Former Bush UN Ambassador Bolton Suggests Nuking Chicago

You can't make this stuff up.

War Crimes tribunal, can we get this guy on the hook for anything?

Through two months..

These are my top 5 Albums of 2009, check them out...

1. Merriweather Post Pavilion - Animal Collective
2. Set Em Wild Set Em Free - Akron/Family
3. The Floodlight Collective - Lotus Plaza
4. Noble Beast - Andrew Bird
5. Dark Was The Night - Various Artists

Actors as Activists

I got into a heated exchange at my hair salon last week over the idea that actors and celebrities shouldn't inject themselves into foreign (and domestic) policy debates.

My argument was that as artists (actors) we have a responsibility to bring a high level of awareness of current events and global issues into our work, and to dissect, question, and ultimately make a statement through the vehicles of film and theater. The counter-argument was that celebrities know just as much as the average person about global crises and hot button domestic issues, what entitles them to seat at the table of policy influence?

Its a nuanced debate, like most. I think when someone like Matt Damon uses his celebrity platform to go after Sarah Palin's credentials as a creationist we're heading a little in the wrong direction. Now if Matt had used his disagreements with Palin's belief system to speak to the larger issue of incompetence in world leadership and wrote and starred in a compelling film that honors both sides of the debate while leaving the audience with a huge question to grapple with about likeable "she's just like me!" world leaders then maybe he would be on to something.

Which brings us to George Clooney. He is a great model for how I'd like to comport myself as a professional actor and statesman as my life and career move forward. He is so subtle in the use of his celebritarian authority he refused to endorse either side in the presidential election, meeting with both candidates at separate times. He uses his films to speak the message, and has found a cause that speaks to him deeply . He has made understanding thoroughly and fighting for that single cause his duty as an artist. And it looks like it paid off. Yesterday he was invited to speak with the President and VP about the ongoing genocide in Darfur. Humbly, Clooney continues to understand the limits of his power

In response to a question over whether he brought up the conflict in Afghanistan in his meeting with the president:

"No, I'm not there as some policy nut. I was just there to tell them what I saw and hope that there was some way that I could amplify anything that they were doing"

Having consciousness about the injustices of the world in your work as an artist is, in my opinion, essential, and Clooney is a perfect example of how effective artists can be in changing the world.

edit: Just came across this video of Clooney on Larry King talking about Darfur, notice how complex his grasp of the issue is.

Barry Time

Tonight Barack Obama will give his version of a State of the Union type address to a joint session of congress. In general, new presidents just weeks into their first term do not give an SOU, but Mr. Obama wants to use his surging popularity to confront a whole host of issues on his first term agenda.

In the wake of a new report citing the rising cost of healthcare, the 44th president plans to lay out his vision tonight for fixing the broken system. He also will look to address criticism of his housing plan, after just last week WH spokesman Gibbs launched a publicity offensive against CNBC's Rick Santelli for his condemnation of the Obama mortgage plan.

Previewing the speech on cable news this morning, Senior Adviser David Axelrod said the president will walk a fine line between gloomy realism and the hope of a better future for America.

There are two missions here,” David Axelrod said on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. “He still believes deeply in the ultimate success of this country. But it’s important that people know where we are today and how we get out of the situation we’re in.”

Going offline

I took a 5 hour break from being connected to the wired world yesterday(iphone off, no checking the internet) because I wanted to focus on my research.

I recommend everyone give it a try now and again. Its peaceful, and its a stunning reminder of what life was like before cell phones, smart phones, and our constant connection to the internet.

The Pains of Being Pure in Art

Proof that making great art is an exhausting process. Andrew Sullivan links to this amazing piece of animation that is actually 6,000 separate paintings.




Khoda from Reza Dolatabadi on Vimeo.

Michael Steele thinks people are stupid

The new RNC chair plans a "hip-hop offensive" to bring more urban minorities under the "big tent" of the Republican party.

Endless lolz

Lie To Me

Jonah Lehrer cites an intriguing NY Times piece on the science of microexpressions. His research suggests that virtuoso poker players have learned to trust their unconscious impulses in relation to their opponents, although many elite players have somehow managed to cover up any possible tell from their face.

One of the things I learned while hanging out with professional poker players for my book is that the pros rarely have obvious tells or tics. They've learned how to hide and obscure their underlying emotions. (In fact, an obvious display of nervousness is usually interpreted as a form of play acting, which suggests that the player actually has a good hand.) And yet, pro poker players still believe that, when it comes to the interpretation of someone else's anxieties, they can make reasonably accurate guesses, even if they can't explain where these guesses come from. In other words, the players believe that their unconscious brain is constantly picking up the microexpressions of deceit, which allows them to act upon relevant information outside of conscious awareness. When players talk about developing a "feel" for the card game, what they're often referring to is this ability to read the mind of someone else, even when that person is doing everything possible to hide their mind. We know more than we know, and part of what we know is that even the best liars have subtle tells.

If you'd like to learn to become a natural human lie detector, click here

"And wrong is wrong and right is right!"

I found a series of videos on youtube last night, 6 parts of what looks like a made for television documentary on the late Stella Adler. Its really marvelous to watch for anyone who is interested in how the craft of acting developed in the united states, or for anyone who has ever wanted to know what it feels like to be in class with Stella herself - as it contains at least 20 minutes of footage from her studio . "You're not acting with your soul darling, act with your soul!"

Classic.

Watch it here, here, here, here, here, and here

Geography of Sound

Set 'Em Wild, Set 'Em Free, is akron/family's latest offering. I didn't give their self titled release much of a chance, it sort of slipped through the cracks of 2007 amongst all of the mega-band releases (Radiohead, The National, Spoon, etc.), but this record is undeniably gorgeous . A/F has a unique intellect for musical contradiction, the song Gravelly Mountains On The Moon shifts so violently across genres you sometimes forget where you started - what was once jangly Silver Jews alt-country becomes something grander, a Sondheim musical maybe, and then into a dissident Big Band romp that brings down the house. In many ways they sound like they're an actual family: many voices, emotive sounds, inanimate sounds, and a sort of warmth that wraps the music up like a blanket.


On top of it all, they have a hip website and a blog - a photo blog, that needs an update.

Out of the Womb, Making Mixtapes & the Griz

A few bits about two musical acts I dig..

M.I.A. has a baby boy, and she's already enlisting his help in creating mixtapes and planning tourdates

Grizzly Bear is making all sorts of news this week. Last night they played at an acoustic set at the Galapagos Art Space and in a few weeks they'll play a set at BAM with the Brooklyn Philharmonic and Final Fantasy. Veckatimest, the follow up to GB's hit record Yellow House, is on its way in May (I wish they would include "leak date" in those press releases) and this week we got a tracklisting and some cover art from the band. A quick google lets me know that Veckatimest is a small island in Dukes County, MA. Go figure. If you just can't wait to hear the new album, I came across a bootleg from a GB live show in August which contains a few new tracks. Download it hxxp://www.mediafire.com/download.php?mozyjx0wmzq


The Truth Will Set You Free

Arlen Specter is an honest guy

"25 Things" Later

Chris Wilson at Slate has an ingenious piece on the evolution of the "25 Random Things"

All Gregg, All The Time Part 2

Nate Silver at 538 gets a nice little quote from a former WH correspondent

"I have never seen a White House statement that kicks someone in the balls that hard before."

Sam Stein at HuffPo says it brings in to a question the administration's vetting process after the Richardson and Daschle mishaps

Democratic sources close to the White House suggest that President Obama's vetting team was not fully aware of Gregg's position on the census prior to his being nominated to the Commerce post. And when members of the Congressional Black Caucus began airing complaints about a Commerce Secretary who voted to withhold emergency funds for the census, the administration had to reverse course. The decision was made, at first, to strip Gregg of this responsibility, even though it traditionally falls under the Commerce Secretary's purview. But that, in turn, sparked frictions between the Obama team and its second Commerce nominee.

And the Politico gets the first interview with Gregg post-withdrawal

“I’ve been my own person, and I began to wonder if I could be an effective team player,” the New Hampshire Republican said. “The president deserves someone who can block for his policies. As a practical matter, I can contribute to his agenda better — where we agree — as a senator, and I hope to do that.” “The fault lies with me,” Gregg told Politico. He refused to discuss any conversations he had with Obama, saying, “I may have embarrassed myself, but hopefully not him.”

I don't think I'd be posting so many reacts from around the webs if I didn't think this was a pretty big deal. After the No. 2 Democrat in the house, Steny Hoyer, said bipartisanship was "on life support" this morning, I think we're starting to see an emerging political landscape hardening. The Republicans are digging in as insurgents, and the Democrats in congress are starting to wonder what is really in it for them in making an attempt to reach across the aisle. I tend to agree with Sullivan's hypothesis that the Republicans are "frightened of being co-opted into something that will muddy their message." So, is new politics dead? Will Barack Obama continue to try and change the way Washington works, or will he dig in himself in the bully pulpit and use those significant majorities in both chambers of congress to enact policy against a rising tide of angry minority partisans. This could get ugly...

All Gregg, All The Time Part 1

A smattering of stuff from the blogosphere on the Secretary of Commerce Designate Judd Gregg removing his name from consideration citing a "a bridge too far" on certain hotbutton issues.

Halperin, doing his best Matt Drudge impersonation comments on Gibb's comment:

In an unusual statement, spokesman Gibbs puts the blame on the New Hampshire Republican:

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs:

Senator Gregg reached out to the President and offered his name for Secretary of Commerce. He was very clear throughout the interviewing process that despite past disagreements about policies, he would support, embrace, and move forward with the President's agenda. Once it became clear after his nomination that Senator Gregg was not going to be supporting some of President Obama's key economic priorities, it became necessary for Senator Gregg and the Obama administration to part ways. We regret that he has had a change of heart

David Kurtz at TPM cites a hill staffer's quote on how the announcement seemed perfectly timed to take away from the president's event in Peoria to discuss the stimulus.

It's hard not to think that Gregg's withdrawal, with the grumbling about the census and the stimulus, was not timed to cause the most damage possible to the Obama administration. Releasing the statement just as Obama took the stage in Peoria was clearly designed to undermine the President's event. The fact he scheduled a presser only seems to confirm it. The classy exit would have been to wait til tomorrow afternoon to quietly bow out. Basically Gregg decided not just to politely decline, but rather to blow shit up and burn the bridge behind him. Do not think this portends good things for the wider political climate.

Two of my favorites, Marc Ambinder and Andrew Sullivan hit the round table to discuss "Gregg and the GOP's War on Obama"

and Larry Kudlow from the National Review Online thinks the move was brilliant

Three hats off to Judd Gregg for withdrawing his nomination for commerce secretary. And I mean three hats. I’ve never seen anything like this.

I say this not in a partisan-political sense, but in terms of Sen. Gregg’s extraordinary character and integrity. He would not compromise his beliefs.

I knew there was a reason to hate the Grammy's.

The Grammy's exclude Leroi Moore from their annual tribute to the fallen legends of music. TMZ has the official statement from Grammyland

"Intellectually curious people get bored when all chaos has been locked out of our realities, after all."

Al Giordano says it better as he live blogs from Obama's Indiana rally yesterday

I can't remember in my lifetime a president of the US that subjected himself to such an unscripted mass participatory meeting as Obama did today. And yet he was in his element. Intellectually curious people get bored when all chaos as been locked out of our realities, after all. He had the crowd at "hello." And he had them even more so at goodbye. More significantly, he positioned himself as with the people outside the three point line, as their moral representative to push their institutional representatives to, well, represent them, dammit.

Picasa es su casa

I used to LOVE making collages as a kid, now I've found a nifty way as an adult to weave it in to my professional life. This one is for a role I'm researching. Fun.

Sometimes I'm at a loss to describe my dad's political views to other people..

..but I think he conveys it himself most accurately with this video he just sent me.





hat tip Dad

Facebook friends are expendable

Jonah Lehrer dissects whether you would throw your 300th facebook friend from the train to save one of your "real" friends.

Fascinating.

I'm not on Facebook, so take what follows with a hefty pinch of salt, but there's some suggestive evidence that the brain might contemplate other people very differently when that person is a virtual Facebook "page" and not a flesh and blood individual, with a tangible physical presence. Humans, after all, are social primates, blessed and burdened with a set of paleolithic social instincts. We aren't used to thinking about people as computerized abstractions.

Comments > Blog?

Andrew Sullivan and Alan Jacobs debate what makes a good blog, and a good "comments' section. Or its all the same thing? Or something.

"In this winter of our..hardship"

44 takes to the podium for the speech prior to his presser and almost let's some Shakespeare roll trippingly off his tongue.

Pretty agile mini-speech here by Favreau/Obama. Deftly maneuvers the minefield of high minded bipartisanship ("an unprecendented amount of input from both democrats..and republicans") while painting a bleak outlook on the economic days to come (so we know who to put the finger at if the bill doesn't pass and unemployment jumps t0 15%.) The heartbreaking anecdotes from his short stop in Elkhart today really hit home, and he uses the urgency of the moment to innoculate himself against the bills imperfections - acknowledging that many ideas in the bill might not grow magic beans immediately.

Pork Chop and a Condom

Kinda speaks for itself.

Beyond Aura Photography

I was honored this weekend to be invited to sit for a series of photographs taken by my good friend Shannon Taggart. My take on her work in this series of Men/Women is that she is capturing a kaleidoscope of energetic moods. Some of her subjects look as though they have been caught in a deeply private moment of inner struggle, panic or vulnerability while others are emanating power, warmth, and sexuality. Introspection is a hallmark of many of her characters, and Shannon uses her gift with the lens and the light to mold a symbiotic psychological atmosphere.

"We're picking good fights" Part II

The new RNC chair picks a fight with 'Nopolous over what is or what is not a "job."

"We're picking good fights"

Seems the Republicans are happy to kill legislation that might save the ailing economy.

Ah, wilderness.

Feeling envy for the kid who'll dance despite anything

This is a video of Animal Collective at the Hove Festival, June 2008

Formerly known as "Dancer" this track is known on every hipster's 2009 wet dream album, Merriweather Post Pavilion, as In The Flowers.

The Afghanistan Problem

Oh what to do with pesky old Afghanistan, Fred Kaplan takes a look at whether its going to become Barack Obama's Vietnam

Lebron didn't screw around and get a triple double

Somewhere, Ice Cube is meltin'

Gimme shelter

Das Bunker. Paul Virillio takes some fascinating photographs of places to weather the storm.

When calling to mind the reasons that made the bunkers so appealing to me almost twenty years ago, I see it clearly now as a case of intuition and also as a convergence between the reality of the structure and the fact of its implantation alongside the ocean: a convergence between my awareness of spatial phenomena—the strong pull of the shores

Lockett Pundt!#$

Lockett Pundt, of Deerhunter, is set to release the full length debut of side project Lotus Plaza. Its an incredible record . Echoing the ambient bliss of Cryptograms, The Floodlight Collective veers at times to a deranged and steady dancehall, eerily irrestible and pulsating like an Angelo Badalamente score.

Dumpster Divers

Forbes profiles Darren Atkinson, professional dumpster scrounger




Reminds me of another dumpster diver who I know quite well, Ole Anthony

h/t Andrew Sullivan

dinner potrait

Last night's din