Aug 24 2009
So I know this person I’ll call Cindy because she really hates that and we work together every year burying bodies for Barzini.
We’re both huge sci-fi fans and it sucks to watch movies without having someone to compare notes with. This last Saturday we went to see Half Blood Prince.
Aug 15 2009
So I google myself tonight and I find my DocuDharma entry second only to my Cliffs Notes.
Not only that, but the two top image results are from What’s for Dinner.
Impact is funny sometimes.
What is famous?
Now frankly, I don’t often think of myself as famous.
buhdy is much more popular than I am and while he admires my writing on certain technical levels (or at least has said so). I don’t like any of it except for particular turns of phrase.
Cheap theatrics I can teach anyone.
Fortunately good writing is the least of your problems if you want to be famous.
Persistence and Regularity
Whatever success I have is entirely due to persistence and regularity.
Well, isn’t that what you expect a writer to say? It’s as big a cliche as thanking Touchdown Jesus.
Eat some fucking bran if you want to be regular.
Establishing a reputation
C’mon, let’s all take the Poet’s Pledge-
I, [the Poet’s name], do hereby solemnly pledge:
To be peculiar in the most unusual way I can cook up
To write excellently, or more especially to be known to write excellently
To master bards of old and bards anew, or at least never give on that I haven’t
To advance in gestures of my own and not in the stirrings of a majority, except where money is at stake
To be perceived as morally suspect, no matter what the truth
To sniff at adulation and pooh-pooh honors no matter how much I crave them
To obey whim and eschew duty, or at least appear to
To rove ruffian-like across continents of poems with ease, or at least make them think so
To engage in ridiculous arguments, all hot and sweaty for my own position
To be judicious only in the judging of my own merits and mean about the others
To die young, or if I linger, to be ignored and abused well
To write tons of crap for every good poem I do write, and obfuscate the difference with rhetoric
To suck up to important editors with honeyed words, and cuff the assistant editors often
To bemoan the sorry state of poetry in my country and do not one damn thing about it
To speak so incoherently that everyone thinks I am a genius
That was my thirteenth diary, not that you should be jealous because like a cesspool only the biggest pieces of crap rise to the surface.
Did I mention that only my Cliffs Notes are more famous than I?
Hornbeck’s character is static. He is as opinionated and iconoclastic, attacking institutions and firmly held beliefs, and he does not change throughout the course of the play. His character is also shallow and one-dimensional.
How do you survive?
Well if people had only understood how much I inhabit my character they would surely have strangled me in my cradle because I can’t dance nearly as well as Gene Kelly.
But stories? I bang on the keyboard every day. I average 40+ comments and 4.5 recs per (when I keep track of such things which I never do).
Attempts to silence me fail on the sheer volume of my record.
It also has this additional benefit which is not to be despised-
People know me and are interested.
On becoming the Paris Hilton of the inter tubz
Alas he has passed to a 72 coke bottle fucking paradise.
You can try Pooty Pics.
Jul 09 2009
So a while back budhy posted an essay that kind of asked us how we stood on the major progressive issues of today.
Are you-
|
Can’t say as I have a disagreement with any of you even if you think I’m not inclusive enough or have mislabeled you.
But if you claim to be a partisan, status quo Progressive…
Well, you’re really not very progressive at all.
One Friedman unit into this Administration it is clear that ‘change’ is not much on the agenda, although hope, delusion, and denial are being dangled like so many jingly keys.
In the Corrida a wise bull focuses on the matador and not the cape.
I’m not distracted by bright and shiny objects and you shouldn’t be either. It is entirely about accountability and whether our Representatives represent the voter or Beltway Special Interests.
Nor am I much in favor of letting apologists, excuse makers, and denialists becoming comfortable in their addiction to partisan power.
If you are not outraged you are not paying attention.
Jul 01 2009
| Can’t seem to get my mind off of you Back here at home there’s nothin’ to do Now that I’m away I wish I’d stayed Tomorrow’s a day of mine that you won’t be in When you looked at me I should’ve run A week without you Vacation Vacation A week without you Vacation Vacation Vacation |
What about I’m busy do people have a hard time understanding?
Follow the bouncing ball.
Jun 07 2009
The populist case against corporate media
C’mon, you’d rather read this.
Fundamentally the entitled class sees their entitled position as a product of merit and diligence rather than birthright even though to an amazing degree they are mostly legacy members of Delta House.
That was Dartmouth.
Much as I love Bluto the fact that he “grew up” to become a United States Senator is hardly a ringing endorsement of Randian world views of dignity and self importance. This culture of courtiers, these Versailles Villages don’t know how close to storming the Bastille we are.
And I mean that in a collapse of the Soviet Empire kind of way.
Are you looking for News in Truth? Or Truth in News? In your country, does it watch you?
Traditional Media has no credibility anymore. And you know how it’s manifesting itself? People ain’t buying your crap.
Verdict of the marketplace of ideas baby, I feel so Stephen Colbert.
They are voting right now with their eyeballs and you are losing the culture war. Perhaps that explains your profane identification with the party of war profiteers, torturers, murderers and thieves.
Or perhaps it is about the dead presidents.
You know why sports stars make the money honey? They entertain every day. They fill the seats. Put butts and bucks in the bucket.
I’m so very sorry cricket is not such a popular game. I find it as fascinating as polo. I have more faith in the WWE.
May 15 2009
1. Nothing to see here.
Obama: “photos that were requested in this case are not particularly sensational, especially when compared to the painful images that we remember from Abu Ghraib.”
2. A few bad apples have been dealt with.
Obama: incidents “were investigated — and, I might add, investigated long before I took office — and, where appropriate, sanctions have been applied….[T]his is not a situation in which the Pentagon has concealed or sought to justify inappropriate action. Rather, it has gone through the appropriate and regular processes. And the individuals who were involved have been identified, and appropriate actions have been taken.”
3. No good would come of this.
Obama: “the publication of these photos would not add any additional benefit to our understanding of what was carried out in the past by a small number of individuals.”
4. We have to protect the troops.
Obama: “In fact, the most direct consequence of releasing them, I believe, would be to further inflame anti-American opinion and to put our troops in greater danger.”
5. There will be a chilling effect.
Obama: “Moreover, I fear the publication of these photos may only have a chilling effect on future investigations of detainee abuse.”
6. This is a new argument, not just the same old excuses.
Gibbs: “The President isn’t going back to remake the argument that has been made. The President is going — has asked his legal team to go back and make a new argument based on national security.”
You should read the whole article because Froomkin pretty much shoots down every one of these excuses.
Hat tip Glenn Greenwald, also worth reading (warning, graphic images).
May 14 2009
Photographs convey the reality of things in a way that mere words cannot. They prevent people who want to deny what was done the ability to do so. They force citizens to face what their country did and what they are now justifying and advocating. They impede the ability of political leaders to use euphemisms to obscure the truth. They show in graphic detail what the effects are of sanctioning torture policies. They prove that this was about more than “dunking three terrorists into water.” They highlight the fact that no decent person believes that this should all just be forgotten and its victims told that they have no right to have accountability. That’s precisely why the photographs are being suppressed: because of how much good they would do.
May 12 2009
It’s tough to keep talking about torture, but we simply have to.
It’s a black and white issue. A bright line between us and the barbarians.
We consider it shameful to kill people without due process of law particularly in brutal fashions memorialized in the Constitution, that scrap of paper, as cruel and unusual punishment.
We don’t beat or stone people to death, it’s hard even to muster much enthusiasm for lethal injection given how often it has been wrongly applied to the objectively innocent. I much prefer the guilty rot in any event without wishing them physical ills like anal rape or beatings and I want that punishment to last as long as possible. I hope you die a lingering death- old, broken, and wasted.
Over 99 people have died in custody and the actual number is probably much higher. I pretty much call that massive organ failure, all of them at once.
Even given the patently illegal latitude of the Torture Memos every guideline was violated. How can you claim that the people physically administering this punishment, the actual torturers, DID NOT KNOW that they were killing people? We have pictures of them posing next to corpses on ice in body bags. We had videos of ACTUAL TORTURE SESSIONS taking place that were destroyed specifically to obstruct justice.
The brazenness of these criminal actions is breathtaking. They have self confessed on video tape and in print. Do you think there is more evidence against them or Drew Petersen?
And we cannot ignore the law-
…
This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.
The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution…
May 10 2009
I tease my mother by calling her Emily after Emily Gilmore both because overall my family reminds me very much of the Gilmores and because she’s never met a brand name she didn’t like whereas I’m perfectly content to buy generic.
I thank her among many things for a thorough grounding in the domestic and other arts.
Mom teaches first grade and is actually famous in a quiet sort of way. The kind parents brag about and angle their kids for though she’s won national awards too. Of course I owe everything I know about educating to her and among my own peers I’m considered an asskicking trainer.
She also insisted we learn to perform routine self maintenance, little things like laundry and ironing, machine and hand mending. basic cooking. Of course she always indulged us with trips to museums and zoos, made sure we got library cards, did the usual bus driver thing to swim practice, had this huge second career as a Brownie/Girl Scout Leader for my sister.
At one point when I was old enough for it to make an impression she took her Masters of Fine Arts in Art of all things, so I know a little Art History with Far Eastern. I understand how to bang out a copper pot and make silver rings because she took me to class once or twice. She liked stained glass so much that she and dad made several pieces (you use a soldering iron and can cut yourself pretty bad so it’s a macho thing too). They also did silk screening which taught me a lot about layout and graphic arts.
But she always liked fabric arts and in addition to a framed three dimensional piece in the living room, there are Afghans and rugs and scarves and pot holders and wash cloths and hats and quilts and dolls.
And the training kits and manuals for her mentorship programs, and the adaptations and costumes for the annual first and fifth grade play. Did I mention she plays 3 instruments, though mostly piano?
She touch types too.
So to Emily, a woman of accomplishment and refinement, Happy Mother’s Day.
Apr 30 2009
I really like DocuDharma and my family does too. My brother actually posts here on occasion and my Aunt is a regular reader.
What they tell me sets this place apart is that we are mellow and relaxed and I definitely think that’s the kind of atmosphere that buhdy and the rest of the founders intended to create, a space where you are free to express yourself in ways that are not rigidly limited by considerations of electoral victory.
I think our site’s tone is an accurate reflection of it’s readership and contributors. I’ve always tried to feature the essays of others. My opinions are mine to the extent I express them and to me that includes signing off on my promotions though I don’t always check every link. All the Contributing Editors have the power to promote or at least draw attention to content so if you feel you’ve been unfairly overlooked all I can say is I’m sorry my arbitrary laziness offended.
While others aspire to more lofty goals I’m happy that we can give some exposure and consideration to content that might get missed at faster paced blogs, not that we’re slow. We have 14 regularly scheduled slots a day that we mostly fill with member promotions.
Our anchor spots are mishima’s Late Night Karoke (3 am et) and early morning (7:30 am et) DocuDharma Times, Robyn’s (6 am et) Muse in the Morning, and Magnifico’s 4 @ 4 (pm, et).
Almost every day buhdy has something to say around 2 pm (et).
The regular weekly contributors are mishima again with Random Japan Fridays midnight (et), Pony Parties are published 2 pm (et) Wednesdays and 11 am (et) Sundays. I kick in with Weekend News Digests on Saturdays and Sundays at 4 pm (et), Monday Business Update and Wednesday Science Supplement at 8 am (et). Robyn has Friday Philosophy (6 pm et), Nightprowlkitty the aptly named Friday Night at 8 (pm et). NLinStPaul is Sunday at 11 am (et).
Otherwise it’s up to you.
The payoff should be eyeballs. In addition to the editorial freedom you have to create something that conforms to your own “artistic vision” (that I have no hesitation crushing like a bug without explanation should I decide to promote you), everything you publish here is more exposure for your work.
You can’t count on comments to measure effectiveness, between us and Democrats.com we’ve rounded up about 50,000 signatures urging AG Holder to prosecute torture.
But the bottom line is that I want to encourage your active participation- commenting, publishing, and contributing. I value the service we provide and I hope you do too.
Also.
Apr 29 2009
Purity
Some people are using Arlen Specter as an example of what happens to a party that demands “purity”. Instead it’s a perfect example of “beltway think”.
You see Arlen feels his 29 years as a Washington Weasel entitles him to another six regardless of his constituents.
He is a valuable unique man. A Galtian architect of policy. A super hero of moderate conservatism and upholder of the two party system.
A thoroughgoing Villager with no connection to the voting public he supposedly Represents.
He actually represents only those interests who promote and provide his lifestyle of privilege and uses his power only to protect them from the righteous wrath of the shafted 99%.
What an aristocrat.
What a vain pompous ass.
How typical.
Apr 17 2009
They are all war criminals, from the nice looking Mormon sadists who call themselves doctors, to the twisted bureaucrats in the Justice Department who call themselves lawyers, to the top leadership of the Bush administration who sat there and watched choreographed torture sessions in the White House and have the utter gall to call themselves human. They all knew that what they were doing was repulsive and immoral. That’s why went to such lengths to ensure that all of it was approved with all the is dotted and all the ts crossed all the way to the very top and back down again. They all implicated each other.
Apparently, they assumed that nobody would ever prosecute even one of these very important, upstanding members of their professions for horrific crimes such as these because if onw went down they would all go down. And apparently they were right.
And no reflection or retribution is not the answer. Prosecution is the answer. If these aren’t criminal acts, nothing is. It’s the stuff of nightmares.
The more one reads of this, the harder it is to credit Obama’s statement today that “this is a time for reflection, not retribution.” At least when it comes to the orders of our highest government leaders and the DOJ lawyers who authorized them, these are pure war crimes, justified in the most disgustingly clinical language and with clear intent of wrongdoing. FDL has a petition urging Eric Holder to immediately appoint a Special Prosecutor to determine if criminal proceedings should commence.
Obama did the right thing by releasing these memos, providing all the information and impetus the citizenry should need to demand investigations and prosecutions. But it is up to citizens to demand that the rule of law be applied.
Needless to say, I vehemently disagree with anyone — including Obama — who believes that prosecutions are unwarranted. These memos describe grotesque war crimes — legalized by classic banality-of-evil criminals and ordered by pure criminals — that must be prosecuted if the rule of law is to have any meaning. But the decision of whether to prosecute is not Obama’s to make; ultimately, it is Holder’s and/or a Special Prosectuor’s. More importantly, Obama can only do so much by himself. The Obama administration should, on its own, initiate criminal proceedings, but the citizenry also has responsibilities here. These acts were carried out by our Government, and if we are really as repulsed by them as we claim, then the burden is on us to demand that something be done.
Mr. President, when you say we must “come together on behalf of our common future” you are entirely correct. We must focus on getting things right in the future, as opposed to looking at what we got wrong in the past.
That means prosecuting all those involved in the Bush administration’s torture of prisoners, even if the results are nominal punishments, or merely new laws. Your only other option is to let this set and fester indefinitely. Because, Sir, some day there will be another Republican president, or even a Democrat just as blind as Mr. Bush to ethics and this country’s moral force. And he will look back to what you did about Mr. Bush. Or what you did not do.
This must not be. “It is our intention,” you said today, “to assure those who carried out their duties relying in good faith upon legal advice from the Department of Justice that they will not be subject to prosecution.” Mr. President, you are making history’s easiest, most often made, most dangerous mistake – you are accepting the defense that somebody was “just following orders.” At the end of his first year in office, Mr. Lincoln tried to contextualize the Civil War for those who still wanted to compromise with evils of secession and slavery. “The struggle of today,” Lincoln wrote, “is not altogether for today. It is for a vast future also.”
Mr. President, you have now been handed the beginning of that future. Use it to protect our children and our distant descendants from anything like this ever happening again – by showing them that those who did this, were neither unfairly scapegoated nor absolved. It is good to say “we won’t do it again.” It is not, however…enough.
