Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills): Madonna and Beyonce

Wednesday, April 17, 2019

Madonna and Beyonce

Things are not going well for Madonna. She's eager to get another hit -- and it's been years since she had one. She's working to promote the upcoming new album which includes a single that dropped today:

Madonna has dropped a new single featuring reggaeton artist Maluma. “Medellín” is the first song Madonna’s forthcoming new album Madame X, which now has a tracklist. In addition to Maluma, the 13-song record features guest appearances from Migos’ Quavo and Rae Sremmurd’s Swae Lee. Listen to “Medellín” and find the tracklist below.

Madame X is out June 14 (via Live Nation/Interscope/Maverick). It follows 2015’s Rebel Heart. Last year, Madonna gave a surprise performance at the Met Gala. She also appeared in Ariana Grande’s “God Is a Woman” video and was a guest feature on Quavo’s debut solo album Quavo Huncho.

So this is what Madonna wanted everyone to talk about. But . . .

SHOWBIZ 411 notes that Madonna's day became Beyoncé's day because Beyoncé just dropped a surprise album:

Now, however, Beyonce has stolen Madge’s thunder. Madonna is at the same announcing her “Madame X” album. She’s released the art and the track list. But I guess no one told her Bey was going to rain on her parade.

Poor Madonna. I'm not a Beyoncé fan but I don't think I've done a review on her in several years so I may give the album a listen and see if I've got a review in me of it. If I don't, that's not an insult to the album necessarily. India Arie has an album that I wanted to review when it came out last month but I just couldn't find anything to say. Maybe I'll review it now that I've listened to it over and over? Sometimes a strong album doesn't get a review just because I don't see anyway to write about it. That's a reflection on me, not on the album. I try to note those albums in my year end review.

I'm not a Madonna fan either but this single was the first thing I've really liked by her since either "Beautiful Stranger" or "Don't Tell Me."

If you haven't heard it yet, here it is.

Closing with C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"

Wednesday, April 17, 2019. War Hawk Neera Tandem rounds up her fellow War Whores to defend her from journalism.

Neera Tanden is causing a stink yet again. She's Tweeted that her mother is a stupid idiot who doesn't understand either the press or how a phone works -- hanging up was not an option because her foreign mother is so stupid and NYT was just so evil to the old woman. That's what Neera says anyway. Neera's mother is no delicate flower and if she can handle the stink off Neera, she can handle anything. (By the way, non-stop phone calls saying, "She really does stink, doesn't she?" Yes, no joke, she does. And for people like myself who have a strong sense of smell, she's been offensive for years. Soap and water, Neera, daily.) And Neera's little War Hawk buddies from the Democratic Party are rushing to prop her up including the joke that is Paul Krugman. Paul, you are a joke.

Here's a typical Tweet. See the problem?

‏ @LilyBelle05

I thought the tone of the his story was weird because he was so clearly outraged for Bernie. Just as bad, if not worse, no one at the NYT edited or asked Vogel to rewrite it. 

Ken Vogel once requested Chelsea Clinton’s school transcripts, using an FOIA form.

5 replies10 retweets40 likes

His story?

Elizabeth Williamson and Kenneth P. Vogel (NEW YORK TIMES) reported that story. Over the years in the US, we've come to expect that women's work is disappeared but if you ever think that's just done by men, grasp that women contribute as well -- women like Amy Mullen who write women like Elizabeth Williamson out the story.

I'm also not sure why Amy Mullen's is grasping the pearls over Kenneth Vogel asking fo Chelsea's transcripts. He's in his early forties so Chelsea was clearly an adult. It appears he requested that as Hillary was making her second run for president. That's perfectly fine and Amy Mullen is just a pathetic drama queen who's going to throw anything out there in her lust to protect her beloved Neera.

Faux feminism. If it weren't for faux feminists, the US might not have any at all. Faux feminists are just concerned that women get into spots that men hold. They're not concerned with real feminist issues. They're break the ceiling gals who want the status quo because they're too limited to imagine anything better.

Hold on though, we're not done with the stupid f**ks.

‏Verified account @brianefallon

The NYT story on Neera Tanden should never have brought her mom into it. And whether you agree with Neera's views or not, her aggressiveness is one of her biggest strengths and would be lionized if she were a man.

361 replies1,581 retweets7,869 likes

Feminist Brian Fallon. Really, "Aggressiveness is one of her biggest strengths and would be lionized if she were a man"? Well he did work for Hillary so possibly that's where he learned that crap. But, no, Brian, aggressiveness is not admired in anyone. No one, in this day and age, says, "Thank goodness he's aggressive in the work force!" No one says that you stupid idiot.

‏Verified account @lhfang

Neera Tanden, president of the Center for American Progress, admitted to the NYT that she assaulted an editor at her own organization for posing a mild question about the Iraq War to Hillary Clinton. nytimes.com/2019/04/15/us/…

41 replies221 retweets800 likes

Brian, you know what you're really doing? You're making a lot of us want to explore your boy Mayor Pete whose racism is well known in the community he represented. So as his racist gentrification program becomes a story, remember you did your part to make it one by attacking a legitimate journalism article.

Neera Tanden‏Verified account @neeratanden Apr 16

Good summary.

Rosa Brooks @brooks_rosa

WTF, @nytimes - Would you run an article about a *male* political leader’s relationship with a rival political campaign that relied mainly on quotes from... his mom?…

110 replies467 retweets2,420 likes

Oh, look, nutty Rosa Brooks. Well of course. Neera did send out that e-mail asking everyone to Tweet her defense and so we're seeing those who are compromised rush forward. Rosa, for those who've forgotten, proposed that journalists be registered. I'd settle for inoculated but Rosa has always been an Orwellian nightmare.

She's a War Whore who has gotten by on her mother's reputation because she has no accomplishments of her own. She's a cheap little whore who is either too much of a liar or too stupid to know history. "Would you run an article about a male . . ."

Oh, Rosa, you old dirty whore, stop pretending you are a feminist or that you know anything.

Rosa, we get it, you're an old whore who tires easily. But stop playing the 'woman' card because you're not a feminist and you have no grasp on history -- recent or otherwise. You're just a dirty whore who came forward to defend a dirty whore named Neera. May you both find an afterlife that is as destructive as what the two of you have done to the world.

Oh, look, disgusting Gwen Ifill's cousin pops up to defend Neera. Gwen, the dead closet case who made nice with Condi -- cooking with Condi, remember, will always be the ultimate media whore who laughed in real time when Iraqis were shot up by Blackwater, who made jokes about it on the air. You'd think that would be enough to make the whole family leave public life. But if you think that, you're giving more thought to it than that pathetic family ever did.

NEW: Last week, @AmProg reached out to reporters to pick apart @BernieSanders’ “Medicare for All” plan.
* @AmProg has its own plan, which, unlike Bernie’s, reserves a role for private insurance cos. (like those that have previously donated to @AmProg).

308 replies465 retweets1,177 likes

THANKS, MOM! @NeeraTanden says she’s not out to get @BERNIESANDERS & wants unity among Democrats.

Neera’s mom, OTOH, says her daughter believes Bernie “got a pass” in 2016, “but he’s not getting a pass this time.”

848 replies174 retweets642 likes

BACKSTORY: In 2008, @NeeraTanden set up what she thought would be an easy interview for @HillaryClinton with @Faiz Shakir, then editor of @ThinkProgress.
But Faiz asked about the Iraq War.
Later, Neera punched him & asked “Who the f— do you think you are?”

341 replies1,086 retweets2,570 likes

THE POLITICS: @BernieSanders’ broadsides against @AmProg seem designed to rally his base by casting the group as an avatar of the corrupt Democratic establishment that deprived him the 2016 nomination & to signal that he won't abide a repeat of 2016.

8:45 PM - 15 Apr 2019

122 Retweets
550 Likes

317 replies122 retweets550 likes

The press that slobbers over War Hawk Pete (and ignores his racism and 
racist gentrification polices as mayor) chooses to ignore many other 
candidates including Marianne Williamson.  She had a town hall on CNN last Sunday.





BASH:  You have said that you want to create a Department of Peace 
Building, which you say would champion peace through mediation and 
diplomacy.  How would that differ from the State Department?  
 
WILLIAMSON:
  Well, the State Department works with international issues.  And I do 
believe that we need a far more robust relationship between the State 
Department and the Defense Department.  I have great respect for the 
U.S. military.  We all should and must.  My father fought in World War 
II.  
 
And as I said, you know, you're the president.  You're the
 commander- in-chief.  But I see the military like the surgeon.  If 
you're going to have surgery, you want to have the best surgeon.  And I 
don't think anyone would doubt that in America has to have the best 
possible military.
 
But at the same time, as I -- you avoid 
surgery if at all possible. Even Donald Rumsfeld, who was the secretary 
of defense for George Bush, said we also have to wage peace.  General 
Mattis, before he left the Department of Defense, said if you're not 
going to fully fund the State Department, I'm going to have to buy more 
ammunition.  
 
I want a far more robust relationship between the 
State Department and the Defense, and I also want the moral leadership 
of our State Department back.  When you're willing to -- for the sake of
 a $100 billion arms sale to Saudi Arabia, go along with support for a 
genocidal war that we know has starved tens of thousands of Yemenis, 
including all those children whose pictures are all over the Internet, 
when Mike Pompeo says, well, sometimes you can have strategic 
partnerships with people who do not share your values, no, you can't, 
Dana.  It means you have sacrificed your values.  
 
So I want the
 moral principles, the moral core of American foreign policy back.  
People all over this world used to see the United States as a moral 
leader.  I don't think they ever thought we had it perfect, but that we 
always tried, and they don't see that anymore.  So I want a moral robust
 peace waging and peace creation on the part of the State Department.  I
 want the moral principles that should be central to American foreign 
policy back.  
 
And then a Department of -- U.S. Department of 
Peace Creation has to deal with domestic issues.  We have so many -- we 
have millions of American children living in chronic trauma.  We have 
the most violent streets.  We have domestic war -- war zones in this 
country.  We need wraparound services, antitrauma, restorative justice, 
conflict resolution, domestic...






Not really seeing Rosa Brooks, Paul Krugman or the other whores rushing 
to discuss anything of substance.  They do want to act as if 
interviewing a grown woman who picked up the phone and did not hang up 
is some sort of violation.  Well, they're silent on War Crimes as well, 
why should we expect any humanity from them at this late date?



Today on NPR's MORNING EDITION, Jane Arraf reports on a youth movement in Mosul.

<br /> <b class="embed-url embed-url-touch"><code><b class="punctuation"><br /></b></code></b> <b class="embed-url embed-url-touch"><code><b class="punctuation"><br /></b></code></b> <b class="embed-url embed-url-touch"><code><b class="punctuation"> <code><b class="punctuation"><</b>iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/714212956/714212957" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"></code> </b></code></b><br /> <b class="embed-url embed-url-touch"><code><b class="punctuation"><br /></b></code></b> <br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.albawaba.com/node/notre-dame-fire-reminds-syria-iraq-yemen-history-lost-during-war-1280569">Randa Darwish (ALBAWABA) reports</a>:<br /> <b><br /></b> <br /> <div dir="ltr"> <b>Notre Dame, with the religious and historic value it holds for French people and the human history, has its entire roof and unique spire falling down. Meanwhile, the precious paintings and treasures inside the cathedral were fortunately saved by the firefighters' efforts who spent nine hours battling the blaze until it was all extinguished.</b></div> <div dir="ltr"> <b>Luckily, billionaires from France and Europe stepped up to helping to reconstruct the cathedral with millions of donations pouring in.</b></div> <br /> <br /> <br /> <section class="block block-ads-system block-ad-blockwysiwyg-2 clearfix" id="block-adblockwysiwyg2"> <div class="block-entity-ads wysiwyg_2" id="ad-wysiwyg_2"> <div class="ad" style="width: 300px;"> <div class="field field--name-ad-script field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field--item"> <div id="Unit6"> </div> </div> </div> </div> </section><br /> <div dir="ltr"> <b>Pictures of Notre Dame on fire and the international massive media coverage and support it received reminded millions of Syrians, Yemenis and Iraqis of tens of thousands-year-old churches and mosques they lost to violence and war.</b></div> <div dir="ltr"> <b>Thinking of a loss that can never really be completely restored, they went to the internet to mourn it and post before-and-after pictures for lost historical treasures.</b></div> <div> <iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" data-tweet-id="1117895463934615554" frameborder="0" id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" style="border-style: none; border-width: medium; display: block; height: 255.4px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; max-width: 100%; min-width: 220px; padding: 0px; position: static; visibility: visible; width: 500px;" title="Twitter Tweet">

Aleppo’s recognized 1350-year-old Umayyad Mosque that was almost completely destroyed by war in Syria was one of the oldest historical mosques that got destroyed.

That's a more polite way of speaking about an issue that has touched off rage. WHen I saw the Tweets on Monday night I wondered about it. And then yesterday I heard what? US student after US student talking about the tragedy. And it is true that there had been no US attention and mourning for the things lost in the Middle East. That's in part because Americans aren't taught about those historic buildings. Mostly, we learn about them when they're destroyed, if we ever learn about them. Those in the Arab world who feel that Notre Dame gets in one hour more attention and sympathy than the destruction of a major mosque does in six months are correct.

The following sites updated: