plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose

From The Farmer's Daughter
This voice in American Cinema is gone. Who are today's Capras and Sturgeses? (And in this case H.C. Potter).

Like a Bird in a Tree

Heard Robert Gordon singing it this AM.

Alert the Authorities

Not blocked, and yet I opposed toxic chemicals in children's toys and jewelry, foods and cosmetics, forced prison labor, child labor, and censorship.

Amusing Comeuppance for Damien Hirst

Damien Hirst is known in part for his appropriation of images from other artists. So the coolpublic (newspeak I invented) and a bunch of the art world were nonplussed when he sued a 16 year old artist named Cartrain for using images of his diamond encrusted skull work entitled For the Love of God (shown below) integrated into works in his portfolio.

I can imagine British web 2.0 denizens thinking "Jings, what a tosser!" or perhaps "Stone the crows, he's a bleeding nonce!" after determining that the indescribably wealthy (he sold an entire show at Sotheby's) pot has in fact called the aspiring 16 year old kettle black.

Now a group known as redragtoabull has done a wonderful thing - they have decided to deliberately appropriate the skull image and deliberately use it in a series of compositions in hope of inciting dialogue......or worse/better. Here's a statement from their site:

"All of the works below are for sale and once TWENTY MILLION POUNDS has been raised ALL the proceeds will go to make an exact copy of a sculpture known as "For the Love of God". This will then be sold for FIFTY MILLION POUNDS and the THIRTY MILLION POUND profit will then be used to repay the Street Urchin his 200 quid, help other Street Urchins and also feed starving children in Africa and Sussex."

One of the artists is Jamie Reid who "designed 90% of the Sex Pistols LP and poster imagery" as he so vitriolically and justifiably pointed out in comments to a punk action slideshow post at PCL Link Dump

ha-HA! Striking a blow for fair play and commentary by society at large!! Art Heroes! David slaying Goliath with color and design!

The works are clever, funny, appealing and thought provoking, both message wise and process wise.

Both pix link to redragtoabull...... where one can view them as well as submit.

Oooh! Submit!

Azafran!

My wife just got an ounce of Saffron. I couldn't let the packaging escape my perusal.

Unfortunately, in our highway-to-global-warming world, I'll still buy something if the packaging is really cool.....



They took the time to include the product name in Hindi, Urdu and Arabic, (I'm guessing)

This one came with the saffron bagged for freshness:



The aroma was serene yet challenging, and helped define it as an ingredient in the risotto the Mrs. was preparing...




If you'd like to smell it, just scratch here.


This end of the tin had an intersting message:


(The pic is a link to a wallpaper)

Pickers on the other end:


It's brand is altaj which means "the crown"


The proud Spanish family that provides this rare treat:

(The pic is a link to a wallpaper)

...and their feelings about their product:


Want to buy your own OZ? Go to my store:

but remenber, I really don't care if you do - just helping, it's cheaper if you use it regularly.

Stupid Atheists!

Courtesy Huffington Post. Reminds me of the Physics of Santa (warning - spoiler alert)

Letter From Michael Moore

A Liberal's Pledge to Disheartened Conservatives

November 14th, 2006

To My Conservative Brothers and Sisters,

I know you are dismayed and disheartened at the results of last week's election.
You're worried that the country is heading toward a very bad place you don't
want it to go. Your 12-year Republican Revolution has ended with so much yet to
do, so many promises left unfulfilled. You are in a funk, and I understand.

Well, cheer up, my friends! Do not despair. I have good news for you. I, and the
millions of others who are now in charge with our Democratic Congress, have a
pledge we would like to make to you, a list of promises that we offer you
because we value you as our fellow Americans. You deserve to know what we plan
to do with our newfound power -- and, to be specific, what we will do to you and
for you.

Thus, here is our Liberal's Pledge to Disheartened Conservatives:

Dear Conservatives and Republicans,

I, and my fellow signatories, hereby make these promises to you:

1. We will always respect you for your conservative beliefs. We will never, ever, call
you "unpatriotic" simply because you disagree with us. In fact, we encourage you
to dissent and disagree with us.

2. We will let you marry whomever you want, even when some of us consider your
behavior to be "different" or "immoral." Who you marry is none of our business.
Love and be in love -- it's a wonderful gift.

3. We will not spend your grandchildren's money on our personal whims or to
enrich our friends. It's your checkbook, too, and we will balance it for you.

4. When we soon bring our sons and daughters home from Iraq, we will bring your
sons and daughters home, too. They deserve to live. We promise never to send
your kids off to war based on either a mistake or a lie.

5. When we make America the last Western democracy to have universal health
coverage, and all Americans are able to get help when they fall ill, we promise
that you, too, will be able to see a doctor, regardless of your ability to pay.
And when stem cell research delivers treatments and cures for diseases that affect you
and your loved ones, we'll make sure those advances are available to you and
your family, too.

6. Even though you have opposed environmental regulation, when we clean up our
air and water, we, the Democratic majority, will let you, too, breathe the
cleaner air and drink the purer water.

7. Should a mass murderer ever kill 3,000 people on our soil, we will devote
every single resource to tracking him down and bringing him to justice.
Immediately. We will protect you.

8. We will never stick our nose in your bedroom or your womb. What you do there
as consenting adults is your business. We will continue to count your age from
the moment you were born, not the moment you were conceived.

9. We will not take away your hunting guns. If you need an automatic weapon or a
handgun to kill a bird or a deer, then you really aren't much of a hunter and
you should, perhaps, pick up another sport. We will make our streets and schools
as free as we can from these weapons and we will protect your children just as we
would protect ours.

10. When we raise the minimum wage, we will pay you -- and your employees --
that new wage, too. When women are finally paid what men make, we will pay
conservative women that wage, too.

11. We will respect your religious beliefs, even when you don't put those
beliefs into practice. In fact, we will actively seek to promote your most
radical religious beliefs ("Blessed are the poor," "Blessed are the
peacemakers," "Love your enemies," "It is easier for a camel to go through the
eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God," and "Whatever
you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."). We
will let people in other countries know that God doesn't just bless America, he
blesses everyone. We will discourage religious intolerance and fanaticism --
starting with the fanaticism here at home, thus setting a good example for the
rest of the world.

12. We will not tolerate politicians who are corrupt and who are bought and paid for by the rich. We
will go after any elected leader who puts him or herself ahead of the people.
And we promise you we will go after the corrupt politicians on our side FIRST.
If we fail to do this, we need you to call us on it. Simply because we are in
power does not give us the right to turn our heads the other way when our party
goes astray. Please perform this important duty as the loyal opposition.

I promise all of the above to you because this is your country, too. You are
every bit as American as we are. We are all in this together. We sink or swim as
one. Thank you for your years of service to this country and for giving us the
opportunity to see if we can make things a bit better for our 300 million fellow
Americans -- and for the rest of the world.

Signed,

Michael Moore
mmflint@aol.com
( Click here to sign the pledge)
www.michaelmoore.com