"I think the American people—I hope the American–I don't think, let me—I hope the American people trust me."—President George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Dec. 18, 2002

Trust? Hmmmm? According to a Washington Post story the FBI is working with campus police departments to spy on organizations and individuals at American colleges and universities. The government does not trust its own citizens.

Professor David Cole recently talked to Terry Gross about government surveillance. *listen here* (about 20 minutes) Among other things, he talks about the FBI infiltrating groups (anti-war, etc.) under COINTELPRO in the 1960s and using "snitch jackets" to undermine leaders.

Americans either do not know their history or they have learned nothing from it. Why is everyone so willing to go along with whatever these guys tell us?

Attorney General John Ashcroft and his colleagues demand that we give them unlimited power to search, watch, listen to and detain people in the name of national security. Before long they will start watching and gathering intelligience on their political enemies in order to stay in power longer which allows them to push through their political agenda. They question the patriotism of anyone who questions their motives but how can anyone be unpatriotic for protecting the Constitution.

I found this synopsis of Bushy's State of the Union: Click Here

For some reason this makes me laugh. Actually, I was sitting here eating oatmeal and checking my email and I started laughing.

I am preparing to watch Dubya's State of the Union address tonight. I assume that it will be little more than a pre-war pep rally.

Rummy can't wait to start the War against Iraq and Ashcroft will just continue his domestic operations against the American people.

Dave Barry has a new weblog.

It is freakin cold! :-) And, I hate snow.

I had a bad weekend. Snow, cold, aches, pains, tremors...blech.

Another movie recommendation: Amélie. It is just a really enjoyable film, especially visually. The title character is played by Audrey Tautou who reminds me of a combination of Audrey Hepburn and Björk (so, of course, I am in love with her). I wanted to see this film when it was in the theatre, but, living in Central PA, foreign films rarely make an appearance near me. So, sadly, that was the high point of my weekend.

I watched Naked on IFC the other night. I've seen this film about five times and I enjoy it each time. There are several sexual "encounters" in the film which are really disturbing, but I find myself laughing (yes, alone in the dark) through the rest of the movie.

The character Johnny, played by David Thewlis, seems to derive his only joy in life by playing mind games with anyone he meets. I get in trouble all the time because when I am at a family gathering I automatically take the opposite view in any conversation just to see what kind of response I get. Johnny takes this to the extreme.

He shows up at his ex-girlfriend's place in London and she asks:

Louise: How did you get here?
Johnny: Well, basically, there was this little dot, right? And the dot went bang and the bang expanded. Energy formed into matter, matter cooled, matter lived, the amoeba to fish, to fish to fowl, to fowl to frog, to frog to mammal, the mammal to monkey, to monkey to man, amo amas amat, quid pro quo, memento mori, ad infinitum, sprinkle on a little bit of grated cheese and leave under the grill till Doomsday.

Louise just looks at him with a straight face.

There is also this exchange with a security guard at a vacant office building:

Johnny: And what is it what goes on in this postmodern gas chamber?
Brian: Nothing. It's empty.
Johnny: So what is it you guard, then?
Brian: Space.
Johnny: You're guarding space? That's stupid, isn't it? Because someone could break in there and steal all the fuckin' space and you wouldn't know it's gone, would you?
Brian: Good point.

Okay, I know, I am nuts, but I find that amusing. If David Sedaris was a homeless man from Manchester he would be Johnny.

The internet is great for one thing--LISTS.

So here are some movie lists (in no particular order):

• Favorite films (general)


• Ratcatcher


• Mike Leigh's Naked - read a review from J.R. Arinaga, an "average american" (possibly slightly below average)


• Ghost World


• Hudsucker Proxy (You know...for kids!)


• This is Spinal Tap


• Monty Python and the Holy Grail


• Favorite films (documentary)


• Les Glaneurs et La Glaneuse (The Gleaners and I)


• Salesman


• Lalee's Kin: The Legacy of Cotton


• Gimme Shelter


• Favorite Films (other)


• The Lenny Bruce Performance Film (the DVD and VHS versions also include the animated short Thank You Mask Man which is great
  
• Latcho Drom


• La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc (The Passion of Joan of Arc)


• La Grande Illusion


• Le Roi de Coeur

Here is an analysis by Stewart Nusbaumer of the "balanced" ;-) TV coverage of the Anti-War March in DC.

Read the article

When I checked CNN and MSNBC (I don't even bother with Fox) they were not covering it.

I have nothing to say today, but for your reading and listening pleasure Ive included a few links:

• They Know When You Are Sleeping by Katha Pollitt from The Nation


• The Cruelty of Children *listen* (if you have an hour) from This American Life

A nice little haiku

Unwanted plastic
Arrives in the mail daily
Crap from A O L

- ZV


Purveyors of Spam
Billions sent as landfills bloat
How far will they go?

- Lunch Muscle

(from NoMoreAOLcds)

Scott Simon had an excellent essay on today's Weekend Edition about Gov. Ryan commuting the death sentences of 160 Illinois death row inmates. *Listen Here*

Today was the big peace rally in DC. I had it on C-SPAN and I thought that I would check to see if the cable news channels were covering it so I switched to CNN and there was a full screen shot of orangish-red clouds and a big title: CLOUDS of WAR. MSNBC had on Headliners and Legends about Russell Crowe.


So, anyhow, there were some very good speakers at the rally and it looked like there were a lot of people there in the cold. I wish that they would have focused on the anti-war message instead of evry other speaker pushing their own issue. I heard speeches about gay rights, abortion, free Palestine, free Mumia Abu Jamal, etc. That is the problem with the left; instead of coming together today under one issue and pushing that message exclusively, they continued to get off message and alienate more people with each speaker.

Patti Smith was there towards the end and got it right when she said "We are not a black voice, we are not a white voice, we are not an American voice...we are a human voice, one voice" then she sang People Have the Power. C-span is replaying it tonight at 8pm.

Molly Ivins' article: Demand peace

I saw Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players on Conan O'Brien a couple of weeks ago. I was shocked to see something so offbeat and interesting on network television.

There is plenty of info on their website, but basically they are a father, mother and daughter act that writes and performs songs about old slides that they find at estate sales. The father plays piano and sings, mom works the projector and eight year old Rachel plays drums and harmonica and sings.



Read a New York Post story about them here.

There is also a documentary about them here.

So now I have to see their show next time I'm in New York.

---

Topic #2

A picture of the All-Powerful Generalissimo Ashcroft:

I want to go on a mountain-top
With a radio and good batteries
And play a joyous tune and
Free the human race
From suffering


It doesnt scare me at all


I'm no fucking buddhist
But this is enlightenment


- Björk, Alarm call

One of my favorite Saturday Night Live commercials is the Bathroom Monkey. Click on the picture to view it.


To download (on a PC),
1) right mouse click this link
2) choose "Save Target As"
3) Then click "Save As" to a folder on your Hard Drive (recommend saving to your Desktop)
4) now play the movie by double-clicking on the file you have downloaded

We're all monkeys

Teenage angst has paid off well
Now I'm bored and old
- Nirvana, Serve The Servants

Visit the Information Awareness Office website.

I just ate a whole pizza. Not a big one, but still.

I watched Ghost World again today. I love that film.

Yes, it is a sad, sad existence. :-(

Yes, I watched bowl games all day yesterday. Penn State lost. :-( I am really tired of listening to former football players turned color commentators. Most of them seem to think that the louder they talk the more authoritative they sound but they just sound stupid. There are only a few that do a good job, Bob Griese, Dan Dierdorf, and Pat Hayden. Well, there may be others, these guys are the best.

Does any of this really matter? No, I agree. But, only one more day left in the college football season. Then three long months of suffering through basketball and hockey while awaiting baseball's opening day. Go Phils! :-D