No Women's Bodies Were Exploited in This Ad...

Well, I don't like this either. I saw this on Jezebel.com, and the point is to draw attention to the exploitation of women by the advertising industry. However, I don't think people will fully understand the point. My concern is that people see this and think it is ok to exploit people as long as it is equal opportunity.

Book Review: A Book of Ages by Eric Hanson

A Book of Ages: An Eccentric Miscellany of Great and Offbeat Moments in the Lives of the Famous and Infamous, Ages 1 to 100 by Eric Hanson

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
I liked this book. My sister Katie suggested I read it. I often find it difficult just to sit and read books like this in one sitting. The book is divided by years, and then seemingly random facts in each year's chapter. I really like the sarcasm woven into the facts. Of course this book also reaffirmed by previous thoughts that I would have to die before I'm thirty, and at the very least by forty-five. Or I'll have to live beyond ninety. Young enough to matter or old enough to get away with anything. Either way the book is pretty good definitely something that could be read every morning or every evening.


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I admit I have a creepy interest in this...

Fritzel, you know the name. He is the seriously disturbed man who imprisoned, raped, and abused his daughter and their offspring. The daughter has been released from a mental hospital; her father will tried for several charges including refusing medical treatment to the child which died, enslavement, rape, and incest just to name a few. I have tried to ignore than, but every time it is in the news I can't look away.

I hope this man spends the rest of his life in prison. Nothing else can be done with him.

Some New Muttering Retreats Recordings

For those who read this blog and don't know... three of its contributors are in a band together. Chris, Cari, & I are The Muttering Retreats. We released an album back in June, but here's some fresh recordings.

We recorded these 100% live with no overdubs, mostly on first takes on a weird laptop setup two days ago. I mixed & 'mastered' them late last night. Two new songs that weren't on the album, one album track with a vastly different arrangement, and two more that are similar to the album versions but still different enough. I'm pretty proud with the way these turned out. This is definitely a little bit of a detour stylistically, don't expect us to do a whole album of completely glitched out Casio stuff anytime soon, but this was fun to do.

1. Untitled (Sarah)
2. Tara Take A Photograph
3. Jesus Bands
4. The Capitalist & The Communist Vie For Our Hero's Affection
5. Oh, Agnes (New)

Download

F You Creators of Rapeman...

This is so sad for me on several levels. Of course sexual assault is never funny, and women never "deserve it" and particularly not for "wronging men". But also because I love Comic Books, and I argue that they have come along way from objectifying women so far even to present strong female heroes which is particularly important while competing against patronizing trash like Twilight. Anyway, I saw this on Feministing, and thought I would be at loss for words, but luckily enough.

Old Enough to Marry; Not Old Enough to Divorce

A Saudi Court as ruled that an eight year old can not divorce her husband, 58, until she is older. e girl's mother separated from her father and filed for divorce on her daughter's behalf. The case was dismissed, and the girl told to reapply for divorce after she reaches puberty. The girl is to live with her mother until she is 18.

I can only hope this girl is granted her divorce at some point. I am completely disgusted by this situation.

Cosmo vs. Ms

So I'm skimming Jezebel, and I notice their is a post once again criticising Cosmo yet again. I'm not a terribly big fan of the magazine to begin with, but this draws attention to the fiction section of the magazine. This month's depicts an almost rape scene, but it isn't of course on some technicality. It is still too close for my liking.

You contrast this the most recent issue of Ms. Magazine which features an article on rape in the military, and you have to wonder. One magazine romanticizes it and the other attempts looks at sexual assault for what it is.

Please pay attention: Slumberland Records still exists!

So, old farts in their late 20s/early 30s such as myself may remember Slumberland Records from the 90's. In that decade, they released seminal records by Velocity Girl, The Softies, Boyracer, Stereolab, The Aislers Set, and a whole bunch more that I could just list for a good few paragraphs... but I choose to spare you. This is my holiday gift to the internet.

The label began in 1989 and for the duration of the 90's it served as a great bridge to cross to get from the DIY/amateur aesthetic of labels like K Records and the more urbane (and as far as this listener is concerned, overrated) Sarah Records. From about 2001 until 2006, the label wasn't technically active. They had a couple of releases, but were in no way a fully functional label. In 2006, they returned with a slew of 7" singles and a couple of full-length records. It took me a while to come back around to this label, but two records I've heard recently have gotten me very interested.

The first of these two records is It's Time, a collection of singles and ep's by Cause Co-Motion! Yes, the exclamation point is part of their name, please don't hold that against them. This album collects fourteen tracks that average about a minute and a half a piece. The instrumentation is sparse yet vibrant... the guitars tend to stick to one-string progressions in lieu of chords. The vocals are reminiscent of someone like Stephen Pastel, in that they're rarely pitch perfect, but suit the songs perfectly. With the recent explosion of hype for a band like The Vivian Girls, I hope that a band like Cause Co-Motion! can also make it.

Second up is the debut full length from The Pains of Being Pure At Heart. This band combines a bunch of familiar sounds in such a manner that it surprises me that there aren't more bands that sound exactly like this. The instrumentation reminds me a lot of Honey's Dead-era Jesus & Mary Chain, with vocals reminiscent of the aforementioned Stephen Pastel (albeit a more on-key version this time around) with maybe the girls from Heavenly on backing vocals. It's all very crunchy and fuzzy and more than anything, reminds the listener that they're listening to a band on Slumberland Records. This one isn't out until early '09, but I'm very excited to be able to hold a copy in my hands.


You can listen to/download tracks from both of these releases at the following locations:

Slumberland Records: http://www.slumberlandrecords.com

Cause Co-Motion!: http://www.causeco-motion.com/

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart: http://www.thepainsofbeingpureatheart.com/

Fair Pay Commercial

I found this interesting, and a new way to look at the issue of unfair pay. As far as I'm concerned paying women less is like saying fuck you. I saw this commercial on Feministing.com.

Bush Does Something Right Before He Leaves Office!

Yes, it's true. President Bush ducked a flying shoe while in Baghdad. Remarkable as it may seem, he actually ducked it and was alright. Apparently, this is ok with Bush because it is an expression of free speech...not exactly my interpretation call me tyrannical. I don't believe in violence, and frankly a shoe was thrown to hurt President Bush. I understand down playing the situation, but the fact is someone wanted to inflect pain. Interesting nonetheless, because the Secret Service just kind of stood by and I never would have thought to use a shoe.

American Auto Industry

CNN.com broke down the Auto Industry by state. The top 10 are in dark blue. It is an interesting map, and emphasizes that the Great Lakes Region is going to hurt from the Auto-Bailout dying in Senate. Yeah, USA, USA.

Note that Ohio is third in the nation, because our economy isn't already shaky enough. We follow Michigan and Cali.

Book Review: The Pillowman

The Pillowman: A Play by Martin McDonagh

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
I don't know which theme was more exciting in this book: interrogation techniques of dictatorships, censorship, or the effects of literature on those who consume it. When I began reading this play I assumed the major theme would be the injustices suffered by the "writer" during his interrogation, and they were horrible. Then the writer become obsessed with the threat that his work will be destroyed. This theme is strong till the end of the play. Then there is the more controversial theme: are writers responsible for the actions of the people reading their works? How much responsibility does the intellectual creator have? This play addresses all these themes and more. It is dark, funny, and wonderful.


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Target Women!

Book Review The Vagina Monologues

The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
Brilliant! Of course I am a big fan. I read this for the first time after I watched it performed by friends in college. I re-read this every year for V-Day. I actually don't have a favorite section because they are all so good.


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Book Review Without a Net: Middle Class and Homless (with Kids) in America

Without a Net: Middle Class and Homeless (with Kids) in America by Michelle Kennedy

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
This was a quick read, but worth it. Kennedy depicts her descent into poverty as a series f poor decisions. It isn't a new concept, but one that often isn't given the credit it deserves. It is reminiscent of the early novel because of it's transformation into a love story of sorts.


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So Wonderful

Hey Congress, the Auto-Workers aren't your red-headed step children

I am seriously disturbed by the fact the auto-workers are having so much trouble getting a piece of the bailout.  The Dems and President Bush are working together, but it looks like it might not matter anyway because of the Republicans in the Senate who want to vote against it.  The bailout would be 15 billion dollars in emergency loans to Chrysler and General Motors, and President Bush would get to appoint a car czar to oversee everything.  They want to hold Chrysler's parent company liable for any losses and let the car czar impose a long-term viability plan for the auto companies.  The bill would also allow the car czar to force one of the companies into bankruptcy.

In the end, I'm still wondering why the auto workers are having such trouble.  This bailout is nothing compared to the bank one, and more people's jobs are at risk.  Where is the confusion?  I'd like to read the proposed bill, but this actually sounds alright to me...so far.  

Sometimes I just like talking about sex

Ok, fine, my adolescent dream was to be Carrie Bradshaw, just kidding. 

But really, Jezebel had a post about condoms, birth control, and sexual satisfaction.  So of course it caught my eye.  Apparently, the most common reason not to wear a condom is "it feels better without one."  However, a survey was conducted and something interesting was discovered: women who used hormonal birth control and condoms reported the highest level of sexual satisfaction.  They conclude with what you think you should or shouldn't be feeling with a condom has more to with your mind than feeling.  

I don't know if I agree completely mostly because a few days again I read about the 40% of women who don't orgasms, and the 12% of them who think that is ok.  I worry that people, men, women, and most importantly doctors are ready to write off women's sexual issues with it's a "psychological woman thing" without the appropriate studies.  Also, regardless of one's feelings about better with or without a condom you should probably use one anyway...it is just safer even with birth control because you can get other things than pregnant. 

Book Review: Mortarville by Grant Bailie

I'm not usually a fan of Sci-Fi, but I've got to say, Mortarville, by local Cleveland writer Grant Bailie, was absolutely fantastic. This is a novel that is difficult to discuss without giving too much away, so let me just say that it "went places" and leave it at that. 5/5

Oh, and I must note, this was recommended to me by a good friend and fellow blogger Mr. Darby M. Dixon III. You should check out his blog because it is fantastic.

I was just talking about this guy

Governor Rod Blagojevich, Illinois, was arrested this morning for trying to sell Obama's Senate seat.  Yeah, this is the same guy who is boycotting the Bank of America from yesterday's post.  Gawker gives us a little information about Governor Rod's ideas about what Obama's seat could go for:

1. a salary from either a non-profit or organization affiliated with unions

2. placement of his wife on corporate boards where she could make $150,000  

3. campaign funds, including cash upfront

4. a cabinet position or ambassadorship for himself

Chicago politics at their best.