Wednesday, December 06, 2006

The words of an honest man

I'm the master of low expectations.

--George w. Bush aboard Air Force One
06/04/2003

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

A small hint. Or not so small.

Doing a little thread in Latin somewhere else. I do it with this http://www.tranexp.com:2000/Translate/result.shtml of course. My latin sucks, this actually helps me a get the hang a bit... So here it is my friends; the entryticket to that thread if you can't do Latin.

http://www.tranexp.com:2000/Translate/result.shtml

Testing the waters

This is a test. I have just been converted to Google. Don't feel no different though...

Friday, August 11, 2006

Vergane glorie : Cornelis

For all people who use the Babelfish...


De Jantjes Blues.


Jantje was aan 't wandelen op het Leidse Plein
Toen vond ie een rijksdaalder en dat vond ie fijn
Hij kocht er zoute pinda's voor, sigaretten en drop
Kortom in no-time waren al z'n centen op

Maar hij werd geschaduwd door een brigadier
Die zei tegen Jantje "Kom jij maar eens hier"
'Kweenie of je 't weet maar rijksdaalders op straat'
'Zijn verloren goederen en horen aan de Staat'

De rechter zei 'Hee Jantje, weet jij wel wat je bent?'
'Dat noemen wij juridisch een jeugd-delinquent'
'Een schande voor je ouders, je toekomst naar de maan'
'Want als je later groot bent krijg je nooit een goede baan'

'Stik maar' zei Jantje, 'met je kouwe kak'
'Ma die is de hort op en pa zit in de bak'
'Wat die er van zeggen lap ik aan mijn schoen'
'En als ik later groot ben zorg ik zelf wel voor m'n poen'

Men haalde er een heel stel psychologen bij
Die vond hem een gevaar voor de maatschappij
Vandaag een rijksdaalder, morgen een huis
Hopsakee de bajes in en weg met dat gespuis

Op z'n verjaardag zat Jantje in de cel
Er kwam geen visite maar kadootjes krijg hij wel
Ma stuurde een ijzerzaag, pa stuurde een boor
'Daar gaat ie dan' zei Jantje en hij ging er vandoor

Buiten de bajes zag hij een auto staan
'Ik leen hem maar' zei Jantje, zo gezegd en zo gedaan
Maar in een scherpe bocht kreeg die kar een lekke band
Sloeg zeven maar over de kop en vloog toen in de brand

Hiermede eindigt het verhaal van onze held
Een Blues voor Jantje zongen de vogels in het veld
Jezus, zei de dominee, sta zijn zieltje bij
Maar Jantje had er maling aan want Jantje was vrij
Jantje was vrij, Jantje was vrij...


Cornelis Vreeswijk

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Ye Olde Banners

"Even if the flag burning amendment does become law, the larger problem will remain of how to respectfully dispose of older, tattered flags. Well, fortunately the U.S. official Flag Code has a suggestion about this.

Quote: 'The flag, when it is in such a condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem of display, should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning.'

Owwwwcchh.

In response, the House Republicans are calling for tattered flags to be kept alive via a feeding tube."


Jon Stewart

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

Jimi

The story of life


The story of Jesus
so easy to explain
After they crucified him,
a woman, she claimed his name
The story of Jesus
the whole bible knows
went all across the desert
and in the middle, he found a rose

There should be no questions
there should be no lies
He was married ever happily after
All the tears we cry
No use in arguing
all the use to the man that moans
When each man falls in battle
his soul it has to roam
Angles of heaven
flying saucers to some,
made Easter Sunday
the name of the rising sun

The story is written
by so many people who dared,
to lay down the truth
to so very many who cared
to carry the cross
of Jesus and beyond
We will guide the light
this time with a woman in our arms
We as men
can't explain the reason why
the woman's always mentioned
at the moment that we die
All we know
is God is by our side,
and he says the word
so easy yet so hard

I wish not to be alone,
so I must respect my other heart
Oh, the story
of Jesus is the story
of you and me
No use in feeling lonely,
I am searching to be free

The story
of life is quicker
than the wink of an eye
The story of love
is hello and goodbye
Until we meet again

The last words on paper of Jimi Hendrix

Thursday, June 15, 2006

The Ministry of Truth at work



Found in Athens, Georgia...


I had doubts as to where we're going
but I gotta hand it to the Man upstairs
I've been put on a whole new programme
Don't have to handle my own affairs
Everything I need is on my print-out
I don't need anything anymore
I'n not confused by useless knowledge
I don't even know if it's 1984 for sure

Rules rule O.K. ask no questions
Welcome to the Age of Consent
Fasten seatbelt, drive with caution
Don't take shots at the President
Robotman's a wonderful creation
Automatically obeys the laws
Laws of Nature, Man and Science
I don't even know if it's 1984 for sure

What I need is some real emotion
Little love and and a lot of despair
Robotman's got a brandnew problem
Robotman don't know how to care
I paid my dues but the dudes won't let me
I cry out but who the Hell for?
I don't even know what it means to suffer
I don't even know if it's 1984 for sure

Nine-teen-eighty-four..?


Tim Rice/Rick Wakeman

Monday, May 22, 2006

Observations from the sideline - GWB

"George Bush often states that he reads the Bible every day. And I'm thinking: "You're 55 years old, finish the damn book!"

Towelday!

Towelday - the site

Don't forget the 25th of May is Towelday!.

Thursday, May 11, 2006

The making of Superman, an interesting story from behind the scenes

This article reads like an absurdist movie... "Who is this K'Al El' you keep mentioning?"(This coming from the man who was actually heavily involved in the first Superman-movies!!!)

Superman V : The Whole Sordid Saga.

Friday, May 05, 2006

Faith-based disaster planning

"When President Bush was in New Orleans, he said 'We pray there is no hurricane coming this year.' This is what we call faith-based disaster planning."

Jay Leno


Ahhhh, the joys of Bush-bashing... :-)

Monday, May 01, 2006

B5 gives you the finger...

My new wallpaper. A bit too big to publish here, so here's the link...

Sunday, April 30, 2006

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Acoustic acoustics...

Well I finally made the decision to take up the acoustic guitar again. Haven't played it seriously for 7 or 8 years now, too busy and after all; my synthesizers and the band took up most of my time. Now that Solid Air has ceased to be(at least in its last incarnation) I finally have the time to go back to 6 strings, 6 pegs and two hands and a G-string...

In the previous century(I love the way that sounds!) I used to do gigs in small venues. Mixing originals songs and covers, I always tried to find a good mix of songs. Songs that either everybody knew but hadn't heard in years, song that almost nobody knew but which were - in my opinion - absolutely brilliant, and some of my own stuff if it wasn't too bad compared to the covers I played on a night. Songs like 'Don't dream it's over' as well as the works of Loudon Wainwright and Bruce Cockburn are now much better known in my hometown than they were... Possibly because of the way I 'played' them(I ain't going there people! ;-)).

So now I'm back in that saddle, trying to get my fingers flexible enough again to work the songs I want to play. Mind you ; I am definitely not one of those guitar-wizards who can play the intro to 'Oh Well' twice as fast as Peter Green could. I get by and I can support the songs I am singing.

So what's the score Norah? So far I have made a first selection of songs to be played. This is not the definitive set because I always keep tweaking the list until say a week or so before the gig. But this is what I'm thinking of.


Neil Young - Ohio / Southern Man
Tim Buckley - Song to the Siren
Loudon Wainwright - He said, she said
Original song - Somewhere in '06
Queen - '39
Original song - After loving you
Bruce Cockburn - Outside a broken phonebooth with money in my hand
Crowded House - Whispers and moans
Robbie Williams - Better man
Rory Gallagher - For the last time
Pink Floyd - Wish you were here
Tracey Chapman - Fast Car / Revolution
Todd Rundgren - Love of the common man
Fleetwood Mac - Man of the world
Loudon Wainwright - Career moves
John Lennon - Working Class Hero
Neil Young - (keep on) Rocking in the Free World


Added May 11th :

The Church - Under the Milky Way
Michael Penn - No Myth


And on it goes...

Neil may be back...

Just heard the other day that Neil Young has apparently just finished a new record. That is nothing new of course. However, I heard that the album is one long attack on the current Bush-administration. Coming from the man who has become what Bob Dylan should have been, this is interesting news to me.

I heard that the album was recorded in three days(!) with a drummer, a bassplayer, a trumpettist and a 100-persons mixed choir. And Neil Young of course. ;-)

The only song on the album of which the title was 'leaked' is apparently called 'Let's impeach the President'...

"Tin soldiers and Nixon coming
We're finally on our own
This summer I hear the drumming
Four dead in Ohio"

"Ohio"

He really is one of those songwriters I have always admired. He never did fit into a box labeled 'Pop' or 'Rock' or 'Country' or or or...

Neil Young = Neil Young...

Wednesday, April 12, 2006

Tourism down, and nobody saw it coming??

According to MSNBC tourism in the US is down by about 286 billion dollars. And nobody saw it coming? Talk about not thinking things through before you start treating all foreigners like unwanted aliens who have to get retina-scans, special visa, etcetera.

I'd rather go somewhere where I feel welcome.

Source.

A quick Fixx

Privilege


So correct me if I'm wrong,
though a day's twenty four hours long
How come you feel unwired and disconnected
Draw attention to yourself
is your life a living hell?
Change your act, rewrite the script the way you planned it

Radio news reports
Truth and fact distorts
And the world's majority is understated
If the views are on your mind
It's the wavelength you must find
Be prepared to hold your weight
Huh! Hah!

Privilege you have the right
If you're on the frequency
If you're on the frequency
So when you say that

There's always something else to do
There must be one thing you can try
There's always something else to do

When a week has just three days
It's the young that always pay
But who keeps the cold at bay with understanding?
If there's a dying urge inside
To release forgotten pride
Don't rely on words of gloom
Don't be disjointed

Privilege you have the right
If you're on the frequency
If you're on the frequency
So when you say that

There's always something else to do
There must be one thing we can try
There's always something else to do

Heretic the witch was right
She had the frequency
She has the potency
Energy the time is right
To fight for decency

Privilege you have the right
If you're on the frequency
If you're on the frequency
So when you say that

There's never anything to do
There must be one thing you can try
There's always something else to do

How?
How I begin, Tell me how, How?
I tune in, Tell me how, How?
When do I tune in for now?
Draw attention to yourself
Are you tuned into the show?
She had the frequency
She has the potency...

Thursday, March 30, 2006

Times 10

Another ten years or so and we can all go to Australia and be back in time for tea and crumpets. The tickets may be a bit expensive but well, you do get a nice ride.

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Whitney Houston's Fall

I never really liked Whitney Houston and I couldn't care less about "OOOOOOOWWWWW I Want To DANCE With Somebodeee-ee-eeeeee". But here is one prime example of someone going under, someone cracking up(no pun intended) under the pressure of the business and under the influence of drugs. Smokinig crack in a cigar filled with marijuana. Really...

How the hell can someone who had everything fall so deep?

To paraphrase Liz Taylor : "Whitney and Bobby, sad, sad, sad"...

This is a test using Deepest Sender

Let's see if this works. I just installed Firefox-extension 'Deepest Sender'. This extension allows me to post to my blog straigh from a Mozilla-window.

Testing....testing....

Monday, March 06, 2006

IT Agony Bingo

An exceptionally brillant installment of my favourite online-comic.

Monday, February 27, 2006

Another weblog...

A great weblog from a very intelligent guy : David Byrne.

Song to the Siren

Especially for my friend KidVic, Tim Buckley's 'Song to the Siren' by The Czars.

On the floating, shipless oceans
I did all my best to smile
til your singing eyes and fingers
drew me loving into your eyes.
And you sang "Sail to me, sail to me;
Let me enfold you."
Here I am, here I am waiting to hold you.
Did I dream you dreamed about me?
Were you here when I was full sail?

Now my foolish boat is leaning, broken lovelorn on your rocks.
For you sang, "Touch me not, touch me not, come back tomorrow."
Oh my heart, oh my heart shies from the sorrow.
I'm as puzzled as a newborn child.
I'm as riddled as the tide.
Should I stand amid the breakers?
Or shall I lie with death my bride?
Hear me sing: "Swim to me, swim to me, let me enfold you."
"Here I am. Here I am, waiting to hold you."


Oh, and here you can see Tim Buckley sing the song himself.

And a big thank you to Dertigers, a terrific weblog for the alternative over-aged... ;-)

Donald Fagen

And while I'm at it, you can find the new Donald Fagen here. Also very relaxed and very much Fagen...

Black Sweat... Yeah!

Anyone interested in the new Prince(video) ? I am! That man has more RnB in his little finger then most full bands have together...

Friday, February 24, 2006

Marlee and me

I'm going to buy this book when I can get my hands on a copy. It sounds a bit like the early work of John Irving.

Thursday, February 23, 2006

Well I ain't laughing...

Just in the news :

"German sentenced for selling toiletpaper with 'Koran' written on it to mosque.

Today the 61-year old german Manfred von H. was sentenced to a probationary prison-sentence of 1 year by a German court. Manfred von H. created toilet-paper with the word 'Koran' printed on it and tried to sell it to a mosque.

Von H. included a letter with his merchandise, in which he described the Koran as 'a cookbook for terrorists'. According to the German court he is therefor guilty of insulting the Islamic faith and disturbing the peace.

Von H. wanted to use the proceeds(...) of his project to build a monument for 'all victims of Islamic terror'."


So this is funny??? Well I ain't laughing. This has nothing to do with 'Freedom of Speech' or 'Freedom of Expression', this is meant purely and solely as an insulting provocation. Not just printing the word 'Koran' on toilet-paper, but then trying to sell it to a mosque... How insulting can you get?

If this complete asshole would have had both his legs and arms broken by furious muslims I wouldn't lift a fucking finger to help him. Everybody who reads this blog(all two of you out there...) knows that I want nothing to do with organized religion, that I see it as the ancient remains of a time when gods served their purpose in society. But this has nothing to do with the freedom of expression. This is called 'unnecessary insult'.

So it is now time for me to turn the world around for a change :

These kind of western(probably white) idiots give me not only a bad taste in my mouth, they also give me a bad name in this world.

As far as I'm concerned he drops dead right now. Idiots I can do without. Sometimes I wish evolution would breed out the dross a bit faster.

Roe v. Wade

The moment everyone was waiting for since Bush appointed the new judges to the Supreme Court.
South Dakota's first, who's next?

Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Peasantry

I know I keep going on about this 'Fred-guy'. But he hits it right on the nail again, for me that is... Maybe that's why some people call me an elitist, or arrogant, or a snob, or...WhAtEvAh!

Read it first. And look deep deep into the darker spots in your so pure and democratic soul... and THEN call me an elitist, or arrogant, or a snob, or...

wHaTeVaH!

Sunday, February 19, 2006

Truthdig

Today I added Truthdig to the links-list. Nice site, lots of information, lots to read.

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

DigiLove...or is it...?

This is an interesting article about a couple who gave each other RFID-chips for Valentine's Days. They are implanted in their wrist I assume.

The thing is, in this day of worldchaos and paranoia, that the first thing I thought was 'how many ex-CIA prisoners have been released with one of these things implanted in their bodies?'.

Paranoia spreads...

So long Andreas

Of all of them he was the most...human.

"I believe that when we leave a place a part of it goes with us and part of us remains. Go anywhere in these halls, when it is quiet and just listen. After a while you will hear the echoes of all of our conversations, every thought and word we've exchanged. Long after we are gone, our voices will linger in these walls for as long as this place remains. But I will admit that the part of me that going will very much miss the part of you that is staying." - Andreas Katsulas as G'Kar


G'Kar is dead. What more can I add than this quote?

"The Universe speaks in many languages, but only one voice. The language is not Narn, or Human, or Centauri, or Gaim or Minbari. It speaks in the language of hope; It speaks in the language of trust; It speaks in the language of strength, and the language of compassion. It is the language of the heart and the language of the soul. But always, it is the same voice. It is the voice of our ancestors, speaking through us, And the voice of our inheritors, waiting to be born. It is the small, still voice that says: We are one. No matter the blood; No matter the skin; No matter the world; No matter the star; We are one. No matter the pain; No matter the darkness; No matter the loss; No matter the fear; We are one. Here, gathered together in common cause. we agree to recognise this singular truth, and this singular rule: That we must be kind to one another, because each voice enriches us and ennobles us, and each voice lost diminishes us. We are the voice of the Universe, the soul of creation, the fire that will light the way to a better future. We are one."



Until we meet again Andreas, in a place where no shadows fall.

Tuesday, February 14, 2006

Anonymous Lawyer

This is a good spoof-site.

"Sunday is help my family spend my paycheck day. Anyone want a pony?"

Thursday, February 09, 2006

Phil's legacy

From my all-time favourite rock-poet.
Long may he be remembered


Got To Give It Up

I've got to give it up
I've got to give it up
That stuff
I've got to give it up
I've got to give it up
That stuff

Tell my mama and tell my pa
That their fine young son didn't get far
He made it to the end of a bottle
Sitting in a sleazy bar

He tried hard but his spirit broke
He tried until he nearly choked
In the end he lost his
Bottle drinking alcohol

I've got to give it up
I've got to give it up
That stuff
I've got to give it up
I've got to give it up
That stuff

Tell my brother I tried to write
Put pen to paper but I was frightened
I couldn't seem to get the words out right
Right quite right
Tell my sister I'm sinking slow
Now and again I powder my nose
In the end I lost my bottle
It smashed in a casbah

I've got to give it up
I've got to give it up
That stuff
I've got to give it up
I've got to give it up
That stuff
I've got to give it up

I've been messing with the heavy stuff
For a time I couldn't get enough
But I'm waking up and it's wearing off
Junk don't take you far

Tell my Mama I'm coming home
In my youth I'm getting older
And I think it's lost control
Mama I'm coming home

I've got to give it up
I've got to give it up
That stuff
I've got to give it up
I've got to give it up
That stuff


Phil Lynott (1949-1986)

Wednesday, February 08, 2006

Angels with dirty faces

To allow Iran to have a nucleair arsenal would be to introduce an uncertain unstable factor in an already unstable world. They won't throw that bomb at us once they have it. It could take years. And even if it would never happen, there would be no way to threathen Iran into normal behaviour. That goes straight out the window once the other side has nukes.

And I am not even *talking* about supplying that stuff to rogue groups and then sit back and watch...

Scenario : Iran supplies a nuke to Al Qaida who detonate it in Egypt.
Doomsdays : Israel gets the fall out and decides to act as if they were themselves the target. Who knows they weren't? Put the nuke at the border. It isn't like you can actually *see* the impact. Egypt is no more, thus giving the more militant regimes/countries the chance to take over. After an extensive investigation America finds out where the nuke came from; No More Iran. But will they have hidden two or three nukes outside of Iran? No one knows.

Scenario : Iran invades Iraq after the Americans are gone. America cannot act against a nucleair power(see first scenario). Greater Iran threathens Saoudi Arabia; comply or be destroyed. The Saoudis do not have nukes. And they're muslims anyway...

Now ask yourself : what would happen to the oil-supply?

I can think of 10 of those scenario's. Tom Clancy can come up with a hundred. Yes, I'm worried.


So many democratic countries have decided not to have nukes. And *those* countries, mainly arabic if not muslim, just can't wait. Obviously we may have learned something when we bombed Japan, the Middle East did not have that experience.

Let me ask you this : If Hitler would have had the bomb, a button right there in the bunker in 1945. Do you honestly think Europe would still exist?

Tuesday, February 07, 2006

Education? Nah, don't need it.

Everybody is complaining about the quality of tuition and education nowadays, both in Europe and in the United States. The forecasts are that young people will finish school allright, but they will also be less educated than earlier generations.

So you would think that the government would invest heavily into educational programs etcetera.

And what does G. W. Bush do? Cuts, cuts, cuts, cuts, cuts, cuts...

In his $2.77 billion budget, Bush asks Congress to sharply cut or eliminate 141 government programs. Almost one-third of the targeted programs are in education, including ones that provide money to support the arts, vocational education, parent resource centers and drug-free schools.

But of course there is a reason for squandering the nation's future working capital :

"My administration has focused the nation's resources on our highest priority -- protecting our citizens and our homeland," Bush said in his budget message.

Protecting them? How? With dumb people I guess. It's no wonder that the Bush-administration wants to recruit for the army on the school-campus. There won't be any education left if this goes on, so what else can you do than join the army to kill the boredom?

Bush's spending proposals are for the 2007 budget year that begins October 1. The $2.77 trillion in spending would be up 2.3% from projected spending of $2.71 trillion this year.

The administration in its budget documents said the deficit for this year will soar to an all-time high of $423 billion, reflecting increased outlays for the Iraq war and hurricane relief.


So they're too busy spending money on a war that they misjudged, and on rebuilding dikes they shouldn't have neglected in the first place. Both decisions of THIS government, not the previous one(s).

Way to go George. I think they should name a hurricane especially after you. Make it a category five.

Monday, February 06, 2006

Justified outrage...

...


Muslims fly commercial airliners into buildings in New York City. No Muslim outrage.

Muslim officials block the exit where school girls are trying to escape a burning building because their faces were exposed. No Muslim outrage.

Muslims cut off the heads of three teenaged girls on their way to school in Indonesia. A Christian school. No Muslim outrage.

Muslims murder teachers trying to teach Muslim children in Iraq. No Muslim outrage.

Muslims murder over 80 tourists with car bombs outside cafes and hotels in Egypt. No Muslim outrage.

A Muslim attacks a missionary children's school in India. Kills six. No Muslim outrage.

Muslims slaughter hundreds of children and teachers in Beslan, Russia. Muslims shoot children in the back. No Muslim outrage.

Let's go way back. Muslims kidnap and kill athletes at the Munich Summer Olympics. No Muslim outrage.

Muslims fire rocket-propelled grenades into schools full of children in Israel. No Muslim outrage.

Muslims murder more than 50 commuters in attacks on London subways and busses. Over 700 are injured. No Muslim outrage.

Muslims massacre dozens of innocents at a Passover Seder. No Muslim outrage.

Muslims murder innocent vacationers in Bali. No Muslim outrage.

Muslim newspapers publish anti-Semitic cartoons. No Muslim outrage

Muslims are involved, on one side or the other, in almost every one of the 125+ shooting wars around the world. No Muslim outrage.

Muslims beat the charred bodies of Western civilians with their shoes, then hang them from a bridge. No Muslim outrage.


Newspapers in Denmark and Norway publish cartoons depicting Mohammed.

Muslims are outraged...

Saturday, February 04, 2006

So this is offensive too???

Crusader

"What do I do next?" said the Bishop to the Priest,
"I have spent my whole life waiting, preparing for the Feast,
And now you say Jerusalem has fallen and is lost,
The King of Heathen Saracen has seized the holy cross."

Then the Priest said "Oh my Bishop, we must put them to the sword,
For God in all his mercy will find a just reward,
For the Noblemen and sinners, and Knights of ready hand
Who will be the Lord's Crusader, send word throughout all the land,

Jerusalem is lost,
Jerusalem is lost,
Jerusalem is lost;"

"Tell me what to do", said the King upon his throne,
"but speak to me in whispers for we are not alone,
They tell me that Jerusalem has fallen to the hand
Of some bedevilled Eastern heathen who has seized the Holy land;"

Then the Chamberlain said "Lord, we must call upon our foes
In Spain and France and Germany to end our bitter wars,
All Christian men must be as one and gather for the fight,
You will be their leader, begin the battle cry,

Jerusalem is lost,
Jerusalem is lost,
Jerusalem is lost"...

Ooh, high on a hill, in the town of Jerusalem,
There stood Saladin, the King of the Saracens,
Whoring and drinking and snoring and sinking, around him his army lay,
Secure in the knowledge that they had won the day;

A messenger came, blood on his feet and a wound in his chest,
"The Christians are coming!" he said, "I have seen their Cross in the West,"
In a rage Saladin struck him down with his knife
And he said "I know that this man lies,
They quarrel too much, the Christians could never unite!

I am invincible, I am the King,
I am invincible, and I will win..."

Close they came, the army of Richard the Lionheart,
Marching by day and night, with soldiers from every part,
And when the Crusaders came over the mountain and they saw Jerusalem,
They fell to their knees and prayed for her release;

They started the battle at dawn, taking the city by storm,
With horsemen and bowmen and engines of war,
They broke through the city walls,
The Heathens were flying and screaming and dying,
And the Christian swords were strong,
And Saladin ran when he heard their victory song;

"We are invincible, God is the King,
We are invincible, and we will win!"

"What do I do now?" said the Wiseman to the Fool,
"I have spent my whole life searching, to find the Golden Rule,
Though centuries have disappeared, the memory still remains
Of those enemies together, could it be that way again?"

Then the Fool said "Oh you Wise men, you really make me laugh,
With your talk of vast persuasion and searching through the past,
There is only greed and evil in the men that fight today,
The Song of the Crusader has long since gone away,

Jerusalem is lost,
Jerusalem is lost,
Jerusalem is lost...
Jerusalem."


Chris De Burgh

Civilization Part XXIII

Nope, nothing to add to this.

Embassies on fire

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

Bill seems to be growing...

I've said it before: I am starting to get over my dislike for Bill more and more. Thirty billion dollars in the war-chest of his charity-foundation, and now this...

Lyrics-time - ah, my hero!

A million old soldiers will fade away
But a dream goes on forever
I’m left standing here, I’ve got nothing to say
All is silent within my dream

A thousand true loves will live and die
But a dream lives on forever
The days and the years will go streaking by
But the time has stopped in my dream

We all have our everyday hopes and fears
And you’ll find no exception in me
But that doesn’t get me through a sea of tears
Over life’s biggest tragedy

You’re so long ago and so far away
But my dream lives on forever
I guess I believe that I’ll see you one day
For without it there is no dream

You’re so far away and so long ago
But my dream goes on forever
And how much I loved you you’ll never know
’til you join me within my dream


"A dream goes on forever" by Todd Rundgren

P.S. And especially for my girlfriend here is another one from Todd that I am sure a lot of people can relate to : "I Hate My Friggin' I.S.P."

Tuesday, January 31, 2006

Trolling trolling trolling, keep those spammers trolling...

I'll be watching you...

This may take you some time to read.

There is this person on a forum(about the work of Joe Michael Straczinsky) that I frequently visit. His nickname is Der Mike. He posts only in one or two threads on the off-topic forum, but when He does He is right. Because He is Der Mike and He is always right. Even when He is not, Der Mike is right. So bow before Der Mike and shower him with gifts. Because He is always right.

Some links to direct postings. Read it and be amazed. This takes trolling to a whole new level for me.


First we use the Qu'ran for loo-paper.

Then, according to Der Mike, the american people don't have to show any compassion or whatever towards non-american citizens and they do not have to apply their own principles to foreigners. But still they do, just because they are such nice people.

Next is the Supreme Court, who have no right to decide if someone has the right to an attorney of not. Oh yeah; and obviously my thoughts aren't worth anything compared to the Words of Wisdom of Der Mike.

If you don't say and believe exactly what your government says you are a radical left-wing commie. George Knows Best!

It just so happens that Kaiser Mike mixes up the names of the people he is responding to. But to a giant such as Der Mike this is of no significance.

In the meantime, The Honoured One has decided to change my nickname. And along the way he states that there was no torture in Iraq, as a matter of fact "I would kill for our soldiers to be treated as humanely as we treated the subhumans opposing us". Well done Sir! Sub-humans, of course! How obvious! May I point out that subhumans translates into German as "untermensch"? It does give it a more fascist overtone doesn't it?

Oh yes: and after Theo van Gogh was murdered the only response from the dutch was to be nice to the muslims. There were no burning churches, there were no death-threats, absolutely not! He should know, for He is Der Mike.

In response to a remark about the dead civilian Iraqis, Our Lord and Saviour states that nothing is true. There are no massacres in Iraq because the Jenin massacre was not true either. I guess that's also why they don't have to count dead Iraqis: there ARE no dead Iraqis. At least none we speak of...

And again, I don't know anything about Van Gogh, Der Mike Knows All though. I take it that Our Mike especially learned dutch so he could check out http://www.degezonderoker.nl

But wait: we were talking about Iraq. And we'd better talk politely, or we are the devil's spawn. Paid by Saddam Hussein.

The brilliant Der Mike of course needs proof. Not, that anybody sees any links from Der Mike himself. They must be too highly classified to divulge to the public...

But on we go: to Iraq to dismantle the Weapon of Mass Distraction. Although, after long deliberation Der Mike decides that only 'some' of the WMD's were not destroyed.

Here is some more denial and the first mention of him 'getting personal'... The fact that he has been hammering away at everyone is of no importance. For He is Der Mike.

Of course everything is a left-wing conspiracy, not to be believed ever...

On to the subject of James Hatfield, the deceased writer of 'Fortunate Son', a book about George W. Bush. And yes, I DO know what Soft Skull Publishing is and I knew all about James Hatfield's criminal record years ago.

"I don't need to read a book before I condemn it..."

"Only people who think like me are right. I really don't give a fuck about what you say, only I am important here." Now let's have a discussion...

Here's a whole new question from DM. Which I'm sure he will also give the answer to soon...

AIDS is of course a left-wing conspiracy. I knew that...

But hold on! It's not just Europe and the Middle East: according to our saviour, Mexico is a corrupt shitheap.

Of course no Der Mike would be a REAL Der Mike if he wouldn't rehash an old posting of mine. Of course Mr. Mike does not publish a reference, supplies no links, quotes out of context, and names no author.

And in comes Mr. Godwin! I wondered where he was.

Ah but Mr. Mike did not publish my nickname and the link to the original article to PROTECT me! Isn't he a dearheart?

Denying denial! Lovely...

And of course meanwhile in Iraq, the Qu'ran is a violent and cruel book(TM: true) as opposed to The Bible...

In the meantime Mike solves global pollution, there IS NO GLOBAL WARMING! Get that through your thick skull! Thank God for this man, this giant, our hero! I'll sleep so much better now.

Oh, did I mention that Mexico is a shitheap?. And yet another fellow-forumposter is affronted. But of course Kaiser Mike would NEVER stoop to personal insults as I would...

Of course it is completely unimportant that the fellow-forumposter may not come from Mexico at all...

The benign Deity lovingly permits another person to speak too.

And for the record : 'We can do without your kind'is NOT a personal insult. And neither is calling a country a shitheap in the face of someone of whom you THINK he lives there. It is only when others do this that it is called 'insulting'. When Kaiser Mike does it it's called 'honesty' and 'frankness'.

Obviously - who could have doubted it? - Der Mike is a trained theologian. So he can explain in fine details why it is that the baptists are a religious sect. On the same note; so is the catholic church. How they ever managed to agree on never ever changing the contents of the Bible is way beyond me though.


I give Der Mike a 9.8 for trolling. He wins the 2005 Troll-Award.

Tuesday, January 24, 2006

A Los Angeles Times column

Explosive stuff...

Regardless whether this guy is right or wrong, I imagine it takes some nerve to publish a column like this at the moment.

* update : Been reading this guy's columns, he's pretty funny...

Thursday, January 19, 2006

And now for a song...

...

And sometimes it's time for a song...

Sketches of Pain Lyrics

Daylight Saved
Daylight Saved
To spite the dark
In spite of the darkness
There I'll crave
There I'll crave
To get to the heart
In spite of the darkness

Great wide stretches of canvas
Signed by a godless name
Strange bright colours of madness
Only a fool would frame
Sketches of Pain
Sketches of Pain
Sketches of Pain

Some cry shame
Some cry shame
We tore them apart
We failed to imagine
God might claim
God might claim
The works of art
We failed to imagine

Great wide stretches of canvas
Signed by a godless name
Strange bright colours of madness
Only a fool would frame
Sketches of Pain
Sketches of Pain
Sketches of Pain...

Roland Orzabal

What's another million searches...?

Explosive stuff...

Kosh-mode

And so it begins...

/Kosh-mode

Thursday, January 12, 2006

Google Suggest - Beta-version

Anybody worked with this yet? What will they think of next at Google...?

Oh, try 'towelmaster'... I'm Number One!!!

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

George and Jezus

Explosive stuff...


An entirely aserious article with a kernel or two of truth in it.

"Cultural War Christians Rally Against Jesus on Supreme Court"

"Paul Milquetoast Wingnut, the conservative chairman of the Save Congress Foundation, warned White House Political Advisor Karl Rove against nominating Mr. Christ, whose liberal views on the poor and dispossessed are considered too radical and "out of step with America's religious values."

Friday, January 06, 2006

Between Gitmo and Gulag - American Freedom

I really cannot say that I have have a clear idea of what the American public thinks of American politics over the last 25 years. But I do know that on the outside looking in, everybody could have seen it coming and a lot people DID see it coming. The erosion of the constitution by the political elite. Politics is supposed to be a process that helps govern and unite a country. Not divide it. And then this(for instance) : Absolute despotism does not help, I think.

There is no such thing as 'an absolute truth' in politics. But the foundation should be something everybody can agree on.

Links like the one above tend to p*ss off some people, but you tell me : where are the(fundamental) differences between the Soviet State and the current 'measures' the American administration thinks they have to take? What is the difference between Gitmo and the Gulag? And I do not mean practical differences, I do not mean the nitpicking differences(we treat them better, they at least get food from us, etcetera). I am talking about holding people for years (I could understand a few months) without accusing them, without the right to a trial, without the right to appeal to the American Constitution. Well, they do have the right to appeal, if they can get the word out. But as we have seen recently, the Bush-administration threw out the Supreme Court's decision by going back to the senate and congress and have them create an exception to the rule.

You know what ? This posting sounds dangerously left-wing and communist. Thankfully, my opinions are shared quite often with free-thinkers like Fred Reed and the likes. And absolutely no one can be serious when they accuse Fred of being left-wing. The guy worked for Soldier of Fortune for years! He's seen more battlefields than you and I can list. A commie he ain't...

As a dutchman who is on the outside looking in I ask again and again and again : What the H*ll is happening with the beautiful 'house' the Americans built? Where is the uproar because Washington restricts air-travel for 12-year olds because they share a name with someone who is suspected of having been to Afghanistan once? Where is the uproar when the government eavesdrops on THOUSANDS of its own citizen while refusing to request a warrant(that they would get without objection)?

Where are all those free-spirited Americans? Where are the completely american independents who are prepared to defend their compound in Waco, but who do not defend themselves against the most covert and powerful american administration America has ever seen? And why oh why is it now a national(mostly republican) hobby to accuse everyone who does not fully support Bush's war of being 'unpatriotic'? That last one makes the skin of a lot of people over here crawl. It leads to fascism. Nobody can say otherwise. It has been proved over and over again, and not just in Germany 1933. Everywhere except in the United Stated, the 'last beacon of hope'. Until now.

And by the way : there is a reason for Godwin's Law("mention Nazi-Germany or Hitler in a discussion and you automatically lose"). Everything bad we have seen in the last 70 odd years is compared to the Nazi-regime because it was the epitome of evil. It is indeed the end to all discussions. In this case it had better be the start of one...

Keep in mind that as good as no one in Europe gloats over this. Quite the opposite: a lot of people here are very worried. And I say with good reason too. After all, we do have some experience with these situations and so far they have all resulted in chaos.

And in this frame of mind, I am glad I come across the counter-voices, even if only on the web. Like this one :

The Declaration of independence and The Constitution built upon it make it absolutely clear that We the People of America are the only Sovereign Power of America and that any government has authority to make or execute our laws only to the extent that We grant that government our Consent to do so.


This is quite a contrast with what we are seeing from abroad. And it worries us. I am grateful that the web gives everyone the chance to speak his or her mind. You can stifle the media but you cannot shutdown the web.

Yet. For as long as it lasts.

Tuesday, January 03, 2006

The new Fred

The new Fred is here. "Hitler was a consumer product." Hmmm...

Monday, January 02, 2006

It's HOT! DAMN HOT!!

No worries mate. Let's find us a Billabong! Crikey! it's a bit warm...