The Sound of the Crowd

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1. Ha ha, ha ha, ha. Click here to see a funny, funny bumper sticker spotted on an SUV parked among a crowd of cars out for a gay-pride rally. Ha ha, ha ha, ha.

2. Rumsfeld: “We’re not going to win.”

3. E-mail “interview” with Wil Wheaton that is actually kind of inspiring, if a bit long.

It goes back to the advice my friend gave me: As a creative person, whether you’re an author, musician, actor or filmmaker, you will end up working harder than anyone else to promote your work, despite the promises they make to you before the contracts are signed. So why give up creative control and an enormous share of the profits when you’re going to do most of the work anyway? Why bust your ass to make someone else rich? There isn’t a stigma attached to self-publishing (or performing in a small theater, or distributing your performance on DVD via the Internet) like there used to be, because more and more people are coming to understand that the audience is an enormous collection of little niches, and every single one of them can be served by small presses or indie distributors. So if you don’t want to participate in the soul-crushing aspects of the entertainment industry, you don’t have to. Self-publishing (or self-producing or distributing, or whatever) is risky, but it’s the best way to participate in the arts without being corrupted by the process of being involved.

And here in the bar
The piano man’s found
Another nail for my heart

That stupid old bug
That kills only love
I want to be good
Is that not enough?

–Squeeze, “Another Nail for my Heart”

The Bush spin on Iraq, I mean. America doesn’t believe it any more. See how we struggle towards the light.

And now, it’s time once again to play…

Who Said It?

“The administration should clarify its intent…People lack confidence in the credibility of our government.’ Even our allies are beginning to suspect what we say, he charged. ‘It’s a difficult thing today to be informed about our government even without all the secrecy,’

Now, who said it?

Ted Kennedy?
Sean “Vote or die” Combs?
A liberal blogger?

Or was it….(click below for the answer)
(more…)

Political Wire notes:

“With key elements of his domestic agenda stalled and his job-approval ratings sagging,” President Bush is following a strategy that was favored by many of his second-term predecessors: “He is devoting more time and energy to international affairs, most visibly by hosting a stream of foreign leaders.”

President Bush. International affairs. Foreign leaders. Exactly where his strengths lie. I don’t see any problem witb this, do you? We’re not running into a wall full speed or anything…

Damn. Double damn. The day after we have the news that Paul Winchell, the voice of Tigger among many other varied accomplishments, has died, we get this:

John Fiedler, 80, Stage Actor and Film Voice of Pooh’s Piglet, Dies

Like Winchell, Fiedler had a long list of credits besides the wonderful Milne/Disney voice for which he is best remembered. I see by looking him up on the IMDB that he was in a couple of the first Disney movies I remember seeing “new” in the theater: The Rescuers (animated) and The Shaggy D.A. (live-action).

But the on-camera role for which I best remember him is in the episode of “classic” Star Trek, Wolf in the Fold, in which Fiedler played (and now I’m quoting from that Trekker web site):

Mr. Hengist; Originally a resident of Rigel IV, later employed as a city administrator on planet Argelius II. Hengist’s body was possessed by an evil energy lifeform that thrived on the emotion of terror and was responsible for several brutal murders. This entity, which traveled to Argelius Ii in Hengist’s body, was also known as Redjac, Beratis, Kesla, and Jack the Ripper.

Remember? Overcome by a powerful sedative, Hengist/Redjac is unable to act on his murderous rage, but can only mutter, “die, die, die…kill you all…” It’s beautiful.

And now he’s gone too. Damn, damn and triple-damn.

Or, goddamn, Sideways is a good movie…

Jesus loves me, this I know…cause he keeps giving me posts like this to play with. A right-wing pro-abstinence group, Just Wait, has put up a billboard which reads:

GIRLS
IF IT’S NOT FOR SALE
DON’T ADVERTISE

“While some find the message sexist in the way it targets girls, Scott Hughes, director of Just Wait, says it’s really more about teenage boys.

‘Guys are turned on visually by what they see, so it’s really saying guys aren’t men enough to control themselves, therefore you have to be careful on how you present yourself,’ says Hughes.”

Oh, that’s not too sexist or insulting. I’m not even sure if it’s more insulting to women or men. I’m gonna say women…marginally. But now for the fun part, boys and girls.

Can you guess where, oh where this billboard is located? Think hard. Stretch your mind. That’s right…

R.I.P.

Tigger
Sam-I-Am
Sneetch
Boomer
Chinese Cat
The Dread Baron

–and many more, AKA Paul Winchell. That’s a link to a tribute by Mark Evanier, who writes more about Winchell, and has a great story, here.

It’s a bad year for voices from my childhood. There have been times when I identified very much with Tigger, and looked at life as part of a massive attempt to “unbounce” me.

P.S….Oh, and also, Winchell invented the artificial heart. Seriously. He did.