big brother is watching you - Google and NSA working on a deal?

big brother is watching you
Originally uploaded by unfocused mike

From the ACLU's website, this frightning tidbit:
"Google and the NSA. It is hard to imagine a more potent—or frightening—combination when it comes to the collection and safety of Americans' private information.

But just such an alliance is underway. As reported by the Washington Post, Google—the world’s largest search engine company with access to intimate details of our lives—is negotiating an electronic surveillance deal with the National Security Agency (NSA)—the world’s largest spying network.

The implications of this deal are very troubling. The NSA—a component of the Department of Defense—is an intelligence collection agency with few effective checks against abuse and no public oversight of its activities. In the last decade, the NSA’s vast dragnet of suspicionless surveillance has targeted everyday Americans, in violation of the law and the Constitution."

Speak out and stop this dangerous partnership before it’s finalized.

Decent College Radio still exists...

I stumbled onto the Western Kentucky University station and was pleasantly surprised. They played some Bright Eyes, Surfer Blood, Old 97s. A pretty diverse list of tunes on their play list. No punk. I wonder if they have a punk show on weekends or during the overnight hours? Good old college radio. In the 80s, it was a real force to be reckoned with. Nowadays most radio seems irrelevant. Maybe there is still some hope out there. The best way to find new music is the internet, but radio stations that are adventurous is always a viable option. Rock on, WKU.

Surfer Blood - New and Interesting Grooves from the Sunshine State

Surfer Blood - CMJ 2009
Originally uploaded by Giulia Mazza

Surfer Blood caught my attention because someone described them as punk. I was hoping they would be punk revival along the lines of Against Me! or Anti-Flag. They didn't sound like that, but that is ok. They do have an interesting groove. More like power pop and indie rock rolled together. I hear the surf guitar of the 60s, the Shins, and a little My Morning Jacket along with some new stuff that washed up on the beaches of the Sunshine State. "Surfer Blood are a band from West Palm Beach, Florida. Their debut album, Astro Coast was released on January 19, 2010 on Kanine Records." That is all the information I can find about them on Last.fm. Simple enough. If you want to get some fresh grooves for the fresh decade of the 2010's, check out Surfer Blood.

Southern Culture on the Skids - Countrypolitan Favorites

Southern Culture on the Skids
Originally uploaded by astromonster zero one

This cd came out a couple of years ago, but I find myself listening to it continuously here lately. What they did was take a bunch of 1960's country tunes and give the the SCOTS treatment. Turbocharged, psychobilly style. It would be easy to write off these guys as a novelty act, but they are much more. Their music rocks, and their attitude toward the music is serious (from a musicianship standpoint) even though the material is lighthearted and fun. Sort of what NOFX does to punk, SCOTS does to rockabilly and traditional country. If Southern Culture on the Skids comes to a town near you, you might be a redneck. But check them out anyway. You won't be disappointed.

Wayne Hancock goes West Coast

Wayne Hancock
Originally uploaded by Brian Bubonic

I love old country music. Nashville killed real country music in about 1975 or so. I like the story telling, the manic songwriting, and the twang of real country music. That is why Wayne Hancock excites me so much. A throwback to Hank Williams Sr., his tunes are so authentic old school country, you can hear the pops and crackles of the old turntable in his voice. Thunderstorms and Neon Signs was the tune that turned me onto Wayne. His music tells stories the way Hank Sr, Ernest Tubb and others of the vintage 50s era did, full of sorrow and pain. Most of his dates are out west, but I have my eye on a gig he is doing in Nashville in a couple of months. Maybe some of that old country mojo will rub off on Nashville, but I doubt it. Country music has been long dead in the Ville. I would love to see Wayne, Hank III, and Junior Brown kick country music in its ass to get it going again.

Anti-Flag getting Busy for 2010

Anti-Flag
Originally uploaded by Kawahara 4am Photo

I just checked out Anti-Flag's website a while ago. Good news is that they have a bunch of gigs coming up. They have been busy recording and should have new material out soon. The tour looks like some midwest and west coast gigs so everyone will get a chance to check them out. One of my other favorites Against All Authority has been dormant for awhile, so maybe A-F can keep things stirred up til they return. These are some of the bands that are real throwbacks to the original spirit of punk.

Louisville Mourns the Loss of Francene Cucinello

Radio Daze
Originally uploaded by Ian Hayhurst

On the drive home today I was stunned to hear of the death of Francene, host of WHAS-AM's mid-morning talk show. She was 43. Francene was a middle-oft-the-road Republican, but unlike many talkers, she would not shout you down or drown you out. She would TALK with you. I called her program a couple of times, and she was ok with the fact that I am a Progressive and was against the Bush Administration. She was against alot of the bad stuff they were doing too at the time. Francene was a person with her own mind and her own viewpoint, not content to spew talking points like a Hannity or Limbaugh would.
I disagreed with much of her opinions, but I will miss her civility, spunk and enthusiasm. Rest in peace Francene.

Prayers for Haiti

It is so hard to imagine the devastation in Haiti. One of the poorest countries to begin with, and hit by a severe earthquake. Today I heard Pat Robertson say it is because they made a deal with the devil. Such callousness from a right wing nut does not surprise me. I also heard Rush Limbaugh talk to a caller today about the fact that since the US has given so much aid to Haiti over the years, the US should not do anything to help. Or maybe I misquote them both, I don't know... Perhaps they misspoke... Or maybe they are just heartless conservative nutcases who should not be given a microphone. I pray for those people and hope that God will ease their suffering. As Jesus once said, "Whatever you do for the least of these brothers of mine you do also unto me..." I see God in the face of the suffering in Haiti. Maybe Pat and Rush can search their hearts and see Him too.