Keith Olbermann--contortionist.

Here it is: a link to Keith Olbermann's COUNTDOWN "special comment" piece taking on the Hillary campaign and Geraldine Ferraro's "Obama gets a pass because he's black" piece of wink-wink racism.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/23601329#23601329

Watch how Keith is oh-so-careful to not actually offend Hillary--teaspooning out some criticism to Howard Wolfson and Mark Penn, while saving the rhetorical shotgun blasts for Geraldine Ferraro because she's a safe safe safe target (Ferraro's political career being pretty much over).

Face it, the buck stops with Hillary Clinton.  She--like her husband and daughter--is industrial-strength selfish, being more interested in getting and holding power by any means necessary, the general election and the internal health of the Democratic Party being damned as a result.

And Keith Olbermann is as likely to fearlessly address Hillary's win-at-any-cost malfeasance now--or in the future--as he did the inviting and disinviting of Dennis Kucinich from a recent MSNBC Presidential debate (meaning: not at all).

Tags: Keith Olbermann, Hillary Clinton, Geraldine Ferraro, COUNTDOWN, MSNBC, Howard Wolfson, Mark Penn, Dennis Kucinich

When narrow minds kvetch over the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

 It's as regular as spring: Whenever the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame holds its annual ceremony, there are always a few tunnelvisioners who complain about certain inductees not being "rock and roll" enough.  Last year, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five came in for abuse; this year, it's Madonna (although even the most culturally conservative classic rockers should have liked Iggy and the Stooges' makeover of Madonna's "Burnin' Up").

I'm old enough to have remembered AM radio being a melting pot where R & B, rock, pop and crossover country were all accepted equally.  Of course, that all ended around 1978-79 when idiots like then-Chicago DJ Steve Dahl made a big show of publicly destroying disco records.  And, with the end of disco in 1980, the fragmentation-for-ratings of popular music began in earnest.

And of course, there was the "he may write lyrics that people like, but he's boring" shellacking that Hall inductee Leonard Cohen received on THE HOWARD STERN SHOW yesterday from Howard, Robin Quivers, and Fred Norris (who has some knowledge of rock history and should have known better--regardless of whether he liked Cohen or not). 

At this point, when the Stern show is going into its final three years, one wonders if perhaps Stern himself is a closet fan of Cohen and is doing Steve Dahl-type schtick along the lines of "I'm rich but I'm still down with the proles."

Tags: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Jann Wenner, Grandmaster Flash, Madonna, Iggy Pop, The Stooges, Leonard Cohen, Steve Dahl, Howard Stern, THE HOWARD STERN SHOW, Robin Quivers, Fred Norris

Ex-CNN employee on why he was fired for keeping a blog.

I just read about ex-AMERICAN MORNING employee Chez Pazienza in the March 3rd issue of THE NEW YORK OBSERVER.  Currently, he's working on a tell-all book about his life and career in TV news (which includes stints at L.A.'s KCBS and KNBC).

Pazienza was recently fired from CNN for writing a blog in his off-hours.  Here's a link to his take on the whole megillah, written on his blog DEUX EX MALCONTENT:

http://www.deusexmalcontent.com/2008/02/say-what-you-will-requiem-for-tv-news.html

Tags: Chez Pazienza, CNN, American Morning, Time Warner, DEUX EX MALCONTENT, THE HUFFINGTON POST

Saluting Bjork's courage.

Here's a salute to the avant-pop artiste Bjork for daring to say the word "Tibet" at the close of a recent concert in Shanghai.  Of course, the price of outspokenness will be that Bjork will never get to perform in China again--but at least she momentarily raised a human-rights issue that the part Communist/part capitalist government would prefer its own citizens--and visitors from the West-- to avoid thinking about.

Tags: Bjork, Tibet, Chinese government, Dalai Lama, human rights abuses

Marc Cooper on Hillary Winning Ugly in Texas, Ohio and Rhode Island primaries.

There are at least two cliched lines about the Hillary campaign that make me feel like an airline passenger in a turbulent jumbojet:

1. "I don't understand all of this anger towards Hillary Clinton."

2. "If Obama wins the nomination, it will be because he was tested and will be able to stand up to the Republican Attack Machine."

Let's throw in a third line:

3. "It's politics.  What do you expect?"

Here's Marc Cooper of the LA WEEKLY with an article about how Hillary scared voters with her now-notorious 3 a.m. ad:

http://www.laweekly.com/news/dissonance/hillary-clinton-wins-republican-style/18463/

Update: Here's a couple of paragraphs from former rock critic/Bruce Springsteen manager Jon Landau's article on this topic in THE HUFFINGTON POST:

Many in the pundit community who know better (and I guess I am trying
to be a pundit here) will forgive or aprove of the ad because they
subscribe to a cynicism that postulates that anything that works is
smart. Dan Abrams is on MSNBC saying that exact thing right now. Next
we will hear: "Sure the Swift Boaters were creeps, but you really have
to hand it to that Karl Rove...he knows what works" -- win at all
costs and the ends justify the means.

My belief is that you can't be a progressive and resort to these kinds
of right wing propaganda techniques. Bill Clinton's administration
floundered much of the time because he was usually the electoral
pragmatist, and seldom tried to truly lead the public on any issue
that was too challenging. If this kind of television ad is what gets
Ms. Clinton elected, we can count on more of the same from her
administration in the military sphere, because she is exhibiting the
same mindset as the people already in power. Having run on a parody of
being a Republican president, if elected, she will find herself forced
to govern that way.

Tags: Marc Cooper, Hillary Clinton, Howard Wolfson, Barack Obama, David Axelrod, Jon Landau

NEWSWEEK is out to lunch--literally.

Back in the 70s, a member of Stevie Wonder's entourage, talking about NEWSWEEK's cover story on Wonder, said something to ROLLING STONE along the lines of [from memory]: ",,,they acted like they discovered him last week or some [expletive deleted].  NEWSWEEK is out to lunch."

Thanks to Glenn Greenwald of SALON for bringing the following story to light: the press corps following John McCain (including NEWSWEEK's Holly Bailey) being treated to an Arizona-style BBQ meal at McCain's Page Springs spread.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/118076/page/1

My favorite detail of the story: that journalists didn't mind a free lunch as long as McCain was "on the record."

Safe to presume that McCain has paid for at least a few weeks of softball coverage of his campaign as the Republican all-but-coronated nominee for President.

Tags: Holly Bailey, Glenn Greenwald, SALON, NEWSWEEK, John McCain

Jeff Greenfield on how Barack/Hillary compares to Bugs Bunny vs. Daffy Duck.

One of the more out-of-the-box political analyses you'll read this week.  Here's a link to Jeff Greenfield's article in SLATE about why voters opt for Bugs Bunny vs. Daffy Duck:

http://www.slate.com/id/2185720/

Tags: Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Jeff Greenfield, Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Chuck Jones, Warner Brothers cartoons, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon

Beyond Baroque stays put--lease doesn't expire until 2032.

Sometimes, the "poetry community" actually behaves like one--where people can unite regardless of public/private points of view in pursuit of a laudable common goal.

Here's a link to T.J. Sullivan's article on LA OBSERVED re Beyond Baroque's new lease:

http://www.laobserved.com/intell/2008/02/beyond_baroque_safe_to_2032.php

 

Amelie Frank passed along this letter of congratulations from Fred Dewey:

 

Dear All: Here's Fred's announcement. I want to add that the real applause goes to ALL OF YOU who contacted the city representatives. Your overwhelming response was the singlemost important factor in making this happen. The victory is yours, and my thanks to you I can't even begin to express.--Love, Amélie

(P.S. Special thanks to Jerry Garcia, who really sounded the first alarm on our behalf.)

 

Greetings!!

 

Today, thanks to the visionary leadership of Councilman Bill Rosendahl, his superb staff, and to Beyond Baroque's vast body of extremely vocal supporters, the LA City Council voted unanimously to endorse renewing Beyond Baroque's lease to its historic Venice home, the Old City Hall, for 25 years at $1 a year.

 

It is absolutely wonderful news. It is victory for poetry and the arts. It is a victory for the preservation of history, the public realm, and the capacity for experiment. It is a rare triumph for the love of language, the written word, books, and the precious spark that community lends to all of us.

 

Councilman Rosendahl was working for us until the very last minute this morning in City Council chambers, as the vote went through. It was an honor to be there to see it. We are grateful to Bill's chief of staff, Mike Bonin, who helped craft the motion that passed this morning (our lease would have been up tomorrow). We are grateful as well to Rosendahl's Southern District Director Venice/Marina Peninsula Deputy Arturo Pina, to the Councilman's staff that fielded calls and emails, and to so many others in City Hall, across the city, across the country, and across the world.

 

I want to thank our Steering Committee that helped assure this wonderful outcome, led by Suzanne Thompson, with Linda Lucks, Rick Tuttle, Beyond Baroque's board Amelie Frank, Brooks Roddan, and Richard Modiano, and, behind us, all of you who sent emails, letters, made phone calls, and went out of your way to help. Those of you over the last few weeks who contacted our Councilman and the City Attorney, who expressed support to our officials at meetings and gatherings, and fired up the internet deserve to know how incredibly much you matter. It was your stepping forward that, ultimately, made clear how important Beyond Baroque is to city government, enabling Bill and his staff to achieve what was accomplished today.

 

We owe Councilman Bill Rosendahl of the 11th District, Los Angeles, a great debt of gratitude. Please thank him and his chief of staff, Mike Bonin for all they have done, and for all that they have now made possible. It was they who helped us all steer the ship safely into port.

 

Beyond Baroque's home is safe until 2032. This is a moment truly worth celebrating and remembering. Thank you, from all of us at Beyond Baroque.

 

Warmly, with hope for the future,

 

Fred Dewey
Director and Board Chair, Beyond Baroque & Beyond Baroque Books
Venice, California

 

Our Councilman and his Chief of Staff Mike Bonin can be reached at Councilman.Rosendahl@lacity.org.

Tags: Ed Rosendahl, Mike Bonin, Fred Dewey, Beyond Baroque, Los Angeles City Council, T.J. Sullivan, LA OBSERVED