Inner Dialogue
THE MORNING BRIEF, Vol. IV, #45 (November 5, 2001) --- Am I talking to me?
CONTENTS
Blair in
Between
Monday Morning Strategist
The Air Up There
More Conspiracy Theories
---
Media Half Life
Super Double Dingus
Going Places, Meeting Places
iTunes 2
Tootsie Ennui
---
FLICKAGE: "The Man Who Wasn't There"
TOONAGE: Deep Dish @ The Mayan
The Emmies
How to Win the Big Award
Turning Points
---
SIX DISK CHANGER
---
CONTRIBUTIONS
---
UPCOMING
CONCERTS
BLAIR IN BETWEEN >>> Important to the American-led effort to invade Afghanistan is the public support of British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Blair's continued endorsement provides an important third party buffer between America, Europe and other leading nations. It's one thing for President Bush to discuss his agenda and attempt to frame the debate for the rest of the world. But when Blair speaks up, he legitimizes these interests, sort of seconding the motions of American activity from outside of the U.S. That he's doing so quite eloquently is to his credit, and America's benefit.
MONDAY MORNING STRATEGIST >>> If it wasn't clear already, Osama bin Laden's video characterizing America's "Christian crusade" against Islam points out the questionable value of public prayer by the nation that invented the concept, "separation of church and state." Do we really need God's blessing on everything, including sporting events? A wise God might think our sporting events pointless and hedonistic (except for this year's World Series which rocked).
Why not just talk about justice? Fundamentalist Muslims can't wait to kill us and themselves in the name of God. Maybe it isn't the best time to exponentially increase the God content in our public dialogue. Does praying out loud mean that God can hear you better? I'm concerned that the only ones really listening are the Muslims.
THE AIR UP THERE >>> A lingering reminder to New Yorkers of the September 11 attacks is the still fouled air in the city. Already freshness-challenged, the Manhattan atmosphere continues to be saturated with the toxins, smoke and stench of the still smoldering Ground Zero. Add to this the loss, the grief, the stress of living in a city so brutally affronted, and it's easy to see why New Yorkers deserve our love, sympathy and respect. It may be the greatest city in the world, but living there today requires greatness from its people, too.
MORE CONSPIRACY THEORIES >>> Why do you suppose that biochemical terrorists sent anthrax to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daischle? Not really the person who comes to mind when you think of American policy in Eurasia and the Middle East. Maybe it's nothing, but is it totally out of the realm of possibility that some conservative elements might be using this as an opportunity to take a cheap shot at their liberal counterparts? Maybe this is the cheap shot. But you grow up in the shadow of all that conservative hi-jinx and it's hard not to wonder what the next transgression might be.
MEDIA HALF LIFE >>> Have you broken down and bought a DVD player and a bunch of disks to feed it? Or are you waiting for all of it to come via Internet? Studios and producers are rushing to get their films out on DVD before the next paradigm shift. Will you bite, or will you wait?
Funny thing about the evolution of technology. Not so many years ago, people imagined radios becoming smaller and more portable. Visionaries tempted futurists with wild inventions like wrist radios. Now you can buy a radio the size of a credit card, or a ballpoint pen. Those days are here now, but who wants to use them?
SUPER DOUBLE DINGUS >>> No matter what grandstand play Geraldo Rivera makes, he'll still be the muckraker who celebrated the O.J. Trial and showed us a lot of live nothing in Al Capone's Vault.
GOING PLACES, MEETING PLACES >>> More on the never-ending compare/contrast between New Yorkers and Los Angelenos. In New York, the proximity of the city and the convenience of mass transportation reduces the barriers to going places by yourself. Just showing up. Serendipity. Whereas in Los Angeles the distance between us requires coordination, carpooling, making plans. People take their own cars places, even if it's not particularly space or energy efficient, because they want the freedom to come and go as they please in the big city. If we had a viable means of mass transportation, we'd have more freedom, and less traffic. But we'll never have viable mass transit in L.A., so you can forget about that.
iTUNES 2 >>> Not a major overhaul, but the new features really make a difference. Cross-fading for more seamless mixes. Graphic equalizer and sound enhancements make the music sound better on your Mac, and when burned to CD. And burn time is down to 11 minutes for an 80-minute CD on an 8x burner. Add compatiblity with new iPod and the ability to burn MP3 CDs and the best consumer music software just got better.
TOOTSIE ENNUI >>> It's a Halloween-time indulgence: lime Tootsie Rolls, that waxy, chewy tartness taking me back to fall in St. Louis; turning leaves, walking to school, stopping by Spicer's Five and Dime for a treat, dreaming what life would be like when I grow up. Lime Tootsie Rolls whenever I want them. Only on Halloween. To take me back.
FLICKAGE: "The Man Who Wasn't There" >>> Hubris. The Achilles Heel of the creatively inclined. Hubris makes movies like "Heaven's Gate" and "Waterworld." Hubris creates the travesty that is the post-"Thriller" King of Pop. Gary Hart challenging the journalists to catch him cheating. And I contend that hubris is the culprit behind two recent, huge cinematic disappointments: Joel and Ethan Coen's "The Man Who Wasn't There," and David Lynch's self-indulgent, incomplete "Mulholland Drive."
A time-proven fan of the filmmaking Coen Brothers, owning either VHS, DVD, or screenplay copies of "Barton Fink," "Miller's Crossing," "Raising Arizona," "Fargo," and "Hudsucker Proxy," I'm always willing to give them the benefit of a doubt. In "O Brother Where Art Thou," they scored with their most ambitiously complex venture yet: a Southern-fried gospel adaptation of "The Odyssey." It would certainly take more than a few bad reviews to keep me away from their next film. And the early reviews were overwhelmingly positive. I couldn't wait to see what would come next.
So I caught "The Man Who Wasn't There" on opening day, last Friday. Sadly, the thing that wasn't there was the movie. Affecting performances by Billy Bob Thornton and Tony Shalhoub along with decent efforts from Frances McDormand and James Gandolfini go for naught in the Coen's weakest screenplay yet. Scattered like "The Big Lebowski," in love with being clever like "Hudsucker Proxy" (sans the charm), and dire as the John Goodman sub-plot of "Barton Fink," it's almost a Best of the Worst of their previous work, recycled and packaged into an obsequeous film noir.
The Coen Brothers reputation has been hard-earned, and will surely overcome the dreariness of this bleak little film. Critics now know better than to slam one of their films because they're almost always smart, smarter than most critics at least. But I've never been bored by a Coen Brothers' effort, and "The Man Who Wasn't There" was a real snoozer. Maybe time will be kind to this obviously well-crafted film. But I got nothing from the experience beyond disappointment.
TOONAGE: Deep Dish @ The Pool >>> When you're talking live DJ experiences, there's Deep Dish, Sasha and Digweed, and all the rest. Behind "Global Underground: Moscow," their second major release this year, Deep Dish brought their anthemic house with big beats to The Pool in Hollywood. A very cool mid-sized venue that somehow manages to avoid becoming a sardine can, The Pool features a big, central dance floor where the music is loud and you can get sweaty. Plus there's three terraced floors to spread out and dance, observe, or chill. Spacious enough and visually dramatic, the Pool was brilliant for Saturday's show.
A Deep Dish show isn't so much a concert as a ticket to a new world. The mix is danceable, listenable, infinitely intelligent. Transitions are seamless, and the whole team seems to be having fun while Sharam Tayebi and Ali "Dubfire" Shirazinia take their turns on the boards. The music is accessible without being populist, clever and often joyous. There's great craftsmanship behind the mixing, transitions, the pacing of the show. Words are used to evoke images and ideas; tracks are never bogged down by the words. These guys are pioneers, and the only thing more fun than watching them work is letting the music make you move.
THE EMMIES >>>
HOW TO WIN THE BIG AWARD >>> Make the topic of your movie/program/documentary/short anything about the Holocaust, then get Barbra Streisand to star/sing/edit/co-executive produce and you're going to walk off with a statuette. Guaranteed.
TURNING POINTS >>> It was an age of innocence. Of hope, and fantasy, and unbridled optimism. Until the day when those little packs of Sweet-Tarts went from 4 tarts to 3. Now there's that empty space at the end of the pack where the fourth Tart used to be. And the world spins on.
@ @ @
SIX-DISK CHANGER >>> With the New Order's first new album in six years.
1. Chocolate Genius, "Godmusic"
Soul, heart, intelligence, art. Marc Anthony Thompson beats the sophomore jinx.
2. Aphex Twin, "Drukqs" Disk 1
Complex, diverse, wildly original; Aphex Twin lives up to the promise with two CDs full of great ideas.
3. Sparklehorse, "Good Morning Spider"
Brooding, gorgeous, haunting. Clearly the work of a mad, musical genius.
4. Zero 7, "Simple Things"
My favorite record of this year; emotional, rich, so old it's new. Simply perfect.
5. Deep Dish, "Moscow" Disk 2
Evolving their driving house sound into deep, intelligent trance, no one's making better recordings than these guys right now.
6. The Beta Band, "Hot Shots II"
The pioneers of tie-dyed techno. Cool, moody trip-hop and funky break-beat.
7. New Order, "Get Ready"
A case can be made that New Order are the forebearers of the modern techno-movement. With "Get Ready" the band seems to be getting comfortable in this role. The band's still making that characteristic blend of real guitars with sound samples. The lyrics are deadpan, yet subtly catchy. Their Joy Division roots have never been more visible; an endearment to those fearing a sell-out. And a very fresh album from a group that's been making new sounds for a very long time. They're not getting older; just re-ordered.
@ @ @
Have a great week.
Your pal,
David.
_______________________________________
Talkin' to myself, and likin' what I'm hearin'.
_______________________________________
The Morning Brief can be read every wwweek @ www.smmirror.com -- in the Web Stuff section.
You can also find prior Briefs at www.morningbrief.net if you've got the time. Or load it up from www.avantgo.com and get your Briefs to go.
====
DISCLAIMAGE >>> Please feel free to forward The Morning Brief to whomever you like. If you do, in part or in segments, or if you'd like to re-publish, please copy me or just let me know. Thanks for reading!
====
Notable shows in and around Southern
California.
Highly
recommended shows this color.
Red
alert; must see!
11.06.01 -
Superchunk @ Knitting Factory Hollywood
11.06.01
- The Beta Band @ The Mayan
11.06.01
- Built to Spill @ House of Blues
11.07.01 - Built to Spill @ House of Blues
11.08.01
- Lee Scratch Perry w/Mad Professor @ El Rey Theatre
11.09.01 - Sounds
Eclectic Evening (Sparklehorse, Pete Yorn, Elliott Smith, Ozomatli) @
Wiltern Theatre
11.10.01
- Momus @ Knitting Factory Hollywood
11.11.01
- MeShell Ndegeocello @ Roxy Theatre
---
11.12.01
- U2 w/ No Doubt @ Staples Center
11.12.01 - MeShell Ndegeocello @ Roxy Theatre
11.12.01
- The Roots @ House of Blues
11.13.01
- Spiritualized @ Wiltern Theatre
11.13.01 - U2 w/ No Doubt @ Staples Center
11.13.01 - Femi Kuti @ House of Blues
11.14.01
- Maxwell @ Shrine Auditorium
11.15.01
- Digweed/Sasha @ Mayan Theatre
11.15.01 - Mr. Scruff @ Sugar
11.15.01
- King Crimson w/John Paul Jones @ Universal Amphitheatre
11.15.01 - Uziq @ El Rey Theatre
11.15.01 - Tori Amos w/Rufus Wainwright @ Wiltern Theatre
11.15.01 - Beachwood
Sparks @ The Troubadour
11.16.01
- Bill Frisell, Petra Haden @ Knitting Factory Hollywood
11.16.01
- Tori Amos w/Rufus Wainwright @ Wiltern Theatre
11.17.01 - G. Love & Special Sauce w/Nikka Costa @ Hollywood
Palladium
11.17.01 - Tori Amos w/Rufus Wainwright @ Wiltern Theatre
---
11.19.01
- U2 w/ No Doubt @ Staples Center
11.21.01
- Frank Black (acoustic) @ The Mint
11.23.01 - Mike Watt @
Knitting Factory Hollywood
11.23.01 - Weezer w/Tenacious D @ Long Beach Arena
11.24.01
- Stereolab @ The Palace
11.24.01
- Nikka Costa w/ Miranda Lee Richards @ Knitting Factory
Hollywood
11.25.01
- Stereolab @ The Palace
---
11.26.01
- Nortec Collective @ El Rey Theatre
11.27.01 - Natalie Merchant @ Royce Hall
11.29.01 - India Arie
and Mystic
11.29.01 - Poe @ Roxy Theatre
11.29.01
- Diamanda Galas @ Royce Hall
11.30.01 - Goldfrapp @
Knitting Factory Hollywood
12.01.01
- Bebel Gilberto @ House of Blues
12.01.01 - Goldfrapp @
Knitting Factory Hollywood
---
12.02.01
- Tindersticks @ El Rey Theatre
12.02.01
- Eels @ Roxy Theatre
12.03.01
- Mercury Rev @ The Troubadour
12.04.01 - Robert Earl
Keen @ The Roxy Theatre
12.05.01
- Wilco @ El Rey Theatre
12.06.01 - Wilco @ El Rey Theatre
12.08.01 - Jane
Siberry @ Knitting Factory Hollywood
12.08.01 - Warren Miller's Cold Fusion @ Wadsworth Theatre
---
12.09.01
- Etta James @ House of Blues
12.12.01 - Elton John @ Universal Amphitheatre
---
1.12.02
- Blind Boys of Alabama @ Royce Hall
1.18.02 - Buena Vista Social Club (Gonzales/Ferrer) @ Royce Hall
1.19.02 - Buena Vista Social Club (Gonzales/Ferrer) @ Royce Hall
2.07.02 - Baaba Maal @ Royce Hall
2.09.02 - Laurie Anderson @ Royce Hall
2.17.01 - The Coen Brothers and Down from the Mountain @ Universal
Amphitheatre
__________________________
HAVE YOU seen something amazing? HAVE YOU figured something out? HAVE YOU found a new haven? HAVE YOU changed your mind recently? HAVE YOU got a bug in your butt? HAVE YOU been remembering to breathe?
RE: MEANWHILE, IN CONSERVATIVEVILLE >>> In this time of national crisis, amid calls for sacrifice, we're deeply troubled by the choices of the Republican party's right-wing leadership. Here's their idea of an economic stimulus package*:
$1.4 billion for IBM
$833 million for General Motors
$671 million for General Electric
$572 million for Chevron Texaco
$254 million for Enron
This is war profiteering, and it's just plain wrong. Yet the House has just approved it, on a virtual party line vote, ending the recent spirit of cooperation in Congress. Last week, while our nation was reeling from the Anthrax threat, the House voted to repeal the Alternative Minimum Tax on corporations. This law normally requires hugely profitable companies to pay at least some tax, no matter how many loopholes they can find. Its repeal would allow many companies to pay zero U.S. income tax in perpetuity - a loss of more than $12 billion in revenue next year alone.
The repeal is retroactive, so companies would get rebates of all the Alternative Minimum Tax they've paid for the last 15 years. The numbers above are a sampling of these rebates.
The House also voted to allow corporations to store their profits overseas as a tax shelter. That's right - this "stimulus" would actually take money _out_ of the U.S. economy. It's backwards.
The right approach to stimulus is to put more money in the hands of everyday people who need it most - by expanding unemployment insurance, for example. People living marginally will spend it quickly on consumer goods, so it circulates through the economy, benefiting everyone.
Helping people would make economic sense. Giving billions in tax breaks to America's biggest corporations doesn't.
The Senate could vote on stimulus as early as this week. Speak up at:
http://www.moveon.org/warprofiteering/
Thank you. We must all fight this together.
-- Wes Boyd (MoveOn.org).
RE: THE OTHER WAR >>> Unable to find Osama bin Laden (news - web sites) or dismantle al Qaeda, the Bush administration has attacked an easier target &emdash; the 960 mostly AIDS (news - web sites) and cancer patients of the Los Angeles Cannabis Resource Center.
Thirty agents from the federal Drug Enforcement Administration raided the West Hollywood center last Thursday. They detained eight patient/staffers for six hours and seized 400 plants, bagged marijuana and brownies, patient and doctors' records, computers, and growing equipment. "The effect on people's health will be devastating," said center president Scott Imler, who has epilepsy. "I don't understand why America is declaring war on its own."
No arrests were made. The center remains open, but the dispensary is closed, forcing members onto the black market to receive their medicine.
The basis for the raid is the long-standing state-vs.&endash;federal government dispute over who has say over drug laws. In 1996, California voters approved Proposition 215, which gave patients the right to possess medical marijuana. The federal government has refused to recognize the law in California and eight other states and Washington, D.C., which have passed similar medical-marijuana measures. Last May, the U.S. Supreme Court (news - web sites) ruled against the reopening of an Oakland club, a decision cited in last week's search warrant.
The center's leadership has yet to announce its legal strategy, or if it will try to restore its operation, which serves 960 members, 80 percent of whom have AIDS and use marijuana to combat wasting syndrome and the nausea from multiple medications. Another 10 percent have cancer, for which cannabis is a time-honored treatment during chemotherapy. The remainder suffer from assorted ailments, including glaucoma and multiple sclerosis.
The center opened in 1996 with the help of the West Hollywood City Council and the L.A. County Sheriff's Department. "I stand up in support of what Scott has been doing," Sheriff Lee Baca told the Weekly in 1999. "He's done an excellent job." The West Hollywood City Council held a news conference denouncing the raid. Asked West Hollywood Sheriff's Station Captain Lynda Castro: "Where's the sensitivity level?"
The center's supporters say the raid points up the folly of America's drug war, and its lack of compassion. Other countries are setting more progressive examples. Four months ago, Canada became the first country to legalize medical marijuana. The Dutch, who've already decriminalized recreational use, announced this month that cannabis will be available by prescription. And the British are reclassifying pot in their least restrictive class with antidepressants and steroids.
"While the rest of the world moves steadily into the 21st century, the Bush administration is dragging its knuckles and America back into the Dark Ages," said Imler.
A candlelight vigil will be held across the street from the center, on the corner of Santa Monica Boulevard and Gardner Street, at 5 p.m. Tuesday, November 6, the fifth anniversary of the passage of Proposition 215.
-- forwarded by Shirly Dion.
RE: TALIBAN PHONE TORTURE >>> http://members.sigecom.net/theclan/Taliban.html
-- forwarded by Judy Palnick.