As hard as I try, I cannot seem to kick my Trump addiction. I’m not sure if it’s the hair, the delivery or the pure, unabashed malakatude. In his quest to become the first insult comedian elected President, the Donald continues to feud with all comers in a completely un-Presidential manner. Yesterday, he called creepy GOP pollster Frank Luntz a “clown” and a “low class slob.“ I somehow can’t imagine Washington, Lincoln, or even Chet Arthur feuding with a media puke and calling them a slob. Andrew Jackson, yes, but we’ll save that for another day or never. On to the … Continue reading Tweets Of The Day: Insult Comedian Edition
I’ve never been much of a fan of Kiss’ music but it’s hard to fault them when it comes to presentation and marketing. I got some free tickets to a Kiss arena show back in their heyday. The music left me cold but the spectacle was something else. In short, it was spectacular. Their album covers have often been very good. This weeks’ honoree is one I’m quite fond of. It was described as follows by Matthew Wilkening at ultimateclassicrock.com: Our vote for best Kiss studio album cover goes to this Michael Doret-designed masterpiece-in-the-round. The band is pictured as a … Continue reading Album Cover Art Wednesday: Rock And Roll Over
LET’S TALK SOME MORE ABOUT DIGITAL PARADIGMS! The Times-Picayune not only won two Pulitzer Prizes for such journalistic derring-do, but admiration from a community in desperate need of updates during the storm and for answers from officials in its aftermath. “The city,” Russell said, “had a real bond with the paper.” That bond was broken in June 2012. Advance Publications, the Newhouse family-run company that owns the paper, laid off over 200 people, nearly a third of the staff. The frequency of the print edition dropped to three days a week and a significantly diminished newsroom now focused on a website, NOLA.com. “The way that … Continue reading They Are Killing Newspapers on Purpose
Go read all of these right now. They just keep drawing the circle smaller and smaller, like the point is who you keep out. A. Continue reading ‘God is Not Angry Daddy’
I’ll be away from the computer a lot at the beginning of the week, so posting from me will be light; unless it isn’t. Every time I say that, something big arises and I’m on here bloviating away. We live in eventful times, after all. I’m working at Jackson Square today so if I were religious, I’d light a candle at St. Louis Cathedral in honor of Julian Bond who died yesterday after a long and eventful life at the age of 75. I just saw this tweet he sent last month: That reminds me that the Confederate monument removal process … Continue reading Blue Monday
Sorry, people – no post today, I had plenty of stupid bookmarked, but I just couldn’t bring myself to start reading it. I just couldn’t. By the time Sunday morning came around, I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to do it. I guess even I have limits. Back next Monday (hopefully) with the usual evisceration of Freeper idiocy. . Continue reading Today on Tommy T’s Obsession with the Freeperati – Rising Gorge edition
I find myself wishing for a storm in Chicago — an unpredictable, haughty, devastating swirl of fury. A dramatic levee break. Geysers bursting through manhole covers. A sleeping city, forced onto the rooftops. That’s what it took to hit the reset button in New Orleans. Chaos. Tragedy. Heartbreak. — Kristen McQueary, In Chicago, Wishing for a Hurricane Katrina Others have said most of what I thought in response to McQueary’s column and apology (a column and apology written by, I should disclose, a friend of mine, a former colleague, with whom I did reporting I believed in), in particular as … Continue reading On Clean Slates and New Beginnings: Katrina, Chicago and Crisis
I’m not feeling particularly destructive this week but the heat is getting to me. We’re on target to break a record that nobody wants to break: consecutive days of highs of 90+ degrees. We’re at 48 days and counting and the record is 51. I’m just trying to stay cool, which is why I posted Stuart Davis’ Swing Landscape. Ain’t nothing cooler than that, y’all.
In other local news, some knucklehead tried to move a house in Uptown New Orleans and it got stuck for several days on General Pershing Street between Camp and Magazine, which is not far from Adrastos World HQ.
Photo by Jennifer K. Lloyd.
It’s half a shotgun house sliced lengthwise, which was being moved to another lot where it was to rejoin its woody mate, replacing a circa 1970’s house. I believe the other house was demolished, which brings us to this week’s theme song. Make that theme songs, 3 different tunes with the same title: Wrecking Ball. We begin with a Wrecking Ball written by Neil Young and recorded by Emmylou Harris as the title track of an atmospheric album she made with producer Daniel Lanois in 1995:
Our second song reflects another theme this week, Wrecking Ball as album title. This more political song was written and recorded by some guy from Jersey:
Our final Wrecking Ball is wielded by Joe Walsh. It comes from Joe’s fine 2012 album, Analog Man, which was co-produced by Jeff Lynne. I guess that’s why it sounds like the James Gang meets ELO:
Please follow the bouncing wrecking ball after the break.
Last night I wrote a brief post about the idiot at the Chicago Tribune who wrote a stupid op-ed piece for her paper. If you missed it, please click here so I don’t have to recapitulate. The outrage over Ms. McQueary’s ignorant op-ed piece has raged on all day on social media. The hashtag #FireMcQueary has even popped up. I don’t get it: this woman does not have the power or influence to inflict additional damage on people who were harmed by Hurricane Katrina. It’s 2015, not 2005. The recovery is not as strong as she depicted it, but we’re no longer on … Continue reading The McQueary Incident: A Lack Of Perspective & Proportion
Two years ago this week, I wrote “Pals,” a piece that explained how it was that a buddy of mine named Scott basically turned around my views on what my life had become. Monday, I found out he has a fatal heart ailment and that only a transplant will save his life. In the past five days, I’ve thought of little else, regardless of what I’m doing, which makes it hard to see the forest for the trees. I have also discovered that the ways in which I am used to seeking help, solace and strength don’t apply here. I … Continue reading “Pals” to the end
When the gaping sore caused by Hurricane Katrina and the Federal Flood was still open, the, by now, infamous article by Kristen McQueary in the Chicago Tribune would have given me severe agita: That’s why I find myself praying for a storm. OK, a figurative storm, something that will prompt a rebirth in Chicago. I can relate, metaphorically, to the residents of New Orleans climbing onto their rooftops and begging for help and waving their arms and lurching toward rescue helicopters. Except here, no one responds to the SOS messages painted boldly in the sky. Instead, they double down on … Continue reading A Stupid Piece By An Ignorant Person
Part the 11,000th: Holy shit, ladies, what the hell is wrong with you? Why would you agree to hire a hot nanny, especially if you have a celebrity poonhound husband? I’d never let some hot dude prance around my house in his skivvies, unless I was ok with him banging my wife. Because the assumption has to be that it is happening. Unless Jen is ok with it, that has been known to happen too. But that is not the case with most women. Yeah, LADIES. What is wrong with you? Why do you keep sticking your husband’s dick in … Continue reading In Which We Learn It Is the Wife’s Job to Stop Her Husband from Cheating
It’s almost surreal that I haven’t placed the malakatude crown of thorns on a certain mouthy, has been rock star. He’s said much worse things, but his latest bit of verbal diarrhea verges on literal malakatude. And that is why Ted Nugent is malaka of the week. I guess the Nuge was feeling lonely because he decided to weigh in on the Trump-Megyn Kelly feud: Nugent said on the radio program Wednesday that he is a Trump fan because he believes in “bold, aggressive, unapologetic truth.” “And I’m not a fan of Megyn Kelly, although I often turn on Fox just … Continue reading Malaka Of The Week: Ted Nugent
Evan Hunter aka Ed McBain was a man with many pen names. He was also one of the best hardboiled crime fiction writers ever. He had a way with a phrase and a title. Here are some recently re-published novels featuring two of his best titles as well as the original artwork: Continue reading Pulp Fiction Thursday: Ed McBain
I will trade you six of Dick Cheney and 47 of every single other member of the Bush administration for Jimmy Fucking Carter, this is not fair: Washington (CNN)Former President Jimmy Carter has cancer, and it has spread to other parts of his body, he announced Wednesday. Carter, 90, had a “small mass” removed from his liver during surgery earlier this month. At the time, he received a prognosis for a full recovery. But he said Wednesday in a brief statement that “recent liver surgery revealed that I have cancer that now is in other parts of my body.” And yes, … Continue reading No. NO NO NO NO NO NO. No no no. NO God Damn It.
I hate articles about polls. There’s way too much poll worship in the world and when the polls are wrong, as they were in the U.K. general election, people freak out. It’s part and parcel of worshiping a false deity. Poll worship is wreaking havoc on national politics right now with the candidate trying to be the first insult comedian elected President leading the GOP field. The polls also show a backbench Independent Senator from Vermont doing surprisingly well in the politically quirky Granite State. All you need to know about that is that New Englanders often win that primary *and* that they love … Continue reading Poll Worship & The Louisiana Silly Season
Jesus Of Coolwas Nick Lowe’s first solo record. It was renamed Pure Pop For Now People in the U.S by the folks at Columbia Records. They remembered the ruckus in the bible belt over John Lennon’s throwaway comment that “the Beatles are more popular than Jesus.” That led to cardboard and vinyl bonfires of Beatles records in small towns in the hookworm/kudzu belt.
Jesus Of Cool is a helluva power pop/pub rock album with some of Nick’s best early songs: So It Goes, Heart Of The City, and Marie Provost. The last tune was a cheerful ditty about a woman found dead in her flat. Her dog had gnawed at her body to stay alive. Poor, poor Marie.
The cover depicts Nick in 5 pop-rock star outfits. The picture in the bottom middle is of Dave Edmunds who was Nick’s partner in musical crime and the co-leader of Rockpile. A note about Rockpile: they backed both Nick and Dave (as well as Lowe’s then wife, Carlene Carter) on records and live but only recorded one album. The quirks abound.
What kind of sense does this make? On Monday, protesters once again took to the streets. Late at night, the right-wing armed group arrived. St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar called their presence “both unnecessary and inflammatory,” according to NBC News. Journalists and activists at the scene posted photos of the group standing on West Florissant Avenue, the center of the recent protests in Ferguson. It is legal to open carry these types of rifles in the state of Missouri. According to state law, people who have a valid gun permit can “openly display the firearm… unless the firearm is intentionally displayed in … Continue reading What the TITS, America
Last week’s was in a theater named for a subprime lender, so I suppose the Reagan Library is a suitable follow-up. (Still, I don’t know if I can stand even MORE jerking off about St. Ronnie, who for all his faults would cockpunch Donald Trump and ask Scott Walker to go park his car.) Since apparently anybody with the cash can call one of these things, I would like to start raising money next month for a First Draft debate, in which we invite the losing Democratic candidates for president who are still alive to spend three hours beating an … Continue reading Debate Venues
Oh, you VOTERS, thinking you get to make your own minds up! You obviously just don’t know what’s best for you! Look, I understand why you’re angry. We’ve got stupid leaders who can’t get anything done, who don’t care about you, who are feckless and helpless, and who’ve forgotten how to beat the rest of the world. Trump channels your anger. He talks the way you do. He validates concerns that both major parties and the media ignore—or mock. He’s just fooling you, you gullible, gullible children! Why can’t you see that? Why can’t you understand what I, wise Ron Fournier, … Continue reading Ron Fournier Knows What’s Best For You Sillyheads
I had planned to NOT write anything this week about a certain Republican Presidential candidate who’s vying to be the first insult comedian elected Oval One. I didn’t think I could top A’s brilliant post yesterday but it *is* the silly season and I *am* a member of the silly blogger party, after all. The thing that has been bugging me is how the fog of history has descended on the campaign coverage, leading many people to compare Trump to Ross Perot. Some, mostly GOPers, think Perot cost Poppy Bush the 1992 election by taking Republican votes from him. The evidence … Continue reading Enough Already With The Trump-Perot Comparisons
First I was going to take that long-threatened sanity break, especially after I tried to pull up Freeperville the morning after the debate and got this:
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Then this:
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OK – after changing a few Bitdefender settings and writing a crunch program that puts Google Analytics into a Ouroborous-style loop, I finally got in – and what do I find?
Trump: Megyn Kelly had blood coming out of her ‘wherever’ The Hill ^ | August 7, 2015 | Neetzan Zimmerman
Donald Trump ratcheted up his feud with Fox News host Megyn Kelly over her role as moderator on Thursday night’s Republican debate, telling CNN’s Don Lemon he has no respect for her and thinks she’s “highly overrated.”
“What is it with you and Megyn Kelly?” Lemon asked Trump, who had spent most of the past 24 hours slamming Fox News and Kelly on social media and in TV interviews. “She gets out and starts asking me all sorts of ridiculous questions,” Trump told Lemon. “You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of her — wherever.”
Trump also called Kelly a “lightweight” and went on to claim he wasn’t alone in his disapproval of Kelly’s debate-night demeanor, and that a source at Fox News told him they had been “inundated” with a record number of negative letters from angry viewers.
What a bizarre thing to say. I guess this is just him trying to be funny?
2 posted on 8/7/2015 10:37:02 PM by ApeStyle
No – I think he’s warming up for calling the Chancellor of Germany and the Queen of England “stupid cunts” after his election.
To: Conscience of a Conservative
“Megan you ignorant slut!”
7 posted on 8/7/2015 10:40:12 PM by Califreak (Hope and Che’nge is killing U.S. Feel the Trump-mentum!(insert ireallysupportCruzdisclaimerhere/))
To: ApeStyle
Megyn kelly is a pole hugging half dressed objectified do anything bitch.
Trump is a succesful employer of 10s of thousands for workers – a serious man running for the Presidency of the United States.
Cut the BS.
11 posted on 8/7/2015 10:41:39 PM by Eddie01
To: Conscience of a Conservative
Trump is sounding insane.
17 posted on 8/7/2015 10:47:50 PM by GeronL (Phony Crony Trump is a Chump, Cruz is for real, 100%)
Ya think?
To: GeronL
Trump is sounding insane.
Which, as many have noted over and over and over again, is hardly surprising to anyone who has paid even the slightest bit of attention to Trump for the past 30 years…
No, really, that’s what our wise media betters think was his major failing: His claims to be objective fell flat. For instance, Mr. Stewart denied being in President Obama’s corner by re-airing a clip in which he had made fun of theObamacare website’s rollout, as if that was the same as questioning Obamacare itself. That was par for Mr. Stewart’s course, mocking liberals’ tactics and implementation but not their underlying assumptions or ideas. He could have made the liberals in his audience more open to dialogue across the great left/right divide by asking them to examine themselves more carefully and to admit … Continue reading Jon Stewart Should Have Said Both Sides Do It
the coolest part about Trump is that he’s such a reprobate that lesser moral cretins can claim the high ground — Simon Maloy (@SimonMaloy) August 8, 2015 That’s actually the problem with Trump, from my perspective as someone who is making plans for an EU passport application should he win the nomination and then the election, ie, Not The Target Audience. The problem with Trump is that he lets everyone believe the problem is Trump. He lets the GOP pretend they don’t have major pundits who’ve said, about Hillary Clinton, that she is a shrill old bitch, among the nicer things. … Continue reading Donald Trump Lets the GOP & the Press Pretend Donald Trump Is the Problem
I had a bug for my birthday this year. That part didn’t really bug me. I wouldn’t mind not celebrating my natality again until I’m even more creaky and decrepit that I am at this stage. I’m not sure if that qualifies as a hilarious harangue but it’s all I’ve got. Donald Trump has cornered the market on hilarious harangues so perhaps I should be content with being the veteran ventriloquist. Unfortunately, my lips move…
This week’s theme song is Split Enz’s I See Red. It’s a simple tune that’s more contagious than a sick blogger or some such shit. Split Enz were the demented antipodean cousins of my hometown favorites, the Tubes. They really had that quirky theatrical thing going on as you’ll see in these two versions. First, the original promo video from 1978 featuring Tim Finn at his spazzy best. Second, a live version from the band’s 2006 reunion. Dig the crazy threads, man:
I’m not through with seeing red. I love the look of the cover of the single for I See Red. Dig the crazy big hair, man. They kinda look like chicks from Jersey:
More extreme redness after the break. I promise to keep it simply red.
