M Is FOR MASHUP - January 24th, 2018
A Trio of New Mashup Albums
By DJ Useo
01 - YITT - Synthetic Dreams EP
A synthetic blend of Evanescence's new orchestral album 'Synthesis', and various other artist/groups.
Preview
( www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSnTaRq04Lk )
( yitt.bandcamp.com/album/synthetic-dreams-ep )
02 - GladiLord - Cubical NaruRolled (AKA My 3rd mash album)
13 excellent new blends.
Preview
( sowndhaus.audio/profile/gladilord )
( www.mashstix.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=24315 )
03 - DRA'man - Die Antboots - 13 mashups with Die Antwoord
A full album of mashups from the best bootlegger there is.
( draman.bandcamp.com/album/die-antboots )
All 3 records are "no charge", give them a try & see why mashups flourish!
Next week, I have my next, all new album for you! Woot!
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Paul Krugman: The Art of the Broken Deal (NY Times)
Trump's promises are worthless, and America will pay the price.
Jack Bernhardt: Why Lyndon Johnson, a truly awful man, is my political hero (The Guardian)
Johnson privately acknowledged that signing the Civil Rights Act would lose the Democrats the south for a generation, but he knew that it had to be done. He spent his vast political capital on the war on poverty not because it was a vote-winner - far from it - but because he saw America's inequality as a stain on the country. Johnson represents the foolishness of trying to separate leaders into "good" and "bad" - and in a time of increasing polarisation and militancy, this is a vital lesson.
Josh Marshall: Devin Nunes Will Do Anything to Protect Donald Trump (TPM)
The FBI of course needs deep scrutiny and has a history of various misdeeds. But there's simply no evidence of any misdeeds in this case other than the crime of helping to uncover facts about the Trump campaign's collusion with Russian intelligence operatives during the 2016 campaign. It's amazing that this is happening.
HENRY FARRELL: Philip K. Dick and the Fake Humans (Boston Review)
When Ashley Madison, a dating site for people who want to cheat on their spouses, was hacked, it turned out that tens of thousands of the women on the site were fake "fembots" programmed to send millions of chatty messages to male customers, so as to delude them into thinking that they were surrounded by vast numbers of potential sexual partners.
Barbara Ehrenreich and Alissa Quar: "Let's call the pro-lifers what they are: pro-death" (The Guardian)
On the 45th anniversary of Roe v Wade, it's time to highlight a hidden truth: restricting abortion means more maternal deaths
Helaine Olen: Why is the media mostly ignoring the Women's March? (Washington Post)
While it's common sense to observe that the government shutdown is taking up some of our oxygen, the lack of attention also demonstrates how even with the #MeToo movement, it is ingrained to treat the concerns of women as secondary to, well, bigger things that are deemed more serious. And when opposition to the Trump administration and the Republican Party is framed as a women's issue, it receives less attention than it should.
MICAH MATTIX: Milton's Morality (Weekly Standard)
Fallen man and the fallen stature of 'Paradise Lost.'
David Bruce's Amazon Author Page
David Bruce's Smashwords Page
David Bruce's Blog
David Bruce's Lulu Storefront
David Bruce's Apple iBookstore
David Bruce has over 80 Kindle books on Amazon.com.
Presenting
Michael Egan
wrote:
has returned to semi-retired status.
In memory.
Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
Reader Comment
Current Events
Wonkette calls out the hypocritical evangelicals
It's all about power, not morals:
Bonus Links
Jeannie the Teed-Off Temp
from Marc Perkel
Marc's Guide to Curing Cancer
So far so good on beating cancer for now. I'm doing fine. At the end of the month I'll be 16 months into an 8 month mean lifespan. And yesterday I went on a 7 mile hike and managed to keep up with the hiking group I was with. So, doing something right.
Still waiting for future test results and should see things headed in the right direction. I can say that it's not likely that anything dire happens in the short term so that means that I should have time to make several more attempts at this. So even if it doesn't work the first time there are a lot of variations to try. So if there's bad news it will help me pick the next radiation target.
I have written a "how to" guide for oncologists to perform the treatment that I got. I'm convinced that I'm definitely onto something and whether it works for me or not isn't the definitive test. I know if other people tried this that it would work for some of them, and if they improve it that it will work for a lot of them.
The guide is quite detailed and any doctor reading this can understand the procedure at every level. I also go into detail as to how it works, how I figured it out, and variations and improvements that could be tried to enhance it. I also introduce new ways to look at the problem. There is a lot of room for improvement and I think that doctors reading it will see what I'm talking about and want to build on it. And it's written so that if you're not a doctor you can still follow it. It also has a personal story revealing that I'm the class clown of cancer support group. I give great interviews and I look pretty hot in a lab coat.
So, feel free to read this and see what I'm talking about. But if any of you want to help then pass this around to both doctors and cancer patients. I need some media coverage. I'm looking for as many eyeballs as possible to read these ideas. Even if this isn't the solution, it's definitely on the right track. After all, I did hike 7 miles yesterday. And this hiking group wasn't moving slow. So if this isn't working then, why am I still here?
I also see curing cancer as more of an engineering problem that a medical problem. So if you are good at solving problems and most of what you know about medicine was watching the Dr. House MD TV show, then you're at the level I was at when I started. So anyone can jump in and be part of the solution.
Here is a link to my guide: Oncologists Guide to Curing Cancer using Abscopal Effect
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
NEVER TRUST THE TURTLE!
THE RAT.
A KISS TO BUILD A DREAM ON.
'SHUT THE HELL UP!'
MEH.
Visit JD's site - Kitty Litter Music
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Oh boy - jury duty next week.
Taking a Stand Against Netflix
Mo'Nique and Wanda Sykes
Mo'Nique called for a boycott of streaming service Netflix for "gender bias and color bias" after allegedly being offered less money than Amy Schumer, Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle.
The Academy-Award winner said in an Instagram post on Friday that she was offered $500,000 for a comedy special. She claimed Schumer was offered $11 million, while Rock and Chappelle were both offered $20 million per their own specials. She said Schumer retroactively negotiated for an additional $2 million, saying she didn't deserve to be paid as much as "legends" Rock and Chapelle.
"When we asked Netflix to explain the difference… they said, 'Well that's what we believe Mo'Nique will bring," she said. "We said, 'What about my résumé?' They said, 'We don't go off of résumés.' Then we asked them, 'What was it about Amy Schumer?' And they said, 'Well, she sold out Madison Square Garden twice and she had a big movie over the summer. Is that not Amy Schumer's résumé?' And then Netflix said, 'By the way, we believe Mo'Nique is a legend, too,'" she said. "Why shouldn't I get what the legends are getting?"
Comedian Wanda Sykes thanked Mo'Nique, who has been for speaking out on Twitter, writing "Netflix offered me less than half of your $500k. I was offended but found another home."
Mo'Nique and Wanda Sykes
River Cruise
Harry Potter
It's no flying car, but Harry Potter fans are being courted in a new river cruise that makes stops at key filming locations like 4 Privet Drive, the real-world inspiration for Hogwarts, and the Warner Bros. Studio where the Harry Potter movies were made.
Admittedly, at around US $4,190 a person, the "Harry Potter Magic Cruise Itinerary" is not exactly aimed at the modest Muggle.
Less Harry Potter, more "Downton Abbey"? There's another river cruise for that.
While the itinerary for Downton Abbey shares the same historical stops -- Windsor Castle and Christ Church College at Oxford -- guests will also be chauffeured to Highclere Castle, where the drama was filmed.
The Harry Potter river cruise has two sailings, Aug. 5-11 and Aug. 19-25, 2018. The Downton Abbey cruise begin in April and run through August.
Harry Potter
'Fake News' Again
Twitter Tirade
Donald Trump's (R-Corrupt) daily Twitter tirade is nothing new but today he ignored a major tsunami warning - choosing to focus on "fake news" instead.
The President-for-now ranted about Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer's climbdown on immigrants so that the US government could reopen after a shutdown.
However, Trump made no mention of a magnitude 8.2 earthquake off Alaska's Kodiak Island prompting a tsunami warning for a large part of coastal Alaska and Canada's British Columbia.
Trump tweeted: "Even Crazy Jim Acosta of Fake News CNN agrees: 'Trump World and WH sources dancing in end zone: Trump wins again…Schumer and Dems caved…gambled and lost.'
Twitter Tirade
Faces Lawsuit
'Judge Judy'
Judge Judy Sheindlin scored a monster payday last year, when she sold her show's library to CBS for a reported $95 million to $100 million.
Now TV's highest-paid performer is being sued for allegedly withholding a portion of the proceeds - $4.75 million - from two producers who helped launch the program more than two decades ago.
The producers, Kaye Switzer and Sandi Spreckman, have been to court several times before to enforce their rights to the program. The issue even went to trial in 2000, and has been subject to various settlements.
The controversy has now outlived Spreckman, who died in 2009. On Friday, Switzer and Spreckman's estate filed suit in L.A. Superior Court, alleging they were denied their rightful 5% stake in the sale of the library last year.
Sheindlin obtained the rights to the library in an earlier negotiation with Big Ticket Entertainment and CBS. Sheinlin shopped the rights around before selling the library back to CBS for the reported $95 million.
'Judge Judy'
With Hispanic Surnames
Texans
Donald Trump's (R-Pendejo) controversial voter fraud commission asked for files on every Texan with a Hispanic surname, newly released documents show.
The Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity made the request last year while applying to obtain nearly 50 million voter records from the state with the second-largest Hispanic population in the US.
On the data request form, policy adviser Ron Williams ticked a box asking for "Hispanic surname flag notation" to be included in the files.
Officials said the data was never supplied because a lawsuit filed by voting rights campaigners blocked the state from sending any information to the commission.
Documents obtained by Missouri Democrat Senator Claire McCaskill show the commission had paid for voter records from some states that refused to provide them for free. Among the files was an invoice for $3,437.30 to be paid to obtain data on 49.6 million registered voters in Texas, including the details of those with Hispanic surnames.
Texans
Show Us Your Papers
Greyhound Bus
A video reportedly showing Customs and Border Protection agents demanding proof of citizenship from Greyhound bus passengers in Florida last week has sparked fresh outrage over the Trump administration's hard-line immigration policies.
"If I haven't committed a crime why do I have to show you ID?" one passenger can be heard saying.
A second video shows agents escorting a woman off the bus, her suitcase in tow. Customs and Border Protection said a woman was detained because she overstayed her tourist visa, though they did not specify if it was the same person shown in the viral video.
The Fourth Amendment of the Constitution protects people from arbitrary stops and searches, but federal law allows this to be overlooked in areas within 100 miles of U.S. borders. Florida lies entirely within that scope.
According to the American Civil Liberties Union, Border Patrol "cannot pull anyone over without 'reasonable suspicion' of an immigration violation or crime," nor can it search vehicles within that 100-mile zone without a warrant.
Greyhound Bus
Palestinian Christians Slam
Pence
Palestinian Christians say U.S. Vice President Mike Pence's (R-Mother) brand of evangelical Christianity, with its fervent embrace of modern-day Israel as fulfilment of biblical prophecy, lacks their faith's compassion and justice, including for those who have endured half a century of Israeli occupation.
Pence was in Jerusalem on Monday, expressing his full-throated support for Israel in a speech to parliament filled with biblical references. During an exuberant welcome, Pence and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly rejoiced in the Trump administration's decision last month to recognize contested Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
The dramatic policy shift is seen as a betrayal by the Palestinians, who claim Jerusalem's Israeli-annexed eastern sector as a capital and now reject U.S. mediation in any future efforts to resolve their long-running conflict with Israel. The Jerusalem pivot also upset some of Washington's Arab allies, particularly Jordan, where King Abdullah II laid out his disagreement with U.S. policy to the visiting Pence in unusually pointed remarks Sunday.
The vice president - by his own definition "a Christian, a conservative, a Republican, in that order" - has cited his religious beliefs as the source of his unwavering support of Israel.
Palestinian Christians, many with deep roots in the Holy Land, consider Christian Zionist views as a negation of the teachings of Jesus on justice and compassion for all of humanity. They argue that such streams of evangelical Christianity have used religion to whitewash Israel's harsh policies during its half-century-old rule over millions of Palestinians.
Pence
Republican Family Values
'Soul Mate'
A Republican congressman from Pennsylvania who settled a former aide's sexual harassment complaint with taxpayer money said Tuesday that he developed a deep affection for her and reacted badly when she began dating another man, but never harassed her or pursued a romantic relationship.
Rep. Pat Meehan said Tuesday that he intends to run for re-election in his suburban Philadelphia district and maintained that he did nothing wrong.
The four-term congressman, who is 62 and married, told the Philadelphia Inquirer he once told the woman he saw her as a "soul mate" and reacted "selfishly" when he discovered the decades-younger woman was in a serious relationship with another man.
The settlement had been kept secret, and Meehan's office has declined to answer repeated questions about how much taxpayer money Meehan paid out in it. The accuser's lawyer, Alexis Ronickher, has called the allegations "well-grounded" and a "serious sexual harassment claim."
'Soul Mate'
Prime-Time Nielsens
Ratings
Prime-time viewership numbers compiled by Nielsen for Jan. 15-21. Listings include the week's ranking and viewership.
1. NFC Championship: Minnesota vs. Philadelphia, Fox, 42.3 million.
2. "NFC Championship Post-Game" (9:39-9:47 p.m. ET), Fox, 26.53 million.
3. "NFC Championship Post-Game" (9:47-10:04 p.m. ET), Fox, 18.88 million.
4. "The Big Bang Theory," CBS, 14.92 million.
5. "Young Sheldon," CBS, 13.33 million.
6. "NCIS," CBS, 9.88 million.
7. "This is Us," NBC, 9.82 million.
8. "Blue Bloods," CBS, 9.45 million.
9. "The Good Doctor," ABC, 9.34 million.
10. "Mom," CBS, 9.26 million.
11. "Hawaii Five-0," CBS, 9.14 million.
12. "NCIS: New Orleans," CBS, 8.82 million.
13. "Ellen's Game of Games," NBC, 8.78 million.
14. "The Resident," Fox, 8.65 million.
15. "Grey's Anatomy," ABC, 8.28 million.
16. "60 Minutes," CBS, 8.2 million.
17. "Chicago Med," NBC, 7.88 million.
18. "MacGyver," CBS, 7.68 million.
19. "Kevin Can Wait," CBS, 7.21 million.
20. "60 Minutes" (Sunday, 8 p.m.), CBS, 7.07 million.
Ratings
In Memory
Ursula K Le Guin
Celebrated science fiction and fantasy author Ursula K Le Guin has died at the age of 88.
Among the author's best-known works are the 1969 science fiction novel Left Hand of Darkness, which explore themes of gender by featuring characters with no fixed sex, and the 1968 coming-of-age story A Wizard of Earthsea.
Those were among the more than 20 novels Ms Le Guin published over a storied career, also spanning poetry and essays, in which she helped to elevate science fiction and fantasy as serious literature.
In an interview with writer Michael Cunningham, Ms Le Guin described how her fiction, "which moves freely around among realism, magical realism, science fiction, fantasy of various kinds, historical fiction, young adult fiction, parable, and other subgenres" nevertheless "got shoved into the Sci Fi wastebasket or labeled as kiddilit".
"Realism is of course a tremendous and wonderfully capacious literary genre, and it has dominated fiction since 1800 or before," she said. "But dominance isn't the same thing as superiority. Fantasy is at least as immense as realism and much older - essentially coeval with literature itself. Yet fantasy was relegated for fifty years or sixty years to the nursery".
Honoured for her life's work at the National Book Awards in 2014, the author trumpeted "all the writers who were excluded from literature for so long - my fellow writers of fantasy and science fiction".
Ursula K Le Guin
In Memory
Hugh Masekela
Trumpeter and singer Hugh Masekela, known as the "father of South African jazz" who used his music in the fight against apartheid, has died from prostate cancer, his family said on Tuesday. He was 78.
In a career spanning more than five decades, Masekela gained international recognition with his distinctive Afro-Jazz sound and hits such as "Soweto Blues", which served as one of the soundtracks to the anti-apartheid movement.
Following the end of white-minority rule, he opened the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup Kick-Off Concert and performed at the event's opening ceremony in Johannesburg's Soccer City stadium.
Masekela's song "Bring Him Back Home (Nelson Mandela)", written while he was in living in exile, called for the release of the-then imprisoned Mandela and was banned by the apartheid regime.
After honing his craft as a teenager, Masekela left South Africa aged 21 to begin three decades in exile.
His global appeal hit new heights in 1968 when his instrumental single "Grazin' in the Grass" went to number one in the U.S. charts.
As well as close friendships with jazz legends like Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Charlie Mingus, Masekela also recorded with the Byrds and performed alongside stars such as Janis Joplin, Otis Redding and Jimi Hendrix at the famed 1967 Monterey Pop Festival.
Still performing 50 years on, he toured Europe in 2012 with Paul Simon to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his classic album "Graceland" in an African musical extravaganza.
He was married to singer and activist Miriam Makeba, known as "Mama Africa", from 1964 to 1966.
Hugh Masekela
| CURRENT MOON lunar phases |
