Quote(s) of the Day: from Another Roadside Attraction May 4, 2008
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Images, Philosophy, Quote of the Day , add a comment“Normally,”
said Marvelous,
“the Institute
concerns itself
with probing
relatively specific
problems
and
situations.”
For example, the State Department
and the Defense Department signed
a joint contract with us for a study of Iceland.They wanted to know where
Iceland was going in the modern world,
whether she would be likely to constitute
a threat.
Considering her history and her racial character, her current state of economic growth, scientific activity and political ambitions, what should be America’s long-range policy in regards to Iceland?
In our twice-weekly seminars, where
we would pool the results of individual research and think sessions, we dined on fish heads and mead and piped in rímur music, that’s how immersed in Iceland we were.
. We even turned the air conditioner up as high
. as it would go to get the feel of the climate.
.
. The assistant director caught a terrible cold
. and missed ten days.
.
. That study was top secret, naturally,
and I’m violating security by mentioning it,
but what the hell.You see, generally, what kind of projects we undertook?
“Yes, I see,”
said Amanda.“It sounds ever so important.”
Was Amanda giggling
or clearing her sinuses?
Marx Marvelous
could not tell which.“It is necessary
that man extend his vision
beyond the political realities
of the present,”
said Marx,
somewhat defensively.
“When science can assist him in that, it is his duty.”
~ from Another Roadside Attraction
a novel by Tom Robbins
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Why go on? March 25, 2008
Posted by ~V~ in : Uncategorized, Politics, Video, Images, Spirituality, Philosophy, Portland, New Orleans, Sounds, Quote of the Day, Song of the Day, Picture of the Day, Web Resources, YouTube Video of the Day, Comix, How To: , 8commentsWhy do i even do this?
i get hundreds of visitors a day @ this site, and people are hotlinking to it
left and right, but no comments, no thanks, no nothin’.
Does anybody out there even like what i’m doing here, or is this site just a source of free music and photos for your LiveJournal or MySpace or Facebook profiles or message board posts to try and help you look cool to your friends?
i’m tired of always sending letters and never getting any back.
i think i’m gonna quit this exercise in futility and delete everything pretty soon, so download all you can while you still can, kids…
Picture(s) of the Day: from Jacquelyn Bond February 5, 2008
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Images, Portland, Picture of the Day , add a commentbecause an image speaks volumes in an instant.
‘Hope’ | 18″ x 24″ | watercolor on 100% cotton paper
My political art is inspired by the scary state of this nation these days. Most of my peers don’t vote. They’re afraid to learn about how government works, or even think about politics. They don’t want to be responsible for possibly making bad choices, so they don’t make ANY choices.
I’m very, very passionate
about our rights as citizens
to speak out and make
changes in this country.
I want my art to evoke some
thought from whoever views
it. I don’t care if it makes
them mad or happy, or even
if they agree with me or not.
I just want people to
DO SOMETHING —
get involved, take charge
and help make a difference.
I think we all have the ability to change things for the better, but too many people just watch American Idol
and eat at McDonald’s…The people in my art represent all of us, the American people, in all states and phases — people who have the power to right wrongs and help others. They represent anyone who believes democracy is a good and inspiring notion and want to use that power to help make this country and this world a better place.
‘A Little Help’ | 12″ x 16″ | watercolor on 100% cotton paper
see more art from Jacquelyn Bond: official site | MySpace
Wake Up, America! register to vote | Rock the Vote | MoveOn
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YouTube Video of the Day: David Bowie w/NIN - I’m Afraid of Americans February 4, 2008
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Video, Sounds, YouTube Video of the Day , add a commenti’m afraid i can’t help it…
* Enjoy…
*
* David Bowie as “The Thin White Duke”
*
* Trent Reznor as “Jonny American”
*
* starring in: “I’m Afraid of Americans”
*
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* “YouTube Video of the Day”
*
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*
YouTube Video of the Day: Pale Blue Dot December 7, 2007
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Video, Spirituality, Philosophy, YouTube Video of the Day , add a commentTHIS is here.
This is US.
∞ ∞ ∞
inspired by the essay Reflections on a Mote of Dust by Carl Sagan
and his book Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space
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YouTube Video of the Day: U2 - One (Berlin version) December 1, 2007
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Video, Spirituality, Philosophy, Sounds, YouTube Video of the Day , add a commentIs it getting better?
One Love.
Un Amour.Eine Liebe.
Μια αγάπη.
Un Amore.
Одна Влюбленность.
Un Amor.
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Dear Rockers: Paying Back Musicians November 28, 2007
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Images, Philosophy, Sounds, Web Resources , add a commentShow some love to your favorite musician.
Many of us own music that we didn’t pay for.
We don’t feel guilty about shafting the
record company, but what about
the musicians themselves?
Here’s how it works:1. Pick a musician
2. Write them a letter
3. Scan or photograph the letter and send it to us
4. Mail off the letter along with $5
5. Enjoy your new, guilt-free life
click on any photo to see, read, and hear more @ dearrockers.org
Flickr photos from michele cat, So Misguided, and DBarefoot
Song of the Day: Danger Mouse - What More Can I Say? February 24, 2007
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Images, Philosophy, Sounds, Song of the Day, Web Resources , 2commentsbecause if silence is golden,
then music must be made of diamonds.
***
What more can i tell you? Let me spell it for you:
letter collage created with Spell with Flickr
click on any photo to enlarge
===
Far from a Harvard student; just had the balls to do it.
god forgive me for my brash delivery,
but i remember vividly
what these streets did to me…
Danger Mouse - What More Can I Say? (6.3MB mp3)
from The Grey Album
In 2003, a little–known DJ by the name of Danger Mouse created a “mash–up” album that remixed the music of the Beatles’ White Album and hiphop star Jay–Z’s Black Album to produce a new record called The Grey Album.
The swift and draconian legal reaction to the online dissemination of this technically illegal but culturally fascinating artifact gave rise to a “day of digital civil disobedience,” [February 24, 2004] organized by
music activism group Downhill Battle.Grey Tuesday, as the day of action was known, marks a potentially new site for a blend of online political and cultural activism in the highly charged realm of intellectual property expansionism.
~ from Grey Tuesday, online cultural activism and the mash–up of music and politics, by Sam Howard-Spink
What does this song mean to you? Leave a comment.
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YouTube Video of the Day: Web 2.0 … The Machine is Us/ing Us February 12, 2007
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Video, Spirituality, Philosophy, Sounds, Web Resources, YouTube Video of the Day , add a commentWeb 2.0 in just under 5 minutes —
But it just might change your whole life…
download a higher-quality version of this video (68MB wmv)
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Home recording technology: Killing music and movies for the past 100 years. January 9, 2007
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Images, Philosophy, Web Resources , add a commentThe more things change, the more they stay the same.
the Kuba Komet - the finest entertainment center for the modern home.
“I forsee a marked deterioration in American music… and a host of other injuries to music in its artistic manifestations, by virtue—or rather by vice—of the multiplication of the various music-reproducing machines…”
~ John Philip Sousa on the Player Piano (1906)“The public will not buy songs that it can hear almost at will by a brief manipulation of the radio dials.”
~ Record Label Executive on FM Radio (1925)“But now we are faced with a new and very troubling assault on our fiscal security, on our very economic life and we are facing it from a thing called the videocassette recorder.”
~ MPAA on the VCR (1982)“When the manufacturers hand the public a license to record at home…not only will the songwriter tie a noose around his neck, not only will there be no more records to tape [but] the innocent public will be made an accessory to the destruction of four industries.”
~ ASCAP on the Cassette Tape (1982)from EFF Deep Links, June 20, 2006
“It’s certain that bits will never, ever get any harder to copy than they are today. From here on in, barring nuclear holocaust, bits will only get cheaper and easier to copy, period. Anyone who thinks bits will get harder to copy is either not paying attention or kidding himself or kidding you.”
~ Cory Doctorow from Boing Boing (2006)
the Electronic Frontier Foundation
YouTube Video of the Day: The Internet explained — it’s quite simple, really. October 29, 2006
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Video, Sounds, YouTube Video of the Day , add a commentThe Internet is not something that you just dump something on -
it’s not a big truck.
It’s a series of tubes…
Tangled up tubes.
===
Help protect our tubes: support net neutrality.
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¡Viva Border Volleyball! October 19, 2006
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Video, Images, Philosophy , add a comment
“Why not use this no-man’s land as a real beach
and see if we could strike up a friendly pickup game?
There’s no law against that.”
Or is there?
California’s most desolate and unknown beach is desolate and unknown for a reason. It has no name, no facilities, no parking lot.
“CONTAMINATED WATER; DEEP HOLES; RIPTIDES; NO LIFEGUARD; NO SWIMMING!” the signs announce.
This is a geopolitically divided beach, purposefully hidden. A fence of metal pylons draws a 20-foot-tall line in the sand all the way into the sea.
It is the perfect beach, in other words, for the world’s first game of international border volleyball.
read Joshuah Bearman’s article @ LA Weekly
watch a video of border volleyball @ wholphindvd.com
Picture of the Day: America the _____ September 11, 2006
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Images, Philosophy, Portland, Picture of the Day , 1 comment so farbecause one picture is worth at least a thousand words.
(click on image to see full-size photo) 
What does America mean to you?
* * *
About this image:
This is another photo i took one autumn night at Pioneer Courthouse Square
in Portland, Oregon.
A few months ago, i posted a photo of the falls from a different angle
(which makes a great desktop background wallpaper) here.
They’re both part of my Flickr set “city @night” which can be seen here.
You can check out my Flickr photostream here.
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YouTube Video of the Day: What is a Darknet, Charlie Brown??? April 13, 2006
Posted by ~V~ in : Politics, Video, Philosophy, Sounds, Web Resources, YouTube Video of the Day , 1 comment so farNo actual Peanuts characters were humped during the making of this video.
i just wish i could say the same for the Sesame Street characters…
Wanna join a Darknet?
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