:: Archipelapogo ::

:: 31.7.03 ::

Ha!

Some headlines really grab you like a dirty old man on a college campus. This is one of them -- Justin Timberlake Joins Stones At Toronto Benefit, Gets Pelted With Garbage
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Take that, Shelbyville!

We're #1! We're #1!

Dallas is Number One. We have the worst crime rate of America's major cities, based on the most recent set of FBI crime statistics. And guess what? It's getting way worse even as you read this.

Murders in Dallas in June were up 300 percent over the same period in the previous year. For the first six months of this year compared with the first six months of last year, murder in Dallas is up 71 percent.

Nobody can catch us now.

The numbers are just staggering. In order to get your mind around the throngs of people who are victims of crime in this city, you have to compare them to some other well-known group. Let's take voters, for example.

Last year more than twice as many people in Dallas were victims of crime as the number who voted to elect Laura Miller mayor. If you added all of the votes cast for council members Elba Garcia, John Loza, Steve Salazar and James Fantroy, you'd still be more than 1,000 short of the number of people in Dallas last year who were raped, murdered or robbed.

More highlights:

The FBI numbers for last year are scary enough. The Dallas Police Department's own numbers are absolutely bone-chilling. So far this year, business robberies are up more than 12 percent, residential burglaries up more than 9 percent, theft more than 11 percent. In June 2002, there were seven murders in the city. In June of this year there were 28. At this pace, we'll hit 244 murders at the end of the year, compared with last year's total of 192.

It's not just secluded in the "bad" parts of town either....

What could drive up property values and fatten city coffers more than reducing people's fear of crime? Speaking of his own street in the Greenville Avenue/Park Lane area, where he says values have been badly hurt by crime, Stephens said, "You could hire full-time police walking up and down Holly Hill for the savings you would get in extra tax revenue."

That intersection is about a mile from my apartment. Mmm. Time to move to New York or LA to be safe, I guess.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Now, where should I go tonight?

Handy little site that has various Happy Hours in Dallas listed by day of week and area, with information on what the specials are.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Capturing the Friedmans

Last night, Denise and I went and saw the very interesting documentary "Capturing the Friedmans". You may have seen previews for it or read reviews in the papers or on websites. The film is a mix of old footage from the Friedman's home movies and the story of Arnold Friedman, the patriarch, who, along with his youngest son Jesse, was accused of molesting children during a computer class that he taught in the mid-80s. Using the old film footage, real footage from local news sources, interviews with everyone involved (save one son that didn't want to be in the film), the movie is a whirligig of stories that leave you believing nobody and utterly confused as to the truth.

I'd refused to read much about the movie before I saw it, as I didn't want to ruin anything. From the previews, I had anticipated that it was going to be a big "My father is innocent and this is why and what a travesty" one-sided affair. This is far from the truth. Director Andrew Jarecki conducted numerous interviews with Mrs. Friedman, Jesse, the oldest son David, Lawyers, police officers, investigative journalists, and even purported victims and their parents. What you're left with is a sense that nobody is telling the absolute truth and that everyone has been manipulating someone else to try to come out of the ordeal as best they can.

**Mild Spoilers begin here**

One of the most intersting facets of this film is the obvious dysfunction in the Friedman's home. Arnold and all three of his sons got along really well which led to the isolation of Elaine, the mother. She obviously became very bitter about this and wouldn't believe her husbands side of the story and would get angry at her sons for taking Arnold's side. This, of course, leads to the family falling into further dissarray as the trials get underway and both Arnold and Jesse face serious time in prison.

Arnold had a very disturbing childhood, with he and his younger brother being raised by their single mom in a one-bedroom apartment. Often, mom would come home with gentlemen for a little of the sweet stuff while Arnold and his brother were in the room. There's a disputed report that Arnold and his brother emulated those acts when they were adolescents.

One of my favorite parts of the film was an interview with Debbie Nathan, an investigative journalist from California that Arthur sent a letter to pleading for her to look into his case and maintain his innocence. Debbie spoke about the town hysteria and how just the charges that were leveed, whether true or not, were going to damn Arnold and his family for as long as they remained in the area.

As I've previously noted, the film presents all sides of the tale, and leaves you to attempt to draw your own conclusions. If you're interested in family dynamics during times of struggle and watching a film about a very heinous crime that really doesn't have too many squirm-worthy moments, I highly recommend you check it out.

Related links:
Here is a picture of Jesse and Arnold on the day that they were arraigned in 1987.

Jesse, the son that was indicted on these charges, has a web-site that talks a lot about the film and what he's doing now. There will be spoilers about the movie on there, so if you plan on seeing it, be careful. You can find his site here.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

You mean they're not Massachusettsites?

Handy list of what residents are called in all 50 states. The site contains a wealth of other information too, like state birds, flowers, songs, and drinks. (via leia).
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Ari or Ashcroft?

Interesting Mother Jones interview with Harry Shearer, voice of several characters on the Simpsons (Mr. Burns, Smithers, Principal Skinner, etc) and bassist Derek Smalls in This is Spinal Tap and the cross-dressing bassist of the three-piece in A Mighty Wind. From the Left of Your Radio Dial.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Blog This! for Mozilla

A scant two days after I learn about using the Blog This! button on Google Toolbar 2.0, I decide to try to find a similar app for Mozilla. Presto Change-o and it's done. If you're reading this, rest assured that it works. My life can officially be IE free from this point on.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Disturbing

Baby, if you loved me, you'd wear a "Free Kobe" thong.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Pop Quiz, Jackass

Which is flatter, a pancake or Kansas?
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Saints be praised

I think I can blog from work again, thanks to the blog this! button on the new Google Toolbar for IE. I don't really like IE any more (although the new toolbar has taken care of some of the problems (pop-up blocker being a big one). I'm still completely hooked on Mozilla's tabbed browsing though. But it's nice to know I can rip one off on my lunch break again. Ah, victory over you, SurfPatrol!
:: Scott [+] ::
...

It'd slipped under the radar, but now...

Carlton Dotson charged with Dennehy's murder. You remember the Baylor B-ball player that disappeared right? Well, they've arrested his former roommate and purported best friend. No good all-around.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Okay, a few more

::The Source's Five-Mic Pantheon. The hip-hop albums that are completely classic, according to them. I'm currently listening to "The Low-End Theory", so it makes me happy.::

::The George W. Bush Resume. (via the ever-linking plep)::

::Reviews of new food on McSweeney's. I will do a review of the new Natural Chee-tos, which are quite good, soon.::
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Link fodder

I swear, my busy season at work is ending soon. Until then....

::The Left is fighting back. Oliver had damn well be right, and if he is, well, it's about time, thankyouverymuch.::

::Hip-hop blog (via the "fuck-me-swimming-he's funny" dong)::

::Do yourself a favor and read this MeFi thread, even if you've never braved the blue before. Worth your time. At least just read the post, you can toss the comments if you wish. But it speaks volumes.::

That's all. Good night, folks.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Other Links

These didn't really fit in with anything else tonight, but they're all worth checking out...

A great post by jpoulos and his grandfather.

When, exactly, did Wired decide to announce "WebMaster" as jargon to learn? Here's the answer. (via rcade).

And for the art fans, Chris Kerr's interesting site, also found via Punk Planet. Here's my favorite.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

And you know, I'm human, so I get self-contradictory

I'm kind of mad at myself for not going to see Howard Dean speak downtown last night. I was tired as hell from a 50-something hour long bachelor party that included going to Casinos in Shreveport and being mind-numbed from all the sounds and pretty lights. Plus, I'm not a huge fan of political rallies as they often seem like really bad church-services where people gaze up with lamb-like eyes and swallow everything they're fed (hence the self-contradiction).

That said, when I found out via e-mail from the DFW Greens list that Dean was speaking I decided that inspit of my not being a Democrat and not having the ability to vote in primaries that now is a good time to see what we can offer up to the public to counter the Bush re-election bid. I checked out Kerry and Brown, Kucinich (who's way to liberal for a majority of the American public to stomach, even if I match up with him best). I dig a lot of what Dean has to say about the issues, although not all of it. If there's one thing we learned about the Nader campaign, which I whole-heartedly supported, and the three years since then, it's that we really can't fuck around with Bush. We really need to get rid of him. He's divided this country and the rest of the world into a wider gap than I could've imagined. True to his own words, he's made it to where we as citizens of the U.S. and the world are either with him or against him, 100%. Oliver has a great piece on why Dean may be the answer. I'm leaning (so far) towards agreeing with him.

You may think it's a bit early to be bringing up an election that is still 16 months away. President Bush would disagree with you. If you don't want to see him re-elected, it's time to begin doing something. He already is.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Music and activism reunite

A couple of years ago, I remember having a conversation more than once with different people (although it kind of escapes me who now) about how we needed a downturn in the economy to bring about a political art revival. If you look through the history of modern art (I'll focus on music since that's what I know best, although I'm sure studies of film and visual arts would be similiar) you'll find that most of the great movements that advanced music to new territories were a result of a desire for social change. Jazz and Blues have their history in the post-slave generation of blacks that were dealing with a time of transition, struggle, and continued racism. Rock and Roll became the antithesis of the cookie cutter, suburban, white-bread lifestyle of the post World War II fifties that gave the kids a sense of rebellion. The hippie movement, for all it's short-falls, did stem from a major section of the populous not digging the war in Vietnam. Punk Rock came as a result of the selling out of the hippie movement and blue-collar kids frustration with life, and was only bolstered by the conservative Reagan and Thatcher era 80s. And since then, ?

The alternative scene, which stemmed from punk anyways, became so overhyped so damned quickly that it lost any serious significance it might have had in a very short period of time. What's more, there was very little political or social meaning behind any of it, opting instead (for the most part) for lyrics about random nihilistic and selfish themes. The end of the alternative era brought about the horrid stylings of rap-metal (or nu-metal or whatever you want to call it) and pure pop. With few exceptions, we've seen little from even underground bands, not to mention the mainstream artists as far as organizing and advancing.

Combine this with a conversation I had in the wee hours of Sunday morning about how boring and stale the punk/indie scene has gotten (on the whole) and I was beginning to get really depressed about the state of music today. About 75% of the albums I've bought in the last two years have either been more than 8 or 9 years old, hip-hop, or instrumental. The rest have been by some of the few bands that are still putting out music that actually have some kind of message to convey. The shows that come to Dallas don't intrigue me much. I don't think I've bought a single CD that has been released in 2003. Something seems to be amiss.

So tonight I go check out the newest Punk Planet and learn about Fat Mike (of Nofx fame) and his new campaign to organize what's left of the punk scene. I've never really considered Nofx to be a political band, although they do have some songs that touch upon political themes (Murder the Government and Kill all the White Man to name a few examples, and they're not that great anyways). For the most part they're a silly band that sings about getting wasted and sex and that kind of stuff. That's why I was a bit surprised to see that he's launched Punk Voter, a site seemingly aimed at those that are apathetic, disenfranchised, or new to politics. You're not going to find heavy loaded talk there. It's a bit cheesy in it's semi-sincerity (like most things are). But, here in 2003, this could make a difference. In addition to the site, Fat Mike's putting together a "Rock Against Bush" tour that is going to be playing for free around college campuses next year (no link yet that I could find). The tour is going to include Nofx on all dates, plus a few other bands, including (reportedly) Green Day even playing a few shows. There's also to be a Rock Against Bush compilation coming out that is going to include such mainstream artists as Weezer and the Foo Fighters.

I had previously thought that it would take a major economic disaster to get people off of their asses and doing stuff again. While the economy is bad, it's been much worse. It instead took a ultra-conservative moralistic double-speaking spoiled boy that ignores those that speak out against him and would rather legislate his desires than face his opponents. I for one am quite happy to see a small step in the right direction for the music scene and I hope this will lead to bigger and better things. We live in a time when packaging ideals and selling them is sadly the only way to get a significant amount of people interested in your movement. It's time to fight fire with fire and play the game that's going to win. It looks like that's what Fat Mike is going to do, and even though I've not listened to a Nofx CD in years, I'm quite proud of him.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

I thought it was coming soon....

Happy 4th Birthday MetaFilter!
:: Scott [+] ::
...

Lazy-blogging

I'm recycling a comment that I made in this MetaFilter thread because a) I made it way late in the thread (read: more than six hours after it was posted) which means very few read it anyways and b) I need some fodder for the 'pogo to keep the remaining readers I've got happy. Here ya go:

It amazes me to see the contrast of treatment of homosexuals in American society and military versus that of, for example, Israel. The Israeli military has long admitted and functioned with "out" servicemembers and according to at least this one study by the Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military at UCSB (yeah, I was kind of surprised by their existence too) there has been no impact on the functionality of the Israeli Military due to the presence of out homosexuals. From the conclusion:

IDF officials have declared that the inclusion of homosexuals has not harmed its operations, and RAND and GAO reports in 1993 concluded that Israel's policies had had no negative effect. Further, the scholars, former and present military personnel, and representatives of gay and lesbian organizations interviewed for this report indicated that they had not heard any intimations that IDF performance had been compromised by the inclusion of openly gay and lesbian soldiers. In this security-conscious country, where the military is considered to be essential to the continued existence of the nation, there has been no public debate or expressions of concern about possible harm to IDF rates of success by sexual minorities.

I heard a piece on NPR recently that interviewed out gay Israeli military personnel and they all testified that they had received no discrimination or harassment from either their fellow troops or their superiors.
:: Scott [+] ::
...

America's Problem ... the DOE!(?)

Flipping channels on the teevee on Sunday night before popping in a movie, I ran across a C-SPAN showing of a Libertarian Party debate between two prospective candidates. It was pretty sad in it's own right seeing as how the turnout appeared to be little more than you would expect at a non-mandatory litter pick-up hosted by a fraternity the morning after homecoming. Regardless, I thought I'd see what they had to say.

I didn't hear what the question was (though it can be inferred from the answers) but I heard both candidates rail on about voting your conscious versus your fears, picking the lesser of two evils, etc. basically taking lines from Nader's speeches three years ago*. I thought that was all good and fine, allbeit a bit unoriginal.

The next question came from a woman in the "audience" (I'm guessing it was really that guy from the Police Academy movies that made all the different sound effects talking in different voices and being paid in Wendy's gift certificates and liquor, but the camera didn't pan out far enough for me to confirm my suspicions). Anyways, she asked a question about public schools and private schools and home-schooling. Candidate one stepped up to the microphone and very non-chalantly began talking about how, of course (like this was as much of a given as breathing or eating the piece of turkey that fell on the nasty kitchen floor when nobody is watching) his first step on a federal level would be to eliminate all funding for public schools.

The sound of my spleen crashing into my brain rendered me useless to hear the rest of his answer, so I went to the Libertarian Party's website to see the official stance on public education and yup, there it is: "Eliminate the U.S. Department of Education, which spends billions on education and educates no one. The growth of this agency and its numerous regulations is a major reason for runaway costs in American schools."

Come again?

As a product of public schooling I know first-hand some of the major downfalls. But to scrap the whole damn thing and give the parents the freedom of choice for schools and incentives for businesses and individuals to provide education is the answer? Whoo-whee. Interesting.
:: Scott [+] ::
...