn't cut it - some of the impurities of well water are important, and

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002921552003-05-14T16:46:00.000-05:002003-05-14T16:48:06.000-05:00

What COPS did for the redneck in a wife-beater, satellite TV's Ghetto Brawls does for the urban black community.What was the most offensive about the 'video' was the people themselves. It's a running joke that "Cops" displays the worst of redneck culture...well, this displayed the worst stereotype of blacks in such a way that it could easily be assumed that it was created, produced and

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002886612003-05-14T05:10:00.000-05:002003-05-14T05:33:03.000-05:00

I haven't yet taken the time to think why I do this each day; why I feel the need to share my thoughts and observations; why I write at all. It's strange in a way - I think I honestly started this as an experiment; an attempt to manufacture my own connections in an increasingly connected world. An attempt to find a place - to grow roots so to speak - in an existence that has been very rootless

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002830302003-05-13T05:37:00.000-05:002003-05-13T05:37:20.610-05:00

There seems to have been a bit of hubbub, a squabble or bruhaha, if you will, over some remarks that may or may not have been said by the British education secretary Charles Clarke. It seems Friday last that he had some unkind words for the teachers of history:"I don't mind there being some medievalists around for ornamental purposes, but there is no reason for the state to pay for them," he

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002772892003-05-12T05:31:00.000-05:002003-05-12T05:32:48.000-05:00

When, oh when, are we going to elect someone cool enough to wear a mask? I love the way that piece ends:"Before you know it, prefectural civil servants will all be wearing masks too," said one council employee.Apparently the Japanese fear the dreaded "Masked Wrestler" epidemic more than SARS. Or is SARS only a less evolved form of the "Masked Wrestler" virus? - after all, it seems everyones

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002731142003-05-10T21:54:00.000-05:002003-05-10T21:54:02.006-05:00

Who are The Deele? In 1988, this band had the number 10 song, "Two Occasions". I listened to the sample snippet on iTunes and it didn't help me at all, and it didn't sound promising enough to pay a buck or so and wait for the download over a dial-up connection. So, I can't say much at all about "Two Occasions". I can, however, tell you that The Deele were one of the most important bands in

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002698252003-05-09T18:51:00.000-05:002003-05-09T18:51:42.890-05:00

I'm not a holiday person. Ask my family. In fact, I tend to be hard to find around any commercial holiday, from Valentine's to Arbor Day, Thanksgiving or Christmas (I understand this has non-commercial importance too. It's just been co-opted and corrupted in America). But this year I've taken a new shine to Mother's Day. Beyond just giving props to my Moms (big love, you're the best), I

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002648542003-05-08T22:04:00.000-05:002003-05-08T22:07:02.000-05:00

Wednesday night I had the opportunity to go on the chamber of commerce Vegas Night on the Scotia Prince. I unfortunately took this opportunity. For those of you unfamiliar with this sort of activity, the premise of the evening was that, for a donation, the sad sacks of Portland would get to cruise out into international waters and gamble. For those afraid to gamble and get nothing, there were

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002569452003-05-07T13:52:00.000-05:002003-05-07T13:52:53.000-05:00

If we didn't see it, we read about it. Last Friday, the Resident took a ride on a Navy S-3B Viking jet and gave a campaign speech on the deck of the USS Lincoln. We were told by the White House that he had to fly in a jet and not a helicopter because the ship was too far from shore. Well, it seems the ship was about 30 miles from San Diego, which is well within helicopter range. So, the White

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002530682003-05-06T21:05:00.000-05:002003-05-06T21:05:54.953-05:00

Presidential candidate Howard Dean stopped in Portland tonight and held a low-level fundraiser (a give what you can shindig vs. a $1000/plate dinner). A friend and I decided to go and hear the Doctor in person. I went to a Dean meetup in April, I have visited his website and read his press releases; none of that can help you "appraise" a candidate as well as hearing him speak in person. I came

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002462382003-05-05T16:12:00.000-05:002003-05-05T16:14:52.000-05:00

As most of you know, the Old Man of the Mountain, the eternal symbol of New Hampshire's values (as in, let's exploit everything nature creates), is no more. But all is not lost:Gov. Craig Benson quickly declared that the face should be "revitalized" and said he was meeting with state officials to determine how it should be done and planned to form a fund to take donations.In response to an email

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002417612003-05-04T20:18:00.000-05:002003-05-04T20:18:00.800-05:00

The Hip-Hop/Soul revolution was in full swing ten years ago. The number one song was Freak Me by Silk, number two was That's the Way Love Goes by Janet Jackson. Snow, Vanessa Williams w/Brian McKnight, Whitney Houston, Dr. Dre, Jade, SWV, P.M. Dawn and one-hit wonder Paperboy rounded out the top ten. There is no rock or country, alternative or adult-contemporary hits on the charts. There were

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002356992003-05-02T19:29:00.000-05:002003-05-02T19:38:44.000-05:00

I have found religion. I have found a place amongst the hairballs at the feet of Bill the Cat. Repeat after me and be set free:I, (state your name), do hereby swear to honor the Discordian Deity, Bill the Cat, Lord of Humor and Disgusting Noises. I promise to go for the Cheap Jokes, indulge in Excessive Behavior and always maintain my sense of the Ridiculous. I swear never to take my religion

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002299322003-05-01T17:54:00.000-05:002003-05-01T17:54:02.580-05:00

Sometimes, laughter leads with a shudder, or a cringe of guilt. Sometimes, it makes you blow whole spaghetti noodles out your nose (if you doubt this is possible, you didn't go to school with Rich WhatsHisName, the near albino boy. He blew multiple noodles of spaghetti, complete with sauce, out of his nose in 5th grade. You don't forget things like that). Sometimes you don't quite reach

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002245272003-04-30T18:36:00.000-05:002003-05-01T21:06:58.000-05:00

One of the things about being a once a day blogger is that I never get a chance to "break" a story - generally, by the time I decide to write about something (at least hours, often days) someone else has inevitably written something and found furthur resources. Here is an example: yesterday I come across a very cool (in my opinion, which is all that really matters) story about how scientists

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002187792003-04-29T18:44:00.000-05:002003-04-29T18:45:44.000-05:00

North Korea is going to start lobbing things (nuclear things that go bump in the night) soon. Colin "I'm No Houseboy, Massa Belafonte" Powell is wagging his finger at crazy Kim and parroting the company line. "We will not be intimidated by their claims and threats. As the president has said, we will not be blackmailed." I am going to make a big assumption that anyone reading this knows that

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002125062003-04-28T16:20:00.000-05:002003-04-28T16:23:38.000-05:00

At some recent point young adult literature has received a level of acceptability. Not that there haven't been exceptions throughout the 20th century - C.S. Lewis' Narnia chronicles, Tolkien's The Hobbit, and Lloyd Alexander's Prydain series all spring to mind. But there has been an explosion in recent years of critically accepted or acclaimed works. There is of course Rowling's Harry Potter,

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2002061332003-04-27T10:15:00.000-05:002003-04-27T10:26:32.000-05:00

Fifteen years ago this week the #1 song was Terence Trent D'Arby's Wishing Well. An acoustic guitar driven funk song, danceable while still palatable outside a club, Wishing Well was the breakthrough of the conceited Mr D'Arby (he told the British music press his debut was the most important album since Sgt. Pepper) onto the American musical conscience. He graced the cover of Rolling Stone (

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001978442003-04-25T05:47:00.000-05:002003-04-25T05:47:29.496-05:00

I was thinking this morning about how little I know about the Watergate scandal. I should know more than the basic facts and figures - I mean the whole event brought down a President and reshaped the Government in regards to privacy and the like. Yet, I don't have any great desire to read about it. Go figure. But anyway, I digress (me? Become tangental? Never). What got me thinking about

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001935562003-04-24T10:17:00.000-05:002003-04-24T10:20:08.000-05:00

I was thinking of High Fidelity, both the book by Nick Hornsby, and the film adaptation starring John Cusack. If you’ve seen the movie or read the book and you know me, you may have noticed some similarities between Rob and myself. One thing in particular is the habit of making lists of things. Not useful lists of things to do, mind you, but lists of favorites, best ofs, and the like. This

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001866462003-04-23T06:00:00.000-05:002003-04-23T06:00:48.530-05:00

Very quietly, the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States has gotten up and running with it's first public hearings. Unsurprisingly, there are people asking questions of the Government, as well they should. I haven't had a chance to read each person's remarks and statements to the commission, though I do plan to do so. I was directed to Mindy Kleinberg's statement from

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001835902003-04-22T14:11:00.000-05:002003-04-22T14:11:40.653-05:00

It seems are government has been holding minors as prisoners at Camp X-Ray(thanks to Atrios and Hesiod for pointing this out). I really don't know what to say. The whole "enemy combatant" classification bothers me - either they are enemies we captured, and thus POW's, or they are criminals, who should be tried as such. The idea that we have a classification that can apply to anyone, American

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001754322003-04-21T06:13:00.000-05:002003-04-21T06:13:37.796-05:00

Hope everyone had a Happy Easter. If you didn't get enough peeps to get you by, here are great moments in rock 'n' roll history as reenacted by peeps. While you're at the Rhino website, you can pick me up this boxset, which would be perfect except it's missing Rock Me Amadeus and Don't Forget Me When I'm Gone. ah, the 80's.I would also, in the spirit of Easter, most holy of days, like to point

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001705732003-04-19T13:20:00.000-05:002003-04-19T13:22:12.000-05:00

The whole idea of writing these weekend music guides came out of an idea I had for a newspaper column - look back each week on the top albums or songs of ten years ago. Billboard posts their top albums and singles each week, and include links to the corresponding charts from five, ten and sometimes fifteen years back. I thought it would be fun to talk about what has stood the test of time, what

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001655782003-04-18T05:57:00.000-05:002003-04-18T05:57:18.393-05:00

This just in from Counterspin Central: April 19, 2003 is the tenth anniversary of the destruction of the Branch Davidians in Waco. It is also the eighth anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombings, and three years since of the raid to remove Elian Gonzalez from his uncle's house. It is also the true date of Patriot's Day, honoring the battles of Concord and Lexington on April 19, 1775. So, if

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001604822003-04-17T06:25:00.000-05:002003-04-17T06:28:41.000-05:00

Time to fight the power, brothers and sisters. I'm here today to give each of you a dose of truth, an elixir that's a fixer to the mixup that we're in. From the audio vault of the BBC, We got Donald Rumsfeld at his most quotable. Another missive from the UK describes a Syrian "snatch-and-shoot" scenario; America would enter Syria to snatch Saddam.American special forces in western Iraq have

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001549842003-04-16T06:37:00.000-05:002003-04-16T06:44:36.000-05:00

I woke up this morning wishing I could go back to sleep. I had a fitful night, tossing and turning, waking and dreaming. Having nightmares. Now, I don't know how many people remember there dreams, or what percentage of dreams and nightmares are remembered. I don't think I've ever been able to recall an entire dream - maybe a connected scene or two (my dreams are very cinematic, with jump-cuts

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001492612003-04-15T06:17:00.000-05:002003-04-16T06:43:19.000-05:00

I hoped when all the Syria talk popped up over the weekend that it would go away. I thought maybe it was a smoke screen, brought up to divert attention away from the looting and destruction of Baghdad, of it's museums, and the burning of it's libraries and archives. But I was, alas, wrong. Rumsfeld was first to mention Syria a few weeks ago with the night goggle thing - Wolfewitz, Rumsfeld and

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001436342003-04-14T06:06:00.000-05:002003-04-14T06:06:27.256-05:00

I had a few requests to hunt down the playing cards handed out to soldiers last week. These cards, for any not "in the know", have pictures of Iraqi leaders along with their names and titles. So I cruised over to Defenselink, the official information desemenation website for the Department of Defense. Lo and behold, they were there! So I present to you, Iraq's Most Wanted. Some of you may

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001414952003-04-13T16:00:00.000-05:002003-04-13T16:10:59.000-05:00

I decided to do a semi-serious record review this week, as opposed to the sort of "introduction to a favorite recording" style I've taken in most past posts. Through a little birdie I have in my hands an advance copy of the upcoming Cracker/Leftover Salmon album O Cracker, Where Art Thou?, scheduled for release May 6. For a quick background, Cracker is the band formed by Camper Van Beethoven (

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001343712003-04-11T13:58:00.000-05:002003-04-11T13:58:59.713-05:00

Just a quick couple of things today - tried writing something this morning but ended up trashing it. My focus just ain't there. The following story and pics are all over the net - I'm choosing to go with Calpundit for my link. Related article re: the flag on Saddams head is available everywhere - here is the report from ABC.Was it a coincidence that the Marines pulling down the statue were

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001257172003-04-10T06:16:00.000-05:002003-04-10T06:21:10.000-05:00

I was trying to decipher this quote from Donald Rumsfeld as reported by ABC News Australia: We are in the process of trying to liberate that country and at the moment, when the war ends, and the Coalition forces occupy, the areas where those capabilities, chemical and biological weapons are likely to be, to the extent they haven't been moved out of the country, it obviously is important to find

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001235562003-04-09T17:52:00.000-05:002003-04-09T17:57:36.000-05:00

Ding Dong Saddam is Dead!Oh? No? We don't know? But there was cheering, and statue tipping and crazy Iraqis ropin' up horses: "As he prepared to ride off, he complained of a life with "no food and no rice" for his two children, his wife, and the third baby on the way." (Want to bet that horse is toast? Mmm, thoroughbred). But where did that wascally Hussein Chop! disappear to? Some say he

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001196752003-04-09T06:02:00.000-05:002003-04-09T06:02:46.163-05:00

Just a quick note that our "Hearts and Mind" effort continues in that "other war", Afghanistan. An article from the BBC talks around the "tragic accident" that happened when US forces bombed a village. And "tragic" as those fresh eleven deaths may be, what bugged me was the matter of fact statement at the end of the article:In the most serious incident, the Afghan Government said 48 civilians -

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001167202003-04-08T15:05:00.000-05:002003-04-08T15:11:47.000-05:00

The kid gloves are off. I've done my best to curb my use of profanity, and even curbed some of my more outspoken criticisms of governments (both home and abroad), people, our culture and the state of the World today. Well fuck that shit, we're going to hell in a handbasket and since nobody reads this anyways I can say fuckall I want. There goes the profanity! Next up we have some reports of

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001077922003-04-07T06:00:00.000-05:002003-04-07T06:00:10.376-05:00

I picked this story up from metafilter - today is the birthday of Osamu Tezuka's Astroboy. His "origin" comic from 1951 places his "birthday" as April 7, 2003. For a birthday report check out ABC News Australia. Also be sure to visit the Astroboy Episode Guide and for your purchasing pleasure check out Astroboy Cartoons.Keeping with the theme of the imaginary, I've been perusing this next

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2001018732003-04-05T13:16:00.000-05:002003-04-05T13:16:44.936-05:00

Marc Ribot's trademark staccato guitar has graced songs and albums by such artists as Elvis Costello, Tom Waits and Marianne Faithfull. The opening guitar riff on Tom Wait's Jockey Full of Bourbon is typical Ribot - propelling the song forward, and yet somehow impeding it's acceleration, a general set to keep chaos at bay. Ribot has made a career of adding "color and texture" to rock 'n' roll,

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000960392003-04-04T07:18:00.000-05:002003-04-04T10:11:47.000-05:00

"I mentioned it once, but I think I got away with it alright ... sorry, sorry!" I feel like Basil Fawlty whenever I write or talk about the war. Inevitably, I seem to piss off someone by mentioning it's a war of aggression, or the"blitzkrieg" tactics of the push to Baghdad, or the Fascist use of an "attack on the homeland" to remove civil liberties, the "racial profiling" and "internment

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000902362003-04-03T07:09:00.000-05:002003-04-03T07:09:28.373-05:00

Last night I went to a Howard Dean Meetup here in Portland. I haven't ever gotten involved in campaigning before, and am unsure what level of involvement I will take this time around. I'm not even sure if Dean is the best candidate, but at this point I think he has the most going for him. The group last night (around 25) was vocal and supportive, and the enthusiasm was infective (not like SARS

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000846362003-04-02T07:04:00.000-05:002003-04-02T07:09:56.000-05:00

Yesterday brought me sadness unrelated to war. Around noon I read the news that Leslie Cheung had taken his own life (as reported by the Guardian). Cheung was perhaps my favorite Asian actor - a man who could captivate an audience in drama, comedy or action films. Perhaps best known in the West for Farewell My Concubine and John Woo's A Better Tomorrow, I hold in my mind three other great

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000775922003-04-01T06:41:00.000-05:002003-04-01T06:41:31.666-05:00

Let's start today with a report from the Guardian. As mentioned yesterday, journalist Robert Fisk reported that the remnants of what appeared to be a coalition missile were found amongst the remains of a market in Baghdad. Here's the followup: Meanwhile it has emerged - as a result of detective work on the internet by a Guardian reader - that the explosion in a Baghdad market which killed more

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000721362003-03-31T07:15:00.000-05:002003-03-31T07:15:46.263-05:00

As coalition forces don't pause, but only readjust their positions (isn't that what baseball players do when they grab their jocks? Just checking), I won't flinch in my determination to alternately annoy and edify my discerning public. Today's message is one of peace and indoctrination, brought to you by A.R.M., maker of the collapsible portable baptistry . So while you're being processed at

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000685502003-03-30T10:48:00.000-05:002003-03-30T10:52:36.000-05:00

Os Mutantes. The name means little to most people, even amongst musical aficionados. I first heard the name in the early 90's from a Kurt Cobain mention in an interview; he was trying to get this Brazilian band to reform for a show. I looked around, couldn't find any recordings, and was only able to find out they were on the psychedelic edge of the Tropicalia movement of the late 60's. Flash

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000595552003-03-28T07:06:00.000-05:002003-03-28T07:11:50.000-05:00

I love the NCAA division I college basketball tournament. As I may have said last week, it's probably my favorite sports event of the year. Some may love college football bowl games, some may love the Super Bowl, or the World Series or Stanley Cup or any other championship event. Except golf. I can't accept it as a sporting event any more than a billiards tournament or championship darts. I

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000538702003-03-27T07:10:00.000-05:002003-03-27T07:10:52.326-05:00

US Forces seem to have an issue with "friendly fire". Earlier in this debacle US Patriot batteries shot down a British fighter jet, killing the crew. There were unsubstantiated (to my knowledge) reports of a US fighter jet errantly targeting a Patriot missile platform. And, according to new reports, there were some issues of full scale engaged combat between Marine battalions. From the BBC:

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000477902003-03-26T07:25:00.000-05:002003-03-26T07:25:15.980-05:00

I've tried to stay abreast and stay quiet at the same time. This is VERY HARD for me to do (I chose caps there to give the impression of speaking loudly). I like to throw my opinions around like cluster bombs, hitting targets intended and unintended with equal lack of precision. Often my statements just kind of sit there and get confused with aid packets. Other times they explode on their

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000417952003-03-25T07:04:00.000-05:002003-03-25T07:30:15.000-05:00

About a year and a half ago I bought a theremin. For those of you who don't know what a theremin is, some good information can be found at Theremin World. Well, about 2 months after I bought it, I began to have unrelated major wrist and hand problems. So, I was unable to play it for over a year. I set the bugger up again this week to have a go. And I play just as poorly as I did when I

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000360002003-03-24T06:40:00.000-05:002003-03-24T06:53:15.000-05:00

First, I tried not to watch much of the war coverage - I tried to watch as much NCAA basketball as humanly possible. However, with the day games Thursday and Friday unceremoniously dumped over to cable (which I am too cheap to pay for since I don't watch much TV), I had to "overindulge" and watch ALL the coverage Saturday and Sunday. Some great games (like the Arizona - Gonzaga double OT

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000341592003-03-23T19:40:00.000-05:002003-03-23T19:40:59.660-05:00

I should have done this earlier (the award show starts in less than an hour), but I just wanted to be on record with my picks. In each major category, I will also let you know which movies I've seen, so you can take my picks with a grain (or bag) of salt. Here goes: Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis I have seen none of these performances. I just figure it will be a nod to his coming out of

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000289182003-03-22T12:37:00.000-05:002003-03-22T12:40:55.000-05:00

Is The Last Waltz over yet? How is it, that 25 years after an over-long, self-congratulatory, look-at-all-the-cool-people-we-know "farewell" concert, The Band's last show still matters? It doesn't. it didn't matter at the time (although no one wants to admit it), and it matters less now. Though you would never know it judging by the fawning reviews of last year's 4-disc version of the longest

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000220262003-03-21T06:30:00.000-05:002003-03-21T06:37:07.000-05:00

I'll admit it. I got nothing today. Nothing. News of the war? Pick a site. BBC and The Agonist are in my links - I don't even feel like typing the HTML code so you are going to have to move your little mouse over there (I apologize to anyone on the email list. Or anyone using an RSS news aggregator. Did I mention I now have an RSS feed? It's http://the_big_e.blogspot.com/rss/the_big_e.xml

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000198942003-03-20T19:33:00.000-05:002003-03-20T19:38:19.000-05:00

For those of you who want to keep up chronologically with the war, I can't recommend The Agonist enough. I've also added a link at the bottom of the recommended weblogs.

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000154602003-03-20T06:57:00.000-05:002003-03-20T07:01:39.000-05:00

We'll, off we go. Last night around 8pm Eastern Time the US fired 40 Tomahawk cruise missiles, as well as GBU-27 laser-guided penetration bombs dropped by F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighters. The US purportedly were targeting Saddam Hussein based on intelligence reports of a meeting he was conducting with his top-level brass (do the Iraqis call them "top-level brass" like we do?). The US missed.

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000094032003-03-19T07:04:00.000-05:002003-03-19T07:04:12.913-05:00

The link to the weblog is in my recommendations. If you don't want to read all his posts, please at least read this one from Sunday. It is well done and shows a viewpoint we don't often see over here.

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-2000075492003-03-19T06:12:00.000-05:002003-03-18T21:17:19.000-05:00

The US published a list of "the Coalition of the Willing." Here are the US Allies: Afghanistan, Albania, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, El Salvador, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Hungary, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, the Netherlands, Nicaragua, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey [do they know

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-909181252003-03-18T07:14:00.000-05:002003-03-18T07:16:06.000-05:00

I've Got My Hands Over My EarsI'm going to ignore the Drums of War today. I just don't want to believe we're actually going ahead with this invasion. Maybe tomorrow, maybe later I'll acknowledge it, but today I DON'T WANNA! So, instead I'm going to point out a few silly or strange things I've come across in the last few weeks.First, there seems to be a problem with the height of speed bumps in

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-908617162003-03-17T11:36:00.000-05:002003-03-17T11:36:07.700-05:00

Bonus CoverageThis piece by Thom Hartmann published at Common Dreams, is very effective propoganda - fact-based propaganda - and a "must read."

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-908500792003-03-17T06:47:00.000-05:002003-03-17T07:01:35.000-05:00

Heigh-hoWe bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb in Iraq the whole day throughTo bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb is what we really like to do"It ain't no trick to get rich quickIf you kill kill kill Saddam," says Dick,"It's all mine! It's all mine! It's all mine! It's all mine! Where a million barrels shine!"We bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb bomb from early morn till nightWe bomb bomb bomb bomb

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-907046312003-03-14T07:08:00.000-05:002003-03-14T07:10:48.000-05:00

Oops, Sorry!First, I'm going to be out of town for the weekend, so no Back Tracks this week. I covered music this week by writing about the Clash on Tuesday, so have touched that base once already. So instead I'm going to raise the specter of "acceptable civilian deaths".There is a small chance we will be at war before I return on Sunday, and a very large chance we will be at war before a week

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-906442662003-03-13T07:26:00.000-05:002003-03-13T07:26:07.670-05:00

Happy Strange ThursdayI recently came across this piece written by science-fiction author Larry Niven, Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex. I don't know what to say. Which, I assure you, is very rare. I think it's the fact that he took the time to reasonably present his thesis and draw logical conclusions from the conundrum. I'll just leave it as a wonderful piece of absurdity.In related surreal

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-906063972003-03-12T15:42:00.000-05:002003-03-12T15:42:00.686-05:00

Coalition of the LonelyIn an article which resembles a weblog entry, the Washington Post does a very good job of looking at the pending resolution by linking to and summarizing articles from selected papers of the member nations. I think it's definately worth a look.The header refers to the US and myself. I feel I'm operating in a vacuum here... oh well, ces't la vie!

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-905810472003-03-12T06:36:00.000-05:002003-03-12T06:47:18.000-05:00

I'm So TiredI've only been publicly commenting on this for like six weeks (private comments began in the middle of 2000 - yes, prior to the election) but I am so tired of US arrogance. Last night Defense Secretary Donald "Old Europe is the one we bombed in WW II" Rumsfeld opened his mouth and said: "What will ultimately be decided is unclear as to their [UK's] role and I think until we know

Eriknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4149923.post-905165632003-03-11T06:51:00.000-05:002003-03-11T06:51:38.390-05:00

Hall of FameLast night was the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction for arguably the best band since The Beatles: The Clash. MTV's Kurt Loder wrote a brief career summation for those unfamiliar with their history. The Clash are not just another "important band", deserving of praise. They are, first and foremost, DAMN GOOD. They started as a simply another punk band inspired by the Sex

Eriknoreply@blogger.com