O Que Faz Falta
Zeca Afonso

Quando a corja topa da janela

O que faz falta

Quando o pão que comes sabe a merda

O que faz falta

O que faz falta é avisar a malta

O que faz falta

O que faz falta é avisar a malta

O que faz falta

Quando nunca a noite foi dormida

O que faz falta

Quando a raiva nunca foi vencida

O que faz falta

O que faz falta é animar a malta

O que faz falta

O que faz falta é acordar a malta

O que faz falta

Quando nunca a infância teve infância

O que faz falta

Quando sabes que vai haver dança

O que faz falta

O que faz falta é animar a malta

O que faz falta

O que faz falta é empurrar a malta

O que faz falta

Quando um cão morde uma canela

O que faz falta

Quando à esquina hé sempre uma cabeça

O que faz falta

O que faz falta é animar a malta

O que faz falta

O que faz falta é empurrar a malta

O que faz falta

Quando um homem dorme na valeta

O que faz falta

Quando dizem que isto é tudo treta

O que faz falta

O que faz falta é animar a malta

O que faz falta

O que faz falta é libertar a malta

O que faz falta

E quem e que vai ver... quem e? quem e?

"Roger Waters & The Who for Hyde Park
new 2 day festival
Wed 8th Mar 06

As we reported three weeks ago, Roger Waters is to play at a new festival in Hyde Park - with The Who headlining the second night.

Called Hyde Park Calling, it's happening on Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd July, and will feature a number of acts across two stages on both days. So far, confirmed as joining Roger Waters are Texas, while Razorlight will play on the same day as The Who.

Roger Waters' set will be something rather special - he'll be performing Pink Floyd’s legendary ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ album as part of his set. This will be Waters’ only British performance of ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ during 2006 - expect an amazing light show and a truly unforgettable evening."

Passados tantos anos....comprei uns Creepers.

Quando eu era "chavalo" o haxe era a droga que os adolescentes usavam para as suas "fugas".
Agora a trave subiu; - "Uma linha de vez em quando não faz mal nenhum, o cavalo é que dá cabo de um gajo".
Ao meditar na progressiva subida da trave (que faz com que o salto seja cada vez maior), chego à conclusão que uma das razões, é o futuro "oferecido".
A crença de que as habilitações literárias eram a salvação, a ponte para a realização de todos os sonhos, há muito que se diluiu na economia doente deste país.
Toda a vida lhes prometeram mundos e fundos se acabassem o curso...
Têm de se sujeitar às vagas profissionais que a economia do país permite...

Eu por vezes repito-me, por isso aqui fica:

EVERYBODY KNOWS
(from the album 'I'M YOUR MAN')

Everybody knows that the boat is leaking
Everybody knows that the captain lied

And everybody knows that it's now or never
Everybody knows that it's me or you
And everybody knows that you live forever
Ah when you've done a line or two
Everybody knows the deal is rotten
Old Black Joe's still pickin' cotton
For your ribbons and bows
And everybody knows

And everybody knows that the Plague is coming
Everybody knows that it's moving fast

In My Life
the Beatles

There are places I’ll remember
All my life though some have changed
Some forever not for better
Some have gone and some remain
All these places have their moments
With lovers and friends I still can recall
Some are dead and some are living
In my life I’ve loved them all

But of all these friends and lovers
There is no one compares with you
And these memories lose their meaning
When I think of love as something new
Though I know I’ll never lose affection
For people and things that went before
I know I’ll often stop and think about them
In my life I love you more

Though I know I’ll never lose affection
For people and things that went before
I know I’ll often stop and think about them
In my life I love you more
In my life I love you more

Eu gosto de Beatles.

I read the news today oh, boy
About a lucky man who made the grade
And though the news was rather sad
Well I just had to laugh and
I saw the photograph

He blew his mind out in a car
He didn’t notice that the lights had changed
A crowd of people stood and stared
They’d seen his face before,
Nobody was really sure if he was from the house of lords.

I saw a film today oh, boy
The english army had just won the war
A crowd of people turned away
But I just had a look
Having read the book,
I’d love to turn you on...

Woke up, fell out of bed,
Dragged a comb across my head
Found my way downstairs and drank a cup,
And looking up I noticed I was late.

Found my coat and grabbed my hat
Made the bus in seconds flat
Found my way upstairs and had a smoke,
Somebody spoke and I went into a dream

Ah

I read the news today oh boy
Four thousand holes in blackburn, lancashire
And though the holes were rather small
They had to count them all,
Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the albert hall.
I’d love to turn you on...

Carrefour Coimbra / I.E.F.P Coimbra

Meus amigos, dedico este post a todos os que são explorados por entidades patronais déspotas e não têm como se fazer ouvir.

Aqui mesmo debaixo do nosso nariz, a mutinacional (Carrefour) faz estalar o látego da prepotência nas costas de quem desesperadamente procura e quer trabalhar, recebendo apenas três €uros por cada sete horas de trabalho (um dia laboral), que não são pagos pelo Carrefour, mas sim pelo IEFP (Instituto de Emprego e Formação Profissional), uma vez que estes homens e mulheres estariam supostamente num contexto de formação profissional (inexistente). Em vez disso lavam e montam prateleiras, varrem o chão e tudo o mais que seja necessário para preparar a "loja" para a abertura. Trabalham em condições adversas (dentro de um subterrâneo mal iluminado, etc.) sem sequer saber se a empresa os irá contratar ou não.

Sir Isaac Newton morreu ha 279 anos



"If I have seen further it is by standing on ye shoulders of Giants"

1939 - 2006

African star Ali Farka Toure dies

One of Africa's best known musicians, Ali Farka Toure, has died after a long illness in his home country of Mali, the culture ministry has announced.

He was one of the pioneers of "Mali Blues" and his 1994 Talking Timbuktu album produced with US blues guitarist Ry Cooder was widely acclaimed.

Toure, who was in his late 60s, won two Grammy awards for his work.

In 2004, he was elected mayor of his home town of Niafunke on the shores of the River Niger in northern Mali.

Mali's prime minister, culture minister and many of Mali's top artists have been gathering at his home to pay their respects ahead of his funeral on Wednesday.

Radio stations in the capital, Bamako, have interrupted their normal coverage to play his music.

He died in Bamako but is to be buried in Niafunke, 850km north of the capital on Wednesday, the authorities have announced.

Toure won Grammys for Talking Timbuktu and again this year, for his album in collaboration with another famous Malian musician, Toumani Diabate, In the Heart of the Moon.

His record label, World Circuit, said he had just finished work on a new solo album.

Traditional sound

Although he has worked with several US blues guitarists, the "Bluesman of Africa" always insisted that the music had its roots in the traditional sounds of northern Mali, rather than the southern United States.

Malian journalist Sadio Kante says Toure was better known abroad than in his home country.

He was born in Timbuktu in 1939 but the exact date of his birth is not known.

"For some people, Timbuktu is a place at the end of nowhere," he was once quoted as saying.

"But that's not true, I'm from Timbuktu, and I can tell you that it's right in the centre of the world."

During the 1990s rebellion by the Tuareg people of northern Mali, Toure was seen as something of a peacemaker by singing in all of the region's languages - Songhai, Fulani and the Tuareg's Tamashek.

Many Bamako residents saw him as a northerner, rather than a national figure, says Sadio Kante.

But those in Mali's entertainment business are in mourning.

"A monument has fallen. With the death of Ali Farka Toure, Mali is losing one of it's greatest ambassadors," television producer Mbaye Boubacar Diarra told the AP news agency.

He leaves a widow and 11 children.

(Click on the image to visit the web page)

ADOLPHUS BELL
One man band
(all instruments are played at the same time by Adolphus Bell)

Adolphus Bell was born in the country outside of Birmingham, Alabama. "I grew up on the farm, working in the cotton fields; music was something that was just always around me. When I was a bit older we moved to Pittsburgh. It was there that I began playing guitar in 1963 or 64.

I grew up with George Benson he was the one that put the guitar in my hand. I then moved to Flint, MI. From Flint I moved to Gadsden, Al, then back to Birmingham. I have been around.

When I was in Atlanta an English man saw me playing in the Underground took me to England to play a special show for his wife. I only played one night and stayed for about a week and a half. That was my first and only time I have been out of the country. I loved it. I didn't know how much people appreciated my music until I went to England. It was also my first flight. I am about to go to Costa Rica, France and Australia with Music Maker."

"I promote, my one-man band, blues hits from the 50s and 60s. I had a band. My band stayed with me for 6 years. They wouldn't be in time for gigs or practice; I loaned them money, they still didn't show up on time. I told my mom, she said, 'Son, don't you put up with this. You keep playing that guitar if you have to play by yourself.' So that is what I did, I began by going in my room. I had rhythm in both my feet and the guitar in my hands. I went to the pawn show, and brought back in the room my drums, and I began to start playing. And you know, it sounded good to me the first time I started playing. I stayed in there about 6 hours, nine months straight. I would play everyday. Finally, I left the room and I went to the club, it was about 1975, and my sidemen said they were tired and wanted a break. They said they didn't want to play the show. I said to them they didn't have to play. I told them I wanted to play by myself. I have been doing this for about 40 years."

" I found out about Music Maker from Tim Duffy. He tells me he saw me driving my van while he was driving back from Kentucky. Then his friend Mudcat saw me in the Underground in Atlanta. Beverly "Guitar" Watkins and I played together in the Underground. She played right down the way from me. I used to have a security guard to bodyguard me playing at the Underground. People really like my show. Then I left there and they could not find me. Then Mudcat somehow found my telephone number and Tim gave me a call and booked me at the King Biscuit Festival, and I played and started working with Music Maker then. I have been working with them ever since then."

For Booking Information Contact:

Tim Duffy
Music Maker Relief Foundation
Eno Valley Station
PO Box 72222
Durham, NC 27722-2222

Phone

919-643-2456
919-643-2597 (fax)

E-mail

booking@musicmaker.org

Google Refuses Demand for Search Information

By Arshad Mohammed

Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, January 20, 2006; Page A01

The Justice Department said yesterday that it subpoenaed four major Internet companies for data on what people search for on the Web as part of an eight-year battle over a federal law designed to shield children from online pornography.

Three of the companies responded to some degree, but Google Inc. said it was resisting the demand. Privacy advocates said the subpoenas raised deep concerns about the government's ability to track what ordinary people view on the Internet.

Attracted by the Internet's apparent anonymity, Americans have turned to the Web in growing numbers to view pornography and, according to one industry publication, spent $2.5 billion on online adult entertainment last year.

The government asked Mountain View, Calif.-based Google, which operates the world's most popular search engine, to turn over every query typed into its search engine over the course of one week without providing identifying information about the people who conducted the searches.

It also asked for a random sample of 1 million Web pages that can be searched in the vast databases maintained by Google, whose stated corporate mission is to "organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful."

While privacy experts said the requests appeared to have been tailored to try to protect the privacy of the millions of people who carry out searches, they said it could set a precedent for more intrusive future government demands. They also said it raised the question of just how much information Google stores about consumers.

"The real issue here is, is Google being deputized to spy on us? In this case, you could maybe argue that the spying is not that bad, because very little of it is personally identifiable, but what will the next case be?" said Richard M. Smith, a Boston-based software engineer who has written about the Internet age. "It's a terrible precedent."

Several privacy advocates said they did not object to government subpoenas in criminal cases in which someone is suspected of a crime, but they suggested that the latest demand was so broad it amounted to a fishing expedition.

"This is the government's nose under the search engine's tent. Once we cross this line it will be very difficult to turn back," said Marc Rotenberg of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, a District-based nonprofit group that advocates privacy protections. "If companies like Google respond to this kind of subpoena . . . I don't see why the next subpoena might not say, 'Give us what we asked for the last time -- plus a little more.'

"Google has always been a kind of ticking privacy bomb because Google retains personally identifiable information," he added. "Even though Google may intend to protect online privacy, there will be circumstances beyond their control that will place Internet users at risk, and they include government warrants, as in this case, or future security breaches which have plagued the financial services sector over the past couple of years."

The Justice Department issued subpoenas to four companies in August: Google, Time Warner Inc.'s America Online Inc., Microsoft Corp.'s Microsoft Network, and Yahoo Inc. News of the government subpoenas emerged this week when the Justice Department asked a federal court in California, where Google is based, to force the company to turn over the information

Fighting China's Firewall

Posted by Matthew Russo on Thursday February 16, 2006 04:47 am

Some users recently have come up with a plan to try and get past China's massive content firewall. It is a fact today that all of the content that Chinese civilians are not allowed to see is blocked from being viewed. This group wants to make it possible to get the content to the civilians. Although you definitely don't want to get caught......

Scaling the firewall of digital censorship

Globe and Mail Update

Monday, February 13, 2006

TORONTO — More than fifteen years after the Berlin Wall was shattered with hammers and bulldozers, a Canadian-designed computer program is preparing to break through what activists call the great firewall of China.

The program, in the late stages of development in a University of Toronto office, is designed to help those trapped behind the blocking and filtering systems set up by restrictive governments.

Land of the FREE???

(Click on the image to enlarge)

Quando quiserem rir muito...




http://www.chucknorrisfacts.com/

1. Guns don't kill people. Chuck Norris kills People.
2. There is no theory of evolution. Just a list of animals Chuck Norris allows to live.
3. Chuck Norris does not sleep. He waits.
4. The chief export of Chuck Norris is Pain.
5. There is no chin under Chuck Norris' Beard. There is only another fist.
6. Chuck Norris has two speeds. Walk, and Kill.
7. The leading causes of death in the United States are: 1. Heart Disease 2. Chuck Norris 3. Cancer
8. Chuck Norris drives an ice cream truck covered in human skulls.
9. Chuck Norris is my Homeboy.
10. Chuck Norris doesn't go hunting.... CHUCK NORRIS GOES KILLING

A Guitarra Portuguesa

Considerado o "Stradivarius" da guitarra portuguesa, Gilberto Grácio encontrou no Cacém o local ideal para construir o mais típico instrumento musical português É numa pequena oficina, situada nas Escadinhas da Fonte Nova, no Cacém, que Gilberto Grácio representa a terceira geração da sua família na produção de instrumentos musicais. Ali vai fazendo guitarras e outros instrumentos de corda para os maiores nomes da música portuguesa e estrangeira. Aos 66 anos constrói quatro a cinco guitarras por ano. Os preços oscilam entre os 1500 e os 4000 euros. Depois da quarta classe, Grácio começou a trabalhar com o pai na construção de guitarras, mas só aos 17 anos é que conseguiu construir uma de sua total autoria. "Também tenho clientes estrangeiros. Uma vez construí uma guitarra portuguesa para o Jimmy Page, mais ou menos por volta do ano de 1984".

O artesão português

Ontem fui surpreendido com uma reportagem de um canal de televisão português sobre um artesão do Minho que faz instrumentos tradicionais. Ele disse que fez uma guitarra e um cavaquinho para George Harrison. Vou pôr-me em campo e ver se consigo falar com o homem. depois darei notícias.

Isto faz-me lembrar uma outra história. aqui ao pé de lisboa, há um artesão famoso que faz a guitarra típica portuguesa. O Jimmy Page quis uma e a EMI portuguesa encomendou-a. e quis também mandar uma espécie de manual de instruções. o jimmy page ficou muito ofendido, porque, guitarrista como era, saberia com certeza tocar a guitarra. E a guitarra lá seguiu para londres. Aqui há um par de anos, entrevistei o jimmy page e o robert plant em paris por causa de um disco qualquer. E, claro, perguntei-lhe pela guitarra portuguesa. Já muito humilde, Jimmy Page respondeu-me que ainda não tinha conseguido tocar nela (eh eh eh).

Isto faz-me ainda lembrar uma outra história de outra guitarra portuguesa e de Paul McCartney, mas esta história seguirá mais tarde.

Albatross

Lembro de quando descobri este instrumental dos Fleetwood Mac na colectânea dos anos setenta da minha irmã.
Coimbra era menos urbana...
O Verão...
Deliciava-me a apanhar amoras nos silveirais... a pedalar a minha bicicleta até ao rio de toalha ao ombro...
A inocência... a pressa de crescer...
Que saudade...

Bushisms Adventures in George W. Bushspeak See Also: Bushisms Quiz | Bushisms Audio Clips | Top 50 Bushisms

"I believe that a prosperous, democratic Pakistan will be a steadfast
partner for America, a peaceful neighbor for India, and a force for freedom and moderation in the Arab world." —George W. Bush, mistakenly identifying Pakistan as an Arab country, Islamabad, Pakistan, March 3, 2006

"People don't need to worry about security. This deal wouldn't go forward if we were concerned about the security for the United States of America." —George W. Bush, on the deal to hand over U.S. port security to a company operated by the United Arab Emirates, Washington, D.C., Feb. 23, 2006

"And I want those who are questioning it to step up and explain why all of a sudden a Middle Eastern company is held to a different standard than a Great British company." —George W. Bush, defending a plan to allow a company controlled by the United Arab Emirates to manage ports in the United States, aboard Air Force One, Feb. 21, 2006

"I think it's really important for this great state of baseball to reach out to people of all walks of life to make sure that the sport is inclusive. The best way to do it is to convince little kids how to—the beauty of playing baseball." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Feb. 13, 2006

"I like my buddies from west Texas. I liked them when I was young, I liked them then I was middle-age, I liked them before I was president, and I like them during president, and I like them after president." —George W. Bush, Nashville, Tenn., Feb. 1, 2006

"He was a state sponsor of terror. In other words, the government had declared, you are a state sponsor of terror." —George W. Bush, on Saddam Hussein, Manhattan, Kan., Jan. 23, 2006

"I'll be glad to talk about ranching, but I haven't seen the movie. I've heard about it. I hope you go — you know — I hope you go back to the ranch and the farm is what I'm about to say." —George W. Bush, after being asked whether he's seen Brokeback Mountain, Manhattan, Kan., Jan. 23, 2006

"It's a heck of a place to bring your family." —George W. Bush, on New Orleans, New Orleans, La., Jan. 12, 2006

"You took an oath to defend our flag and our freedom, and you kept that oath underseas and under fire." —George W. Bush, addressing war veterans, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2006

"As you can possibly see, I have an injury myself — not here at the hospital, but in combat with a cedar. I eventually won. The cedar gave me a little scratch. As a matter of fact, the Colonel asked if I needed first aid when she first saw me. I was able to avoid any major surgical operations here, but thanks for your compassion, Colonel." —George W. Bush, after visiting with wounded veterans from the Amputee Care Center of Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio, Texas, Jan. 1, 2006

"[I]t's a myth to think I don't know what's going on. It's a myth to think that I'm not aware that there's opinions that don't agree with mine, because I'm fully aware of that." —George W. Bush, Philadelphia, Pa., Dec. 12, 2005

"I mean, there was a serious international effort to say to Saddam Hussein, you're a threat. And the 9/11 attacks extenuated that threat, as far as I-concerned." —George W. Bush, Philadelphia, Dec. 12, 2005

"I think we are welcomed. But it was not a peaceful welcome." —George W. Bush, defending Vice President Dick Cheney's pre-war assertion that the United States would be welcomed in Iraq as liberators, NBC Nightly News interview, Dec. 12, 2005

"Those who enter the country illegally violate the law." —George W. Bush, Tucson, Ariz., Nov. 28, 2005

"As a matter of fact, I know relations between our governments is good." —George W. Bush, on U.S.-South Korean relations, Washington D.C., Nov. 8, 2005

"Wow! Brazil is big." —George W. Bush, after being shown a map of Brazil by Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Brasilia, Brazil, Nov. 6, 2005

"Bin Laden says his own role is to tell Muslims, quote, 'what is good for them and what is not.'" —George W. Bush, Washington D.C., Oct. 6, 2005

"I think it's important to bring somebody from outside the system, the judicial system, somebody that hasn't been on the bench and, therefore, there's not a lot of opinions for people to look at." —George W. Bush, on the nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court, Washington, D.C., October 4, 2005

"We look forward to hearing your vision, so we can more better do our job. That's what I'm telling you." —George W. Bush, Gulfport, Miss., Sept. 20, 2005

"If it were to rain a lot, there is concern from the Army Corps of Engineers that the levees might break. And so, therefore, we're cautious about encouraging people to return at this moment of history." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Sept. 19, 2005

"Listen, I want to thank leaders of the — in the faith — faith-based and community-based community for being here." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Sept. 6, 2005

"So please give cash money to organizations that are directly involved in helping save lives — save the life who had been affected by Hurricane Katrina." —George W. Bush, Washington D.C., Sept. 6, 2005

"I can't wait to join you in the joy of welcoming neighbors back into neighborhoods, and small businesses up and running, and cutting those ribbons that somebody is creating new jobs." —George W. Bush, Poplarville, Miss., Sept. 5, 2005

"Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job." —George W. Bush, to FEMA director Michael Brown, who resigned 10 days later amid criticism over his job performance, Mobile, Ala., Sept. 2, 2005 (Listen to audio; read more stupid quotes about Hurricane Katrina)

"We've got a lot of rebuilding to do. First, we're going to save lives and stabilize the situation. And then we're going to help these communities rebuild. The good news is -- and it's hard for some to see it now -- that out of this chaos is going to come a fantastic Gulf Coast, like it was before. Out of the rubbles of Trent Lott's house -- he's lost his entire house -- there's going to be a fantastic house. And I'm looking forward to sitting on the porch." (Laughter) --George W. Bush, touring hurricane damage, Mobile, Ala., Sept. 2, 2005

"My thoughts are, we're going to get somebody who knows what they're talking about when it comes to rebuilding cities." —George W. Bush, on rebuilding New Orleans, Biloxi, Miss., Sept. 2, 2005

"Americans should be prudent in their use of energy during the course of the next few weeks. Don't buy gas if you don't need it." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Sept. 1, 2005

"It's totally wiped out. ... It's devastating, it's got to be doubly devastating on the ground." —George W. Bush, turning to his aides while surveying Hurricane Katrina flood damage from Air Force One , Aug. 31, 2005

"The best place for the facts to be done is by somebody who's spending time investigating it." —George W. Bush, on the probe into how CIA agent Valerie Plame's identity was leaked, Washington D.C., July 18, 2005

"I'm looking forward to a good night's sleep on the soil of a friend." —George W. Bush, on visiting Denmark, Washington D.C., June 29, 2005

"I was going to say he's a piece of work, but that might not translate too well. Is that all right, if I call you a 'piece of work'?" —George W. Bush to Jean-Claude Juncker, prime minister of Luxembourg, Washington, D.C., June 20, 2005

"The relations with, uhh — Europe are important relations, and they've, uhh — because, we do share values. And, they're universal values, they're not American values or, you know — European values, they're universal values. And those values — uhh — being universal, ought to be applied everywhere." —George W. Bush, at a press conference with European Union dignitaries, Washington, D.C., June 20, 2005

"You see, not only did the attacks help accelerate a recession, the attacks reminded us that we are at war." —George W. Bush, on the Sept. 11 attacks, Washington, D.C., June 8, 2005

"And the second way to defeat the terrorists is to spread freedom. You see, the best way to defeat a society that is — doesn't have hope, a society where people become so angry they're willing to become suiciders, is to spread freedom, is to spread democracy." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., June 8, 2005

"It seemed like to me they based some of their decisions on the word of — and the allegations — by people who were held in detention, people who hate America, people that had been trained in some instances to disassemble — that means not tell the truth." —George W. Bush, on an Amnesty International report on prisoner abuse at Guantanamo Bay, Washington, D.C., May 31, 2005 (Listen to audio)

"See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda." —George W. Bush, Greece, N.Y., May 24, 2005 (Listen to audio)

"We discussed the way forward in Iraq, discussed the importance of a democracy in the greater Middle East in order to leave behind a peaceful tomorrow." —George W. Bush, Tbilisi, Georgia, May 10, 2005

"I think younger workers — first of all, younger workers have been promised benefits the government — promises that have been promised, benefits that we can't keep. That's just the way it is." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., May 4, 2005

"It means your own money would grow better than that which the government can make it grow. And that's important." —George W. Bush, on what private accounts could do for Social Security funds, Falls Church, Va., April 29, 2005

"I can only speak to myself." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., April 28, 2005

"It's in our country's interests to find those who would do harm to us and get them out of harm's way." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., April 28, 2005

"We expect the states to show us whether or not we're achieving simple objectives — like literacy, literacy in math, the ability to read and write." —George W. Bush, on federal education requirements, Washington, D.C., April 28, 2005

"He understands the need for a timely write of the constitution." —George W. Bush, on Prime Minister Iyad Allawi of Iraq, Washington, D.C., April 28, 2005

"Well, we've made the decision to defeat the terrorists abroad so we don't have to face them here at home. And when you engage the terrorists abroad, it causes activity and action." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., April 28, 2005

"But Iraq has — have got people there that are willing to kill, and they're hard-nosed killers. And we will work with the Iraqis to secure their future." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., April 28, 2005

"I appreciate my love for Laura." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., April 20, 2005

"We have enough coal to last for 250 years, yet coal also prevents an environmental challenge." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., April 20, 2005

"Part of the facts is understanding we have a problem, and part of the facts is what you're going to do about it." —George W. Bush, Kirtland, Ohio, April 15, 2005

"I'm going to spend a lot of time on Social Security. I enjoy it. I enjoy taking on the issue. I guess, it's the Mother in me." —George W. Bush, Washington D.C., April 14, 2005

"We look forward to analyzing and working with legislation that will make — it would hope — put a free press's mind at ease that you're not being denied information you shouldn't see." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., April 14, 2005

"I want to thank you for the importance that you've shown for education and literacy." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., April 13, 2005

"I understand there's a suspicion that we—we're too security-conscience." —George W. Bush, Washington D.C., April 14, 2005

"If they pre-decease or die early, there's an asset base to be able to pass on to a loved one." —George W. Bush, on Social Security money held in private accounts, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, March 30, 2005

[I'm] occasionally reading, I want you to know, in the second term." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., March 16, 2005

"In this job you've got a lot on your plate on a regular basis; you don't have much time to sit around and wander, lonely, in the Oval Office, kind of asking different portraits, 'How do you think my standing will be?'" —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., March 16, 2005

"In terms of timetables, as quickly as possible — whatever that means." —George W. Bush, on his time frame for shoring up Social Security, Washington D.C., March 16, 2005

"I like the idea of people running for office. There's a positive effect when you run for office. Maybe some will run for office and say, vote for me, I look forward to blowing up America. I don't know, I don't know if that will be their platform or not. But it's -- I don't think so. I think people who generally run for office say, vote for me, I'm looking forward to fixing your potholes, or making sure you got bread on the table." —George W. Bush, on elections in the Middle East, Washington, D.C., March 16, 2005

"I repeat, personal accounts do not permanently fix the solution." —George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., March 16, 2005

"This notion that the United States is getting ready to attack Iran is simply ridiculous. And having said that, all options are on the table." —George W. Bush, Brussels, Belgium, Feb. 22, 2005

"If you're a younger person, you ought to be asking members of Congress and the United States Senate and the president what you intend to do about it. If you see a train wreck coming, you ought to be saying, what are you going to do about it, Mr. Congressman, or Madam Congressman?" —George W. Bush, Detroit, Mich., Feb. 8, 2005

"Because the — all which is on the table begins to address the big cost drivers. For example, how benefits are calculate, for example, is on the table; whether or not benefits rise based upon wage increases or price increases. There's a series of parts of the formula that are being considered. And when you couple that, those different cost drivers, affecting those — changing those with personal accounts, the idea is to get what has been promised more likely to be — or closer delivered to what has been promised. Does that make any sense to you? It's kind of muddled. Look, there's a series of things that cause the — like, for example, benefits are calculated based upon the increase of wages, as opposed to the increase of prices. Some have suggested that we calculate — the benefits will rise based upon inflation, as opposed to wage increases. There is a reform that would help solve the red if that were put into effect. In other words, how fast benefits grow, how fast the promised benefits grow, if those — if that growth is affected, it will help on the red." —George W. Bush, explaining his plan to save Social Security, Tampa, Fla., Feb. 4, 2005

"You work three jobs? … Uniquely American, isn't it? I mean, that is fantastic that you're doing that." —George W. Bush, to a divorced mother of three, Omaha, Nebraska, Feb. 4, 2005 (Listen to audio)

"After all, Europe is America's closest ally." —George W. Bush, Mainz, Germany, Feb. 23, 2005

"Because he's hiding." —George W. Bush, responding to a reporter who asked why Osama bin Laden had not been caught, aboard Air Force One, Jan. 14, 2005

"I'm also mindful that man should never try to put words in God's mouth. I mean, we should never ascribe natural disasters or anything else to God. We are in no way, shape, or form should a human being, play God." —George W. Bush, ABC's 20/20, Washington D.C., Jan. 14, 2005

"I want to appreciate those of you who wear our nation's uniform for your sacrifice." —George W. Bush, Jacksonville, Fla., Jan. 14, 2005

"I speak plainly sometimes, but you've got to be mindful of the consequences of the words. So put that down. I don't know if you'd call that a confession, a regret, something." —George W. Bush, speaking to reporters, Washington, D.C., Jan. 14, 2005

"Who could have possibly envisioned an erection — an election in Iraq at this point in history?" —George W. Bush, at the white House, Washington, D.C., Jan. 10, 2005

"We need to apply 21st-century information technology to the health care field. We need to have our medical records put on the I.T." —George W. Bush, Collinsville, Ill., Jan. 5, 2005

"I believe we are called to do the hard work to make our communities and quality of life a better place." —George W. Bush, Collinsville, Ill., Jan. 5, 2005

Read More Bushisms
• Bushisms from 2004
• Bushisms from 2003
• Bushisms from 2002
• Bushisms from 2001
• Bushisms from 2000

Got a Bushism?
Email it to politicalhumor.guide@about.com

Best Oscar joke in 2006:

"Walk the Line, which was basically Ray with white people". A cara do Joaquin Phoenix! Awesome.

Oscares...

Resolvi ver a gala de entrega dos oscares depois de alguns anos de interregno.
Quando William Hearst conseguiu fazer com que Citizen Kane, nomeado para nove oscares (incluindo melhor fime, melhor realizador, melhor actor (Orson welles nas respectivas categorias)) apenas recebesse um oscar para o melhor argumento original (Mankiewicz and Welles), ficámos a perceber, que os oscares tinham tudo a ver com tudo, menos com a arte cinematográfica.
E vocês dizem-me - epá, isso foi em mil novecentos e carqueja, a mentalidade era diferente - e eu até vos dava razão; nao fosse aquela mítica gala de mil novecentos e noventa e cinco.
No ano supracitado aconteceram as nomeações mais fantásticas da história dos oscares; Um porquinho chamado babe (Babe) a concorrer para melhor filme e melhor realizador (o brilhante Nixon do Oliver Stone ficou de fora), o Toy Story a concorrer para melhor argumento, o Braveheart a ganhar para melhor fime e melhor realizador em deterimento de filmes como Il Postino (Michael Radford), Leaving Las Vegas (Mike Figgis), Dead Man Walking (Tim Robbins).
O woody Allen leva quinze nomeações para melhor argumento. Ganhou duas; Annie Hall e Hanna and her Sisters.
Só gostava de saber porquê, e já não falo do argumento desse "ano louco" (Mighty Aphrodite) nem no deste ano (Matchpoint), as Faces de Harry (Deconstructing Harry) perdeu para o a Bom Rebelde (Good Will Hunting) desses dois "génios" Ben Affleck e Matt Damon?

The Storyteller

"When people told themselves their past with stories, explained their present with stories, foretold the future with stories, the best place by the fire was kept for the storyteller."

Ontem fui ao Ateneu para um serão de histórias da carochinha que, segundo o interlocutor e o index internacional de contos tradicionais, são contos de iniciação à morte (ir preparando a criança para a perda inevitável de entes queridos).
Mesas de café, candelabros com pequenas velinhas e cinzeiros (já se sabe que nestes ambientes de tertúlia nao pode faltar uma boa nuvem de fumo). A assistência consistia em meninas com collants garridos e bóina de lã e meninos de barba com a calça de bombazina ao fundo do cu a beberem o seu copo de vinho... enfim as nossas futuras "promessas" no mundo artístico...
Resta-me contar-vos que por altura do penúltimo conto já a "nata" fugia em debandada. É que o último era um pouco brejeiro e como se sabe, para este pessoal douto da Lusa Athenas, tudo o que for abaixo de Dan Brown e Paulo Coelho (os grandes contadores de histórias dos nossos dias)...

Bem dito e louvado
este conto está acabado!!!

"Eu sou liberal e estou farto que seja uma palavra feia"

Foi com esta frase que fiquei do que li de George Clooney no Publico (Good night and Good luck).

Agora eu:
"Eu sou de esquerda e estou farto que os ditos liberais acambarquem causas".

Por isso, nao deixando de ser importante ser um americano a dize-lo e ainda por cima em Hollywood, a nota positiva do filme vai para: DIANNE REEVES. Que bela cantora!

Jai-Alai means "Merry Festival" in the Basque language. Professional Jai-Alai in America originated at the Miami Fronton.

Over three centuries ago, in the Basque area of Spain's Pyrenees Mountains, Pelota Vasca (Basque Ball) developed. Some games were played at festivals and were called Jai-Alai (Merry Festival).

The most daring of these games (Cesta Punta) evolved into the game you see in America. It is the world's fastest ball game. Jai-Alai came to Cuba from Spain in 1898, and was successfully introduced as a professional game at the Miami Fronton in 1926.

Check our vintage Program Cover and Post Card which show part of our Jai-Alai history. While it is hard to imagine, helmets were not introduced until 1968 after a champion player named Orbea was hit in the head, ending his career.

While the round-robin form of play is common in the United States, overseas two teams play head to head in the Partido. In Spain, for example, a Partido runs 25 to 40 points and may last an hour or more. Each point is bet as well as the game itself.

Jai-Alai is a unique sport played in various places around the world. Though its birthplace is the Basque Country, there are more Jai-Alai frontons in Florida than any place in the world.

You are Foreplay


What kind of sex are you?

brought to you by Quizilla

Cocksucker Blues
(Jagger/Richards)


Well, I'm a lonesome schoolboy
and I just came into town
Yeah, I'm a lonesome schoolboy
and I just came into town
Well, I heard so much about London
I decided to check it out

Well, I wait in Leicester Square
with a come-hither look in my eye
Yeah, I'm leaning on Nelsons Column
but all I do is talk to the lion

Oh where can I get my cock sucked?
Where can I get my ass fucked?
I may have no money,
but I know where to put it every time

Well, I asked a young policeman
if he'd only lock me up for the night
Well, I've had pigs in the farmyard,
some of them, some of them, they're alright
Well, he fucked me with his truncheon
and his helmet was way too tight

Oh where can I get my cock sucked?
Where can I get my ass fucked?
I ain't got no money,
but I know where to put it every time

I'm a lonesome schoolboy

Cocksucker Blues

Cast: Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman, Mick Taylor, Danny Seymour, Bianca Jagger, Tina Turner, Truman Capote, Stevie Wonder, Andy Warhol, Dick Cavett, Terry Southern, Princess Radziwell, Cynthia Jones, various groupies, roadies and scalpers.

Directed by Robert Frank
Produced by Marshall Chess
Editors: Robert Frank, Paul Justman, Susan Steinberg
Camera: Robert Frank, Danny Seymour
Sound: Danny Seymour

1972, Unreleased; 95 min, colour

Drugs, Sex, Drugs & Rock 'n' Roll (and drugs & more sex)

Reviewed by Rick McGrath

Of all the tours the Rolling Stones have made across North America, the 1972 tour is still remembered as the most outrageous, most provocative, most inventive musical outing the fab five from London ever performed.

I was fortunate enough to see this juicy juggernaut when it made its stop in Vancouver on Saturday, June 3rd, 1972. Fittingly, there was a riot outside as we watched the Stones' riotous show on the inside. It was pretty crazy. As Stones expert Harold Colson has written elsewhere… "The fabled summer 1972 tour through the U.S. and Canada is revered by Stones fans worldwide as arguably the band's greatest ever, and it remains enshrined in the annals of rock lore and popular imagination as the masterpiece speedball of indoor triumph, outdoor maelstrom, and backstage debauch. In powerful testament to this enduring sway, vast quantities of audio recordings, books, magazines, photographs, films, videos, and other memorabilia have since issued through licit and sub-licit channels to keep the coveted sights and sounds of the Stones Touring Party alive, rolling, and fresh to this very day."

Cocksucker Blues is one of those enduring sub-licit channels which not only celebrates the fore, middle and background of this tour, but which also presents itself as one of the very best rock tour movies ever made, and never seen.

Have You Heard About The… It's Not One Of Those.

Here's the scene: the Stones have not visited the US since the 1969 disaster of Altamont -- also immortalized by the Brothers Maysles in the tour/performance flick Gimme Shelter -- and the group is riding high and hard on the success of their definitive rock album, Exile On Main Street.

Adventurous Mick, despite the angst & ennui of that perpetual bummer, Gimme Shelter, decides to do the film thing one more time and enlists the talent of famous photog/filmmaker Robert Frank (he shot the pix on the Exile album cover, and shot a brutal documentary on madness, called Me and My Brother).

In comes producer Marshall Chess, who, early in the movie, gives the plotline: Mick has already written a song called Cocksucker Blues, about a gay hooker in London, to fulfill the group's contractual obligations to Decca records, which was run at the time by an old fart named Sir Edward Lewis. Apparently, during a meeting, Mick gets up and plays a demo of the song to the uptight geezer… here's some sample lyrics:

Oh where can I get my cock sucked?
Where can I get my ass fucked?
I may have no money,
but I know where to put it every time
Well, he fucked me with his truncheon
and his helmet was way too tight

Needless to say, this winsome ditty had the desired effect, and the song was never released. Chess goes on to say some cat in New York was organizing a benefit for Oz Magazine, which was being hassled by the government in an obscenity trial, and the idea came up to do a porno album, with rock stars contributing "adult" material to raise dough for the underground magazine.

Cocksucker Blues was one song, and there were others, like Dr John (The Night Tripper)'s "You Can Never Eat Too Much Pussy". Then the idea expanded from an album to a film… which this isn't.

Nope. This is your straightforward rock tour film. No time-tripping cuts like Gimme Shelter. Shot cinema verite, docu-rocku style, Cocksucker Blues is a pinball machine of images -- soft, warm, harsh, exploitive, funny, sad, boring, stupid and smart, jammed with images of excessive hard drug taking, nodding-off Stones, roadies fucking groupies, backstage parties, naked women, heroin shoot-ups, and, yes, some great concert footage. But not that much. For Robert Frank, the real performance was everywhere but the stage.

The resulting film, basically a look behind the scenes at a never-ending private party, with some songs tossed in, was so over the top that The Stones, shocked, banned its release and obtained a court injunction against its distribution. Cinematographer Frank finally got the rights to screen the flick once a year, but as far as I know you can only obtain this movie on video or dvd in bootleg form.

I'm Bored. How About Some Sex & Drugs?

Filmmaker Jim Jarmusch, commenting on Cocksucker Blues, called it "definitely one of the best movies about rock and roll I've ever seen. . . . It makes you think being a rock and roll star is one of the last things you'd ever want to do." Well, maybe that depends. It looked like a lot of fun for most of The Stones. Do you get the feeling these guys are soldiers, bored and waiting for the next battle, the next opportunity to feel alive? Are we supposed to believe that our boys are victims of the tedium, confusion, boredom, and good old angst & ennui of being locked into a big money, big stadium, big everything rock tour?

Not on your life. These are the freakin Rolling stones, man... it's 1972... they're all around 30 years old, and kicking ass.

Check the screen. See Director Frank's unblinking eye reveal all: the ever-present drugs and groupies, Keith Richards' addiction to heroin, Mick Jagger's problems with the high-maintenance Bianca (who looks like Sade at a Ted Nugent concert) and, most interestingly, just how adroit the Glimmer Twins are at concocting and manipulating their new party-boys outlaw reputations.

Hell, if this film had shown The Stones in a heroic light, do you think they would have banned it? And ya gotta figure, if this is what Frank got to see, imagine all the stuff he didn't get to poke his camera at...

But it's not all nookie and needles. Mostly, Frank is fascinated with the backstage world, and allows the mundane sounds of the tour to set the film's themes and feel: raw and inconsequential conversations, Bianca's tiny music box, a bluesy, poignant piano theme, yammering local disc jockeys, and the nervous practice of antsy musicians just prior to going onstage.

Some Great Music. But Not Much Of It.

For a 90-minute flick, only about 15 are concert shots. We watch the boys perform the opening song for pretty well every night of the tour, Brown Sugar, as well as Midnight Rambler, Uptight (with Stevie Wonder), Happy, and Street Fighting Man. Midnight Rambler is notable for Mick's haunting harp opening, and the band, blitzed as they are, still play very well, with Keith laying down his usual heavy chops against Mick Taylor's intelligent fills.

Mostly Classic Self-Indulgent Stuff.

No doubt shocking when shot, but now mostly cliches, given the excesses of bands which followed - Led Zeppelin being first and foremost -- Cocksucker Blues reads like a litany of rock high priest thou shalt's:
• watch everybody snort coke & shoot heroin
• marvel at Bobby Keyes and Keith Richard as they toss a TV off their hotel balcony (first they check to see no one's below)
• thrill as Dick Cavett asks Bill Wyman, "what's running through your nervous system right now?"
• smirk as Wyman doesn't answer
• leer as Mick Jagger rubs his dink through his pants, then undoes them and gets his hand in for a better feel
• gasp as a girl trying to get into the concert complains her baby was taken from her because she's always on acid
• laugh to discover a scalper is charging $10 for a $3.50 ticket
• chuckle as a totally stoned Keith tries to order room service for some strawberries, blueberries and "three apples"
• look at your watch as the boys play some very drunken poker. See Keith win.
• ooh as Charlie Watts makes a very difficult pool shot in a southern diner
• moan as a naked groupie rolls on a bed, legs spread, fingering her pussy
• make notes as Keith tells Mick it's best to snort coke through a rolled up dollar bill
• guffaw as Mick turns to the camera after a brief meeting with Tina Turner and says "I wouldn't mind…"
• look at your watch again as the tour crew packs the group's suitcases and cleans out their hotel rooms
• wonder in amazement as Bianca sits sullenly, smoking a cigarette and playing a little music box over and over.

The Picture Quality Used To Suck As Much As The Groupies.

OK, we're talking bootleg here. Gawd knows how many times this film had been copied before falling into my quivering hands. It's not pristine 35mm, that's for sure.

My original video copy showed massive colour shifts to mostly blue, and the definition between colours had degenerated to almost a posterized effect. In some shots you can't really tell who the people are anymore -- but does it matter? This ain't Spielberg, this is hardcore rock 'n' roll, and it still has the backbeat, so you really can't lose it. Sure. When ya ain't got nuthin, ya got nuthin to lose.

Now, thanks to the miracles of home DVD authoring, this once-copied-to-death monster has been digitized and needs no longer suffer the ravages of analog information loss. My new 2-DVD bootleg set has vastly improved video, great audio in Dolby 5.1 mix, interactive menus and song selection, plus a second DVD of bonus material from thast general time: a 1969 Saville Theatre performance, a 1973 Australian Tour Documentary, various promos, a 1973 Brown Sugar clip, a 1969 David Frost Show gig, interviews with mick... and get this for later irony: the vid of Mick & Bianca's wedding.

On the other hand, any version you can get your hands on is great. So what if the resolution and colours are zany -- often the degraded picture can actually add to the ethereal nature of this strange trip (audio typically remains pretty good).

Ladies And Gentlemen... My Conclusion!

I think this is the greatest rock movie ever made -- probably that ever will be made -- combining an innovative, artistic filmmaker with the World's Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Band at the height of their glory and the depths of their despair on their craziest tour. It shows a kind of fin de siècle of the 1960's Stones, a dionysian outpouring of whacked-out camaraderie that marked the top and end of an era.

Doesn't get much better than that.


© 2001 Rick McGrath

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