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17 Apr 2010 21:13

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U.S.: Secret memo: The U.S. doesn’t know what the #(&$ to do about Iran

  • This is according to a note sent by man, myth and legend Robert Gates. While the U.S. has a solid short-term strategy for the country (including sanctions), a memo from Gates in January hints that they might be a little lost as to what to do if those measures don’t work. The note set off a tizzy, according to sources hiding behind the shoulders of anonymity. Why? There’s a significant fear that Iran will bump up against the Nuclear Non-Prolifieration Treaty, getting all the elements of a nuclear weapon without actually building one. (Hint: That’d be really bad.) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Apr 2010 18:48

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Music: Saturday Mixtape: Starting points for The Tallest Man on Earth fans

  • New Dylan, shmew Dylan. It’s easy to pigeonhole The Tallest Man on Earth as a straight-up Dylan acolyte, except Swedish. But we argue there’s a lot more going on with this guy. Kristian Matsson, who’s already released two very solid, evocative folk albums, is way more exciting than, say, Jose Gonzalez. Here’s our best attempt to analyze his sound through the guise of early folk.

  • 1. Somehow, The Tallest Man on Earth feels incredibly fresh, despite being loaded with elements that suggest early Dylan or (at the very least) a guy who’s been listening to way too many field recordings. It’s to Kristian Matsson’s credit that he transcends strereotype, and his guitar has some amazing voicings which Dylan never touched.
  • 2. While most under 30 probably best know Kurt Cobain’s amazing cover of this song on MTV’s “Unplugged” in 1993, Lead Belly made the traditional tune popular, and it’s a song the ex-con is most known for today. Definite strains of this rawness in The Tallest Man on Earth’s sound.
  • 3. While Pete Seeger doesn’t always wail on his guitar the way Matsson does, on “John Henry” he’s incredibly vigorous, if maybe more lyrically direct than Matsson ever gets. Seeger’s clean, authoritative voice definitely strikes a different tone from Matsson, but we’d argue they have more in common than they don’t. (Fun fact: Seeger’s still kicking at 90.)
  • 4. Phil Ochs, a protest singer to the end, was a raw and evocative performer and a key voice in the protest music scene during the mid-’60s, and probably the guitarist who Matsson most reminds us of. Both Ochs and Matsson powerfully wail away at their guitars, even if their endgames (political change vs. metaphor) are completely different.
  • 5. On “The Wild Hunt,” Matsson directly references Bob Dylan’s “Boots of Spanish Leather” on highlight “King of Spain.” Ultimately, the era of Dylan he takes most influence from, “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” is merely interpreted. Dylan’s lyrical voice, rich in metaphor, has a lot in common with The Tallest Man on Earth, but you always feel like “The Wild Hunt” is on the edge, ready to tip over at any time.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Apr 2010 17:26

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Tech: Psst: Sprint drops hint to iPad users to skip the 3G, go to 4G

  • With all the network problems AT&T is famous for having, getting a 4G wireless router from Sprint actually seems like a pretty appealing alternative to getting the 3G iPad. (Wired gave the Sprint Overdrive a very favorable review last month, going so far as to suggest you could probably get by with it, an iPod Touch and VoIP, and have better service than Apple’s AT&T miserableness.) It’s a good thing that Sprint has even gotten a case together that makes it even easier to switch. Excuse us while we briefly consider this brilliant idea. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Apr 2010 17:04

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Politics: Chicago Sun-Times columnist calls bizarro hippies a “pity party”

  • My feeling was, heck, if staging public gripe fests gives these people something to do, then great. It’s outside. It involves handicrafts, the making of signs and costumes. It’s like Scouting for irked middle-aged white people.
  • Chicago Sun-Times columnist Neil Steinberg • In an often-hilarious takedown of the bizarro hippies. The article, written after he went to the Chicago Tax Day Bizarro Hippie Fest, notes that he attempted to talk to multiple people at the event only to see the protesters run away from him. He started conversations with phrases such as, “I’ve used tinfoil hats as metaphor, but I’ve never seen anyone actually wearing one …”, and later compared the bizarro hippie movement to the anti-interventionist America First movement around the time of World War II. As you might guess, the comment thread on this article is best to be avoided. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Apr 2010 16:45

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U.S.: Fans of racially-tinged violence, keep an eye on L.A. today

See this guy in the middle? Reportedly a white supremacist. They were holding a rally in L.A. today, but counter-protesters got to him first. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Apr 2010 12:16

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Biz: Like saving money? Like privacy? Don’t use Web coupons

  • good The Web coupon segment of the money-saving market has grown greatly of late – redemption is up 263 percent to 50 million coupons.
  • bad Those coupons, however, give retailers more info than your average coupons, including IP addresses and search data. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Apr 2010 12:10

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Culture: False advertising: Your Nike shoes won’t be as awesome as these

  • Unfortunately, the blurb that goes with this Nike commercial gives some devastating news: “The NIKE FREE RUN+ is absolutely a running shoe. Shoes sold at retail will NOT make music when bent or twisted.” So, don’t get your hopes up that your shoes can double as a beat machine.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

17 Apr 2010 11:59

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World: Nick Clegg’s starting to sound a little like Obama circa mid-2008

  • I can’t predict what is going to happen in the election campaign, but I think something exciting is starting to happen. … If a growing number of people do that then the possibilities of doing things differently really are huge.
  • British Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg • Regarding the increase in support his party has seen in recent weeks. The center-left party is doing well in the polls of late, especially in the wake of Clegg’s solid performance during a TV debate earlier this week. He suggests it could be a break from “old politics.” Other British parties are finding ways to criticize this possibility, though: Labour representatives are down on the party’s stance on the Trident nuclear defense system, and Conservative leader David Cameron is quick to leap on the possibility of a hung parliament of the Lib Dems get any more power. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Apr 2010 11:44

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World: Ashes to ashes: If you’re in Europe and want to fly, it sucks to be you

  • 18,600 number of flights that were
    canceled yesterday due to the erupting Iceland volcano
  • 16,000 number of flights that will be
    canceled today for the very same freaking reason source
  • » How long could this go on, anyway? The ash, which has a very damaging effect on aircraft (think what Lava soap does to your hands, except with an expensive plane), could be in cloud form for the next 24 hours at least; it’s causing chaos for European travelers, who have been forced to travel by boat, car, train or anything non-plane-related.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Apr 2010 11:28

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World: The international community not impressed by Sudan’s election

Either the world community has really high standards, or Sudan has really low ones. Here, a bunch of Sudanese look at some confusing sheets of paper. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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