The Opinion Age

The Opinion Age, the stunted little brother of the Information Age, is moving into adolescence.
Allow me to let my literary brother to speak my thoughts:

(George Bernard Shaw from "Man and Superman"

DON JUAN. "Pooh! why should I be civil to them or to you? In this
Palace of Lies a truth or two will not hurt you. Your friends are
all the dullest dogs I know.
They are not beautiful: they are only decorated.
They are not clean: they are only shaved and starched.
They are not dignified: they are only fashionably dressed.
They are not educated they are only college passmen.
They are not religious: they are only pewrenters.
They are not moral: they are only conventional.
They are not virtuous: they are only cowardly.
They are not even vicious: they are only "frail."
They are not artistic: they are only lascivious.
They are not prosperous: they are only rich.
They are not loyal, they are only servile;
not dutiful, only sheepish;
not public spirited, only patriotic;
not courageous, only quarrelsome;
not determined, only obstinate;
not masterful, only domineering;
not self-controlled, only obtuse;
not self-respecting, only vain;
not kind, only sentimental;
not social, only gregarious;
not considerate, only polite;
not intelligent, only opinionated;
not progressive, only factious;
not imaginative, only superstitious;
not just, only vindictive;
not generous, only propitiatory;
not disciplined, only cowed;
and not truthful at all--liars every one
of them, to the very backbone of their souls."

Not intelligent, only opinionated? Sound familiar?
Sounds like, well, ME, doesn't it!
(But that is just my opinion!)

Who was it that said: "Thinking is better than knowing, but seeing is better than thinking."?

White Supremacist Rush Limbaugh calls Rape Victims "Ho's"

Notorious civil rights foe, Rush Limbaugh, on his radio show today, referred to the Duke rape victims as "ho's" -- a derogatory term meaning "black whore". Granted, the apologist, and eventual fall guy for BushWorld, says a lot of things you might expect from a drunken college fratbrat, but Mr. Limbaugh dropped out of college three decades ago. Like so many childstars, Rush is stuck performing the same schtick to the same schmucks show after show,year after moribund after. No wonder these folks don't believe in evolution. They never evolve!

Like an ex-conservative friend of mine said just today: You can't trust Rush because he ALWAYS defends Bush. He doesn't have his own mind." Imagine how Rush must feel being of one mind with a man who makes Dan Quayle seem intelligent! At least Quayle never ordered the killing of thousands of people. His stock has actually risen because of Bush.

The great thing about listening to NPR, say, instead of Rush and his clones, is that you hear the full spectrum of opinion, from the best minds of our time, but you also get the added benefit of information, knowledge, wisdom, and good music. Not the adolescent misinformation and hyperventilations of a man still acting out his college fantasies, and clones.

Rush talks about manliness, but if he were a real man he would stand up to Bush once in a while, and take a chance. But alas, he is bought and paid for. He MUST say the things he says, or he is history. He is the man who could have been a Man, but chose excess instead.

What is full, empties. It's a fact of nature. And he's been full too long.
He should get out while he's ahead.

The first time ever I saw your face...

When I first arrived in Green Witch Village, I thought I had arrived in Greenwich Village, except I was surrounded my mountains, streams and otter. Lots of otter. More otter than you can shake a spear at. So don’t bring your spear. Bring someone else’s if you must, but do not, I repeat, do not, bring your own. Especially not the ruby-tipped one.

I had heard stories about how magical, even mystical, the mountains of North Carolina were, but I thought it was all legend…until I saw, and felt, for myself, the natural power of this ancient and venerated land…which, by the way, is in danger of being divvied up and sold to the highest bidder.

To find the actual village, you will require a guide of high spiritual caliber. If and when you are ready to go, that guide will appear, and whisper the words “Go go” into your left ear. It will be on a Sunday, and probably in the late afternoon.

You will then need to promptly slip into your go-go boots and miniskirt (or kilt), and follow him, blindfolded, on the back of a horse name Wildfire or Trigger. Sometimes Larry.

Do not press your go-go heels into the horse, as he would remind you of the story of Neitzsche or Kundera’s Karenin.

Please leave your cell phone in the nearest trashcan.
You are about to live.

See more progress on: Green Witch Village

Jill Carroll is free, saying she was treated mercifully

Jill Carroll

A Carol for Miss Carroll

A lot of people in the world are rejoicing today. I am one of them.
The Christian Science Monitor journalist, Jill Carroll, was released, unharmed, and says that she was treated well during her captivity. This is the kind of victory everyone celebrates.
May we, in turn, show some mercy. It's the right thing to do.

American Idol 2006: Tips for the contestants

Ace Young (Ace Jung), Bucky Covington, Chris Daughtry (Chris Dawtry), Elliott Yamin (Eliot Yeaman) , Katharine McPhee (Katherine Catherine McFee), Kellie Pickler, Lisa Tucker, Mandisa Hundley (Huntley), Paris (London) Bennett (Brokeit) and Taylor Hicks (Tailor Hyx).
These are the archons of celebrity; the Mozarts of our evening; Life Itself. Perhaps I overstate. I wish them all the best of luck, but wish they would dare to be extraordinary.

Were I to give each one of them one piece of advice it would be this:
Taylor...focus on your resemblance to George Clooney.
Ace...Do some James Taylor.
Bucky...your ancestors were the king's musicians in the court of King Charles. Widen and deepen your musical palate.
Chris...Keep going, even if you don't fit the American Idol mold.
Elliot...Consider theatre or comedy. They need singers too.
Lisa...you are still young. Maybe too young even. Your time will come.
Paris...you too may be too young, but your personality makes me think of you as a TV personality.
Mandisa...You might be better off pursuing opera or movies. You may be too good for American Idol.
Kellie...lose the stupid and emphasize the radiant sexiness.
Katharine...Stay yourself and quit wearing frumpy clothes.

In figure skating, the skater's routine is limited by the music. If you can find something classic, memorable, slightly complex, emotional and widely popular without being overdone...you should benefit from the utilization of priorities in song selection.

Meditate and do tai chi before performing so you will not appear wooden and mentally elsewhere or discombobulated.

At this point, you have to perform at your highest, as the standards have risen with each paring away.

Remember Robert Frost's dictum: "No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No joy in the writer, no joy in the reader."

The same applies to your performance. Bring us joy. Make us cry.

But remember...you are all winners, and all will benefit greatly from the experience and exposure. Don't fret if you lose, since you've actually won already.

Love what you are doing.

Meet the New Boss

ENCEES: North Carolina Blog Awards

FROM THE WEBSITE:

The ENCEES (here's the clue... NC) is designed specifically for them. All the hard slogging pajamhadeen, right here in North Carolina. They will hardly be mentioned in the National Awards. Here's Their Chance.The Format is the same as the Biggies, so you'll be familiar with the process...make your nominations in the Comment section. We'll run this first phase for a week or so, to establish our candidates. Twigs and Seeds will keep the Awards Diary at the top of the Front Page all week, with updates. When this phase is concluded ...the Runoff. Spread the Word, and...Good Luck!

Alt.Primetime by Rah Bourbon

From Huffington Post' Contagious Festival
BROKEBACK BUSH
Papa's Got a Brand New Baghdad
Impeach the Smirking Liar
Democrats Get Balls

OTHER FINE VIEWING
Cheney watches his cheerleaders
Open the Government
Tom the Dancing Bug
How do you describe Bush?

(Hattip to Rah Bourbon for the links)