Stung Eye

When the cable company turned off my cable TV service they left me with CNN. Portions of last night’s war coverage felt eerily similar to a reality TV show or to the manic coverage of an exciting hockey game. While showing off their latest live coverage gadgets some the reporters could not contain their excitement. I’m not sure if CNN actually has a reporter on board a US tank in the front lines or just a video camera, but either way, the reporters have taken to using ‘we’ to describe the army/media hybrid they have create. ‘As you can see, we are increasing our speeds now and we should arrive at the outskirts of Baghdad sometime tomorrow.’
On Wednesday, The New York Post encouraged readers to boycott movies starring "appeasement-loving celebs." A Fox News anchor, recently said people who continued to protest against the war once it begins would be "un-American." (More info here.)
And to top it all off, America's largest radio conglomerate Clear Channel, has been holding pro-war rallies.
How’s that for unbiased news coverage.
Here are some very graphic images from the last Gulf War.
In other news… Metafilter lead me to an online version of Henry David Thoreau’s ‘Walden’. “Thoreau wanted to get the most from his life by determining what was really important, and he did that by removing himself somewhat from the normal life of Concord, Massachusetts in the 1840's.” ‘Walden’ is an account of his life in the woods as well as a philosophical, physiological and economic view of life, society and human nature.
Sticking with books for a second, Bookfilter opened it’s virtual doors earlier this week. The discussions have already begun and the user-base is growing.
And now a few quick links:

• Some interesting photographs
• A quick intro to music theory
• Turntablist Transcription

I know I mentioned the Where's Raed blog in my last entry but if you are interested in a different view on this war you should really check it out. (The March 13th and 16th entries are noteworthy.)

It has begun. I honestly don't know what to think... what to say. This self-imposed silence is the antithesis of the vibe that stole my words last Saturday at the Pyramid. There is such potential in simple human connections. Where is the understanding? Where is the empathy? Where is the love?
I've added the Iraq civilian body count meter to this front page. The meter "is a Human Security project to establish an independent and comprehensive public database of civilian deaths in Iraq resulting directly from military actions by the USA and its allies in 2003". Although I’m sure the accuracy of this counter can be disputed, I think it’s important to be reminded that no wars are free of civilian casualties. Also, even if Bush and his coalition are able to keep civilian casualties to a minimum, we still cannot discount the lives of the Iraqi soldiers. Boys and men caught in a power struggle between two dictators. It’s sometimes easy to forget that the “bad guys” are people just like you and me.
If you want a break from CNN you should surf over to the Where is Raed? blog. Direct from Baghdad.
In times like this... I've got soul doubt.
"I stick my head out of the window once again
This time I see a thousand faces all too clear
They wear the same expression, I've seen in my face
So many times, I know exactly how they feel
I know exactly how they feel
I know just what they think about
They've got soul doubt" - NOFX
Boycott Brand America

All I can say is: wow! The Blue Quarter show at the Pyramid on Saturday was an amazing experience. They brought the space funk to Winnipeg and had this boy dancing all night long. Lost in a sonic seascape. Broken by the breakbeats. Powered by the vibe. I don't think words could ever do this show justice. Having said that, I will say no more.

There has been much talk in the media lately about the role that celebrities and musicians play in politics. More specifically, in anti or pro war politics. Check out Musicians United to Win without War.
Here's a quick list of some songs you might want to check out:

• The Beastie boys - In A World Gone Mad. (Lyrics)
• Sage Francis - Makeshift Patriot (Lyrics)
• Chumbawamba - Jacob's Ladder (Not In My Name)
• David Freyer and The Positive Chi Units - Rise Up (Lyrics)
• Saul Williams - Not in my Name (Remixes available here)
• Billy Bragg - The Price of Oil
• Seize the Day - United States (Lyrics and information)
• Wally Glutton - Taking Cover (Download from the sounds section. The lyrics can be found in the words section. While this song isn't directly about war, it is about two major factors involved with this impending war: fear and anxiety. Please note that only the lyrics are mine. The track was produced by The Dining Rooms and used without consent.)
• Lord Buckley - H-Bomb (Old School! Info here.)

Not war or music related: I added a new photo to the images section.

I just added myself to the invite list on www.letmestayforaday.com. The idea behind the website is that Ramon is attempting to travel around the world for free. He is currently in Vancouver and will be exploring the rest of Canada during the coming months. (Now don't be jealous... He thought up the idea first so he's the one who get to travel the world for free.)
One of my favourite albums of all time is Daisies of the Galaxy by the Eels. Check it out if you have the chance. Or else just check out the preview of the new Eels album.
Now that we're on the subject of favourites I'll mention one of my favourite movies, Waking Life. A lot of people wrote off this movie as preachy and / or pretentious but it contains some really thought provoking ideas, (not to mention some amazing visuals). Sit down and watch this movie with an open mind. Let the ideas wash over you as if you are the dreamer and the movie is your very own lucid dream.
Ben Cohen, (co-founder of Ben and Jerry's Ice-cream), created an anti-war television advertisement, featuring hip-hop artist Russell Simmons. All the major network news outlets rejected the commercial. For more information read the article Ben wrote for Alternet, or see the commercial here.

My grandfather’s funeral was on Tuesday. The morning left me feeling rather numb. I'm not exactly sure how one is supposed to feel after losing a loved one, but I do know that the afternoon helped a lot. We spent the afternoon at my parent's place with my grandma, aunts, uncles, and cousins. It was really nice to spend time with everyone and to share fond memories of grandpa. I have a wonderful family, (some of whom even read this site. Hi dad! Hi uncle Bruce!)
Last night Howie and I went for coffee at the Academy Coffee House and we were treated to an evening of high calibre music. What a treat it was. It sometimes amazes me how much empathy can be shared via music. Some of the instrumental acoustic guitar pieces reminded me of my favourite piece by Steve Reich so I've decided to make Electronic Counterpoint the song of the week. This track was sampled by The Orb for their amazing track 'Little fluffy clouds'.
A new Glutton radio mix was added to the sounds section.
CBC Radio 3 has a really great site for their electronic newletter. I recommend checking out the articles on deconstructing war, Mogwai and collage. The collage article lead me to the work of Paul Butler.
Not for the faint of heart.

What's happiness to you??? (A photo slideshow I made with a few friends featuring Ashley Beedle's mix of Happiness by Shawn Lee)
Peter Brinson made a really interesting short movie about depression and the use of meds to control depression.
The PBS show Frontline has made some of their past documentaries available for download. I highly recommend watching their investigation on the commercial use of 'cool', The Merchants of Cool.
Wanna watch some amazing breakdancing???
...play some musical games?
...or use a Visual Thesaurus.

Fred Rogers died today at the age of 74 from stomach cancer. He has hopefully joined Mr. Dressup and the Friendly Giant in a beautiful neighborhood somewhere out in the ether. Mr. Rogers taught me at a young age that asking questioning, wondering about things and using my imagination were very positive and powerful things to do.

R.I.P.

The rumour of the day is that the word 'boredom' did not exist until around 1750. Today, however, it seems like being bored is part of North American culture. It also seems like no one is willing to admit that the source of their boredom comes from within. I ran across an interesting article on boredom today. The article mentions that today's "society is so saturated with movies, TV, video games and advertising that people are losing their sense of wonder" and that "we developed a tolerance to amazing events". That's pretty depressing stuff.
Here's some art to kick start your sense of wonder: Dan Witz' Amazing Street Art, Gottfried Helnwein's paintings and photographs, Justin Shady's photographs, and Dave Corsland & Debbie's drawings and paintings.
File this under "I'm glad I don't live in the US": US federal authorities charged 55 people with trafficking drug paraphernalia over the internet. Attorney General John Ashcroft called this "a great victory for the DEA" and John Walters, the White House drug czar was quoted as saying that "this [was] a devastating blow to the drug paraphernalia business". Do they really believe that busting a few internet water bong distributors is going to decrease the amount of illegal drugs consumed in the US this year?
I've got to get my hands on one of these.

Winnipeg's own, The Weakerthans have been signed to Epitaph!
Are you afraid of dying? You're not alone... and your behavior has been shaped to help you forget this.