Weekend Items

Several things:

• I had never come across this transcipt/article before about DJ Spooky, That Subliminal Kid even though it's over seven years old. Excerpt: When we look at art we see how cultures become cross-fertilized. In the US there are many cultures, North/South American, African, Asian...The US has the widest variety of cultures in the smallest geographic region in the history of human civilization. So when you have access to the recordings of all these diverse cultures, continuous access to them, that's when things get really interesting. With collage, anything goes, anything can be mixed and transformed. Art is a reflection of culture, and to me music is our social reflection.
• Cool blog to add to the sidebar, via Bella Rossa -- The Groovy Age of Horror.
• Another blog to check out -- that of graphic novelist Warren Ellis.
• Via Techyum, here's the NYT on the U.S. Court of Appeals telling the FCC to go fuck themselves. Excerpt: Mr. Martin, the chairman of the [Federal Communications C]ommission, attacked the panel’s reasoning. “I completely disagree with the court’s ruling and am disappointed for American families,” he said. “The court says the commission is ‘divorced from reality.’ It is the New York court, not the commission, that is divorced from reality.” He said that if the agency was unable to prohibit some vulgarities during prime time, “Hollywood will be able to say anything they want, whenever they want.” Anything they want? Oh my God, not that!
• Here's a guy who always likes to identify exactly which books are sitting on the shelves when he sees pictures with bookshelves in the background. Excerpt: I wish someone could put a stop to this epidemic. Whenever I see such pictures I have an uncontrollable urge to seize the nearest magnifying glass and try to decipher the titles. What is it that drives some people (I know others who confess to this failing) to devote their time to such snooping when we could be walking the downs, or exploring the music of Medtner, or deconstructing the latest piece about Paris Hilton? (No need to explain -- I do the same thing.)
• I like the philosophy of this Rebecca Blood post (and the post of the librarian from whom she got the article) recreated here in its entirety: How to be a more effective researcher -- Q: Question: How do I start researching? Answer: Treat research as a lifestyle not an assignment. A great approach from what appears to be an academic librarian, including a new (to me) term: The Invisible College. [Wikipedia article] Bloggers will immediately see themselves in this role, so it's worth pointing out that anyone who limits themselves to blogs will miss many other communities of interest, online and off. Here's the main page of the blog referenced by a librarian named Linda Jones. That kind has to do with how I approach my Wikipedia edits... I get a topic I am interested in, and review the material that other "amateurs" have prepared, and then just kind of see how I can improve the organization, presentation, and indexing of the material, and see what blanks I can fill in to lend towards greater completion.

No Longer Qualifies for the Wikipedia Category of Living People (NLQWCLP)

Above is the parody (click to enlarge) that caused all the trouble between Rev. Falwell and Mr. Flynt a few years ago.

Speaking of GOP Senators Saying Stupid Shit...

So it seems that a few months ago, Montana Senator Conrad Burns (potential puns abound) got mad at a team of Virginia firefighters that he saw at the Billings airport while they were waiting to return home after fighting some Montana wildfires. Apparently, he cussed out the $8-$12-per-hour smoke breathers because the authorities who gave them their instructions didn't instruct them in the manner that Senator Burns would have preferred.

Mr. Burns is the incumbent, and is up for re-election next month. As you can imagine, his opponent wants to make sure that everyone in Montana knows about his lack of tact. But what about a political commercial (i.e., political speech) that involves profanity? This is a great example of why the fucking FCC is so anti-American and anti-free speech. Excerpt from the Helena Independent Record: A television commercial slamming Sen. Conrad Burns for cursing at a firefighting crew could be too vulgar for broadcast television, the Montana Broadcasters Association is warning its members. Citing the Federal Communications Commission’s ‘‘current stance on indecent language,’’ association President Greg MacDonald advised stations Wednesday to pull the spot or check with attorneys before airing it. ‘‘While we have no idea how the commission might come down on such language in a political spot, we also don’t want to test the waters at $325,000 per violation,’’ MacDonald wrote. The commercial, paid for by the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee, opens with a cautionary note: ‘‘The following contains language by Conrad Burns unsuitable for Montana.’’ The narrator begins by praising firefighters as heroes, then switches to quotes from reports of a confrontation Burns had with firefighters in July while waiting for a flight at the Billings airport. ‘‘But Conrad Burns said they had done, quote, ‘a piss poor job,’ and while pointing at one, ‘he hasn’t done a Goddamned thing,’ ’’ the announcer says. The quotes are based on a report filed by a state official who was sent to the airport to talk with Burns after he confronted the Virginia firefighting team.

What a bunch of bullshit! And all this over some Howard Stern jokes and one (not even both!) of Janet Jackson's boobs! Looks like the First Amendment gets trumped by obscenity fears... At least the children of Montana will be safe.

BTW, here's the commercial in question (I think):