'Best of TBH Politoons'
Tonight
Erin Hart
710 KIRO - 9pm to 1am (pdt) Weekend Nights
Marines are dying in record numbers in Iraq, Robert Novak has had a meltdown
on CNN, and GW is still on vacation--what a week to talk.
Strategy or strategery--the war is going worse and Bush is tanking in polls
regarding his honesty and handling of the war--the country doesn't seem to
trust him anymore. So how do we handle the increasing violence?
And if you caught it, you blinked--a newby host on CNN was going to ask
Novak about the Plame case and right before he let James Carville's mild
needling provoke him to say a big swear on air. AND left the set. Wow.
The 40th anniversary of the Voter Rights Act, the 60th of Hiroshima, time to
ponder justice and power.
And it's Seafair in Seattle, what fun and what noise--join the fun on the
Erin Hart show
as we review the local stories of the week--detectives gone
wild and monorails jumping the tracks--record high gas prices and all.
Join in on 710 KIRO (we stream worldwide) AND
erinhartshow.com.
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
James McGregor: Advantage, China: In This Match, They Play Us Better Than We Play Them (washingtonpost.com)
Chinese pity comes from their belief that we are a country in decline. More than a few Chinese friends have quoted to me the proverb fu bu guo san dai (wealth doesn't make it past three generations) as they wonder how we became so ill-disciplined, distracted and dissolute.
Kelly Hearn: Freeing Up the Right to Vote (AlterNet)
On the 40th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, groups across the country are working to reinstate suffrage for reformed criminals.
Dan Rather: What I've Learned (Esquire Magazine)
The press is a watchdog. Not an attack dog. Not a lapdog. A watchdog. Now, a watchdog can't be right all the time. He doesn't bark only when he sees or smells something that's dangerous. A good watchdog barks at things that are suspicious.
ROGER EBERT: Saraband (4 Stars)
When I interviewed [Liv Ullmann] about "Faithless" at Cannes five years ago, I noted to myself that she had not, like so many actresses, had plastic surgery. She wore her age as proof of having lived, as we all must. Now I see "Saraband" and the movie is possible because she did not allow a surgeon to give her a face yearning for its younger form.
ROGER EBERT: Broken Flowers (4 Stars)
"Broken Flowers" stars Bill Murray as Don Johnston, a man who made his money in computers and now doesn't even own one. To sit at the keyboard would mean moving from his sofa, where he seems to be stuck.
Crazy Mom
Monkey Mail
News Flash
Date: 8/6/2005 8:08:13 AM Pacific Standard Time
From: Inventex1@wmconnect.com
Pssstt. You are not only a loser but a sorry fucking loser. HAHHAHAHAAHAH!
The proof is in the FACT that Bush has won not only everything = he continues to win and you loser pukes continue to ............... well, you might be able to figure it out. I love it so.
unsigned
Dearest Inventex -
Your fearsome invective makes me quiver.
Your uncommon wit is without parallel.
A big strong, smart man like you should enlist.
I am greatly looking forward to news of your exploits in Bush's Iraqi Folly.
Or do you, like 5-Deferment Dick 'Go-Fuck-Yourself' Cheney have more important things to do?
Bet your mommy lays out your panties in the morning.
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Still humid, but tolerable.
List of Winners
Billboard Awards
The 2005 Billboard-AURN R&B/Hip-Hop Award winners, announced in Atlanta on Friday:
Album: "The Massacre," 50 Cent
Single: "Let Me Love You," Mario
Artist: Usher
Male Artist: Usher
Female Artist: Alicia Keys
Duo or Group: Destiny's Child
New Artist: The Game
Singles Artist: Usher
Albums Artist: 50 Cent
Rap Album: "The Massacre," 50 Cent
Singles Sales: "I Believe," Fantasia
Singles Airplay: "Let Me Love You," Mario
Hot Rap Tracks: "Drop It Like It's Hot," featuring Snoop Dogg and Pharell
Songwriter: Alicia Keys
Producer: Jonathan "Lil' Jon" Smith
Major Label: Interscope
Independent Label: TVT
Billboard Awards
Sued for Breach of Contract
Pam Anderson
Former "Baywatch" idol Pamela Anderson is being sued for breach of contract for allegedly not making herself available for promotional events.
United Licensing Group Inc., which is arranging for the manufacture of the star's perfume, clothing and other merchandise, claims Anderson has not been sufficiently available at signings, shoots and trade shows, according to a Superior Court lawsuit filed Thursday.
United Licensing claims it has a five-year contract but that Anderson repeatedly decided against licensing proposals. The company also claims it was exluded in Anderson's agreement to have her image on slot machines at the Bally's casino and hotel in Las Vegas.
Pam Anderson
2 Episodes Added
Bobby Brown
Two episodes have been added to Bravo's summer reality series "Being Bobby Brown," which follows the lives of the R&B singer, his wife, Whitney Houston, and three of his children.
"The first eight episodes of `Being Bobby Brown' have kept Bravo viewers buzzing," Bravo President Lauren Zalaznick said in a statement Friday. "We hope two new episodes will satisfy viewers' appetites for more Bobby and Whitney."
"Being Bobby Brown" airs on Thursday nights. The new episode on Aug. 18 will take an inside look into the couple's homes in Georgia and New Jersey. The Aug. 25 finale will feature clips from the series and extra footage of Brown, the network said Friday.
Bobby Brown
Asked to Stage Crucifixion
Mel Gibson
Hollywood actor-director Mel Gibson has been asked to recreate the crucifixion of Jesus Christ in the streets of Sydney if the city is selected to host a major Catholic gathering in 2008, a newspaper reported Saturday.
Gibson's staging of the Stations of the Cross, a live interpretation of Christ's final hours, would be part of a bid by the city to secure the Catholic Church's World Youth Day in 2008, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
The crucifixion reenactment - similar to scenes from Gibson's hugely successful film "The Passion of the Christ" - would begin with the Last Supper staged at Sydney's landmark Opera House at sunset, and would end with the crucifixion of Christ at St. Mary's Cathedral, according to bid documents the newspaper said it obtained.
Mel Gibson
Sought Sanctuary in Japan?
Hitler
Aware that his Third Reich was on the verge of collapse just 12 years into the 1,000-year reign he had promised, German Fuhrer Adolf Hitler tried to flee the rampaging Russians battering his Berlin bunker and sought sanctuary in Japan, according to Shukan Shincho.
As the Soviets relentlessly pounded the German dictator and his cronies holed up in the subterranean fortress in the German capital, moves were apparently afoot to whisk away top Nazis on long-range Condor airplanes to Japan, journalist Eiichiro Tokumoto writes in the prestigious weekly.
Tokumoto cites a top secret letter dated April 24, 1945, that Shuichi Kase, then Japan's Ambassador to Switzerland, wrote to Shigemitsu Togo, Japan's Foreign Minister at the time.
Kase, a career diplomat whose CV would later include stints as Japan's first ambassador to the United Nations, was then involved with top secret peace negotiations with Allen Dulles, an operative with the U.S.' Office of Strategic Services, the forerunner of today's Central Intelligence Agency.
Kase's letter to Togo shows the diplomat was worried that an already struggling Japan was about to be lumbered with a bevy of nasty Nazis.
For the rest, Hitler
7 Day Psychedelic Fundraiser & Festival
Psytopia
Psytopia is an all-inclusive, seven-day festival highlighting bands and speakers from around the world to raise awareness for some noble charities.
The event occurs Aug. 17 - 23, 2005, and includes performances by Conspirator, Alex Grey, Ozrics Tentacles, EROWID, High Times, Brothers Past, and The Church of Subgenius just to name a few. This new paradigm for a fundraiser has been steadily gaining global attention and praise.
The Coalition for Cosmic Consciousness, 501(c)3, designed the Psytopia fundraiser with the emphasis on the word fun. This event is unlike any other concert or festival and promises a plethora of once in a lifetime experiences.
Psytopia
Fined, Drug Charge Dropped
Marion 'Suge' Knight
Death Row Records founder Marion "Suge" Knight was fined $691 Friday after pleading no contest to making an illegal U turn and driving without insurance, authorities said. A marijuana possession charge was dismissed.
Knight, 40, was jailed for more than a week after his arrest Feb. 5, and the San Bernardino County sheriff's department said at the time that marijuana was found in the Ford pickup truck he was driving.
Knight was, however, in technical violation of his parole for traveling more than 50 miles from his home, O'Neal said. The record mogul, whose label once dominated the rap world, was ordered to undergo electronic monitoring until he was discharged from parole April 24, O'Neal said.
Marion 'Suge' Knight
Fire Destroys Garage
Marie Osmond
A fire at the home of entertainer Marie Osmond destroyed a garage and her office above it, her husband said. There were no injuries.
Flames were shooting out the front of the garage, up a wall and through a broken window into Osmond's office. The fire had earlier blown that window out, Orem Fire Capt. Dave Thomas told The Associated Press.
The fire was contained to the garage and office, and was under control in about five minutes. Fire officials were investigating the cause.
Marie Osmond, 45, was giving a speech in Southern California at the time of the fire.
Marie Osmond
Rowdy Bike Rally Transforms Town
Sturgis, SD
The thrill of riding a big, bad motorcycle through the Black Hills of South Dakota is drawing thousands to this quiet town, transforming it into a noisy, bawdy road rally that has grown into a three-week spectacle.
Bikers of all kinds - from hard-core, tattooed enthusiasts to lawyers and doctors - come from every corner of the nation for the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, lured by the twisting, pine-skirted roads of the Black Hills, as well as Badlands National Park and Mount Rushmore.
The one-week rally is scheduled for Monday through Aug. 14, but it has unofficially expanded in recent years to include the weeks before and after. It began in 1938 as a small gathering of bikers and has grown in the last decade or so to attract hundreds of thousands each year.
For a lot more, Sturgis, SD
More Republican Compassion
Missouri
A businesswoman in faraway Montana was swamped with anguished calls after a letter informing 339,000 Medicaid recipients of service cuts wrongly listed her phone number for a help line for the hearing impaired.
The letters mailed Monday already have resulted in hundreds of calls to Sharon Rivera, who lives in Columbia Falls, Mont. - more than 1,200 miles northwest of Missouri's capital.
The Missouri Department of Social Services acknowledged the error Thursday. The two-page letter had correct help line numbers for voice calling but used Rivera's number, one digit away from the correct one, for calls from telephones used by the hearing or speech impaired.
At the urging of Gov. Matt Blunt, the GOP-led Legislature this year eliminated Medicaid health care coverage for about 90,000 of Missouri's 1 million Medicaid recipients. It cut services such as dental care, eyeglasses and crutches for an additional 339,000 adults remaining on Medicaid, and imposed new co-payments ranging from 50 cents to $10.
Rivera runs a home-based business, Hawkstone Productions, that books concerts and sells music for Jack Gladstone, an Indian singer, songwriter, lecturer and storyteller.
Missouri
Newspaper Misprint
Kris Bryan
Kris Bryan couldn't believe it when she came home and realized strangers were taking away her stuff - including her 7-week-old kitten. A legal notice in the Lawrence Journal-World for unclaimed property mistakenly listed Bryan's address. The notice said the items would be thrown out if they weren't picked up from the apartment.
Sgt. Dan Ward, a spokesman for the Lawrence Police Department, said Bryan confronted the people at her home, who showed her the Journal-World ad. They returned the items they had taken, but others had already made off with an estimated $3,300 worth of possessions - everything from a TV and a DVD player to video games and Bryan's kitten.
Ward said it was unclear how people got into Bryan's home. There were no signs of forced entry and Bryan told authorities she believed her door was locked.
Kris Bryan
In Memory
Al McKibbon
Al McKibbon, a bassist who brought a masterly fusion of jazz and Latin music to the George Shearing quintet and other groups in the 1940s and '50s, has died. He was 86.
One of the last great string bass players from the bebop era, he was little known publicly but was famous among musicians and had performed with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk.
Born in Chicago to a musical family, Alfred Benjamin McKibbon grew up in Detroit and began learning the bass at his brother's urging. He played local nightclubs while in high school and in 1943 was hired by bandleader Luck Millinder and moved to New York. There, he played with leading jazz figures such as saxophonist Coleman Hawkins.
He later appeared with Gillespie's big band, where he became interested in Latin music. Gillespie was experimenting with combining jazz and Afro-Cuban rhythms at the time.
McKibbon moved to Los Angeles in 1958 and played in the staff orchestras of CBS and NBC, for movie soundtracks and on albums by Frank Sinatra, Randy Newman, Sammy Davis Jr. and others. He also played on Davis' "The Complete Birth of the Cool" recordings.
Al McKibbon
In Memory
Eli 'Lucky' Thompson
Lucky Thompson, a legendary tenor and soprano saxophonist who took his place among the elite improvisers of jazz from the 1940s to the 1960s and then quit music, roamed the country and ended up homeless or hospitalized for more than a decade, died a week ago in Seattle. He was 81.
Thompson connected the swing era to the more cerebral and complex bebop style. His sophisticated, harmonically abstract approach to the tenor saxophone built off that of Don Byas and Coleman Hawkins; he played with beboppers, but resisted Charlie Parker's pervasive influence. He also played the soprano saxophone authoritatively.
Thompson was born Eli Thompson in Columbia, S.C., on June 16, 1924, and moved to Detroit with his family as a child. After graduating from high school in 1942, he played with Erskine Hawkins' band, then called the 'Bama State Collegians; the next year he moved to New York as a member of Lionel Hampton's big band.
After six months with Hampton, while still very young, he swiftly ascended the ranks of hip. He played in Billy Eckstine's short-lived big band, one of the first to play bebop, which also included Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. He joined the Count Basie Orchestra in 1944.
In 1945 he left Basie in Los Angeles. When the Charlie Parker-Dizzy Gillespie sextet came through L.A., Thompson was hired by Gillespie as a temporary replacement for Parker.
Fiercely intelligent, Thompson was outspoken in his feelings about what he considered the unfair control of the jazz business by record companies, music publishers and booking agents. Partly for these reasons, he left the United States to live in Paris from 1957 to 1962, making a number of recordings with groups including the pianist Martial Solal. After returning to New York for a few years, he lived in Lausanne, Switzerland, from late 1968 to 1970. He came back to New York again, taught at Dartmouth in 1973 and 1974, then disappeared from the Northeast, and soon from music entirely.
Friends say he lived for a time on Manitoulin Island in Ontario and in Georgia before eventually moving west. By the early 1990s he was in Seattle, mostly living in the woods or in shelter offered by friends. He did not own a saxophone. He walked long distances, and was reported to have been in excellent, muscular shape.
Eli 'Lucky' Thompson
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