What is our business, by contrast, is what politicians are doing with the money they confiscate from us. This Lisa Benson cartoon helps to make that point, though it would be even better if she had written “Romney’s Stash for His Own Money” and “Obama’s Stash for Our Money.”
Obama, needless to say, is an expert at squandering other people’s money, as illustrated by money pits such as the faux stimulus and the green energy scam.
P.S. Lest anyone think I’m being partisan, the headline of this would be just as accurate if I added “How Bush Spent My Money” or “How Romney Would Spend My Money.” Bush, after all, followed the same fiscal agenda as Obama, and Romney’s track record suggests he will be similarly profligate.
P.P.S. Which makes me miss Bill Clinton, who was frugal by comparison. Or Ronald Reagan, who actually did the right things for the right reason.
Kentucky had some great games against Arkansas in the past. Of course, the 7 overtime game is still an NCAA record. This year I think the Razorbacks should prevail against the Wildcats and even this reviewer from Kentucky below agrees. He has his hopes up that they will win against Georgia and Tennessee and I know that their history against those teams in the past has been very bleak. Hope springs eternal I guess.
Home » Kentucky football » Kentucky Wildcats Football: A way-to-early preview of the 2012 season.
We’ve touched on Kentucky’s 2012 schedule a couple of times since its release, but not really in depth. While it may be way too early to even think about the outcome of the 2012 season, I’m going to try to peer into the ole crystal ball and see into the future a little bit.
Kentucky will be rebuilding to an extent in 2012. The Offense will return several key players at key positions. Both quarterbacks that saw starting reps will return in Maxwell Smith and Morgan Newton, every scholarship running back will be back this season and the receiving corps lost only Matt Roark. There will be a question mark along the offensive line, but starters Matt Smith and Larry Warford will be back along with oft used freshman Darrian Miller. Several playmakers will be coming off of their redshirt seasons at the skill positions, and the offensive line will be restocked with Zach West coming off of his redshirt season and the addition of several new recruits. The defense though, will have to replace five starters. The defensive line will return every player that played meaningful snaps except Luke McDermott and Mark Crawford. Three linebacker spots and both starting cornerbacks will be open after the departure of the five starting seniors from 2011, but a recruiting class full of talent and depth should help out in addition to the backups who should be ready to step up.
Overall, the 2012 team should be talented, but plenty of question marks should make for an interesting season.
On to the schedule…
I’ve separated out the games into three categories. WINs are games that Kentucky should win. Games marked LOSS are contests in which the Cats will have little hope for victory. The games listed as TOSS UP are the ones that should be the most interesting. While UK may not be favored, these are games Kentucky can win if they come to play.
9/1/12 – @ Louisville
Kentucky stumbled to a loss against the Cardinals this past season despite the many question marks surrounding theLouisvilleprogram. This year, the Cardinals will be more experienced and will get the Cats at home. Call me crazy, but I’m not overly impressed with the roster Charlie Strong has assembled.
TOSS UP
9/8/12 – vs. KentState
The Golden Flashes aren’t a bad team, but they’re a team Kentucky should beat. Scares against WKU and Central Michigan this past season should ensure that the team doesn’t take any opponent lightly. Unless the wheels completely fall off, this one should be a W.
WIN
9/15/2012 –vs. Western Kentucky
I don’t think the Hilltoppers are as sure of a win as a lot of other fans. WKU has improved and is continuing to bring in talented players. Add to that, that in-state opponents always seem to bring the best out of a team, and this game makes me a little uneasy. All that considered, Kentucky will be the better team, and will be playing Western at home, and the game will actually be on a Saturday this time.
WIN
9/22/12 – @ Florida
The Gators are in a state of flux right now. Will Muschamp didn’t exactly set the world on fire in his first season, and the offense will be replacing offensive coordinator Charlie Weis and quarterback John Brantley. Still, beating the Gators in the Swamp is always tough and Florida will not be overlooking the Cats after their 2011 campaign. I just don’t see the Cats pulling this one out right now.
LOSS
9/29/12 – vs. South Carolina
The Gamecocks had a decent season last year, but failed to live up to the lofty expectations of winning the conference. Most of the talent from last years’ team will return and another excellent recruiting class will restock the cabinet from the players that are gone. I highly doubt we see the blowout loss that the Gamecocks handed Kentucky in Columbia, but this one looks like a long shot at best.
LOSS
10/6/12 – vs.MississippiState
The Bulldogs started out 2011 looking like a top-10 team, but petered off quickly and barely held on to beat Kentucky in Lexington. The Cats will actually welcome MSU into town again this year and this should be a good game once again. It’s tough to say who will be favored at this point, but I think this one could really go wither way.
TOSS UP
10/13/12 – @Arkansas
The Razorbacks were overshadowed by LSU and Alabama this season, but they were still one of the best teams in the country. Bobby Petrino has managed to recruit some serious talent to go along with his unique offense and the combination has proved lethal. Kentuckymight have a chance in Lexington, but winning in Fayetteville is probably a pipe dream at this point.
LOSS
10/20/12 – vs. Georgia
It seems like Georgia produces a top-10 recruiting class each year and always finds a way to replace the players they lose quickly. After starting slow in 2011, they ramped it up late in the season and it looked like they might win the conference at halftime of the SEC Championship. As good as Georgia is, I still think Kentucky has a pretty decent shot at the Bulldogs this year due to the game being in Lexington this year and the ridiculously high number of Georgians on the UK roster that are likely looking forward to getting a shot at the Bulldogs. This one might surprise some people.
TOSS UP
10/27/12 – @ Missouri
The Tigers are likely to have a tough year in their first season competing in the SEC and Kentucky will need to take advantage of that. As the new SEC East team, Misouri will come in as a solid squad, but not a juggernaut. It will be important for the Cats to compete against them and make sure that they don’t fall down a rung in the conference ladder. A win at Missouri will be tough, but not impossible.
TOSS UP
11/03/2012 – vs. Vanderbilt
The Commodores handed Kentucky a loss in Nashvilletthis past year and will return much of the talent from coach Franklin’s debut season. That’s great and all, but Vanderbilt is still Vanderbilt and winning on the road is always tough in this conference. I expect this to be a close game and a loss wouldn’t surprise me, but I’m leaning more towards a Kentucky “W” than an “L.”
TOSS UP
11/17/2012 – vs. Samford
Kentuckywill be coming off of their bye week when Samford comes to town. We all remember Appalachian State, Jacksonville State, and James Madison beating BCS-conference teams over the last few years, but Samford overtaking the Wildcats would be a shocker.
WIN
1/24/2012 – @ Tennessee
The Wildcats finally broke ‘the streak’ this past year, so the monkey is finally of the team’s back. Tennessee will be rebuilding to an extent and Derek Dooley may not even be the team’s coach by the time this game is played. I would think that the Volunteers would be looking to avenge the loss in Lexington, but they will not have the talent that Tennessee teams of the past have had. Kentucky will probably be an underdog, but I think a win is not out of the question.
TOSS UP
So…
By my estimation, Kentucky should have a season somewhere in between 3-9 and 10-2. I know that seems like a ridiculous range, but there are just more winnable games on this schedule than there have been in the last few years. Realistically, a 6-6 or 7-5 season is about where this team should finish, but a lot will hinge on the Louisville game. If Kentucky can start the season with a bang, we could have a surprising trip in 2012.
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Politicians and interest groups claim higher taxes are necessary because it would be impossible to cut spending by enough to get rid of red ink. This Center for Freedom and Prosperity video shows that these assertions are nonsense. The budget can be balanced very quickly by simply limiting the annual growth of federal spending.
____________________
President Obama c/o The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
People are being told that radical spending cuts are a must if we are to balance the budget, but maybe that is not true. Why don’t you favor holding the line on spending so we can get to a balanced budget? The Republicans are going to beat you up on this issue during the election.
Even though I favor radical reductions in the burden of government, I’ve made the point that good fiscal policy merely requires that government spending grow slower than the private sector – what I call Mitchell’s Golden Rule.
And if lawmakers simply cap the growth of spending, so that it grows by about 2 percent annually, the budget deficit disappears in a decade.
It’s even better to impose more restraint, of course, which is why I’ve said favorable things about Senator Rand Paul’s plan.
There’s also a “Penny Plan” that would reduce primary spending (non-interest spending) by 1 percent each year. As James Carter and Jason Fichtner explain, this degree of fiscal restraint would reduce the burden of government spending to about 18 percent of economic output.
Any viable solution must cut spending growth. Sen. Mike Enzi of Wyoming and Rep. Connie Mack of Florida have introduced legislation in their respective chambers to do just that. Their “Penny Plan” – recently updated to reflect the latest budget developments – calls for reducing federal spending (excluding interest payments) 1 percent a year for five years, balancing the budget in the fifth year. To maintain balance once it’s reached, Mr. Enzi and Mr. Mack would cap federal spending at 18 percent of GDP. By no small coincidence, 18 percent of GDP roughly matches the U.S. long-run average level of taxation since World War II. Is it realistic to think Congress could limit federal spending to 18 percent of GDP? Actually, there is precedent. Federal spending fell as a share of GDP for nine consecutive years before bottoming out at 18.2 percent of GDP in fiscal 2000 and 2001. The Penny Plan would return federal spending, expressed as a share of GDP, near the level achieved during the last two years of the Clinton administration.
The various interest groups that infest Washington would complain about this degree of spending discipline, but Carter and Fichtner make a good point when they say that this simply means the same size government – as a share of GDP – that we had when Bill Clinton left office.
I realize I’m getting old and my memory may not be what it used to be, but I don’t recall people starving in the streets and grannies being ejected from hospitals during the Clinton years. Am I missing something?
__________________
Thank you so much for your time. I know how valuable it is. I also appreciate the fine family that you have and your commitment as a father and a husband.
Sincerely,
Everette Hatcher III, 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002, ph 501-920-5733, lowcostsqueegees@yahoo.com
On May 20, 2012 I attended the St. George’s Independent School commencement exercises in Collierville, Tennessee. School President William W. Taylor used the Beatles as an example of a group of people that brought different talents together to accomplish much.
He also quoted from the song “My Life” which happens to be one of my favorite songs. It goes like this:
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
Writers: Lennon-McCartney Recorded: October 18 and 22, 1965 Released: December 6, 1965 Not released as a single
‘In My Life” represented a crucial breakthrough for John Lennon — as well as a creative struggle. The song began with a question: During a March 1964 interview with Lennon, journalist Kenneth Allsop asked why he hadn’t written more lyrics about his life and experiences. “I had a sort of professional songwriter’s attitude to writing pop songs,” Lennon said to Rolling Stone in 1970. “I would write [books like] In His Own Write, to express my personal emotions. I’d have a separate songwriting John Lennon who wrote songs for the meat market. I didn’t consider them to have any depth at all. They were just a joke.”
Taking Allsop’s critique to heart, Lennon wrote a long poem about people and places from his past, touching on Liverpool landmarks like Penny Lane, Strawberry Field and Menlove Avenue. “I had a complete set of lyrics after struggling with a journalistic version of a trip downtown on a bus, naming every sight,” he said. When he read the poem later, though, “it was the most boring ‘What I Did on My Holidays’ song, and it wasn’t working. But then I laid back, and these lyrics started coming to me about the places I remember.”
What happened next is a dispute that will never be resolved. “In My Life” is one of only a handful of Lennon-McCartney songs where the two strongly disagreed over who wrote what: According to Lennon, “The whole lyrics were already written before Paul even heard it. His contribution melodically was the harmony and the middle eight.” According to McCartney, Lennon basically had the first verse done. At one of their writing sessions at Lennon’s Weybridge estate, the two painstakingly rewrote the lyrics, making them less specific and more universal. (Some of Lennon’s lines, like his reference to the late Stu Sutcliffe, the Beatles’ former bassist, in “some are dead and some are living,” remained.) McCartney also says he wrote the melody on Lennon’s Mellotron, inspired by Smokey Robinson, as well as the gentle opening guitar figure.
Regardless of its true authorship, “In My Life” represented Lennon’s evolution as an artist. “I started being me about the songs, not writing them objectively, but subjectively,” Lennon said. “I think it was Dylan who helped me realize that — not by any discussion or anything, but by hearing his work.” The Beatles were huge Dylan fans by early 1964, playing The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan nonstop in between gigs. When Dylan visited the Beatles in New York that August, he famously introduced them to marijuana. (He thought the Beatles were already pot smokers, having misheard the lyrics “I can’t hide” in “I Want to Hold Your Hand” as “I get high.”) Dylan and pot would be the great twin influences that led the Beatles out of their moptop period and on to their first masterpiece, Rubber Soul.
Before that album, “We were just writing songs à la the Everly Brothers and Buddy Holly,” Lennon said, “pop songs with no more thought to them than that.” He rightly called “In My Life” “my first real, major piece of work. Up until then, it had all been glib and throwaway.”
Part 3 of 3: ‘Is Woody Allen A Romantic Or A Realist?’
A discussion of Woody Allen’s 1989 movie, Crimes and Misdemeanors, perhaps his finest.
By Anton Scamvougeras.
Judah Rosenthal: I remember my father telling me, “The eyes of God are on us always.” The eyes of God. What a phrase to a young boy. What were God’s eyes like? Unimaginably penetrating, intense eyes, I assumed. And I wonder if it was just a coincidence I made my specialty ophthalmology. Share this quote
Clifford Stern: While we’re waiting for a cab I’ll give you your lesson for today. Don’t listen to what your teachers tell ya, you know. Don’t pay attention. Just, just see what they look like and that’s how you’ll know what life is really gonna be like. Share this quote
Clifford Stern: [after being handed a box of Milk Duds] Great. Now I can get rid of my few remaining teeth. Share this quote
Halley Reed: [on the philosopher Lewis Levy] He was very eloquent on the subject of love, didn’t you think? Clifford Stern: I wish I had met him before I got married. It would’ve saved me a gall bladder operation. Share this quote
Clifford Stern: Show business is, is dog-eat-dog. It’s worse than dog-eat-dog. It’s dog-doesn’t-return-other-dog’s-phone-calls, which reminds me. I should check my answering service. Share this quote
Clifford Stern: [on Professor Levy’s demise] He left a note. He left a simple little note that said “I’ve gone out the window.” This is a major intellectual and he leaves a note that says “I’ve gone out the window.” He’s a role-model. You’d think he’d leave a decent note. Share this quote
Clifford Stern: I don’t know from suicide, y’know. Where I grew up in Brooklyn we were too unhappy to commit suicide. Share this quote
Clifford Stern: What is the guy so upset about? You’d think nobody was ever compared to Mussolini before. Share this quote
Clifford Stern: [on receiving his love letter back] It’s probably just as well. I plagiarized most of it from James Joyce. You probably wondered why all the references to Dublin. Share this quote
[first lines] Professor Levy: [voiceover] We are all faced throughout our lives with agonizing decisions. Moral choices. Some are on a grand scale. Most of these choices are on lesser points. But! We define ourselves by the choices we have made. We are in fact the sum total of our choices. Events unfold so unpredictably, so unfairly, human happiness does not seem to have been included, in the design of creation. It is only we, with our capacity to love, that give meaning to the indifferent universe. And yet, most human beings seem to have the ability to keep trying, and even to find joy from simple things like their family, their work, and from the hope that future generations might understand more. Share this quote
Judah Rosenthal: [to Ben] Jack lives in the real world. You live in the kingdom of heaven. I’d managed to keep free of that real world but suddenly it’s found me. Share this quote
Professor Levy: You will notice that what we are aiming at when we fall in love is a very strange paradox. The paradox consists of the fact that, when we fall in love, we are seeking to re-find all or some of the people to whom we were attached as children. On the other hand, we ask our beloved to correct all of the wrongs that these early parents or siblings inflicted upon us. So that love contains in it the contradiction: The attempt to return to the past and the attempt to undo the past. Share this quote
Ben: But the law, Judah. Without the law, it’s all darkness. Share this quote
Judah Rosenthal: And after the awful deed is done, he finds that he’s plagued by deep-rooted guilt. Little sparks of his religious background which he’d rejected are suddenly stirred up. He hears his father’s voice. He imagines that God is watching his every move. Suddenly, it’s not an empty universe at all, but a just and moral one, and he’s violated it. Now, he’s panic-stricken. He’s on the verge of a mental collapse-an inch away from confessing the whole thing to the police. And then one morning, he awakens. The sun is shining, his family is around him and mysteriously, the crisis has lifted. He takes his family on a vacation to Europe and as the months pass, he finds he’s not punished. In fact, he prospers. The killing gets attributed to another person-a drifter who has a number of other murders to his credit, so I mean, what the hell? One more doesn’t even matter. Now he’s scott-free. His life is completely back to normal. Back to his protected world of wealth and privilege. Share this quote
[first lines] Testimonial Speaker: We’re all very proud of Judah Rosenthal’s philanthropic efforts. His endless hours of fund raising for the hospital, the new medical center, and now, the ophthalmology wing, which until this year had just been a dream. But it’s due to Rosenthal our friend that we most appreciate. The husband, the father, the golf companion. Naturally if you have a medical problem you can call Judah… Miriam Rosenthal: You’re blushing darling. Testimonial Speaker: …day or night, weekends or holidays. But you can also call Judah to find out which is the best restaurant in Paris – or Athens. Or which hotel to stay at in Moscow. Or the best recording of a particular Mozart symphony… Sharon Rosenthal: My father’s so nervous about having to get up to speak. Chris: I know, I know. I knew he was nervous when you didn’t eat any of those cocktail weenies at the hors d’oeuvres. Miriam Rosenthal: He was so courageous all week. Then suddenly tonight, stage fright. Really Judah, you were fine until you got home from work today. Share this quote
Crimes and Misdemeanors: A Discussion: Part 1 Uploaded by camdiscussion on Sep 23, 2007 Part 1 of 3: ‘What Does Judah Believe?’ A discussion of Woody Allen’s 1989 movie, perhaps his finest. By Anton Scamvougeras. http://camdiscussion.blogspot.com/antons@mail.ubc.ca _____________ Today I am starting a discusssion of the movie “Crimes and Misdemeanors” by Woody Allen. This 1989 […]
Sleepers (1973) Allen (left) wrote, directed and starred in this oddball love story, set 200 years in the future. It was his first on-screen collaboration with Diane Keaton (second left), who went on to become one of the director’s muses in the early days of his career. ___________ I have written more on […]
Looking at the (sometimes skewed) morality of Woody Allen’s best films. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) Allen continues the art-as-salvation theme in Hannah and Her Sisters, an ensemble drama about family and infidelity. The film tells three stories, one of which stars Allen as a hypochondriac named Mickey. Terrified of death, Mickey begins a search […]
Viva La Vida Published on Jun 23, 2012 by TheRyanj64 Coldplay’s Viva La Vida at American Airlines Center in Dallas on June 22, 2012 __________ Coldplay brought confetti, lights and thousands of fans to the American Airlines Center; see photos from their colorful show Photo Gallery News Sports Lifestyles Comments (0) 5/11 Chris […]
Good website on Woody Allen How can I believe in God when just last week I got my tongue caught in the roller of an electric typewriter? If Jesus Christ came back today and saw what was being done in his name, he’d never stop throwing up. If only God would give me some clear […]
Francis Schaeffer discussed modern films and how they showed the state of man. That is why I like Woody Allen’s films so much. He knows what the big issues are in life and even though he present the right answers he does grapple with the right questions. Michelangelo Antonioni heavily influenced Allen and below is […]
Jesse Eisenberg – Press Conference “To Rome With Love” Published on Apr 21, 2012 by portugal888 Review: Allen’s ‘Rome’ delivers lackluster love Published: Tuesday, June 19 2012 11:06 a.m. MDT By David Germain View 4 photos » This film image released by Sony Pictures Classics shows, : Alec Baldwin as John, left, and Jesse Eisenberg […]
How To Recover From a Break Up With Greta Gerwig Published on May 16, 2012 by younghollywood Young Hollywood is hanging out in NYC during the Tribeca film festival, where we chat with rising star Greta Gerwig about her hip slice-of-life movie, ‘Lola Versus’. Greta offers up some advice on how to get over a […]
TO ROME WITH LOVE – conferenza stampa con Allen, Benigni e Cruz http://WWW.RBCASTING.COM Published on Apr 18, 2012 by RBcasting http://www.rbcasting.com Conferenza stampa del film “To Rome With Love”, scritto e diretto da Woody Allen. Tra gli interpreti, lo stesso Allen, Alec Baldwin, Roberto Benigni, Penelope Cruz, Judy Davis, Jesse Eisenberg, Ellen Page e Greta […]
I love the movie Crimes and Misdemeanors and have written on it many times in the past. This quote below sums up Woody Allen’s worldview which I disagree with. In fact, the person who said this actually could not live with its conclusions in the movie and committed suicide. Because Allen continues to […]
On April 30, 2012 (67 years after Hitler killed himself) I stated on the Arkansas Times Blog: Hitler’s last few moments of life were filled with anxiety as they should have been. He went on to face his maker and pay dearly for his many sins. When I look at the never before released pictures […]
Several members of the 70′s band Kansas became committed Christians after they realized that the world had nothing but meaningless to offer. It seems through the writings of both Woody Allen and Chris Martin of Coldplay that they both are wrestling with the issue of death and what meaning does life bring. Kansas went through […]
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) came to Washington as the a tea-party conservative with the goal of fixing the economy, addressing the debt crisis and curbing the growth of the federal government. It’s an uphill battle for the youngest member of the U.S. Senate, but one he’s prepared to fight.
In the days following Obama’s speech to Congress, Lee sharply criticized the president’s ideas for raising taxes and hiking spending to spur economic growth. As he explained to us, “We need to not be doing more of the same things that made the problem worse. We need to refocus on getting the federal government out of the way rather than making the federal government part of the problem.”
Ringo Starr plays With a Little Help From My Friends / Give Peace a Chance Live at Bethel Woods, on June 16, 2012. View from rushing the stage near the end of the concert
Whilst in no way meaning to damn with faint praise (it’s Ringo Starr, who would wish him ill?), there is little on Ringo 2012 that is deserving of great praise either.
Nor does there really have to be. Beatles completists and milder nostalgists will find this comfortable stroll through the 4/4, twelve bar, ageing men playing competent blues checklist.
That should be, and will be enough for both camps. It’s interesting to hear what a musician with nothing to prove comes up with. It would be typical at this point to say something along the lines of ‘in 2012’s intensely competitive and failure-strewn music market, only music which strives to be great can hope to survive’, and point out that with a fanbase as solid as Ringo’s, perhaps there is some comforting aspect to making music which only has to strive to be good.
interesting to hear what a musician with nothing to prove comes up with
It misses a point though, which is that there never was a time when the recorded music market wasn’t viciously fought, and that being one of the few to have sold records over the course of six decades still doesn’t guarantee a smooth run with a record label. Ask Tom Jones.
And Ringo, the one member of The Beatles who wasn’t there from the start, described by John Lennon as ‘not even the best drummer in The Beatles’, still has to perform. Shouldering that quote for nigh-on sixty years can’t help but irritate, but to his credit, the album resists any urge to get flashy with the kit, throwing in nifty little syncopations or tricky assymetric paradiddles. (Lennon did tell Playboy magazine in 1980 that Ringo was ‘a damn good drummer’.)
not even the best drummer in The Beatles
Starr’s great gift as a drummer, and one which he is well aware of, is his time. Metronomic and sturdy, what he can do is beat out a backbone to any song, solid enough to anchor any amount of histrionics going on at the front of the stage. In his earlier days that may have been a couple of artschool scousers yelling out harmonies, now it’s more likely to be guitar solos or in one particularly sultry case, Rhodes piano.
‘Anthem’ opens the album with a surging flashback to ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)’, the very same bridge-picked guitar sound (or as near as dammit) swooping in and livening up what is otherwise a pretty pedestrian runthrough of simplistic peace and love platitudes calling upon us all to get our act together and sort the world’s more obvious problems out.
a surging flashback to ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
There are no surprises in the exuberant guitar solos or solid percussion on the blues-rock structure, unless it has some coded clues that only true fans with encyclopaedic knowledge of his life and career will pick up. Perhaps, played backwards, there is a ghostly voice chanting ‘George is alive’, but in its absence, the track is a competent plodder.
Elsewhere the album is jaunty – from the steel drum peppered ‘Think it Over’, which sounds a bit like Dion’s ‘The Wanderer’ mated with ‘Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da’, to the strangely polka leanings of ‘Samba’. If these songs were to be played, this well, at a wedding reception, you would dance and enjoy. And there is the heart of it, because as can be expected after so many hugely successful years in the business, the man knows some fine musicians. It’s not the Wilburys, but its a bunch of experts, playing well within their competence, and thus getting on with all those beyond-competence facets of music that come from that: groove, humour, swagger, fun.
It’s not the Wilburys, but its a bunch of experts, playing well
Where that reaches its peak, as does the album, is in ‘Step Lightly’, where Benmont Tench’s languid dexterity on the Rhodes piano [it’s not specified on the notes who played what, but call this an educated guess] is gut-churningly electric, utterly captivating. Any complexity of lyricism or vocals would be wasted on the track, and completely inappropriate. Which is just as well, because to be brutal, there are none of either on the album. What Starr offers instead is unabashed honesty, not soul-baring intensity honest, but just the simple stuff:
the worst it ever was was wonderful, better than I ever dreamed, the worst it ever was was wonderful, because it’s always been you and me. And we made it through, like we always do
Nuff said.
But there is always the moment on solo albums where the artist overextends. Bands self-police, and when one member is in danger of megalomania, the others often cut him down to size. In the case of The Beatles, that could involve a kick in the head. Not ideal, or recommended, but effective nonetheless.
Session men, even as illustrious as Dave Stewart, tend to hold their tongues (and feet). Which is a pity, because with a little constructive criticism, ‘In Liverpool’ might have been the song to finally get Ringo that UK number one single that has been so elusive (all the other Fab Four have had them). It’s sweet, it’s even lump-in-throat at times, but it’s just not enough.
Clunky lyrics are forgiveable, or would be if there were just a detail or two
‘In Liverpool’ walks us through a halcyon recreation of the city where the young Starkey grew up, and whilst clearly autobiographical, is just not intimate enough to satisfy. Clunky lyrics are forgiveable, or would be if there were just a detail or two in the song to draw us into his confidence. Instead we get non-committal observations that whilst ‘the rain never stopped, but the sun always shone in my mind’, or that ‘an apprentice engineer, but I had something very clear in my mind, in Liverpool. Music was my goal, in my heart and in my soul and in my mind’.
So tantalising, especially where he sings of ‘Me and my band, living our fantasies’, there are memories here that would be wonderful to hear, but they are not shared. Instead we get (admittedly very fine) strings adding to the nostalgia of the song, but no real insight. (The subject is better covered on his earlier song ‘The Other Side of Liverpool’, on YNot)
Complex or poignant, ‘In Liverpool’ is not. Which is a pity, because it would be lovely to hear something more detailed. Then there is the unfortunate fact that the track owes a great deal in melody to The Kinks’ ‘Waterloo Sunset’. And that’s a tough, tough song to be compared to.
a complexity of feeling for that city that is utterly lacking in Ringo’s paean to Liverpool
Ray Davies’ self-consolatory but bittersweet musings on being left behind in London by an elder sister bound for Australia deliver a complexity of feeling for that city that is utterly lacking in Ringo’s paean to Liverpool. It wouldn’t be at all fair to even mention it, only that in tone and melodic hook they are so akin. Having spent as many years living in Los Angeles, Monte Carlo and Surrey, Starr’s relationship with Liverpool is surely more complicated than this runthrough of childhood and young adult rose-tinted images.
In truth, the song has much in common with the joke about the Irish boomerang (i.e. it never comes back, nor does it ever stop singing about it). Liverpool, a captivating city in so many ways, seems also to grow in romanticism the further one gets from it.
Boasting an undeniably heavyweight cultural punch for all that, Liverpool still lacks an anthem to rally behind. Marsden‘s ‘Ferry Across the Mersey’ wallows in bombast; ‘Penny Lane’ is too suburban, and ‘In Liverpool’ suffers from being simultaneously too personal – it is obviously autobiographical – but not personal enough to evoke the love for the city that Starr clearly feels. And judging by the mid-Atlantic blues, honky-tonk and pub rock flavour of the rest of the album, we may have to keep waiting.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012 9:03 PM
It Don’t Come Easy Live Ringo Starr Bethel Woods June 16 2012
But analytical arguments won’t necessarily bring us victory. Let’s also mock the President’s divisive agenda with some amusing cartoons.
Our first contribution comes from Lisa Benson. This cartoon sort of reminds me of this Chuck Asay gem, presumably because of an engine that is overburdened by bad government policy.
Last but not least, we have one from Jerry Holbert.
This last one isn’t specifically about class warfare, but I liked it so it earned its way into this post. Holbert is new to me, but this is a good introduction.
Now let’s take this opportunity to discuss one serious point. Obama presumably wouldn’t be pursuing a spiteful tax agenda if he didn’t think it was a political winner. Is it possible – notwithstanding the title of this post – that he’s right?
…polls consistently show that increasing taxes on the wealthy is hugely popular. …Obama’s announcement on Monday was an effort to publicize one consequence of inaction: If Republicans refuse to extend the Bush tax cuts for only the bottom 98 percent of taxpayers, insisting instead on extending them for the top 2 percent as well, the resulting gridlock could trigger a tax increase for everyone. Obama wants to saddle Republicans with two unpopular tax positions simultaneously: Republicans are so intent on not raising taxes on the rich that they’re willing to raise taxes on everyone else.
In addition to arguing that the no-tax-hike-for-anyone position will actually lead to a tax-hikes-for-everyone result, Klein suggests that an anti-tax-hike agenda is a pro-spending-cut agenda.
In the New York Times Magazine, Robert Draper reported what happened when a focus-group moderator for Priorities USA, the pro-Obama super-PAC, explained to voters that Romney and the Republicans want to cut deeply into Medicare while cutting taxes on the rich: “The respondents simply refused to believe any politician would do such a thing.” As in any game of poker, once the cards are down on the table, you usually find that one side actually holds the winning hand. The question is whether Democrats can call the Republicans’ bluff before November.
That passage includes factual mistakes (Medicare spending would continue to grow under the GOP reform plan, for instance, just not as fact as currently projected), but that’s not relevant in the world of politics. The real issue is whether the pro-tax agenda is a political winner. Or, to be more specific, is a class-warfare tax agenda politically popular?
I hope not, though it is possible.
For what it’s worth, I think the key is whether the GOP maintains a firm no-tax-hike stance. Here’s some of what I wrote last year about this topic.
…the no-tax-increase pledge helps the GOP because it sends a signal to all voters that they will not be raped and pillaged (at least in excess of what is happening now). This puts Democrats in a tough position. They can play the politics of class warfare (as Obama likes to do) and say only the “rich” will pay higher taxes, but voters don’t dislike their upper-income neighbors. Moreover, they probably suspect that Democrats have a very broad definition of what counts as rich, so they instinctively gravitate to the GOP position. After all, the only sure way of avoiding a tax hike on yourself is to oppose tax hikes for everyone. If Republicans put tax increases on the table, however, the politics get turned upside down. Instead of being united against all tax increases, voters realize somebody is going to get mugged and they have an incentive to make sure they’re not the ones who get victimized. That’s when soak-the-rich taxes become very appealing. Democrats, for all intents and purposes, can appeal to average voters by targeting the so-called rich. And even though voters will be skeptical about what Democrats really want, they don’t want to be the primary target of the political predators in Washington. Think of it this way. You’re a wildebeest running away from a pack of hyenas, but you know one member of your herd will get caught and killed. You despise hyenas, but at that critical moment, you’re main goal is wanting another member of the herd to bite the dust.
I’d also call attention to this polling data, which suggests some additional effective ways to fight class-warfare policy.
Keynesian Catastrophe: Big Money, Big Government & Big Lies Uploaded by Pajamasmedia on Jan 19, 2012 The Cato Institute’s Dan Mitchell explains why Obama’s stimulus was a flop! With Glenn Reynolds. See more at http://www.pjtv.com and http://www.cato.org ___________________ President Obama c/o The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500 Dear Mr. President, I […]
We got to lower taxes in order to encourage job growth and if we go down the road of higher taxes then we will go further into a recession. Debating Whether States Should Impose Class-Warfare Tax Policy June 4, 2012 by Dan Mitchell I wrote last week about the destructive and self-defeating impact of high state […]
Anyone who has followed this blog knows I have been writing letters to President Obama and he has actually responded 12 times now. Below are some videos and past posts about Obamacare and some of the open letters to the President are included with some of his responses: Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the […]
President Obama and other politicians are advocating higher taxes, with a particular emphasis on class-warfare taxes targeting the so-called rich. This Center for Freedom and Prosperity Foundation video explains why fiscal policy based on hate and envy is fundamentally misguided. For more information please visit our web page: www.freedomandprosperity.org. _________________ President Obama really does stick to […]
I wonder what is going to happen in November with Obama? Will the Economy Sink Obama in November? June 18, 2012 by Dan Mitchell At the start of the year, I predicted Obama would be reelected, largely because of my assumption that the unemployment rate would drop below 8 percent. But my prediction on jobs is […]
Global-warming alarmists have reemerged with a vengeance following the recent heat wave featuring record temperatures across the nation and dozens of wildfires throughout the West. But how much has global warming contributed?
At least two climate change scientists refused to identify any possible threshold, with one declaring, “I honestly don’t think you can really put a number right on it.”
Climate Communication, a non-profit science outreach organization funded by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and the ClimateWorks Foundation and dedicated to the study of “global environmental change,” hosted a conference call with reporters on June 28 to coincide with the release its newest publication, “Heat Waves and Climate Change.”
When pressed by Associated Press science reporter Seth Borenstein on the connection between global warming to recent events, Dr. Michael Oppenheimer and Dr. Steven Running, two of the panelists showcased by Climate Communication, rejected the line of questioning, refusing to offer any estimate.
“I won’t do it,” said Oppenheimer.
Running told Borenstein that to offer such an estimate is “probably really dangerous for us,” instead clarifying that more analysis and “statistical rigor” would need to be applied before the conclusions were sent out “into the public arena.”
Susan Hassol, the moderator for the call, appeared to chastise Borenstein when he pursued the line of questioning, offering to “make it easier” by saying whether or not global warming accounted for more or less than 50 percent to the current situation.
According to Hassol, the question from Borenstein was not “well-posed,” and stated that even the types of modeling necessary to determine attribution “are not very good” at providing that conclusion.
Borenstein bristled at Hassol’s comments.
“I understand, I’ve been covering this for 20 years, I understand. I don’t need a lecture, thank you very much,” responded Borenstein.
Borenstein’s most recent AP story was titled, “This US summer is ‘what global warming looks like,’” dated July 3, five days after the conference call.
In the story, Borenstein, by way of exposition, wrote:
If you want a glimpse of some of the worst of global warming, scientists suggest taking a look at U.S. weather in recent weeks.
Horrendous wildfires. Oppressive heat waves. Devastating droughts. Flooding from giant deluges. And a powerful freak wind storm called a derecho.
These are the kinds of extremes climate scientists have predicted will come with climate change, although it’s far too early to say that is the cause. Nor will they say global warming is the reason 3,215 daily high temperature records were set in the month of June.
Scientifically linking individual weather events to climate change takes intensive study, complicated mathematics, computer models and lots of time. Sometimes it isn’t caused by global warming. Weather is always variable; freak things happen.
Borenstein also quoted Oppenheimer’s observations about the recent weather events.
“What we’re seeing really is a window into what global warming really looks like. It looks like heat. It looks like fires. It looks like this kind of environmental disasters,” said Oppenheimer.
Oppenheimer’s colleagues in story agreed.
“This is what global warming looks like at the regional or personal level. The extra heat increases the odds of worse heat waves, droughts, storms and wildfire. This is certainly what I and many other climate scientists have been warning about,” said one professor of geosciences and atmospheric sciences.
Another simply declared that it’s “I told-you-so time.”
Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK) revealed the contents of the conference call during a speech on the Senate floor earlier today.
AP Reporter Seth Borenstein: Let me try and put you more on the spot, Mike and Steve: I know there’s no attribution – you haven’t done attribution studies, but if you ballparked it right now and had to put a percentage number on this, on the percentage that the heat wave, the percentage of blame you can put on anthropogenic climate change, on this current heat wave, and on the fires, what percentage would the two of you use?
Dr. Michael Oppenheimer: Come on, I’m not going to answer that. Yes I will answer it, and my answer is: I won’t do it. You know, we have to do these things carefully, because if you don’t, you’re going to end up with bogus information out there. People will start disbelieving because you’ll be more wrong, more often. This is not the kind of thing I want to do off the top of my head. Nor do I think it can be done, you know, convincingly, without really taking – doing careful analysis, so I’ll pass on this one and see if Steve has a different view.
Dr. Steven Running: Well, I already got way too hypothetical in my last answer. Yeah, it’s… it’s probably really dangerous for us to just lob out a number. I – We could certainly lob out some guess, but it wouldn’t be based on the kind of analysis and statistical rigor that we want to put out into the public arena.
Seth Borenstein: Okay let’s make it easier. 50% line…how about 50% line: Is it more than 50%, do you think, or less? Just, you know, on one end. More or less?
Susan Hassol, Moderator for the Climate Communication conference call: Seth, most of the scientists I talk to say it’s a contributing factor and that’s what we can say and that it’s really not even really a well-posed question, to ask for a percentage, because it just – what you’re asking really is for a model to determine the chances of this happening without climate change or with climate change and models are not very good at that.
Seth Borenstein: I understand, I’ve been covering this for 20 years, I understand. I don’t need a lecture, thank you very much. What I’m asking for is when the fingerprint – when the attribution studies are done, two or three years later, it’s already beyond people’s memory. I’m just looking for whether you could say this is – global warming was the biggest factor, more than 50 – most of the factor, you know, either more or less than 50%…
Dr. Michael Oppenheimer: I honestly don’t think you can really put a number right on it. What I honestly think is global warming has in general made this part – that part of the world – warmer and drier than it otherwise would be, and that makes it fertile ground for fire events like the one we’re seeing. So did global warming contribute? Yes. Can I really make any sort of estimate – numerical estimate- about how much? Not really sitting here on a telephone at my desk, and maybe not even if I had six months.
In his speech today Senator Inhofe pointed out that not even the most committed global warming alarmists can claim that any percentage of the heat over the past few weeks can be attributed to human causes. He detailed a conference call between reporters and a far left environmental group, Climate Communication, which was held for the purpose of spoon-feeding reporters talking points about how to link the hot weather and wildfires over the recent weeks to man-made catastrophic global warming. Yet, even through the scientists on the call were the foremost alarmists in the field, Dr. Michael Oppenheimer and Dr. Steven Running, when pressed neither of them could say if any percentage of today’s warm temperatures are due to man-made cause.
Climate Communications includes the controversial climate change scientist Dr. Michael Mann on its board of science advisors.
Romney reaffirms stance that global warming is real Bucking skeptics, he urges changes Mitt Romney, at UNH yesterday, said if elected, he would pursue more oil drilling, as well as natural gas and nuclear energy. (Stephan Savoia/Associated Press) By Matt Viser MANCHESTER, N.H. — In the first town hall of his freshly announced presidential campaign, Mitt […]
President Obama c/o The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500 Dear Mr. President, I know that you receive 20,000 letters a day and that you actually read 10 of them every day. I really do respect you for trying to get a pulse on what is going on out here. I wondered […]
I wondered why President Obama was claiming that he was not increasing regulations as much as Bush did. However, the real truth coming out in this article below: Chart of the Week: Obama Tops Bush With More, Costlier Major Regulations Alison Meyer March 18, 2012 at 2:40 pm President Obama famously declared in this year’s […]
I used to like Newt back in the 1990′s but a lot has changed since then. Take a look at this fine article from the Cato Institute: Gingrich Rise Is Triumph of Style over Substance by Gene Healy Gene Healy is a vice president at the Cato Institute and the author of The Cult […]
The Heritage Foundation website does it again. Take a look. CAFE Standards: Fleet-Wide Regulations Costly and Unwarranted By Diane Katz November 28, 2011 Automakers would be required to double current fleet-wide fuel economy by 2025 under regulations proposed last week by the Obama Administration. Advocates contend that this crackdown on the internal combustion engine would […]
What about climategate? Here is an article from the Wall Street Journal: OPINION NOVEMBER 28, 2011 Climategate 2.0 A new batch of leaked emails again shows some leading scientists trying to smear opponents. By JAMES DELINGPOLE Last week, 5,000 files of private email correspondence among several of the world’s top climate scientists were anonymously leaked […]
This may get interesting. AFP reported today: Republican presidential hopeful Jon Huntsman took a swipe at his rivals and warned his party against rejecting science in an interview that will air Sunday. “I think there’s a serious problem. The minute that the Republican Party becomes the party — the anti-science party — we have a […]
I ran across this great video above on global warming. ____________________ Uploaded by ForaTv on Apr 15, 2009 Complete video at: http://fora.tv/2009/03/12/Climate_of_Extremes Patrick Michaels argues that, when discussing climate change, “people accept the strangest things without really fact checking.” Michaels argues that many of Al Gore’s claims and presumptions about global warming are false. —– […]
I love it when the facts come out and contradict the liberal spin on things. “Why Hasn’t the Earth Warmed in Nearly 15 Years?”by Patrick J. Michaels. Patrick Michaels is senior fellow in environmental studies at the Cato Institute and author of Climate Coup: Global Warming’s Invasion of our Government and our Lives. Added to […]
What is the true cost of public education? According to a new study by the Cato Institute, some of the nation’s largest public school districts are underreporting the true cost of government-run education programs.
Cato Education Analyst Adam B. Schaeffer explains that the nations five largest metro areas and the District of Columbia are blurring the numbers on education costs. On average, per-pupil spending in these areas is 44 percent higher than officially reported. Districts on average spent nearly $18,000 per student and yet claimed to spend just $12,500 last year.
It is impossible to have a public debate about education policy if public schools can’t be straight forward about their spending. The voucher system would be so much cheaper than what we have now and the kids would learn more too.
Gallup has just released its annual “Confidence in American Institutions” poll, which the company has conducted since 1973. This year’s results revealed that just 29 percent of Americans have confidence in our nation’s public schools.
That number has declined from 33 percent since 2008 and is down from 58 percent in 1973. But does our lack of confidence in public schools make us un-American?
Americans have always strived for the best. Our public schools are far from it. Across the country, just one-third of children are proficient in reading. In the urban centers, that number is tragically lower. In Chicago—where public school teachers, at the behest of the government unions, are set to strike in order to demand a 30 percent pay raise—just 15 percent of children are proficient in reading.
Americans by and large also believe that individuals are better equipped than government to innovate and produce greatness and that markets work to lift everyone’s standard of living. Our monopolistic public school system fails that test, too.
Because of pervasive assignment-by-zip code policies, students are “zoned” to their closet public schools regardless of whether they meets the students’ needs. As a result, public schools get a steady stream of students—and dollars—no matter how poorly they serve the public.
And those dollars are considerable. Per-pupil expenditures in government schools have more than doubled in the years since Gallup began surveying public institutions. Yet quality remains low.
So it’s no surprise that Americans increasingly seem to be looking to educational innovation outside the public school system as it sprouts up all over the country. Charter schools are now mainstream, state after state is implementing school choice options, and online learning is proliferating.
Parents know they have an increasing number of quality education options for their children that extend beyond the hallways of public schools. The lack of confidence in public schools does not mean we have lost faith in the importance of education to improve outcomes or economic mobility.
Instead, Gallup’s poll shows that Americans are increasingly gravitating toward Milton Friedman’s belief that public education doesn’t have to mean government-run schools.
