Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Goldwater-era "Extremism in the pursuit of...." beliefs practiced by progressives.

Excerpt from Teju Cole's recent Facebook article (now online and can be Googled) about rape culture and celebrities accused of being participants (highlighting by me):

(This is why, even after everything we know, it is still possible for the New Yorker to put up a long article praising Woody Allen, as they did last week—"The Existential Genius of Late Woody Allen"—praising him from beginning to end, in every line, as though none of that other stuff were relevant, as though it were somehow gauche to acknowledge what he'd done. That's rape culture for you, at the highest levels: not mere silence, but you have to come out and sing hosannas to the guy.)
We must fight rape culture, even in its allegedly mild manifestations, we must be grieved with the grief of those who commit the crime and those who benefit from a world built on such crimes, we must oppose men who wade in with stupid explanations and caveats and distractions, we must surrender the poisonous sentimentality that makes us believe a "great artist" over a less well-known woman. Indeed, we must be willing to let anyone go—think of any man you admire, any man at all, alive or in history, close to you or far away, and think to yourself that you must be willing to let him go—if such things are true of him too. And understand that such things can be true of any of them, of any of us.
We must be allies in this, in a subsidiary but vital role, to the generations of women who have been fighting it since forever. Why should it be easy? It can't be. We will have to face even the complication of confronting those few women who are themselves invested in perpetuating rape culture. It will cause us extreme discomfort, but our discomfort will be nothing compared to the pain of being a victim of rape or assault or harassment.

Needless to say, if one is certain of the guilt (alleged/real regarding sexual assault) of people in the spotlight such as Bill Cosby, Stephen Collins and (not paid attention to in the US) Rolf Harris/the late Jimmy Savile, but unsure of or have questions about the child molestation charges against Woody Allen from two decades ago (and his guilt or innocence), you're likely to be banished by certain members of social media.
And I'm not singing hosannas to Woody Allen--who demonstrated industrial-strength selfishness during the Soon-Yi affair discovery in the early 1990s--either.

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Playlist: 20 GREATEST FERN BAR HITS: 1975-1980.

Here's the definition of "fern bar" according to Wikipedia:
Fern bar was an American slang term for an upscale or preppy (or yuppie) bar or tavern catering to singles usually decorated with ferns or other greenery, as well as such decor as fake Tiffany lamps. The phrase came into common use in the late 1970s or early 1980s.

1. WHAT A FOOL BELIEVES--The Doobie Brothers
2. THE PINA COLADA SONG--Rupert Holmes
3. LOVE WILL FIND A WAY--Pablo Cruise
4. LOOKS LIKE WE MADE IT--Barry Manilow
5. REAL LOVE--The Doobie Brothers
6. RIDE LIKE THE WIND--Christopher Cross
7. BABY COME BACK--Player
8. THIS IS IT--Kenny Loggins
9. HOW MUCH I FEEL--Ambrosia
10. IMAGINARY LOVER--Atlanta Rhythm Section
11. FEELINGS--Morris Albert
12. COPACABANA (AT THE COPA)--Barry Manilow
13. LOTTA LOVE--Nicolette Larson
14. LOVE TAKES TIME--Orleans
15. WHENEVER I CALL YOU "FRIEND"--Kenny Loggins and Stevie Nicks
16. DON'T GIVE UP ON US--David Soul
17. ALL BY MYSELF--Eric Carmen
18. I JUST WANNA STOP--Gino Vannelli
19. LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO ME--Boz Scaggs
20. PEG--Steely Dan

Friday, July 24, 2015

Post-Lafayette.

This morning, I heard Chris Cuomo on CNN's NEW DAY voicing the Conventional Wisdom about gun control being a Non-Starter.

Here are some articles I'm passing along:
THE NATION on Bobby Jindal's gun-and-gun-owner-friendly Louisiana:
http://www.thenation.com/article/bobby-jindal-does-louisiana-love-us-some-guns-now/

THE DAILY BEAST on murderer John Russell Houser, who allegedly ranted about the "90% immoral population" and, in the same online forum post, said "Filth is rampant.":
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/24/inside-the-mind-of-john-russel-houser.html?via=newsletter&source=CSPMedition

Rebecca Leber article for THE NEW REPUBLIC on Gov. Bobby Jindal:
http://www.newrepublic.com/article/122365/bobby-jindal-enabled-louisianas-gun-violence-problem

Quote from the National Rifle Association's homepage:
The National Rifle Association is America's longest-standing civil rights organization. We're proud defenders of history's patriots and diligent protectors of the Second Amendment.

Gwyneth Kelly article for THE NEW REPUBLIC titled Right-Wingers' Solution to Movie Theater Shootings: More Guns:
http://www.newrepublic.com/article/122364/right-wingers-solution-movie-theater-shootings-more-guns

Monday, July 20, 2015

Memorable music I've heard in 2015 so far.

In no specific order:
1. Glen Campbell--RHINESTONE COWBOY (40th Anniversary Reissue)
2. Wilco--STAR WARS
3. Kirsty MacColl--ALL I EVER WANTED: THE ANTHOLOGY
4. The Rolling Stones--MARQUEE CLUB 1971 (CD/Blu-ray/DVD)
5. Leonard Cohen--"Nevermind" from POPULAR PROBLEMS; Season 2 theme song
for TRUE DETECTIVE
6. Giorgio Moroder and Kylie Minogue--"Right Here, Right Now" from DEJA VU
7. Janet Jackson--"No Sleeeep"
8. Beck--"Dreams"
9. Best Coast--"Feelin' OK" from CALIFORNIA DREAM
10. The Kinks--THE ANTHOLOGY 1964-1971 boxset
11.  Robin Gibb--SAVED BY THE BELL: THE COLLECTED WORKS 1968-1970 (boxset)
12. Britney Spears/Iggy Azaelea--"Pretty Girls"
13. Madonna--"Ghosttown" from REBEL HEART
14. Tina Turner/David Bowie--"Tonight" (Live) from PRIVATE DANCER 30TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION
15. Leon Bridges--"Coming Home" from COMING HOME
16. Amy Winehouse--"All My Loving" (Beatles cover available on YouTube)
17. Florence + The Machine--"Ship To Wreck"
18. Ben Folds--"Phone In A Pool"
19. Elle King--"Exes and Ohs"
20. Blur--THE MAGIC WHIP
21. Franz Ferdinand/Sparks--FFS

More information about upcoming chapbook ONE VERSION OF THE SKY.

Here are the poems to be included in ONE VERSION OF THE SKY.  Some have appeared on this blog and/or Facebook in earlier versions prior to revisions/edits.

1. Prodigal Child
2  Albuquerque
3. Downtown Metropolis
4. Poem of Clubs
5. Texas Rain and its Aftermath
6. Oklahoma
7. If You Don't Like It, Leave
8. You Get So Alone, Indeed
9. Remembering Dallas
10. Charleston
11. RIP Dukes of Hazzard
12. Still Sad
13. No One Moves
14. Splintered
15. Not Quite Reconciled
16. Forgiveness
17. One Small Step
18. The View From 55

Print copies and e-book downloads will both debut in September.

Sunday, July 19, 2015

Public comments on Bill Cosby's alleged sexual assaults or "philandering ."

ATLANTIC Magazine commenters (link to article will be printed at end)
spudwhisperer wrote:
Cosby, once one of America’s most beloved actors and comedians, of sexual misbehavior...".
I notice that the MSM is for some reason now trying to mitigate Cosby's crimes and muddy the waters.
The guy had a modus operandi, according to victims' stories. He invited them to his hotel room or home, gave them a drink laced with some kind of powerful knockout drug, he raped them while unconscious, and when they woke up he was getting them dressed and out the door.
On ABC news yesterday, alternative MSM narrative emerging is that they were trying to paint was that Cosby was having "affairs and doing drugs" and somehow this was detrimental to his wholesome TV image.
They absolutely do not want people to focus on the actual facts, but rather on a much milder narrative.
OrchidLady replied :
They were in at least one case an "extra marital" affair. News agencies have to be cautious as to their wording because he's never been charged with a crime or admitted to one, nor has he lost in civil court. I think they're all trying to step lightly and paint it for what it appears to be, without coming out and calling him a serial rapist "allegedly."  This is from today:
Spudwhisperer replied:
Exactly- thank you. "Womanizing".
That's how ABC News is portraying slipping a knock-out drug into somebody's drink and raping them while they are unconscious and possibly in need of medical assistance.

ATLANTIC article "The Ugly Behavior of Bill Cosby" link:

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

What Nicolle Wallace's firing as day-to-day panelist on THE VIEW teaches us.

Headline from the DEADLINE.com site:

Nicolle Wallace Axed As ‘The View’ Regular After Proving Herself Insufficiently Shrill And Kardashian Illiterate


Whether or not one shares Wallace's conservatism (I don't), it's educational about how the morning show THE VIEW programs viewers to accept comic-book Sort-Of-Left/Right confrontationalism about "Hot Topics" ("good television" over thoughtful discussion) and why Elisabeth Hasselbeck proved to be a hit on the show as a Loyal Opposition caricature--which propelled her to the Big Time of Fox News.

Now, Nicolle Wallace can decide whether or not to take a demotion to recurring status.

Thursday, July 9, 2015

HOLLYWOOD POETRY: 2001-2013 Playlist Volume Two.

More music that resonated with me during the 1988-1997 period when I was on the edges of the film/TV business.

1. Down To The Wire--Little Caesar
2. Downtown--Neil Young/Pearl Jam
3. Jeremy--Pearl Jam
4. You Learn--Alanis Morissette
5. Hand In My Pocket--Alanis Morissette
6. Valerie Loves Me--Material Issue
7. Cannonball--The Breeders
8. Serve The Servants--Nirvana
9. All Apologies--Nirvana
10. First Glimmer--Paul Westerberg
11. World Class Fad--Paul Westerberg
12. Black Hole Sun--Soundgarden
13. Ty Cobb--Soundgarden
14. Change Your Mind--Neil Young and Crazy Horse
15. F---in' Up--Neil Young and Crazy Horse

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Fifteen years of self-publishing and pay-to-publish coming to an end.

First, here's an excerpt from a blog post I wrote over five years ago:
Earlier today (March 24th), I picked up copies of my latest chapbook NEVER MET BUKOWSKI from PIP Printing (have done business with them since 2000) at their Sun Valley, CA location.

I'm still a holdout from the period where poets self-published their own chapbooks (either through the former Kinkos or places like PIP) and sold them to each other at readings. This is not a popular avenue anymore, since a lot of local poets would rather have their books published by small presses instead.

There's a lot of erosion-through-change of the local poetry scene since 2000. Once upon a time, there were quite a few more independent bookstores in LA/OC--and, in several cases, the stores would support local poetry and purchase chapbooks that were self-published and non-barcoded.


Now, there are far fewer independents--and some of those stores mimic the conformity of the local scene in only wanting local poets "established" with small press credits (it can't be just any small poetry press, it has to be the "right" press).

And sometimes, even those local poets don't always make it into these local independent stores with "high standards."


In the past few months, I've put a handful of chapbooks onto Amazon to sell as Kindle e-books.  Almost no response unless I did free promotions.  As coincidence would have it, NEVER MET BUKOWSKI moved the most free copies.

Money was spent to make HOLLYWOOD POETRY: 2001-2013 happen with Xlibris after it was rejected twice over the years by two different small presses.

With regards to the chapbooks I've self-published, 20 GREATEST HITS: 1997-2004 and the original edition of WICHITA FALLS were the best sellers.

I've had some mild success with free e-books via Smashwords (POEMS BELOW THE LINE) and Scribd (CONSPICUOUS PRESUMPTIONS).

And, locally, I had a few pay-to-get-print-copies chapbooks published with Don Kingfisher Campbell's Palabra Productions imprint.

But it's time for me to be realistic, limit further monetary loss and unsold inventory, and stop the (at times, too-prolific) habit of self-publishing books by various means which began in late 2000.

I'm currently working on the final chapbook titled ONE VERSION OF THE SKY.  It should be available in print form by September.

Thanks to all the people who have bought copies of my chapbooks/books in person, in stores or online.

And thanks to PIP Printing (particularly former employee Sabine Steinmetz for teaching me about formatting) and Don Campbell for delivering quality product.

Hoping future poems of mine will find acceptance by print/online anthologies.



Sunday, July 5, 2015

New poem: POEM WRITTEN AFTER SEEING THE DOCUMENTARY AMY.

before the tattoos
the tabloids
the bad-for-her husband/muse
the record company and management
saying go where we send you
the father bringing his reality show
to the island where she hoped to rest
there was the brash charismatic teenager
who wanted to make music
and get it to an audience
without being a star
which proved to be
an impossibility

Thursday, July 2, 2015

New poem: RIP DUKES OF HAZZARD


the South of the 70s
as filmed on the Warner Brothers backlot
with Waylon Jennings narration
and Catherine Bach wearing shorts
plus stockings to satisfy CBS censors
who didn't want America to see her
with bare legs
>
the Good Old Boy myth
with orange car named General Lee
Confederate Battle Flag on top
no one at Warner Brothers and CBS
thinking about the Civil War and what came after
just that the car's flag and name displays
were decorations
like the corporate endorsements
one sees today
on NASCAR drivers
>
Viacom pulls Bo and Luke
and Uncle Jesse and Daisy
and Boss Hogg and Roscoe and Cooter
from basic cable airwaves
while someone at Warner Brothers TV
wonders if it will be worth the cost
to spray CGI orange paint
covering up the flag
and the name of the Confederate general
or to lock the show in a vault or a salt mine
like many other now-toxic artifacts