Eleven Nights of Fire
Topic: Politics
Intifada Spreads to Brussels and Berlin
As many have predicted, the fires and rioting in France have begun to spread. It's ironic on many levels. France, which has frequently lectured the United States on it's many problems and which has gloated about the many problems the United States has had with it's 'underclass' is itself burning in a way that has not happened elsewhere.

Elsewhere unless you think of the Intifada in the middle east. In that case it was not a short duration event but rather one that lasted for years. I don't know that the structure for such a long lasting uprising is in place in France at this time but this french intifada has the potential to last for a long time. For the price of a bottle and some gas or kerosene, for the price of a bic lighter, this can last for some time. As the level of violence increases to the point of killing people- as witnessed riots claim first victim the stakes are raised. As the rioting youths get more organized and more emboldened the danger increases of it becoming much more severe. France is trying to keep the lid on by not reacting. They think that by not reacting more strongly they are keeping it from escalating, this explains the inexplicably weak response by the french.

I think they realize how close it is to being a full blown insurrection. The french know how easy it is to go from torching empty cars and empty buildings to attacking people more violently. But by not reacting they are allowing the violence to escalate, they are allowing the rioters to find a 'higher' purpose in their violence, one that lets them continue violence but as righteous warriors in the service of Islam. Everyone can find fuel for their own delusional belief in their everyday life. A hard life, a life without as many opportunities as they think they deserve is reason enough for some. Thinking that the western culture has unjustly hurt Islam/the middle east/ supported Israel is more than enough for the excuse to violence. They call our thugs thugs, 'how unacceptable!' - you deserve the violence that befalls you is the answer. There is no reasoning with this mindset. There is no reasoning with violence. But still the French will do so, it's what they've always done. And so the problems will not be solved.

Downtied - Denver Rock

Downtied. Downtied A Denver based live rock group. My cousin's son. And I remember him as a quiet little guy. Who'd have thought it. But, as I was discussing with my cousin, this music thing runs in the family. Everyone plays some instrument or the other and newly including me and my Blueridge. All it can play right now is Johnny Cash tunes but I'll be teaching that guitar some new tunes as we go along.

Muertos Art
Topic: Art and Poetry

My brother is the subject of an article in the Denver Post. Vigil Art He's a famous Hispanic/Chicano artist in Denver who specializes in muertos art. Muertos Art

Muertos art, like some Buddhist art which depicts skulls and skeletons in various forms and engaged in various activities is often times mistaken as a attempt at horror as seen in American culture. As the article states, the use of skeletons and death imagery is "a way of lessening the power that death holds over people in the Mexican culture." In Buddhism the use of skeletons and death imagery is used to illustrate the Buddhist teaching that life is transitory and that everything is impermanent.

A Day after 30 October
Now Playing: Bob Dylan, Blonde On Blonde -1966 #3
Topic: Mysteries of Life

A flower. A day late. As always.

Best Buy : - Great and Sucks
Now Playing: Stevie Ray Vaughan
You know I love Best Buy. I love to wander the store and look at new electronics and see what new movies, games and computer programs are out. Sometimes I stop and chat a minute with the security guy at the front. Nice guy. A few things are completely annoying though. As you walk through the various sections of the store you run into various blue shirt employees. I'm usually pretty good about it though, they ask how you are and they ask if they help you find anything, or if you have any questions. I'm okay with that. I'm okay about the first times I hear it. After the tenth time I hear it I'm a bit on edge. By then I'm shouting, "Isn't there a sticker or something you can put on my head to signify that I've been asked if I needed help or wanted help and have politely declined? Eh?!" I tell you. It's just loads of fun. As I mentioned I'm generally in a good humor.
The first guy who asks me if I need any help I politely and cheerfully say "no thank you, I'm quite all right and don't need any help." Next aisle over another guy, young guy asks me if he can help me find something. Now I'm a cheerful and happy guy who doesn't always want to respond the same way to the same questions. So I vary my answers as any reasonable person would do. I nod, smile a bit and say, "No thanks, I'm just moseying around." He looks at me blankly. He says "I'm sorry?"
"Moseying, mo-saying arid" says I.
"I'm sorry, I don't understand." says the blank faced blue shirt.
"Humm, okay. Moseying means browsing, looking, wandering about. That's what I'm doing. I'm browsing." I said not even a hint of arrogance or a lecturing tone.
"Oh, okay.Well if you need any help please just let us know. We're happy to answer any questions you might have." he said going back to the rote training programmed responses.
I said, "Great. Thanks."
I get about ten steps this time and at my shoulder is another blue shirted employee, this time a young woman with long brown hair. "Hello sir, is there anything I can help you with today?"
By now you know I'm not actually able to browse and look arid and thoughtfully think of the items I'm looking at. I'm like the queen on a greeting line saying hello and chatting up all sorts of people I don't even know. I said, "Oh I don't know, I was what, maybe ten steps over thataway," I pointed over her shoulder, "and another employee asked me the same question. He did not know the meaning of the word 'moseying', do you know the meaning of the word 'moseying' as in 'I'm just moseying arid?"
Her bright enthusiastic eyes lit up. She said, "You know, we don't' work on commission here. I know the meaning of the word moseying." And with that she hitched her thumbs up in her pants and began a exaggerated bit of moseying I can only assume she learned from her High School production of Oklahoma.
"Umm yah, something like that, a bit more toned down. A bit more Gary Cooperish" I said. "That's exactly it, that exactly what I'm doing. I'm moseying arid, looking arid and if by chance I need any little bit of help I actually do know how to ask for help and I will do so."

The next guy who asks me has begun to annoy me. I loudly ask for the sticker that I can attach to myself that will let the blue shirt employees know that I don't wish to be helped. Go through the cashier line and when they ask me for my phone number on a ten dollar cash purchase I loudly tell them my number is 1-800-Bite Me. I also always plop down whatever I'm buying and look at the cashier in the eye and say NO, NO , NO, NO and NO! Now, don't ask me any questions about warranties and or subscriptions or just call for the manager. Most annoying. I love Best Buy but I hate Best Buy.

Nod and Thirty Miles

A lovely day, biked for 30 miles, rubbery legs are my reward. Guitar practice going nicely. The beginning of 'Hurt' coming along and even sounds like it should. Chords, finger exercises, strumming. Legs numb, fingers numb. All is good.

Supreme Court Nominations
Now Playing: Heather Nova - Redbird
Topic: Politics
Well, the Supreme Court nominee Kabuki theater play has ended it's first act of this season's performance. Inane posturings and wooden facile non responsive answers went back and forth for the week of the Roberts confirmation hearings. No apparent purpose was served and all of the mild rantings were guaranteed to not change or disturb the outcome in any way. Indeed in the absurd dance of politics the democrats played their own imaginary game over in the corner and making a show of their twenty two to twenty two for and against 'vote' at the confirmation hearing. A calculated vote to appear 'moderate' so that when the next nominee comes down the pike they can go full tilt at him or her. Their effort will be to peel off six republican votes to defeat who they will assume to be a raving republican nominee.

The reason the fight will be so big is because the theory is that the next nominee will replace someone they perceive to be a moderate. If that replacement is a hard line conservative then those 5 to 4 vote they have been winning will be 5 to 4 the other way. Therefore the big fight on the next nominee. This assumes that a nominee will do something that nominees rarely do and that is to be either conservative or liberal as projected. It hardly has seemed to work that way. And there is the added theater of potential presidential hopefuls decided their votes in terms of how those votes will play with their bases. Swirling motives, fights for power and posturing all make for an interesting time of it.

Bush has the votes. Fifty five republican senators. Can he keep them all in line for a staunch conservative? Can the democrats Bork the next nominee? Will the teams of democratic 'opposition research' vultures who are sitting next to their phones and computers waiting to begin looking for dirt be able to find any? Any Anita Hills out there? It should be interesting. Of course, I said that about the Roberts nomination and that one turned into a boring affair.

Nothing in particular
Topic: Art and Poetry
Gilmore Girls and House, my favorite shows on Thursday. More or less a throwback to the 40's with the both of them. GG is a screwball comedy in the vein of His Girl Friday and House is Sherlock Holmes with Basil Rathbone. Good stuff and I hope the writing lasts for the both of them. Ah yes, in the Gilmore Girls they have a "Gilbert" character - the rocker Sebastian Bach who was with Skid Row. Cool beans. Gilbert online Fingers numb from the Blueridge, hopefully they'll get thinner here after a bit.

Numb fingers
Now Playing: Roger Miller - Little Green Apples - Hits of 68
Topic: Art and Poetry

Doing a bit of channel surfing, a bit of the Big Fat Greek Wedding before turning over to watch Beck on Austin City Limits. The Greek Wedding woman was beautiful and Beck was good. Funny thing about listening to Beck now. I've begun a finger numbing journey with the guitar and so I watch guitar playing singers with different eyes. New respect. Swimming in deep deep water now but then what else is new. All that is needed is time and effort and desire. Some things in life don't respond to that combination of things unfortunately. My guitar pictured. No miles on the bike, chest cold.

Bronco's Win, House wins an Emmy, rambles
Now Playing: Patricia Kaas - Piano Bar

Flipping the channels between the football game and the Emmy awards. Sorta watching on the Emmy thing to see how various shows I like are doing. I love watching House and it did win an award but Hugh Laurie lost the best actor award to James Spader. Ah well, I like Spader too. 24 lost to Lost. Never watched Lost, never watched 24 until this last season. Show was actually really good, either that or my tolerance level on stuff that is unbelievable is going down. The ending where the missile did not hit anyone was so very lame and unworthy of all of that build up and tension. As I think about it again, Gilmore Girls did not receive any nominations which makes the quality control over there very suspect. But likes and dislikes are very subjective so who knows. I know anytime someone puts a top ten or top hundred best 'this or that' up I try not to look or think about it since I always find those to be incomplete, ignorant, political and unworthy of notice. Bah. And annoying. But then I'll go and peak at the list. Like the most beautiful people list. I don't even know who they put on their lists but if I go to the front of such a list and it claims to be the all time beautiful women and if Sophia Loren isn't there then it's obviously a defective list created by idiot brain donors from the planet dumbshit. You know, we all have our own lists.

Anyways, it's always good to see Shatner win an award and he did win another Emmy. Good for him. It was sad to see the listing of all the entertainment people who have died in the last year. From James Doohan to Frank Gorshan to Bob Denver and the guy the was Ernest T. Bass from the Andy Griffith Show. One of those things I avoid at the end of the year when they do the big list of people who had died in the last year. Always very depressing. And all through the Emmy stuff I was flipping over to the football game. Raiders and Chiefs, playing close and beating the heck out of each other. Always the best idea when you are a Bronco fan. What with Chiefs and Raiders being division rivals and all. And speaking of the Bronco's - the did come back for the win against the Chargers this afternoon. Very good stuff. Very nerve wracking to listen to on a sometimes spotty Internet connection to KOA radio. And thank goodness the KOA feed is still working through the games so far. Can't help it. A Bronco fan forever apparently. Got my John Elway figurine, my icon of good character and determination. It's just there waiting for the Lance Armstrong character figurine/statute to come out.

Thinking about trying to learn to play the Guitar. Wonder if my fingers can learn new things or not. Me, no musical training whatsoever. Ah but you know, anything can be done if even time and effort is put into it. Perhaps. Still thinking. Course, the guitar would have to be black. Everything has to be black. One thing I've noticed as I've thought about it and looked around the internet, there is quite a bit of instruction to be found on the internet. So, it would be hard to get stuck and without guidance. Something to continue to think about.

Chest Colds, House, Gilmore Girls
Now Playing: Gilmore Girls

Nothing like the grip of a chest cold across your chest to remind you of your mortality. The picture by the way is of Vultures. Big giant Vultures. It's especially good to have one creep on you when ABC has one of it's big scary specials where they show how completely unprepared we are for a pandemic of the flu or the nuclear explosion which will happen eventually. A trip down historical lane to visit the great Spanish Flu of 1818 which killed some 25 to 50 million people. That was my favorite part of the show. We're due for another one any day now. Fortunately most people don't know any history and are not bothered by thoughts of killer flu or pandemics which happened when the world was in black and white. Kind of like all that annoying business about someday New Orleans going underwater when some mythical category 5 storm could someday possibly hit. Ha, ridiculous thinking. Nothing to worry about. Oh, and that pesky stuff about terrorists using 1940's technology to commit terrorism. Oh goodness, who would really think that such a thing could happen. Flu or nukes, probably both. Everyone will be surprised. Mark my word.

The premiere of House and Gilmore Girls came and went. Both shows started off nicely. The Gilmore cliff hanger - would Luke accept the marriage proposal? Would Rory still stay want to take a year off from Yale? Such excitement. Hope it doesn't get uncomfortable like figure skating. You know, I can't watch that figure skating stuff since I can't stand the idea that someone working so hard, and so thinly dressed could fall while doing a triple sowcow thingee - and in front of a audience to boot. Too much anxiety to watch. Too painful. Hopefully this Rory falling and failing doesn't go on too long. Hopefully Lorelai will not go nuts. Hopefully there won't be any of those unwatchable episodes like when the dark haired surly bad seed boy became the boyfriend of Rory. Unwatchable stuff. Ahhhh.

Now House was itself. A smart, nasty tempered fellow in his own world, figuring out various puzzles of life and death all the while examining the mysteries of life and death. Good stuff, good episode.

Listening to the Roberts hearings
Now Playing: NPR- Senate Hearings on Judge John Roberts
Topic: Law


It's been remarkably polite if you forget about Biden yesterday. The democrats are basically keeping their liberal credentials in place by asking him questions that he won't answer. They will further keep their credentials in place by not voting for him regardless of the answers he gives. He'll continue to not answer a single question if it might be in contention. So, it's a big show meaning nothing much. Interesting hearing him talk about Kelo and the quote from Blackstone which says that the government may not take property away from someone and give it to another. Clear as can be and no hint of irony. Words don't matter, meanings don't matter. All those things can be circled and nullified with the proper backdoor reasoning as seen in Kelo and the pre Kelo cases which didn't raise as big of a stink.

Reflections on Things Lost
Topic: Mysteries of Life


With all of the calamities and disasters occurring in the country both in the past and in the present it gives me pause to think about how absolutely fragile life is. The idea of some sort of permanence in the world, some sort of solid and surefooted present and future which is not real in the first place, becomes more evident in it's absence. Buddhist as I am, I know nothing is permanent. Everything is impermanent especially life itself. With nothing permanent in life some things remain important if only because of how fragile and ephemeral those things are. People, friends and relatives are always there even when gone, even when not seen for years. People you think about every single day and haven't seen for years are always there. Always and forever a part of your life.

I had this dream once. I have this dream often. I'm doing something, something else entirely like browsing in a library and I see someone who sees me. Someone I know. Someone who knows or knew me. I feel the scorn and disgust from them and I flee. Never a word, just the feeling that sends me fleeing and to suddenly awaken. I have to explain, whenever I have dreams it's not like I have dreams far from reality. Dreams of my own reality and not dreams as I wish them to be. Just reinforcements of reality. I wish I had dreams of monsters chasing me or falling but I get this one instead. I never have a chance to do anything in this dream, no way to change the outcome, it's predetermined. I awaken with my heart pounding and with a sadness that wraps around me.

I had that dream last night. Quite vivid and real. Only this time the person wasn't mad at me. And actually spoke to me. The feeling was intense, my surprise and gratefulness was overwhelming. I wanted to speak, to say something but as in life my words would not come. My heart raced and I was suddenly awake. I felt great, a wonderful feeling. And it wasn't real. I never did say I was sorry. And I was. And I am.

Being Held Accountable


Listening to the news and to the commentators in the wake of Katrina you can hear the usual suspects begin their various political spins. I heard Sean Hannity put the desperate rant by the Mayor of New Orleans on his show as an example of partisan 'Bush Bashing' and I couldn't believe it. If anyone has a right to scream and yell and wonder where the hell the help was it was the Mayor of New Orleans. But what's right and what passes for common sense doesn't apply any longer in this word of balkanized politics. For Hannity and others of his ilk their party line is all that matters. Much like the stuff I would listen to on Radio Moscow which had often had no basis in reality these guys are singing their political song no matter what the reality is. Hannity, in the tried and true style of politics set about to discredit the Mayor, after all, it was the Mayor who didn't get all those people who wouldn't evacuate to evacuate. So, according to Hannity the man has no right to complain. Again, it reminds me of Radio Moscow and the parade of lies they would put out over the airwaves. Him and Rush also said that 'this is no time to criticize' since it's the middle of a crisis. Oh, I see. We can't be expected to be able to multitask at all. Sorry, but it is possible to work and focus on the efforts and to criticize those efforts where they are failing. Oops, trick no good dudes. I know they don't want to hear it but this time those who screwed up will be found out and will be booted out. It doesn't matter what party they are from and it doesn't matter to us which political party is running things. Things just need to be run at least half assed. At least. I don't know what party the Governor of Louisiana is from. Does it matter? She is not competent and deserves the scorn she is getting now and will continue to get. Bush, who went to a fund raising dinner the night that Katrina hit the coast and who fiddled away important days until the constant news coverage shamed him into acting deserves the loss of support he is experiencing. We don't expect our politicians to be perfect, we do expect a certain level of competence and this level isn't acceptable. This failure isn't acceptable. But you will continue to hear Rush and Hannity make it sound like things are getting much better in New Orleans and along the Gulf Coast. Not going to work this time. You're not going to get to pass this buck back to Clinton or Carter or FDR.

Horror in New Orleans
I've been watching the events in New Orleans and I'm horrified with it. The government has completely failed and has absolutely let events get out of hand. It's Lord of the Flies there, it's like hell on earth and there will not be an easy end to it now. Even after they get all of the people out of New Orleans that want to leave or who will be most easily forced to leave they will have to move into the town with military force. The gangs of homeless violent men who have found a world where they are lords of all they can grab will not easily give it up. In their predatory lawless minds they inherited the wasteland that has been left to them. The police let them loot and they then looted with a vengence. Guns out of the Wal-Mart's and more posessions than they've ever seen have fueled visions of being able to be masters of their own fate. They've organized along the gang structure that they've already had or have gathered along similar interests and have indeed gone back to a primordial lawless evilness. Shooting at helicopters, rape gangs, shooting to settle old scores in a world without law and without consequences the place and the people bring shame to us all.