so this weekend is the last race before the chase for the cup!!!!!!! 

Dale Earnhardt Jr is in 4th!!!!!

In their corner:

Smelly fucking hippies, union thugs, MoveOn.org, snobs, terrorist sympathizers, PETA, elitists, Olbermann, jackasses, Kos Kids, soymilk drinkers, Chris Matthews, crybabies, whiners, America haters, pussies, The New York Times, lazy fuckers, fake tits, scolds, militant drag queens, atheists, John Kerry, victims, liars, baby killers, thieves, Code Pink, douche bags, tree huggers, felons, scumbags and general fucking assholes, crackheads and losers.

In our corner:

Entrepreneurs, rugged individualists, soldiers, mothers, God-fearing church goers, small-town folk, gun toters, ass kickers, George W. Bush, Fox News, CEO’s, business owners, baby lovers, hot chicks, Hank Williams, Jr, Swift Boat vets, beer drinkers, hard workers, the well-mannered, real boobs, the charitable, Dick Cheney, a fucking shitload of bombs, Ace of Spades, cowboys, hard workers, the friggin’ Jooos, patriots, the brave, Pat Buchanan, strippers, winners and Kid fucking Rock....

Also hot triplets with an American Flag painted on their hot triplet bodies....

Let’s roll.

“I say to you, this morning, that if you have never found something so dear and precious to you that you will die for it, then you aren’t fit to live.

You may be 38 years old, as I happen to be, and one day, some great opportunity stands before you and calls upon you to stand for some great principle, some great issue, some great cause. And you refuse to do it because you are afraid.

You refuse to do it because you want to live longer. You’re afraid that you will lose your job, or you are afraid that you will be criticized or that you will lose your popularity, or you’re afraid that somebody will stab or shoot or bomb your house. So you refuse to take a stand.

Well, you may go on and live until you are ninety, but you are just as dead at 38 as you would be at ninety.

And the cessation of breathing in your life is but the belated announcement of an earlier death of the spirit.

You died when you refused to stand up for right.

You died when you refused to stand up for truth.

You died when you refused to stand up for justice.”

-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
From the sermon “But, If Not” delivered at Ebenezer Baptist Church on November 5, 1967.

Radiohead tends to take me to another world, plus I'm a sucker for clever metaphors. Using a house of cards to represent a fragile marriage... c'est magnifique! While I can understand that a lot of people hate Radiohead (some secretly some not), that almost even more reason to keep them on the list. Honorable mention to The White Stripes who would've taken this spot if I hadn't killed Icky Thump for myself by making it one of my ringtones.

19. Pork and Beans- Weezer

Weezer is the archetype of cool nerds which is totally awesome. And Pork and Beans is like their new anthem. Both the video and the song embody all that is Weezer. YouTube has disabled embedding for this video so the link is below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m25bzrmTvaU

18. Shake It- Metro Station

There's something about Miley's brother singing about doing the nasty that really make you want to "shake it." It's catchy, it's fun and if you really pay attention it's pretty dirty!

17. You're a Wolf- Sea Wolf

Sometimes simple repetition tells the best story. With it's folky feel, soothing vocals, and the mesmerizing effect of the cello, Sea Wolf enamors their listeners.

16. Little Motel- Modest Mouse

While "Dashboard" is the critic's favorite, "Little Motel" is one of those songs that speaks to the soul. In this melancholy little work, Modest Mouse captures the essence of longing through their signature beats and chords.

15. Stripper- Sohodolls

This song is the definition of sexy. It's a take no prisoners, edge of your seat, burlesque-ish show stopper that will keep you begging for more.

14. Hard to Live in the City- Albert Hammond, Jr.

While The Strokes' First Impressions of Earth was a year too early to get a song on this list, their guitarist's solo album came just in time. While his fingers keep that familiar style, his vocals are a little raspier than Julian's and make this solo debut deep as well as intriguing.

13. Stronger- Kanye West

I think most of us can agree that Kanye kicks ass and even though you may have heard "Stronger" 1,000,000,000 times, you can still get down to it. Honorable mention to "Put On" with Young Jeezy and "American Boy" with Estelle.

12. One Week of Danger- The Virgins

Definitely a bedroom song. The way the guitar strums and the less than delicate words say it all.

11. The Queen and I- Gym Class Heroes

This is like the anthem for a girl's night out drinking... and it's got a sick beat.

10. Always Where I Need to Be- The Kooks

There's much to be said about an upbeat song about things working out with a nice little guitar solo. There's also something incredibly charming about British musicians whose accents come through when they sing. Verdict: all around top notch stuff.

9. Paper Planes- M.I.A.

Whether or not you like her other songs better, you can't deny that Paper Planes is just plain fun to listen to. And anyone who makes a powerful statement about our society will always make it onto any list of mine.

8. Piece of Me- Britney Spears

Using all the negative attention she's gotten and making it a hit is the smartest thing Britney has ever done. It' like slapping everyone in the face and saying "If you're gonna talk shit I'll just make money off that so fuck you!" You go, Brit!

7. Forever- Chris Brown

That Chris Brown is such a cutie and DAMN can he move! With a voice like his and a smooth beat backing him up, it's no wonder this charmer has won over so many young ladies (including Rihanna)

6. Miley Cyrus- The 7 Things I Hate About You

Miley has graduated from being a Disney kid and is becoming one of the sexiest little things in music. This song is cute, catchy, infectious and easy to relate to. I swear there's just something about Miley. And if Demi Lovato thinks she has a chance of becoming half as popular as Miley she has another thing coming.

5. I'm Like a Lawyer With the Way I'm Always Trying to Get You Off- Fall Out Boy

I'm not going to deny that I like Fall Out Boy anymore because, hell, they're pretty fucking great. Not only is this a great song, but they made the music video an advertisement for Invisible Children (an organization that helps children in Uganda that have been forced to fight as soldiers in Uganda). Fall Out Boy is talented and they definitely have their heads (and hearts... awww) in the right place.

4. Make It Wit Chu- Queens of the Stone Age

Definitley a bedroom song, "Make It Wit Chu" is sexy, dirty, and very different from a lot of the Queens other music. Still, even when they slow it down, Queens of the Stone Age rock. (How can they not when they write a song about doing it "anytime, anywhere"?)

3. Disturbia- Rihanna

Whatever the French were talking about when the mentioned that certain je ne sais quoi, Rihanna has got it. A chart topping master at only 20 years old, she has major star potential. Disturbia is amost like the new Thriller with it's sinister edge.

2. Viva la Vida- Coldplay

Love them or hate them, Coldplay finally broke away from the "it all kind of sounds alike" mold with Viva la Vida. The strings, the words, and the overall sounds of this song make it stand out among the rest.

1. How We Breathe- Pinback

This may be a surprising pick for #1 but it's really my personal favorite. They do something incredible with the guitar strings that's unlike anything I've ever heard before. It's as if the chords are consuming you during the few lines before the chorus. Definitely something to look into.

Come On Feel the Illinois

Sufjan Steven (pronounced Soof-yawn) has been making music for several years now and is now considered a veteran in the indie and underground pop scene. But what is unique about Sufjan is that he isn't your typical artist you would hear on the radio or even at a underground club. He is known for using all intrusments in his music. Anything from banjos, xylophones, trumpets, you name it and he has used it in his music. He has even has gone as far as to use a whole Orchestra in some of his songs.

Many of Sufjan's songs have undertones and have meanings behind them. He writes a lot of his songs based on his life growing up and even on people. For example, the song "John Wayne Gacy Jr.' Sufjan wrote about the notourious killer of the same name. In case you don't know, the real John Wayne Gacy Jr. was jailed for the killing thirty-three young men and boys under the alias Pogo the clown.

Illinois are songs based from cities in the state in the same name. Chicago to Bloomington even Decatur Sufjan has written songs about them. Sufjan has been rumored to be writing either albums or song about all fifty states! North Carolina will be coming out soon, hopefully!

But I digress, Sufjan wrote this song because one, it happened while he was growing up and two, since he wanted his listeners to understand his meaning behind the song. If you were to listen to the song you would completely forget that the song was written about the a serial killer due to its very mellow and drone. But if you are looking for a historic and very light and poppy song then listen to "They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come back from the Dead!! Ahhhh!"  its historical reference to Zombies and Ronald Reagan and other dead presidents and how they come back to life are really noticeable to the listeners.

Whether you are in a mood for a slow and mellow song or a light and airy song. Sufjan provides it in classy not tacky way. He is not your ordinary folk artist. You will be seeing me write  A LOT about him in the near future. If you have any sense you will go out and download(legally, of course) his album.

Until Next Time,

Courtney

Before I move forward, I'd like to note that there is nothing inherently wrong about a political figure changing his or her mind once in a while. It is healthy for policy makers to make decisions about issues, gather more information, and then alter their position based on this information. That's just political...science. Policy makers come to one conclusion, they gain more information, and then they reach a different conclusion. Ok, so when I see a politician who changes his mind, I don't automatically think he's a flip-flopper. I try to analyze why he's changing his mind...is it because of healthy intellectual curiosity? Or is it for political expedience?

When it comes to John McCain, I'm sorry....he's a world class flip-flopper. His policy reversals are not sincere changes due to the gathering of more information on issues. John McCain changes his mind when it's politically beneficial for him to do so (oh and by the way, Sarah Palin does the same thing). This is a horrible character flaw, especially in a candidate for President of the United States.

Sarah Palin: "We tend to prefer candidates who don't talk about us one way in Scranton and another way in San Francisco.

"As for my running mate, you can be certain that wherever he goes, and whoever is listening, John McCain is the same man."

What a joke. Again, the McCain camp thinks you're stupid and that you don't know better and that you'll just take whatever they say at face value. Not me. And not you. Let me just give you a run down of John McCain's unbelievable flip-flops on IMPORTANT, VITAL policy issues.tax

This list is from The Carpet Bagger Report.

National Security Policy

1. McCain thought Bush’s warrantless-wiretap program circumvented the law; now he believes the opposite.

2. McCain insisted that everyone, even “terrible killers,” “the worst kind of scum of humanity,” and detainees at Guantanamo Bay, “deserve to have some adjudication of their cases,” even if that means “releasing some of them.” McCain now believes the opposite.

3. He opposed indefinite detention of terrorist suspects. When the Supreme Court reached the same conclusion, he called it “one of the worst decisions in the history of this country.”

4. In February 2008, McCain reversed course on prohibiting waterboarding.

5. McCain was for closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay before he was against it.

6. When Barack Obama talked about going after terrorists in Pakistani mountains with predators, McCain criticized him for it. He’s since come to the opposite conclusion.

Foreign Policy

7. McCain was for kicking Russia out of the G8 before he was against it. Now, he’s for it again.

8. McCain supported moving “towards normalization of relations” with Cuba. Now he believes the opposite.

9. McCain believed the U.S. should engage in diplomacy with Hamas. Now he believes the opposite.

10. McCain believed the U.S. should engage in diplomacy with Syria. Now he believes the opposite.

11. McCain is both for and against a “rogue state rollback” as a focus of his foreign policy vision.

12. McCain used to champion the Law of the Sea convention, even volunteering to testify on the treaty’s behalf before a Senate committee. Now he opposes it.

13. McCain was against divestment from South Africa before he was for it.

Military Policy

14. McCain recently claimed that he was the “greatest critic” of Rumsfeld’s failed Iraq policy. In December 2003, McCain praised the same strategy as “a mission accomplished.” In March 2004, he said, “I’m confident we’re on the right course.” In December 2005, he said, “Overall, I think a year from now, we will have made a fair amount of progress if we stay the course.”

15. McCain has changed his mind about a long-term U.S. military presence in Iraq on multiple occasions, concluding, on multiple occasions, that a Korea-like presence is both a good and a bad idea.

16. McCain was against additional U.S. forces in Afghanistan before he was for it.

17. McCain said before the war in Iraq, “We will win this conflict. We will win it easily.” Four years later, McCain said he knew all along that the war in Iraq war was “probably going to be long and hard and tough.”

18. McCain has repeatedly said it’s a dangerous mistake to tell the “enemy” when U.S. troops would be out of Iraq. In May, McCain announced that most American troops would be home from Iraq by 2013.

19. McCain was against expanding the GI Bill before he was for it.

20. McCain staunchly opposed Obama’s Iraq withdrawal timetable, and even blasted Mitt Romney for having referenced the word during the GOP primaries. In July, after Iraqi officials endorsed Obama’s policy, McCain said a 16-month calendar sounds like “a pretty good timetable.”

Domestic Policy

21. McCain defended “privatizing” Social Security. Now he says he’s against privatization (though he actually still supports it.)

22. On Social Security, McCain said he would not, under any circumstances, raise taxes. Soon after, asked about a possible increase in the payroll tax, McCain said there’s “nothing that’s off the table.”

23. McCain wanted to change the Republican Party platform to protect abortion rights in cases of rape and incest. Now he doesn’t.

24. McCain supported storing spent nuclear fuel at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. Now he believes the opposite.

25. He argued the NRA should not have a role in the Republican Party’s policy making. Now he believes the opposite.

26. In 1998, he championed raising cigarette taxes to fund programs to cut underage smoking, insisting that it would prevent illnesses and provide resources for public health programs. Now, McCain opposes a $0.61-per-pack tax increase, won’t commit to supporting a regulation bill he’s co-sponsoring, and has hired Philip Morris’ former lobbyist as his senior campaign adviser.

27. McCain is both for and against earmarks for Arizona.

28. McCain’s first mortgage plan was premised on the notion that homeowners facing foreclosure shouldn’t be “rewarded” for acting “irresponsibly.” His second mortgage plan took largely the opposite position.

29. McCain went from saying gay marriage should be allowed, to saying gay marriage shouldn’t be allowed.

30. McCain opposed a holiday to honor Martin Luther King, Jr., before he supported it.

31. McCain was anti-ethanol. Now he’s pro-ethanol.

32. McCain was both for and against state promotion of the Confederate flag.

33. In 2005, McCain endorsed intelligent design creationism, a year later he said the opposite, and a few months after that, he was both for and against creationism at the same time.

34. And on gay adoption, McCain initially said he’d rather let orphans go without families, then his campaign reversed course, and soon after, McCain reversed back.

35. In the Senate, McCain opposed a variety of measures on equal pay for women, and endorsed the Supreme Court’s Ledbetter decision. In July, however, McCain said, “I’m committed to making sure that there’s equal pay for equal work. That … is my record and you can count on it.”

36. McCain was against fully funding the No Child Left Behind Act before he was for it.

37. McCain was for affirmative action before he was against it.

38. McCain said the Colorado River compact will “obviously” need to be “renegotiated.” Six days later, McCain said, “Let me be clear that I do not advocate renegotiation of the compact.”

Economic Policy

39. McCain was against Bush’s tax cuts for the very wealthy before he was for them.

40. John McCain initially argued that economics is not an area of expertise for him, saying, “I’m going to be honest: I know a lot less about economics than I do about military and foreign policy issues; I still need to be educated,” and “The issue of economics is not something I’ve understood as well as I should.” He now falsely denies ever having made these remarks and insists that he has a “very strong” understanding of economics.

41. McCain vowed, if elected, to balance the federal budget by the end of his first term. Soon after, he decided he would no longer even try to reach that goal. And soon after that, McCain abandoned his second position and went back to his first.

42. McCain said in 2005 that he opposed the tax cuts because they were “too tilted to the wealthy.” By 2007, he denied ever having said this, and falsely argued that he opposed the cuts because of increased government spending.

43. McCain thought the estate tax was perfectly fair. Now he believes the opposite.

44. McCain pledged in February 2008 that he would not, under any circumstances, raise taxes. Specifically, McCain was asked if he is a “‘read my lips’ candidate, no new taxes, no matter what?” referring to George H.W. Bush’s 1988 pledge. “No new taxes,” McCain responded. Two weeks later, McCain said, “I’m not making a ‘read my lips’ statement, in that I will not raise taxes.”

45. McCain has changed his entire economic worldview on multiple occasions.

46. McCain believes Americans are both better and worse off economically than they were before Bush took office.

Energy Policy

47. McCain supported the moratorium on coastal drilling ; now he’s against it.

48. McCain recently announced his strong opposition to a windfall-tax on oil company profits. Three weeks earlier, he was perfectly comfortable with the idea.

49. McCain endorsed a cap-and-trade policy with a mandatory emissions cap. In mid-June, McCain announced he wants the caps to voluntary.

50. McCain explained his belief that a temporary suspension of the federal gas tax would provide an immediate economic stimulus. Shortly thereafter, he argued the exact opposite.

51. McCain supported the Lieberman/Warner legislation to combat global warming. Now he doesn’t.

52. McCain was for national auto emissions standards before he was against them.

Immigration Policy

53. McCain was a co-sponsor of the DREAM Act, which would grant legal status to illegal immigrants’ kids who graduate from high school. In 2007, he announced his opposition to the bill. In 2008, McCain switched back.

54. On immigration policy in general, McCain announced in February 2008 that he would vote against his own bill.

55. In April, McCain promised voters that he would secure the borders “before proceeding to other reform measures.” Two months later, he abandoned his public pledge, pretended that he’d never made the promise in the first place, and vowed that a comprehensive immigration reform policy has always been, and would always be, his “top priority.”

Judicial Policy and the Rule of Law

56. McCain said he would “not impose a litmus test on any nominee.” He used to promise the opposite.

57. McCain’s position was that the telecoms should be forced to explain their role in the administration’s warrantless surveillance program as a condition for retroactive immunity. He used to believe the opposite.

58. McCain went from saying he would not support repeal of Roe v. Wade to saying the exact opposite.

59. In June, McCain rejected the idea of a trial for Osama bin Laden, and thought Obama’s reference to Nuremberg was a misread of history. A month later, McCain argued the exact opposite position.

60. In June, McCain described the Supreme Court’s decision in Boumediene v. Bush was “one of the worst decisions in the history of this country.” In August, he reversed course.

Campaign, Ethics, and Lobbying Reform

61. McCain supported his own lobbying-reform legislation from 1997. Now he doesn’t.

62. In 2006, McCain sponsored legislation to require grassroots lobbying coalitions to reveal their financial donors. In 2007, after receiving “feedback” on the proposal, McCain told far-right activist groups that he opposes his own measure.

63. McCain supported a campaign-finance bill, which bore his name, on strengthening the public-financing system. In June 2007, he abandoned his own legislation.

64. In May 2008, McCain approved a ban on lobbyists working for his campaign. In July 2008, his campaign reversed course and said lobbyists could work for his campaign.

Politics and Associations

65. McCain wanted political support from radical televangelist John Hagee. Now he doesn’t. (He also believes his endorsement from Hagee was both a good and bad idea.)

66. McCain wanted political support from radical televangelist Rod Parsley. Now he doesn’t.

67. McCain says he considered and did not consider joining John Kerry’s Democratic ticket in 2004.

68. McCain is both for and against attacking Barack Obama over his former pastor at his former church.

69. McCain criticized TV preacher Jerry Falwell as “an agent of intolerance” in 2002, but then decided to cozy up to the man who said Americans “deserved” the 9/11 attacks.

70. In 2000, McCain accused Texas businessmen Sam and Charles Wyly of being corrupt, spending “dirty money” to help finance Bush’s presidential campaign. McCain not only filed a complaint against the Wylys for allegedly violating campaign finance law, he also lashed out at them publicly. In April, McCain reached out to the Wylys for support.

71. McCain was against presidential candidates campaigning at Bob Jones University before he was for it.

72. McCain decided in 2000 that he didn’t want anything to do with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, believing he “would taint the image of the ‘Straight Talk Express.’” Kissinger is now the Honorary Co-Chair for his presidential campaign in New York.

73. McCain believed powerful right-wing activist/lobbyist Grover Norquist was “corrupt, a shill for dictators, and (with just a dose of sarcasm) Jack Abramoff’s gay lover.” McCain now considers Norquist a key political ally.

74. McCain was for presidential candidates giving speeches in foreign countries before he was against it.

75. McCain has been both for and against considering a pro-choice running mate for the Republican presidential ticket.

I've written about it before, and I think have talked mainly about the diet and issues like that... but Jr was diagnosed with ADHD last year.  We figured the diagnoses was coming after all of his issues in school starting immediately in preschool.  I think he's pretty much your average, typical ADHD kid.  His main issues are impulse control (meaning he doesn't think through to the consequences of his behavior) and focus (can't seem to sit through getting his work done, especially with distractions at school).  Fortunately he doesn't have anger issues, which I'm relieved about, but he does have a hard time managing his emotions at times.  If that makes sense.

I've been hesitantly hopeful about this year because we started a new school in an entirely new school system.  They seem to have their s&#* together here in Texas education-wise... and I thought (think) it could be a great thing for Jr since he does have special needs.  He started second grade just last Monday and everything was going great.  He was very positive all week and really loves his new school and has already made friends (which is awesome!)  I had talked to his teacher during the week about something, I don't remember what, and she sounded very positive and said what a sweet boy he is. All of that positive talk had me thinking that maybe the way they have things set up here is going to really make a difference for him!

Well, I'm sure you saw this coming, but I got a call from his teacher today.  Big shock,  Jr is having a hard time in class.  Not only today, but all last week too. His teacher is really very nice, very experienced and has a great personality;  She has a sweetness and patience that his prior teachers have never had and I am very thankful for that.  She explained some of the things that have been going on and my heart just sank.  It's all the same stuff.  The same issues we've been dealing with for 2+ years.  Not keeping his hands to himself, drawing on his classmates shirts, being unruly during bathroom breaks, etc.

I don't know why, maybe because the summers are always so great but it just threw me for a loop, again, even though I was still considering myself "hesitant" about the schoolyear.

It totally makes sense that with ADHD the school setting isn't going to "fix" anything... and that those are his issues so it's not like they're just going to disappear.  THOSE are the issues he'll always need help in managing and dealing with.  (I guess I should just be happy new ones didn't crop up.)  But while I understand it, THAT'S the part that really bums me out.  We've worked so incredibly hard with him the last 2 years... the last year especially about those issues.  And the new school year starts with a fresh start and... he starts right back up again. IMMEDIATELY.  I want to just shake him and yell, "Why are you not getting this?!"  And then I try to remember that that's what makes it a disorder.  It's not just an annoying personality trait - he's actually cognitively limited in those areas.  All we can do is continue what we're doing:  Stay consisitent, work with the school/teacher, set boundaries, create rewards systems.  Beyond that, what can I do for him while he's at school?!  It's completely beyond my control.

I think what's hardest for me about it all is he is the sweetest and smartest kid I know. Anyone who really knows Jr, loves him!  He loves his mom and family with all his heart.  He is interested in boring Space shows about Black Holes because they're "very interesting".  (Seriously super boring ones!)  He loves to cuddle and watch cartoons.  He can build amazing Lego Star Wars ships. He can truly make me laugh with a joke - not just a polite Mommy-Pity Laugh.  But no matter how amazing, smart, funny he is to us, to everyone else around us he'll be "that kid".  The kid that causes all the trouble.  The kid that all the other parents will roll their eyes about and want to keep their kids away from because he's getting their kids into trouble!  And it seems like no matter what we do he's just not understanding what we desperately want him to understand - and for his own good!

We've always said that medication will be a last straw and I'm feeling like we're winding down to that last straw soon.  I HATE HATE HATE the thought of it because they are incredibly strong drugs for such a small child, but I honestly don't know what else to do for him.   And then I read up about ritalin and drugs like it and am reminded why it's not such an easy decision when it's your precious child.

We're on the Feingold Diet (which defintely helps in some areas), we've talked and talked and reminded and reminded about behaviors, we've punished, we've rewarded, we've tried fish oil and other natural vitamins, we've prayed for him and with him.  Right now we're trying L-theanine and are waiting for a few weeks to see if there are positive results and are looking for a counselor to help with behavior modifications.  And I always said I would homeschool before putting him in medication.  He actually is a very well adjusted boy who can learn... he just has a harder time in the typical school setting than other kids.

Can you see why I'm overwhelmed?  The school year just brings about a lot of ongoing frustrations as well as brings back around many big questions... most of which I feel completely unprepared and unable to answer.

Just be praying for for Jr.  Be praying for us for guidance.  Be praying for his teacher and the school. And I guess just thank you for listening and for loving our little guy. :)

I love to learn new things! I love to explore, gain knowledge, and seek adventure. It is a need every single day. If I haven't experienced a new thought, met a new person, had a new idea, or read something that makes me think--I feel my day is not complete.

Once we realize that we have some misguided ideas about life, about what it can, and should be, a whole new world of opportunity can open up to us. "Thinking outside the box" has become a cliche, however, its orginal intent was right on. My desire is for God to open our eyes to the mysteries that He has created in the world around us--to see with the innocent eyes of a child, without preconceived notions and limitations.

How can you stretch your mind today?

Se ha dedicado a fotografiar a los habitantes de las favelas brasileñas de Río de Janeiro, y realizar inmensos montajes con sus rostros en las distintas paredes, dando un aspecto global increible.

Aquí teneis algunas de las fotografías.

Y aquí, fotografía del equipo que ha hecho esta obra, en plan guerrillero con sus herramientas de trabajo:

(vía)

IN OTHER NEWS ...

THE LIPS HAVE IT The Rolling Stones' original lips logo artwork (circa 1970) "lips was sold to London's Victoria and Albert Museum yesterday for $92,500. Not that the guys need the money, but ...

AULD LANG SYNE The late Dan Fogelberg's home town (Peoria, Illinois ... which proves it can play in Peoria!) is gonna name a street in his honor next Wednesday (the 10th). Abington Street will be called "Fogelberg Parkway" after the ceremony. (He met an old girlfriend -- immortalized in the song "Same Old Lang Syne"-- in a liquor store on that street.) The city's annual fall music festival three days later will be a tribute to Dan.

Folk legend Pete Seeger hadta cancel his appearance at the Guitar Masters World Tour yesterday (he was gonna be the main act). Y'see, his wife is seriously ill and, while he's 89 years-old and doin' fine, his wife took a turn for the worse over the weekend.

IN HONOR OF JERRY REED, here he is, doin' the Wabash Cannonball:

A CLOSING SHOT: We're gonna run a little contest here in a coupla/three clicks, and the winner's gonna get at least a copy of The Relic's Birth of Superock! CD ... mebbe even more! Also, I've got a compadre who's workin' on a new item:  The shiny-new, mint-condition, often-imitated-but-never-duplicated ROCK RELIC TEES (and I ain't talking "golf" here, either!)! As I understand it, there are more items to come ...  I'll keep ya posted as to when they'll be ready to ride ... er, wear ...

Anyway, it's still kinda early, but I'm gonna wrap it up for this segment and get a few other pieces of work done.  But we'll be back sometime tomorrow evening with a new episode ... so stay tuned.  Meanwhile ...

keep your eyes on the skies, your feet on the ground, your heart with the music ...

and I'll see ya on the flip side!

As you read below, notice the ties to Mercy Hospital.

The Washington Post has an article dated August 27, 2008 about
Hunter Biden, the lobbyist son of Senator Joe Biden and his
connection to Barack Obama. However, after reading about Hunter
Biden's activities, it is readily apparent that he is connected
to Obama's web of deception. Here are exerpts from the Washington
Post article:
"Obama, Biden's Son Linked by Earmarks
Candidate Got Funding for Nursing Program
 
Now that Sen. Joseph Biden, left, is the Democratic vice presidential candidate, congressional ties to his lobbyist son Hunter, right, are coming under scrutiny. 
By James V. Grimaldi and Kimberly Kindy
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, August 27, 2008"
"Sen. Barack Obama sought more than $3.4 million in congressional earmarks for clients of the lobbyist son of his Democratic running mate, Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware, records show."
"Obama's spokesman also acknowledged lobbying for Mercy Hospital, another client of Hunter Biden."
"The younger Biden started his career as a lobbyist in 2001 and has registered to represent about 21 clients that have brought in $3.5 million to his Washington firm, according to lobbying disclosure forms.

Sen. Biden has collected more than $6.9 million in campaign contributions from lobbyists and lawyers since 1989, according to the Center for Responsive Politics."
"From 2001 to 2005, Hunter was paid an undisclosed amount by the credit card giant, which has since been purchased by Bank of America. It has been widely reported that he received $100,000 a year.

At the time, Sen. Biden led a successful, high-profile battle in the Senate for a bankruptcy bill that ultimately benefited credit card companies. The law makes it more difficult for people to file for personal bankruptcy protection under Chapter 7."
Read more of the article here:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/26/AR2008082603894.html?nav=emailpage
From a Chicago Sun-Times article dated August 23, 2008 about
University of Chicago Medical Center. This is where Michelle Obama
worked as a $317,000 a year vice president. This also is the hospital that nearly tripled her salary in 2004, just after Barack Obama was elected to the US Senate.
"Michelle Obama -- currently on unpaid leave from her $317,000-a-year job as a vice president of the prestigious hospital"

"Obama's top political strategist, David Axelrod, co-owns the firm, ASK Public Strategies, that was hired by the hospital last year to sell the program -- called the Urban Health Initiative -- to the community as a better alternative for poor patients. Obama's wife and Valerie Jarrett, an Obama friend and adviser who chairs the medical center's board, backed the Axelrod firm's hiring, hospital officials said."

"Another Obama adviser and close friend, Dr. Eric Whitaker, took over the Urban Health Initiative when he was hired at U. of C. in October 2007. Whitaker previously had been director of the Illinois Department of Public Health. Obama has said he recommended Whitaker for the state job, giving his name to Tony Rezko, who helped Gov. Blagojevich assemble his Cabinet. Rezko, a former fund-raiser for Obama and Blagojevich, was convicted in June on federal corruption charges tied to state deals."
Read more of the article here:
http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/obama/1122691,CST-NWS-hosp23.article
From the Federal indictment against Dr. Robert Weinstein:

"The false statements count alleges that on May 24, 2004, Weinstein lied to an FBI agent when he said that Levine never told him that Rezko had influence over the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board, the state board that regulates hospital construction and expansion. In fact, the indictment alleges Weinstein knew that he and Levine had discussed Rezko’s influence over the Planning Board, including in a recorded conversation on April 21, 2004, in which Levine explicitly advised Weinstein of Rezko’s role in manipulating the Planning Board’s vote earlier that day on the Certificate of Need application of Mercy Health System Corp. Hospital and other matters."

Read the indictment here:

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/iln/pr/chicago/2008/pr0627_01.pdf
From the Petition to Impeach, expel Senator Obama:
"Whereas: Senator Barack Obama used the office of IL Senator to
facilitate the vote rigging in Chicago as chairman of the Illinois Senate Health and Human Services Committee. Mr. Obama pushed legislation in Senate Bill 1332 to reduce the number of members of the Health Facilities Planning Board from 15 to 9. Mr. Obama did conspire with Stuart Levine, Tony Rezko and Rod Blogojevich to rig the committee and was rewarded with campaign contributions. The new members appointed included 3 doctors who contributed to Mr. Obama. On April 21, 2004, Stuart Levine explicitly advised Dr. Robert Weinstein, who is now indicted, of Tony Rezko's role in manipulating the Planning Board's vote."
 
Read the Petition here:
http://obamaimpeachment.org/impeachobamapetition.html

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."

But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so, we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.

We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.

The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.

We cannot walk alone.

And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.

We cannot turn back.

There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating: "For Whites Only." We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream."¹

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. And some of you have come from areas where your quest -- quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.

And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."²

This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.

With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:

My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.

Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride,

From every mountainside, let freedom ring!

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.

And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.

Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.

Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.

Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that:

Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.

From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:

Free at last! Free at last!

Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!³

__________________________________________________________

¹ Amos 5:24 (rendered precisely in The American Standard Version of the Holy Bible)

² Isaiah 40:4-5 (King James Version of the Holy Bible). Quotation marks are excluded from part of this moment in the text because King's rendering of Isaiah 40:4 does not precisely follow the KJV version from which he quotes (e.g., "hill" and "mountain" are reversed in the KJV). King's rendering of Isaiah 40:5, however, is precisely quoted from the KJV.

³ At: http://www.negrospirituals.com/news-song/free_at_last_from.htm

sumber: American Rethoric