Take It To The Limit - Urban Legend DeBunking

Some days I don't have time for a thought let alone a deep think. Places to go, people to see, all this and laundry too. I'm not really grousing about doing laundry - it is an opportunity to write and have I got stuff for this issue!

JibJab Update: In case you didn't hear the boys are legally off the hook. It was found that "This Land Is Our Land" fell out of copyright and is in the public domain. Yeah! The truth will set
you free.

Urban Legends - Speaking of the truth, there are a bunch of e-mail hoaxes being passed around, some are as old as Bigfoot. One of the best places to check out questionable stories is to visit
http://www.snopes.com The Urban Legends Reference Pages.

I have been meaning to go into deeper details about urban legends. I tend to ignore them but a friend sent me one the other day and I almost fell for it. However, just to be sure, I checked
and sure enough, it was complete fiction.

I realized we all are having trouble separating truth from fiction so any reliable help is much appreciated. Now not all urban legends are false. Here is a beauty about a certain cola -
http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/poster.asp
Feel the curves? I live for this stuff!

So when somebody sends you an email about saving Sesame Street, Mr. Rogers being a killer marine, Save NPR, Cookies Recipes or the ACLU being against Marines praying (False!) this
is a good starting place. http://www.snopes.com

Think of Laura - Five Wishes Medical Directives

I remember Laura Branigan's voice. It was distinct and dramatic. So when I heard that she had passed away it aged me up just a little more than I would have liked.

We all are going to die. Me? I don't want to be a living example of "The Brain That Would Not Die" or take the risk that some new technology will keep me around longer than my body wants
to stay. Five Wishes is 12-page legal document that informs caregivers on:

• Who you want making decisions for you when you can't?
  
• Medical treatments you want and don't want?
  
• ow comfortable you want to be?
• How you want to be treated?
• What you want your loved ones to know.
  

This guide forces you to make important decision about the quality of your health care and, just as important, the quality of your passing. It is not fun reading but if you have loved ones you
can make certain decisions easier for them to live with.

Then again, knowing some of my relatives, I would not want to leave the decision in their hands. Let's just say they are practical people. If there were any money in my estate, they sure would not want to waste it by keeping me on life support or assist me in receiving proper palliative care.

There is a fee to purchase the Five Wishes Medical Directives but you can download and review a non-printing copy by visiting The Aging With Dignity site http://www.agingwithdignity.org

Say It Isn't So - Dubya, JK, Science and Technology

What? You thought I'd go a whole issue without bringing politics into the mix? Nobody is safe until two months after the election, if then. It will take them that long to recount the count of the 3rd recount.

I came across an article from the international science magazine Nature. It asked 15 specific scientific and technology questions of both Dubya and Kerry. For example:

Q10-Does the Endangered Species Act need to be amended in order to operate more effectively? If so, how would you amend it?

BUSH: We need to modernize the act so that it provides the greatest benefits to those species most in need. For example, productive reforms could include habitat conservation plans,
conservation banking, voluntary agreements with landowners, and partnerships with states, tribes and nongovernmental organizations. These programmes could provide far greater
conservation benefits while avoiding unnecessary regulatory, economic and social burdens.

KERRY: John Edwards and I support protecting wildlife and the important goals of the Endangered Species Act. We will implement the act in a cooperative manner that extends
the benefits of wildlife and habitat protection to public and private lands. With adequate funding and a cooperative approach that works for both wildlife and property owners, we will continue
America's strong legacy of protecting wildlife.

Now don't get you hopes up that they will be straight forward, specific or dare I say it, completely candid. On some issues they are not that far apart and others are as wide as the Grand Canyon. To read the article visit: - http://www.nature.com/nature or
http://www.nature.com/news/specials/uselection/index.html

I Got Five On It - Osama Bin Lotto.org

Have to slip this in - can't believe it but I swear it is the real deal. Many folks have speculated that there will be an October Surprise in the form of a certain individual name Osama being escorted to an U.S. holding facility.

Well, step right up and place your bets. With Osama Bin Lotto.org you can place a $3 bet on the administration finding or producing Osama, or you can select U.S. invades North Korea,
invades Iran, Bush postpones the election or Bush kicks Dick Chaney to the curb.

Actually, you don't need to part with $3. In the rules you can request a free entry form but you need to act quickly to make the drawing. The grand prize is based on the total number of entries. The winner gets 50% of the total net amount with the maximum amount of $500,000. For more info, rules and other stuff visit http://www.osamabinlotto.org

Let's Dance - The Candidates On Technology

You know me - I look to the essentials. Food, shelters, freedom of thought.

Speaking of thinking there is a good piece on how Dubya and Kerry* feel about technology issues. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1649571,00.asp

The Kerry camp was forthcoming with specific answers. The administration referred the writers to existing statements on the web site - http://georgewbush.com

Not all responses to questions were on the website at the time of the publication of the article.
I find it is easier to read PC Mag articles in the print version:
http://www.pcmag.com/print_article/0,1761,a=135747,00.asp

These are issues that are going to kick us in the rumps unless we and the so called leaders pay attention.

*I can't bring myself to call him Herman, it is just not right.

In a previous life I was a collage babe - miss doing it but I'm in love with the process.

Doesn't matter if it is digital or paper. Rubber Cement can make me happy and I don't have to sniff it.

So in the spirit of sharing bliss I comment to your attention Scrapatorium
http://scrapatorium.blogspot.com

Yes, good gosh yes.

Where Can I Go?

I was just messing around, trying to find something to soothe my fiscally challenged mind and I stumble into a music web site that mentioned a collaboration between Ben Harper and the Five Blind Boys of Alabama.

Now I've heard of Ben Harper but I was practically raised on the gentlemen from down south so I had to take a quick look at Harper's web site http://www.benharper.net to see what he was up to.

Had the pleasure of viewing a mini-documentary that gave a taste of the recording process and how the senior generation influences and inspires the young. The mini-docs are in Windows Media and Real Player format. Even those on dial up can catch a grove.

Plus you can grab a taste of some of the tunes that will be on the CD.

Mighty tasty.

Ride The Peace Train - Official Cat Stevens Site

Everybody I know is shaking their heads about this one. It makes no sense. Although it goes a long way to help me explain the concept of racial and ethicnic profiling. But to pick on Yusuf Islam a.k.a. Cat Stevens?

From waayyy back in the day this man was singing about love, peace and all related topics. His music helped raise me, they are in my soul - the quality of his songs. And the fact he was a damn good looking man.

Still ain't half bad now, but I digress. In his current incarnation he has set up a charity in the UK called Small Kindness. If supporting orphans and helping building housing is considered bad then we as a nation haven't much more credibility to lose, it is gone. Don't take my word for it - check out the official site:

http://www.yusufislam.org.uk/index.shtml

The Elusive Butterfly of Love – Getting To My Destination

Here is the beginning of the story. I went to the Sunset Junction festival. Food, arts, crafts, a huge cross section of the real people of Los Angeles filtering into a predominately gay/creative community. This year they had some rocking bands and musical artists like Ashford and Simpson, X, Stephanie Mills, Thelonious Monster and Love with Arthur Lee. Food and Ashford and Simpson? I had to go.

Not to mention all kinds of goodies, sights, sounds and “what the hell was that?”

I grabbed the mystical red backpack of storage and head out. After two buses I start walking. I just figure on seven blocks of walking up front. I like to walk, I think.

I pass by the Circuit City that was looted during the riot/rebellion/uprising of 1994. I remember seeing a tank on that corner as I went to work in the days that followed. Ah, memories. But my feet are asking direct questions like:

“Are you crazy?”
“We have to walk how far?”
“Are we there yet?”



Finally, I see the entrance gate. I get stamped “completed”. There are thousands of people. Almost 10 city blocks of people. With that many urban folk you have to have food and facilities.

Bunky’s Pick – Photo-Shooting While Female

I am mad with myself. I had my cameras, the low rez one and the good one. Not only did I not get a shot of the Elusive Butterfly of Love but I manage not to get a shot of:

• All that human beefcake walking around with no shirts on.
• Guys walking proudly in man-skirts or kilts, all I got was what you see below.
• Men with all kinds of nipples and nipple rings.
• Men with very interesting belly buttons.

I had full battery power. More than enough space on the memory card. What the heck was I thinking! I check all sixty of my snaps and I got everything but the stream of mankind walking around half naked.

Well, truth be told, I know what I was thinking. As I was watching half naked gay men I was thinking “Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink.” I need the photojournalism class. I need help, people.

Part of the problem is that I am still reluctant to aim in people’s faces. I don’t mind sneaking a shot but that ain’t always how this photo thing works. Sometimes you have aim directly at the subject.

There are times you have to forget that you are attracted to the opposite sex long enough to take the picture. I totally forgot this last Sunday. I shall strive to do better.

Look4 Me - Windows XP Service Pack 2 Update CD

For dial up users it is a pain to keep Windows XP patched and protected. To Microsoft's credit - and thanks to http://www.lockergnome.com for the head's up, you can have the patch CD sent to your home for free, bumpkis, and most importantly no cost to you.

You just visit the link below, fill out the form and in about a four to six weeks you will get the update CD to install the patches. Now whether or not you want to install the patches is a whole 'nother topic.

The short answer is yes. Back back your stuff up! Just in case.

Windows XP Service Pack 2 Update CD

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/updates/sp2/cdorder/en_us/default.mspx

More Stuff in the Mystical Red Backpack:

I have a recipe card on Grilled Vegetable Sandwiches with Hummus:

• 5 zucchini, sliced lengthwise
• 1 read onion
• 1 large tomato
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and quartered
• 2 tbsp. Olive oil
• ¼ tsp. Oregano
• ¼ tsp. Salt
• 1/8 tsp. Pepper
• 4 pita bread pockets
• 8-oz pkg hummus

1. Slice up the veggies, plop in bowl with the olive oil and make with the herbs and spices.
2. Grill or sauté veggies for 5 minutes or until browned.
3. Spread inside of pita pockets with hummus. Place veggies inside of pita and start eating.

Scion CD Sampler v.8

I am way past the target market for this CD but music is music and it was a freebie. Mainly modern techno/beat/house/rap mixed by DJ Melo D of the Beat Junkies.

It is not bad stuff. The concept is to mix known traditional tracks with contemporary music to fuse them into a completely new entity. What we in the old school use to call sampling. Various tracks are from Dilated Peoples, Jaylib, Kev Brown and other folk I don’t know.

Scion is a line of cars (I did not know this), including that boxy job that looks like a rolling square. I still think the PT Cruiser has more class and design but I could see myself stuff major stuff into a Scion. If you are curious about the Beat Junkies visit www.beatjunkies.com

If you watched Mad TV you know the character of Ms. Swan, dangerously clueless as she makes her way in the world. Alex Borstein is on tour, she was in my town recently and is probably working her way someplace near you – http://www.alexborstein.com

LA Shanti is a non-profit support organization that provide support for those with HIV and life-threatening illnesses. The offer a wide range of services including emotional support, prevention and education and volunteer training to continue to get the message out about protection and awareness – http://www.lashanti.org

Strike A Pose - Picasa Is Now Free

Just have enough time to give you the head's up about a great piece of software that you can use to organize your photos on your computer, and to create slide show presentations.

Now if you have purchased Picasa before it went free you can get a rebate/refund of the cost (check the web site for details).

You are running out of excuses, if you have a digital camera it can help you keep track of all the images on your computer. If not then you need to think about buying one - http://www.picasa.com/picasa

In the interest of fair disclosure, Google bought Picasa, and also owns Blogger.

Come and Get It...

Get Net Wise that is. Major corporations and those that have an interest in the Internet have put together a site that helps users understand:

• How to keep safe on the Internet
• How to stop junk emai and spam
• How to fight spyware and
• How to keep you private information secure.

There is a glossary to help understand jargon used by techies and overall it does a good job of informing newbies - http://www.getnetwise.org

Can't Help Myself - The Sloganator

The original Sloganator was designed for non-connected (i.e. not stinking rich) Bushies to make their own pro-Bush slogans. It was paid for by the Bush/Cheney campaign.

Well, you know word got out. Those bad widdle kids snuck in and added a few choice comments.
The official Sloganator is history but this will soothe your soul, restore or reduce your faith in your fellow citizens:

http://homepages.nyu.edu/~meo232/sloganator

It is a 1.7MB download so it will take about 4 to 10 minutes on dial-up.

Tell Me, More, Tell Me More… My Feelings About Michael Moore

I stand on the dividing line. I respect what he has done and how he has played the game. He is no saint but he does get people talking and thinking about facts and concepts.

The only way to know the truth is to be able to gather the lies, rumors, parables and truth and then begin to compare and contrast. Moore’s movie provides a conversation point for that process.

Come to think of it - that would be grounds for sainthood in my book.

I accept the movie for what is – one man’s opinion of the events that had a relationship on September 11, 2001 and subsequent actions. This opinion is based on facts that he and his team have gathered and assembled and then interpreted through his eyes and experience.

Every storyteller, reporter, poet, journalist, photographer, documentarian does the same thing. Can’t help it. There is no absolutely unbiased human being. If we are honest we strive toward the light of truth. But that bright light of fame and success is a heady drink hard to ignore.

I first heard of Michael Moore when he created his first movie – Roger and Me. He was one of 300,000 laid-off workers from General Motors in Flint, Michigan. It financially devastated the city that has yet to recover. He grabbed his camera and started interviewing people who were also given the boot and he tried to interview the head of General Motors, Roger Smith.

Not NY or Hollywood company man, Michael was self-taught. He had a knack for self-promotion and a storytelling narrative. He managed to break past the thousands of graduate school filmmakers and got his film seen and praised. Deservedly so.

The Internet Movie Database has a short biography on Mike at http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0601619/bio and you can also view a list of his work as a producer at
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0601619/#producer

So I have major respect for him from the get-go. I need to share that with you because it would be dishonest not to inform you of that fact.

I don’t approve of everything he does. Sometime he goes too far, or in the case of Bowling for Columbine, his film about gun control and America’s fascination with weapons, not far enough. He should have mentioned that those kids were on psychiatrists prescribed drugs that might have facilitated their desire to kill fellow students.

He can be overbearing. That is okay. I can choose to listen or not. He can be rude, hypocritical (Mikey, your website is produced and maintained by Canadians – what’s up the that?) and with this level of success he is about due for a bone headed move he is gonna wish in hindsight he hadn’t done.

And yes, he is and presents himself to be a liberal. His movies come from that viewpoint. That seems to be one of the major complaints about him. He is a liberal.

So what? He is not presenting himself as a reporter or journalist (citizen journalist – absolutely but that is kind of a new concept). He is not saying that he does not have an opinion. That is what a documentary is – an opinion or viewpoint on an experience.

If it is okay for Fox News, Rush Limbaugh and conservative talk radio to do it then why is not okay for Michael to do the same? I’m asking?

Message To Michael – Michael Moore & Fahrenheit 9/11

(Spoiler Alert – I will mention specific scenes in the movie and most of the citations that are left, far left and nosebleed left of center. But there is a list of websites that hate Michael Moore with a deep passion and that review is listed on the blog at http://outonthestoop.blogspot.com/2004/07/right-thing-to-do-right-wing-humor.html)

For me to truly be satisfied with Fahrenheit 9/11 it would have to be 37.5 hours. But I can live with giving up 2.5 hours of my time to see it. I have been trying to see this movie for three dad -gummed weeks. People were serious about seeing it, more so than seeing Spider-Man.

I guess the reason I wanted it longer was to counter pundits saying that Moore is giving half-truths or using video tricks to have viewers come to conclusions. To his credit, Moore does attribute most of the sources used in the movie on his web site - http://www.michaelmoore.com/warroom/f911notes

To be fair there are pundit who are asking fair questions about some of the information in Moore’s movie. There is an article in the MS-NBC Newsweek that point out some questionable associations - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5335853/site/newsweek

One segment I wished he could have spent more time with was the section about Dubya’s military (or lack thereof) service. Fortunately, I know where to go for the documented goodies; AWOL Bush.com makes the case for Bush’s military evasiveness during his time of service.

Using documentation obtained from the Freedom of Information Act and other credible sources, there is no question in my mind as to the nature of his commitment to the military - http://www.awolbush.com

I also would have wanted more information on just how much money Halliburton is sucking out of the country. We are talking big American buckaroos here and even the extreme right leaning citizens would back me up on this investigation.

You can visit a new site that is available to address the many questions that are in limbo land - including a on-screen counter that shows just how many days, minutes and seconds since a formal probe has been opened on Halliburton’s accounting practices. http://www.halliburtonwatch.org

In the movie, there was a banquette where Duyba referred to the elite as “my base”. Here is some of the many ways his base is paying for his advertisements. It is a downloadable Adobe PDF file -
http://www.whitehouseforsale.org/documents/bushads2.pdf

It is a good thing I don’t have access to Mikey cuz I got more stuff like Do You Know – The Policies and Practices of the Bush Administration - http://www.doyouknow.org or http://www.newdemocracyproject.org/publications/book_on_bush/the_abcs_of_w.cfm

Yo Mike – I needed much more information about how the soldiers and veterans are about to have their pay and benefits cut. I got relatives in the service and vets in the family. I did find I articles from the SF Gate URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2003/08/14/MN94780.DTL and USA Vanguard, http://www.usavanguard.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2004/01/28/401970abb42d7 but I need more official confirmation.

So, Mr. Moore, I have to thank you. You gave me a class A headache - http://www.michaelmoore.com

Freeze Freeze Frame – Photography, Security and The Patriot Act

This is what I mean about being placed in a spiritually knocked upside the head position. I was coming home from work. I always have a camera with me. There was the Friday afternoon protest group that has been protesting every Friday since the attack on Iraq. They have recently switch from war protesting to the election. I have taken pictures of them on and off for a while.

Anyway, there was a picture opportunity that I could not ignore. This woman was standing in a black dress holding up a *No CARB* (Chaney, Ashcroft, Rumsfeld and Bush) sign. I whip out my low rez camera and start shooting. Into my viewfinder, I could see a police car and two cops giving her the evil eye. Then they switched looking at her to me.

I know that look. The look sends ice water through you veins if you are a person of color. A police officer looking you over tells your body that you need pick up your feet and move if you don’t want trouble. It is a look of suspicion and summary judgment.

All I was doing was standing on a public corner taking a picture.

I started noticing the increasing frequency of black and whites rotating around the block. For a total of maybe 8 protesters. I kept taking pictures but my mind was thinking of catching the first thing smoking to get me home.

The next day I am reading some stuff about proposals to restricting new technologies and I see a link to an article from The Stanger.com – Taking Pictures While Brown - http://www.thestranger.com/2004-07-15/city.html

It tells the story of Ian Spiers, who was taking pictures in a public place in Washington State. He was hassled by the local police and the Department of Homeland Security under the auspices of The Patriot Act.

The fact that this was a public place, in fact a tourist destination that encourages photography, did not seem to help him. Nor did the fact that non-brown/black photographers were also not similarly interrogated.

To get the full scope on what happened to Ian visit http://69.93.170.43/index.php with photos in the area and then venture over to his main site at http://www.brownequalsterrorist.com.

It A’int Necessarily So – Restrictions on Photographers

Before anybody uses the magic words, “this is just an unfortunate aberration” you should also know that The Patriot Act and its progeny are affecting photographers of all colors, sizes and ethnicities - http://www.rcfp.org/news/2003/0402mtajou.html or http://www.overshadowed.com/mt/archives/000052.html

It is not just the cops on the hunt. Citizens confused /cautious are rattling photographers nerves as well - http://homepage.mac.com/amrosario/iBlog/B257089005/C36703131/E1850936164

New York Photographers are fighting to maintain their right to shoot pictures in the New York Public Subway system. Think about it, you could not shoot people coming into or out of the subway, the rail tracks or the homeless that live in the caverns of the system. It would be illegal to shoot unsanitary or unsafe stations, lovers on a train, the skyline view out of a train window or from a platform.

http://blog.photoblogs.org/2004/05/nyc_to_ban_subw.html

For photographers and casual snappers Bert Krages, a lawyer, provide free information about those potential interactions with your camera and those in law enforcement. You can download a guide at http://www.krages.com/phoright.htm

And, as an added bonus, I found a site that lists various policies of transportation systems regarding photography.

http://www.nycsubway.org/faq/photopermits.html

Common sense goes a long way here.

• Do not block the entrance/exit, don’t flash the conductor while he/she is working,
  
• Don’t shoot up women’s skirts and
  
• Be exceeding nice to the police.
  
• But make them pry your camera out of your hands. Never, ever give it or the right to take pictures up. Democracy demands nothing less.

The Right Thing To Do - Right Wing Humor Sites

I said a long time ago if I found any humor sites that expressed a right wing view of politics I would let you know. No, I have not met up with the Republican man of my dreams. Or Democratic, Green, or Libertarian. But you can't make an informed decision without looking at both sides of an issue. Now some of these sites are more political than haw-haw funny but I had a hard time telling on some of them.

Now Snark Bait - I like this, even as a low life liberal. They got pictures. The have captions on the pictures. The writing is clear, there is an personality to the site and the writer is not afraid to ask questions where the answer might not be 100% in his favor.

Oh-oh. I spoke too soon. A extracted section of a speech by Bill Cosby is presented out of context. It is used to support the notion that that 38 million people (plus or minus 3 or 4 good Repubican black folk) have been infantized. Okay I don't like that part at all. But the site does have a value. It don't make me want to instantly puke. http://www.snarkbait.com

Right Thinking From the Left Coast is very much a GWB safe place. Humor, stuff for sale, a site list of celebrity idiots such as Al Sharpton and Elton John, and responses to those that venture an opinion to the topics presented. Marriage is male/female, The U.S. media is bad, and you can find out the 50 most loathsome New Yorkers, and well, check the joint out for yourself:
http://www.right-thinking.om

Next on the tour is the Museum of Left Wing Lunacy - taking the words of those of the left and reflecting them back for consumption. Or to extract a quote from the creator "A place where all the nuttiest liberal quotes and belief's were there to be shown to all." And you have your choice of lunacy: racial, celebrity, political, John Kerry specific and of course stomping on Michael Moore:

"We live in the time where we have fictitious election results that elects a fictitious president. We live in a time where we have a man sending us to war for fictitious reasons. Whether it's the fiction of duct tape or fiction of orange alerts we are against this war, Mr. Bush. Shame on you. Mr. Bush, shame on you.
Michael Moore
2003 Academy Awards acceptance speech

Um yeah, we live in a time where a big fat mental patient director who can't direct anything worth a Sh*t, creates movies that only the French could love!! Fiction??? He's the master of it, that movie he made earlier should have been called "Bowling for Left Wing Dollars!".

http://www.themuseumofleftwinglunacy.com

Continuing on the hit parade is Michael Moore Watch - man has he got folks pissed at him! This is another site that wants to expose the truth that is not the truth or half-truth about M.M.

You know come to think of it, Mikey is very inspirational cuz I have never seen so much stuff for sale about a man so loathed that was not elected.

See also Bowling For Truth http://www.bowlingfortruth.com
Moore Exposed http://www.mooreexposed.com
Red Line Rants http://www.redlinerants.com
Michael Moore Hates America http://www.michaelmoorehatesamerica.com/index.html
Well - that's all for now kids. Remember, this is a democracy. Happy 4th of July.

P.S. Michael Moore's official web site is http://www.michaelmoore.com