A few hours ago, Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "What Stimulus?" went up.
I still haven't done my Haim review. :( I was hoping to do it over this past weekend. But then I realized that the Pretenders had a new album and that took precedence. Click here for my review.
I love the Pretenders. They are probably one of my all time favorite groups and they are certainly one of my favorite groups that continue to record and perform.
Martin Chambers is the last living member of the band, original member, besides Chrissie Hynde and I was very glad he was back on HATE FOR SALE doing drums.
This really is a great album. Ten tracks that are tight and instantly memorable.
I wish I had appreciated PACKED! more when it came out. That's my great regret with regards to the band. I don't mind hating 2008's BREAK UP THE CONCRETE -- and I really hate that album. But I am still upset that I didn't respond to 1990's PACKED! better in real time.
It's an incredible album. But when it came out, I guess it wasn't living up to what I wanted after the previous album and that killer cover of Jimi Hendrix's "Roomful of Mirrors." Or the commentary that she did on that previous album (GET CLOSE) like in "How Much Did You Get For Your Soul," for example. Or that brilliant song that her friend wrote: "Hymn To Her."
PACKED! is a solid album and certainly as strong as LEARNING TO CRAWL. It works as an overall album. And I love every one of the eleven tracks -- including the Hendrix cover "May This Be Love." And some of the all time classic Pretenders' songs are on that album: "Sense of Purpose," "Never Do That," "Let's Make A Pact" and especially "When Will I See You" and "Criminal." In fact, I've got to -- GOT TO! -- include "Criminal" in this post.
That may be one of the most beautiful rock songs ever written.
And not just the gorgeous melody but also the lyrics.
Look at me
High upon the hill
You could say
I'm on top of the world
Baby - I'm blue
All because of you
I can see this city
Crumble all around me
Press me to your chest
Block out the view
Oh, whoa whoa whoa
High upon the hill
You could say
I'm on top of the world
Baby - I'm blue
All because of you
I can see this city
Crumble all around me
Press me to your chest
Block out the view
Oh, whoa whoa whoa
You made me
Some kind of criminal
You put me out-law
Because I loved you
Some kind of criminal
You put me out-law
Because I loved you
In my time
One thing I've learned
If you play with fire
You get burned
Oh, baby, it's true
I got burned by you
I put everything I had
Into a bag
And trusted you to do
What you didn't do
Oh, whoa whoa whoa
One thing I've learned
If you play with fire
You get burned
Oh, baby, it's true
I got burned by you
I put everything I had
Into a bag
And trusted you to do
What you didn't do
Oh, whoa whoa whoa
You made me
Some kind of criminal
You put me out-law
Because l loved you
Some kind of criminal
You put me out-law
Because l loved you
The first thing I think when I wake up
When can I see you?
The last thing I think when I'm drifting off
When will I see you?
When can I see you?
The last thing I think when I'm drifting off
When will I see you?
Oh. look at me
I'm addicted still
At first I refused,
Now I just swallow the pill
Oh, baby, won't you
Fix me like you used to?
I could spend my time in hell
I might as well
Cause hell is where I'm bound to dwell
Without you
Oh, whoa whoa whoa
I'm addicted still
At first I refused,
Now I just swallow the pill
Oh, baby, won't you
Fix me like you used to?
I could spend my time in hell
I might as well
Cause hell is where I'm bound to dwell
Without you
Oh, whoa whoa whoa
You made me
Some kind of criminal
You put me out-law
Because I loved you
Some kind of criminal
You put me out-law
Because I loved you
"You make me some kind of criminal, you put me out-law because I loved you." Who hasn't felt that in a real love affair? And the "I'm addicted still/ At first I refused/ Now I just swallow the pill/ Oh, baby, won't you fix me like you used to?"
Those lines break my heart.
On my review of HATE FOR SALE, Vicki e-mailed to tell me I was wrong to have included this lyric in it:
Feminists claim that we're all the same
But I don't know a man who's felt the same shame
She might look a million or only ten cents
When mascara runs, there's no recompense
Aristocrat, popper, or the bourgeoisie
All know what it feels like when life's misery
Means crying in public, crying in public
Feminists, Vicki wants me to know, do not say men and women are the same.
Vicki, I didn't write the lyric. Chrissie Hynde either wrote it or co-wrote it -- I'm honestly sure she wrote the "Feminists claim" through "shame," knowing Chrissie.
Some feminists do not believe that the genders are the same. Some do.
Myself, I never took IN A DIFFERENT VOICE seriously, I felt it undercut feminism more than it helped feminism. My opinion. I've always believed, as a feminist, that being different genders did not make men and women different species.
So Chrissie could be slamming me in that lyric. Clearly, she's not slamming you, Vicki.
And guess what, Chrissie can slam me for my beliefs. Especially, if she's doing so to create art. But even if she wasn't, I'm not so thin skinned that I have to avoid quoting a good lyric because it doesn't match my personal philosophy.
Here's the song in question.
I love the song. It's beautiful and it's art and I don't need Chrissie to put my personal politics to music for me to enjoy this beautiful song.
Closing with C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"
Monday, July 27, 2020. Joe Biden continues to run his campaign with a
fatal blind spot while protesters are attacked by security forces in
Iraq.
Starting in the US with the race for the
president. Joe Biden has yet to be crowned the Democratic Party's
presidential nominee. They will declare their nominee at their national
convention in August. Until then, he's the presumptive nominee -- and
he's presuming a lot.
It was stupid of him to
announce months ago that he would pick a female running mate. Whatever
woman is finally picked will not be seen as the best choice -- though
she well may be -- but as the best female choice. Currently, various
advocates are insisting that Joe must pick an African-American or Black
woman. Why? He's already stated that he will put a Black woman on the
Supreme Court if elected.
There is talk of
Texas. The Democrats, some insist can carry Texas. With a dream
ticket? The reason I ask is Texas has tried dream tickets before.
Texans appear not to see it as a pie when they vote -- a pie everyone
can have a slice of -- they see it as zero sum game. So if X advances, I
do not.
This was most obvious in 2002 -- and
times could well have changed -- when Texas Democrats had what they and
the press dubbed "the dream ticket." Latino Tony Sanchez was running
for governor, African-American Ron Kirk was running for the Senate and
Anglo White John Sharp was running for Lt Governor.
None
of them won their race. Despite the huge amount of press this ticket
received -- including national coverage. In the end, Sanchez got 40% of
the vote in his race, Kirk got 43% in his race and Sharp got 46% in his
race. Running as a team did not benefit the group. There are many
variables at pay -- including Kirk's failure to run TV ads in East Texas
-- he surrendered it for some reason before the race began. Right or
wrong, many political scientists concluded that the ticket failed to
sell their message as lift all boats and instead voters tended to vote
their own ethnicity and race. That may well be. It may not be. And
that was 2002. It's 18 years later, after all.
But as Joe makes one promise after another to African-American voters, he continues to struggle to reach Latino voters.
Had
he not announced that a woman would be his running mate, for example,
he could run with Julian Castro. Since announcing a female running
mate, the press has been demanding an African-American one -- Susan
Rice, Stacey Abrams, Kamala Harris (who would probably be billed Black
and not African-American due to her mother's country of origin), etc.
Loretta
Sanchez and her sister Linda Sanchez have both served in Congress, for
example. Loretta has been close to Joe for years. Is there a reason
the press is so hell bent on excluding Latinos from even consideration?
Veronica Escobar not only serves in Congress, she's been a judge.
There are many other who are qualified.
Joe
has a serious problem with Latinos that has not gone away. His campaign
does not know how to reach them. They have struggled all along with
this group. In May, Laura Barron-Lopez and Elena Schneider (POLITICO) reported:
Joe Biden won the primary in spite of,
not because of, his efforts to turn out Latinos. Two months later,
Hispanic leaders are waiting on his campaign to deliver on its promises
to do more.
In interviews, more than 20 Latino
political operatives, lawmakers, and activists said they don’t see a
game plan from Biden to marshal Hispanic voters effectively in the fall.
They said there’s little evidence the campaign is devoting the
resources or hiring the staff that task will require — all the more
crucial during a pandemic, when reaching and mobilizing Latino voters
through in-person canvassing is nearly impossible.
The campaign has refused to release
statistics on the diversity of its staff — details many of his former
opponents shared early in the primary — and a majority of a dozen recent
high-level hires were white. And Biden has neither spoken to nor been
formally endorsed by one of the highest-profile Latino politicians in
the country, Julián Castro, since he won.
Biden had a tense relationship with many Latino groups during the primary, stemming largely from his connection to the Obama administration's aggressive deportation policy. The former vice president recently acknowledged that that policy was misguided and he has moved toward progressives on immigration.
Biden had a tense relationship with many Latino groups during the primary, stemming largely from his connection to the Obama administration's aggressive deportation policy. The former vice president recently acknowledged that that policy was misguided and he has moved toward progressives on immigration.
But
the campaign's disconnect with Latinos appears to be based more on lack
of execution than on policy. Cash-strapped coming out of the primary
and hemmed in by the coronavirus, its efforts to reach Latino voters
have been lackluster, critics in the community say. The fact that
Latinos weren't central to his primary strategy has meant Biden's
campaign has more ground to make up.
Things
are only getting worse. Refusing to release basic statistics, refusing
to court their vote, Latinos may end up being up for grabs. Harry Enten (CNN) warned last month:
Joe Biden is reaching heights that Hillary Clinton never did this late in the campaign against Donald Trump. The former vice president holds a significant national lead of around 10 points and is over 50% support.
Yet
a look at recent polls suggests Trump is outperforming where he was
four years ago with a key part of the Democratic coalition: Hispanics.
This could have implications for what electoral strategy Biden may need
to take into the fall if he is to beat the President.
Clinton crushed Trump with Hispanic registered voters in the final 2016 preelection polls. She led by 61% to 23%. (I use the preelection polls for an apples-to-apples comparison for current polling.)
Biden, on the other hand, holds an
average 58% to 33% lead among Hispanic registered voters in an average
of eight live interview polls
taken over the last two months. These eight polls were ones for which I
could procure a breakdown among white, Hispanic and black voters. All
told we are looking at somewhere around 700 to 800 Hispanic voters
total.
If
we examine polls conducted over the last three months (so that we're
looking at 15 polls and well over 1,000 interviews), it's Biden 58% to
Trump's 32%.
Doing the math,
Biden's margin of about 25 points is more than 10 points lower than
Clinton's. This is more because Trump is doing better without third
party candidates than Biden taking a lower share of the vote, though
both seem to be occurring to some degree.
His campaign leaders do not understand the Latino vote. And that's only more clear in the last few days as Bianca Padro Ocasio (MIAMI HERALD) has reported:
Over 90 field organizers for the Florida Democratic Party signed a
scathing letter Friday to the party’s leadership, claiming among other
things that the campaign is “suppressing the Hispanic vote” in Central
Florida.
The seven-page internal letter, obtained by the Miami Herald, contains eight allegations from field organizers about what they say is a lack of a “fully actionable field plan” from the Biden campaign as it transitions into the Florida party to coordinate voter outreach efforts.
This letter comes 100 days out from the general election and as recent polls show enthusiasm about voting among Latinos in battleground states like Florida could be waning in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The seven-page internal letter, obtained by the Miami Herald, contains eight allegations from field organizers about what they say is a lack of a “fully actionable field plan” from the Biden campaign as it transitions into the Florida party to coordinate voter outreach efforts.
This letter comes 100 days out from the general election and as recent polls show enthusiasm about voting among Latinos in battleground states like Florida could be waning in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Among the claims: mistreatment of field organizers, relocating
trained staff members without explanation, lack of organizing resources
and taking on volunteers who are then left in limbo.
In a battleground state where elections are historically won by thin margins — and as presidential campaigns ramp up outreach efforts in Florida’s Hispanic communities — organizers claim that the Coordinated Campaign lacks key infrastructure and perpetuates a “toxic” work culture that is hurting morale among on-the-ground staffers.
In a battleground state where elections are historically won by thin margins — and as presidential campaigns ramp up outreach efforts in Florida’s Hispanic communities — organizers claim that the Coordinated Campaign lacks key infrastructure and perpetuates a “toxic” work culture that is hurting morale among on-the-ground staffers.
If
you're an undecided Latino voter watching this unfold, you're not
getting the message that we're all in this together. You are getting
the message that your needs are not going to be addressed and that while
Joe is happy to put an African-American woman on the Supreme Court and
to entertain dozens of African-American and Black women for his running
mate. Lationas can wait outside the big tent because they're not
welcome.
That's not a winning strategy.
It's
not my job to help Joe Biden, or any candidate, win an election. I
will note what I see here and, on the above, I also made it very clear
to a friend with Joe's campaign. He's in danger of alienating Latinos,
especially the closer we get to the election.
He
has taken them for granted. He has failed to grasp the burden he
already has having served eight years under the deporter-in-chief --
Barack deported more immigrants than any other president.
This
needs to be immediately addressed. And, yes, we are hearing about it
in the online meet-ups we're currently doing. Latinos feel ignored by
the campaign.
It's not my job to elect Joe or
any candidate. It's also not my job to cover your fake ass campaigns.
Joe's running a real campaign, I'm not talking about him. But there
are e-mails insisting that now that Dario is running as an independent, I
have to cover him.
In 2008, I covered Dennis
Kucinnich and John Edwards -- both of whom I loathe When Dennis
revealed -- in Iowa -- that he wasn't a real candidate (as I always
knew), I no longer covered him. I don't have to waste my time on
nonsense.
Dario Hunter is nonsense. He's not
going to be able to get on ballots. He waited too long and even now,
when he's claiming he's trying to run as an independent, he's failed to
update his website (which still notes his failed run for the Green
Party's presidential nomination) and he doesn't have the money to pursue
serious efforts to get on the ballot. All the deadlines are about to
come up and he's not going to be on those ballots.
It's
not my job to waste my time and cover his b.s. We do have a lengthy
article on him that will go up at THIRD. The delay this edition is we
did a collage and we had to wait for it to dry -- I checked it this
morning, it's almost dry. (While it was wet, you couldn't see Joe or
Donald Trump's faces.)
After that piece on Dario goes up, I think we're done with him for 2020.
This morning, ALJAZEERA reports:
At least two protesters have been killed in Iraq's
capital, Baghdad, during renewed overnight demonstrations against
corruption, unemployment and poor public services.
The deaths reported on Monday by human rights
monitors and officials were the first during anti-government rallies
since Iraq's new Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi was sworn into office
in May.
Al Jazeera's Simona Foltyn, reporting from Baghdad,
said dozens of people were also wounded late on Sunday after
"plain-clothed officials" opened fire using live ammunition towards the
demonstrators who were gathered in Tahrir Square.
They are not the only ones (finally) reporting on yesterday's violence aimed at protesters. To cover it last night, we went with Tweets because news outlets were not covering it. We're going to include that in here now.
Protests continue in Iraq. Deeba Shadnia Tweets:
Some graphic content coming out of #Baghdad, #Iraq this evening as anti-government protests have resumed over socio-economic conditions. Several videos circulating show protesters wounded. Unclear what sort of ammunition is being fired by security services. #ساحة_التحرير
4:33 PM · Jul 26, 2020
#BREAKING
The protest starts in #Baghdad , with the slogan of ( no electric in #Iraq
#العراق #iraqprotests #العراق_بدون_كهرباء
5:45 PM · Jul 26, 2020
Now wave of protests arrives to #Karbala in #Iraq demanding electricity and basic services, after protesters in Tahrir Square in #Baghdad expanded their protests to other streets within the capital city.
#IraqProtests #العراق
4:40 PM · Jul 26, 2020
Matthew Bori also notes the protests:
Protests near An Najaf International Airport Iraq
4:00 PM · Jul 26, 2020
Mswih also notes the protests:
there are currently protests that have been going on for 10+ months in iraq, the people want what every human NEEDS, clean water, electricity, a good government, but the response from iraqi government to their peaceful protesting is brutally murdering them in the streets?
1:20 AM · Jul 27, 2020
The protesters are attacked, not welcomed, by government forces. Ruba Ali al-Hassani notes:
Let me emphasize this: security forces' use of tear gas, live fire, & snipers against peaceful protestors is taking place under the watchful eye of PM Kadhimi who insists that he supports the #IraqProtests
So, if he didn't support the protests, what would he be doing now?
#Iraq
8:58 PM · Jul 26, 2020
EXCLUSIVE IN #IRAQ: A protester filming crackdown the protests when he shot dead.
#IraqProtests | #IraqUprising
6:52 PM · Jul 26, 2020
Worth noting that PM Khadimi launched a “fact-finding” investigation in June to provide justice for the hundreds of people killed, wounded or kidnapped during the protests in October 2019
Yesterday Iraqi PM Kadhimi tweeted that they are in the last stages of revealing the names of the killed protesters during October 2019 protests in #Baghdad and other southern provinces in #Iraq. However, tonight more protesters will be added to the list.
#IraqProtests #العراق
We're covering the protests via Tweets because the press is ignoring what's going on.
MIDDLE EAST EYE reports this morning:
A nationwide protest movement in Iraq over government corruption and
incompetence threatens to erupt again after two demonstrators were
killed in Baghdad early on Monday after being shot with tear gas
canisters during clashes with security forces.
On Sunday, rallies were staged in the capital and across several southern cities as anger mounted over power outages while temperatures exceeding 50 degrees overwhelmed electricity generators.
In Baghdad, dozens clashed with security forces in Tahrir square, the epicentre of the protest movement that began in October but died down in recent months as measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic came into force.
An AFP correspondent saw the burnt remains of tent structures in the square on Monday morning.
"Two protesters died this morning. One was shot with a tear gas canister in the head, and another in the neck," a medical source told AFP on Monday.
The two victims are the first since Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, who had promised a dialogue with protesters, took office in May.
On Sunday, rallies were staged in the capital and across several southern cities as anger mounted over power outages while temperatures exceeding 50 degrees overwhelmed electricity generators.
In Baghdad, dozens clashed with security forces in Tahrir square, the epicentre of the protest movement that began in October but died down in recent months as measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic came into force.
An AFP correspondent saw the burnt remains of tent structures in the square on Monday morning.
"Two protesters died this morning. One was shot with a tear gas canister in the head, and another in the neck," a medical source told AFP on Monday.
The two victims are the first since Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, who had promised a dialogue with protesters, took office in May.
In a statement overnight, his office acknowledged "unfortunate events"
in protest squares, but insisted security forces had been instructed not
to use violence unless absolutely necessary.
He's
prime minister, does he have any power or not? Equally true, this
isn't the first time this month that security forces have killed
protesters. His strategy earlier this month was to deny, deny, deny
that there were any deaths. There were deaths. But let's pretend that
there were no deaths, there were still protesters injured from being
attacked by security members. He never addressed that reality while
issuing his denials of death.
Prior to joining office Mr Al Kadhimi vowed to meet protester demands
by holding early elections and investigating protester deaths. Yet the
new prime minister has had to deal with a catastrophic economic crisis
triggered by a decline in oil prices caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Ali Al Bayati a member of the Independent Iraqi Human Rights Commission told The National that the government must hold the perpetrators to account and should urgently respond to protester demands.
“We condemn the violence used by the Iraqi Security Forces and remind the government about its commitments to the constitution on protecting citizens and the right of freedom of expression,” Mr Al Bayati said.
Ali Al Bayati a member of the Independent Iraqi Human Rights Commission told The National that the government must hold the perpetrators to account and should urgently respond to protester demands.
“We condemn the violence used by the Iraqi Security Forces and remind the government about its commitments to the constitution on protecting citizens and the right of freedom of expression,” Mr Al Bayati said.
Kat's "Kat's Korner: Pretenders sell hate, love, glory, anger and power" went up Sunday.
