| oh Sarah Palin... |
[Nov. 19th, 2009|11:28 am] |
From ThinkProgress:
In an interview with ABC’s Barbara Walters, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin separated herself from decades of U.S. policy — which has held that Israel’s settlements in the Occupied Territories are illegitimate and an impediment to peace — saying that she thinks “Jewish settlements should be allowed to expand."WALTERS: The Obama administration does not want Israel to build any more settlements on what they consider Palestinian territory. What is your view on this?
PALIN: I disagree with the Obama administration on that. I believe that the Jewish settlements should be allowed to be expanded upon, because that population of Israel is, is going to grow. More and more Jewish people will be flocking to Israel in the days and weeks and months ahead. And I don’t think that the Obama administration has any right to tell Israel that the Jewish settlements cannot expand.
WALTERS: Even if it’s [in] Palestinian areas?
PALIN: I believe that the Jewish settlements should be allowed to be expand.
Not only does Palin disagree with the Obama administration on that, she also disagrees with the Bush administration, whose 2002 “roadmap for peace” called for a settlement freeze. In fact, every U.S. administration since Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and Gaza began in 1967 has opposed Israel’s building of settlements, which are held to be illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention:
Article 49. The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.
In addition to violating Israel’s obligations under international law, the settlements are a major source of anger and frustration for Palestinians, and one of the main drivers of extremism and violence among both Palestinians and Israelis. By further entrenching Israel within the Palestinian territories, the settlements also make a two-state solution — which both Presidents Bush and Obama have recognized as a central U.S. national security interest — far more difficult to achieve. Palin’s wild views on Jewish settlements might help her steal some radical right-wing religious support from Mike Huckabee, but they have disastrous implications both for U.S. and Israeli security, as well as for Palestinian national and human rights. |
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| Halloween fun in Times Square! |
[Nov. 5th, 2009|11:01 pm] |
My brother and I had a great time at a Halloween party in nyc hosted by my friends Rob & Doug. My brother got a bit drunk, and when the taxi let us off in Times Square near his apartment, some photo and video opportunities arose... My brother got into it, and we had a great time. See for yourself...
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| My movie of the National Equality March |
[Oct. 22nd, 2009|10:44 pm] |
This is a movie I made of my experience down in DC, marching in the National Equality March on October 11th.
I took a bus from New York City down to DC with my brother, then met up with my friends James and Dean and stayed in a hotel with them.
The movie captures what it was like and the feeling I had as we marched past the White House, to the US Capitol building. It felt very important. I hope it made a bit of a difference.
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| Cynthia Nixon's words at the National Equality March, Oct 11 |
[Oct. 14th, 2009|11:10 am] |
"I am prouder than ever to be from New York today because last month my Congressman Gerald Nadler introduced a bill that will at long last repeal the hateful, discriminatory, and absurdly named: Defense of Marriage Act.
I don't have a lot of time up here, and I have two things I want to say... We are gathered here today, from all over the United States. And back home, many of us are deeply embroiled in the particular local battles that we're fighting. But today is a national rally, and when we walk away from here tonight, we need to walk away with a common national resolve. And that resolve must be that each one of us will do everything in his or her power in the coming months to see that Gerry's bill is passed and that DOMA is finally repealed. This is a goal that is both lofty and winnable and it should be our number one shared priority. Because even if we manage to pass same sex marriage in every one of the 50 states, it will still be of only limited value. If for example, I cannot leave my wife my Social Security benefits should I die. Barack Obama himself, two years ago, began calling for DOMA's repeal, and it's time for us to make the President move beyond words. The right sentiment just isn't enough any more. We need to make him throw his full weight, and the full weight of his administration, behind making our equal treatment a reality.
The second point that I want to make has to do with our next speaker, who is Judy Shepard. And I want to say a few words about her son Matthew, and about our right to marry. Our right to marry is of paramount importance, whether you as an individual gay person listening to me right now want to get married now or ever. It is important because when a country has different laws for different categories of people, it sends its population a message. That the different group of people with lesser rights are somehow inferior and less deserving of respect, and are in fact not wholly human. And that message is heard loud and clear by the worst elements in our society. And it instructs them that if they are looking for someone to bully, or beat, or even kill, if they are looking for someone vulnerable to prey upon, gay people are a ready target. And that is why this movement is not just about our ability to get married. It's not just about our ability to have a party and invite all our friends. It's not even just about our ability to stand up publicly and declare our love for the person we want to spend the rest of our life with. It is about demanding equal rights. Equal responsibilities. Equal opportunities. Equal treatment. And equal protection under the law. So that we can herald in a new day, and so that no parent will ever have to endure what our next speaker has endured. Ladies and gentlemen, Judy Shepard." |
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| I am going to Washington DC |
[Oct. 8th, 2009|11:30 am] |
Tomorrow I am going to Washington DC with my brother
and meeting up with my friends James and Dean
for a weekend to demonstrate for
equality.
in the National Equality March.
Our love is as good as anybody's.
And this song will be my theme:
"Love Shine a Light"
Katrina and the wavesLove shine a light, in every corner of my heart
Let the love light carry, let the love light carry
Lite up the magic in every little part
Let our love shine a light, in every corner of our hearts
Love shine a light, in every corner of my dreams
Let the love light carry, let the love light carry
Like the mighty river, flowing from the stream
Let our love shine a light, in every corner of my dreams.
And we're all gonna shine a light together
All shine a light to light a way
Brothers and sisters, in every little part
Let our love shine a light, in every corner of our hearts
Love shine a light, in every corner of the world
Let the love light carry, let the love light carry
Light up the magic, for every boy and girl
Let our love shine a light, in every corner of the world
And we're all gonna shine a light together
All shine a light to light a way
Brothers and sisters, in every little part
Let our love shine a light, in every corner of my heart.
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| T |
[Sep. 16th, 2009|09:58 am] |
And when he smiles
he makes the sun shine
He wouldn't think to make it rain
Happiness runs in the family
And he's a boy from the good old earth
and the high tree forest
And he's just about the happiest boy
that I ever knew
And when he smiles
he makes me sigh
He doesn't have a point of view
Happiness runs in the family
And he's a boy from the good old earth
and the high tree forest
And he's just about the happiest boy
that I ever knew
And when he smiles
he makes the sun shine
And warms the day with morning dew
Happiness runs in the family
And he's a boy from the good old earth
and the high tree forest
And he's just about the happiest boy
that I ever knew
I LOVE THIS SONG!
It's a live performance at the BBC in 1971.
It features Karen on drums and lead vocal.
But the best part of it for me is the instrumental from 1:17 to 2:07.
The instrumental is so joyous and SO early 70s!
It reminds me of a Peanuts special, with Snoopy and the gang dancing all around.
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| (no subject) |
[Sep. 3rd, 2009|07:57 pm] |
Around the corner from me, there is a Burger King. I almost never go there. I just never think of it, and I prefer McDonalds on the rare occasion that I have fast food. About a month ago I noticed that there were some renovations happening on this Burger King building. Then I noticed the free-standing Burger King sign, where there were sometimes letters that read "BK Broiler 99 cents" or whatever, said: "Burger King is closed." Then I noticed the renovations were very extensive. They were doing some serious work! They totally redid the parking area. They added details to the windows, walls, rooflines. They added stonework even, which I love.   
What swanky restaurant was this going to be, I wondered!?!
( And then I got my answer... )
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| Giant Mama House Cricket |
[Aug. 31st, 2009|07:37 pm] |
Once again I have house crickets.
They are silent.
There are just too many, so I bought glue boards and so far
17 of the crickets have walked or jumped onto the glue boards and got stuck and couldn't move and died.
I havent seen the giant mama one though since mid july... I wondered if it died on its own...
and then....
this morning....
THERE IT WAS! Giant Mama! Stuck on the glue board!
she finally hopped her way on there!!
And just now, as I got home,
I entered my bedroom AND SHE WAS GONE!!!
Can you BELIEVE that!
And you know what else was gone??? One of the dead ones!!! SHE ATE IT!!!!
And so I'm sitting here all creeped out
that this thing is in here somewhere with me
and suddenly THERE SHE IS IN THE CORNER!!!
Totally alive! 15 feet from the glue board!
and so I ran and got the RAID
and got one good spray on her
(SHE'S BEEN SPRAYED BEFORE, MIND YOU)
and she hopped and twitched hysterically
and now she's under my bed! I think...
Alive? dead? I don't KNOW!!!!
She must be really mad now!
How did she get off the glue board????
She must have twitched with all her might!
She didn't appear dead this morning--
I could see her big antennas moving
and I figured it was only a matter of time, like all the others,
before she got tired and just fell down,
crumpled into a mess of insect legs and antennas
onto the glue board
and expired there.
How on earth did she back off of it?
and still manage to EAT one of her own on there? |
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| book |
[Aug. 10th, 2009|01:34 pm] |
 I just finished reading this book. And it was FANTASTIC. It deals with addiction, recovery, rehab, AIDS. All hot button topics in my family. So it touched me personally. One of the best books I have ever read. |
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| Smokescreen |
[Aug. 10th, 2009|01:25 pm] |
The U.S. economy lost 247,000 jobs in July.
At the same time, the unemployment rate declined from 9.5% to 9.4%.
This was treated as good news.
BUT THE ECONOMY LOST 247,000 JOBS!
A year ago, this sort of number would be equated with the worst imaginable doomsday scenario.
But today, it's good news!
Yes, 247,000 is much better than it was in each the previous 6 months or so.
But let's not kid ourselves. It is a very bad number.
And here is something that I have not seen written anywhere.
Not one journalist figured out this simple economic truth from these statistics:
How do you get a loss of jobs resulting in an improving unemployment rate?
By a decrease in the number of people in the labor force,
i.e., a decrease in the (number of people employed + those looking for work).
That is the only way.
This means that thousands of people dropped out of the labor force in July.
Some of them "retired," I imagine.
Most of them just gave up looking for work.
Let's call those people the "hidden unemployed."
Their numbers are still growing. In sum, the employment picture is not as bad as it was. But it is not good. |
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| Rachel Maddow is a great American |
[Aug. 6th, 2009|11:30 pm] |
I have such a crush on Rachel Maddow.
Now she's outdone herself.
Just watch...
Watch, and then
talk to people about this.
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| Intriguing |
[Aug. 4th, 2009|10:17 am] |
Dr. L. Edie, economist for Investment Research Corp. of Detroit, disagrees with consensus among economists, predicts only mild recovery in fall followed by renewed slump in winter and full recovery not until Spring. Cautions against “wish thinking.” Predicts long-term uptrend in market although interrupted by “radical and sharp” fluctuations.
From The Wall Street Journal, Aug 3, 1930. |
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| Odd |
[Jul. 24th, 2009|11:54 am] |
For the past year or so, I have noticed that a few pseudo-intense lean muscleboys carry around a gallon jug of water in the gym. What on earth is the purpose of this? Is it their plan to drink an entire gallon of water during a workout? Because I have never seen one near empty.
I will wager that this practice has been featured as the new thing to "must do" in the likes of Mens Fitness, Muscle and Fitness, Flex, etc. |
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| News flash |
[Jul. 22nd, 2009|11:48 am] |
Harvard Economic Survey predicts business upturn in second half; cites increase in construction projects, stock market improvement, steadier commodity prices.
- The Wall Street Journal, 22 July 1930. |
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| Provincetown Bear Week |
[Jul. 21st, 2009|11:26 am] |
Two days ago I returned from a 7 day vacation to Provincetown, MA for bear week. I went with two friends, Frankie and James. It was a great time. Great setting, very relaxing, but also crazy fun.
Yesterday I made a movie summarizing the experience:
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| Note. |
[Jul. 21st, 2009|11:19 am] |
"The pace of decline appears to have slowed significantly" - Ben Bernanke, chairman of the Federal Reserve, 21 July 2009.
This means the economy is still declining.
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| DADT |
[Jul. 10th, 2009|11:12 am] |
More than 13,000 Americans have been kicked out of the military, for being gay.
Pause and think about that for a moment. |
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| Wacked out right-winger |
[Jul. 9th, 2009|09:41 pm] |
This made me shake my head:
"In 1754, Lt. Col. George Washington quit the Virginia militia, an obscure fact that now seems a bit more interesting in the wake of Gov. Sarah Palin's resignation in Alaska," - Paul Whitfield, Investor's Business Daily.
Let's see... I hear that Sarah Palin and Jesus both like fishing.
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| 1930. |
[Jul. 1st, 2009|10:31 am] |
Have you noticed how the media spins bad economic news now?
"Good news! Car sales dropped 27% from a year ago! Results better than expected and better than last month's 30% drop!"
Wait a second. This isn't good news...car sales are still in the dumps and are still declining! The same reporting happens with housing numbers: Home prices declined by 18% in the past year, so they are getting better because last month they were down 19%! Um, how about an increase? Or at least a lack of a decrease? That to me would be the definition of getting better. And jobless numbers: Yay, 'only' 400,000 jobs lost this month! Much better than last month's 500,000 loss! Huh? I recently found a blog that highlights articles from The Wall Street Journal on this date in 1930, a year after the financial markets collapsed, but before the really bad economic pattern unfolded in 1932 and 1933 leading to the depression that lasted until 1940.
It is amazing to spot the similarities between then and now. I'm not saying we are in for a prolonged depression. I just find it interesting how "prosperity is just around the corner" in 1930, just as the blind optimists are saying today. These highlights are directly from The Wall Street Journal in June 1930:
Survey of Illinois Manufacturers Association finds slow but sure recovery in business, expects improvement in second half of 1930 with profits for year as large as 1928, and further improvement in 1931.
Congressional subcommittee praises strategy of accelerating public works projects to moderate unemployment in business slowdown, emphasizes good psychological effect of doing this quickly. Market observers see some hopeful signs: buying support is now coming out for stocks when they approach recent lows, and volume has been low in response to bear operations. Anticipate a possible quiet period rather than strong rally - this is typical of the end of bear markets.
Central Trust of Illinois says economy seems to be recently improving from end of 1929 and first months of 1930.
D.M. Marvin, economist for Royal Bank of Canada, says present depression caused by tight credit; points out that in spite of low rediscount rate many banks are not lending due to poor balance sheets; total credit extended by the Fed.
City Bank of NY criticizes blind optimism about an upturn earlier in the year, but also cautions against excessive pessimism. Based on history, depressions usually turn around sometime in the year following their start; consumption hasn't fallen as much as production, leading to eventual rebalancing.
Inventories at major corporations are low as they've been in years - this should lead to heavy buying when business turns up.
Labor Secretary Davis says business is definitely turning up in the East, predicts reasonable prosperity within the next year.
We've heard THAT before! |
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| Time for a poll ! |
[Jun. 25th, 2009|11:23 pm] |
About how many Michael Jackson songs do you have stored in your itunes or equivalent?
Poll #1421274 Michael Jackson
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 20About how many Michael Jackson songs are in your itunes?
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