Tuesday, May 02, 2023

Truest statement of the week

Still, we tend to vastly overstate the influence of cable-news bobbleheads like Tucker Carlson. On his best nights, Carlson had around 3 million watched his show for at least a couple of minutes, less than 1 percent of the US population. So, literally almost no one was watching him, which is how it should be.

-- Jeffrey St. Clair, "Roaming Charges: Nipped and Tuckered" (COUNTERPUNCH).

 

 

 

 

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Truest statement of the week II

Disoriented middle-class and libertarian elements, such as journalists Glenn Greenwald, Max Blumenthal, Anya Parampil and Aaron Maté along with comedian Jimmy Dore and fascist Jackson Hinkle also took to social media to praise Carlson, primarily for his professed opposition to US involvement in the Ukraine war and the Syrian civil war.

Carlson, an early proponent of the Iraq war, is not a genuine opponent of US imperialism but, like Trump, seeks to capitalize on broad antiwar sentiment in the working class, and channel it to the advantage of the Republican Party.

-- Jacob Crosse, "Fox News abruptly ends relationship with fascistic demagogue Tucker Carlson" (WSWS).

 

 

 

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A note to our readers

Hey --

Monday.

 


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?  

Jeffrey St. Clair gets another truest.

Jacob Crosse gets another truest.

Two years and counting, when is he going to be set free.

Ava and C.I. offer advice.

We round table on fake asses.

It's not how we do it.  No wonder there are rumors about Marjorie and Kevin.

Isaiah talks about his latest book review.

Notable passings so far this year.

Luqman Nation gets the Tweet of the week.

A list of books reviewed in the community so fqar this year.

DEMOCRACY NOW!

The ones who would destroy liberties and equality.

This is our repost of Isaiah's book review.  Yes, we are aware that BLOGGER is currently censoring it:

 

Sensitive Content Warning

This post may contain sensitive content. In general, Google does not review nor do we endorse the content of this or any blog. For more information about our content policies, please visit the Blogger Community Guildelines.

I UNDERSTAND AND I WISH TO CONTINUE I do not wish to continue

 Blogger put that up on Trina's recipe from the weekend and took 24 hours to take it down.  They did the same with Kat's piece on the Runaways.  We have no idea when it will go down but read the post so you can see how Blogger's censoring via AI and how stupid the censorship is.  In fact, for reposting the warning above, don't be surprise if this post gets censored.

 

Wally shared his thoughts about his home state.

What we listened to while writing this edition.


Peace.

 

-- Jim, Dona, Ty, Jess, Ava and C.I.


 

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Free Robert Pether

 

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Media: Commencement

Dylan e-mailed to note he appears to have a lock on valedictorian and is already preparing his speech.  We say, first and foremost, congratulations on that honor.  We then add a cautionary note about counting chickens before they're hatched and suggest you see Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign for an example of how hubris can bury a win.  
 
3 JESS
 
But in terms of advice?  We're not sure we're the ones to deliver that.  
 
You could find an old copy of SPIN's July 1987 issue and read Sandra Bernhard's graduation address entitled "Congratulations Scum:"

 
I look out over you and study each face.  So smug and contemptuous. Such a lack of enthusiasm. You reek of arrogance and self-importance I'd like to slap off your faces. 
[. . .]
You've gotten laid and told everyone about it but deep down it makes you sick. 
You've done Ecstasy and talked too much.
You've taken up cigar smoking and learned to be low key.
And once in a while you wake up in the middle of the night with this strange feeling of guilt creeping in, but as you start thinking about it just a little too much, someone from some frat invites you to a "Puttin' on the Hits" party and suddenly you're cruising some girl with big tits, drinking a Corona, and fantasizing about your first gay experience with that guy you keep seeing at the pool.
 

It might not be upbeat, but it would be memorable.

In case that doesn't work for you, we'll give it a try.

How about: Stay away from hard drugs like cocaine?

And you can use John Mulaney as an example there.  BABY J is his latest NETFLIX stand-up special.  His latest and his worst.  He's only 40 but he's knocked all the natural glow off his face and the make up they used to try to hide this only made him look laughable.  He was a good looking man before the latest drug bender.  Now he's got sallow skin and his forehead has entered a post-middle age phase that there's no return from.  Coke will age you but who knew it would age someone that quickly?

It's not just the looks that are off.  He struggles throughout the special to find his rhythm and he's so clearly nervous that his voice is pitched an octave and a half higher.  The voice also seems stuck in his nasal resonators which makes it sound flat.  

A comic flop-sweating and struggling on stage is never funny, just sad.  Kind of like the suit they've dressed him in -- a suit that Pete Davidson is too old to wear.

What other advice could you share?  

How about: Listen to your own voice.  

If you listen to The Water Cooler Set, for example, you might skip out on AMAZON's CITADEL.  The action series is from the Russo brothers and that alone should have viewers streaming.  Adding to the positives are a fast pace, twists and turns and real chemistry between the leads Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra.  Madden won fans with NETFLIX's BODYGUARD and Chopra with ABC's QUANTICO.  In addition, Stanley Tucci is providing strong support.

So listen to your own voice and don't be swayed by those determined to run with the pack.  Stake your own ground.  Otherwise, you might find yourself offering praise to something as sad and pathetic as THE CONNORS and, three years later, too stubborn to admit your mistake so you're stuck defending it.  Trust us, there are a lot in The Water Cooler Set that wish they could take back the praise they gave to that floundering and aimless program.

Maybe you could urge your classmates and other attendees to greet the world with an open heart?

Hate is so ugly and really belongs to those among the aged who are scared and frightened.  Look at Jonathan Turley.  Not content to destroy his own image with his transphobia, he's also destroying the reputation of George Washington University.  Exactly what so threatens him about transgender persons?  At this point, it's so extreme, we're wondering if Jonathan grew up thinking he might be a girl?  Seriously.  He's working some strong animus.  It really seems like he grew up drawn to the feminine and has had to work really hard to steer himself towards the masculine -- look at the lips and how they draw down on the sides.  To be clear, we're not saying that is transgender.  We're saying he has some screwed up ideas about what transgender is and we think that's because he grew up wanting to play with Barbie but wasn't able to and that toy attraction (and his parents' reaction) led him fear who he really was.


Now he's just an elderly joke.  And a national embarrassment.


Many people grow closed minded in old age.  Many.  Not all.  Gloria Steinem once argued that women grew more radical as they aged but she can't get any more aged at this point or any more conformist.  

Maybe life robs of you of hope?  If so, that makes it even more important to hold onto it for as long as you can.


Maybe talk about how people can pull together?  Offer an example of how your class pulled together.  Or offer an example of how people like Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick, Cyndi Lauper, Gabrielle Union, Dwayne Wade, Sheryl Crow, Jason Isbell, Hozier, Lizzo, Jacqueline Luqman, Madonna and many others have stood together to show their support for LGBTQ+ members and how we all need to work together because, as Diana Ross still sings, "make this world a better place if you can."



Or maybe you could just say, "Don't be a Martina Navratilova."  The used up tennis player should be thinking about her legacy.  Instead, she trashes the transgendered -- apparently forgetting how difficult it was for her when she came out as a lesbian.  Martina maintains that she's just defending women's sports but she's not.  She's trashing transgender people at a time when they are targeted with hate crimes.  We really don't think her sports purity argument trumps the safety of trans persons nor do we believe hate is a good look for her.  

It's really funny because we remember what happened after Martina came out (as "bisexual" -- took her many years to admit she was a lesbian) and how the press pitted her against Chris Evert and Steffi Graf and she never came out good in the media narratives.  We remember some suggesting that Martina being a lesbian gave her an unfair advantage and that she shouldn't be allowed to play in women's tennis.  That was as ridiculous then as her own position regarding transgender athletes is now.  Maybe Martina can take a page from Brittney Griner's book.

Maybe talk about how it's a messy world and we all need to work together?  


Note that Tucker Carlson being fired from FOX "NEWS" means there's one less climate denier on the airwaves.  And how strange it was to watch this middle-aged man repeatedly attack a young woman (Greta Thunberg).  


Maybe talk about how a cabal can plot in private for years, lie to the Senate and take control of the Supreme Court in order to destroy the fabric of democracy.  Point out that it is an illegitimate court that does not respect precedent and that has several justices on the bench who are corrupt and should resign or be impeached.
 
If worse comes to worse, go to page 106 of the latest VANITY FAIR (May 2023) and crib from the Q&A with author Judy Blume.
 

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Roundtable

 Jim: Roundtable time again. .  Remember our e-mail address is thethirdestatesundayreview@yahoo.com.  Participating in our roundtable are  The Third Estate Sunday Review's Dona, Ty, Jess, Ava, and me, Jim; 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); Cedric of Cedric's Big Mix; Mike of Mikey Likes It!; Elaine of Like Maria Said Paz); Ruth of Ruth's Report;  Wally of The Daily Jot;  Stan of Oh Boy It Never Ends; Isaiah of The World Today Just Nuts and Ann of Ann's Mega Dub. Betty's kids did the illustration. You are reading a rush transcript.
 
Roundtable
 
 
 
Jim (Con't_: So this is about the crazies and there sure are a lot of them.  We're documenting these nut jobs on our "hate merchants" list.  They are a danger to themselves and others.  Ty, pick a name at random?


Ty: John Stauber.


Ruth: Has any day, any hour, any minute ever pleased John Stauber?  I am serious.  If I was that miserable, I would just kill myself.  

Rebecca: But if he did that, Ruth, how would he be able to make others miserable?

Elaine: He used to have some value but now he sounds deranged and, stealing from C.I., "frankly a little unhinged."

Stan: He's the little kid in THE SIXTH SENSE only he says, "I see George Soros people."

Jim: What is the obsession with George Soros?  I don't get it.

Jess: It is anti-Semitism?  

Dona: He seems very concerned -- overly concerned -- with where Soros' money goes.  And to be clear, we're not a Soros site.  We don't cite Soros.  We're not fans.  But John Stauber is obsessed with Soros.

Rebecca: My guess is that the breakup took John by surprise and he never thought George would leave him for another, certainly not someone younger.  Now he's gone full Katha Pollitt and is probably stalking Soros as well.

Wally: I know you're joking but they did have a 'breakup.'  Stauber prefers to pretend like it didn't happen but he took Soros money once upon a time in the '00s.  

Marcia: And he can't get enough of Susan "Medea" Benjamin whose Global Exchange was also funded by George Soros.

Rebecca: Maybe Soros pulled a Harvey Weinstein and cornered John in a hotel room, asked for a massage, dropped the bathrobe and, as John placed his hands on George's shoulders, George said, "No, massage the sore spot, it's the spot sticking out from my groin"?  

Ruth: He is just an old bitter man who has no clue of how deranged he looks. I counted last week and, in one three hour period, he Tweeted sixteen times about George Soros -- sixteen times -- and his alleged secret plot to control the media, the world and, I am guessing, Mr. Stauber's bowel movements.  He truly comes across unhinged.


Ty: Let me try to make this like a lightening round, Tara Reade!

Isaiah: Big girl got some big bones on her.  You know she's miserable by the fact that she's put on even more weight.  Someone needs to talk to her about the damage the weight's doing to her health.

Cedric: Okay, but it can't be John Stauber. 

Wally: He'd hash-tag it #Sorosfunded.


Dona: She's just pathetic.  Her hatred over what was allegedly done to her in the 90s and then what was done to her when she came forward has colored her perceptions.  If you had spoken to her in 2019, she would have decried homophobia and transphobia and racism.  But now she mixes online with her new homophobic, transphobic and racists friends.  What a sad, sad ending.  She's Jane Roe!  

Ava: She probably is which means she'll boomarang back and forth repeatedly over the next years.  I'm with Betty, enough.  She's gone to the dark side and I have no need to support or defend her anymore.  She brought a lot of this on herself by being so damn stupid.  C.I. declared when Alyssa came forward, 'Wake up, TimesUp is trashing you behind your back.'  But she was too stupid to know that.  

Kat: She really is stupid.  I don't like people like that.  There always -- Tulsi Gabbard -- looking for a guru to guide them and they adopt whatever someone else believes as they flit from group to group.  

Ty: Glenneth Greenwald!

Marcia: Glenneth's ex told us that Glenneth didn't clean back there -- called him "a lazy bottom."  That tracks.

Mike: In fairness to him, people wrongly celebrated him as a leftist.  C.I. would point out, year after year, he's a right-wing libertarian.  He did try to pose as something else, especially when he was doing his campaigning -- that's what it was -- for Barack Obama in 2008.  He was never a figure worth praising.  He was a second-rate legal mind and that's probably why he avoids doing anything legal now -- even legal opinions in his work.

Jess: And it's definitely why he was too stupid to file a lawsuit against THE INTERCEPT for breach of contract.  

Marcia: I just can't stand a gay man who embraces homophobes and treats them as heroes.  He's disgusting.  But, as we've been told, that's how he was in college.  I loved his 'friend' in the roundtable last month who noted that what C.I. had been writing about Glenneth in college nailed it.  And it really does make sense.  A pathetic wimp who tried to strut and preen and macho-up -- I bet that was hilarious to see -- to fit in with the right-wingers who hated gays.  What a pathetic and sad man.

Elaine: I think it needs to be noted that when he broke with THE INTERCEPT -- and only when he broke with it -- he was suddenly eager to pin exposing Reality Winner and others on other people at THE INTERCEPT.  I don't believe for a minute that he wasn't involved in that.  I also don't believe he was working in the public interest when he allowed his billionaire sugar daddy Pierre Omidyar to have the Ed Snowden documents.

Rebecca: Woah-woah-woah!  Elaine, I forgot about that. I mean, I remember it happening.  But in terms of Glenneth today.  This really needs to be noted.  His buddy Aaron Matte has written about how Pierre is in bed with the CIA and funding regime change by working with USAID and all that other stuff.  But stop for a moment and look at the Tweets Glenneth's been posting of late like this one:

Both CNN and NBC/MSNBC have their payrolls stuffed with former operatives of the US Security State (the career path is CIA/FBI/NSA/DoD ---> NBC/CNN contract). *All their hosts* are loyalists of US foreign policy and wars.




Rebecca (Con't): I'm sorry but what's the difference between that and Glenneth's former sugar daddy Pierre Omidyar?  There is none. He's whining about censorship but Glenneth helped Pierre censor the Snowden documents.  And Glenneth was perfectly happy to work -- for years -- for Pierre.  Now he acts as though he's pure -- and still has his cherry attached.


Ty: Okay, I'm laughing at that.  But, yeah, 2019, February of 2019, Matte's GREY ZONE published about this topic, "How tech oligarch Pierre Omidyar funds regime-change" and it's not until October of 2020 that Glenneth resigns. 


Rebecca: Exactly.  Talk about con artists.  He's decrying others for doing what he did for years.  What a con artist.


Ty: Jonathan Turley!


Ann: Hearing that name, my reaction is the same as Lily Tomlin's Agnes when her grandparents say "cake" -- I just want to scream.  

Mike: He really is something.  And you have to wonder how deep he goes.  He's a right-winger now, there's no denying it.  Ava and C.I. did that analysis of his writing for POLLY'S BREW where it had gone from him claiming to be a Democrat to his change to he was raised by Democrats.  He's a right-winger.  But when did the transformation begin?  I ask because some of the times he was wrong may have been disinformation and I do feel like he's far cozier to the people he defends than he ever lets on.


Marcia: He's so disgusting.  He lies that he cares about free speech.  But let an idiot Proud Boy threaten or attack a transgender person and Jonathan can't find the story.  Anytime the left is the victim, he's not interested.  He's just a whore for FOX "NEWS" and how sad and disgusting is that?  He had a great mind and he sold it out.  

Betty: I'm tired of his racist attacks on Black people.  It's not limited to the two lawmakers in Tennessee.  I can't believe George Washington University employs a bigot like him.  Transgender people are always his target.  He's a buffoon.  He's destroyed his own name and no one will mourn him when he dies.  In fact, God, if you're listening right now, feel free to take him, we're done with him here on earth.  


Ty: You're suggesting he'll get to heaven?

Betty: I'm trying to be generous.


Ava: I'll note that if you think what we're saying is tough on him, you should hear how the people who work with him speak.  I don't mean at FOX "NEWS." I'm talking at George Washington University.  He is hated there now.  That will only intensify as his remarks continue to damage the university.   


Jim: C.I. any comment?

C.I.: Not really.  Ava and I have worked on a similar issue with regards to Princeton and, before that, I was part of a team steering away Harvard donations over a faculty issue.  These are never week plans.  This a long term strategy with many splinter points splitting off.  That's also only one target of our bring-the-pain campaign.  

 
Elaine: He's a ridiculous hate merchant.  I do anything I can in any way and have also accessed my friends to ensure that there is pain.


Jim: And you two were face to face with Barack Obama when he was doing his Senate run.

Elaine: Right and I know why you're bringing that up.  Big money event and our friends invited us for that reason.  Yes, it is a pricey circle and yes we are a tight knit group.  Turley's not part of that group.  It takes nothing to turn your friends against Turley.  He's not part of that world.  What we are doing will seriously limit the access he has beyond his small trash heap.  

Marcia: He's a bigot.  I hope the pain is brought and it reduces him to tears.  In 2023, to be promoting homophobia and transphobia?  Outrageous.  


Ty: Tulsi Gabbard?
 

Mike: The original fake ass.  Read my mom's "Crazy Tulsi Gabbard" and "Ham with Pineapple Salsa in the Kitchen."


Trina: It is shocking that anyone would listen to that nutcase.  It's also shocking the remarks she makes -- especially about her commander-in-chief since she's in the reserves.  I'm surprised she hasn't been brought up on charges.


Jim: And on that note, we'll go ahead and wind down.  This is a rush transcript.



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Is this how you stand next to your work colleague?

oillove

 

Does the recently divorced Marjorie Taylor Greene believe she's Judy McCarthy?  Does she really think this is appropriate behavior?  

 

Her behavior has DC talking and noting that the two can't seem to keep their hands off one another.

 

Maybe someone needs to teach them about boundaries? 



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Books (Isaiah, Ava and C.I.)

1summerread

 

We're attempting to again increase book coverage in the community.  Isaiah's "Paul Kupperberg's DIRECT CONVERSTIONS: TALKS WITH FELLOW DC COMICS BRONZE AGE CREATORS" went up Sunday.  It's a book about comic book creators.

 

Isaiah: Right.  For those who don't know, I draw a comic called THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS.  I grew up loving comic books.  MAD MAGAZINE as well as various superhero comics.

 

CRACKED?

 

Isaiah: Not really.  I'd read it if they did a parody of a TV show I liked.  But their drawings didn't impress me the way MAD's did.  And MAD was funnier.  I don't even remember a regular feature in CRACKED.  But, along with TV and movie parodies, MAD had Spy V Spy and that inside back page that would fold over to make another picture.  

 

You didn't care for the book.  


Isaiah: I hated it.  Arcane trivia about things that really don't matter. "I created, Karen  Beecher, Bumblebee, in THE TEEN TITANS (#45, December, 1976) because Mal Duncan needed a girlfriend, and along the way, I happened to create DC's first Black superheroine."  That's said in passing.  There's no effort to explore it, no discussion of how Bumblebee impacts the comic world.  Just this breezy comment that's totally useless.  I do not recommend this book to anyone.


Did you learn anything from the book?


Isaiah: Yeah, that at my site where I archive my comics, I need to do more when I repost.  I don't want to be as disappointing as Kuppenberg.  So when I repost an old comic of mine there, I'll try to add more detail from now on.


-----------------


 

Previous book discussions this year:
 
 
 




 

 

 

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2023 passings

Lisa Presley -- Elaine noted her passing.


Christine McVie -- Kat covered her passing.

 

Adam Rich -- Marcia noted his passing.

 

Jeff Beck -- Kat noted his passing.

 

Lance Kerwin -- Rebecca noted his passing.


Barrett Strong -- Ruth noted his passing.

 

Lisa Loring -- Rebecca noted her passing.

 

Burt Bacharach -- Rebecca noted his passing.

 

Raquel Welch -- Elaine noted her passing.

 

Stella Stevens  -- Rebecca noted her passing.

 

Richard Belzer -- Ruth noted his passing.  

 

Kevin Alexander Gray -- C.I. notes his passing.

 

Pat Schroeder -- Kat noted her passing.

 

Lance Reddick -- Mike notes his passing.  

 

Darcelle XV -- Elaine notes his passing.

 

"Mark Russell" -- Ruth notes his passing 

 

"Elizabeth Hubbard" -- Trina notes her passing.

 

"Mary Quant and more Peabody nominations" -- Elaine notes a passing.

"Harry Belafonte" -- Kat notes a passing.








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Tweet of the week

 

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Books

1summerread

 

"Mafia Wives (Susan Williams' WHITE MALICE)" -- C.I. reviews this book.

 

 "The Sewing Circle" -- Marcia reads Axel Madsen's THE SEWING CIRCLE.

 

 "Ellen Sander's The Lifestyle That Classic Rock Unleashed" -- Trina reviews this book.


"Phyllis Diller 1917 – 2012: News, Quotes, Interview" -- Ann reviews this book.


"Call Her Heroic (Ava and C.I.)" -- Ava and C.I. review this book.


"Boze Hadleigh's Hollywood Gays" -- Marcia reviews this book.

 

"Robert Sellers wrote a book of garbage" -- Kat reviews HOLLYWOOD HELLRAISERS.   

 

 

"SCREAM VI and THE BOYS" -- Stan reviews Ron and Clint Howard's THE BOYS.

 

 

"the world according to joan" -- Rebecca reviews this book.

 

 "Elton John and Whitney Houston" -- Kat reviews Elton John's autobiography and a biography on Whitney Houston.


"DON RICKLES: THE MERCHANT OF VENOM" -- Isaiah reviews this book.

 

"Crispy Calamari in the Kitchen" -- Trina reviews  AIR FRYER COOKBOOK FOR BEGINNERS: EFFORTLESSLY GRILL, ROAST AND BAKE HOMEMADE MEALS: YOUR COMPLETE GUIDE FOR BEGINNERS WITH QUICK, TASTY & HEALTHY RECIPES.

 

 "Vincent Price and Universal" -- Marcia reviews John L. Flynn's 75 YEARS OF UNIVERSAL MONSTERS and Vincent Price's I LIKE WHAT I KNOW: A VISUAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY.

 

"3 books to skip" -- Kat reviews  Bertill Nordahl's CAT SEVENS, CARLY SIMON AND LEONARD COHEN AND ALL THE OTHERS, David Redford's NEIL& JONI: 2 LIVES, 21 ALBUMS and Ellen Sanders' ROCK AND ROLL WOMENHOOD: CASS ELLIOT, GRACE SLICK, LINDA RONSTADT, FANNY AND MORE.

 

"THE SIXTH EXTINCTION: AN UNNATURAL HISTORY" -- Mike reviews Elizabeth Kolbert's THE SIXTH EXTINCTION: AN UNNATURAL HISTORY.


"Paul Kupperberg's DIRECT CONVERSTIONS: TALKS WITH FELLOW DC COMICS BRONZE AGE CREATORS" -- Isaiah reviews this book.




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Video of the week

 

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The hate merchants

This is a list of people who attack the LGBTQ+ community.  They're hate merchants and should be avoided at all costs.


1) Marjorie Taylor Green

2) Ron DeSantis

3) Lauren Boebert

4) Anthony Monteiro

5) J.K. Rowling

6) Kristi Noem

7) Kim Reynolds

8) Marco Rubio

9) Rand Paul

10) Tucker Carlson

11) Greg Abbott

12) Ron Johnson

13) Todd Aiken

14) Doug Lamborn

15) Dan Burton

16) Candace Cameron

17) Kirk Cameron

18) Jonathan Turley


19) Tulsi Gabbard


20) John Stauber 

 

21) Kid Rock


22) Paul Stanley






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Paul Kupperberg's DIRECT CONVERSATIONS

Isaiah's latest book review:

Paul Kupperberg's DIRECT CONVERSTIONS: TALKS WITH FELLOW DC COMICS BRONZE AGE CREATORS

I like comic books, to this day.  I like reading about comic books, like Stan's "SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS" which talked about his love for the comic book series.

I lived, as a kid, for MAD MAGAZINE, POWERMAN AND IRON FIST, MS. MARVEL (read Marcia's "Female superheroes"), WORLD'S FINEST COMIC BOOKS, X-MEN, LEGION OF SUPERHEROES,  THE DEFENDERS, THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, WHAT IF?, THE SILVER SUFER, THE TEEN TITANS, THE AVENGERS, SHE-HULK, SPIDER-WOMAN, DAREDEVIL, FANTASTIC FOUR . . .

So I was interested in Paul Kupperberg's DIRECT CONVERSTIONS: TALKS WITH FELLOW DC COMICS BRONZE AGE CREATORS.  Kupperberg started working for DC in 1975.  He speaks with others who did as well: Howard Chaykin, Jack C. Harris, Tony Isabella, Paul Levitz, Steve Mitchell, Bob Rozakis, Joe Staton, Anthony Tollin, Bob Toomey, and Michael Uslan.

This is from the conversation with Jack C. Harris:
 
It all clicked for me when I was soring my comics, which I kept in a big washing machine box in the attic.  I was sorting them into piles by titles I liked best, and that got me wondering what it was about those books that made them my favorites, other than the fact that they were all DCs.  Then I checked out [each book's] indicia, the small print at the bottom of the first page, and found they all had something in common: the name Julius Schwartz was listed as the editor.  I had no idea what an editor did, but whatever it was, this Schwartz guy was doing it better than everybody else.  After that, I'd check all the books I was buying for the "Julius Schwartz" credit.  [. . .] They also took priority in reading order.  I wouldn't even wait to get home to start reading.  

It's a good thing Kupperberg worked in comics because he could never host a talk show.  The "[. . .]" indicates where he cut off Harris.

Who is this volume for?  It's not for comic book lovers.  It appears to exist to document that Kupperberg worked for DC -- and no other reason.

The interviews are uniformly dull.  When someone does break through with something interesting -- mainly Harris -- it's just ignored or cut short.

I don't really care about the time you saw a cover of a Superboy comic where the pants were colored red and the briefs and boots blue but, thank God!, you managed to stop it before it went to print.

And I don't care about all your bitchy office gossip -- he insisted on going to his coffee break every day at ten!  He insisted, that since he go to work 15 minutes early, he leave 15 minutes early!  

I care about the comic books.  Would have been great if that could have been front and center.

Talk about an issue you wrote that you liked, talk about an issue you drew or colored.

Instead, it's just garbage.  

Here's a typical passage with Anthony Tollin speaking:



One day Denny wandered in, shaking his head in despair.  He was launching a new title based on an old pulp character, the SHADOW, but he'd decided the book was cursed.  Alex Toth was initially assinged to it but didn't like the script he'd received, so he had Richard Kyle write a new one and billed DC for it.  Kyle Steranko was going to draw the book, but he fell through, and Denny had just found out he wouldn't be able to use Wrightson, who really wanted the assignment and had already drawn a house ad for the title but was deemed too valuable on SWAMP THING.  If he couldn't have Bernie, Denny didn't know what he was going to do, which is when Michael Kaluta, one of the freelancers hanging out, asked, "Can I draw it?"  So, Denny ran down to Carmine's office and returned a few minutes later with the boss's okay to give Kaluta the job.

Well that really changes the way I see the time when they gave Lois Lane bionic powers!  I do like that story but the quote above is not about any Lois Lane story.  In fact, ultimately, it's about nothing.  Useless gossip that conveys nothing.

I do not recommend this book one bit.

Here's C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"
Posted by at

Wally weighs in on the state of his state of Florida

Repost of Wally's post on Florida:

MY STATE NEEDS TO REJECT OUR LOUSY GOVERNOR


AS SOMEONE BORN AND RAISED IN FLORIDA, I AM BEGGING YOU TO TELL RON DESANTIS TO STOP DESTROYING OUR STATE.

THE IDIOT IS A WAR CRIMINAL WHO SHOULD BE BEHIND BARS.  INSTEAD HE'S GOTTEN TO BE GOVERNOR AND IS DESTROYING THE STATE.  NOW HE HAS YET ANOTHER LAWSUIT AGAINST DISNEY AND HE'S NOT GOING TO PAY THE BILL, WE ARE GOING TO PAY THE BILL.

THIS IS BEYOND MADNESS.  WE ALL KNOW DISNEY IS THE REASON SO MANY PEOPLE VISIT EACH YEAR.  HE SHOULD BE ATTEMPTING TO WORK WITH THEM, NOT ATTACKING THEM.  


AS A KID, DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT MEANT TO GROW UP IN FLORIDA, HOME OF DISNEY?  AROUND THE COUNTRY, KIDS DREAM ABOUT GOING TO DISNEY WORLD OR TO CALIFORNIA'S DISNEY LAND.  WE HAD THE DESTINATION.  

THANKS TO RON DESANTIS AND HIS BULLYING, WE COULD LOSE IT.  

HE'S ALREADY DESTROYED OUR STATE.  HE HAS TURNED US INTO A LAUGHING STOCK OF THE COUNTRY.  WE LOOK LIKE BACKWARD HICKS.  HE'S ATTACKED PRIDE FESTIVALS AND DRAG QUEENS.  HE WAS NOT ELECTED TO BE THE MORALIZER OF FLORIDA.  HE WAS SUPPOSED TO IMPROVE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES BUT I'VE NEVER SEEN AN ELECTED REPUBLICAN MORE ANTI-BUSINESS.

HE HAS SENT US SPIRALING INTO DEBT WITH HIS FRIVILOUS LAWSUITS AND HE HAD DISGRACED US ON THE NATIONAL STAGE.  WE HAVE FAMILIES LEAVING THE STATE BECAUSE RON'S ACTIONS HAVE MADE THEM UNSAFE.  

THIS IS NOT FLORIDA.

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.  

WE NEED TO MAKE CLEAR TO RON THAT HE'S NOT DOING THE JOB HE'S BEEN ELECTED TO AND THAT OUR BACKS ARE NOT HIS STEPPING STONE TO THE PRESIDENCY.  HE DID A BOOK TOUR AND NOW HE'S TRAVELING OVERSEAS.  WHEN DOES HE DO HIS JOB?


AND GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY NEEDS TO MAKE CLEAR TO THEIR TRANSPHOBIC PROFESSOR JONATHAN TURLEY THAT HE IS NOT WORKING -- OFFICIALLY OR UNOFFICIALLY -- FOR RON DESANTIS.  HE'S EGGING ON A MONSTER AND I DON'T BELIEVE IT'S GWU'S POLICY TO EMBRACE WAR CRIMINALS WHO TORTURED PRISONERS AT GUANTANAMO.  BAD ENOUGH TURLEY'S A TRANSPHOBE BUT HE'S NOW ROOTING FOR A WAR CRIMINAL.  I HOPE EVERYONE REMEMBERS THAT WHEN APPLYING TO COLLEGES.  STAY AWAY FROM GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY UNLESS YOU WANT TO BE BRANDED A TRANSPHOBE OR A TORTURE ACCOMPLICE.


HERE'S C.I.'S "Iraq snapshot:"


Wednesday, April 26, 2023.  Threats again of attacks on US service members in Iraq, a US general uses a narrow time frame to try to claim victory (when it's probably weather related), Joe Biden declares he's running for re-election, and much more.


Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada, an Iraqi resistance group, has announced that it is prepared to expel American forces from Iraq if the United States decides to keep them in the country.

"If Washington insists on not withdrawing its military forces from Iraq, the resistance groups are at the peak of their readiness to expel them from this country's soil," said Kadhim al-Fartousi, the group's spokesperson, in an interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.


You can check the timeline, it's today.  It just seems like a rerun because it is.  Over and over that threat is made.  It's as old as the Iraq War.  

Still on Iraq, IRAQI NEWS reports:

The Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, confirmed that his country’s forces will not withdraw from northern Iraq and Syria at present, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.

In an interview, Cavusoglu said that the withdrawal from northern Iraq and northern Syria means the cessation of the Turkish military operations against terrorism and allowing terrorists to get closer to the borders, and this poses a threat to Turkey’s national security.

The Turkish Foreign Minister explained that the Turkish forces will leave a security vacuum if they withdrew from northern Syria, and that national security and border security are very important for Ankara.


A security vacuum?  They're violating Iraq's national sovereignty by putting troops on the ground in Iraq and setting up military bases in Iraq.  But they think they're the ones in the right?  Weeks ago, they attacked a convoy in northern Iraq that included US military personnel.  Why?  Well as Cavusoglu makes clear later in his remarks, they don't trust the US.  Interesting.  

Monday, the US State Dept held a press briefing with Major General Matthew McFarlane ("the commanding general of the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve") that's resulted in a lot of stenography but no reporting and certainly no analysis.


"If you walk away with one thing tonight, I want it to be the progress we have made, our partners have made, and the coalition in support of them, in the campaign against [. . .] ISIS," the general declared and like good stews in the secretarial pool, they all did just that.


He wanted people to know that ISIS holds "no territory."  Terrorist groups rarely do.  That's not their real motive.  Disruption is their motive.  The US government -- and lying generals -- still want to play like ISIS taking over Mosul was normal.  


He then wanted to lie that ISIS "remains military defeated."  What does that even mean, you liar?  They're a terrorist organization.  As such, they're active or they're inactive.  You'd have to be a complete idiot not to grasp that.

There's been a reduction in activity!!!!  And everyone ran with that.  

He insisted, "Since the beginning of this year in Iraq -- so that's January 1st through the first week of April -- we've seen a -- recorded a 68 percent reduction in attacks when compared to the same period last year."

That's so impressive . . . if you believe any lie you're told.  

Ramadan just concluded.  Do  you know what his narrow period saw with regards to Ramadan?

Fewer pilgrimages.  

Why?

The flooding.

What marks the end of fasting (from sunrise to sunset) of Ramadan?  Eid al-Fitr.

RUDAW reported on Saturday:

Compared to previous religious and national holidays, the number of tourists visiting the main attraction spots in Erbil province has dropped due to the most recent flash floods and cold weather, according to local authorities. 

Heavy rainfall and floods over the past weekend caused serious damage to resorts at Erbil’s tourist attractions and brought traffic to a standstill. As Muslims in the Kurdistan Region celebrate Eid al-Fitr, the number of tourists was lower than expected. 

"The number of tourists that have come was not what we predicted due to two key reasons; first, final examinations, second, most recent floods... However, we believe, from after [Eid al-Fitr] the number of tourists will go back to normal as the temperature degrees increase," Laween Jabar, owner of a resort in Soran told Rudaw’s Andam Jabbar.  



Hey, here's an idea for the US government:  The next time Iraq's hit by a bad sand storm and government offices have to close down, put Major General Matthew McFarlane back before the press the next day so he can claim victory again for a day where ISIS was inactive, take credit for that too.

The press may be that stupid -- or that whorish -- the rest of us aren't.


Yesterday, US President Joe Biden became the third candidate to declare that they were running for the Democratic Party's 2024 presidential nomination.  Immediately, Marianne Williamson had comments.  Ryan King (WASHINGTON EXAMINER) reports:


Bestselling author and self-help guru Marianne Williamson blasted President Joe Biden's 2024 launch video and warned he can't energize younger voters.

"I think that video was very out of touch, and that's what people are feeling," Williamson told the Hill's Rising. "I think an entire younger generation would stay home in droves in response to what that video is advancing as the administration's pitch to the American people."


Hey, Marianne, what voice in your head told you that?  I don't know that I'd be calling anyone else out of touch if I were the candidate whose support evaporated the moment Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared he was also running for the nomination.  Disclosure -- and I'm not doing this every day -- I know all three.  I know Joe, I know Marianne, I know Robert.  If you talk crazy, I'll call you out.  I'm not afraid to smack you around.  Marianne got off easy in 2019 and got off rough.  Easy in that, she was part of a group of women running so we focused on that and, except for psychotic cult member Tulsi Gabbard, the women all got along.  Rough in that, when she called for everyone to send positive energy to defeat something (COVID, I don't remember), I thought about whether or not I wanted to write a piece on how positive thinking can be a form of prayer before deciding, "No, I really don't feel like writing something I don't believe in just because she's made a fool of herself."  


With a smaller field, Marianne will have even more opportunities to make a fool out of herself.  She'll also have more opportunities to shine.


But that would require Marianne learning to speak for Marianne.  RFK Jr. will face his own obstacles.  But he's speaking for himself.  His remarks are authentic to who he is.

Marianne? "I think an entire younger generation . . ."

Are you a younger generation, Marianne?  Why don't you speak for yourself or are you not able to?  You've got Peter Daou handling your campaign but are you listening to him?  You're not making statements that appeal to people.  If you want to be a critic, go for it.  We can use more.  But if you're a candidate, you need to learn to craft those soundbytes better.  This one is so bad, it's laughable.

Joe was actually the reason I was going to cover the campaigns today.

Some people just can't turn the offense meter off.  I don't like Donald Trump but go back and you will see that when I thought he was being misunderstood over a remark -- willfully or not -- I would weigh in.  I did not cover his Tweets.  I felt the media was obsessed with his Tweets and ignoring his harmful policies.

But Joe Biden made comments about children.  And the offense industry got butt hurt over his comments: "Our nation's children are all our children."  

This is nothing controversial but when you're one of those Jonathan Turleys paid to create outrage every fifteen minutes . . . 

Joe grew up in a different time when the neighborhood children were everyone's children.  The adults watched out for all of them.  Equally true, only the most rabid would disagree with Hillary Clinton that it takes a village.  Joe's remark was not about stripping anyone of their rights as parents.  They were noting that children are our resources, our most treasured resources.


There are many things going on to take actual offense over.  As I've said in other election cycles, if we're going to be this stupid, it's going to be a long election cycle.

To drop back to Gen Z Marianne Williamson, I think this is a strategy that will appeal to many.  Here's Joe's announcement.











Why do you need to vote for Joe again? The ad makes the argument that there are too many crazies out there (no, Marianne, he doesn't mean you) who are destroying our way of life and our democracy.  They think they can overturn established law.  They think they can destroy women's reproductive rights -- first with abortion and now with pills.  They think they can deny trans care to adults -- or, for that matter, to children whose parents have made the decision that trans care is needed.  They think they can attack LGBTQ+ members.  They think they can tell us what we can read.  They think they can tell us -- grown adults -- how to dress -- don't dress in the opposite gender or they'll arrest you.  

And you think, on that last one, that I'm talking about drag queens and kings?  I am but I'm talking about more than that as well.  


The head of the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) has issued a memorandum telling all employees to dress “in a manner consistent with their biological gender.” The revised dress code would not only force transgender people to present in a way that feels inauthentic, it could also be used to punish cisgender people who wear gender-neutral clothing.

The memo, which experts say violates federal free speech and non-discrimination protections, is just the latest move by Texas Republicans to erase trans identities from the state.

The April 13 memorandum, signed by Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller (R), was entitled “Texas Department of Agriculture Dress Code and Grooming Policy.”

Miller’s two-page memo said that in order to “reflect the culture, dignity, and professionalism of the TDA… All employees are expected to comply with this dress code in a manner consistent with their biological gender.” The memo effectively revises the department’s former dress code, which didn’t mention “biological gender,” The Texas Observer noted.

The new dress code requires employees to wear “traditional business wear, including Western business attire.” This includes button-down shirts for men and skirts or pants for women. The code applies to all work settings that don’t require uniforms or protective gear for agricultural fieldwork.

Ladies, they don't just want to control our reproductive rights, they also want to control what we wear.  This is the American Taliban.

If Marianne can't grasp that, she has no business running for office.


Joe's a known quantity.  He can't change his brand.  He can't pretend to be something he's not.  So what he can he do?  He can present himself as a voice of sanity who is going to stand with Americans and tell the bullies to back off.  

That's what the campaign's going to run on and it's a smart move.

I believe former Senator Claire McCaskill was on Andrea Mitchell's show just yesterday talking about how the "Republican Party is worshiping at the alter of extremism."  She is correct.



Now for those who believe I'm trying to steer people away from Marianne to Robert, let's do Robert.

Robert, the American people want to stand behind you.  They'll accept your stands on vaccines.

They will not accept you standing with crazy.

There's a reason I'm not endorsing RFK Jr.

I thought I would.  Then I saw him too tight with someone.

Tucker?

Mother Tucker was media, I could care less.

But Robert, if you're going to stand with a registered sex offender, a convicted pedophile, you're going to watch your own campaign burn down into flames.

You cannot survive that. 

I'm sure some of the wack jobs are lying and telling you that you can.

These same pieces of trash insisted that Scott Ritter -- the registered sex offender and convicted pedophile -- was not going to hurt their DC rally for 'peace.'

But what happened there?

Even the crazies had to back down and disinvite Scott Ritter.

The media's not really paying attention to you, Robert, because they think "anti-vax" is going to take you out.  It's not.  It's who you are and it's not a surprise to anyone supporting you.

You're standing shoulder-to-shoulder with a registered sex offender?

Robert, that's not a dream of Camelot.

Basic rule of politics, don't stand next to a child molester for a photo op.


You're going to need to stop associating with crazies or you're going to hand your current lead over to Marianne.  I'm not joking on this.  Scott Ritter is going to run off support and if the media picks up on this relationship and runs with it, it could kill your campaign in a matter of weeks.  That's your warning.


Marianne?  She doesn't suffer fools who harm what needs to be done.  Just the Scott Ritter relationship may be enough for some RFK Jr. supporters to go elsewhere.  If so, if Marianne will listen to Peter Daou, she can run a solid campaign.



That's Marianne talking about issues which is what she needs to do if her campaign's going to have any real chance.





Can we talk about John Stauber for a moment.  The hate merchant felt the need to reTweet Sean Ono Lennon.  Hmm.  He loves Sean but he hates Cher.  


I'm sorry who actually did something with their life?  Right, that would be Cher.  Sean Ono Lennon is a 47-year-old man child who never learned self-grooming and he's the definition of a nepo-baby.  How many hits did he have?  Zero.  Cher, by contrast, charted 63 songs in the US.  Sean's had zero gold albums and zero platinum albums in the US.  Cher?  8 gold albums and 6 platinum (and multi-platinum) albums.  Sean has had two albums make it on to BILLBOARD's Top 200 albums (both made it to 153) while Cher's carried 44 albums onto BILLBOARD's Top 200.   Both also pursued acting careers.  I don't know if you'd consider the episode of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER or the episode of the original MELROSE PLACE Sean's 'acting high.'  But Cher carried three variety series.  She made films with Robert Altman, Susan Sarandon, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jack Nicholson, Mike Nichols, Meryl Streep, Winona Ryder, Christina Ricci, Liam Neeson, Norman Jewison, Nicholas Cage, Olympia Dukakis, Sandy Dennis, Karen Black, Kathy Bates, Lily Tomlin, Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Chazz Palminteri, Stanley Tucci, William Friedkin, Peter Yates, Anne Heche, Rita Wilson, Sam Elliott, Laura Dern and Eric Stoltz  -- among others.   She's been nominated for two BAFTA awards, she's been nominated for six Golden Globes (and won three), won Best Actress at The Cannes Film Festival and been nominated for two Academy Awards (winning Best Actress for MOONSTRUCK).  Oh, and she's performed on Broadway.

Cher worked for what she has.  Sean?  Nepo-baby who will be handed billions when Yoko passes away.  He's wasted his life.  If that seems harsh, let's compare him to his half-brother Julian.  Julian has a million selling album in the US to his credit and a gold one. In all, he took 3 albums onto BILLBOARD's top 200.  And he charted six songs in the US.  Unlike Sean, Julian didn't grow up with a silver spoon in his mouth.  Even so, he leaves behind a musical history.   Sean was handed everything -- he even had sleep overs with Michael Jackson -- but now, at the age of 47, he has nothing to show for it.

Naturally, that's who John Stauber elects to celebrate.  Why?  Because they both hold the same vapid opinion.  

I'll celebrate the people who work and not the idle rich who've had everything handed to them and gone on to do nothing with their lives.  John Stauber will just go on being pathetic.  It's the only card he has left to play.   And when -- and if -- Sean ever does anything with his lazy life, I might care what he thinks about Tucker Carlson but right now he's just a spoiled brat who has wasted his life.


Harry Belafonte has passed away.  Activist, actor, singer, friend to the world.  His life mattered and he gave so much.  While fools and liars like Tucker Carlson cheered on the Iraq War, Harry called it out.  We'll wind down with this from David Bacon:



HARRY BELAFONTE, PRESENTE!
 
Harry Belafonte was a true people's hero. He opposed war and racism, and was a friend of revolutionary movements in Cuba and Venezuela. He was a radical activist, in the tradition of Paul Robeson, in whose footsteps he said he walked. In these photographs he came to Oakland on April 15, 2003, for a march and rally against the war in Afghanistan right after it started. He was unafraid to oppose U.S. wars and intervention, a true man of peace.
 
Harry Belafonte, presente!
 
Photos © by David Bacon
To see the full set of photos, click here.




 

WHEN WE SPOKE OUT AGAINST WAR -
Unearthing the history of protest against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
Photographs © by David Bacon
https://www.flickr.com/photos/56646659@N05/52759801492/in/album-72177720306862427/
Copyright © 2023 David Bacon Photographs and Stories, All rights reserved.



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