An odd week for new music but with some interesting surprises including new music from David Byrne, Neil Young, Cloud Nothings, Slow Coast, The Blindfold Experience, Huntertones, Annahstasia, Japanese Breakfast, New Candies and much more. Enjoy!
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Did it rain on his parade? I'm sure 10's of people enjoyed it. I notice that at all of the "No Kings" events nationwide that the only arrests made for anything violent were 100% Republican. We gotta find a way to keep these violent people away from public events.
So how did the shooter in Minnesota get access so easily to politicians homes? He was dressed like a cop. More than anything else, it seems to me that this says as much about how we expect cops to act as it does about the shooter himself.
The new/old guy's kids announced a new phone service, and while you can use your current phone if you switch over, they will also give you the option to get a new phone. Someone I know looked into it and the phone in question is the same device as the T-Mobile REVVL 7 Pro 5G, with custom (gold) body. That means it's made in China.
I notice that military personnel are starting to refer to Secretary Hogsbreath as "Secretary Jägermeister". I'm happy to use that one. And by the way, it's sad that a single tank can squeak louder than the "crowd" watching it go by.
Why is Alex Jones still on the air? HOW is that asswipe still on the air?
I was this many days old when I learned that there is an official, government-approved Spanish Language version of The Star Spangled Banner.
So far the new/old guy isn't representing us very well at the G7. Maybe it's the BOLO issued tongue-in-cheek looking for a man with 34 criminal convictions.
My beach, yesterday:
And by the way, kudos to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney for having a way to make the new/old guy shut the hell up, and using it.
I doubt this means that the deportations will stop, but ICE has used up all of it's annual budget already, and is overbudget by nearly $1 Billion.
In ruling against the new/old guy, Massachusetts District Judge William Young asks, "Have we suck so low? Have we no shame?" Yes, then no.
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And because I love you, we celebrate one of the greatest pop songs ever written.
Great new music this week from Vistas, Monkey House, Sweet Emergarde, Turnstile, Prince, Cypress Hill, beaux, Comet Gain, Moptop and much more. Enjoy!
I only discovered Vistas this past week, and what a discovery this has turned out to be. Really, you should check them out.
Monkey House looks to be attempting to wrest the "Next Steely Dan" title away from everyone else, and it's a pretty good effort.
The Cypress Hill album is the long-teased concert with the London Philharmonic. I've played previously released tracks from this before but now the whole album/concert is available and it's every bit as awesome as you'd think.
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Things I've learned over the weekend:
Waymo driverless cabs are actually surveillance vehicles.
Apparently 6 blocks of Los Angeles on the news is the same as 467 square miles. And dear god Los Angeles is on fire!
Governor Gavin Newsome remembered where he had packed away his spine.
Doctor Phil participated in the ICE raids in Los Angeles. This means that there is more film footage out there than we have seen.
That the new/old guy might have called up and Federalized the National Guard because everyone else is converging on Washington D.C. for a parade. You know, in addition to the whole fascism thing.
I did a lot of posting this past week on various social media sites and only once was I called out on my stance that ICE should be abolished. On tumblr.
To become an ICE field agent requires 14 months of training, including 3-4 months at FLETSI. We are all of 5 1/2 months into this administration, so that means all of those masked fascist thugs are contractors.
You know, whatever the Blackwater Motherfuckers are calling themselves these days.
I've watched the footage of the Australian reporter getting shot with a rubber bullet to the leg and I can say with certainty that not only was the person who shot her not in any danger that he deliberately targeted her. You can see him do it in the footage. I wish I were confident that he will be brought up on charges.
Multiple accounts on Xitter owned by ICE/Homeland Security etc. showed pallets of bricks, calling them proof that either George Soros was behind the protests in L.A. or that violence was at hand. Given that all the raids took place at Home Depot stores I am personally under the opinion that these people have no fucking what Home Depot sells.
Apparently protesting and flying a Mexican flag is bad optics, per a couple of posts I've seen. Dudes, this is Los Angeles. Might as well ask the people not to fly pride flags in San Francisco or Brazilian flags during the World Cup.
Or as Cheryl Ann Lee called it on Bluesky, "This is very much like telling Black Americans that we should protest in suits and ties instead of jeans and hoodies so that racists will respect us. It does not work. We wore our Sunday best and they turned firehoses on us and still called us beasts and savages. Call us savages to this day."
You know, don't give them the pretext to do what they're already doing.
The new/old guy apparently thinks it costs $2.00 to fly to California from Washington D.C. and that's why we can't have high-speed rail.
And his social media posts apparently time-travel? At least the one he posted about the success of the Marines sent into Los Angeles the day before they were sent?
ICE was deployed to the library in Whitter, CA today (where Richard Nixon went to college) which by some strange coincidence was the start of the summer reading program for children.
That the current Secretary of Defense thinks you can deploy the National Guard without also deploying logistics teams so that they have bedding, shelter, and food.
That every crisis that the current administration is reacting to is imagined. None of it was/is real. There is no immigrant invasion. No trade crisis. No scientific or governance crisis. Just people completely high off their own supply trying to fundamentally reorder society.
I lived in Los Angeles during the Rodney King riots. What we've been seeing are nowhere close to that. Tom Homan said yesterday that someone is going to get killed. I think that's what they want.
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And because I love you and because music can be joyous, I give you one of my favorite songs from childhood by the great Sly Stone:
New music this week from Peach Fuzz, Ben Caplan, John Fogerty (sort of), Ministry (also sort of), Wet Leg, Lorde, Sunsick Daisy, Ty Segall, Garbage, Moptop, KennyHoopla, Beth Sarah and much more. Enjoy!
A couple of notes about this week's music starting with John Fogerty. Earlier this year he finally, finally, was able to get the rights to all of the music he wrote during the Credence days back. What happened to him is a cautionary tale to any songwriter - but for 50 years people made money off his work and he didn't get a dime. That has finally been fixed.
Fogerty has been re-recording his Creedence Clearwater Revival catalogue with his sons as the backing band, and he's going to start releasing them as "John's Version" - the first of which came out this week. This includes my favorite CCR song, "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" but also included a song I didn't even know, which I've added to the playlist this week. More to come. I hear through the grapevine (I see what you did there) that he actually lobbied his record label to call these re-recording "Taylor's Version" but the idea was shot down.
That would have been hilarious.
You will also see the same sort of thing happening with Ministry. When they evolved into an Industrial/Noise Metal band I really didn't follow along - I much preferred their synth-pop work from their early days. Well they too have re-recorded some of their old catalog (including "Every Day is Halloween") and are calling it "The Squirrely Years". This gives me the excuse to add a couple of my favorite Ministry songs to the playlist and call it new music.
My playlists, my rules.
Finally, it's worth your time to check out the back catalog of the band Moptop. The new album they have coming soon will be in English, but this is their 5th album - they're from Brazil and their previous albums are of course in Portuguese. Get past the language barrier - they're a good alt-pop band, and like I said, their new material is in English and if I hadn't told you that they're from South America you'd have never noticed.
As I always say, there is great music out there, but you need to search for it. That's what I do.
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Dan Bongobongo (or whatever the fuck his name is) was hired as Deputy Director of the FBI, and now he's been bitching to his TV and Radio/Podcast friends that it's a difficult job. No shit, Sherlock.
We've put a bunch of Monday Morning Quarterbacks in charge of real work, and all of a sudden they're discovering that they're not qualified (or worse think that they are) and that the job of being an actual quarterback is fucking hard. Hey, if they could actually do the hard work they wouldn't have been on Television in the first place.
Does anyone out there know what trauma Governor Gavin Newsom has experienced that has made him swing so far right these past few months? If it turns out that he's only doing it as an opportunistic grab towards a Presidential bid I will be greatly disappointed. Although I don't wish him harm and prior to now he's been a good Governor, it's the only explanation I would find acceptable.
Therapy Gavin. Seek therapy, please.
Because if it's the other thing I will point out that the Left doesn't win by heading towards the center. It's the Center that wins when they swing Left. It's not the Clinton years anymore.
Look, it's never been a secret that Elon Musk is a stoner. Why does everyone get all up in arms about it? He smokes pot all the time - it is well documented - and his use of Special K is pretty well established as well.
I love it when Republicans get pissed off about Democrats using the same tactics that they've been using for years. "It’s got to be hard to keep track of your political positions when you have no moral center and just attach yourself to the most powerful person in the room."
I will also add that it must be tough to get into the Heaven you keep raving about when you bear false witness so very goddamned much.
As frustrating as it is that the media isn't doing a damned thing to point out that the new/old guy is clearly in mental decline, it's even more frustrating to admit that they reason they're doing it is that they are far more scared of the idea of a President Vance.
I don't eat popcorn, but I do admit that the sudden civil war between the new/old guy and Leonard Leo is pretty entertaining.
What happened in Colorado last week is terrible, and yes it is a hate crime and even possibly terrorism. So what are you calling what's happening in Gaza right now?
Bravo to Ukraine for pulling off the attack of the decade (so far) with the demolition of so much of Russia's Air Force, so far away from the border the two countries share. Whatever your position on the war is, you must admit that this was pulled off with Jack Ryan precision and accuracy.
You know, for a political party that made its bones on the idea that government should have no say in how we raise our children the Republican Party sure seems to want to have a fuckton of control over how we raise our children.
New music this week from Glass Caves, Shed Seven, Footballhead, Sparks, The Antinomy Insurgency, Elbow, Slow Mass, Blurry, The final release from Cola Boyy, Another Sky, Taj Mahal & Keb' Mo', Will Liverman and much more. Enjoy!
There is also new music from Bruce Springsteen, although not from the sudden EP he dropped from the opening night of his tour in Manchester. I've also included "new" music by Don Felder. It's a decent song, but I have to admit it sounds like a poor copy of a better song he's part of from the end of the 1970's. You will probably be able to tell.
The new album from Glass Caves surprised me. This could very well be a breakthrough album for them, and it would be well deserved.
I have to also note that this week a lot of music from last year (2024) and even earlier came across my radar, much of it quite good. I am a bit sad to say that these are songs I missed, and aren't on my playlist now. The lesson to be learned here is that there is LOTS and LOTS of good music out there you may never hear. Go looking for it.
And by the way, having Taj Mahal and Keb' Mo' team up for an album is every bit as awesome as you'd think it is.
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Now normally I'd take today off in honor of family who served, but I do have a couple of things to say and they wouldn't mind...
Rudy the Leaky wants to be appointed Special Prosecutor looking into the "Biden Crime Family" and their "coverup" of his health. He's broke, needs a job and is going to line his pocket with everything he can get his hands on, spend 4 years and produce nothing that means anything. I'd bet a paycheck on it.
The new/old guy gave the commencement speech at West Point, a tradition for Presidents. Biden gave a rousing speech just last year. But the new/old guy talked about the merits of trophy wives, wore a cap to cover a bald spot, and told a group of soldiers - all of whom enlisted while Biden was President - the people didn't join the military while Biden was President.
He also didn't shake the hand of a single graduate. Biden stuck around and shook every hand offered, and did it with a smile.
By the way, for a guy who has spent a lot of time on TV Pete Hegseth really doesn't spend a lot of time with real reporters, does he.
Dear Laura Loomer, hold your breath for 10 minutes, please.
Speaker Johnson, you need to stop bearing false witness. It's going to get you in trouble.
Senator Fetterman, perhaps you should consider a break from public life. You too, Governor Newsom.
There is a new social media site (I'm not linking to it - save yourselves) that allows you to be the hero in your group of friends. That's because all of your "friends" are AI generated. An Unsocial Network, if you will. Nothing good can come from this.
We have a new Yokozuna. He broke a few records to get there.
And because I love you I'm going to give you the video to this... song. I wrote it, but I never wanted to record it. Instead a band I produce took the song and recorded a demo and brought it back to me, which I agreed to produce. It's out there now.
I don't think it's one of my better songs. It's kinda terrible. But I did write it and I'll own that. This is The Antinomy Insurgency, with the lyric video for "Thank You Jesus". It was supposed to be pronounced in Spanish. It's not and they think the statement rings truer that way.
So with all of the distractions and directions everything is going all at once a little nugget got slipped into the "Big Beautiful Bill" that the Republicans are trying to get through congress. It would prohibit courts from using any funding whatsoever to enforce Contempt of Court citations against Federal Officials.
While news organizations left and right are "scaling back the rhetoric" or self-censuring their words and deeds, the single greatest threat to our system of checks and balances the country has ever seen is attempting to become law.
We need better swear words, because the current set we're using just aren't cutting it.
Oh, and the bill is retroactive too. This means that they can leave that poor man stranded in Venezuela because the court won't have a mechanism to enforce the order.
Let me make it simpler for you - this is setting up the Executive branch to have the ability to ignore the Judicial branch. If they don't do what the court says, the courts can still hold them in Contempt, but they can't enforce it.
The tripod that is our form of government, with three equal branches of government making up the legs that support the whole institution, will have one of the legs shortened. The stool will fall.
I'm going to say it right fucking now: If this becomes law, and if this stays on the books, this country will fall. The grand experiment will be a failure. all because this country couldn't coalesce behind a woman of color. Or maybe even just a woman at all.
Can you even picture anymore how ordinary our lives would be if Kamala Harris had become President? How much less stressful this would all be? Yeah, sure, make a big fucking deal out of Biden's supposed health issues of the time. You fucking idiots swung for the center when you should have swung LEFT.
You keep saying that you can't elect someone President without the support of the center, but I'm saying you can't elect the center without the support of the left. The right stopped moving back towards the center over 4 decades ago and it's time you fucking recognized that.
They don't want to live in the same country as the left. They want us gone, one way or another, and until you recognize that there is no peace to be made here you just can't win.
You don't make peace with Hitler. You kick his ass. I know there are only a few veterans left from World War II to give you firsthand accounts but look at all the fucking movies we made! You've watched some of them, haven't you?
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I don't know about you, but I need a break after that. I'll give you a few minutes here, with my latest video and song. Once you have the visual in your head, go ahead and close your eyes and just listen and relax, if you can.
New music this week from Pearl Jam, Lola Young, sombr, Billy Nomates, Sunken, Rain Parade, Chuck D, Sunflower Bean, Ben Lee, Tune-Yards, Janita and much more! Enjoy!
Until 4 days ago, I had never heard of the artist who calls himself sombr. Apparently I'm the 30,225,156th person to get into his music. Okay, I'm late to the party, but I like what I'm hearing. I know, I know, I'm no longer one of the cool kids. He just never turned up in the places I go hunting for music.
Now I've never been a fan of Ye (Kanye West). Supposedly he was a genius arranger and rapper but for my tastes I'd rather have Dre, Chuck D or Ice-T. But holy fucking shit I'm not going to play his new single. I mean holy fucking shit (again) what the hell happened to this guy? Can someone please suggest a brain scan for the guy? He might be seriously ill.
Okay, "might" is pretty weak under the circumstances. The man might need a Sybil level psychiatrist at this point.
I talked a bit last week about what it takes to get on one of my playlists, there are also things that will make me drop your music into the trash imeediately and praising Hitler is one of them. I mean I feel filthy giving it a few seconds of listening.
And dude, overmodulated synths are not back. They're just not.
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Your lottery numbers for this week are 86 47.
By the way, if you call them "The Democrat Party" I already know that you're an enemy. It's a pretty obvious tell.
I don't know enough about what's going on with Biden's health to really comment. I do wish, however, this I haven't seen a pattern for decades of "the announcement" followed by "the death" when it comes to Prostate Cancer. Best of luck to you Sparky. you were perhaps the greatest President of my lifetime.
I swear that the new/old guy is turning this country into his own warped version of the "He-Man Woman Haters" club. And I'm not talking about the song by Extreme either. Little Rascals - the originals from (gasp) almost 100 years ago. It's terrible to use them as a blueprint for a country - their schemes always failed.
Always.
Can anyone tell me why our Secretary of Defense is styling his hair to look more and more like the character Willem Dafoe plays in "Streets of Fire"?
I really can't get myself worked up about Scott Adams in the same way as I am about Joe Biden. Best of luck though, and a speedy recovery.
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And because I love you, have the video for a song I didn't include on this week's list featuring two of the world's great guitarists and one of the best bassist I've ever seen.
New music from Sub-Radio (whose album finally dropped!), Tetrarch, Sam Roberts Band, I'm With Her, Cypress Hill, Unwed Sailor, kid moon, Liam Finn, Little Feat, Molly Miller Trio, Elbow, The Amazons, Ainsley Costello and much more. Enjoy!
Sometimes I get queries from artists about how I decide what's going on my playlists and how do they get on them. The simple answer is that I have to find you. You can't buy your way on, and I have no idea why you'd want to. While I do heavily focus on brand new stuff there are other criteria as well. But sometimes, every once and a while, a slight bit of nepotism can creep in. Track 47 on this list is by Cameron Esther and it's her debut single. She's the daughter of a guy I knew in college and have seen a few times since.
But it wouldn't end up on the playlist if I didn't like it.
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So in an interview yesterday RFK Jr. said during an
interview that "Only very sick kids should die of measles." That's
the exact quote.
No, you elitist fuck monkey.
No one should die from measles. No one.
Ever. We cured the fucking thing. We created a situation where no one caught
the disease anymore. No one died, and no one got sick.
Not until people stopped vaccinating their kids.
You didn't get measles. I didn't get measles. Although we
grew up on opposite sides of the country, although you grew up wealthy and I
did not, I know for certain that the reason for this is that you, me and
everyone we both knew got vaccinated. Every state in the
nation made vaccinations mandatory to attend school - both public and private.
And measles was gone. GONE. Motherfucking gone.
How about we don't let kids, or anyone else for that matter,
get sick in the first place? It's easy, proven to work not just in the US but
all around the world, and until you fucking idiots came along it was paid for
by the government, as part of the common good.
People don't get religious exemptions from laws and lawsuits
because giving anyone such a thing not only creates separate classes in this
country, but is against the common good for everyone - that we all can pursue
happiness. People shouldn’t' get a religious exemption for vaccines either.
And for the record, it has been proven over and over again
that vaccines have NOTHING to do with autism. People who say that are LYING.
They have been told a lie, and are spreading it around.
Kinda like measles.
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I think it's worth pointing out that American Nazi Stephen
Miller is counting on you not knowing that the Executive
Branch doesn't have the authority to suspend habeas corpus. I don't think that
gets taught universally anymore.
If Obama, Biden, or Clinton had accepted a gift as extravagant
as an airplane there would be congressional hearing from here until doomsday,
as there should be. This is a crime. a real, demonstratable crime. Who gave
congress the hand job so that they'd shut up about it?
Also, if you don't think that airplane is full of listening
devices then you're a fucking idiot.
By the way RFK Jr., why don't we start substituting the word
"Kennedy" for the word "autism" every time you talk down to
them?
Can people stop going on any show hosted by Bill Maher?
Please, it's embarrassing.
Remember when "Box Wine" Pirro conspired to place listening devices on her husband's yacht in an effort to catch him having an affair? Good times, good times.
Having an agreed framework for creating a trade deal and calling it a trade deal is the same as producing an empty sheet tray and saying you have cookies.
I've pretty much stayed out of the whole New Pope/American Pope/Leo XIV business because I'm not Catholic. He's not my spiritual leader, although even I cannot deny the papacy's influence. Setting aside jokes about the potential of deep dish Eucharist I will take note that taking the Leo name is a promising sign (you have access to wikipedia - look up the previous Leo) and I will also note that you can't bamboozle him with numbers. I'm pretty good with numbers but I don't have a degree in Mathematics from Villanova University. Second Pope in a row who came from academia.
People people people, stop looking so deep into the reasons why the new/old guy fired the Librarian of Congress. Dr. Hayden is a Black Woman. That's as deep as it goes.
And by the way, the Library of Congress oversees the Copyright Office, and the director of that office was fired as well. The DOGE fucks and the Capitol Police had a standoff there today. Just what is Musk trying to steal?
Notice that MTG dropped out of the Georgia Senate race louder than she entered it?
Even the Secretary of Transportation won't let family fly out of Newark. He blames Biden. He seems incapable of not gaslighting.
The new EPA chief says that he wants the agency scaled back to staffing levels it had under Reagan. A quick glance at the Google shows that the number of employees under Reagan was about the same is it was under Carter. And about the same as every administration since, including the current one. Once again trying to evoke St. Ronnie with nothing to back it up.
None of these assholes know what it was like under the Reagan Error, but they're willing to make it worse.
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And because I love you, here is the late Jill Sobule's final song:
New music this week from Lights, Pink Skies, Mary and the Sharks, Suzanne Vega, Real Estate, Sparks, Say Sue Me, Mammoth, Home Free, Grouplove, Lucius, a new mix of an old REM song for a grand purpose, Hikaru Utada and much more. Enjoy!
A lot of music this week defies stereotypes of what you might expect from an artist. Suzanne Vega laying down a groove? Utada Hikaru returns to singing but in English and Japanese? New (sort of) music from R.E.M.? The Doobie Brothers heading towards Country? There's a lot of this going on.
It's also worth pointing out that the new album by Lights is bloody fantastic. I added 4 songs from that album to the rotation. Artist J Appiah really surprised me with his new single. I haven't thought much of him before but I need to seriously reassess that. The new album from Ben Williams is also a solid knockout even if much of it isn't the sort of thing you would catch on radio.
The new/old guy keeps losing in court, but he hasn't complied with a single ruling regarding deportations yet. Please, start throwing these assholes in prison for Contempt.
Oh, and happy Cinco de Mayo. If you support these deportations you aren't entitled to that beer in your hand. Put it away before I take it from you.
It looks like Government supported COVID shots are going bye-bye. I hope you still have a few masks left. I'm stocking up. I'd bet real money that Flu shots are next.
Followed by a huge spike in COVID cases in the fall, which they will call "seasonal".
Did you know that the new/old guy wanted to be a filmmaker when he was younger? I met him once, when I was in Television, and even I didn't know that.
In case you didn't notice it, the woman who won the Pulitzer for cartoon of the year was forced out of her newspaper job earlier this year because the newspaper she worked for wouldn't let her make fun of the head of Amazon. The Washington Post, her former employer, tried to take credit for her win. I also note that in giving her the award, the Pulitzer committee made sure to point out that she won in part because of her departure from the WaPo.
And because I love you, let's take a quick trip down memory lane with Level 42
New music this week from Fishbone, Ghost, Bells Larsen, Sunflower Bean, Billy Idol, KLER, Wishy, Luke Spiller, Uwade, bims, Deerhoof, Sammy Hagar, Suzanne Vega, The Fearless Flyers and much more. Enjoy!
Talking about music for a moment...
The new Billy Idol album is actually pretty good, but it's most certainly a toned-down version of the man. That's not a bad thing per se, but if he was trying to still how that he can rebel yell he doesn't quite pull it off.
New singles from Fishbone show that they're still as good as ever, from the sound to the dance-ability to the message.
Luke Speller's new album is a must have, called "Love Will Probably Kill Me Before Cigarettes and Wine", which face it is a GREAT title.
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Bought anything from Temu today?
I really wish that reporters would call Tom Homan a liar to his face. He's a liar.
By the way, if you haven't seen this week's Last Week Tonight about the damage that RFK is doing to science in this country you really should.
I was unaware of this because I'm not on Tik Tok, but apparently "influencers" have embraced the idea that Americans should buy products direct from Chinese manufacturers instead of from import shops, claiming often (falsely) that these are the same goods as the brand-name designer goods. If there's a trade war going on with China, which it certainly appears there is, we're losing.
The new/old guy seems to believe that tariffs are high enough and strong enough to replace income tax as a method to fund the country. Uh, nope.
Signing off now. Gonna watch the Canadian Election results.
One more thing...
I have mentioned in previous posts that a friend of mine works for the CDC with only a few weeks left until she retires. Well, she somehow managed to make it to retirement without her job getting cut. She spent her last few days working in the office of another who was cut. I'm glad she made it out. I hope her retirement is still there and not blown at the track by these motherfuckers in charge. Congrats my friend for getting there.
And because I love you, I have to admit that the video for Sammy Hagar's new song really gets you in the feels. With Sammy are Michael Anthony, Joe Satriani, and Kenny Aranoff.
New music this week from Ghost, swim school, Bims, Follk Bitch Trio, Avi Kaplan, BBBL, I'm With Her, Aly & AJ, Melvins, Hawkwind, Beirut, World Order and much more. Enjoy!
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I really have no business commenting on the Life and Death of Pope Francis. He seemed a nice enough man and he tried to do good (he most certainly championed for the down-trodden), but he also did some bad (the church still has a huge child molestation problem).
I'm not Catholic. He wasn't my leader.
That said, I do have a story.
A friend of mine (and even closer friend to my wife) was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in 2016. She was a decent if flawed person, just like anyone decent. She didn't deserve it and she went downhill quickly - certainly faster than any of us were ready for. She was in a wheelchair and frail when she was surprised with a trip to The Vatican to meet Pope Francis.
She was Catholic, and devout. As I understand it, to be granted an audience with the Pope, even in a group setting as she was to be, is considered one of the best things that can happen in a life. That she was ill and frail made no difference; she was going to get on that plane and she was going to go. Her audience was set for May 24, 2017.
Google the date, I'll be right here.
Yes, that's the same day Donald Trump pushed his way into the Vatican to meet Pope Francis, displacing a meeting with a small group of Americans - who never got to meet with Francis. Trump was an absolute pig of a man throughout the day - never once apologizing for his conduct or for displacing a group of Americans who had been planning this meeting for months. Francis chastised him to his face.
But he didn't meet with my friend. She and her group got bumped for Donald Motherfucking Trump.
She took it with grace, saying that the Vatican official apologized repeatedly about the circumstances, offering a tour and other amenities that I won't go into here.
She would be dead a few short months later. She never saw the pandemic or just how ruinous everything would become.
I can forgive Pope Francis for the snub. The events of the day were obviously out of his control and the opportunity to lecture an American President to his face doesn't come often. I don't blame him for taking the meeting. I'm unhappy about the snub of the people who saved and paid to come see him directly, but they at least had the grace to apologize. My friend forgave them, so I will.
Which no one from the Trump administration ever did.
I notice that a lot about Catholicism (as it's practiced in most places - not the US) is about forgiveness. But I'm not Catholic.
I will NEVER forgive that fucker for bullying his way into destroying the dreams of a group of American Catholics, at least one of whom was dying.
But he's never going to ask either, so fuck him.
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Maybe y'all should have been more concerned about Pete Hesgeth's tattoos than about Kilmar Abrego Garcia's.
I will give Francis credit for smacking the current administration around as one of the last things he did before he died.
But I am getting a little sick of all the Photoshopped pictures of Francis and the (unsubstantiated) couch fucker together.
Look, I know that Ms. Noem has explained why she was carrying so much cash that it made her a mark for a thief, but why wouldn't she want a paper-trail to exist?
I have a friend who works at a government agency that has had to do the "e-mail us 5 things you accomplished this week" e-mails. I've seen a few examples of what she's done, and unless you have a PhD in her field you won't understand more than 4 words of it. So far, she hasn't been laid off.
We are at war with Oceana, not Eurasia. That has always been true. Tear down those lying posters now!
The Onion has been rerunning every article they ever did about Pope Francis. Some are quite funny.
I do believe that The White House did not take my bid for a sponsorship of yesterday's egg roll seriously. I offered $1.75
By the way, given the new/old guy's Easter address, does he suffer from Biden Derangement Syndrome?
So the guy who will run the Vatican until we have a new Pope is some dude named Kevin. Really.
New music this week from the late Nell Smith, Sub-Radio, Jetstream Pony, Mich harvey, Uncharted Course, My Raining Stars, Liz Stringer, Garbage, Green Day, Bells Larsen, World Order and much more. Enjoy!
I'm going to quickly call out a couple of artists on this week's playlist. First is Canadian Nell Smith, who was killed in October of last year in a car crash. The music I've added is from her first solo album and I'm sad to say is probably all we're going to get. She was only 17 when she died and she had tons of promise. Her full album is worth checking out, and it was released this week. Also this week brings to us new music from Canadian artist Bells Larsen, who had to cancel his US tour because current government policy will not accept his passport because the designation of gender doesn't match what's on his birth certificate. He's trans and is currently unwelcome by this country's present fascist regime.
What a fucked up country this has become.
And before I forget, I've also added a couple of songs from Liz Stringer's new album. It's a damned fine album and worth your time.
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Look folks, I am well past the point where I think that judges should start throwing people in prison for contempt of court because obviously this administration has no respect for the rulings of the judicial branch. They're going to keep doing this awful shit until you start throwing them in prison.
Better prisons than the ones they've been throwing people into, you should note, and ours can be pretty fucking terrible.
At what point does it change from rendition to kidnapping? By my count, we are well past that point.
Alas, our current Justice Department doesn't really seem to understand the word "justice". I mean, drawing a cock and balls on the side of a Cybertruck is a hate crime but setting fire to the home of a Jewish Governor and his family, while they are home on the first day of Passover, is not for some reason.
I got into a spirited debate on the internet over people who post that "cruelty is the point". I don't think it is. By this I mean that these people don't believe they are being cruel; they believe they are being righteous.
I'm not talking about self-righteousness, but actual righteousness. They honestly believe that they are doing right, and that those who don't do the same should be punished so hard that they change their tune. That is what they believe they are doing. It can't possibly be cruel, and they cannot be convinced that they are wrong.
It is not a fight that can be won. They will believe even as they fall into the fires of Mount Doom that they are doing the right thing. They can't be changed. They will get even worse. Hell, just today an official for DHS compared the man all the hubbub is about, a Maryland Father with no criminal record of any kind that they have already admitted was deported by mistake, to Osama bin Laden.
They need a solid ass-kicking. That's our job.
Have you heard the tale of the kidnapping of Merwil Gutiérrez? You should. If it doesn't make you sick and angry, then what the fuck are you even doing here?
By the way, not only are we in the midst of a Measles outbreak in the unvaccinated territories of the United States, but Whooping Cough has also made a comeback.
In other health news, how is it that the new/old guy is so successful at making doctors lie?
Every Haitian immigrant granted parole under the last 3 administrations has been told to self-deport. These people are in the country legally and now they have to leave. How? you should ask. The US has no direct flights to Haiti. Zero.
The UN held a vote to create an International Day of Hope. Only 5 countries didn't vote Yes, and 4 of those abstained. The only No vote was the United States. So have you lost hope?
Did you know that two of the new/old guy's executives are crimes into themselves? Laws are not meant to single out a specific individual - a premise that has been upheld in court for centuries. Yet two of his more recent screeds (executive orders) have named specific people: Chris Krebs (former head of CISA) and former Homeland Security official Miles Taylor.
I'm not going to dive into the obviously stupid debate on tariffs save to say this, we are turning the economic control of the world over to China. They are strong enough to take the reins. Try getting them back - it could take a century.
Something I note the conspiracy theorists aren't talking about? That on that medical exam published yesterday about the new/old guy's health is that he is CURRENT on all his vaccinations. That would include Mumps, Measles, Whooping Cough and COVID.
I notice that the new/old guy is blaming Ukraine for the ongoing war. That's what rapists do - blame the victim.
State Department employees, have you yet reported your co-workers for not allowing you to put up pro-Christian propaganda at your desk, work area, or anywhere in the office? He you reported you coworkers for not letting you read the Bible aloud during break times (and non-break times)? are they a filthy Jew? Well, have you done your patriotic duty and reported them yet? We're meeting about it next week so get those forms in now!
By the way, when someone says to your face, ""In fact Mr. President, you have 350 million people to liberate. But to liberate 350 million people you have to imprison some." You are supposed to punch that Nazi in the face. But you didn't even mention getting the guy you sent to his prisons illegally back.
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I may puke. Here is the EXACT copy:
On Jan. 20, the day of President Donald Trump’s inauguration, Fox News Media placed four people “in complete isolation in upstate New York, with no contact to the outside world — no phones, internet, television, or social media.”
Ninety days later, those four people will come out of their cocoon, but before learning about what happened in the world over the past three months, they have to get through Greg Gutfeld.
I may puke
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My wife's side of the family came over on the Mayflower, so they might be safe from deportation. It won't protect me though - we only arrived in the 1870's.
So the university that stands up to the new/old guy is Harvard? Really?!!?
I don't really follow this stuff unless it's NASA, but did we really just send Katy Perry into space?
Chuck Schumer keeps saying that the American People will rise up should things get this bad. Is he not an "American People"? Harry Reed would have punched these people in the dick by now.
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I have to wonder if John Lithgow will be booted from the new Harry Potter series under development when JK Rowling discovers that his breakout role was as a trans woman in "The World According to Garp"?
I'm starting to think that the stabilizing influence in Russel Brand's life was Amy Winehouse.
A press release has been issued by the New York Times: The story that JD Vance fucked the College Basketball Trophy are unsubstantiated.
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And because I love you, here is a sampling of Liz Stringer:
See what happens when I miss a couple of weeks? Such a backlog! New music from Envy of None, My Morning Jacket, Lucy Ducas, Orchards, Avi Kaplan, Little Feat, The Darkness, Uwade, Tetrarch and so much more it boggles the mind. Enjoy!
This is by far the longest playlist I've ever done, so take your time with it - stream in batches if you need. It's 129 songs and runs for hours and hours. I picked one hell of a time to move and not have internet access, eh?
Back to normal next week. Whatever the fuck that is.
By the way, track 114 by Marlon Williams is sung in the New Zealander's native Māori language.
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I don't really have anything to add to the whole tariff's story that you haven't already heard, although I do find it funny that we have imposed tariffs on penguins and a US Army base. Almost as if the list the picked to use was based on internet domains. I will admit to surprise that tariffs against Denmark weren't higher.
I hope your retirement fund survives this. I've handled money for a lot of my life, and this is a mistake of unmeasurable proportions. Yet.
All the protests this past weekend were great to see, and I support them without reservation. I find it hilarious that the right-wing fathom or conceive that such a thing could happen without someone bankrolling it.
I also find it hilarious that these people cannot fathom or conceive that people won't be upset about missed Social Security checks, missed payroll, erased history, Its as if they have no concept of what it's like not to be rich.
Another thing I find funny is how they all fail to understand that we on the left simply don't think like they do - they have convinced themselves that we do think exactly like they do but act differently not because we think they're wrong, but just to be divisive.
Sorry folks, I do believe, in all my heart, that you are the villains. That you are wrong.
It all makes me laugh. To quote a comic I am fond of, "Someday we will look back on all of this and laugh. It will be one of those laughs that builds slowly to an Earth-shattering scream, but still it will be a laugh."
But for now, because I love you, here is the new video by The Darkness:
A little bit late but finally here, new music from Chris Trapper, The Doobie Brothers, Lot's Wife, Envy of None, Kings & Pills, Ainsley Costello, The Antinomy Insurgency, Swervedriver, Florence + the Machine, Beach Youth, a reissue from Vazz and much more! Enjoy!
Sorry I forgot to publish this - it's been one hell of a few weeks. I moved, for the first time in 20 years. How did I wind up with so much shit?
I filled two industrial sized dumpsters with just trash and things I was getting rid of, and I'm still up to my eyeballs in boxes in the new house.
I used to live 8 blocks from the ocean. I now live ONE. Next time I move it's going to be to a Quonset hut sitting off a dock extending into the ocean. Like in The Maldives or something.
I will do my best to make the next Radio Free California a real doozy, but this delay brings me up to something that happened that jump-started my music career.
Four years ago this week I released a single called "He Takes a Knee". It was my third single of the year 2021 - while we were all in lockdown. The first got some play because it was part of a fundraiser/charity album, but the second one dropped like a stone in a river.
As you might recall, a lot of terrible happened aside from the pandemic. There was the murder of George Floyd. The murder of Brianna Taylor. Black Lives Matter. Say their names. The anniversary of the Murder of Emmit Till. And a football player in my adopted home town benched for properly protesting while respecting veterans.
A dear friend of mine and former writing partner back in the day sent me a few lines of lyrics about it all, inspired by all of this. I already had a piece of music that demanded some rage to go behind it, so I put the two of them together and put it out in the world. I commissioned a truly bizarre video, rapped for the first (and hopefully last) time. I'm not a very good rapper, but the lyrics were smart and I think that saves it.
I again unleashed it to an indifferent world. Then something remarkable happened.
A football (i.e. soccer for the Americans) player for Manchester United took a knee before a game. Boy, you've never seen football fans like British Football fans, especially for their beloved Man U. There was both outrage and support, and it got the press to talk about anything aside from COVID. A local radio station decided to do a theme show about the protest, and my song "He Takes A Knee" probably got found through a google search. However it happened, it wound up on the show.
All of a sudden I'm doing radio shows - interviews. The video gets thousands and thousands of views (the one for my previous single only had 70 at that point). Manchester radio plays it again, and again. It winds up on a mix-tape show. The replays on British radio dies down, but the match was lit.
I get nominated for best alternative artist by the Radio Music Awards. I won. I got nominated by the Indie Music Channel as best artist. I won. For the first time in over a decade I get a royalty check. It wasn't a big check, but I still got one!
Everything changed for the better for me, all while locked into my apartment. I met other musicians, a couple of which I've collaborated with. I released better songs, got more radio play, won a few more awards, but it was "He Takes a Knee" that really got me going. I don't think it's even the best song I did during that whole stretch - it was just in the right place at the right time.
I did my first "producer for hire" work in over 2 decades. This year two of those bands also won trophies at the Radio Music Awards. I've won another SEVEN.
All kinds of crazy, all because I put together a song about events so far outside of my control that even with my meager conribution the needle didn't move at all. But my own life got better.
I've always followed the advice of Porky Pine, from the comic strip Pogo all those years and years ago: Don't take life so serious: it ain't nohow permanent.
But when life is good enjoy it. Far too much out there is trying to actively take joy away from you. Preserve the joy you have, if you have it. It's kind of amazing how important that is.
Here's that crazy video and song that got the ball rolling. See ya Monday.
New music this week from Bob Mould (who has a great new album out), Lady Gaga, Divorce, Vulfpeck, Suzanne Vega, Sub-Radio, Sasami, I'm With Her, Bryan Adams, Jethro Tull, Benmont Tench, State Cows and much more. Enjoy!
So a few posts back I talked about my neighbor who has a Tesla Cybertruck. Welp, this past weekend his truck got tagged like many of those out there. It got a swastika, a lot of anti-Musk verbiage, and a swear or two. My neighbor didn't deserve it, but he does own the damned thing. I spoke to him about it and his reaction isn't what you might expect. He was mostly amused.
He loves that truck, but he hates Musk and he understands the protest. He's taking a very Irish point of view about the whole thing - "eh, what can you do?". He also noted that the spray-paint was pretty easy to get off. If you look at the truck now it looks brand new. He takes care of his vehicles.
He's keeping it garaged for now, but he's looking for a buyer. He wants a truck he can use.
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FYI, Moosehead Breweries, i.e. the Budweiser of Canada, is offering a case of beer with over 1,400 cans of Moosehead - one for each day remaining in the old/new guy's term. It has already sold out.
And because I love you, I am pointing you to a Vulfpeck Concert. It's their new album, in full.
New music this week from Tori Amos, Aluminum Days, The Sign of Leo, Andy Bell, Michi, Vulfpeck, Billy Idol, The Darkness, Deep Sea Diver, Shaggy & Sting, Peter Garret, Sons of Martha, Spin Doctors, L.A. Witch and so much more. Enjoy!
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While I do find it hilarious that the new/old guy wasn't even invited to this, I have to ask, when has a bully ever reacted to not being invited to the cool kid's party in any manner that suggests rationality? I'd be on the lookout for a different party where none of these people are invited.
The Axis of Vanity, I suspect.
Sanctions to be announced against Norway in 5...4...3...
By the way, in case you didn't see it there was a whole rant about Hunter Biden's bathroom in the middle of the whole unhinged attack on Ukraine's President that was committed by the new/old guy and his couch fucking lackey. You didn't see it because major new outlets edited it out.
If you're not in Los Angeles did you know there was an earthquake there? Of course not. DOGE fired all the people who would report this.
Anyone who dresses like this at work shouldn't be taken seriously. Unless it's your brand (see Zelensky). Not this guy.
Isn't it interesting that the head of the HHS is promoting Measles Vaccinations while the private organization he founded is saying that the current Measles outbreak was caused through vaccinations? That's a lie by the way. The outbreak is among the unvaccinated, and the one death (so far) in the current outbreak is the first in the us in a quarter century.
Of course they're about to fudge the numbers. If they told the truth it would look bad.
Apparently there is this questionnaire out there for Atheists meant to "Open a Dialogue" with Theists. Okay, so it isn't so "apparently" as I've actually seen it. Allow me to break it down into it's most basic parts. 1) Do you believe in god? 2) If not, why not? 3) Are you sure? 4)Have you really thought about it? 5) Are you sure you're sure? 6) Are you really sure? 7) Are you really realllly sure? 8-30) see questions 2-7.
And hey, the Oscars got Best Animated Film right for once! In all fairness, they got it right last year too, but usually the Best Animated film doesn't even get nominated.
And because I love you, the video for the new Vulpeck song is a lot of awesome:
I think that just about anyone in this country (the US) can see that we are in the process of withdrawing ourselves from the world stage. We've left the World Health Organization, USAID has been crippled by Nazis and Incels, we've sanctioned a number of countries for reasons that make no sense (including punishing South Africa for ending Apartheid), voted in a block with Russia and North Korea regarding the war in Ukraine, and are making noises and taking steps towards leaving NATO.
At the same time, is there any country other than Russia that we haven't insulted in the last month?
At a time when our access to the world is really global and thanks to technology really can't be stopped the whole idea that we're trying to pare ourselves down to a fundamentalist version of ourselves comes across as disrespectful to everyone else.
Speaking of respect, have you seen the AI Generated vision of Gaza that the new/old guy sent out over social media? It craps on the culture of millions of people, makes the new/old guy look like Jabba the Hut and shows Elon Musk raining down dollars as if celebrating the successful liposuction his profile demonstrates.
Yes, the new/old guy put out a video that includes a shirtless version of him sitting poolside that shows him as a fat slob. somebody in messaging needs to be reminded that he's supposedly only 230 pounds, not 320. It also shows a huge gold statue of him in a public space (he's thin in that one). If there was ever more ample evidence that he's the modern version of The Golden Calf I have yet to see it.
Oh, and his combover isn't working as well as it used to.
I do have to say that if Musk is taking over the FAA I may never fly again. No one will ever fly here again either. I mean, how will the handoff from foreign air traffic control to domestic even work?
Some days a person could really want to punch RFK Jr. in the face. Don't do it of course. We don't condone violence here. But today is one of those days.
Fantastic new albums from Shale, Call it Off and Franciscan Monks of Acies Mundi feature in this week's new music which also includes Vulfpek, Kings & Pills, Witch Post, Avi Kaplan, Counting Crows, Miki Berenyi Trio, Nao, Youth Lagoon and much more. Enjoy!
A fun little side note here. The guy who set "Hostile Government Takeover" to a EDM/Techno mix (from last week's playlist) also has a solo album out that is nothing like you'd expect. It's a concept balladeer album called "Tales of the Lesbian Hunter" and it's surprisingly good. A track from that album makes this week's playlist.
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With Conservative dickhead Dan Boingino now a Deputy in the FBI, and all the radio/TV hosts that the new/old guy has put in place, where are all the minions, peons and lower class peoples going to go for their 2-minute hate?
Everyone should tell Rep. Gerry Connolly "We will not comply." You're a Democrat. Fight you fucking idiot.
Given that the leader of France called the new/old guy a liar to his face it seems to me that the old (and incorrect) slight about France being the country that surrenders may be assumed by the United States.
There are now reports that Tesla Cybertrucks are held together with glue, and not welding. I hope my neighbor knows that (see previous post on the subject).
“I don’t want to explain it now, but it’s sort of self evident I think,” is the exact thing the new/old guy said when asked why the US and Russia voted against a un resolution to condemn Russia on the third anniversary of its invasion of Ukraine. I agree. You're a corrupt motherfucker.
Kash Patel is running both the FBI and the ATF? WTF??
And how does MSNBC excuse firing all of their women of color? I've seen nothing to justify it yet and I'm not holding my breath.
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And because I love you here is Jane Fonda strong as ever. She and my mom are the same age.
While you've been watching people argue gender in court,
airplanes crash, Elon's buzz-boys program themselves into government and have
officials at multiple levels possibly collude with Russia, the new/old guy's
administration issued an executive order turning the United States into a
Dictatorship. I have the receipts.
This is a directive published on the White House's website.
I'm going to quote the whole fucking thing in full, with some words (and a
moment of relief) after:
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RESTORING DEMOCRACY AND ACCOUNTABILITY IN GOVERNMENT: Today,
President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order ensuring that all federal
agencies are accountable to the American people, as required by the
Constitution. Under this Executive Order: The Order notes that Article II of
the U.S. Constitution vests all executive power in the President, meaning that
all executive branch officials and employees are subject to his supervision.
Therefore, because all executive power is vested in the President, all agencies
must: (1) submit draft regulations for White House review—with no carve-out for
so-called independent agencies, except for the monetary policy functions of the
Federal Reserve; and (2) consult with the White House on their priorities and
strategic plans, and the White House will set their performance standards.
The Office of Management and Budget will adjust so-called independent agencies’
apportionments to ensure tax dollars are spent wisely.
The President and the Attorney General (subject to the President’s supervision
and control) will interpret the law for the executive branch, instead of having
separate agencies adopt conflicting interpretations.
REINING IN INDEPENDENT AGENCIES: So-called independent agencies like the
Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have exercised enormous power over the
American people without Presidential oversight. These agencies issue rules and
regulations that cost billions of dollars and implicate some of the most
controversial policy matters, and they do so without the review of the
democratically elected President.
They also spend American tax dollars and set priorities without consulting the
President, while setting their own performance standards.
Now they will no longer impose rules on the American people without oversight
or accountability.
ENSURING A GOVERNMENT THAT ANSWERS TO THE PEOPLE: This order fulfills President
Trump’s promise to restore constitutional governance and accountability to the
entire executive branch. Executive power without responsibility has no place in
our Republic. The United States was founded on the principle that the
government should be accountable to the people. That is why the Founders
created a single President who is alone vested with “the executive Power” and
responsibility to “take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.”
Voters and the President can now hold all Federal agencies—not just Cabinet
departments—responsible for their decisions, as the Constitution demands.
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So this stream of bullshit means there will be no such thing as an independent agency in
the government anymore. They must all conform to the vision of the White House
- including the Federal Election Commission, The Securities and Exchange
Commission, and the Federal Trade Commission.
The Office of Budget Management can take whatever budget is
passed by Congress and change it.
Watchdogs that report to the President will be placed in
every agency, and they will report to the President and coordinate with a new
branch of government, called the Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs (OIRA).
You know, a Gestapo.
And those last two paragraphs make it look like what they're
doing is increasing accountability, but the reality of the situation is while a
President is accountable, everyone else is accountable to HIM and HIM alone.
This is the real reason why just about every Inspector General was fired. We
had a system of accountability and it worked.
Now we have everyone reporting to the Chancellor and he can
direct the money appropriated by Congress into whatever the fuck he wants.
Is he a Chancellor? A King? He sure as fuck isn't an
American President.
The oath that is taken is protect the country from all enemies,
Foreign or Domestic. But what happens when the President is the Domestic Enemy?
When he has put loyalists in every position that was formerly independent from
him? When Congress has ceded their power over the purse strings of government
to the whips of that same Domestic Enemy?
When that Domestic Enemy controls the military?
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Even getting a NEA Grant has been infused with this bullshit. This is a screenshot of a small section of the rules:
Basically, your art must conform to the administration's goals and beliefs. Dude, if it does that it isn't art - it's propaganda.
I'm considering applying, but I can't decide which of my songs they would find most offensive. I mean, I do have the song where I refer to anti-vaxxers and "Dumbest Motherfuckers", and I have the song in favor of Black Lives matter, but I also have a few now that tells them just how badly they get scripture wrong (see http://fmam.band).
Did you know that Elon and the gang have no actual Government authority to do anything? That the white house confirmed that today? ARREST THAT MOTHERFUCKER AND HIS GOONS!
Of course the new/old guy doesn't see himself as a Dictator. He is calling himself a King. I'm going to use Chancellor - because of what it implies.
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Because I love you and would like to leave you on an up note, here is Vulpeck. My gut feeling is that their next album is going to be a live one, with all new material like this.
New music gthis week from Gothik Serpent, Tetrarch, Big Big Train, OK Go, Love is Noise, Ukrainian artists alyona alyona and KLAR, Japanese Breakfast, Sweet (yes, THAT Sweet), Filizola, Black Crowes with Jimmy Page, an alternative track from one of my side projects; The Antinomy Insurgency, and much more. Enjoy!
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I enjoy this a lot less: the United States are now the villains. Get used to that. All of Europe is getting together to counter what we do, we have concentration camps, and a group of maniac children are running the government, firing people left and right and suspending/killing previously approved spending and calling it illegal.
Yes, judges left and right are calling out this bullshit and telling them to stop, but if no one enforces their rulings do they actually matter?
It's been said elsewhere, but if they were really looking for waste and fraud, they'd hire accountants and nor coders. Coders can change code (provided they understand it - some of them don't know COBOL) and that means they can hold these things hostage.
We've asked the government of Romania to intervene in the
case of a suspected sex trafficker only because he likes the new
administration.
We're trying to collapse the economies of 31 different
countries now. That's right, we have imposed tariffs on 31 countries as of this
writing.
The guy who invented the Pizzagate story now works in the White House.
They're propping up an obviously corrupt and already indicted New York City Mayor, just to advance their desire to put brown people in camps. This has led to a huge number of DoJ officials resigning rather than carry out the order, and the Judge in the matter telling all parties to tell him why in person.
They're blaming the rash of air travel incidents (crashes) on DEI instead of the fact that they've fired far too many air traffic controllers.
They've taken over not just the Kennedy Center but they fired so many people at the John F Kennedy Library in Boston that it had to close.
I already ready to get behind a draft Tim Walz for President movement.
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And because I love you, here's a song about digging up bones.
It's true, he does. He bought it when they were pretty new, and he traded in his regular Tesla car for it.
My neighbor runs a green-energy construction business. He is a big believer in renewable energy, and he does some pretty high-profile work in the Bay Area, running the business from the garage of his home. I've known him for 20 years, and we get along.
My neighbor is an immigrant. He and his wife moved here from Ireland and have had 4 children in the time I've known him. I do not know if either he or his wife have taken American Citizenship, but I do know they go back to Ireland often. We talked about it as my roots are there as well, even if a few generations removed.
My neighbor owns a truck. He treats it like a truck, and not a fashion accessory. He uses it to haul construction equipment, lumber, bags of cement, tile, whatever the work he and his crew are doing that day. That it's made by Tesla is irrelevant to him. It's a truck, and he believes in electric vehicles, so he bought it. He uses it for his business, so it's a company car.
We have never really discussed politics. I did hear him refer to the current leader of the country as a "fuckin' idiot" but that's as far as it goes. We've exchanged more words about the qualities of Irish whiskey and beer, which I drink a lot of but he is more knowledgeable about.
Yes, my neighbor owns a Tesla Truck. He doesn't give a damn about the man whose name is most associated with it - he just needs a truck for his livelihood and believes in green energy and electric vehicles.
He may be the only person who has ever bought one who is using it correctly.
(Generic picture of a Cybertruck below. I'm not invading my neighbor's privacy)
New music this week from Vulfpeck, DarWin, A Short Walk to Pluto, Dead Air, Prince, Bryan Adams, Jethro Tull, Bob Mould, Home Free, The Wildhearts, NOAPOLOGY, Dream Theater, Letters to Lions and much more. Enjoy!
Did Taylor Swift win the Super Bowl?
Nope. Don't Care.
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Man, everything the new/old guy touches dies. Sorry, Kansas City.
Other people have said this but it bears repeating: If the richest man in the history of the world was looking for fraud he's have brought in accountants, not coders. We have given the keys to the engines of the country to a Bond villain, and it's not one of the better ones.
If they've changed code and they're the only ones who know the code, they can hold the entire country hostage with a keystroke. Erase the entire US Treasury. Who knows? That's the point, no one does.
Mike Hucksterbee believes that the new/old guy will do something "biblical" with Gaza. Coming from him, that means Ethnic Cleansing. Let's not kid ourselves about it. This man believes Palestine shouldn't exist.
Although it's already happening impersonating an ICE agent is illegal. For now.
While the new administration has been sued all over the place and judges have told them to stop, have you noticed that they haven't actually stopped?
I hear the penny is going out of production. Good luck getting change on cash purchases. Maybe they're going to round sales tax to the nearest nickel.
Now that the Attorney General of the US has shut down the FBI Foreien Influence task force, what happens to the TV show FBI: International?
There is a Judge who is issuing warning to the government about not doing what he says. Who can he have locked up for contempt? I'm hoping it's Elon.
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And because I love you, here is the original version of the Infinity Song track added above. It's on their live album, but here is the studio version, for which they only released a video 2 days ago, instead of 2 years ago.
New music this week from The Laughing Chimes, Spin Doctors, Franciscan Monks of Acies Mundi, Yndling, Baby Said, Maddie Jay, Snow Patrol, James Bay with Jon Batiste, Chris Reed and the Anime Raiders and much more. Enjoy!
No, I didn't watch the Grammys. They almost never nominate
the right artists in each category. It's a popularity contest, not a reflection
of quality. For example, Lola Young released this past year one of the best
albums in a decade and how many nominations did she get? ZERO. Also, The
Beatles are nominated? They broke up 54 years ago! (P.S. I am told they won. I
love the Beatles but give me a fucking break).
+++++++++++++++++++++
So what the fuck is happening to our government? The
Treasury Department has been taken over with the skill and aplomb of one of the
later Die Hard movies by a South African import and a child from Canada who
calls himself "BigBallz". Hope you weren't expecting your social
security or Medicare payments to be on time - or to ever come. They want to
covert the treasury to blockchain - i.e. bitcoin.
For fuck's sake Musk is an actual Bond Villian. There are only two reasons
to convert the security of our nation's currency into bitcoin: 1) to destroy it
or 2) to steal it. He could bankrupt the country and every bank in the nation
in just a few seconds if he were to make that change. They would all be his
hostages.
Not to mention that there have been two plane crashes and a
third that caught fire in the past 5 days, and all press releases will now come
through Elon Musk's "X" platform. It already appears that press
releases for other agencies will only come through X as well. Also, anyone
critical of the new administration will be banned from X. So sez the self
proclaimed "Free Speech Absolutist". Did he lie? Yes, he did.
Oh and by the way, he's suing several companies for NOT advertising
on X. That's not a crime, Apartheid boy.
This fuckhead has illegally taken over the purse strings of
our government. The crimes have been committed and I would like to think we're
going to start arresting people.
But probably not.
What else... oh yes! We're going to invade Mexico. We bombed
a low-level thug in Somalia who mostly just blackmailed people.
The State Department has appointed as Undersecretary for
Public Diplomacy, i.e. the department mouthpiece, a known white
supremacist who was the person who started the rumor that the FBI was behind
the attempted insurrection of January 6, 2021.
The Department of Education hasn't done much yet, other than
eliminate all diversity education and policies, dismissed every complaint about
book bans (believe it or not, a LOT of people complain about books being banned
in schools) and celebrated "school choice" - i.e. vouchers and home
schooling.
The tariffs have begun! By the way, this is in violation of
the USMCA Treaty. You know who signed that one? The very man who is now in
violation of it. I would like to think we're going to start arresting people.
But probably not.
And then after I wrote the previous paragraph we suddenly
aren't imposing tariffs on Mexico (and also Canada after a couple more hours
pass) for the next month! He did manage to crash the stock market though, so I
have to wonder how many short-sells he had in his pocket. Remember, he hasn't
divested from anything.
The CDC has been told to hold all publications for review,
to make certain that specific words that are now forbidden are not used. Those
words include "Diversity", "Gender",
"Transgender", "Pregnant person" "Pregnant
People" and just about any issue involving the LGBTQA+ community. Oh, and
have you seen the latest press briefings on Bird Flu or perhaps the greatest
outbreak of Tuberculosis in this country in a century? Of course not - there
haven't been any.
Can you say censorship boy and girls?
And have you noticed how many government websites are now
simply gone? Welcome to book-burning in the Digital Age. The people who burn
books are never the good guys.
Our first Concentration Camp will be at Guantanamo, which is
pretty far away from any prying eyes. You can't call yourself a decent person
and not be outraged by this. Given the number of American Citizens that have
been swept up in raids that have already taken place I am certain that American
Citizens are going to wind up in Cuba because of the color of their skin, or
because of their fluency in Spanish. And we're apparently using the same law
used to inter Japanese in WWII. Which was also a crime.
You know who would be against all this bullshit? The
Republican's beloved Saint Ronny. He even gave a radio address about it, which
you can hear at this link.
I think even Reagan would break his own 11th commandment
when it comes to this bullshit.
Legislation has been introduced to ban all porn, and the
definition is so wildly broad that Romance Novels will be affected. As in the
authors will be sent to prison. Hell, the bible could qualify as porn under
this definition. Also included is the end of no fault divorce, medical
abortions, drag performances that can be attended by kids, cash incentives for
covenant marriages... as if The Handmaid's Tale were an instruction manual and
not a cautionary tale.
Just ask all of the women in Texas and elsewhere currently
in prison for having had miscarriages.
The Pentagon has informed the press corps that NBC, the New
York Times, National Public Radio and Politico will be "rotated out of the
building" to give space to the New York Post, Breitbart, OANN, and
HuffPost.
The Defense Department has paused observances of MLK Day,
Pride Month, Holocaust Days of Remembrance, Juneteenth, Women's History Month,
Black History Month, National Hispanic Heritage Month, and more. Some of these
are Federal Holidays.
USAID has been shut down, according to Musk, who you might
recall is not a government employee. I can't even count the number of laws he
broken by not only doing this, but announcing it on the social media platform
he owns. It's enough to put him in prison for life, if anyone has the spine to
do it. Yes, the new/old guy will pardon him, but do it anyway.
They tried to fire everyone at the FBI who worked on a
January 6 case. The acting Director said no. So the hero of the moment is a guy
who looks like he's called "Drizz"? And actually IS called Drizz?
Shucks Scooby, I didn't see that one coming.
So what is happening to our Government? The same thing that
happened to Twitter. To quote legal expert Sam
Bagenstos, "move fast, break things (with “things” very much
including the law), and then dare folks to try and do something about it. Their
expectation is that people will be too overwhelmed, and the law will move too
slowly, to stop them from doing what they’re doing."
You know, fake it 'till you break it.
Doing this to a company, either large or small, eventually
end with bankruptcies and business closing down. Doing this to a government
leads to the collapse of a nation. And a failing nation led by hypocrites and
psychopaths and people with no business running a country will lash out.
Germany did. Rome did. We will too, and we have nukes.
Oh, and apparently we're going to punish South Africa for
ending Apartheid.
And hey, please note that when Mike Flynn threatens you over
treason respect the opinion. He's committed it often enough that he's an
expert.
You don't want to be called a racist? Don't be one.
You don't want to be called a fascist? Stop hanging out with
them. Stop emulating them. Stop listening to their advice. If you can't do all
of that, you are already a fascist.
And one last plea from an ex-pat living in his own country:
Instead of just saying "it's illegal" what they're doing, start FUCKING
ARRESTING PEOPLE WHO COMMIT CRIMES!
Please.
For example, a disgraced radio host is already boasting that
he has illegally received classified information. That's a crime for both
parties - and the other party is the new/old guy. That's like, you know,
treason.
