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Cost of the War in Iraq
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I'm going to try for the kingdom if I can
05.30.03 (9:39 pm)   [edit]
Music in commercials these days has really gone too far.

I remember a few years ago when Powerade used "Monk Time" by the Monks to shill their wares. But why were the Monks' fine lyrics left out? "Why do you kill those kids in Vietnam, mad Viet Cong! My brother died in Vietnam. James Bond, who's he? Stop it, I don't like it!" Yeah, that makes me want to work out.

Then, of course there's Royal Caribbean's use of Iggy's "Lust for Life." I gave the ad execs the benefit of the doubt. Maybe they didn't know what the song was about. "Here comes Johnny in again, with liquor and drugs, and a fast machine, He's gonna do another strip tease"

But now, my God, now Nissan is using the Velvet Underground's "Heroin" to promote the Xterra. And, naturally, there are no lyrics to be heard in the ad. "I have made a big decision. I'm gonna try to nullify my life, 'Cause when the blood begins to flow, when it shoots up the dropper's neck, when I'm closing in on death..."

Actually, I kinda feel that way during my commute. Well done, Nissan!

So here's hoping to hear Julian Cope's "Out of my mind on dope and speed" playing for, I don't know, Merrill Lynch?
 
Still harping about civil liberties
05.29.03 (8:41 pm)   [edit]
Wanted to write about wine again, but I read an article in today's New York Times that made me put off that task for a while. The piece, written by Alan Krueger, challenges the conventional wisdom that poverty creates terrorism.

He writes:

"...I have analyzed data the State Department collects on significant international terrorist incidents. The home countries of the perpetrators of each event were identified. [i]More terrorists do come from poor countries than rich ones, but this is because poor countries tend to lack civil liberties. [/i] (emphasis mine)

Once a countrys degree of civil liberties is taken into account, measured by Freedom House, a nonprofit organization that promotes democracy, as the extent to which citizens are free to develop views, institutions and personal autonomy without interference from the state income per capita bears no relation to involvement in terrorism. Countries like Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, which have spawned relatively many terrorists, are economically well off yet lacking in civil liberties. Poor countries with a tradition of protecting civil liberties are unlikely to spawn terrorists.

Evidently, the freedom to assemble and protest peacefully without interference from the government goes a long way to providing an alternative to terrorism.

Apart from the size of a country and the extent of its civil liberties, no factor that I could find including the literacy rate, infant mortality rate, terrain, ethnic divisions and religious fractionalization could predict whether people from that country were more or less likely to take part in international terrorism."

When I think about the actions that have been taken against our own civil liberties here in the name of stopping terrorism, I get so upset that I lose the ability to express myself intelligently (I hope all of you will resist the temptation to say I never could in the first place).

For the next few days, you can read the whole article here: =http://www.nytimes.com/2003/0...
 
worst buys in wine
05.16.03 (4:31 am)   [edit]
Every now and then, you read an article about the best wine under $10 or something else of the sort. And with all the hype about Charles Shaw's "two-buck Chuck," I had been hopeful about finding some great wine for a party I'm throwing (for the record, the two-buck Chuck cabernet is not something I'd want to sit around sipping, but it is pretty good to use for mulled wine. And it's 2 dollars, 3 if you live outside of California in a place with a Trader Joes).

So I went to my favorite local wine shop, which always seems to be blasting 70s rock. "Dream Police" is going through my head, even as I think about it. And, you know, sometimes you look at a bottle of wine and say to yourself, "It's a Cotes-du-Rhone, it has a pretty label, how bad can it be?"

It can be very, very bad.

So here are some wines to avoid for your next party.

Bouchard Aine & Fils Macon-Villages Chardonnay 2000: my husband and I agreed that this wine tasted like sheep -- like livestock that had been sitting out in the sun too long. I have never experienced anything like this in a wine in my life. How is this possible?

Tommasi Pinot Grigio Valdadige Vigneto Le Rosse 2001: usually I consider pinot grigio to be a "safe" wine. It may not be incredible, but it won't kill you. Our tasting notes for this one read "Warm, sweaty cheese wrapped in twigs." Death was imminent.

Chateau Menaut Graves 2001: I don't remember this one terribly well except that it made me spit and gave me a migraine.

Domaine de Fontavin Cotes-du-Rhone 2000: The night we tasted this one there were 3 of us present. We unanimously agreed that it tasted like jogger, or, rather, sweaty nylon shorts.


Keep in mind, I did find some wines that I really liked and I ended up buying for the party. Stay tuned for those.
 
Do you care about your civil liberties?
05.16.03 (4:31 am)   [edit]
I was reading an article in Salon about the PROTECT act that was passed last week. Apparently Joe Biden stuck the Illicit Drug Anti-Proliferation Act onto the bill. You can read about some of the new things that pass for drug offenses here: http://www.salon.com/mwt/feat...

You can read section 608 of the PROTECT act here: http://www.emdef.org/s226/s22...

Or you can read all 118 pages of the act here: http://www.house.gov/judiciar...
 
A diet pill too powerful for the likes of you!
05.16.03 (4:31 am)   [edit]
I saw an ad on TV today for Yet Another Diet Pill. This ad was distinctive for two reasons:

(1) Its main selling point is that it costs $153 per bottle. Seems kinda pricey for a bottle of ephedra.

(2) It's called Anorex. Anorex?? Do these people have no shame? I'm holding out for Bulimatrim.

http://www.kleinbecker.com/products/anorex/index .asp" title="http://www.kleinbecker.com/products/anorex/index .asp" target="_blank"http://www.kleinbecker.com/pr... says: "CAUTION: Anorex Is Not a Toy. Anorex Should Not Be Used by the “Casual Dieter”.

Sounds like a challenge to me.