As a young man, my father (of Welsh extraction) apparently looked enough like Keith Richards to be occasionally asked for autographs. I am therefore in the peculiar position of being one of the very, very few people who knows what Richards would look like at 67 if he had eaten sensibly and exercised for the last fifty years.
Well, this is at least entertaining: NRO weenie tries desperately to believe that Lennon wasn't really a liberal, because, you know, then he'd have to hate the Beatles and he really, really likes the Beatles.
Bill Wyman kept score on the sexual conquests of the early Stones. He and Brian Jones were in the triple figures, Mick Jagger in the dozens (probably because he had supermodels following him around), and Keith was in the low single figures, six I think. He had other interests.
Charlie Watts was married and got a zero.
The other thing that struck me about this story was Bill Wyman diligently keeping the stats, even though he was busier than any of the others. What a work ethic that man had!
The other thing that struck me about this story was Bill Wyman diligently keeping the stats, even though he was busier than any of the others. What a work ethic that man had!
My lasting impression of Yoko is the one I got from some book she wrote, in which she said "people should smoke everything they can, including pubic hair".
Also, her cover of Hedwig's Lament ("I lost a piece of my heart...I gave a piece to the rock star/He took the good stuff and ran") was very touching. (Exquisite Corpse, not so much.)
Jim Morrison! Aack! When I was in college (circa 1980) he was like this saint to many of my classmates. It was intolerable. The Byronic pose he had (to the extent that I paid attention to him) was done so much better by... well by Byron, for starters... or by Liszt or Chopin. He just wasn't all they were making him out to be. Besides, his whole rep seemed to rest on a couple of songs, tops.
I'm fairly sure I've explicitly said my age more than once, but all I can find now is a comment where I admit my ignorance about something, then imply what my age is, and then write a non sequitur.
38: Agreed. I like Lennon, too, though. It seems so unfair that we're left with Ringo (although I have nothing against him, I just have nothing for him) and Paul, who seems to be entirely too pleased with himself.
I claim that Salinger and Lehrer are pre-boomer. Salinger was passe by 1964 and probably earlier, I know that much. Even Kerouac was well established before 1960.
I realize we all look alike to y'all, but the first boomer HS graduation class was 1964. (Picky, picky.)
My brother born in 1960 feels like he missed out on things because he was born too late. (His premise is that the 60's were a good thing, which not everyone agrees with.)
Not to mention the fact that someone born in 1946 could have had a kid by 1964.
When I was in Seattle ca. 1969, there was an article about fucked-up kids in Mercer Island (a suburb). I met some of the kids, and they were hippyish with strong street-punk tendencies. One of them was pregnant, with an intermittent boyfriend who seemed to be paying for sex with Kentucky Fried Chicken, and she hit on me when he wasn't there (hoping for something more romantic, I guess, like Chicken Cordon Bleu).
In the middle/late 80's I read another article about fucked-up kids in Mercer Island, and after doing the math I realized it could be the second generation of the same thing (i.e., the unborn child now semi-grown up).
Gen X is supposed to end at 1981. (I think 1975 is more accurate -- Gen Xers should have been old enough to get rich of the tech boom, and people my age miss it by about two years.)
Oh, in that case I'm in Gen X, but don't feel like it: I'm slightly older than you. I believe one or two of my classmates may have gotten rich-ish off the tech boom, though.
Re 63--even though I wasn't old enough, really to have participated in dot com mania, it sure skewed my college-year worldview. High school and early college was all very grunge, and then suddenly all my hippie friends were becoming companies overnight. A lot of my friends had summer jobs coding or "providing content."
I was in college then, too, and the change in the mood was palpable. The kids graduating in 1998 and 1999 usually had multiple offers, signing bonuses, and brimmed with confidence that their compsci degree would take them anywhere. By 2000 expectations had lowered, and by October 2000 the bubble had punctured and we 2001 kids felt a bit chagrined that we would have made more dropping out of college freshman year.
N+1 had a kinda good little essay about this. In the late nineties, it felt really noble, exciting, and superior not to try to cash in on the millions that seemed to be out there. But we were all convinced that we could sell out at any moment and make a fortune.
Are there any of you who have computer science degrees? I could use some e-mail conversation with somebody who has studied cs. (My situation -- I have a bachelor's in cs and have been working in the field for 10 years, and just finished the first part-time semester of a master's degree program.) If you want to lend an ear and chat about stuff in hopes I can figure out what I'm thinking about, drop me a line.
This is a lie. The other songs on that album are as awesome as Lester said they was.
Also, how can they write a biography of that band without mentioning Lester Bangs? It's like talking about the Gert Jonnys without talking about the Poor Man. Or talking about... um, help me out here.
Matt -- I'm puzzled by that writer's characterization of "Psychotic Reaction" as "one of the most accessible" songs on Nuggets, an album filled almost entirely with accessible songs.
Granted, Matt, but I'm just asking for the authority. I'll use peaceful methods first. Having the authority will give me the flexibility I need and will actually make it much less likely that I'll be forced to be unamiable.
Actually, I've been physically threatened by Ogged, who was offended by my mention of Ulugh Beg. I have to be on my guard and won't be able to do any banning.
Sometimes I think that this is an elaborate, murderous plot.
Anyone else looking for balm for their sundry R.E.M.-addled psyches, should head over to Bill Kelly's Teenage Wasteland archives and click on any of the shows. You'll get 2 hours of bliss before you have to go back to your pitiful life.
72: The district court opinion (.pdf) in the My Sweet Lord/He's So Fine law suit. Other than using the phrase "highly unique" it's an interesting opinion. Short too.
Is the title of this post in reference to something John was supposed to have said at the end of one of the Beatles' songs ("I am the Walrus"?) in reference to the deceased Paul McCartney? Or did John (or somebody else) independently record a song under that title?
George the Third was the undisputed King of Great Britain; of that there can be no doubt. If it is true that pride goeth before a fall, then the King's arrogance cost him his American colonies, and much, much more; George the Third lost his mind as a result of hubris, and ended up confined in an insane asylum, mad as a March Hare. This cautionary tale reflects an even greater fall, one which we are in the privileged position of witnessing: the collective mental breakdown of the Liberal Movement. We are witnessing the madness of the postmodern King!
Liberalism has been King for a very long time. Liberalism has been the driving force in the West since the 18th Century, and gained almost complete ascendancy in the 20th, where it reigned almost unchallenged from the 1930s until the 1980s. The power of the Left derived from its control of the dissemination of information, and leftsists' understanding of the value of propaganda has always propelled their Kingship. They have come to consider their rule as being by Darwinian Right, and grew smug in their assurance of power. To their utter amazement, the reign of the left has come to an end, and like poor King George they are suffering an acute mental breakdown.
What has happened to the Left? Like Teddy Kennedy, they seem to have driven off the bridge of sanity into the dark waters of madness, becoming incapable of grasping the reality of the world around them. We see evidence of this everywhere we look these days; from Dan Rather`s insistence that his National Guard documents were valid even though forged, to Senator Joe Biden arguing on Meet the Press to bring Iran in to help with Iraqi reconstruction, to the Democrats' hope for a "Merry Fitzmas", in the deification of Cindy Sheehan, the mad rantings of Dick Durban, and the backstabbing of former President Jimmy Carter. We see it in the "wrong war in the wrong place at the wrong time" comments by John Kerry and by the stubborn refusal to accept that we are actually at war.
We see it in the refusal of the Left to accept the results of the elections of 2000 and 2004, of their unwillingness to believe they are not in power. We see it in the standing ovation given by many Democrats to Michael Moore`s insane propaganda, in the "all about Halliburton"/"Bush lied to get us into war" view of Iraq. We see it in the attempt to equate running the air conditioning at Gitmo with Saddam`s torture chambers.
There seems to be a refusal among liberals to believe in reality these days. It is as if an entire segment of the population has lost their collective minds. Just what is happening?
An entire segment of the population has lost its collective mind. According to author Phillip K. Dick, reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. Using this benchmark to judge the sanity of the Left, it becomes apparent that they have, indeed, lost their cats-eyes and pearly whites. The modern Liberal is madder than a haberdasher at a Lewis Carroll tea party.
We never thought of Ogged as a fiendish criminal mastermind. But we thought wroing, and now our very survival is in doubt. There's a lesson for future generations there.
As far as the "lessons which shouldn't have been necessary" category goes, one member of the Tanya Harding Fraction (Shawn Eckhart) learned that "It isn't a good idea to brag about your criminal exploits to a minister of the Gospel."
In no particular order, I was born in 1975 and am solidly Gen-X. My sister was born in 1981 which I guess technically makes her Gen-X, but I've always thought of her as Gen-Y.
My Dad graduated from high school in 1962, so I guess that he's not a boomer, but I always thought that he was.
And I've decided to treat this as an open thread, because I thought that the unfogged community had to see this truly bizarre promotional video for the Garlic Card.
Born in 1970, I have no letter to identify my generation with. I am however currently the same age as the narrator of Dante's Inferno, which I like to think counts for something.
Also: that Fellini-esque video made me laugh. Was the point that the garlic-grating utensil will allow you too to be like these oddly disheveled, suit-wearing jocks and dance a ballet of food preparation? When she first appeared the woman seemed like an unwelcome intrusion into this romantic fantasia but then I realized she was just there to do makeup for the protagonists. It bears re-watching, you will pickup important details the second time around. The signs are an especially nice touch -- a less gifted auteur would have added captions in after the shooting was done.
The GarlicCard(tm) site is worth checking out if you enjoyed the video. High points -- the picture of Herman Rasmosen, GarlicCard(tm) inventor, on their "Background" page, and his narrative; and if you like the picture, be sure to get the large version of it linked from the "Press" page.
However his name is spelt Rasmuson. (Somebody more skilled than I could probably crack wise about it sounding like Rashomon; I will leave that sort of thing to the professionals.)
"George the Third lost his mind as a result of hubris" or porphyry. Meanwhile I was in a record shop yesterday and they were playing the 3rd Wilbury's album. I'd never heard any of them, being old, but I thought it was rather good. Not High Art, but, you know, good.
John & Yoko were awful on the Stones' Circus TV show. TightA$$ was a good song/record. The Beatles should have looked after Badfinger better.
Snuck in at the end of the thread. Deadman turns me on. A classic clueless blues jam by one of the many unheralded great Texas bands, Josephus. Weiner and Emerson and Wolfson, well, never mind.
There used to be a purveyor of antiquarian books named Joseph the Provider. They had a sweet logo. Then the partners in it broke up. One of them got to keep the logo, but the old name had to go.
I thought it was such a good name. I was very upset when it turned out to be the name of a Thomas Mann novel.
Thank god I'm not the only one bored by JL.
Posted by bitchphd | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 1:49 PM
To be bored by a dead John Lennon is to be bored by life. (Had to be said.)
Posted by SomeCallMeTim | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 1:53 PM
If he's simutaneously boring FL and BPhD, maybe it's a sign he's spreading his attentions too thin. Dead men aren't notorious for their stamina.
Posted by Tia | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 1:59 PM
I am in complete agreement with FL on both this and the MM question.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:00 PM
I am not at all bored with Keith Richard, who is alive but shouldn't be. Not that anything recent of theirs is any good.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:04 PM
Actually, if he's successfully boring them both simultaneously, that's pretty impressive.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:08 PM
As a young man, my father (of Welsh extraction) apparently looked enough like Keith Richards to be occasionally asked for autographs. I am therefore in the peculiar position of being one of the very, very few people who knows what Richards would look like at 67 if he had eaten sensibly and exercised for the last fifty years.
Posted by LizardBreath | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:09 PM
And . . . and . . . so what does he look like? Don't keep us all waiting . . .
Posted by Tripp | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:11 PM
Much healthier than the actual Richards, but retaining the outsized Richards upper lip.
Posted by LizardBreath | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:14 PM
Well, this is at least entertaining: NRO weenie tries desperately to believe that Lennon wasn't really a liberal, because, you know, then he'd have to hate the Beatles and he really, really likes the Beatles.
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:16 PM
Bill Wyman kept score on the sexual conquests of the early Stones. He and Brian Jones were in the triple figures, Mick Jagger in the dozens (probably because he had supermodels following him around), and Keith was in the low single figures, six I think. He had other interests.
Charlie Watts was married and got a zero.
The other thing that struck me about this story was Bill Wyman diligently keeping the stats, even though he was busier than any of the others. What a work ethic that man had!
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:20 PM
The other thing that struck me about this story was Bill Wyman diligently keeping the stats, even though he was busier than any of the others. What a work ethic that man had!
And to think, this was in the days before Excel!
Posted by My Alter Ego | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:24 PM
Yoko Ono is still interesting.
Posted by Armsmasher | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:41 PM
Yoko's a screamer.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:42 PM
My lasting impression of Yoko is the one I got from some book she wrote, in which she said "people should smoke everything they can, including pubic hair".
Posted by Matt F | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:47 PM
14: You may say she's a screamer.
Posted by annie | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:47 PM
But she's not the only one?
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:50 PM
he NRO guy is innumerate. Lennon was not a multi-billionaire. He should get a job in the Treasury Dept.
He also didn't mention "Taxman", which really is pretty Republican.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:51 PM
Taxman is the work of Harrison, not Lennon, though.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:52 PM
I think Yoko's art is underrated.
Also, her cover of Hedwig's Lament ("I lost a piece of my heart...I gave a piece to the rock star/He took the good stuff and ran") was very touching. (Exquisite Corpse, not so much.)
Posted by Becks | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 2:57 PM
The only Ono album I have is Plastic Ono Band, and it's practically wall-to-wall screaming.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 3:01 PM
Play It By Trust is more sedate.
Posted by Armsmasher | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 3:13 PM
You say you want a fucking screamer
Well, you know
We all want really hot sexxxx
You tell me that you can't get offfff
Well, you know
We all want to cum buckets
But when you talk about prostitution
Don't you know that you can count me out
Don't you know it's gonna be all right (3x)
You say you got a real solution
Well, you know
We'd all love to see the plan
You ask me for a contribution
Well, you know
We're doing what we can
But when you want money for exploiting women
All I can tell is brother you have to wait
Don't you know it's gonna be all right (3x)
You say you'll change your personal ad
Well, you know
We all want to change your head
You tell me it's the desperation
Well, you know
You better free you mind instead
But if you go carrying pictures of Hermione
You ain't going to make it with anyone anyhow
Don't you know it's gonna be all right (3x)
All right, all right...
ash
['Hott.']
Posted by ash | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 3:34 PM
Ash, you're not-caring too hard.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 3:50 PM
I was a year and a half old when Lennon was shot, so.... meh. It seems to have meant something to a lot of people my parents' age, though.
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 3:55 PM
Probably only Saiselgy, L., and Ezra weren't at least alive when it happened. Reagan babies!
Posted by Armsmasher | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 3:58 PM
Silvana, Wolfson, and Joe D I think are also under 25. Also, you all suck. Except SCMT.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 4:18 PM
Oh, come now, Weiner, you're still young enough to enjoy... epistemology...
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 4:40 PM
Children, the lot of you. Children, I say.
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 4:50 PM
I am also a Reagan baby, and I care about Lennon (not Monroe, though).
Posted by teofilo | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 5:04 PM
Someone start a new thread about how someone else is boring. Lennon isn't boring enough, though apparently Monroe was.
How about "The sublime butthead stupidity of Jim Morrison".
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 5:20 PM
For once I'm the guy working late at the office . . . and no one's here to entertain me.
Posted by Armsmasher | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:13 PM
Jim Morrison! Aack! When I was in college (circa 1980) he was like this saint to many of my classmates. It was intolerable. The Byronic pose he had (to the extent that I paid attention to him) was done so much better by... well by Byron, for starters... or by Liszt or Chopin. He just wasn't all they were making him out to be. Besides, his whole rep seemed to rest on a couple of songs, tops.
Posted by Mark | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:13 PM
Other boring baby boomer icons:
- the rest of the Beatles (although George Harrison was okay--his film company did some good stuff)
- Howdy Doody
- Jack Keroauc
- J.D. Salinger
- Tom Lehrer
Your nominees?
Posted by bitcphd | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:23 PM
-- JFK
Posted by pjs | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:35 PM
I'm fairly sure I've explicitly said my age more than once, but all I can find now is a comment where I admit my ignorance about something, then imply what my age is, and then write a non sequitur.
Posted by washerdreyer | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:37 PM
George Harrison is the best Beatle. Discuss.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:40 PM
Agreed.
Posted by teofilo | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:41 PM
Agreed.
Posted by bitchphd | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:44 PM
38: Agreed. I like Lennon, too, though. It seems so unfair that we're left with Ringo (although I have nothing against him, I just have nothing for him) and Paul, who seems to be entirely too pleased with himself.
Posted by annie | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:44 PM
I meant 37: agreed.
Posted by annie | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:45 PM
I'm down with Ringo. Seems to have a sense of humor about himself.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:48 PM
Howdy Doody? You're questioning Howdy Doody?
I claim that Salinger and Lehrer are pre-boomer. Salinger was passe by 1964 and probably earlier, I know that much. Even Kerouac was well established before 1960.
I realize we all look alike to y'all, but the first boomer HS graduation class was 1964. (Picky, picky.)
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:55 PM
No good Beatles.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:55 PM
Anyone know what the last boomer birth year is? I thought it was 1964.
Posted by annie | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 6:56 PM
Why didn't anyone tell me about how good Sufjan Stevens is before this was sold out?
Posted by washerdreyer | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:01 PM
I have yellow boots!
1946-1964 is what Wiki says, though it's worth noting that that seems to span a large range of cultural differences.
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:04 PM
I hate the 1964 date for the last boomer year because I was born in 1964. It makes me feel like I am old on a technicality.
Posted by Joe O | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:04 PM
And I think that someone born in 64 has more in common with me, a '79 baby than someone born in '52.
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:06 PM
that seems to span a large range of cultural differences
Not to mention the fact that someone born in 1946 could have had a kid by 1964.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:07 PM
My brother born in 1960 feels like he missed out on things because he was born too late. (His premise is that the 60's were a good thing, which not everyone agrees with.)
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:20 PM
But the sixties were two things.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:22 PM
The summer of love and the stones at altamont?
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:31 PM
But the sixties were two things.
To a dualist, perhaps.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:32 PM
Not to mention the fact that someone born in 1946 could have had a kid by 1964.
When I was in Seattle ca. 1969, there was an article about fucked-up kids in Mercer Island (a suburb). I met some of the kids, and they were hippyish with strong street-punk tendencies. One of them was pregnant, with an intermittent boyfriend who seemed to be paying for sex with Kentucky Fried Chicken, and she hit on me when he wasn't there (hoping for something more romantic, I guess, like Chicken Cordon Bleu).
In the middle/late 80's I read another article about fucked-up kids in Mercer Island, and after doing the math I realized it could be the second generation of the same thing (i.e., the unborn child now semi-grown up).
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:32 PM
But the sixties were two things.
Also the 70s were two things: free love and cocaine.
Then the 80s were two things: AIDS and crack.
There tends to be a progression.
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:38 PM
Radicalism and conservatism, both critical of American society as it stood at the beginning of the decade.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:38 PM
Incidentally, what's the last birth year for Generation X? I can never figure out if I'm supposed to be in it or not.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:44 PM
37-40: Ridiculous. Say what you will about Lennon, he's the only one (save Starr) to do anything worthwhile post-Beatles.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:48 PM
Define "worthwhile."
Posted by teofilo | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:50 PM
Funny!
Matt Weenie apparently doesn't think much of the Concert for Bangla Desh!
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:53 PM
No, no! No good Beatles! Before, during, or after!
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 7:55 PM
Gen X is supposed to end at 1981. (I think 1975 is more accurate -- Gen Xers should have been old enough to get rich of the tech boom, and people my age miss it by about two years.)
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:01 PM
Oh, in that case I'm in Gen X, but don't feel like it: I'm slightly older than you. I believe one or two of my classmates may have gotten rich-ish off the tech boom, though.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:04 PM
Ha! I'm not even Gen X! Y'all can suck it over in the geriatric ward!
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:05 PM
Re 63--even though I wasn't old enough, really to have participated in dot com mania, it sure skewed my college-year worldview. High school and early college was all very grunge, and then suddenly all my hippie friends were becoming companies overnight. A lot of my friends had summer jobs coding or "providing content."
Posted by Jackmormon | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:07 PM
Will they even let you into the bar at the meetup, baby Wolfson? ;0)
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:08 PM
What meetup? I don't live in nyc.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:17 PM
I'm with you, Cala. '79 isn't Gen X. No way.
Posted by TJ | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:19 PM
I was in college then, too, and the change in the mood was palpable. The kids graduating in 1998 and 1999 usually had multiple offers, signing bonuses, and brimmed with confidence that their compsci degree would take them anywhere. By 2000 expectations had lowered, and by October 2000 the bubble had punctured and we 2001 kids felt a bit chagrined that we would have made more dropping out of college freshman year.
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:21 PM
N+1 had a kinda good little essay about this. In the late nineties, it felt really noble, exciting, and superior not to try to cash in on the millions that seemed to be out there. But we were all convinced that we could sell out at any moment and make a fortune.
Posted by Jackmormon | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:27 PM
61: "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is a good song. So's "He's So Fine."
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:29 PM
Are there any of you who have computer science degrees? I could use some e-mail conversation with somebody who has studied cs. (My situation -- I have a bachelor's in cs and have been working in the field for 10 years, and just finished the first part-time semester of a master's degree program.) If you want to lend an ear and chat about stuff in hopes I can figure out what I'm thinking about, drop me a line.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:34 PM
Jeremy, all comments on this thread must reference the Beatles and Sixties pop.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:38 PM
John, it's a fine line.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:39 PM
(My question is, how come nobody ever wants to talk about "Psychotic Reaction" by the Count Five?)
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:41 PM
Carburetor Dung!
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:43 PM
I think tom does, Osner.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:45 PM
This is a lie. The other songs on that album are as awesome as Lester said they was.
Also, how can they write a biography of that band without mentioning Lester Bangs? It's like talking about the Gert Jonnys without talking about the Poor Man. Or talking about... um, help me out here.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:49 PM
LEONARD BERNSTEIN.
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:50 PM
Talking about Casey Jones/Lee Sheldon/Tom Dula without mentioning songs?
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:53 PM
Matt -- I'm puzzled by that writer's characterization of "Psychotic Reaction" as "one of the most accessible" songs on Nuggets, an album filled almost entirely with accessible songs.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:54 PM
In what regard, Leonard Bernstein?
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:56 PM
Am I able to ban people yet? Osner's response was inadequate.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:57 PM
Osner's response was inadequate.
Like so much else about me.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:58 PM
It's time I had some time alone.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:58 PM
Emerson, it is not amiable to ban people.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 8:59 PM
Granted, Matt, but I'm just asking for the authority. I'll use peaceful methods first. Having the authority will give me the flexibility I need and will actually make it much less likely that I'll be forced to be unamiable.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:02 PM
My remark was based on what happens if you were to remove the spaces from 84. It wasn't actually that funny.
Abu Tru-Temp, do you find that you're having headaches and find it difficult to type?
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:05 PM
I'm convinced.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:06 PM
And using the word 'find' excessively?
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:06 PM
Amiable to ban people yet?
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:14 PM
It's time I had some time alone.
When that song first came out, I was convinced that line was "Hi there handsome, I'm alone."
Which made perfect sense.
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:17 PM
Matt -- here is some balm for your R.E.M.-addled psyche.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:17 PM
I'm going to the U.N. with my evidence.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:20 PM
Would you deliver a swift kick in the nuts to John Bolton for me?
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:21 PM
Relax John, you'll have plenty of opportunity to ban me next Tuesday.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:21 PM
Actually, I've been physically threatened by Ogged, who was offended by my mention of Ulugh Beg. I have to be on my guard and won't be able to do any banning.
Sometimes I think that this is an elaborate, murderous plot.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:34 PM
Anyone else looking for balm for their sundry R.E.M.-addled psyches, should head over to Bill Kelly's Teenage Wasteland archives and click on any of the shows. You'll get 2 hours of bliss before you have to go back to your pitiful life.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 9:47 PM
... and I feel fine...
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 10:19 PM
Admit it, Emerson, it would be kind of funny if they killed you in the bar and ate you.
Posted by SomeCallMeTim | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 10:42 PM
What kind of reputation does that bar have? Am I going to be walking past Peter Lorre and Sidney Greenstreet on my way "upstairs"?
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 10:44 PM
Of all the meetups in all the world, you had to be invited to this one.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 10:45 PM
Should I pack heat? Bring protection?
Posted by Jackmormon | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 11:00 PM
Yes, I've been working through The Wire for the second time. Thanks, Ogged, for making me wonder about the voice effects. No, really.
Posted by Jackmormon | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 11:03 PM
72: The district court opinion (.pdf) in the My Sweet Lord/He's So Fine law suit. Other than using the phrase "highly unique" it's an interesting opinion. Short too.
Posted by washerdreyer | Link to this comment | 12- 9-05 11:12 PM
Is the title of this post in reference to something John was supposed to have said at the end of one of the Beatles' songs ("I am the Walrus"?) in reference to the deceased Paul McCartney? Or did John (or somebody else) independently record a song under that title?
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 6:11 AM
Seemingly everyone is trudging to meetup on foot already. This is pretty dead.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 12:39 PM
"Dead man turn me on" is what you hear when you play Revolution #9 backwards.
Posted by Anonymous | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 12:44 PM
Thanks, "".
In the absence of substantive dialogue may I present for your delectation two comic strips: The Puppet and the Puppetmaster, and ObButtsex.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 3:17 PM
Hm, Ogged seems to have snuffed everyone but me and Jeremy already. Is blogging forbidden today?
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 4:14 PM
Voice effects?
Posted by Armsmasher | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 5:33 PM
Accents, I think.
Posted by Wehttam Saiselgy | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 5:42 PM
Perhaps the problem is that you are so wealthy as to be able to be bored?
http://www.americanthinker.com/articles.php?article_id=5063
The Mad King and the Crazy Left
December 10th, 2005
George the Third was the undisputed King of Great Britain; of that there can be no doubt. If it is true that pride goeth before a fall, then the King's arrogance cost him his American colonies, and much, much more; George the Third lost his mind as a result of hubris, and ended up confined in an insane asylum, mad as a March Hare. This cautionary tale reflects an even greater fall, one which we are in the privileged position of witnessing: the collective mental breakdown of the Liberal Movement. We are witnessing the madness of the postmodern King!
Liberalism has been King for a very long time. Liberalism has been the driving force in the West since the 18th Century, and gained almost complete ascendancy in the 20th, where it reigned almost unchallenged from the 1930s until the 1980s. The power of the Left derived from its control of the dissemination of information, and leftsists' understanding of the value of propaganda has always propelled their Kingship. They have come to consider their rule as being by Darwinian Right, and grew smug in their assurance of power. To their utter amazement, the reign of the left has come to an end, and like poor King George they are suffering an acute mental breakdown.
What has happened to the Left? Like Teddy Kennedy, they seem to have driven off the bridge of sanity into the dark waters of madness, becoming incapable of grasping the reality of the world around them. We see evidence of this everywhere we look these days; from Dan Rather`s insistence that his National Guard documents were valid even though forged, to Senator Joe Biden arguing on Meet the Press to bring Iran in to help with Iraqi reconstruction, to the Democrats' hope for a "Merry Fitzmas", in the deification of Cindy Sheehan, the mad rantings of Dick Durban, and the backstabbing of former President Jimmy Carter. We see it in the "wrong war in the wrong place at the wrong time" comments by John Kerry and by the stubborn refusal to accept that we are actually at war.
We see it in the refusal of the Left to accept the results of the elections of 2000 and 2004, of their unwillingness to believe they are not in power. We see it in the standing ovation given by many Democrats to Michael Moore`s insane propaganda, in the "all about Halliburton"/"Bush lied to get us into war" view of Iraq. We see it in the attempt to equate running the air conditioning at Gitmo with Saddam`s torture chambers.
There seems to be a refusal among liberals to believe in reality these days. It is as if an entire segment of the population has lost their collective minds. Just what is happening?
An entire segment of the population has lost its collective mind. According to author Phillip K. Dick, reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. Using this benchmark to judge the sanity of the Left, it becomes apparent that they have, indeed, lost their cats-eyes and pearly whites. The modern Liberal is madder than a haberdasher at a Lewis Carroll tea party.
How did this happen?
--much more--.....
Posted by abcwxy | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 5:53 PM
These spam are like bad freshman political philosophy.
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 5:55 PM
American Thinker, just get away
American Thinker, listen-a what I say
Don't want you hangin around my door
Don't wanta see your face no more
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 5:56 PM
In the face of Bush's triumphant war in Iraq and his tough, effective fiscal austerity program, I can only lie down and whimper.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 5:58 PM
The spam doesn't Google.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 6:00 PM
Armsmasher and Sausagely are still alive. Ogged hasn't found them yet I guess. Tomorrow!
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 6:08 PM
When everyone is looking away, he'll be slipping the arsenic into the breakfast tacos. His brilliantly evil plan is coming into focus...
Posted by Matt F | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 6:14 PM
Ogged is just using their computers to post as them.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 6:16 PM
We never thought of Ogged as a fiendish criminal mastermind. But we thought wroing, and now our very survival is in doubt. There's a lesson for future generations there.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 6:18 PM
Don't befriend serial killers? That's generally a good lesson.
Posted by Matt F | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 6:29 PM
We all think that we can reform them with the power of love.
I think that that Tivo story was a tipoff.
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 6:32 PM
As far as the "lessons which shouldn't have been necessary" category goes, one member of the Tanya Harding Fraction (Shawn Eckhart) learned that "It isn't a good idea to brag about your criminal exploits to a minister of the Gospel."
Posted by John Emerson | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 6:34 PM
Since there have been no comments for about 3 1/2 hours, I shall go ahead and say that Before Sunset is very good. Also, Before Sunrise.
Posted by Anonymous | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 9:41 PM
Er, sorry, that was me.
Posted by Matt F | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 9:42 PM
You know, I just have a lot of trouble believing that, at least about the second of the two.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 9:50 PM
Well, I just had a full bottle of wine by myslef, so blame the naive romanticism on that, but yeah, I enjoyed them.
Posted by Matt F | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 9:57 PM
You know, we all should just be grateful that we're alive. But Ogged still hasn't been apprehended.
Posted by Anonymous | Link to this comment | 12-10-05 10:44 PM
Best thing George Harrison ever did: "It's Only a Northern Song."
Second-best: die.
Posted by kyle | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 12:47 AM
Both text and I have defended those two films more than once. Because they really are good.
Posted by washerdreyer | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 1:06 AM
My baa-like assessment of 131:
kyle: failure as a human!
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 2:20 AM
Half right.
Posted by John Emersom | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 4:06 AM
In no particular order, I was born in 1975 and am solidly Gen-X. My sister was born in 1981 which I guess technically makes her Gen-X, but I've always thought of her as Gen-Y.
My Dad graduated from high school in 1962, so I guess that he's not a boomer, but I always thought that he was.
Posted by bostoniangirl | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 7:25 AM
And I've decided to treat this as an open thread, because I thought that the unfogged community had to see this truly bizarre promotional video for the Garlic Card.
Posted by bostoniangirl | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 7:28 AM
Nice, bg.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 8:14 AM
Born in 1970, I have no letter to identify my generation with. I am however currently the same age as the narrator of Dante's Inferno, which I like to think counts for something.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 8:21 AM
Also: that Fellini-esque video made me laugh. Was the point that the garlic-grating utensil will allow you too to be like these oddly disheveled, suit-wearing jocks and dance a ballet of food preparation? When she first appeared the woman seemed like an unwelcome intrusion into this romantic fantasia but then I realized she was just there to do makeup for the protagonists. It bears re-watching, you will pickup important details the second time around. The signs are an especially nice touch -- a less gifted auteur would have added captions in after the shooting was done.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 8:29 AM
The GarlicCard(tm) site is worth checking out if you enjoyed the video. High points -- the picture of Herman Rasmosen, GarlicCard(tm) inventor, on their "Background" page, and his narrative; and if you like the picture, be sure to get the large version of it linked from the "Press" page.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 8:36 AM
However his name is spelt Rasmuson. (Somebody more skilled than I could probably crack wise about it sounding like Rashomon; I will leave that sort of thing to the professionals.)
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 8:38 AM
Alright, I'm off to the meet-up thing. Secret pictures of ogged when I return.
Posted by Matt F | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 8:55 AM
tell us how the tacos taste.
Posted by Jeremy Osner | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 9:02 AM
I'm so late, but no thread that started with lennon can be considered complete without this:
http://blogfiles.wfmu.org/KF/0512/Magical_Misery_Tour.mp3
Posted by mcmc | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 7:50 PM
I'd love to turn you on.
Posted by John Lennon | Link to this comment | 12-11-05 7:55 PM
"George the Third lost his mind as a result of hubris" or porphyry. Meanwhile I was in a record shop yesterday and they were playing the 3rd Wilbury's album. I'd never heard any of them, being old, but I thought it was rather good. Not High Art, but, you know, good.
John & Yoko were awful on the Stones' Circus TV show. TightA$$ was a good song/record. The Beatles should have looked after Badfinger better.
Posted by dave heasman | Link to this comment | 12-12-05 8:53 AM
What about Electronic Sound? That's a Harrison project I'd expect both Weiner and Emerson to be able to support with clear consciences.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12-15-05 2:25 PM
Snuck in at the end of the thread. Deadman turns me on. A classic clueless blues jam by one of the many unheralded great Texas bands, Josephus. Weiner and Emerson and Wolfson, well, never mind.
Posted by bob mcmanus | Link to this comment | 12-15-05 9:49 PM
There used to be a purveyor of antiquarian books named Joseph the Provider. They had a sweet logo. Then the partners in it broke up. One of them got to keep the logo, but the old name had to go.
I thought it was such a good name. I was very upset when it turned out to be the name of a Thomas Mann novel.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12-15-05 9:57 PM
Oh wait, no, looks like they exist by that name yet. Huzzah!
150.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12-15-05 9:58 PM
The soundtrack to Dead Man turns me on.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 12-15-05 10:02 PM
There are certain things about that movie that bother me (and I like it a lot), but the soundtrack is not one of them.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 12-15-05 10:03 PM