Strange World
CNN.com - Pornography site strips political references - Jun 30, 2004

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Whitehouse.com pornography Web site, which poked fun at its government namesake with parody sections about first ladies and interns, has been stripped of all political references.

Its owner, Dan Parisi of New York, agreed to the changes to comply with a recent ruling by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office granting his Web site a potential trademark for "Whitehouse" -- but only if he took steps to make sure visitors to his pornography site don't believe it was associated with President Bush's site, www.whitehouse.gov.
....
Reversing an earlier decision, an appeals panel for the trademark office ruled that Parisi could use the trademark if there were no elements on his Web site that might suggest a false association with the Bush administration's flagship Web site. [ed. odd way of putting it... I thought the real white house belonged to we the people]

Actually, references to first ladies and interns are still there -- but I don't think Laura's looks anything like that. (sorry, couldn't resist).


- posted by Cynthia @ 11:57 PM | | | Link |

 
How They Do It
See, this is how they do it: you go in for the oil change and they find a little rattle, so they scare you to death and tell you that it could be 1500, maybe even 4000 dollars if the pistons pull loose and drive their iron shafts through the hood into your brain, or chains whip the bejesus out of the damn engine or something because you are about 500 miles over when you were supposed to get an oil change, so you say, just do the oil change and see what happens, thinking on how you can get someone to steal the damn car and drive it downstate so the insurance will pay up, and 2 hours later, sitting there nowhere near a bus line, they come back and they tell you, good news bad news, the oil change won't make the problem go away completely and there's belts or whips or something and valves and oil leaking all over and good news is it's only 350, maybe 400, and we can have it done by 5:30.

You are captive, they have your car in pieces, so what do you do? What can you do, besides rerun those Rambo fantasies? And then when you go back to get the car, you find it's only 300.99, and you're so happy, and the car runs great, so you feel relieved that it was less than they told you, and every guy out there is now laughing and laughing and laughing, knowing how royally I just got screwed.

- posted by Cynthia @ 7:39 PM | | | Link |

 
You Can't Turn Your Back One Minute (Part XXXIIIa-f)
Why did I miss this on Friday? Probably because they wanted me to. We are not paranoid. We are not. This has become a tin foil hat world. Thanks, Atrios:

Yahoo! News - Voting Official Seeks Terrorism Guidelines

Events in Spain, where a terrorist attack shortly before the March election possibly influenced its outcome [ed. to them, this is the really scary part], show the need for a process to deal with terrorists threatening [ed. just threatening? Aren't they already doing that? If not, what's with the color coding crap?] or interrupting the Nov. 2 presidential election in America, he said.

"Look at the possibilities. If the federal government were to cancel an election or suspend an election, it has tremendous political implications [ed. duh, ya think?]. If the federal government chose not to suspend an election it has political implications," said Soaries, a Republican and former secretary of state of New Jersey.

Or they can just not start wars guaranteeing that terrorism is escalating. Or they could listen to advisors who warn them repeatedly that terrorists are actually (not in the imaginary Ashcroft world where beer coolers and poison pens are seen as terrorist tools) planning something big.

Here I am again. No red xs, so Photobucket appears to be back.

A reminder: this is the last day of the quarter, so a good day to contribute to your candidates, if you were planning on it. I suggest using links provided by Future Ambassador Pioneer-Ranger the Honorable Atrios to let them know the blogosphere honors and appreciates him.

More later. Must get car oiled and primped.


- posted by Cynthia @ 12:25 PM | | | Link |

 
Win One....
Utah Artist Hails Court Win Over Barbie Parody

The ruling late last week by a federal judge in Los Angeles was the second major blow in two years to a bid by toy maker Mattel to defend Barbie's image from use by artists and singers.

Utah-based artist Tom Forsythe said on Tuesday he was "amazed and truly ecstatic" at the judge's ruling that Mattel should reimburse the $1.8 million he had spent defending his work against a copyright lawsuit launched in 1999.

Forsythe incurred Mattel's wrath with his "Food Chain Barbie" series of 78 photographs featuring the popular plastic doll in kitchen appliances ranging from a martini glass to a fondue pot. Other photos showed the doll stuffed into a tortilla, a fondue pot and a blender.
...
Forsythe said the ruling "sets a new standard for the ability to criticize popular brands and do so without the fear of being sued."

Lose one:

Art Professor Indicted Over Biological Materials but No Terrorism Allegation Made

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - An artist who became the target of a federal terrorism investigation was indicted Tuesday on charges he illegally obtained potentially harmful biological materials.

Also charged was a university administrator who allegedly helped him obtain the organisms, which colleagues have said he planned to use in an art project.

Steven Kurtz, the artist and a University at Buffalo professor, and Robert Ferrell, chairman of the University of Pittsburgh's Human Genetics Department, were charged with wire fraud and mail fraud.

Man, at least they're not sending them to Gitmo. This is the guy I wrote about in an earlier post here.

Good evening, all, or rather middle of the night. Photobucket still down. If down tomorrow morning will move stuff to an alternate account.
- posted by Cynthia @ 12:20 AM | | | Link |

 
Those Collages I Mentioned...
...elsewhere will not be loaded right now because

1) Photobucket is doing maintenance (see all the little red xs where pictures should be?)
2) I didn't do them yet.

1 is a great excuse for not doing 2 as well. Ah, well. Will update you later.

- posted by Cynthia @ 7:35 PM | | | Link |

 
Like Thieves in the Night
The New York Times > International > Hours Later, Bremer Leaves Iraq; New Premier Outlines Agenda

BAGHDAD, Iraq, June 28 — In a surprise ceremony here that was hastily convened in secret to decrease the chances of more violence, United States officials handed over sovereignty to Iraqi leaders today, formally ending the American occupation of Iraq two days earlier than scheduled.
....
Earlier in the day, responding to the handover announcement, security forces locked down sections of the capital. Several hotels refused to let guests in or out, thousands of police took to the streets and American fighter jets cut arcs in the sky over Baghdad. Both American and Iraqi officials said they were expecting the handover to be marred by significant terror attacks.

Free! They're finally free!

We all know it's meaningless, and that the puppetry will continue. And the occupation?

350 Illinois Guard members activated; deployments extended for 250 more

New Mexico airmen deploy to Iraq

Vermont National Guard brigade alerted for possible activation

About the only thing this may have done is save the taxpayers millions and millions on what probably had been looked at a year ago as just the start of an "Independence Day" party with cookouts and fireworks in downtown Baghdad and photogenic Iraqi children eating ice cream in the Texamerican way, and waving the new Iraqi flag they all hate, etc. etc. Wonder which dumpster they had to throw the plans in?

I'm sorry, but I find this very distressing, almost worse than if they really had tried to throw the Great American Independence Day Cookout over there.

Will dig down and try to find some art for later.

- posted by Cynthia @ 2:01 PM | | | Link |

 
Not To Get Triumphal, Or Anything...
'Fahrenheit 9/11' Tops North American Box Office

"This is a testament to Michael Moore. His voice resonates across the country in what I think we can all now fairly describe as America's movie," said Tom Ortenberg, the president of distribution at Lions Gate (news - web sites) Films, which backed the movie.

He said in a conference call that the film played strongly in both Democrat and Republican states, even drawing sell-out crowds in Republican strongholds like Nassau County, New York and Fayetteville, N.C., home of Fort Bragg.

Memo to Cheney: F*** you too.

Yahoo! News - 'Fahrenheit 9/11' Sets Documentary Record

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "Fahrenheit 9/11," $21.8 million.
2. "White Chicks," $19.6 million.
3. "Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story," $18.5 million.
4. "The Terminal," $13.9 million.
5. "The Notebook," $13 million.
6. "Harry Potter (news - web sites) and the Prisoner of Azkaban," $11.4 million.
7. "Shrek 2," $10.5 million.
8. "Garfield: The Movie," $7 million.
9. "Two Brothers," $6.2 million.
10. "The Stepford Wives," $5.2 million.

Unlike Bush, however, we should not declare "Mission Accomplished" so quickly. Our candidates are still out there fighting for the rest of us. Just go to any of the links on the side and I guarantee you will find someone worth throwing $25 bucks to. And all of the candidates are planning wonderful Independence Day activities, voter registration drives, sing-alongs, and everything else to make this a fun summer.

Good afternoon, all. It's another perfect day in June, so what am I doing blogging away indoors? I don't know, that's what. When I go out to a park and can't find parking, I tend to get curmudgeonly and head back home. Plus stayed up way too late last night. Why, you ask?

The new bottle of Higgins ink tipped over in my studio.

I really don't need to say more. Those of you familiar with pen-and-ink will know how devastating those words can be. Luckily it just spilled on a pile of newspapers, so I used it as an excuse to tear up a bunch of paper for collage and make the scraps go swimming. Then, finally, settled down and did these:





This last one is more in keeping with the example I posted in a previous blog, and also with this self-portrait he did:



I really wanted to emphasize the diagonals, since he found them important.

More later.

- posted by Cynthia @ 2:30 PM | | | Link |

 
Shit
NBC5.com - News - Jack Ryan Skirts Public As He Drops Out:

Ryan conducted an overnight poll to gauge his support in the wake of the allegations made by his ex-wife in divorce records unsealed earlier this week.

The internal polling had Ryan trailing his Democratic opponent by 20 percent to 25 percent, the official said. That figure didn't worry aides as much as results showing that conservatives were peeling away from Ryan. They concluded that the only way to get Ryan's base back would be to immediately go negative on his opponent and not let up.

Like they don't plan on doing it anyway.

Good afternoon, folks. Had far too brief recovery from movie-watching to get slammed by news of Jack Ryan withdrawing from Illinois senate race, leaving Barack Obama to face .... what? who? Tune in to my colleagues ArchPundit and Polis for more, because they eat this stuff up (and are excellent trenchermen) more than me.

My point has always been that I really don't care much about the Illinois Republican party or what they do or who's running, because anyone they put up is unelectable this year, so, like Barbara Bush, I would rather not infect my "beautiful mind" with ugly thoughts.

Just to be on the safe side, however, howabout slipping a little money to Obama? Go here right now.

UPDATE

If you need an introduction to the man, try this (via the always on-top-of-it ArchPundit):

In Illinois, a Star Prepares (washingtonpost.com)

Obama is someone who can make staunchly progressive positions sound moderate by being quietly reasonable. And he breaks with his own side's conventional wisdom not in search of a phony bipartisanship but to advance a stronger critique of the status quo.

E.J. Dionne doesn't swoon often, but that's what Barack Obama does to us all, even hardened WaPo pros.


- posted by Cynthia @ 4:36 PM | | | Link |

 
In-Freaking-Credible Movie
Just got back from 1st showing of Fahrenheit 9/11 -- nearly packed house at 11 on a weekday morning, big mix of people in audience -- lots of seniors -- but I saw entire families and mix of races as well. As I was leaving noticed that 2 screens (they added a second one since last night) are sold out after 3 pm, so glad I got in.

What a freaking incredible movie! I thought I knew practically everything bad there was possible to know about the bushes, but I learned a few factoids I will not tell you, since you must see the movie yourselves.

Regardless of how jaded you are, and how low your snark supply may have become, you will have tears streaming down your face when you're not peeing in your pants with laughter. Your jaw will have dropped in astonishment and you will forget to chew your popcorn and start choking. The image of Paul Wolfowitz grooming himself and being groomed is one of the most distressing in the whole film (the entire theater went "eeewwwww" at the same time). This is what Moore does best -- charm you with the absurdities and hypocrasies, the fun and games and stunts, and then slam you with the human stories.

The structure is roughly chronological but somehow circles in, as much of his work does, to land on his hometown of Flint, Michigan, and letting the stories of the out of work, the lady who loses a son, the recruiters, the devastation of the neighborhoods be told so that they pull you along.

Have you noticed one phrase you never hear any longer? Military-industrial complex? Moore goes for the Halliburton/Saudi/Oil/Bin Laden story like a hound on a leg. Chilling footage from Iraq we just don't see here. Stories of soldiers and the heavy metal music they listen to as they're blowing stuff up. (Also, whoever did the sound and music editing for this was a genius).

And throughout the entire movie the fey images of Bush float -- because they and he are ultimately inconsequential in the context of the entire ball of crap, almost a rhetorical device, rather than the main character.

That's it. I'm wrung out. Ended with cheering, roaring, standing ovation, and few people left before the (relatively brief) ending credits. Then walking outdoors and seeing a perfect day in June, I had to put my sunglasses on because I started crying.

- posted by Cynthia @ 2:07 PM | | | Link |

 
So It Wasn't Our Imagination
The economy really does suck....

US slashes first-quarter growth, inflation higher:

WASHINGTON, June 25 (Reuters) - The U.S. economy grew much more slowly than previously thought in the first quarter while inflation was higher, a government report showed on Friday.

The surprise [ed. really? that surprises me] downward revision to gross domestic product -- which measures total output within the nation's borders -- cut growth to a 3.9 percent annual rate in the first three months of 2004 from the 4.4 percent reported a month ago and below the 4.1 percent pace in the final quarter of last year.

The government also ratcheted up a key gauge of inflation, confirming an acceleration in price rises that has fueled expectations the Federal Reserve will begin raising interest rates from 1958 lows next week to head off inflation.

Terror attacks at a revised 20 year high, rather than "slashed" because of our brave president's "good on terror" war... what next?

Headline saying "Consumer Confidence Climbs in June" leaving out the subhead which reads "Because They Know Bush's Days Are Numbered"?

Good morning. Temperature fell into the 40s last night, so was perfect sleeping weather. Am amazed I'm out of bed and blogging already. Figured I should get a little exercise on my coffee run before gorging myself full of extra-butter movie popcorn and Raisinettes (spelling doesn't look right.... however, if I spell-check will likely get some hilarious suggestion -- I always get "flogging" as a suggestion for "blogging", often quite apt). Neglected to get a ticket to Fahrenheit 9/11 in advance, so not sure I'll be able to get into the show of my choice.

So looks to be a sparkling day all round. Will be back later with my Siskel and Ebert report, and perhaps, if you're lucky, more art.


- posted by Cynthia @ 9:47 AM | | | Link |

 
Evening Art Report
Ok, so here's Franz Kline, and here's my first (or rather 4th) attempt at mixing black marks with pastel:





I thought I had black ink, but I didn't, so tried doing it with black acrylic paint, which put it way, way over the top. Will get some ink and see if I can get more subtle.

Here's his drawing of Nijinsky, who he drew and painted a lot. Clearly, I have a long way to go:



More later. I have no idea if this stuff will stay here or if I'll start another blog for it. For now, my sweater friends can ignore the painting stuff, my political friends can ignore the sweater and painting friends, and .... I'm confused already...

- posted by Cynthia @ 7:33 PM | | | Link |

 
Busy Thursday
USATODAY.com - High court sides with Cheney on records of energy task force meetings:

Thursday's decision buys the administration more time. If it loses in the appeals court, the administration can return to the Supreme Court in another extended appeal before having to release information as to whether Cheney's task force was cozy with energy executives, including those with his former company, Halliburton.

It also (unfortunately for Bush) keeps the issue alive thru the Fourth of July Political Picnic Season. I hope everyone is planning on some delicious backyard caucussing.

And, according to the radio, the situation with Jack Ryan has become "fluid", in that he cancelled several big-ticket scheduled fundraisers (one with Hastaert). My local 4th of July parade has become a love-fest for Democrats (I think there were 3 old-timers marching under the Republican Party banner, and 5 riding shotgun behind them) -- not that I'm complaining -- and will most likely be so again this year. But since Ryan lives just up the street, it would have been nice to see what kind of turnout he could get.

Hope he doesn't quit. But for evil reasons, not "what they do in private is of no one's business but their own" reasons. Just call me a hypocrite.

So, please give to Barack Obama -- If Ryan does drop out, the new guy or gal will get lots and lots of free press and platform exposure at least through the picnic season -- until they find out something else scandalous about their candidate.

- posted by Cynthia @ 10:39 AM | | | Link |

 
Back to Business
Is the stock market signaling a Bush loss? - Jun. 23, 2004

God, I hope so:

In any event, President Bush and the Republicans would seem to have both trends working against them. The Dow is down some 5 percent since election day 2000, and it's gained only 5 percent since the first Tuesday of November 2003 -- not a performance strong enough to guarantee a re-election, if history is any guide.

But being CNN, most of the article tries to squeeze out as many drops of hope for the poor man as possible, and confuses us with statistics as well. They're really trying to grab on to the latest Consumer Comfort index that isn't as bad this past week as it's been. However, there may be a slight difference of opinion, depending on whether you're R, D, or I:

Partisan differences have a huge affect on how Americans responded to questions posed by the ABC News/Money magazine poll. The index is -31 among Republicans, but -16 among independents and -44 among Democrats.

Hardly a rousing endorsement, but they try:

"While the overall [ABC/Money] index lacks momentum, the electoral picture is turning more favorable for President Bush," Edward Yardeni, chief investment strategist at Prudential Financial, wrote in a note to clients on Wednesday.

I won't call either my broker or my bookie with such mild encouragement -- considering that other things are screwing with the bushies -- like certain piles of memos.

Good evening, folks. All is under control on the Illinois front, with Zorn and even Jay Leno revelling in snarky goodness:

Jay Leno even got into the act, whacking Ryan during his monologue last night. "Aren't Republicans the family values people? That's the difference between Republicans and Democrats on family values. Democrat politicians cheat on their wives. Republicans cheat too -- but they bring the wife along. Make it a family event! They include the whole family!"

I missed it all, because I was reading about art, in particular Franz Kline, who I'm starting to research as a candidate for the An Art A Day project I described below.

My, but this is a linkalicious blogging! Here's even some art, "Two Shadows," a painting from last year, but one of the reasons why I'm drawn to Kline, who might help me clean up my act a bit:



That's about it for now. Will upload and discuss some other projects tomorrow.

- posted by Cynthia @ 12:11 AM | | | Link |

 
Afternoon Delight
ArchPundit weighs in:

...the issue is a GOP issue. One, by dragging this out, he has wasted a ton of time to get the voters to know him. Two, he lied to party leaders. They don't take kindly to that. As I said in a private e-mail earlier--he isn't going to have to watch his back, the GOP mob will be coming at him from the front.

It just isn't going to end anytime soon.

Just noticed it's not afternoon any longer, but oh, well. Jack Ryan is still in deep doo doo, and I'm not crying. More from the rest of the world later.
- posted by Cynthia @ 7:17 PM | | | Link |

 
Jack Off?
I have been waiting my whole life to use a headline like that. The media circus continues, and, to mix a metaphor, I will fan the flames.

Chicago Tribune | Ryan file a bombshell

How appropriate, on the day that Bill Clinton's book is officially published, to hear them squirm, run, and cover:

On Monday, a source close to [State Republican Party Chairwoman Judy Baar] Topinka, who is also the state treasurer, said she felt Ryan had misled her. "She stuck her neck out for him and he assured her nothing in those files was embarrassing to him or to the Republican Party," the source said. "There's a general feeling by a lot of people that they've been lied to."

LaHood was even more direct. "In the interest of saving further embarassment for him and his family, he needs to immediately withdraw from the race," he said. "There is no way Republicans in Illinois will vote for somebody with this kind of activity in their background."
...
State Sen. Steve Rauschenberger (R-Elgin), one of the candidates who lost to Ryan in the primary, said Ryan might have handled it better but didn't think the revelations were too serious. "Racy bars in three different cities, that's it?" asked Rauschenberger. "I just think he would have been better off coming out with this information earlier. But I don't think it's a big deal."

Let's just savor the moment. And yes, I want Jack Ryan to stay in the race too.
- posted by Cynthia @ 7:53 AM | | | Link |

 
Late Report
Polis is keeping us on top of the Jack Ryan Sex Club Story:

He's in a pickle with this because if he admits that there is some truth to the allegations he both looks like a liar (from his earlier position about the contents of the files) and he faces the embarrassment of being a pro-family candidate who has a strange sexual past (and potential present).

The Illinois senate "race" just gets better and better as we licentious Obama libruls sit back and laugh and laugh and laugh.

Here's the juicy part from the WLS report:

The records contain hundreds of pages that tell the story of Ryan's failed marriage to Hollywood actress Jeri Ryan.

On page 21 of her sworn court declaration. Ms. Ryan describes how her estranged husband insisted that she accompany him to explicit sex clubs in Paris, New Orleans and in New York. She alleged Mr. Ryan researched sex clubs and took her to two different ones in New York during the afternoon.

According to the court records, one featured cages, whips and other apparatus hanging from the ceiling. She claims he wanted to have sex with her while another couple watched.

Good evening. You may have thought I'd forgotten all about the Illinois senate race. Looks to be a lot of good fun ahead. My hope is that the Rovians will decide to cut their losses here and let the Illinois repubs hang. I always thought Ashcroft decided to indict George Ryan as a payback for Ryan's moratorium on the death penalty just before leaving office -- he was one of the worst governors ever, but at least "Texas Justice" wasn't his style.

And again, Barack Obama takes the high road (from the same WLS story):

"When I travel around the state, people are not talking to me about Jack Ryan's personal life. They're concerned about how can I get a job that pays a living wage, how can I make sure I'm not bankrupt when I get sick? Those are the issues that really matter in this election, and that's what we're going to focus on," Obama said during a function in downstate Carbondale on Monday night.

Just looked at the time. That's what you get for drinking a lot of Diet Coke at 10:30 pm. So you may hear even more from me as I don my mask and cape and go prowling.
- posted by Cynthia @ 12:52 AM | | | Link |

 
Do It
Lawyer Wants Bush on Witness Stand Over Iraq Abuse:

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - President Bush and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld should take the witness stand at the trial of a U.S. soldier charged with abusing prisoners in Iraq, the soldier's lawyer said on Monday

Policies adopted in Bush's 'war on terror' created a climate encouraging cruelty, said lawyers for U.S. soldiers accused of subjecting detainees to sexual humiliation and physical abuse at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.

I'd go one step further and suggest that instead of taking the witness stand they should sit at the defense table, in shackles. I think the nice bright orange prisoners wear would suit both of them.

Good morning, all. Just back from having a luscious Starbucks -- they poured it from a still-brewing pot, so was deep and rich and got me going like roadrunner on meth. Weather is gray and depressing but pleasant temperature, a little thunder in the distance -- my favorite! So will get to painting or something, and fill up the snark tank again for later.

- posted by Cynthia @ 11:36 AM | | | Link |

 
Pick Me! Pick Me!
Judicial Nominee Practiced Law Without License in Utah (washingtonpost.com)

Under Utah law, Griffith's only option for obtaining the state license was to take and pass the state bar exam, an arduous test that lawyers try to take only once. He applied to sit for the exam, but never took it, Utah bar officials confirm.
...
A lawyer who specializes in legal ethics said Griffith's two licensing lapses should disqualify him from a lifetime appointment to one of the nation's most important federal benches, second only to the Supreme Court.

"This moves it for me from the realm of negligence to the realm of willfulness," said Mark Foster, a Zuckerman Spaeder attorney who represents lawyers in ethics matters. "People who thumb their noses at the rules of the bar shouldn't be judges."

I'm not a lawyer either. Does that mean I get to be a federal appeals court judge too if I become a wealthy republican?

Here's the painting I was working on over the weekend, another limited palette one. Face seems a little fat. Still needs those darks under the nose, and maybe fix the mouth a little -- and maybe glasses? Still too wet on the face. Guess the paint is thicker than I thought.

Trying to figure out how the old masters made a face glow out of darkness, especially when they (ie., the subject -- getting confused in constructions here) have dark hair, too. But something martyr-like about it I kinda like.



Theme for this month's An Art A Day is to research and do studies of an artist of your choice with a view toward producing a "master work" incorporating that understanding (ie, not just a slavish copy). This is a very daunting task for the light and frivolous month of July, and I'm not certain I'm up to it.

However, since I seem to have gotten onto this kick of how to make the darkness darker, perhaps I will work on Velasquez in the manner I have been -- little paintings, collages, drawings, etc., plus writing. We'll see...

- posted by Cynthia @ 10:39 PM | | | Link |

 
No Nuts Here
Boing Boing: Bush's plan to dose Americans with expensive antipsychotics

According to this British Medical Journal article, "Lilly made $1.6m in political contributions in 2000—82% of which went to Bush and the Republican Party. "

So it's not surprising that the President announced a plan to screen the entire US population for mental illness and pump lots and lots of people full of expensive Eli Lilly drugs. Bush's commission has recommended that the federal government adopt a model based on the Texas Medication Algorithm Project (TMAP) a medication treatment plan that recommends Zyprexa as a first line antipsychotic drug for patients. Bush was governor of Texas when the plan was adopted, and Zyprexa coincidentally happens to be made by Eli Lilly.

Possibly he could start by screening himself. His dementia about Iraq should be a strong hint that he hasn't been taking his nice meds.

Good Saturday, all. I am so cold. The wind is blowing from the north, but I don't know when I've seen so much sunshine in one day. The painting I was working on yesterday is still too wet to go in and fix some darks, so instead of starting something else I've been prowling, drinking coffee, and downloading mp3s as though preparing for nuclear winter.

I know nothing much about music and can't listen to the crap on any of the radio stations here (except maybe the latin music stations -- sounds fresher, somehow, even the obvious pop pap). And if I hear The Who again in my lifetime on WXRT it will be too soon. Please. There are other bands. I now want music I've never heard before, that can take me forward into the future rather than music I used to listen to sitting on a cold basement floor drunk or stoned and hoping to sleep with someone. Not my idea of good memories. Too much pretending to like Led Zeppelin so the guy will like you. Ugh.

So I may add a few selected and choice links to the music world a bit later.

Otherwise, enjoy your weather, whether it's good or not. It's Saturday, which should help. Off to the post office.

- posted by Cynthia @ 2:19 PM | | | Link |

 
Snark Supply Running Low?
Daily Kos || Science Friday: Liberal Blogs in Crisis

Experts report that the United States Strategic Snark Reserves have been severely depleted, and absent new discoveries of snark may run dry within three years.

"Liberal bloggers have been using snark at an exponentially expanding rate, but it's not a renewable resource" said Lawrence Peters, head researcher at the American Blog Studies Group, a liberal think tank. "Once it's gone, it's gone."

Already the shortage has had an impact. Liberal bloggers like Billmon and Josh Marshall have taken extended vacations in recent months to recover; others, like the Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum, have dramatically curtailed daily snark output. Other bloggers have suffered more severely.

"I just couldn't take it anymore," blogger Hesiod probably would have said, had this reporter bothered to contact him or any of the other people mentioned in this story. "It started out bad, even before the Bush Presidency began, and it just kept getting worse."

Hesiod's own blog, Counterspin, was shuttered recently when he experienced Total Snark Failure, known as TSF. "It was awful. I just woke up one day and... it wasn't there. Just nothing."

ROFL, as we used to say. I had a case of TSF myself recently, but I'm back. This is probably why the Rovians thought they could try rewriting history again -- in the wake of the Beatification of Ronnie they thought we'd all stopped blogging. But really, what new could you say?

I keep checking back at Counterspin hoping that Hesiod will find his inner snark again, but nothing so far. Am reluctant to de-link him from the side, or to de-link Salam Pax, who's gone dark too. And Spam Poetry hasn't been updated in a long time. So will be creating a "Just Resting, Thanks" section to hold these old friends until the happy day when they come back to us.
- posted by Cynthia @ 12:09 AM | | | Link |

 
Yes, It's Still Fresh Paint
Just a little redecorating. It's not your imagination. I changed the image up at the right hand top to a collage, "Anonymous Hills," which seems more summer-like than the painting it replaces (plus it's smaller). I may rotate the pictures a little more often, and maybe even put a PayPal button up so you can buy them oh, so easily!!

So have no fear. Everything is online someplace, and I'll point you to an image gallery Real Soon Now (as Jerry Pournelle in the old Byte magazine used to put it about when new software enhancements were going to happen. Guess that really dates me).

Also have added links to my recent bloggings, and will fix some other stuff too.
- posted by Cynthia @ 6:26 PM | | | Link |

 
Liar Liar Liar
Bush touts Qaeda-Saddam ties by e-mail

FORT LEWIS, Washington (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush is pressing ahead with charges of Iraqi ties to al Qaeda in campaign speeches and e-mails to key constituents, despite a government commission's finding of no collaboration.

In fact, the White House on Friday asserted support from the commission, which as part of its probe into the September 11, 2001 attacks reported this week there was no evidence that ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and al Qaeda had developed a "collaborative relationship."

"9-11 Commission Staff Report Confirms Administration's Views of al Qaeda/Iraq Ties," a headline read in a White House e-mail to Jewish leaders on Friday.

EXCUSE ME??? The report fucking does not confirm his views!

One only hopes that leaders smart and sophisticated enough to get and read email are also smart and sophisticated enough to recognize what the fuck these assholes are trying to pull -- getting everyone all confused again and not sure what the truth really is.

Excuse my language. I don't usually use these words, Mr. FCC, so I mean it when I do.

The truth, my friends, is that there is not a shred of integrity or honesty in this administration. If they tell you it's Friday, it's probably Monday. And they'll just keep on saying it until they have you running to the calendar to double-check, and then think that maybe you have the wrong year or you looked at the wrong month, or that it's one of those foreign-made calendars that's all misprinted and doesn't even have important holidays like Flag Day and Reagan's Birthday on it.

Good afternoon, folks. This has been a depressing day, hasn't it? Bush's failed policies have led to the beheading of some poor schmuck in Saudi Arabia and there may very well be more. John McCain shows his true colors and campaigns with Bush -- why did anyone ever think he could be Kerry's running mate, anyway? Possibly there is a goat in McCain's past we just don't know about, but the Rovians do.

I'm sure there are many who would be pleased as punch to dump Bush right now if McCain could slide into his place somehow. But just because they campaign together doesn't mean Bush is a much-decorated former hostage and experienced, moderate-rightwing senator. He's not. He's just a fucking liar. There. I said it again.

If Kerry chooses Gephardt or some policy wonk or old fart politico as a running mate, I'll just dig a hole and crawl right in. He would be the very, very wrong choice right now. We need someone young and energetic, like Bill Clinton. I know, I know. Sorry. He's already served his time, but oh, how I miss the Big Dog.

Let's choose someone like John Edwards, please. It would be like opening the door and giving candy to the press all at the same time.

Ah, well. I'm sure I'll have more to go on and on about later. Have been painting pretty much all day, just stopped to stuff a lot of Kung Pao Chicken and eggrolls into my mouth, then back to painting. Will write more about it later.

- posted by Cynthia @ 4:53 PM | | | Link |

 
Science Thursday, I Guess
Scientists teleport atoms for first time

In an advance that will thrill fans of Star Trek, scientists have for the first time teleported atoms. They say their research will help to develop ultra-fast quantum computers - but Trekkies should not expect teleportation machines to beam objects or people between distant locations in the foreseeable future.
...
Real-life teleportation does not literally carry matter instantly from place to place as in science fiction films such as Star Trek and The Fly.

It transfers the "quantum state" of an object - the full information required to define all its physical properties - instantly to a replica object in another location, which can be at an indefinite distance [ed. cue Trekkie bashing late-night hosts].

Scientists Find Gene Cure for Cheating Lover Voles

A single gene inserted into the brain can change promiscuous male rodents into faithful, monogamous partners, scientists said Wednesday [ed. cue Clinton bashing late-night hosts].

If only it were this simple. I'm afraid teleportation will be in common use long before the voles I've known stay faithful.

It certainly hasn't been Art Thursday. I've scraped the bottom of my being and found nothing. Must wait for a new crust to form, I guess.

Until it does, Tillie will have to carry the standard:

The 5-year-old Jack Russell is an artist who has had her paintings exhibited in New York, Los Angeles and Europe. She recently opened a gallery and store in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, the borough's epicenter of all things artsy and hip.

A friend of mine recently curated a show of monkey paintings at the Peggy Notebaert Museum:

Do not expect the works of famous European artists when visiting the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in Chicago. There will not be names like Monet or Picasso attached to the artwork at the Born to Be Wild art exhibit but instead names such as Rita, Buddie and Cuddly--some of the featured artists at this exhibit come from the wild places of the world. Monkey artists are finally stepping up and challenging abstract artists by selling their artwork to humans.

I'm beginning to think I'm the wrong species.

Nothing political today. The 9/11 report is a real, non-snarky thing, and isn't a laughing matter.
- posted by Cynthia @ 7:21 PM | | | Link |

 
Art Tuesday, Too
Think I'm getting this just in under the wire, so that I won't have ruined my blogging record of at least one post a day. Busy today, what with painting this and visiting my friend the dentist again, and spending a few hours at the Art Institute visiting my other friends, Mr Matisse and Mr Beckmann, making me wilt with shame to post another one, "Laura, Again":



And glanced thru the photos of water in the Thames by Roni Horn that literally run thru the entire museum. Didn't catch on to what was going on until I got home and read the extremely lengthy handout of "Saying Water". They've mounted the photos following the meanderings of a "river" throughout the collection, so that a photo of water is mounted on a wall with a "real" painting. I was a bit irritated with it at first, since I thought they were just trying to promote the Horn show over in the abysmal "contemporary" section (the museum owns approximately 3.5 pieces of "contemporary" art -- they have on view something pretty interesting and produced actually in this century by Jasper Johns labelled a "prospective purchase", which I don't understand at all -- either buy it or don't) -- anyway, the Horn thing --

the lengthy text of "Saying Water" is quite mesmerizing -- all about suicides and deaths in the Thames, musings on color and substance, and lots of notebook stuff and some bratty self-indulgence. Quite a jolt to realize it's much the same thing I've been doing for about 4 months now with my (for awhile) near daily color notes at the lake, though her obsessions are much, much more intense than mine have been. The water images are quite wonderful, and now having read more, will try to go back and look at them again, and follow the trail thru the collection. If you're in Chicago on Free Tuesday, check it out (thru 5th of September).

That's it for now. No more dental excursions planned, so no excuses for not painting. Ciao.


- posted by Cynthia @ 11:58 PM | | | Link |

 
My Little Landscape Seems Silly, In Comparison
Iraqi artists depict anger over Abu Ghraib | csmonitor.com

Twenty-five artists are displaying sculptures, paintings, and installations at a Baghdad gallery.

Mr. Alsabti was one of 25 Iraqi artists who have produced a series of sculptures, paintings, and installations depicting the horrors of Abu Ghraib. The exhibits are being shown at the Hewar Art Gallery in the Wazerieh district of central Baghdad.

He created a life-size figure of a woman wrapped in a bloodstained white shroud. It symbolizes the rape of women detainees in Abu Ghraib, says Alsabti, who heard of allegations of women prisoners being raped at Abu Ghraib five months before the scandal broke.
...
"Some artists used to be neutral, but now there are artists, poets, and writers who have all reached the decision that the Americans are destroyers. It has given them a new sense of purpose in art," he [Khalil Karim, another artist] says.

And this link has a bit more, plus a photo and more graphic descriptions of some of the pieces. I'll see if I can find more later. I don't think there's an actual link anywhere to the gallery per se, though it's quite well-known. Steve Mumford mentioned it in his Artnet.com Baghdad Journal, and it shows up in google searches. If anyone out there has a link to photos of these pieces, please leave a comment or email me.

Today should be renamed Art Monday to commemorate all these activities, not just because I actually left the house to paint outdoors for the first time in awhile.

LATER: Here it is:



Still very wet, so colors a little washed out. Maybe I'll replace the picture with a better one.
- posted by Cynthia @ 6:00 PM | | | Link |

 
Bush Hired as New Clinton Campaign Manager
The New York Times > Washington > Official Clinton Portraits Unveiled:

Mr. Bush [ed. apparently with a straight face] said of his predecessor: "As chief executive, he showed a deep and far-ranging knowledge of public policy, a great compassion for people in need, and the forward-looking spirit that Americans like in a president" [ed. unlike me... they hate me, damn it, and screw you Bill Clinton, I'm still president and you're not.]

You should read the whole love-fest. But oh, how nice to see a real president back in the White House (and her husband...). Still searching for a good, clear image of the 2 portraits to save. You may have guessed that I was (and still am) a big Clinton fan, both Mr. and Mrs.

Good afternoon, all. The moment I stepped out this morning it started to rain, so I came back in and did stuff. Now I look out again and see blue skies, and a sunny face to the sky, but am certain that if I step out again, the raindrops will fall, so don't know that I want to sentence everyone to more rain.

However... here I go...

- posted by Cynthia @ 1:09 PM | | | Link |

 
Goodbye , Columbus?
Somali Native Charged With Plotting to Blow Up Mall in Swing State:

A Somali native living in Ohio has been charged with plotting with other al Qaeda operatives to blow up a Columbus-area shopping mall, according to an indictment unsealed Monday.

Yes, tasteless as ever, and wondering how hard they tortured the guy so that they had enough to indict him. Keep thinking they decided they finally had to dump this on us because not even a week of corpse-hugging helped Dub one inch in the polls.

And since the companion story is that they underestimated the number of terrorist incidents last year (i.e., Bush is not "good on terror" as conventional wisdom claims), and Powell sez

'It's not a political judgment that said, "Let's see if we can cook the books." We can't get away with that now.'

they need to uncover every terrorist plot they can, especially in swing states, just to prove they can indeed find their butt with two hands.

Keep wondering what other things they're sitting on. If I were Ohio, however, I'd feel a bit miffed that Tom Ridge, Mr. Homeland Security himself, didn't make this announcement.

- posted by Cynthia @ 12:36 PM | | | Link |

 
A Peck of Portraits
Ok, here's the portrait mentioned below, "Laura":



Speaking of portraits, Bill Clinton's is to be unveiled on Monday at the White House, according to this article.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- Simmie Knox, the first black artist to paint an official presidential portrait, is preparing to unveil his oil painting of former President Bill Clinton in a ceremony Monday at the White House.

"My mind hasn't completely wrapped around it yet," Knox said in a telephone interview from his Silver Spring, Md., home. "Just imagine: I was born in 1935 in Aliceville, Alabama, a sharecropper, and now I'm painting the president. Can you imagine that?"

The self-taught artist, best known for his portraits of black celebrities like baseball legend Hank Aaron and comedian Bill Cosby, also will unveil a painting of the former first lady, New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

At the former president's request, the oil painting is set in the Oval Office. It will be the first presidential portrait in the White House collection to include the American flag.

Here's his link.


- posted by Cynthia @ 8:13 PM | | | Link |

 
Tony Chalabi?
UK sells WMD components to "axis of evil" countries - [Sunday Herald]:

BRITAIN is now a leading exporter of components of weapons of mass destruction.

The UK has sold the components for chemical weapons to 40 countries including North Korea and Iran, both deemed part of the so-called "axis of evil".

Libya, which has only recently come in from the cold after decades of being labelled a "state-sponsor of terrorism", also bought chemical weapons technology from the UK.

Or we could just invade them. They do have oil, after all.

Good evening my friends. My, it's been a pleasant day, having not rained since about 6 am. I know, since sleep was fitful all night because of downpours, stuff falling on my roof, and the usual weather noises.

Am stretching canvas and mid-gesso right now. Have once again decided I hate everything I've ever done or will do, and so have rotated the paintings on the walls of my house. Did you know that if you put a small painting where a big painting had been, the room suddenly looks bigger and less cluttered?

On the knitting front, still haven't put buttons on the Sonnet, or sewed the shoulder seams or anything. Need an event to wear it to, I guess.

Did a portrait (12 by 12) this week, and will work on snapping it this evening, then upload it. And have a little drawing, too, I'm calling "Watermarks," since there's an aquatic theme that evolved (the brain is strange).

Will be adjusting some of the links this weekend too, since some blogs have gone dark recently, and I've found a few new ones I like.

So on with the evening activities. I am just so popular.

- posted by Cynthia @ 6:37 PM | | | Link |

 
Couldn't Happen To a Nicer Guy
Humbled Blair Faces Party Anguish Over Poll Defeat

"I'd like to say I'm sorry to the (local) councillors [ed. 460 of them!] who've lost their seats," Blair told reporters in Washington before heading home. "I think Iraq has been a shadow over our support." [ed. duh...]
...
Clare Short, another outspoken Labor rebel, said voters were punishing Blair because his party couldn't.

"What we did in Iraq has brought disgrace and dishonor on Britain around the world. As Tony Blair won't change the policy, the only way to make a correction is for him to step aside from the leadership," she told the Evening Standard newspaper.

Memo to Bush: be afraid... be very afraid.

Writing all this as Reagan is being laid to rest in a "private" ceremony (according to the paper) broadcast, however, on ever single tv station on the planet, with lingering camera shots on Mrs. Reagan's face (I watched for about 5 minutes, I admit, but no more. I'm sick, but not that sick.)

Had a piece in a show that opened this evening, and am back now, and not even drunk. This is a collage I did earlier, though have been trying to figure how to do it for a few days:



It's called "Hero," and no, it's not in honor of anyone or anything.

Also did some drawings today, but they're just too goofy for words.

- posted by Cynthia @ 9:26 PM | | | Link |

 
Wrong Man Lying in State
Farewell, Brother Ray

A memorial service at the FAME Church in central Los Angeles is planned for late next week with interment at Inglewood Cemetery in Inglewood, Calif.

As of today will stop being mean, but the death of Ray Charles is important too. In one of the articles I skimmed someone asked, "He was only 73?" No. Ageless.

Good morning. Foggy here with a whiny sun trying to break through the muck. Must try to accomplish something other than messing around with the camera, so will leave you for a bit.
- posted by Cynthia @ 11:17 AM | | | Link |

 
Afternoon Edition
Crap removed from this week's New Yorker:



I don't know whether I can take it any longer. I hear the howls of trees and draining of fossil fuels and cries of mail carriers in needless agony.

Yes, I'm a flipper. I must be able to flip smoothly and cleanly back-to-front and front-to-back in my magazines, with nothing making me pause and stare at an AIG ad or ponder the joys of owning a mini, or staying in some hotel. And certainly not subscribing to the New Yorker 15 more times, since I'm already a subscriber. I don't get it.

I removed 15 offensive items from this week's issue, several of them of booklet size, or even like toys (witness the milk carton and apple crap above).

Ah, well. The piece above I'm calling "Unintentional Collage," and calling it art, since I haven't done anything else today except rip shit out of magazines and drink coffee.

So will go back to what I was doing and catch up with you later. I have no desire to view Reagan's dead body for the next 48 hours.

Just curious... how much is all this costing us, the taxpayers, or is the RNC picking up the tab? When Jimmy Carter goes, will we have at least as much of a hoopla? He's a Nobel Prize winner, after all, and one of the most respected humanitarians on the planet, though admittedly no great shakes as a president. Hmmm... in death would his admin get the cosmetic uplift that Ronnie's has?

Please, god, let it not be soon, however, since he's doing too much good work in the here and now.

- posted by Cynthia @ 1:09 PM | | | Link |

 
Of Libya, Dentists, and Art
NYT: Two Said to Tell of Libyan Plot Against Saudi

WASHINGTON, June 9 — While the Libyan leader, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, was renouncing terrorism and negotiating the lifting of sanctions last year, his intelligence chiefs ordered a covert operation to assassinate the ruler of Saudi Arabia and destabilize the oil-rich kingdom, according to testimony of two participants in the conspiracy.
...
President Bush has conveyed to the Saudi royal family [ed: ie., his true masters -- cue Michael Moore, waiting in wings] that he is going to find out what happened in the alleged conspiracy, according to a diplomat. [ed: betcha he'll get to the bottom of this a lot faster than, say, discovering who outed Wilson's wife]
...
"We are going to really jam Qaddafi over this, but there is no pretext for regime change," the Saudi official said. "What is in our interest is to keep the caged animal in his cage."

Sound eerily familiar?

Cozying up to Qaddafi is not just a monstrously idiotic thing for this admin to do, but is (of course) all about oil.

Good evening, people. After complaining for 2 days about 90 degree weather, a front has passed and, yes, I am now so cold, slamming windows shut, turning off fans, pulling on a sweater. It has plummetted to 59 degrees and is rainy and likely to be for several more days. What can you do? It will force me to stay in and do some art, that's what it will do.

Nothing new to report today, except went down to Wicker Park (after a dentist's appointment) to take a look at a show called "Undergraduated" at the Up the Stairs Gallery, folks selected from the SAIC BFA show this spring. It wasn't officially open, however, but the doors were because it was so hot, and I snuck a look around. Had wanted to see Noah Marchal's "Satellite" in action, but it wasn't doing anything, since not plugged in. Got chased out by gallery type, but had a chance to look at a giant wall of fairly stylized portraits by Peter Hoffman before leaving, and I think I remember them from the SAIC show. They looked much more impressive and particular in a space that was big enough to present them as a large group.

This might be an interesting space to keep an eye on. It's just around the corner from the Flat Iron Building which houses more artists than I can count (plus an Occult Book Store).

My first glance thru the Evanston + Vicinity Biennial didn't really impress me too much, though I'll admit it's a lot of paintings to absorb. I couldn't find a coherent sense to it, though I admit I must go back and look again.

I adored the show 2 years ago, even though I didn't perhaps care for individual pieces. I thought that as a whole it was brilliant, light, white, open, varied, but with several quite focussed anchors -- like Eric Wert's giant painting of a plant (a begonia? can't quite remember) at one side, to Kat Chow's wonderful formal fashions, to the kid who did the big photos of himself falling thru air (can't remember his name right now) in the other main room. See? 2 years later I can still remember it, though I'm not sure I'll remember much of this year's show.

But, as I said, will go back and look again...

And did I mention I have a piece in the new juried show at the Wilmette Public Library -- opens this Friday 5-8? Hope all you Chicago area folks can come.

***CORRECTION***: The opening is 6:30 to 8:30, an alert reader informs me. Sorry if I've screwed up anyone's plans.

- posted by Cynthia @ 9:35 PM | | | Link |

 
Art Part 2
Oh, all right... here's the other little dude from yesterday, called "Land Eye", because of the eye.



Tho should perhaps call it "Bush Doesn't Think the Eye is Watching Him, So Torture is OK." This entire crew disgusts me:

Ashcroft Refuses to Release Torture Memo

Ashcroft said he would not discuss the contents of the memo and said he would not turn it over to the committee. "I believe it is essential to the operation of the executive branch that the president have the opportunity to get information from the attorney general that is confidential," he said.

Oh, Cheez... executive privilege. Or if that doesn't work,

Ashcroft said he would not be drawn into a discussion of the legal boundaries of aggressive interrogation, in part because it would reveal too much to al Qaeda.

we can always yell about al Qaeda.

Thank god Ronny is dead so all this is pretty much being ignored.

- posted by Cynthia @ 7:18 PM | | | Link |

 
Evening Art Report
My new software has arrived, so I can show you pictures again. I bet you all thought I'd stopped painting or something, but no.... I just had an excuse not to since I couldn't make it look better in software. This one looks pretty close to the original -- a small acrylic on paper thing I'm calling "Jazz Sun", because that's the title that actually popped into my mind as I was doing it. I'm not very good at using water-based media, like acrylics and watercolors and gouache, because it always dries so fast, so mixing colors can be a pain. But I got out the spray bottle and kept spritzing the palette.



I have another one too I'm not sure I even want to show anyone, since it has an evil eye in it and I think I need to play around with cropping it and tearing it. So it may end up dead, or in a collage.

Still not listening to news or reading paper, which probably means they're slipping some horrible things by us under the blanket Ronny coverage.

Now I understand what GWB and the pope needed to talk over recently -- the upcoming beatification of the gipper.

Sorry if I am nasty and cynical about a 93 year old Alzheimer's victim, but someone needs to balance the insane coverage I'm seeing out there, and I'd be a hypocrite if I thought differently.

Though was kinda fun to see Ronny's D-Day speech being replayed instead of Georgie's over and over. Think he was beginning to get a little peeved there.

So good evening, people. It was a hot and humid day, but tonight there is a mild and lovely summer breeze coming through the windows, aided by the droning fans. I will not turn on the AC unless it's absolutely necessary. I will not.


- posted by Cynthia @ 11:26 PM | | | Link |

 
Hagiography
You may as well not turn on TV, radio, or internet today or for the next few because St. Ron's translation to unqualified sainthood has begun. If Rove didn't pull the plug on the man personally, perhaps god really is a republican, since they can now count on favorable and gentle coverage from the press such that "linkage" from the past failed policies (though apparently viewed by the majority as successful) and current failed policies will happen with ease, skipping lightly over 8 years of expansion and innovation.

Even Dub's dad called Reagan's policies "voodoo economics," a phrase you never hear any longer, though it's more meaningful today than ever. And what do you expect? It's the same damn crew running things now.

Don't you think, though, that Rummy is sounding more and more like someone who hasn't been taking his Metamucil and needs a really good bm?

Good morning, people. Yes, I am still here. Did nothing to speak of yesterday except gesso a few boards and perform some light (Dean Koontz) reading. Have to start easy, work the muscles up gradually in preparation for the 900 page plus Clinton bio due any minute. Hmmm.... should probably start with the light hand weights too else reading in bed may prove lethal.

Weather supposed to be cloudy and spitting rain for part of the day, and then the temperature is supposed to rise till the middle of the week to a range where I can finally complain about the heat.

- posted by Cynthia @ 9:54 AM | | | Link |

 
God, I Hope So
MSNBC - Bush's Baggage:

Washington is agog over George Tenet's resignation, the Plame CIA case and fresh criticism of Dick Cheney's Halliburton contacts. Are the wheels coming off the administration?

This piece by Eleanor Clift is worth a read. I don't get print Newsweek, so I don't know whether what she publishes there is similar. If so, criticism of this admin has gone mainstream.

Good afternoon, folks. Has been sunny but very chilly these past few days, and have been at a low-energy point, so little blogging, I'm afraid. Off to do some art stuff later, which may infuse me with spirit, but not counting on it. Maybe more coffee.

One hopes the jeering crowds in Italy drive home to Bush the message that he is not beloved in the world, and he'd be far happier clearing brush for the next 30 or 40 years in Crawford while someone ghostwrites his bio for him.

Cheney is here in Chicago today at a fundraiser for Jack Ryan, Barack Obama's slimy opponent in the U.S. Senate contest. I've received an invite to go protest

In Front of the Chicago Hilton
720 South Michigan Avenue
Friday, June 4
4:30 p.m.

from Democrats.org. I am unable to make it, but if you can, bring an appropriate sign and go do it.

That's all for now.

- posted by Cynthia @ 3:34 PM | | | Link |

 
You Can't Turn Your Back For a Minute
Yahoo! News - Bush: CIA Director George Tenet Resigns
....for those bs "personal" reasons, like "I was personally told to leave?"

"He's been a strong and able leader at the agency. and I will miss him," Bush said of Tenet as he got ready to board Marine One for a trip to Andrews Air Force Base, Md., and on to Europe.


"George Tenet is the kind of public servant you like to work with," the president added. "He's strong, he's resolute. He's served his nation as the director for seven years. He has been a strong and able leader at the agency. He's been a strong leader in the war on terror.

Wasn't he a monster just a few weeks ago? I can't keep my scorecard straight.

Won't comment further right now, since I haven't had my coffee yet. Been drinking far too much, staying up too late, getting morose. But sunny, no chance of rain today, though is cool.

- posted by Cynthia @ 10:54 AM | | | Link |

 
Fahrenheit 9/11 Trailer
It's out, it's here...

Fahrenheit 9/11 Trailer

Good evening, people. Another ho hum day in which I didn't do anything I hoped to do. Finally did a stupid big drawing that no one should be forced to look at, so I won't upload it here. Keep thinking of lyrics of one of my favorite tunes from Vic Chesnutt:

If you want to see two circling swans
on the surface of the sewer pond
don't crane your neck where you are
you've got to climb to the second floor

That's all for tonight.
- posted by Cynthia @ 11:26 PM | | | Link |

 
Oh, Lord...
Enron Trader Conversations Show Power Market Manipulation Was Sport:

HOUSTON (AP) - Enron Corp. traders openly discussed manipulating the California power market and joked about stealing from grandmothers during the Western energy crisis in 2000-2001, according to transcripts of telephone calls filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
...
For example, in one transcript a trader asks about "all the money you guys stole from those poor grandmothers of California."

To which the Enron trader responds, "Yeah, Grandma Millie, man. But she's the one who couldn't figure out how to (expletive) vote on the butterfly ballot."

I used to know and work with guys just like this, unfortunately, back at CBOE. Ah, the Greed Years....

Good morning, er, afternoon my friends. Water level almost low enough I can start routing out the basement and flinging the bleach around (tomorrow, for sure) so must spend these last precious moments of freedom doing something productive.

Have been twitchy since the last sweater was finished (still without buttons), so must go out and get some yarn, then find something to knit. I know I found a simple boatneck sweater somewhere in my prowlings this winter but didn't bookmark it (stupid...stupid...). If anyone out there knows of one, please drop me a comment or email.

- posted by Cynthia @ 12:50 PM | | | Link |

 
Artist Arrested Under (un)Patriot Act
Holy Shit!

Feds Unable to Distinguish Art from Bioterrorism
Grieving Artist Denied Access to Deceased Wife's Body

Steve Kurtz was already suffering from one tragedy when he called 911 early in the morning to tell them his wife had suffered a cardiac arrest and died in her sleep. The police arrived and, cranked up on the rhetoric of the "War on Terror," decided Kurtz's art supplies were actually bioterrorism weapons.

This is an Associate Professor at SUNY Buffalo, my old alma mater. This story is amazing but true (via Russ Kick of Memory Hole via Boing Boing).

More, and link to his defense fund is here. You many not like his art, but he is serious about what he and his group are doing, and much respected at the borders of art. On top of all this, the poor man hasn't been allowed to grieve over his wife. Illinois's own Buzz Spector (now at Cornell) and David Jones of Anchor Graphics were both guest lecturers in the Visual Studies Speaker Series with Dr. Kurtz this past year. Such terrorists!

This government has got to go.

- posted by Cynthia @ 10:52 PM | | | Link |

 
Mark Your Calendars
Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11" Finds Domestic Distributor

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Michael Moore's award-winning documentary "Fahrenheit 9/11" has picked up a U.S. distributor and will hit theaters June 25.

Take that, Disney. Sez Moore, "On behalf of my stellar cast - GW, Dick, Rummy, Condi and Wolfie - we thank this incredible coalition of the willing for bringing 'Fahrenheit 9/11' to the people."

Think it'll get shown at the local theater near Crawford, Texas? Nearest theaters are in the Waco area (about 15 miles away), and they're all big multi-screen palaces. That unpatriotic flick, "Day After Tomorrow," is playing on at least 4 or 5 screens (I googled).

UPDATE: Hilarious Worth1000 photoshop entry via Boing Boing.
- posted by Cynthia @ 8:33 PM | | | Link |

 
No Longer Afloat
When I called the plumber this morning to remind him he said he'd be her first thing in the morning, he said, oh, yes, he remembered, but there were so many in need! He'd just got off the phone with a lady who was crying, for example. What do you say to someone who's crying? But he said he'd still get to my house first.

But he did stop off at the other lady's house at some point, and she was still crying. He said, "I don't usually take my customers in my arms to console them, but I just had to hug this little old lady and tell her everything was all right." This is a sweet big bear of a guy with long flowing blond hair. I think I'd believe him, if he told me everything will be ok too.

And things apparently are. I am showered and flushed, though my dishes are still unwashed because I've been futzing with stuff today.

A friend tells me I must show you this painting I did in early spring but spent more time trying to photograph it without a flash (it's oil) than I did to paint it.



Other than that, haven't checked the political front except to note that oil is still on the rise, and it serves us right.

- posted by Cynthia @ 8:00 PM | | | Link |