Archive for February 2008

Friday 29 February 2008

vote for me or your children die

excerpt:

when did hillary clinton hire karl rove?

you have to do a double take to see if you heard right. and you want to say, “wow, that’s straight out of the gop playbook.” but democrats have played the “so-bad-it’s-almost-parody” terror-porn card as well.
remember johnson in ‘64?

you almost want to hope this hairball wasn’t coughed up […]

more spaceneedl | more

Thursday 28 February 2008

marsupial justice

By spaceneedl |

excerpt:

what kind of justice system doesn’t allow acquittals?
the ever-popular inquisition? the salem witch trials? some latin american or sub-saharan hell hole?
pfft, no.
it’s the u.s. justice system!
“When asked if he thought the men at Guantanamo could receive a fair trial, Davis provided the following account of an August 2005 meeting he had with Pentagon general counsel […]

more spaceneedl | more

Wednesday 27 February 2008

Once…more

By Gonzo | Music & Noise ~ Film & Movies ~ Theatre & TV

excerpt:

If you’ve noticed my mini-review of the film Once in our right sidebar, you’ll know that I’m quite fond of it. I didn’t watch the Academy Awards, but I was happy to hear that Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova won the Oscar for best song.
And, as if the movie and the music hadn’t already […]

more Gonzo | more Music & Noise ∞ Film & Movies ∞ Theatre & TV

the allure of politics

By spaceneedl |

excerpt:

didja ever wonder why so many people in politics have so much trouble keeping their hands off other people in politics?
this explains much…
The brain has hard-wired systems that control attention and learning in processes that motivate us, including hunger, sex drive and social involvement. An interest in politics can stimulate these systems in the brain, […]

more spaceneedl | more

what was she thinking?

By spaceneedl |

excerpt:

what was hillary clinton thinking when she mocked obama last weekend? how did she feel about insulting his supporters?
was she proud of this moment? did she think celestial choirs would raise up her campaign and bring his down?
was this a case of bad advice, or bad judgement? note: those aren’t mutually exclusive.
tsk, wait. i know. […]

more spaceneedl | more

Tuesday 26 February 2008

Hope rising

By Gonzo | Law & Politics

excerpt:

Sometimes, not very often, but occasionally, polls are a beautiful, beautiful thing:
CBS News/NYT national poll:
Jan 13: Clinton 42%, Obama 27%
Feb 3: Clinton 41%, Obama 41%
Feb 25: Obama 54%, Clinton 38%
The people are speaking. They are saying loud and clear that the Bush-Clinton era needs to end.

Courtesy of TPM

more Gonzo | more Law & Politics

confounding variables

By spaceneedl |

excerpt:

nothing is predictable.
if you accept that premise, you’ll have no trouble at all with the idea that mitt romney might transmogrify his way back into the gop primary race. but still, the oozing, skin-crawling gooeyness of that possibility is kind of icky, isn’t it?
romney rising?
Josh Romney, one of former Gov. Mitt Romney’s five sons, says […]

more spaceneedl | more

Monday 25 February 2008

Peace through theater

By Gonzo | Theatre & TV ~ War & Peace

excerpt:

This has to be one of the most inspiring stories I’ve heard in a long, long time.
A Palestinian Intifada Icon Chooses Art over War
An icon of the Palestinian Intifada now says he believes theater is the best way to push for Palestinian statehood.
Zakariya Zubeidi once led the militant gunmen of the Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades […]

more Gonzo | more Theatre & TV ∞ War & Peace

We’re watching you, Oscar

By Gonzo | Law & Politics ~ Film & Movies

excerpt:

Someone better contact Homeland Security quick! ABC News has the scoop on our latest national security threat.

Scary. Isn’t it?

I don’t know if any of our readers have tried to quit anything cold turkey, but it’s frickin’ hard. I said I was going to be focusing on positive stories, and I do have […]

more Gonzo | more Law & Politics ∞ Film & Movies

Friday 22 February 2008

that’s some extra-special security

By spaceneedl |

excerpt:

dallas police say one thing.
the secret service says another.
and amidst a crowd of 17,000 people, the safety and security of barack obama fell through the cracks.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported late Thursday that security details at Barack Obama’s rally in Dallas on Wednesday “stopped screening people for weapons at the front gates more than an […]

more spaceneedl | more

Thursday 21 February 2008

Hey Taxi!!!

By Gonzo | Life and Society ~ Nature & Weather

excerpt:

While I’m an entrenched skeptic of billionaires, at least as long as we live in a world where, every day, almost 16,000 children die from hunger-related causes–one child every five seconds…
…New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, despite his faults, is doing a fair job of redeeming himself after his brief stint in the Republican Party.
Wired […]

more Gonzo | more Life and Society ∞ Nature & Weather

FlossQuotes

And where we are met with cynicism and doubt and fear and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of the American people in three simple words - yes, we can.

Barack Obama

Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
What can I say? I'm a diehard Wilco fan. One of my earliest posts here at Transcendental Floss was in response to their previous record, and their latest, Sky Blue Sky, has captivated me just like everything they've ever done. Of course, it's been out for awhile and everyone's digested it and reviewed it to death, but still I can't keep my mouth shut about it. At this point, with their six albums sandwiching two Mermaid Avenue volumes of collaboration with Billy Bragg, I'd go so far as to compare their run of recordings to pretty much any of the great bands in history. Seriously, it's been one revelation, one evolution, one highly listenable album after another spanning twelve years! This latest offering continues to be drenched in references to their musical influences, and here the 1970s reign supreme. With nods ranging from Steely Dan to Led Zeppelin, this is a record that has that classic vinyl sound all over it.
— Gonzo

Loudon Wainwright III - A Live One
Here's a likely obscure one for many of you. Loudon, father of Rufus, was one of many post-Dylan singer-songwriters whom, if they didn't intentionally try to follow in Dylan's footsteps, ended up labeled as having done so during a surge of public interest in people who could simply sing songs and play an acoustic guitar. Loudon is a quirky writer and performer, and his songs range from very funny to shockingly raw and personal. I'm particularly fond of Clockwork Chartreuse, which plays around with a little of the old ultra-violence. If you watched as much M*A*S*H as I did when it was on, you might remember Loudon, who appeared as Captain Spalding, the singing surgeon, in three episodes in its third season.
— gonzo

Once
This low budget "musical" (I'll explain the quotes in a second) knocked me out and inspired me to quit my job, take off for Europe with my guitar, and spend the rest of my days busking, but then I remembered that I'm married and have a 10-year old son, both of whom I like an awful lot. Sigh. Anyway, Once has been labeled a musical only because songs are performed in the film from start to finish. But, the songs aren't obviously contextual, the actors don't just break into song to backing music coming from nowhere, and there are no dance numbers through the Dublin streets where it was filmed. The chemistry between the two leads is wonderfully sweet and funny, the music is at times lovely and tender, other times deliciously melodramatic and passionate.
— gonzo

Ode Magazine
Here's a twist, our first ever magazine recommendation in the Brain Candy department. With the tagline "To People - To Passion - To Possibilities", Ode is a breath of fresh air, good news for a change and lots of it. Articles are easily digestible without being dumbed down, and they regularly highlight ideas and people I later hear about via other media sources. Co-produced in The Netherlands and the U.S., there's a decidedly European feeling to the zine that I enjoy immensely. From science to spirituality, sustainability to the arts, I love getting my hit of optimism every issue. If you aren't a magazine reader, the Ode website offers a lot of the content from the magazine, as well as reader blogs and social networking interactivity.
— gonzo

Lick your chops and chip through the nuggets of past Floss Aid recommendations.
— floss aid

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Archive for February 2008

Friday 29 February 2008

vote for me or your children die

Thursday 28 February 2008

marsupial justice

Wednesday 27 February 2008

Once…more

the allure of politics

what was she thinking?

Tuesday 26 February 2008

Hope rising

confounding variables

Monday 25 February 2008

Peace through theater

We’re watching you, Oscar

Friday 22 February 2008

that’s some extra-special security

Thursday 21 February 2008

Hey Taxi!!!

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