12/8/06

Use Your Illusion

I just completed "Confessions of an Economic Hitman" and although a light, somewhat thin read (you could blow through it in a few days) it was notable to read the memoirs of an actual "EHM" as he confessed and professed his profound regret for all the misery he helped to usher into the developing world over the latter half of the 20th century. Yet, to me its sort of an empty and self-serving admission of guilt, for if he had not done it, (as he states) any number of people would have stepped into those shoes (and still do), to take the perks and benefits just to convince themselves that they are 'helping' these nations as they enslave them. The most important point of his so-called 'confession' for me was the self-delusional dedication that such elite classes have in their work, whereby they can always justify any miserable and failed policy as somehow being 'beneficial' -just so they can retain their own privileged position (oops! sorry! I mean they 'earned' that position...all better now eh?).

Which leads me to the next issue, one that concerns itself with the ideas of guilt and responsibility that surface periodically in affluent societies in relation to the 'have nots' of the world. Remember the Sally Struthers 'Save the Children' campaigns in the 80s/90s (do they still exist?), where starving children are paraded in front of the camera in Ethiopia or Cambodia, and they ask the viewers to "sponsor" a child for just a dollar a day? (A noble endeavor, but a band-aid solution at best)...You get the letters etc, and in the process you sort of buy yourself out of the guilty conscience of being a cold-hearted Western consumer, carelessly basking in the excess of everyday life. Ultimately, you can flip the channel and clear out those sickening images with some Seinfeld, and you are on to sleep- another day that starts with the alarm clock and ends with the TV! Well, you can enjoy your life, get on with it, and flush out the negative 'knowledge' that we are all in fact agents in the exploitation of those who slave to produce our commodities and prop up our wealth. Life goes on and some win and some lose. But, if we still have a conscience the next morning and still want to do something to make a real difference in people's lives, we first have to pull away from our love of appearances and illusions- the way in which we love to gloss over all the filth and sickness that lies beneath not just the veneer of the 'developing' world, but under our own Western cities as well....

A perfect example of our own self-delusional approach to the very commodities and 'things' we so adore year-round was made evident by the recent "backlash" (OMG!!) to the new film BLOOD DIAMOND. All socially proscribed and culturally defined 'meaning' and ostentatious 'value' given to this carbon mineral aside, its no wonder that because of such idolatrous lust for this otherwise uninteresting object we have a demand and now backlash when the object's true origins are revealed! Not all diamonds are blood diamonds of course, but the movie has put the issue in the consumer's head, and by extension worrying retailers- but it just reaffirms to me the population's irrational infatuation with a fucking shiny rock. Well holy shit, you mean diamonds don't just simply come from Kind Solomon's Mines or from Disneyland? Most people are not concerned and never will be, its the cultural drive to push out those nasty dissonant thoughts when it comes to the things we love to possess, and as long as they keep coming (just like with our oil), its full speed ahead in steroid-capitalist USA where the world is ours to devour, and all we ever hope for is to 'save' enough time to do it while staying under our credit limits....(!)

12/5/06

Sorry the website was suspended briefly cause I could not make a payment while I was on tour, anyways, in the coming days a massive update will ensue and I will give the full story on the band as well as a year end reflection on many subjects. Look for frequent updates over the next two months as I will be home taking a break. Peace/Love/Passion/Rage/Grindcore.

10/30/06

Back home and taking a break for a few more days before we head out again, this time to the mid-west (leaving Nov 2.). Either way its a short breather to perhaps get the head back out of the sand of touring life and into reality (at least for a moment).

Current research interests that occupy my downtime include a review of the social conditions in pre-revolutionary Russia that led to a ripened environment for the Bolsheviks to seize power...just passing historical interest on my part, nothing more. Yet today I still find it amazing that a dispersed gang of intelellectuals could gain control of a country that big so quickly(?!) If anything, it shows that it is precisely in times of great crisis or upheaval that the greatest leaps of progress or regression are made, and the rewards will go to those political and economic interests that are best positioned to seize the public consciousness and shape it to meet their ends. This means having a proper understanding of culture and how cultural mediators are central to the manipulation of public opinion, which will be much more open to ideas of radical and/or drastic change in such times, for better or for worse...so lets hope the 'good ideas' prevail..

Additionally reading up some fiction, just finished an amazing book called "The Dispossessed" (Le Guin) by a recomendatiioon from a friend- simply amazing! Other interests are Raymond Williams' "Marxism and Literature," and Perkins' biographical "Confessions of an Economic Hit Man"....

Furthermore, picked up some great new music on the last tour including new stuff from Mastodon, Agalloch, Unmerciful, Stormcrow (the one from Oakland), Jesu, and Frightmare. I am having a sort of personal renaissance with all kinds of metal right now, as a lot of new albums have been impressively inspiring and although there is still a TON of shit to wade through, there is certainly some great music being made...

...It seems we will be doing another run through the states in late January/February, so after that it will finally be time to perhaps relax and write a bit, but for now, its the road once more Thursday....arrivederci!!!

9/9/06

Leaving for a six week run today, which will include Western Canada...I am very excited about finally, after all of these years, seeing places like Winnipeg and Vancouver. I am taking a good amount of books, but I am not taking my laptop, so I will probably keep a tour diary on paper and then write it up when I get back in mid/late October. Along the way there will no doubt be some memorable times, and some depressing ones, but overall the experience should be amazing, and the dates are up on the Misery Index sites if anyone wants to come out and say hello....the best days are always ahead...

8/28/06

Took a much needed vacation over the past week, as you know just traveling in a band is work in itself...in a way...sometimes tiring and unrewarding in the monetary sense, yet exploding with value in the spiritual and experiential realms. Anyway, I flew out to San Francisco last week for five days to visit, and fell for the city yet again. I was there for two days on the last tour over fourth of July, and only tasted then a fraction of what it had to offer, so on this return trip it was time to pull back the veil a bit and see it from all angles. I went over to the Mission for a day and hit among other places a nice anarchist book shop where I picked up Negri and Hardt's "Multitude", and then Amoeba records (way too much to see even in a day, simply overwhelming). Other highlights included a jaunt up to Glen Elen, where I saw the wine country, but primarily it was a sojourn of sorts for me to Jack London's gravesite and home. I am very much into his writings and find his passions personally inspiring...so along with visiting Marx's grave at Highgate Cemetery earlier this year, this has been a great year for spiritual visitations, so to speak...

"Communication is Never Bad... Its better to tell someone, 'I hate you.' Then you have to ask, 'Why do you hate?' Then you have to have a conversation "- 'Beirut Spring' blogger Mustapha Hamoui

Today's Washington Post has a small article entitled "Under the Radar: As War Raged, Lebanese and Israelis Found Common Ground," that raises a critical question about the prosecution of war in the era of 'blogging' (*The exchange, en mass, of many-to-many information, that even makes such 'production of opinion' trendy enough to make everyone an overnight amateur journalist/editor, for good or for bad)

Namely, if you have populations on either side of a conflict discussing or arguing about the situation with each other online, how does that clash with the image and meaning of the war painted by their governments ? In the process of demonizing the enemy and creating the propagandized atmosphere of a unified hatred for the 'other' (the evildoers 'over there' who want to kill your family), each country needs a supportive population that will continue to offer its children and taxes. So the potential for this to inject an angle on the public discourse over war itself is incredible, and surely governments are taking notice as it grows.

Of course we have radicals and extremists who reject conversation altogether, or only seek to enflame the discussion with vitriol, yet the idea that sizeable numbers are engaging each other has the potential at least to widen debate and overcome that 'mysterious' notion that the adversary is somehow different, evil, or 'freedom hating'. Imagine if the United States and Soviet populations could have embraced this spontaneous form of communication during the Cold War, and what effects it might have had on deconstructing the idea of the “Evil Empire' a bit faster?

Either way, this is all an interesting advance in the way humans have appropriated technology for a particular use, as well as the preeminence of the English as a second language internationally. The point is now, that the choice is available to engage discussion, to hear the opinions of the 'other' and to slip behind the monolithic veil of state run, or nationalist/ideologically driven corporate media, to directly connect with the purported enemy of your country, and even make friends with them (or at least understand better who it is they already know they 'hate').

Most importantly, the potential here for humanization and understanding can probe deeper than some 'why can't we all get along' pontificating. The idea that populations ostensibly at war with one another can bypass the rabidity of the conflict hungry press, or go below the walls of 'for us or against us' politicizing, is indeed hopeful. I would say it's the most hopeful thing I have heard about the Internet in years, but again, the potential is only there, and as always, there is much to be done. States one Isreal mother and blogger “Its just such a shame…we had to have war to get to know each other.”

8/1/06 On The Subjective Culture.

I was writing with a friend earlier today about my lyrics, and the discussion ultimately led to a self-reflective state, where I began to reevaluate some of my materialist perspectives, and that got me thinking about a few classic ideas espoused by Marx and Goethe, and how they relate to American culture right now. The first is the idea of 'potential,' or what a human being is capable of accomplishing throughout a lifetime, or even a fraction of it. The idea of 'potential' is directly related to our social reality (what our social conditions allow for us to achieve); meaning as ambitious and driven as a person might be, they can really only develop or prosper within the boundaries outlined by their socially determined environment. For example, a young man growing up in the rough neighborhoods of Southeast, Washington DC, (more than likely) has less opportunities of self-betterment available to him, than does the son of the Vice President of Northrop-Grumman out in the Maryland suburbs. Marx notably wrote that 'it is NOT our consciousness that determines our social being, but on the contrary, our social being that determines our consciousness.' This of course is perhaps one of the most fundamental axioms of materialist thought- to know and understand that our consciousness is perceived and conditioned through the frames of our immediate, concrete, social reality.

Moreover, reality itself is further differentiated into objective (what is 'real,' or 'actual') and subjective (what 'appears,' or 'seems') interpretations. To know and understand objective reality is to see the world as it is, without mystification or obfuscation, and understanding that such social conditions set the stage for what is and is not possible in the world. In relation to American culture, or by extension, mass, capitalist culture under the radicalized push and pull of modernity, we tend to find our thoughts and consciousness subsumed into the machinery of media stimuli and its streams of perpetual sensory input. The communication and culture industries produce so much information and mediated reality, that if one wished to 'step out' from such a tide of externally 'produced' thought, they might well have to swim to Antarctica to be free of it (or at least Baja California!). Thus, in a capitalist system where the majority of the media that is produced tends to reinforce and/or promulgate capitalist values and ethics, there is a consequential growth in the levels of cultural mystification and object fetishism- meaning the culture itself becomes the mystical playground where the market 'appears' to provide all manner of goods and services out of thin air, and engaging the market is the 'natural' state of man. However, what is 'real' and objectively identifiable behind this mediated culture, and washed over by its 'appearances,' are the true social and class relations among men; relations that are rendered consciously subjective and buried below the swarming, commodified mass of cultural flotsam that defines capitalist modernity.

So after treading over this familiar territory I carried back with me the idea of 'subjectivity' and noted while reading a book on Marx's 'Concept of Man,' that the German poet/philosopher Goethe wrote passionately against the 'subjective' natures in man, that ultimately lead to the 'passive-receptive' state of being, as opposed to the 'active-engaged' being:

For Goethe, "all decaying cultures are characterized by the tendency for pure subjectivity, while all progressive periods try to grasp the world as it is, by one's own subjectivity, but not separate from it" (Fromm, p. 28 -italics mine).

Additionally Hegel stated that 'the development of all individual powers, capacities, and potentialities is possible only by continuous action, never by sheer contemplation or receptivity' (Fromm, 29)

So it would seem that the stagnation that Hegel feared would so threaten the individual's potential has become somewhat of a cultural given under capitalist modernity, meaning that for the vast swath of millions that pass the hours engaging video games, devouring unidirectional media content, and whose primary leisure time activity is to engage in market-defined consumption practices- the subjective reality has become a primary reality. This is an interpretation of the world prima facie, as history is interpreted through unfolding 'events' and acted upon by seemingly disparate and disconnected individuals, groups, and nations. However, it would seem that the 'passive-receptive' state of being is fundamental to the architectural survival of a capitalist system, at least certainly on the consumption side, and even perhaps in the realm of democratic politics no doubt! What better way to keep class divisions intact that to have a passive citizenry, who are more concerned about cultural ephemera and buying shit, than they are about who rules them?!

7/27/06 Greetings. Tour Over. Back to Reality...for a bit.

All entries from June 11 to July 23 are now compiled and encapsulated with pics on the SUMMER TOUR DIARY page, check it out now....regular commentary will now resume as soon as I get my head back on straight....J!

5/18/06

So... been on the road now since March 4 when we went to Puerto Rico- a journey that has taken us to Japan and back, and then merely 2 days later to Europe for seven weeks. Now I am back, in the first week of a US/Canada tour with friends from Phobia, Disfear, and Strong Intention. Its been very tiring, and without fail I have been disconnected and uprooted (for better?) from the media's 24 hour info feeds, from the entertainment contagion, and from the comings and goings of everyday life in one, 'static' place. Waking up (almost) every day in a new city is an invigorating way to live, but as noted before on these pages, a lot of 'life' is missed...so its a tradeoff, and the comforts of home and normality are tossed out the window for glorious uncertainty and (sometimes) perilous adventure.

The European tour was great in the sense the crowds were huge (but obviously not entirely for us) and we visited/played in some amazing places we had never been before. Good memories of eating with the group in Porto, Portugal, aside the river on the day before the country's national holiday (4/25- the day of the Roses), to walking the medieval streets of Carcassone in the south of France. For me, it was important to talk as much as possible with the denizens of each locale, especially in areas where the politics are known to be heated, like in Bergara (Spain), in the Basque country, and in Catalonia, where in Barcelona we drank at the oldest bar in the city and heard all about the efforts of these very proud autonomous regions to retain their identities and languages amid the onslaught of globalization and nationalist politics (on a side note in Barcelona, after we played, I shot across town to catch none other than BOLT THROWER play there first ever show there- now I had been waiting 17 years for that and it was worth the wait...World Eeeeeetaaaa!!).

Now that I am back here in the heart of my homeland (Michigan tonight...Lansing!), traversing its highways and byways with an exploding heart and beer in hand (not while driving of course), I hope to provide regular updates on the tour and all its ins and outs (and ups and down), as well as more commentary on American culture. the new album is out now (Discordia), so its time to start forwarding the movement again towards discussion and discourse and above all- fun....more when I can get online again...

3/9/06

Leaving for Japan in just over four hours, so this is a quick hello and cheers to all those who I might get to meet on the upcoming European tour (next week). Its all a bit overwhelming right now, and the duration is intimidating, but at least we will meet some great people and see some great lands...aside from that I will stop in and give some news as it comes.

SO, It all seems to have gone under the nation's collective radar, but given our passivity in the face of such wealth and cultural gluttony, it is no surprise...we let our leaders rule as they will, as long as the majority in the country can feed comfortably at the trough. So as warrantless snooping goes on (perhaps as it always has?) we willingly stand by and let our 'leaders' probe our lives, perhaps just to weed out the 'dissenters', or 'terrorists', or other 'freedom haters', but perhaps to enforce consent as well...why would any 'democracy' even allow such a door to crack open? Well it seems MoveOn.org has another new mission of the day, so check this out:

"President Bush admitted to personally authorizing thousands of allegedly illegal wiretaps, and he doesn't plan to stop. Circumventing the Constitution is serious business.

This is a big moment. People from across the political spectrum are standing together to protect the rule of law and the principles that are core to our identity as Americans.

Can you sign this petition to show Congress that Americans want a thorough investigation of the president's secret wiretapping program?

http://political.moveon.org/ruleoflaw/

Also, (From SSE): "Apologies if you have already been subjected to this painful document, but this is the President himself explaining the Medicare Drug Bill...".

WOMAN IN AUDIENCE: 'I don't really understand. How is it the new plan is going to fix the problem?'

Verbatim response: PRESIDENT BUSH:
'Because the -- all which is on the table begins to address the big cost drivers. For example, how benefits are calculated, for example, is on the table. Whether or not benefits rise based upon wage increases or price increases. There's a series of parts of the formula that are being considered. And when you couple that, those different cost drivers, affecting those -- changing those with personal accounts, the idea is to get what has been promised more likely to be -- or closer delivered to that has been promised. Does that make any sense to you? It's kind of muddled. Look, there's a series of things that cause the -- like, for example, benefits are calculated based upon the increase of wages, as opposed to the increase of prices. Some have suggested that we calculate -- the benefits will rise based upon inflation, supposed to wage increases. There is a reform that would help solve the red if that were put into effect. In other words, how fast benefits grow, how fast the promised benefits grow, if those -- if that growth is affected, it will help on the red.'
Got that?

3/01/06

Leaving for Puerto Rico tomorrow, sounds like a good time...I have never been there, but it looks like we will be playing two shows, one near San Juan and the other out on the Western part of the island in a town called Quebradillas. We come back Monday, are home for two days, then we got to Japan for two shows in Tokyo...I am looking forward to trying out some different foods there etc, but I am not look forward to that LONG flight...either way should be fun. Other than that, the book is coming along slowly, and thats my main focus now that record is out of the way...anyways...

....another great program I like to check out every week is On The Media, produced by New York Public radio, they always dig up great topics to cover with a critical lense...........check it out, you can even download every week's show as an MP3...more shite when I get back....til then....J!

2/20/06

Back at work, if only temporarily, as the band heads off to Puerto Rico next week, and then to Japan the following week. I have never been to either place, so I am looking forward to it with much excitement. I also answered some questions for Sweden's Global Domination this week, and thought some of them relevant enough to post in the blog...so here they are. Cheers/Jaska

1. Please comment on this quote: "Critics of U.S. statecraft often seem to inhabit a fictitious world wherein foreign policy is, or should be, a form or missionary activity, undertaken simply because is it virtuous. Those critics, domestic and foreign, need to step up to the reality that the sheriff role is frequently going to be unpopular, is always going to be more or less costly, and is occasionally going to be painfully unsuccessful."

(Jaska) That about sums up in a single, small paragraph the basic tenant of 'Realpolitik' as it stretches from Bismarck to Kissenger, to the Neo-Cons of today's Bush administration. It embraces an essential realism in politics that sees the fundamental unit of analysis as the nation state, and the fundamental variable in play among nation states is the ability for each to exercise weight in terms of military and economic power. I will admit that this is how global politics works itself out among many of the world's actors, but such realism is always tempered and molded by an infinite number of other external influences, which usually fall under the umbrella of thought espoused by 'idealists,' and who do offer genuine and valid criticisms of past and current policy. The "critics" the person is referring to are everywhere, and serve to keep such rabid realism from becoming a monstrous political beast in itself, as "reason without compassion is Hitler". Additionally the important question in reference to this quote is, 'what is this sheriff's mandate, who gave the sheriff this mandate, and finally who will sheriff the sheriff?'

2. The income earnings of the top 1% of the US population have risen to around 17% of the total income in '99, up from around 8% in the early 80's. While probably not as drastic as some would like us to believe, income inequality is still somewhat of an important issue to discuss these days, especially since the bottom 20% of the population still receives less than 5% of total income. However, the education premium has risen significantly over the past 30 years, which basically means that better education equals higher income. Taking this into consideration, do you believe that although the system isn't perfect and has many flaws, it is still somewhat fair for those who work hard? (Basically, does hard work = success, or is that all bullshit?)

(Jaska) I believe that some people do work hard, play the game correctly, and get ahead, be it through individual drive, circumstance, or luck, but the vast majority of working people stagnate or become worse of. I see this in my everyday life, talking to people in each city we play in, and as well as see firsthand the oceans of blight that extend from Appalachia to dying urban city sections from Baltimore, to Detroit, to Atlanta. I read in detail about it daily in numerous reliable media outlets, and for every beloved success story about a kid getting out of the ghetto, proving its 'possible', there are a hundred other kids left behind in dead end minimum wage jobs, stemming from miserable school environments and crime ridden communities. Read books like Ehrenreich's "Nickel and Dimed," or David Shipler's "The Working Poor" for lucid and powerful stories about what its like to live among those who barely get by, while others at the top ponder how to dispose of their wealth. So, yes, in general, the old Horatio Alger myths are bullshit and stand among a million myths this culture feeds into us daily from birth that somehow its all just, and the honest working man will someday attain some great wealth. Additionally, most of the people who think its possible to work hard and get ahead come from comfortable middle class backgrounds, and have no idea what its like to grow up as one of the 30 million people in poverty in the United States today.

3. We all know that C.E.O.'s of large corporations earn ridiculous annual salaries. However, as easy as it is to point fingers and constantly bitch at this idea, isn't it somewhat normal for the people on top to want to stay on top? Not to be an ass, but I know that I would. Yea, it might sound morally wrong, but we all know most people would do the same if they were in that position. Sure, from a utopian perspective, I truly believe in fairness and equality, but in real life, I'm out to fend for myself and my family just like the next man.

(Jaska): Yes, what you are alluding to is one of the demons we all must face in making decisions about what kind of a nation, culture, or community we want to live in. I think the idea of being in a position of great power and wealth is one we all tend to identify with in a curious way, as it is socially embedded in our culture. And if such wealth is attained through whatever means, one will therefore seek ways in which to preserve that position of power and wealth. As a rich man however, we are only rich because we reside in a society and culture that places a value and certain moral sanctity upon the wealthy. We codify and create an entire system of laws and principles extending to everything from the rights of private property and the individual, to the culturally ingrained work ethics we spoke of before. These written and unwritten cultural laws normalize the idea that the rich are deserved and admirable citizens in our society, and that they can and should justly accumulate vast amounts of wealth for themselves to dispose of. This would be the story our culture tells about itself if an alien was to come and ask "why is there so much inequality"? This idea is a myth itself, and one that we embrace, as such we wash over and ignore the basic underlying point of being rich- every rich man is only rich because of the social conditions that underlie (and underwrite!) his wealth- without a social system from which to exploit wealth, there is no wealth. So the final point here is, of course we might do the same if we were in such a privileged position, but we must realize it is not a position of our creation from our own 'heads', it is a socially created situation, born from and mediated by the social relations that define production and culture around us. At our most primal level we will always fight for and defend what is dear to us, however at the social and cultural level, we must acknowledge the material conditions from which all reality is defined, material conditions which will either deem inequality as an acceptable or unacceptable condition of everyday life.

4. Anyone who remotely follows world politics right now can obviously tell that the world is rather fucked up right now. What's your take on the future of the human race as a whole? Are we inherently evil in nature and seek power at the expense of others, or can peace and efficiency be achieved under an honest and just government? Go ahead and let us know where we would find you on a political spectrum and how you would run things if you were in charge.

(Jaska): I think perhaps the world is not really anymore fucked up than previously in history, its just that we know more about all the little fuck ups in every corner a lot faster, as they tend to make fascinating media selling points, and are therefore shoved down our throats ad infinitum, also, the fuck ups have in this way the ability to affect the entire globe at once, as a media event 'happens' in one place and is immediately exploded across space and time to create an instant impact on the those planetary denizens that tune into the global chaos network...I also do not believe in "inherent evil"..., I believe in materialism, and as such I see social reality conditioning all but the most primal human urges (sexuality, hunger, etc...and even those get 'stroked' quite heavily in capitalist culture), so once we can progress, as slowly as it goes, towards a social, material environment that mediates the positive aspects of humanity, perhaps then some honesty can come from governance, however my understanding is that it will never come at the nation state level, and can only be attained under non-exploitative, non-hierarchical local orders at the village-town-hood level, where people can decide what is best for themselves and their communities -without the influence of concentrated wealth and power as it manifests itself in nations and national governments...so, as it might be indicated, I am perhaps left of left on this, as I am advocating what is in principle anarcho-syndicalist thought, whereby local worker groups and committees organize tasks locally, for the local good. This is of course an ideal, and one that is far removed from modern mainstream political thought, but its something I think is necessary to hold on to as an option, somewhere, someday.

5. How about what went on in Denmark with thoses Muhammed cartoons?

(Jaska): Its amazingly indicative of the tired 'shrinking of the planet' metaphor, and the way through which little fires in mediated form on the internet can simply take off on the other side of the world into a movement. So, as the world gets does indeed get smaller, so comes closer all the wonderful, and horrible, things we may or may not like about the 'other'...the entire world has become each other's next-door neighbor in the span of say 15 world wide web years, and the social implications have not yet caught up with the simultaneous crunching of space and time into databytes. The main point is, all societies and cultures are going to have to formulate a new understanding and tolerance of the 'other' if they are going to exist under this new framework of instant communications...the only thing the Muslim world might say is that they did not ask to be so intimately connected with the West , as the internet is an inherent part of modernity, and modernity is a Western project. We opened the door to ourselves, and as such we should not be surprised that reactions might occur...violent or otherwise.

2/16/06

Ah, Remember When the Internet Was Free and You Could Access Anything?

It may not be the "End of the Internet," but its pretty much in line with the greater cultural shift towards corporatization and the increased private control of all things once held publicly sacred (or the end of the internet as we 'once' knew it). What is it? Last week, the US Congress begin taking advice on how best to rewrite the 1996 Telecom act rules, and are preparing to hand over the gatekeeping controls of our beloved, open web to the telecommunications giants (Verizon, ATT, Comcast etc...), who insist on greater control over CONTENT and access. This is critical, as what they want is to create a 'pay to play' system, whereby those with the most money will be able to access more and varied content, while those who can not afford it will be stuck with slow connections and unfavorable choices at best. Not to mention, if you can afford access, you will only be provided with content that best serves the corporate/private interest. This may presently be a nightmare scenario, but the growing shift towards a 'pay to play', and 'pay per use' communications structure is reflective of both the corporate need to better connect with wealthy consumers, as well as the shifts in technology and law that make this more specified access possible. Hence the importance of this debate in Congress last week. And while the private sector praises the benefits for the almighty 'consumer,' remember the 'consumer interest' does not necessarily mean the 'public interest'...read on: The End of the Internet?

2/15/06

Hello...not to be the grinch, but if you are in love, make it an everyday passion...and celebrate the 14th with words from the heart and be thankful...dispell with the crass "Valentines Day"- that idea of the day which is promoted as a corporate fuckfest. Remember folks, love is not defined by, nor represented in 'things' like rings and expensive pieces of unnecessary bullshit...even as a representation of said 'love'. And, we would all love to love someone with all our hearts, yet to hell with the socially constructed 'day' that is a graphic peak on the corporation's mid-winter sales chart...give of the spirit, from the spirit, for the spirit...!

...The Nation is a good weekly periodical; one can always expect a good dose of positive criticism, and despite its being firmly entrenched in the soft-cant-we-all-just-be-friends 'progressive' camp of sustainable capitalism (not all of the writers seem to be, but for the most part its a left of liberal rag, that is worth every dime)....anyways, I like Eric Alterman's writings, as with his recent excellent book "What Liberal Media?," he always writes with a perfect combination of well-researched facts, biting sarcasm, and the succinct development of ideas. Highly recommended for non-sleep inducing analysis...check out his current essay "Lies About Blowjobs, Bad. Wars? Not So Much" where he slams the DC Pundit-elities for hounding Clinton on sex-lies, yet giving Bush the free pass on War-lies (WMDs? Remember them?...or has the public "moved past that"?)

2/12/06

The second month of 2006 has already stirred up a shitstorm of good topics to take note of, but in the interest of time, I'll mention a few and get on with my incomprehensibly cluttered life. First, the band just got back from Atlanta, where we were recording for three weeks, and in the past week I have ventured back into the working world in attempt to get my head back on a daytime schedule. The mix of the album came out ok, but we decided to take another week to remix it again, as its our Relapse debut, and we want it to be as good as possible.

BEWERE AL YE TRAITORS ANDE SEDITIONISTS!

Not sure who took note of this, but apparently the government is on the hunt for seditionists once more! Yes, you thought that 'Sedition' was just a crime of colonial America, or perhaps in modern Indonesia? Well one official has slapped the charge on a Veterans Administration nurse who wrote into a local Albuquerque paper criticizing all aspects of the Bush govt., and (what I did not know), is that if you are a government employee, you have no right to free speech!

here is what her boss said:

"....he leveled the sedition charge: “The Agency is bound by law to investigate and pursue any act which potentially represents sedition,” he said. “In your letter . . . you declared yourself ‘as a VA nurse’ and publicly declared the Government which employs you to have ‘tragically misplaced priorities and criminal negligence’ and advocated, ‘act forcefully to remove a government administration playing games of smoke and mirrors and vicious deceit.’ ”

Berg, who is not talking to the press, is “scared for her job” and “pretty emotionally distressed,” says Peter Simonson, executive director of the ACLU of New Mexico.

“We were shocked to see the word ‘sedition’ used,” Simonson tells The Progressive. “Sedition? That’s like something out of the history books.”

full story here: http://progressive.org/mag_mc020806


RECORD OIL PROFITS, YET NO SOCIAL WINDFALL?

Yes a few weeks ago, both Exxon and Chevron announced staggeringly high record profits of 36 billion and 27.4 billion- simply astounding by any measure, dwarfing the annual income of most nation-states. All going to the private interest, shareholders, or eaten back into the company (for 'green' development projects...? sure!) Anyways, the point is, where is the middle class rage over this gouging; why are the masses so apathetic in the face of such blatant and documented rape of the social pocket book?

http://alternet.org/story/31789/

1/27/06

Two Steps Closer to the Surveillance State…

Privacy on the Internet is facing a fresh onslaught of governmental intervention this week, as they have yet again dug up the corpse of 'promoting decency,' in an effort to (supposedly) strike down those evil pornographers! But perhaps it has its primary mandate given by its newer and more violent friend: terrorism? Who would have thought the two could be so interrelated, but apparently the United States government is on a hunt, and remember folks, its all for OUR protection and OUR best interest!

First…

All of a sudden, the Bush administration is very interested in defending the 1998 “Child Online Protection Act.” Of course timing is everything, so I guess in the midst of all the chaos and disorder of the world today, they felt the need to finally go after the pornographers on the internet who are, of course, completely responsible for destroying our moral fabric and turning our children into sex crazed maniacs (as we all know, if junior ever sees a picture on the internet of some graphic sex, he is scarred for life!).

Specifically, the government asked last week (through a federal judge) that all the major search engines (Google, Yahoo, America Online, Microsoft) comply with a subpoena “which would reveal the search terms of a broad swath of the search engine's visitors.” Incidentally, almost all of them complied, except for Google, which decided to fight the demand in court. Now, this is all pretty fucking dubious to begin, and it sounds as if the morality police are either back in the saddle, or we have yet another wormy way for the government to dip into the affairs of private individuals. The reasoning was pathetic as well:

“In a motion filed Wednesday, prosecutors say that compliance is necessary to prove that the 1998 law is "more effective than filtering software in protecting minors from exposure to harmful materials on the Internet." Records from search logs would help to understand the behavior of Web users and estimate how frequently they encounter pornography, the motion says. For instance, Internet addresses obtained from the search engines could be tested against filtering programs to evaluate their effectiveness.” (Source : Feds take Porn Fight to Google)

So what is this, the government demanding private information, just so they can help businesses develop better filtering software? What the fuck is that? Does anyone else think there is something rotten here (and not just in Denmark!)?


Second...

A New York Times article (After subpoenas, Net searches give some pause) drew people's attention to the fact that pornography aside, the bigger issue at hand is that everything you do on the Internet has the POTENTIAL for being recording and tracked. So you, I, and everyone should take caution, as it would seem that our beloved, benevolent Internet is not just the miracle tool of the modern age, it is also the perfect surveillance tool- when manipulated as such.

We have been sold on it for about 10 solid years now, and nearly every aspect of our lives has become tied into its network, and everytime we go online we leave our footprints and digital 'fingerprints' everywhere, and they can be found, traced and potentially used in court if necessary. First and foremost the internet is always in flux, its dynamic and like all technology it develops. If you want to open the door for the government to do whatever they like, they will go ahead and take every inch, cause the second we let one little law pass, that's another five years behind the technology the laws are going to be- and at this rate the current administration is obviously not waiting for 'laws' to help it eavesdrop on American citizens (see Bush Decided To Evade Surveillance Law Instead Of Changing It)

And as we go on our internet shopping sprees, post our blogs, surf for our porn, trade our information and do business online, just remember what better tool of surveillance there is than the internet itself? What more perfect device than something that is already in everyone's home, and what more perfect tool than something everyone is already tied into, putting their personal, economic and social lives on display for the world, trusting it to be an anonymous action?

Just try and see the progression here- the simple computer that sits on your desk now, seemingly innocuous, how much of your life have you put into it -and in turn on the internet, and how easy do you think it is for that information to be POTENTIALLY used against you? Of course we are all innocent, and of course our government loves us and we are all patriots…what would we have to worry about? We shall see…

1/15/06: How To Win Friends in the "War on Terror" Part One: Massacre Innocent Families!

Yes, friends, your tax dollars are hard at work in the open-ended war on terror (just like it has been mentioned: "Remember the War on Drugs and how we can't get drugs anymore?"). This past week we had two separate incidents that serve to highlight our deep commitment to public diplomacy and 'winning the peace'. Since we fight this war mostly with computers from the other side of the planet, unfortunately mistakes can be made and 'collateral damage' might result. Remember, this is indirectly something that we are all responsible for, as our beloved elected officials lead the charge, and well, I guess we are all too busy stuffing our face with beer and burgers while watching football games to be concerned with who our government is killing today (or tomorrow for that matter) Burp!

First point: From the BBC

US air strike hits Iraqi family

Several members of the same family, including women and children, have been killed in a US air strike that destroyed their home in northern Iraq.

There was confusion over the number of casualties, but local authorities in the town of Beiji, north of Tikrit, have confirmed at least six dead.

US forces said they acted after seeing three men suspected of planting a roadside bomb enter the house.

The raid has prompted anger among some local political leaders.

US military spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Barry Johnson said the men, who ran into the house after digging a hole, were assesed as a threat to civilians and military forces.

"An unmanned aerial vehicle... observed the would-be attackers as they dug a hole following the common pattern of roadside bomb emplacement," he told the AFP news agency.

Even if there had been, why didn't they surround the area and detain the terrorists instead?
Police Colonel Sufyan Mustafa
"The individuals left the road site and were followed from the air to a nearby building. Coalition forces employed precision guided munitions on the structure."

But he did not confirm the number of casualties or whether a roadside bomb has been found.

Local police chief Colonel Sufyan Mustafa said he believed there were no anti-US insurgents present in the house.

"Even if there had been, why didn't they surround the area and detain the terrorists instead?," he told the Reuters news agency.

'Historic crime'

Ghadban Nahd Hassan, 56, told AFP that 14 members of his family had been in the house when it was it bombed.

"I was with some friends in a small shop 100m away from the house when I heard the bombing at around 2130 (1830 GMT)," he said.

"I rushed over to see. My house was destroyed and there was smoke everywhere."

So far, the bodies of a nine-year-old boy, an 11-year-old girl, three women and three men have been found in the rubble, police said.

US forces frequently use air strikes in their battle against Iraqi insurgents, in an effort to minimise US casualties.

A local official of the biggest Sunni Arab political group, the Iraqi Islamic Party, called for demonstrations.

"This is a historic crime and another catastrophe for the people of Baiji," he told Reuters.

"If there were gunmen or criminals in that house, is it right to blow up the whole family?"

Hussein al-Falluji, a lawyer and a national leader of the Sunni-dominated Iraqi Accordance Front, said: "Once again the occupiers have shown their barbarism. They never learn from their mistakes... People's resentment is increasing."
(source)

AND NOW HAVE THIS WEEK!:

January 15, 2006

Airstrike by U.S. Draws Protests From Pakistanis
By CARLOTTA GALL


PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Jan. 14 - Pakistan's government on Saturday condemned a deadly American airstrike on a village in the northwestern tribal region, and a senior Pakistani security official said he was confident that Ayman al-Zawahiri, the No. 2 leader of Al Qaeda and the target of the strike, had not been in the village when it was hit.

In a statement, the Foreign Ministry condemned the loss of civilian lives and said it had delivered an official protest to the American ambassador in Islamabad. The information minister, Sheik Rashid Ahmed, said in Islamabad that the government wanted "to assure the people we will not allow such incidents to reoccur," The Associated Press reported.

Local officials in the Bajaur district, where the airstrike happened, said 18 civilians had been killed in the attack, including six children. But the senior Pakistani official who spoke of Mr. Zawahiri suggested that the death toll was higher, and he said that at least 11 militants had been killed in the attack. Seven of the dead were Arab fighters, and another four were Pakistani militants from Punjab Province, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the news media.

American and Pakistani officials have said the American airstrike, on the village of Damadola, was believed to have been carried out in the early morning hours on Friday by a remotely piloted Predator aircraft armed with missiles.

On Saturday, a Central Intelligence Agency spokesman declined to comment on any raid that might have taken place. The agency is known to operate armed Predator aircraft, but the missions remain classified and are not generally acknowledged by the C.I.A.

The White House had no immediate comment, said a spokesman, Blair Jones.

(source)

1/10/06

This Time Its Personal (or: 2006 as my road into oblivion)

It's a new year, and I expect it to give birth to many new aspirations, followed by many new disappointments. Of course there are the fleeting high points as well, but when one fills his heart with such impossible hopes, he in all reality can not expect this cold world to accommodate even a few of them. After all, what comes out from the 'self' ultimately must be tamed by one's social conditions, and my social conditions have not been so appealing.

I can say that each day it gets harder to be one's 'self' in this world of saturated hyper-reality, socially mandated expectations, and 8 million screaming demons circling each of our heads, ready to strike when we step out of line. And that's the easy part. Leading the charge are the ersatz and ephemeral media outlets that are characterized by so much death and destruction, that they desensitize and murder one's hopes of betterment before we finish our morning coffee!

For some the social pressures (call them what you will) are confined to the push and pull of everyday angst, or what we must give up of ourselves in order to accept our place in this radicalized culture of modern life. However, when accepting to follow this well-worn path, what many tend to give up is their 'human essence' -that certain irreplaceable spiritual energy that drives our creative passions and feeds the hunger that makes up the essence of what we are. Whether it is selling our life away minute by minute as wage labor, or staring passively at the television on any given weeknight because we are too tired to think or move- all are such activities linked to the perversions and dehumanizing aspects of the alienating culture presided over by monopoly capitalism. Each man for himself, all against all. You are nothing but what you have in the bank, and you can only do anything in this life according to what you have in the bank. Work hard and you might (might being the operative word here) just, maybe, get a vacation, a bonus, a raise, a toaster. (Where did your life go in between all that….? Fuck!)

Some stand outside this framework, either by choice or circumstance, they are able to feed their spirits in ways that directly fuel the engines of the human essence, rather than grind it dry. Perhaps you stand in a privileged class position within the machinery of this economically driven and defined structure. Perhaps you have learned to close your eyes and ignore its faults, and seek out ways to improve it, just so you can feel comfortable at night as you sleep with belly full while others starve. Don't ever feel guilty I can say, we did not ask for this system, and we embrace its welcoming arms only when we must spend that extra cash on something that might pacify our sanity for a minute or two, or at least give us hope for five.

Either way, we get by. I, like many in the West, have the basic comforts of bed and sustenance, and I enjoy my days in writing, travel and music (between working crap jobs when necessary). Yet I often get completely fucking depressed. Perhaps the so-called gift of social consciousness I received several years ago could be traded back in for a beautiful and blissful life 'back inside' the world of passive acceptance? Perhaps some of those wonderful pills that we see advertised everywhere might hold the answer to my ills? Perhaps it would be better to trade in the guitars and the all the ridiculously idealistic passions for a home in the suburbs and decent job in the city?

I think this means its time to hit the road again.