'Nuff Said

I couldn't add a single word(click on the image if it is too small)

Consider This

The very first time I had ever heard the name Blagojevich was on December 8Th. On the 9th the name was already mud (and the subject of many jokes). The curious thing was that his first mention nationally was:

CHICAGO - On Monday, Gov. Rod Blagojevich showed up at Republic Windows and Doors to proclaim support for 250 workers who refused to leave the factory after the bosses shut it down.[Daily News December 9, 2008]

The very next day, THE VERY NEXT DAY he was up on charges! What made this interesting was that I had been following the auto parts strike for some time before. What made this different then every other strike in recent American history was that the workers didn't merely walk out, they TOOK THE PLANT OVER. That's unheard of on these shores. A strike is no big deal for management, in fact other then the inconvenience, it's a great way of getting rid of unionized labor and replacing them with low cost employees. Maybe even very grateful folk who will not cause too much trouble.

Taking over the plant means something. The company can not function, they cannot hire scabs. Now the police may have to be called in. When was the last time you saw armed forces clearing out red blooded Americans who just want to get paid their fair wages? This my friends is a horse of different color. Now we are talking some major damage control, both for the company and for the state. In today's economic climate, this might be considered revolutionary:

Blagojevich on Monday ordered all state agencies to stop doing business with Bank of America to pressure the bank into using federal bailout money it received to help the laid-off workers.

"We hope that this kind of leverage and pressure will encourage Bank of America to do the right thing for this business," Blagojevich said outside the plant [Yahoo News December 8, 2008]

The man was openly taking on the big auto companies and even the Bank Of America.

So maybe I am paranoid, but the timing of the Governors support of the Auto Workers seems a bit more then suspicious. In this case it didn't take the Empire long to strike back. By the way, has anyone heard these tapes we are constantly hearing about?

Apathy

Bye bye Astroland, last of the Coney Island amusement parks. I imagine the Cyclone and Wonder Wheel will remain but the park with all of the cheesy rides and sideshow games is closing this weekend for good. Last night I dropped by with dozens of other city dwellers, cameras in tow, taking pictures of what in the next year or two promises to be more condos. At this point I am almost numb to seeing new building sprout out of old homes or empty lots. That's progress I imagine and I shouldn't be so resistant to change. A new house beats and old one I guess. But when you take away something that could be enjoyed by many for the use of a few, that just doesn't seem right. To me Astroland was nothing special but it belonged there and I could see the people loved it. Not your fancy shmantzy crowd, they have the Hamptons and St. Barts, but really the lowliest. The poor could go there, strollers in tow, have some cotton candy and let their children run around for a few bucks. Who benefits from a condominium? The builders, the owners, the staff and the residents. That's it. In a city that's had a population explosion in the last twelve years I fully understand the need to build more housing. However, certain things should be allowed to remain. It's not like the amusement park was a money loser. People went, but I imagine there is even more money to be made selling the land and collecting rents and taxes so the political will was not there. Man, that just sucks.

Year One

Quite frankly I am surprised to still be blogging one year later. I thought I would have been bored by it by now and abandoned the project. Well here's to my stick-to-it-ness. As I cull the excessive posts from the site I am reminded off all that has happened in a year for me. When I started I was still working as a temp. Boy did that job blow. The one I have now ain't no great shakes but it still beats that. The only way to get out of working with agencies is to stop working with agencies.

A year ago no one knew that Barak's middle name was Hussein, today they do and deluded still don't care. One question, we all know what the poll numbers are for blacks, latinos, me and women in the presidential race. Has anyone asked the Muslim population whom they are voting for? Would the answer be uncomfortable? A year ago we were fighting the idea of congestion pricing. Bloomy lost that one although now out of spite he is making Broadway a two-lane street I hear just to give it to drivers. Just what we need, a promenade in the busiest part of town. It must be nice to be an out of touch billionaire. I wish I was, then again when the revolution comes........

I imagine I won't keep this post up long either. Just long enough for those that care to see what's up. Tonight I will be hosting a birthday party at Barcade. All are welcome of course. I think I will also take Monday and Tuesday off. Fuck it, it's my birthday. Maybe I will go to the circus or fishing.

Blown Out Of The Sky

I wanted to talk a little about Flight 800 as it was the 12 year anniversary. But I think everyone knows by know that the story about empty fuel tanks exploding was a bunch of B.S.. Aside from the 100 or so eyewitnesses who saw the missile strike the plane an airline pilot made this quote a few years after the incident "These planes are still flying with no changes (10 years later modifications were made) if the FAA really thought there was a danger with center fuel tanks they would have ordered them be filled with concrete rather then fumes."

Personally I don't know who shot down the plane. Was it a stray missile from a nearby Navy vessel? These things do happen. Could it have been pre 9/11 terrorists? I don't know, but keeping that scenario hushed up only made 9/11 inevitable. The only thing for certain is that we have been lied to. As for the truth, take your pick.

Nonsense

Two news stories from Long Island today that need discussing:

1.Eight on Fire Island sickened by pot brownies

July 8, 2008
Eight people on Fire Island were transported by helicopter and boat to local hospitals, where they were treated for respiratory and gastric distress after eating brownies the victims said were laced with marijuana, Ocean Beach police said.

2. Jones Beach evacuated after fireworks wash up

NEW YORK - A popular beach on Long Island was evacuated at the height of a holiday weekend after stray, unexploded fireworks washed ashore the day after a July Fourth show, state parks officials said Saturday.
Roughly 2,000 visitors were told to leave Jones Beach immediately after the seaborne shells began turning up around midday, officials said.

I use to think that the problem in this country was we have too many lawyers. There are too many of those bloodsuckers around but they are only gonna follow the money. I then though the judges were at fault for allowing the courts to be clogged with frivolous matters. But now I am convinced it's just the overall pussification of our society. I mean really, did we really need to evacuate a bunch of pot brownie eaters by helicopter? Do we really have to close an entire beach during a heat wave because of water logged fireworks? This is just plain ridiculous.

And speaking of ridiculous, the current waterfalls art project is poorly conceived. Now I support the arts as much as anyone but who in the hell thought it would be a good idea to place a massive public arts project right off the BQE? Couldn't anyone have foreseen the traffic tie-up this would cause? For the love of God, people in these parts of the world slow down to a crawl if someone is changing a tire by the side of the road!

Poop Tomato

Salmonela in the tomotoes, e-coli in the melons. America, wash your fruits and vegtables. That "pre-washed" bag of salad is not really washed, well not the way you would want it to be washed if you were looking to avoid eating shit stained iceberg. The one thing I don't hear on TV is the basic reason for this; Mexicans are shitting on the food supply. Yes, dirty Mexican farm hands are relieving themselves on your produce. That's why you must cook or clean everything you eat very well.

Before I sound too xenophobic let me defend my Mexican hombres by saying, well what the fuck do you expect? Have you seen toilets on those mega farms where you see illegal immigrant harvesters at work? That's hard fucking work, but I guess that's why they supposedly can't Americans to do this job. An American would demand a working toilet and a place to wash his hands. These cocksucker growers are really at fault here. Give the people a port-o-san every few thousand feet like they do at construction sites and you won't have massive food borne outbreaks.

On a different note, I am off to Canada on the high seas in a couple of hours and I probably won't be updating anytime soon. I imagine when I get back there will be something interesting to share from my end, till then, bon voyage.