Power, a leading proponent of “human rights” imperialism, looks back nostalgically at the Cold War as a golden age of news dissemination, when “most Americans received their news and information via mediated platforms.” She continues: “Reporters and editors serving in the role of professional gatekeepers had almost full control over what appeared in the media. A foreign adversary seeking to reach American audiences did not have great options for bypassing these umpires, and Russian disinformation rarely penetrated.”
It is worth considering who is writing these lines. First as a key policy advisor to Obama, then as Washington’s representative to the United Nations, Power was a leading architect of the disastrous US-led destabilization operation in Libya that shattered that country’s society. She is a key propagandist of the American-instigated civil war in Syria, which has led to hundreds of thousands of deaths and the greatest refugee crisis since the Second World War.
Power longs for the time when, as was the case during the Korean War and the earlier part of the Vietnam War, the monopoly of the major broadcasters over public discourse could be used to keep the criminal policies of US imperialism under wraps.
She is bitter and resentful over the fact that, despite the best efforts of the corporate-controlled media to sell US operations in the Middle East to the public as anti-terrorist and humanitarian efforts, organizations such as Wikileaks and journalists such as Seymour Hersh have exposed the fact that the United States has cultivated alliances with forces linked to Al Qaeda and ISIS to pursue regime-change in Libya and Syria, totally undercutting the narrative of the “war on terror” that has been used to justify US imperialist policy since 2001.
If Power had her way, Chelsea Manning’s exposure of the murder of journalists and Iraqi civilians by the US military and Edward Snowden’s exposure illegal dragnet surveillance by the NSA would be branded as “fake news” and blocked by technology giants such as Google, Apple and Facebook.
-- Andre Damon, "Obama adviser Samantha Power calls for crackdown on social media" (WSWS).
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Truest statement of the week II
Anyway, at the meeting (which included
billionaire, Demo-quack funder, Steve Bing), after the niceties were
over, both Steve and Rob got down to the real brass-tacks of the
meeting. They wanted me to throw my influence (which was then pretty
considerable) behind the presidential candidacy of Hillary Clinton. Bing
looked me in the eye, with a serious face and said, "Mrs. Clinton is
our only hope."
I gasped and averred how she had not only voted to support the very war that killed my son, but was the Bush regime's Demo-quack cover for war propaganda. Then Steve said this with a straight-face and no sense of how hurtful this statement could be to a mother whose oldest child was killed for these lies, "Mrs. Clinton is really against the wars and she will come out against them when it is politically expedient for her to do so." What?! People are still dying in Iraq and Afghanistan (and elsewhere) and how can mothers like me even understand a little about "political expediency" when our hearts are ripped out of our chests? Not just for one day, but for the rest of our lives.
The meeting didn't end really well, but I thanked them for their help and still refused to support Clinton for anything. When I wrote an article a couple of months later about how the antiwar movement should NOT support Clinton that was posted at Huffington Post, the attack dog of the Reiners called my sister and told her that they were pulling all support from me and Gold Star Families for Peace. In fact, Dede and CODEPINK, L.A. were protesting at a fundraiser for Clinton when Rob and Michelle pulled up and gave them the middle-finger.
-- Cindy Sheehan, "Actors and other Useful Idiots for Empire by Cindy Sheehan" (CINDY SHEEHAN'S SOAPBOX).
I gasped and averred how she had not only voted to support the very war that killed my son, but was the Bush regime's Demo-quack cover for war propaganda. Then Steve said this with a straight-face and no sense of how hurtful this statement could be to a mother whose oldest child was killed for these lies, "Mrs. Clinton is really against the wars and she will come out against them when it is politically expedient for her to do so." What?! People are still dying in Iraq and Afghanistan (and elsewhere) and how can mothers like me even understand a little about "political expediency" when our hearts are ripped out of our chests? Not just for one day, but for the rest of our lives.
The meeting didn't end really well, but I thanked them for their help and still refused to support Clinton for anything. When I wrote an article a couple of months later about how the antiwar movement should NOT support Clinton that was posted at Huffington Post, the attack dog of the Reiners called my sister and told her that they were pulling all support from me and Gold Star Families for Peace. In fact, Dede and CODEPINK, L.A. were protesting at a fundraiser for Clinton when Rob and Michelle pulled up and gave them the middle-finger.
-- Cindy Sheehan, "Actors and other Useful Idiots for Empire by Cindy Sheehan" (CINDY SHEEHAN'S SOAPBOX).
A note to our readers
Hey --
Tuesday. A day earlier than last week.
Let's thank all who participated this edition which includes Dallas and the following:
The Third Estate Sunday Review's Jim, Dona, Ty, Jess and Ava,
Rebecca of Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude,
Betty of Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man,
C.I. of The Common Ills and The Third Estate Sunday Review,
Kat of Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills),
Mike of Mikey Likes It!,
Elaine of Like Maria Said Paz),
Cedric of Cedric's Big Mix,
Ruth of Ruth's Report,
Wally of The Daily Jot,
Trina of Trina's Kitchen,
Marcia of SICKOFITRDLZ,
Stan of Oh Boy It Never Ends,
Isaiah of The World Today Just Nuts,
and Ann of Ann's Mega Dub.
And what did we come up with?
Andre Damon gets another truest.
As does Cindy Sheehan.
The war drags on, when do people start to notice?
Ava and C.I. take on the weak offerings of late.
We pick Cary Grant's best films.
As Rebecca said, "Clumped on mascara and too much lipstick took 300 hours last year? Caked on foundation that only emphasized her wrinkles took 300 hours last year?"
Goes to Margaret Kimberley.
I am being sarcastic here. I do love GUNGA DIN -- and did vote for it -- but this is me channeling my inner Hillary.
Ava and C.I. wrote two pieces this week.
What we listened to while writing.
Iraq with nuclear material?
WSWS is a great resource.
This is from Great Britain's Socialist Worker.
Press release from Senator Johnny Isakson.
Mike and the gang wrote this and we thank them for it.
See you next week.
Peace,
-- Jim, Dona, Ty, Jess, Ava and C.I.
Editorial: Iraq and promises
Iraq, the never-ending war.
The media withdrew in 2011.
When did everyone else leave?
United for Peace and Justice?
They left in November of 2008.
Tom Hayden?
He's dead now so he has that excuse and we won't beat a dead horse.
But we will note that he acted as if the Iraq War was over the minute Barack Obama was elected president. (He did wake up when Barack began sending in units of Special Ops
A lot of people showed up in DC in January 2007 for the big rally.
Lot of promises got made.
And then nothing.
Iraq became an issue to forget unless you could use it to churn out votes.
John Edwards -- for all his faults -- did get it. If you voted for the war, you needed to issue a mea culpa. He wrote a lengthy column for THE WASHINGTON POST.
Despite running twice for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination (2008 and 2016), Hillary never apologized.
It was a mistake.
Which deepened into Bully Boy Bush tricked her.
Which didn’t just sound lame -- it recalled the episode of FRIENDS where all of Ross; misdeeds were exposed to his parents and he insisted, "I was tricked into all of those things!"
And let's be honest, if she was tricked into all of those things, what does that say about her judgment?
And factor in that the 'trickster' was Bully Boy Bush -- a man with the IQ of a pet rock.
As pointed out at THE COMMON ILLS, Democrats able to vote on the Iraq War in 2002 (in Congress at the time) have repeatedly been rewarded by the part. Al Gore’s running mate, Joe Sometime Democrat Lieberman voted for the war two years after being on the presidential ticket. John Kerry and John Edwards were on the ticket in 2004 and both voted for the Iraq War. In 2008, Joe Biden was the running mate for Barack Obama – Biden voted for the war. And in 2016, it was war hawk Hillary Clinton.
http://thecommonills.blogspot.com/2017/09/iraq-snapshot_11.html
In the words of C.I. "And let's hope that in 2020, the Democratic presidential ticket will not include one person who voted for the Iraq War."
Why does the party continue to reward bad behavior?
Because they don't care about the ongoing war, apparently.
TV: Pulled punches and limp comedy
It's being called a 'golden age' but we're just not feeling it.
In fact, we think, in about ten years, many will look back with regret at what could have been.
The need to create product has allowed a small sliver of diversity to exist.
But what's been done with it?
Women are funny. Lucille Ball demonstrated that in the original golden age of television.
Many more women have followed in her footsteps.
But in today's 'golden age,' what do we have to show for it?
Gentle chuckles from the male-dominated VEEP?
Yes, it is male dominated.
Yes, our complaining shamed Julia Louis-Dreyfus and she insisted on female directors -- tokens. About 16 of the 58 episodes were directed by women. And, again, note, this only came to be after we publicly shamed Julia who fancies herself the voice of independent womanhood.
She stands at podium's self-bragging about women and the need for women to stick together but she won't even demand that half of the directing spots on her show to to women (she will demand that her useless husband Brad Hall gets a shot at directing). The same with the writing.
She's a lousy example for women. A post-menopausal playing at little girl for the men.
What could have been if only she'd owned her power.
But she plays powerless instead and the Emmys reward her for it.
Speaking of the Emmys, why did no one correct Stephen Colbert.
"Unlike the presidency, Emmys go to the winner of the popular vote."
No, they don't.
And everyone present knew it. Colbert looked like the idiot he is.
If they went by popular vote, grasp that HULU wouldn't have won one award.
It doesn't have enough eligible voters.
The winners are decided by volunteer panels.
It has nothing to do with how many votes are cast by their peers.
Those votes only determine the Emmy nominees. The actual winners, again, are determined by volunteer panels.
(A practice, readers of this site will remember, we have long opposed.)
BROAD CITY is one of the saddest examples of TV today.
ROTTEN TOMATOES supposedly loves it.
That doesn't mean s**t to us.
We expect to laugh when we watch a funny show, not chuckle.
And two Jewish girls in NYC fumbling around with whimsy honestly doesn't make it for us.
It's a dumb show, it's an insular show, and, most of all, it's just not funny.
BARONESS VON SKETCH SHOW is a little better, but not much. Most of the laughs from the Canadian-made show (which airs in the US on IFC) come from the moment that went too far, the awkward end of the sketch.
It's rather sad that laughs don't come sooner.
Especially when you factor in England.
In the last three decades alone, women like Catherine Tate, Tracey Ullman, and French and Saunders have excelled in sketch comedy -- hilarous, bust-a-gut sketch comedy.
Reality, in ten years, no one's pointing to BROAD CITY as an example of great comedy -- or even good comedy.
Shows like BROAD CITY go soft and soggy and refuse to punch at the needed targets.
"I'm not just a hole to put it in."
So sniffed Lady Gaga in her infomercial that just started airing on NETFLIX, GAGA: FIVE FEET TWO.
Watching, we longed for a Julie Brown to show up and do a spoof.
There's so much to work with.
This is a self-promotion where even Gaga's grandmother advises her not to be "maudlin."
Too bad she refused to heed the advice.
Gaga, for those who don't know, hoped the MTV awards would jump start ticket sales for her concert tour. They did not. Which is why, shortly after the awards, she announced she was canceling the rest of her tour.
That's only one of the many things left out in the infomercial.
Watching her talk about her wardrobe, the need to get back to basics and wear black more often, while sitting with two women and one men, is laughable.
Mainly because Gaga chooses to be topless for this -- for this outdoors segment.
She sports a serious case of Madonna envy and at one point whines that Madonna talked smack about her on TV and not to her face.
How stupid is Gaga?
Madonna said what she said on TV because she was asked about Gaga.
There was nothing pre-planned about the remarks.
Madonna thinks about Madonna.
She probably never realized how disappointing she found Gaga's music until she was asked about it -- and therefore forced to think about it.
While whining for the camera about how unfair she thinks it was for Madonna not to say whatever to her face, does Gaga ever grasp that she's doing what she's griping about?
"Do I look pathetic?" she asks at another point -- and you can practically hear the universe yell, "Yes!"
Some would whine, "She has fibromyalgia!"
Yes.
It's a disease that effects approximately 5 million Americans.
Of course, most of them can't count on having a roomful of attendants to massage their skin and apply ice.
While receiving one of these 'treatments,' Gaga huffs, "And I don't even know what childbirth will be like."
That's actually a deep thread in the infomercial.
She's constantly telling everyone she's a woman and not a girl.
For example, she says at one point, "I'm just a woman struggling now, instead of a girl."
She offers variations on that statement throughout the special and also shares she wants to be "an old rock and roll woman" one day.
Watching, you're left with the impression that before deciding on FIVE FEET TWO, the working title was VAPID.
When she's not showing her tits or talking about getting stoned in grandma's car, she focuses on herself and, sadly, there's just not enough there to hold the attention.
Madonna.
Lady Gaga suffers from a severe case of Madonna envy.
And no doubt, she hoped FIVE FEET TWO would be her own TRUTH OR DARE.
Like Gaga, Madonna was in her thirties when she made her documentary.
The difference is Madonna had dimensions and complexities.
She also didn't have to try to prove she wasn't a girl. Madonna was a grown woman long before her thirties.
It's a shame that after five studio albums and at the age of 31, Gaga can't convince the world that she's a woman.
The infomercial is half-assed -- like so much comedy today. Say what you will about Madonna and TRUTH OR DARE, but they packed a punch.
In fact, we think, in about ten years, many will look back with regret at what could have been.
The need to create product has allowed a small sliver of diversity to exist.
But what's been done with it?
Women are funny. Lucille Ball demonstrated that in the original golden age of television.
Many more women have followed in her footsteps.
But in today's 'golden age,' what do we have to show for it?
Gentle chuckles from the male-dominated VEEP?
Yes, it is male dominated.
Yes, our complaining shamed Julia Louis-Dreyfus and she insisted on female directors -- tokens. About 16 of the 58 episodes were directed by women. And, again, note, this only came to be after we publicly shamed Julia who fancies herself the voice of independent womanhood.
She stands at podium's self-bragging about women and the need for women to stick together but she won't even demand that half of the directing spots on her show to to women (she will demand that her useless husband Brad Hall gets a shot at directing). The same with the writing.
She's a lousy example for women. A post-menopausal playing at little girl for the men.
What could have been if only she'd owned her power.
But she plays powerless instead and the Emmys reward her for it.
Speaking of the Emmys, why did no one correct Stephen Colbert.
"Unlike the presidency, Emmys go to the winner of the popular vote."
No, they don't.
And everyone present knew it. Colbert looked like the idiot he is.
If they went by popular vote, grasp that HULU wouldn't have won one award.
It doesn't have enough eligible voters.
The winners are decided by volunteer panels.
It has nothing to do with how many votes are cast by their peers.
Those votes only determine the Emmy nominees. The actual winners, again, are determined by volunteer panels.
(A practice, readers of this site will remember, we have long opposed.)
BROAD CITY is one of the saddest examples of TV today.
ROTTEN TOMATOES supposedly loves it.
That doesn't mean s**t to us.
We expect to laugh when we watch a funny show, not chuckle.
And two Jewish girls in NYC fumbling around with whimsy honestly doesn't make it for us.
It's a dumb show, it's an insular show, and, most of all, it's just not funny.
BARONESS VON SKETCH SHOW is a little better, but not much. Most of the laughs from the Canadian-made show (which airs in the US on IFC) come from the moment that went too far, the awkward end of the sketch.
It's rather sad that laughs don't come sooner.
Especially when you factor in England.
In the last three decades alone, women like Catherine Tate, Tracey Ullman, and French and Saunders have excelled in sketch comedy -- hilarous, bust-a-gut sketch comedy.
Reality, in ten years, no one's pointing to BROAD CITY as an example of great comedy -- or even good comedy.
Shows like BROAD CITY go soft and soggy and refuse to punch at the needed targets.
"I'm not just a hole to put it in."
So sniffed Lady Gaga in her infomercial that just started airing on NETFLIX, GAGA: FIVE FEET TWO.
Watching, we longed for a Julie Brown to show up and do a spoof.
There's so much to work with.
This is a self-promotion where even Gaga's grandmother advises her not to be "maudlin."
Too bad she refused to heed the advice.
Gaga, for those who don't know, hoped the MTV awards would jump start ticket sales for her concert tour. They did not. Which is why, shortly after the awards, she announced she was canceling the rest of her tour.
That's only one of the many things left out in the infomercial.
Watching her talk about her wardrobe, the need to get back to basics and wear black more often, while sitting with two women and one men, is laughable.
Mainly because Gaga chooses to be topless for this -- for this outdoors segment.
She sports a serious case of Madonna envy and at one point whines that Madonna talked smack about her on TV and not to her face.
How stupid is Gaga?
Madonna said what she said on TV because she was asked about Gaga.
There was nothing pre-planned about the remarks.
Madonna thinks about Madonna.
She probably never realized how disappointing she found Gaga's music until she was asked about it -- and therefore forced to think about it.
While whining for the camera about how unfair she thinks it was for Madonna not to say whatever to her face, does Gaga ever grasp that she's doing what she's griping about?
"Do I look pathetic?" she asks at another point -- and you can practically hear the universe yell, "Yes!"
Some would whine, "She has fibromyalgia!"
Yes.
It's a disease that effects approximately 5 million Americans.
Of course, most of them can't count on having a roomful of attendants to massage their skin and apply ice.
While receiving one of these 'treatments,' Gaga huffs, "And I don't even know what childbirth will be like."
That's actually a deep thread in the infomercial.
She's constantly telling everyone she's a woman and not a girl.
For example, she says at one point, "I'm just a woman struggling now, instead of a girl."
She offers variations on that statement throughout the special and also shares she wants to be "an old rock and roll woman" one day.
Watching, you're left with the impression that before deciding on FIVE FEET TWO, the working title was VAPID.
When she's not showing her tits or talking about getting stoned in grandma's car, she focuses on herself and, sadly, there's just not enough there to hold the attention.
Madonna.
Lady Gaga suffers from a severe case of Madonna envy.
And no doubt, she hoped FIVE FEET TWO would be her own TRUTH OR DARE.
Like Gaga, Madonna was in her thirties when she made her documentary.
The difference is Madonna had dimensions and complexities.
She also didn't have to try to prove she wasn't a girl. Madonna was a grown woman long before her thirties.
It's a shame that after five studio albums and at the age of 31, Gaga can't convince the world that she's a woman.
The infomercial is half-assed -- like so much comedy today. Say what you will about Madonna and TRUTH OR DARE, but they packed a punch.
Cary Grant's 10 Best Films
If we were to pick the best actress of the 20th century -- or just best movie star -- we'd argue forever and ever. But to do the same with actors?
Cary Grant wouldn't just be on the list, he'd be at the top.
And he wasn't just talented, he was versatile. He did drama, he did comedy, he did adventure, he did suspense, he did romance, he did melodrama . . .
With over 70 films to his credit, picking the ten best he was in is a tough task but, after much arguing, this is what we came up with.
1) NOTORIOUS
2) BRINGING UP BABY
3) I'M NO ANGEL
4) NORTH BY NORTHWEST
5) CHARADE
6) THE PHILADELPHIA STORY
7) HIS GIRL FRIDAY
8) SUSPICION
9) TO CATCH A THIEF
10) THE AWFUL TRUTH
Cary Grant wouldn't just be on the list, he'd be at the top.
And he wasn't just talented, he was versatile. He did drama, he did comedy, he did adventure, he did suspense, he did romance, he did melodrama . . .
With over 70 films to his credit, picking the ten best he was in is a tough task but, after much arguing, this is what we came up with.
1) NOTORIOUS
2) BRINGING UP BABY
3) I'M NO ANGEL
4) NORTH BY NORTHWEST
5) CHARADE
6) THE PHILADELPHIA STORY
7) HIS GIRL FRIDAY
8) SUSPICION
9) TO CATCH A THIEF
10) THE AWFUL TRUTH
Talk about wasted time
Summer Lin (ELLE) quotes Hillary Clinton from her latest ghost written book stating, "I once calculated how many hours I spent having my hair and makeup done during the campaign. It came to about 600 hours, or 25 days. I was so shocked, I checked the math twice."
"600 hours."
"I was so shocked."
Yes, and so are we.
Tweet of the week
We're going with two.
- Margaret Kimberley RetweetedThe Obama war-making legacy “resulted in Black people having a less critical stance” on U.S. wars.
- http://www.blackagendareport.com/black-caucus-backs-trumps-war-budget … Democrats, including black caucus, back Trump's war policy. Resistance can't be found among democrats. @Blacks4Peace
Jim's World
This week, we voted Cary Grant's top ten best films.
I was campaigning for GUNGA DIN.
It didn't even make the list.
At first, I was speechless.
I took to my bed and enjoyed cheap wine but no drugs because that's not my style.
It is my style to whine endlessly.
So to my wife Dona, I whined and whined.
Why?
Why?
I had the best film.
Did I let the film down.
Finally, I showered, shaved and went for a hike in the woods where I pestered strangers asking them if they'd take selfies with me.
Then it began to dawn on me -- Ann and Dallas are on FACEBOOK!
It was the Russians!
They must have bought ads on social media.
And then I thought about the other voters -- guys like Jess, Mike and Cedric and how they're female partners were present.
They couldn't vote the way they would have because of that!
It's not their fault that they're stupid and unable to stand up for themselves.
And I thought of how the media was out to get me, refusing to cover my promotion of GUNGA DIN.
I realized that the loss was the fault of everyone else.
It wasn't my fault!
Now I plan to write a book entitled WHAT HAPPENED FOR REAL.
Stay tuned.
DATALOUNGE goes beyond bitchy (Ava and C.I.)
The next list of inductees for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame should include Tori Amos, Chaka Khan and, yes, Janet Jackson.
A thread attacking Janet Jackson at DATALOUNGE -- how 'fresh.'
There's always something about Janet that's brought out the white sheets and KKKcommenting at DATALOUNGE (especially note the fried chicken insults -- and grasp that Janet stays away from fried foods but in the KKKcommenting if you're African-American you must eat fried chicken).
When Ty told us several readers had e-mailed to complain about it, we weren't surprised.
She's called a "whore" and much worse in the thread.
It's all so much trash. But we'll focus on the self-proclaimed wise THE MORE YOU KNOW and the comment s/he left.
[R61], let me give you a brief Cliff Notes version of contracts in the business world. When Janet signed that contract, the recording studio didn't automatically hand her an $80 million dollar check, OK? Got that? She signed a contract that stated she would X amount of money PER ALBUM if she sold Y number of albums. She'd get a higher percentage of money per album (X+) over that if she sold even more albums (Y+) She'd get even MORE money per album (X++) over that if she sold an even higher number of albums (Y++). The more successful her album is, the larger percentage of money per album she receives. Apparently in this instance, those graduated levels of guaranteed income for Janet would stop at $80 million for a series of her albums IF ALL OF HER ALBUMS SOLD AT ENORMOUS LEVELS---like Michael Jackson's Thriller album level of sales.
No, you stupid idiot. Janet was never supposed to sell at THRILLER level of sales.
Michael couldn't sell at THRILLER level beyond the album THRILLER.
You are a stupid fool who knows nothing and should shut your damn mouth.
THRILLER is the best selling studio album of all time.
No one expected Janet to achieve THRILLER levels of sales.
That 1st level of sales I mentioned? That guarantees Janet an income whether even if the album is a failure and the recording slabel has to eat the expenses of producing that album. As album sales increase, the recording label begins to earn enough money to pay off the expense of that album until eventually, if all things go well, both Janet and the label start making more and more money. In Janet's case, the bloom was off her rose. She got a nice percentage package based on her previous hit album sales and everyone predicted (hoped) that that would continue. Unfortunately it did not. Janet's last 4 or 5 albums didn't even make gold status (I'm pretty sure of that) and each new album sold LESS than the preceeding one.
From WIKIPEDIA:
Those are the five albums Janet recorded for Virgin. Each went platinum in the US.
The More You know knows so little.
It was a BAAAAD business decision for the label to make. During that four album period, the label could not recoup its investment in the production of those albums, lost money, and severed Janet's contract. Two labels in succession did this to her, leaving her with no record label. It happens. It happened to Neil Diamond. I think it happened to the man who wrote "Tears in Heaven". It happens all the time. Janet never even got CLOSE to receiving her $80 million dollars. Not even CLOSE. —The More You Know
The label made back its investment while Janet was with the label. She never had a stiff, she only released platinum albums. They continue to make money off of her since they own the masters to the hits "If," "Throb," "All For You," "That's The Way Love Goes," "Got Till It's Gone," "Runaway," "Again," "Together Again," "Doesn't Really Matter," "I Get So Lonely," "Someone to Call My Lover," "Son of a Gun," etc.
The More You Know knows so damn little.
- My Music Director Daniel took the team home to surprise his alma mater Booker T Washington HS #InspiringYoungArtists http://bit.ly/2xR3G0B
- Today in 1982, the first Studio Album #JanetJackson. Celebrating tonight at #SOTW in Phoenix. #JJTimeline
- #JanFam, we're giving away front row tickets to almost every show on the #StateOfTheWorldTour. Enter to win
http://JanetJackson.com/contest
A thread attacking Janet Jackson at DATALOUNGE -- how 'fresh.'
There's always something about Janet that's brought out the white sheets and KKKcommenting at DATALOUNGE (especially note the fried chicken insults -- and grasp that Janet stays away from fried foods but in the KKKcommenting if you're African-American you must eat fried chicken).
When Ty told us several readers had e-mailed to complain about it, we weren't surprised.
She's called a "whore" and much worse in the thread.
It's all so much trash. But we'll focus on the self-proclaimed wise THE MORE YOU KNOW and the comment s/he left.
[R61], let me give you a brief Cliff Notes version of contracts in the business world. When Janet signed that contract, the recording studio didn't automatically hand her an $80 million dollar check, OK? Got that? She signed a contract that stated she would X amount of money PER ALBUM if she sold Y number of albums. She'd get a higher percentage of money per album (X+) over that if she sold even more albums (Y+) She'd get even MORE money per album (X++) over that if she sold an even higher number of albums (Y++). The more successful her album is, the larger percentage of money per album she receives. Apparently in this instance, those graduated levels of guaranteed income for Janet would stop at $80 million for a series of her albums IF ALL OF HER ALBUMS SOLD AT ENORMOUS LEVELS---like Michael Jackson's Thriller album level of sales.
No, you stupid idiot. Janet was never supposed to sell at THRILLER level of sales.
Michael couldn't sell at THRILLER level beyond the album THRILLER.
You are a stupid fool who knows nothing and should shut your damn mouth.
THRILLER is the best selling studio album of all time.
No one expected Janet to achieve THRILLER levels of sales.
That 1st level of sales I mentioned? That guarantees Janet an income whether even if the album is a failure and the recording slabel has to eat the expenses of producing that album. As album sales increase, the recording label begins to earn enough money to pay off the expense of that album until eventually, if all things go well, both Janet and the label start making more and more money. In Janet's case, the bloom was off her rose. She got a nice percentage package based on her previous hit album sales and everyone predicted (hoped) that that would continue. Unfortunately it did not. Janet's last 4 or 5 albums didn't even make gold status (I'm pretty sure of that) and each new album sold LESS than the preceeding one.
From WIKIPEDIA:
| janet. |
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Velvet Rope |
| 1 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 3 | 8 | 5 | 6 | ||
| All for You |
| 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 2 | ||
| Damita Jo |
| 2 | 18 | 7 | 35 | 21 | 10 | 23 | 50 | 34 | 32 | ||
| 20 Y.O. |
| 2 | 55 | 4 | 32 | 46 | 7 | 34 | — | 35 | 63 |
|
Those are the five albums Janet recorded for Virgin. Each went platinum in the US.
The More You know knows so little.
It was a BAAAAD business decision for the label to make. During that four album period, the label could not recoup its investment in the production of those albums, lost money, and severed Janet's contract. Two labels in succession did this to her, leaving her with no record label. It happens. It happened to Neil Diamond. I think it happened to the man who wrote "Tears in Heaven". It happens all the time. Janet never even got CLOSE to receiving her $80 million dollars. Not even CLOSE. —The More You Know
The label made back its investment while Janet was with the label. She never had a stiff, she only released platinum albums. They continue to make money off of her since they own the masters to the hits "If," "Throb," "All For You," "That's The Way Love Goes," "Got Till It's Gone," "Runaway," "Again," "Together Again," "Doesn't Really Matter," "I Get So Lonely," "Someone to Call My Lover," "Son of a Gun," etc.
The More You Know knows so damn little.