Blogcritics

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

Blogcritics Comments of the Week 3

Christopher Rose — Sun, 8 Jan 2006 15:04:08 EST

... ONE of the distinguishing things about Blogcritics, something that makes it very different to old school mainstream media, is that we're all available, contactable and interactive. We have some great writers and personalities here, both on the editorial side and the vital wider writer community; it's great, thrilling actually, to see them actually interact, through the Comments, with our readers.The articles posted on BC, although complete in themselves, are like the opening remarks in a conversation; sometimes formal, often irreverent, rarely dull. If you want to shoot the schnizzle about your favourite new band, game, TV show, sport and movie or get seriously political over the hot button issues of the day, THIS is the place to come. "The comments are what make Blogcritics a community." Eric Berlin ... "Have I said recently how I see comments as kind of the heart or psyche of BC? No? Well, I see the comments as..." Christopher Rose ... "I take comments moderately seriously" Dave Nalle ... ______________ As an immigrant, there are always many little adjustments to be made, some obvious like language or money, some unexpected and unforeseen. Making my new life here in Southern Spain has forced me to shed a lot of old skin and learn just how arbitrary are the seemingly natural ways of things. One timely example, this Monday 12th December 2005, with just twelve days til Christmas Eve (or Noche Buena, "Good Night" as they call it here) is the giving of gifts, which in Catholic Spain doesn't happen until the 6th of January, the twelfth day of Christmas!The Comment of the Day for today is from our own Matthew T. Sussman, who added the following Comment #15 to the Why Happy Holidays Is a More Respectful Greeting Opinion piece penned by Purple Tigress, who prowls the streets of Hollywood.Political correctness is a very sincere intention. It's trying to suck any possible connotation that would offend somebody.But should the standard of PCness be "offend as few people as possible?"Because in 10 years, will "Happy Holidays" be offensive to atheists like Michael Newdow who celebrate nothing in December?So will our PC phrase then be "Happy December?"But maybe that will be offensive to sadists and machochists who dont' want to happy, they feel pain.So maybe our PC phrase will become "Have an enjoyable December?"But maybe there's a group of people who don't like December.So maybe our PC phrase becomes "Have an enjoyable month, whichever you choose?"Do you see how these syllables keep numbing the intent of the message? All because we didn't want to offend anyone.George Carlin had an amazing piece about PCness. One example he used was "shell shock," a condition where soldiers buckled under too much pressure. Two syllables.Then it became "battle fatigue." Two words, four syllables.Then it was "operational exhaustion." Two words, eight syllables.Now it's "post-traumatic stress disorder." Four words, eight syllables.We keep adding syllables to the same concept, wasting time to describe "shell shock."Now, you asked me if I want to revert to a discriminatory society. Of course I don't. I'm not a racist. People deserve equal treatment.Equal treatment. That's important.But political correctness is mutually exclusive from equality. PCness is simply a ruse to avoid awkward conversation from those different than you. And frankly it's a waste of my time and yours.I learn nothing about you if I say "Happy holidays," "Enjoy your time off," "Have a good winter break" or "Seasons greetings."But if I saw Purple Tigress on the street and said "Hey, Merry Christmas Purple Tigress!" Would you be offended and leave it at that, or would you correct me and say "Oh, I don't celebrate Christmas."Suss: "Oh, what do you celebrate?"PT: "Well, I'm Jewish, so I celebrate Hanukkah."Suss: "Well then Happy Hanukkah."Not only did I learn more about you, but I have a conversation starter for you next time.Now, you do make a point saying that people give you a weird look. Obviously that's a reaction thinking that everyone celebrates Christmas (which they don't) and as they progress in life they'll come to realize that people celebrate all kinds of things. But simply pumping vanilla into a December time greeting doesn't cure the cancer, it just puts layers upon layers of gauze over the problem._________________ BlogCritics is all about writing, a skill that is becoming ever more challenged in our fastpaced soundbite world. Unlike most other destinations, virtual or actual, BlogCritics even has it's own writer's academy where talented but technically challenged pipsqueeks are polished and pointed in the right direction.In addition to and in support of that, there are posts about writing on site and my good virtual buddy Alisha Karabinus, a fine writer despite her dubious musical taste, recently wrote an excellently informative and entertaining post Want To Write? Toughen Up!, which drew this Comment of the Day for Tuesday 13th December 2005 from our man in Mexico, alpha, as Comment #3:-Too true. All of it, Alisha. Writing is bad, photography worse. Everyone pulls it apart, adds their 2 pesos worth or, on the internet, can be as mean as they care to be.I, too, happily had one of those professors (a night class at a lousy, Southern university in which I wasted two years) who made one really great impression: you cannot write unless you can allow your audience into your thoughts and feelings.You tell a great story about how to write and why one writes and how important it is to slough off the barbs that come along while waiting for the occasional perceptive comment or beam of understanding.I only wish I had learned the lessons you teach a great deal earlier.I believe that makes alpha the second person to be awarded two Comments of the Day. Congratulations.___________________ I am always disappointed when the moment comes that I have to edit or delete comments and the way that is handled is kept under constant review. This reluctance to act hasn't prevented a couple of complaints over in that rowdy basement hangout known as Blogcritics.org Politics, but so far the article here in Blogcritics.org Culture that has generated the Comment of the Day for Wednesday 14th December, Women and Sexuality: Let's Talk About Sex by recent recruit to the volunteer BlogCritics editorial team Erin McMaster, has only had one comment deleted. I'm not sure if I'm more pleased or surprised.Moving on, the wise words that caught my eye today belong to one diana hartman, a Kansan girl currently in Germany with her Marine husband. Without further ado, I give you Comment #17:men and women discuss many things by a different set of rules, not just sex...it's a difference between them, not a bad thing for either...i don't know too many reputable men who will bring the depth of their lover's vagina to a round of drinks but i've sat at many a table 'o coffee where the women were discussing girth, length, and a myriad of other details...we woman share information -- it's probably borne out of the evolutionary need to protect each other and preserve our own safety, i don't know... i've chosen a few lovers over others because of information i got from my girlfriends and didn't squirm at the heads-up because no one likes to be surprised by super-long, super-short, or small body livestock... the depth of women's conversations have long shocked many of the men i've known and i think that's because men prefer to stick with the surface issues...the rest is too close to what many men perceive as weak and vulnerable...if you're discussing a particular man's ability to help with orgasm, it's a good bet many many many feeling words are already on the table -- and most men aren't up for or into that...it's kind of funny that what erin is suggesting is still taboo for some is the same thing others are suggesting is bad manners...if you're not the kind of person to go in depth, pardon the pun, then good on you, but don't make the mistake of thinking that those who will discuss it are doing something wrong...it's been my experience that, and i don't say this as a rule, women who don't like to discuss things in detail weren't taught that it was okay to do so...perhaps they were taught instead to attach some level of shame to it -- and themselves...for the record, shame does not equate with modesty...the latter is a form of discretion whereas the former is a form of secrecy...sex is no secret...guys that don't like how detailed women get are really something -- this, from some of the same people whose gender group takes a great deal of pride in things like the volume of their belching, the length they can spit, and how much under-the-covers offense they can create with their own gas...i can spit a goodly length but not being 11 yrs old anymore has done wonders for my topics of conversation...i'll take a lively round of oral sex tips over who can chug a beer the fastest any day of the week...I don't know why ms hartman loves the lower case so much but am happy to follow her convention._______________________________ Well, it's only Thursday and so far this week we've already highlighted comments made to posts about Christmas, Writing and Sex. Now it's the turn of that hot button issue, the Death Penalty in the USA.The In The Middle series of articles showcase the real art of political debate, as two people with more or less diametrically opposed views have at it, with intelligence, restraint and even wit! Comment of the Day for Thursday 15th December 2005 came from the wise keys of Chantal Stone as Comment #14 on the latest Phillip Winn - Eric Berlin face off In The Middle: The Death Penalty.I think Eric made the best point when he said:"I believe that legally sanctioned executions send a poor message to ourselves and to the world about what we strive to be as a civilized people."That's it right there. There is no room for the death penalty in a so-called civilized society. How far have we really come if we still kill criminals? There are better solutions (hard-labor, alternative ways of rehabilitation) out there, we just need the courage to execute (no pun intended) them.Ms Stone becomes the first casual visitor, as opposed to blogger, to contribute two Comments of the Day. Congratulations Chantal. If you are interested in writing more than comments for BlogCritics, Chantal, send me a message via editoratlarge [at] gmail [dot] com. ____________________________ Most of the time the comments to a particular post follow a predictable pattern before, as all conversations do, coming to a natural end. Sometimes however, comment threads take on an unnatural life all their own and today we look at one such.Back in May 2003, one of the most senior and possibly sinister members of the BlogCritics "cabal", my part-time musical guru (by which I mean he's right part of the time, lol), the one and only Al Barger, wrote a brief - though of course perfectly formed - five paragraph piece on The Miracle of Fatima, the widely, if inconclusively, recorded events experienced by large crowds of people at Fatima, Portugal in 1917.This modest article didn't attract a single comment for over five months and didn't get it's fifth until September this year. By the end of November there were only twenty-five and now BOOM! over four hundred and counting.The vast majority of these have flowed from the keys of the self-professed re-animated mother of Jesus Christ, Mary reborn literally who, if nothing else, has displayed a persistent, if complex, vision encompassing everything from her family life, the events of Fatima, repeated copyright theft and the perils facing the world today.For the second time ever, the Comment of the Day award this Friday 16th December 2005 goes to someone commenting on their own article, as Mr Barger chipped in with this as Comment #425:- I want to thank the mother of Jesus for honoring my humble little column with her holy prophesy and analysis. Besides the holy nature of it, these comments are a pretty fair little literary souffle.Thank you, Mary Reborn Literally, your work is appreciated. ______________________________ Another revered and ancient post, this one from August 2002, is The Many Lives of Les Paul by Ed Driscoll. A former East Coast guy, Ed went west in the late 90s and writes on technology and music.Over three years after being written, this affectionate Les Paul post generated the following charming story as Comment #73 from one Eldon Lee Jr., in their one and only visit to BlogCritics. I wonder if he'll ever know it was Comment of the Day for Saturday 17th December 2005? From talking to my dad, prior to the 30's, Les Paul would perform with groups near his Waukesha WI home with his guitar and banjo. Banjo you say? I was told he played the banjo because it was louder and could be heard in a dance band. Maybe that lead to his development of the electric guitar. My dad was a trumpet player and always enjoyed it when Les Paul would come to Michigan / Indiana to play with them as a guest artist. Then they could sit and talk music at the breaks. My dad died in April 2005 at the age of 97 still talking about his enjoyment of Les Paul the musician and the person. Eldon Lee Jr. __________________________Having covered correct Christmas protocol, the Art of Writing, Sex, the Death Penalty, the Miracle of Fatima and Les Paul in the course of the week, so I thought we'd round things off with a little TV. One of the highlights was the finale of the Donald Trump hosted The Apprentice, which kept the controversy and excitement going well after the end of the series. Personally, I think the winner did the right thing; after putting up with a lot of bs, he deserved his fleeting glory.Not everone agrees of course but South Carolina's Rodney Welch certainly does, and picks up the coveted Comment of the Day for Sunday 18th December 2005 for these words added as Comment #22 to young New Yorker Chris Evans' controversial Randal Pinkett Shocks and Appalls In Apprentice 4 FinaleEric, I guess I just have a different take on it than you. I think Randall's choice is better than the options you offer, and i think by sticking to his guns what it revealed about him wasn't something chicanerous or underhanded or sneaky. In fact, the more I think about it the more ethical Randall's decision seems, and the more right. I would have had much less respect for him if he had caved under spotlight pressure and shared the victory he fought for with Rebecca. He had the King Kong-sized balls to do the right thing and risk looking like a jerk.___________________________

A lifelong fan of Manchester United and a passionate lover of music and science fiction, I live in Antequera in the heart of Southern Spain. In addition to serving here as Comments Editor and Blogcritics Forum Admin/Moderator, I also publish a variety of independent online sites. These currently include a bunch of intermittent blogs covering everything from dieting to robots and, most recently, Eurocritics Magazine. My wife and I also run an affordable luxury villa rental in Spain if you're thinking of a holiday!

Blogcritics Comments of the Week 5

Christopher Rose — Mon, 2 Jan 2006 21:55:02 EST

ONE of the distinguishing things about Blogcritics, something that makes it very different from old school mainstream media, is that we're all available, contactable and interactive.We have some great writers and personalities here, both on the editorial side and the vital wider writer community; it's great, thrilling actually, to see them interact, through the Comments, with our readers.The articles posted on BC, although complete in themselves, are like the opening remarks in a conversation; sometimes formal, often irreverent, rarely dull.If you want to shoot the schnizzle about your favourite new band, game, TV show, sport and movie or get seriously political over the hot button issues of the day, THIS is the place to come."The comments are what make Blogcritics a community." Eric Berlin"Have I said recently how I see comments as kind of the heart or psyche of BC? No? Well, I see the comments as..." Christopher Rose"I take comments moderately seriously." Dave Nalle___________________________________________________________________________ Just when you're starting to think some BC internet phenomenon like the Pretty Ricky post and it's bloated yet repetitive comment chain is fading away, another Blogcritic gives the embers a stir and sparks new life into the beast. The latest feature on the teen love sensations takes a rather different line, going for a straightforward critical mauling in Bluestars by Pretty Ricky - Worst Album of the Year by Al Barger. For reasons that escape me, the conversation has evolved into a peculiarly uneven dialogue between the kids squealing shrilly about who exactly is Pleasure's boo on the one hand and some of the BC regulars on the other.With Christmas barely behind us and the end of 2005 appearing faster than a polaroid picture, the Comment of the Day for Monday 26th December 2005 comes from one exchange between the belligerent yet romantic "Trey" and our own gonzo marx, which gave us the following as Comment #53. well Trey, about this "gangsta" biti'm from the Jersey Shore myself...representing Asbury Park, a "playah" from back in the crack wars of the 80's...got my Respect from all the street, including the 5 percenters who called me "Viking"so spare me the wanna be little kid shit about "gangsta" cuz my graveyard is bigger than your 'hoodsho, how about you try not telling folks what to do, you want to express yourself..go for itbut you will go a lot farther if you look at the Topic of the Thread, and state your case for your Position...one way or the otheroh yes, me?...get mad? not hardly, i'm still playing, and being quite nice about it since you all are just kids that don't know any betterso how about we try and discuss what the Thread is about?i am gathering that you don't agree with big Al about this CD...so tell us why you think the disk is good, rather than doing the juvvy wanna be bullshit, and we can discuss it on the merits of the material itselfyou down with that or scared to do the dozens in the mental Arena on the subject of Music?(somebody get Suss some munchies, while i school the kiddies)Excelsior! ___________________________________________________________________________ "The kiddies", as gonzo called them, struck back the very next day with 17-year old Brie creaming Mr Barger with her Comment #78, this distinctly uncheesy Comment of the Day for Tuesday 27th December 2005Al: I read your article and I have to say that you pose a few good points. I'm glad that you admitted that you were a 43 year old white male and even said "what do I know about what makes a good r&b boy band?" I think that was very humble of you.I have to say though, I am neutral to what you brought out in your statements. I am a fan of Pretty Ricky although I think that some of thier songs can be offensive. (then why tha heck do I listen to them? i dont know!) I even think that music is deteriorating as I write this message. BUT I think that it's wrong for you to attack a boy band.I mean, do you really have that much time in the world to listen to a group of 17 year olds sing about sex and then write about how bad of group you think they are? Are you really trying to pull that cheap stunt to draw attention to yourself and create a link for the angry teens to go to? (I hate to feed your ego and reply to what you wrote, but I just couldnt help myself). I think you should just let them be a bad group. (since you think that way). Why does that bother you so much? Why waste your time and get your blood pressure all up just because you dont like a boy band?I also think that these statements you made: "yunguns who might give you a good cussin" and "I ain't feeling all that especially brave, though. I ain't scared of some herd of illiterate teenagers. What are they going to do, street slang me to death?" were wrong. I am highly offended! I mean, after reading an article that was so well written and argued, I would think you were a much better person than that. Obviously im wrong.I'm telling you, I'm sevenTEEN years old. And just because I have that "teen" on the end of my age doesn't mean I'm illiterate. Obviously the teens who read your article arent illiterate either if they were able to read your messages and thoughts. Do you feel that I'm "street slanging" you to death? I dont think so. And is that a racist statement? That all these Black teens are just going to "street slang" you until you die? Hmmm... I wonder...Anyway, I'm glad that you felt (I dont want to say brave, but i will) brave enough to put something like this on the internet and then face the replies people sent you because youre right, it is only so much "illiterate teenagers" can do. We cant do anything to you that will hurt you. All we can do is write to you. I just think that you should've handled the way you worded how you felt differently.Another thing, I do have to disagree with what you said about good music being for everybody because different music attracts different people. For instance, I like r and b, hip hop, alternative, and country music. I can pretty much listen to anything except for heavy metal. My father, on the other hand (who is like 50 something) HATES almost EVERYTHING I listen to. What I listen to may not be considered good music to him. He likes jazz and oldies. Jazz and oldies may not be "for me". Jazz and oldies may be considered "good music" to my father, but I dont like it all that much. R and b, hip hop, alternative and the other types of music I choose to listen to is considered "good music" to me, but not for my father, you see what I mean?I understand what you said when you said that you love music and thats why you're saying that you have a dim view of Pretty Ricky because they're a crappy excuse for music. But essentially, is that really your decision to make? They're out now. They're performing songs at concerts and making money. What can you do? AND how can you even say that theyre a crappy excuse for music when you even admitted yourself that you didnt even know what makes a good boy band!?A lot of the things you said on this blog is really offensive. You may not care, but, I'm still putting my feelings out there because I can. When I read your article I thought you were smarter than some of the replies that you wrote to other peoples comments. I was really suprised. Obviously, I was wrong about my preconcieved thoughts of you. I honestly don't know you and I shouldnt have thought a certain way about you just because of how you wrote the article. I was wrong there. But coming from a writer, next time I think you should think before replying to what people write to you. And really, you shouldnt categorize a certain group of people based on age. *(and i learned that i shouldnt categorize a person based on how well they write or argue a point)* ; )Thanks for reading my LOOOOONG reply...if you do. (heck, if anybody does! LOL) ___________________________________________________________________________Shifting musical gears somewhat, one of our busiest music writers is the cryptically named uao, who's produced over 100 never dull posts for Blogcritics in under two years. One of his latest fine reads, Does Your CD Lose Its Value By The Bedpost Overnight? would not only make the title of a great Country song but has already produced the Comment of the Day for Wednesday 28th December 2005, Comment #6 from one J P Spencer.Great article, uao!The thing about the Deadhead stuff retaining high value due to demand justifies what I have been telling friends for ten years. Record labels make the real money on back catalog sales. Note the lack of a reissue of Vanilla Ice or MC Hammer currently on the market.And the PUNCH LINE is, most artists who would generate back catalog sales are currently being dropped by the major labels faster than you can blink. As the Deadheads die off, and that day is coming sooner than you think, the old model of a record company will probably die off with them. ___________________________________________________________________________

Blogcritics Comments of the Week 4

Christopher Rose — Wed, 21 Dec 2005 20:05:39 EST

ONE of the distinguishing things about BlogCritics, something that makes it very different to old school mainstream media, is that we're all available, contactable and interactive.We have some great writers and personalities here, both on the editorial side and the vital wider writer community; it's great, thrilling actually, to see them actually interact, through the Comments, with our readers.The articles posted on BC, although complete in themselves, are like the opening remarks in a conversation; sometimes formal, often irreverent, rarely dull. If you want to shoot the schnizzle about your favourite new band, game, TV show, sport and movie or get seriously political over the hot button issues of the day, THIS is the place to come. "The comments are what make BlogCritics a community." Eric Berlin ... "Have I said recently how I see comments as kind of the heart or psyche of BC? No? Well, I see the comments as..." Christopher Rose ... "I take comments moderately seriously" Dave Nalle ... ___________________________________________________________________________ BlogCritics is a weird gestalt of writers, readers, commenters and of course the folk in the big room up the stairs from the Comments cubicle that run the place. The core of the BlogCritics culture is obviously made up of the over 1,200 registered Bloggers who post all the diverse articles here but there is also a large and growing band of unregistered regulars who post comments with a frequency, style and wit that leaves me wondering why they don't have a blog of their own.One such is the mysterious Bliffle, who has been swinging by BC for a while now and earns Comment of the Day for Monday 19th December 2005 for this excellent comedy extension of NaNoWriMo 2005 winner gypsyman's cool satire The Bush FileManifest Destiny! Oh, it has such a nice ring to it!The problem with Mexico and it's unwanted immigration is that peasant life in the US is too attractive. Why even the least educated and unaccomplished and desultory among us has TV, a car, and enough fat, salty and greasy food to attain genuine obesity. To reduce the invasion of Mexican peasants we simply have to reduce the state of the US peasant to want and deprivation. I propose we do that by shifting the tax burden to the lowest paid while simultaneously reducing their health care support, depriving them of bankruptcy rights, looting their savings, and demolishing their "Unions".It will help to reduce the peasants de facto Freedom Of Speech by incurring wars and inducing a constant state of psychotic paranoia so they are willing to surrender rights. In fact I think they will even cheer the diminishment of those "rights" as they look fearfully behind themselves for strangely garbed brown men with daggers and RPGs. ___________________________________________________________________________ One of the many things the world finds fascinating about the USA is the sharp contrast between the often groundbreaking modern discoveries and inventions or thrilling new books, movies and music coming out of the country on the one hand and, on the other, some staggeringly backward social ideas and/or political policies that seem to have a regressive stranglehold on many peoples' thoughts.The two most obvious and fiercely contested examples are the convoluted and often bitter debates over the death penalty and abortion, two subjects that have the USA locked in a potentially seriously damaging internal argument that shatters normal political allegiances and can bitterly divide both friends and family alike. Finding socially equitable solutions to these rancid blind spots is becoming pressing, both in political terms and for the greater good and harmony of the country as a whole. Comment of the Day for Tuesday 20th December 2005 comes from BlogCritic Ruvy In Jerusalem, as he throws out one typically gritty external perspective, added as Comment #99 to fellow BlogCritic Sam Jack's news report on the tactics used by Wichita anti-abortion campaigners in his photo-heavy October 2005 story A Bible and a Bullhorn.I'm old enough to remember when abortion was illegal in the State of New York and a bill was brought up in the state legislature to "reform" the laws.This was in 1970, before Roe vs. Wade was decided in the federal supreme court.There was a debate on the issue on what was then WNEW, Channel 5. One fellow speaking against abortion was a Catholic prelate whose name is not worth remembering.What he said is, though. "Abortion should be banned to protect good Catholic girls."It was the dumbest thing he could have said. Why should a nice Jewish boy (once I wasn't a balding middle aged man) like me give a tinker's dam about Catholic girls - good or otherwise - if they were not jumping into MY bed?Judaism does not forbid abortion, as does Catholicism. Why should I have to swallow Catholic dogma and put a nice Jewish girl at risk with a back room abortionist so that some Catholic prelate's precious "good" Catholic girls would not be allowed to have abortions and HIS church would not have to really educate them as to why not?That seemed wrong.Sexual morals in America were just a tad better then than they are now.But the bottom line is this. If fourteen year old kids have sex for pleasure, they better damned well KNOW that babies do result from sex. That thought should be on the mind of both hormone crazed kids as they strip their clothes off, hot and hungry for each others bodies.There is more to sex than the foreplay, clit tickling and mind blowing orgasms that American and European culture focus in on and use to sell products.This means that parents have to educate their children. They can't get off the hook with garbage like, "the school didn't do it," or, "I'm too embarrassed." One of the responsibilities you sign up for when becoming a parent is being willing to educate your children about sex, about emotions surrounding sex, about how to deal with the fact that sex CAN and DOES result in babies.I don't favor abortion. I don't believe abortion ought to be illegal. This should be a matter between the mother carrying the foetus, her doctor, her pastor and G-d - and the people who will have to provide for the resulting child.I do believe there ought to be restrictions, and I believe the law here in Israel should be more restrictive. But at the same time, it is imperative to educate a child about life, love and sex, and it is imperative to provide a strong support network for that young woman who goes through with a pregnancy willing to give the baby up, knowing that she herself cannot provide or it.As far as a pregnancy resulting from rape, the central issue is "does forcing the victim of the rape to bear the child endanger the health of the victim?" If so, IMHO, the embryo should be aborted. This is a question that can only be answered on a case by case basis.As for what went on in Kansas, I can only remind you that before your nation fought its civil war in the 19th (Christian) century, there were seven years of "Bloody Kansas".Until the USA finds ways to heal the wounds caused by these issues, the country remains trapped in a weird, 20th Century, "Groundhog Day"-like timewarp, endlessly treading water until a solution can be found. This is not good for the country or the wider world. ___________________________________________________________________________ I guess the comment response to articles posted onto BlogCritics is proportionate to their inherent interest (which may explain why my posts get so few!), but often the comments take on a whole new purpose or role.In addition to the more obvious and natural back-and-forth of (mostly) healthily competing points of view, sometimes the comments become an alltogether different kind of space. This is probably most obvious on the B5 and Pretty Ricky posts as between six and ten mostly pre-teen girls battle to the death over who exactly is spectac's boo. However, BlogCritics also serves to keep discrete groups of people, separated by circumstance or distance, in touch.One of the best examples of this is to be found on the thoughtful article about the now-jailed leader of the Latin Kings, Antonio "King Tone" Fernandez, written back in September 2003 by one S-Train. It now serves as a space for the gang to keep in touch and keep their spirits high and has built up an impressive comment stream of nigh on six hundred posts.Comment of the Day for Wednesday 21st December goes to "Queen Rosie" for Comment #548:ADR I have read some comments on here that are misguided. If you are ignorant to Tone's teachings then you live your life in ignorance. But you cannot expect your life to change for the better if you do nothing to change it. King Tone is a wise and strong leader. Many of us true kings and queens miss him dearly. He wanted the best for the nation. And what are some of you thinking....that he was wrong for taking the nation public. But did you not understand that in doing this you were shown in a better light. We were once perceived as gang bangers. Now we hold it down as a strong, latin nation. That is why this nation was started....to promote the strength of latinos everywhere. I for one am a follower of King Tone until I die. Even my baby girl knows of his teachings so that she can live her life proud of who she is. Yes, he did do something illegal but I don't see anyone on this blog that can say that they have never done anything illegal either. Even I have. I did not have to serve time for the stupidity done in my youth, but it served as a reminder to be a role model and not a follower. I am proud of my nation 360 strong. There is nothing in life better than having pride in your rasa. I have been a Queen for over 20 years. These young bloods have alot to be proud of. The legacy that we leave behind is one of a united, strong nation. Don't let anyone or anything bring you down. Whether you are a Latin King or Queen, or just a proud latino/a....hold your head up to the sky and give thanks for what you got. There were and are many other latinos and latinas that struggled other than King Tone to get you to that high standing. When he returns, I hope that he will return as our Inca. He has alot to offer the nation. Amor De Rey! King Tone....you are missed by me and many others and I hope that you can get this message somehow, so you can see how you impacted this nation and my life as well.I've become increasingly aware of the broad diffusion of the Spanish language and people since moving to Andalucia a little over four years ago and particularly it's strong presence and high profile in the USA. With that in mind, I'd like to wish a Feliz Navidad a todos los hispanohablantes y espero que el a�o que viene sera un buen a�o para todo el mundo. ___________________________________________________________________________ Moving on from the world of American gangs to the even more violently contested turf of "The Meaning of Life", Comment of the Day for Thursday 22nd December 2005 goes for the first time to Sam Jack, who added Comment #18 to his own Intelligent Design: The Difference Between Natural and Supernatural opinion piece.About Richard Dawkins: I am almost as unimpressed with him as I am with the ID people. Dawkins has had an important role in explaining evolution to the general populace, but to do so, he has departed from pure science by making aesthetic judgements. It doesn't matter that I happen to agree with him; Dawkins does escalate the conflict. He does attack religion.Dawkins came by his notoriety in much the way that Scalia did: by espousing an absolute philosophy and defending it wittily. There's a place for that to happen, and far be it from me to stop Dawkins from expressing his opinions, but I think that he's working counter to the goal of most scientists, which is, as I said, to be left alone to do science. Destroying religion isn't on their plates, and the fact that Dawkins is prominent as both an evolution and atheism advocate just mixes them up together.I think that religion and science need to draw a truce at "non-overlapping magisteria," and in his unwillingness to make that his position, Dawkins is doing just as much to escalate the conflict as Michael Behe and the Dover School Board.-SamAs a non-faithist myself, I found this to be both informative and a timely reminder that a certain measure of respect and self-restraint are never inappropriate.For the statisticians amongst us, Sam Jack becomes the third ever person to receive the coveted and prestigious CotD by commenting on their own article, which is one of the signature differences between BlogCritics and many other online destinations, following in the footsteps of Douglas Anthony Cooper and Al Barger.___________________________________________________________________________Some of the comment streams generated in the wake of posts like the Miracle of Fatima or Pretty Ricky take on quite literally epic proportions as they wend their way to whatever ultimate destiny awaits us all. One of the most epic of these is generated by The Top 100 Guitarists According To Rolling Stone, written back in August 03 by The Theory. The 2395th comment to this post, by the forthright, if anonymous, ed banger is Comment of the Day for Friday 23rd December 2005.Is Rolling Stone relevant anymore? Not since Wenner and Co moved east to hobnob with the Hamptons crowd. Like the magazine, and many of you that have written in, it is obvious guitarists from the the original punk rawk and new wave explosion were omitted. Where is Keith Levine - ex-PiL and early Clash? The Edge took his sound from him - and John McGeough - ex-Gary Numan, Banshees, PiL - Johnny Lydon always had the best guitarists - Steve Vai included - and Johnny Marr - easily the best guitarist of the 1980s - sad he has done nothing interesting since the Smiths. Punk aside - where is Roy Clark? A guitar legend who can play anything - Glen Campbell - corny image aside - was also a fantastic axeman - but none of them were as good as Django -perhaps the world's first guitar superstar - Rolling Stone should check em out.___________________________________________________________________________ Sticking with the musical theme, one of the many enjoyable rituals for this time of year is list making and one of the most fun debates always surrounds the topic of Albums of the Year. Junichi Semitsu's personal Best Albums of 2005 produced not only an interesting and varied list but some nice comments too. I chose this Comment #1 by Boise, Idaho's Jackson Smith as Comment of the Day for this Christmas Eve, December 24th 2005.Good list. I've been looking over all kinds of 'best of' music lists for the year, and this is one of the most inclusive, varied, and complete ones I've seen yet. Some of my favorite albums, like Bright Eyes, Spoon, Sufjan, and Death Cab are on there, plus plenty more I've been curious about but haven't heard and some I have never heard of. I think I'll have to check out some of the stuff I haven't heard... thanks!___________________________________________________________________________ So this is Christmas and let's see what's cooking in the comments oven today. Co-incidentally we began this week with a quote generated by one of gypsyman's posts and we're going to end the same way. His 267th post to BlogCritics, Words From On High? prompted this Comment of the Day for Christmas Day, Sunday 25th December 2005 as Comment #3 by the sharp-witted Matthew T Sussman, his third such award.You never do hear a peep out of Buddhists on Christmas. It's always the Pope. Why is that?And for that matter, where's the KKK on Martin Luther King's Day?How about an e-mail greeting card from Osama on Independence Day?Or a press release from my ex-girlfriend on my birthday?By the way, gman, if you haven't already you should write a post on how BC and NaNoWriMo have improved your writing skills as I seem to have noticed a significant leap in your work recently. Or learned to read!MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ONE AND ALL___________________________________________________________________________

Comment of the Day 2

Christopher Rose — Tue, 6 Dec 2005 09:15:45 EST

... ONE of the distinguishing things about BlogCritics, something that makes it very different to old school mainstream media, is that we're all available, contactable and interactive. We have some great writers and personalities here, both on the editorial side and the vital wider writer community; it's great, thrilling actually, to see them actually interact, through the Comments, with our readers.The articles posted on BC, although complete in themselves, are like the opening remarks in a conversation; sometimes formal, often irreverent, rarely dull. If you want to shoot the schnizzle about your favourite new band, game, TV show, sport and movie or get seriously political over the hot button issues of the day, THIS is the place to come. "The comments are what make BlogCritics a community." Eric Berlin ... "Have I said recently how I see comments as kind of the heart or psyche of BC? No? Well, I see the comments as..." Christopher Rose ... "I take comments moderately seriously" Dave Nalle ... ___________________________________________________________________________ For the first time ever, the Comment of the Day, for Monday 5th December, and the original article were written by the same person, rising writing star and author Douglas Anthony Cooper. Visit his blog btw, for it is good.In Comment #7 to his How You Know You've Been Kidnapped by the CIA post, Douglas reminds us all of the following crucial verse:-Dave, ... I wonder if you've ever come across this (from a Lutheran pastor who, despite having a good German name, and even an early history of apologizing for what became the, uh, administration, was sent to Dachau)... ... FIRST THEY CAME FOR THE JEWS... First they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. ... Then they came for the Communists and I did not speak out because I was not a Communist. ... Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. ... Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me. ... - Pastor Martin Niem�llerA timely and wise reminder any day of the week. The pastor had a very varied life, as this short biography on Wikipedia explains. They also quote the same poem, although with an extra stanza between the Communists and Trade Unionists: "Then they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Socialist." Course, they're as rare as hen's teeth these days... ___________________________________________________________________________ Yesterday's politically themed star comment nicely sets the stage for the Comment of the Day this Tuesday 6th December, penned by that mighty Maine man gonzo marx , who contributed the following extemporaneous words as Comment #29 to David R. Mark's impressive news report on 9/11 Commission Gives Bush Administration Dismal Grades On Homeland Security.David has nailed it right there...far too much of the GOP machine is geared towards, as i stated before...distract,distort,deny and destroy...in a recent Interview a senior writer for the Weekly Standard, Matt Labash, opened the door and let some of the "sunlight" in for us all to see....*JournalismJobs.com: Why have conservative media outlets like the Weekly Standard and Fox News Channel become more popular in the past few years?Matt Labash: Because they feed the rage. We bring the pain to the liberal media. I say that mockingly, but it's true somewhat. We come with a strong point of view and people like point-of-view journalism. While all these hand-wringing Freedom Forum types talk about objectivity, the conservative media likes to rap the liberal media on the knuckles for not being objective. We've created this cottage industry in which it pays to be un-objective. It pays to be subjective as much as possible. It's a great way to have your cake and eat it too. Criticize other people for not being objective. Be as subjective as you want. It's a great little racket. I'm glad we found it, actually.*so..self admittedly by a writer for the Weekly Standard, we see that Objective reporting is NOT what they have in mind..instead it is all pure Propaganda...writing for furtherance of a political goal...Truth is not required...now, remember that folks like Bill Kristol, Krauthammer and many other of these "pundits" who do the news circuits and/or write for Weekly Standard or National Review are card carrying NeoCons...Apostles and Disciples of Strauss and his "noble Lie" that needs to be fed to the public so that they can carry out their Agendawhat Agenda?...check the PNAC website...look at the folks that have signed on...then count how many have been in the Administration...even better, check who laid out much of the Iraq policyfolks like Perle and Wolfowitz...and Wolfowitz's Disciple who had been his student in college...Scooter Libbynice bunch of folks , eh?note the SAME tactics David speaks about used by ALL of these miserable pigfuckers on the TV news channels...a common tactic for them to use on the television is the "fillibuster"....they will ramble and rant for as long as possible, knowing the segment is finite and that every second they talk is one less for the opponents view, or even the Interviewer/moderatorif you watched the Rice confirmation hearings...or really any of the Administration's tough appointees that needed Senate confirmation you will see two things..one...contrary to normal, they all had literal time limits on how long the hearings could taketwo...the subject of the hearings rambled on , repeating themselves, going off on tangents...ANYTHING to kill timenext time you see one of the news shows where there are both sides there...break out your stop watch....i havethen go and re-read what i have Quoted abovei could not make this shit up, kiddieswoe is U.S.Excelsior! gonzo is responsible for many of the more inspired, if lengthy, comments around BC. We sincerely hope this is not causing him to neglect his own fine Absurd Scribblings blog...___________________________________________________________________________There are so many nooks and crannies lurking around BlogCritics, it's damn near impossible to spend enough time as I should simply keeping up - and then they go and add some more!One of the latest, though by no means last, sections is Blogcritics.org Gaming, edited by the formidable Ken Edwards. I don't get to spend enough time playing games or in this section as I'd like, particularly as they're hacking up some good writing there.The Comment of the Day for Wednesday 7th December goes to LegendaryMonkeyGirl for the following pointed and polished prose, contributed as Comment #14 on the stroke of midnight BC time to Matt Paprocki's excellent work Roger Ebert and Video Games: A Sign of the Times.Zach makes an excellent point here in the comments, and Matt, your mention of lowbrow comedy strikes a chord as well.Some video games, certainly, can't be labeled as deep or meaningful, but then, neither can many movies and yet they are still considered art, if a lower form. Some video games, however, are a little more deep than that. Hell, you may write off Resident Evil (the whole series) as cheap zombie fare, but underneath is a story about research and capitalism and the perils of not knowing where to draw the line.In fact, many horror games in particular I find far more engaging than I do horror films. Fatal Frame II, for example, was the best damned horror movie I've ever played, and Resident Evil 4 made me shriek in a way no horror movie's made me shriek since the age of 12.The Final Fantasy franchise boasts some of the best storytelling (though not voice acting, at least, in English) of any video games I've played, and the good ones are comparable to anime, in my opinion... and anime is most certainly art.Finally, as a writer, I too disagree with Ebert on the issue of control when it comes to books and movies. If you want to speak in a literal sense, not all do -- many movies and books are open-ended, allowing the watcher/reader to assign their own decision to final events. But out of the realm of the literal... some of the best books I've ever read have left many things undescribed, or imbued with emotion rather than a physical scene, and thus film adaptations of such can be jarring or strange to readers because none of it looks like they wanted it to be. How does that dictate authorial control? If true authorial control (jesus, what IS that, anyway?) existed, I doubt that situation would ever occur... much less be common.___________________________________________________________________________The other new section of BlogCritics I don't get to hang in is Blogcritics.org Music but it seemed outrageous to not swing by there on the day of the 25th anniversary of the pointless murder of John Lennon.There's everything from single reviews to articles on artists as diverse as B5, Pretty Ricky, Depeche Mode and Beastie Boys. Then there are the endless arguments; perfectly pitching everyone's fave songs, riffs, guitarists, singers, you name it into battle, people are rightly very passionate about their music.All well and good you say, but where is the comment? I'm glad you asked. The Comment of the Day this Thursday 8th December goes to the normally fiery "tommyd", who interrupted his usual spiky style to offer these thoughts to Blogcritics on John Lennon, lovingly assembled by Eric Olsen. I'll never forget that Monday night 25 years ago, when Howard Cosell broke through the Monday Night Football game to tell me (14 years old) and the world that John Lennon was dead. One of the few times in my life that I actually cried over someone or something for days! A piece of everyone's spirit of peace or idealism was rudely ripped out of our hearts and replaced by a growing dissonance amongst all areas of social relations.The art of music has also drastically declined in quality over 25 years, although it wasn't really apparent the night when Lennon was shot. But nevertheless, we should've known that without John Lennon still in the world making music (good or bad) that rock n roll was on it's way out. Yea, there's been some shots of good rock over the past quarter century, but let's face it: Rock will never carry that weight a long time. The world has changed and John Lennon wasn't around to stop it from changing for the worse. He is sorely missed.Peace. ___________________________________________________________________________Comment of the Day for Friday 9th December goes to one Harry McLoud, who appeared out of nowhere in Al Barger's opinion piece on the 2006 Rock Hall of Fame Inductees: Lynyrd Skynyrd Justice to drop these extraordinary views as Comment #24. As ANYBODY who was listening to rock, pop and R&B in the mid-1970s can tell you, the Ohio Players ruled. They dominated the pop charts with a string of high-octane hits, forged a bawdy, distinctive brand of funk-rock and spawned a ton of imitators."Gleaming proto-disco concoctions like Fire and Love Rollercoaster would leave entire dance floors slavering for more," the Rolling Stone Album Guide notes, giving five stars to the band's Gold package of hits, from 1976.Bands have to have been recording for 25 years to be inducted; the Players' first album came out in 1968! The group has legendary status as a pop and rock band, not just R&B. They've been covered by lots of other bands (Red Hot Chili Peppers, etc.)This was THE band that Mick Jagger secretly longed to be in! Plus they are from Ohio -- right in the Hall's back yard!I rest my case... ___________________________________________________________________________Many of the star comments on BC are written by people who've been on the site a while and often the comments can be as detailed and passionate as the posts that spawned them. Other times a casual visitor, drawn in by a particular work, leaves a nicely put comment to mark their visit.Comment of the Day for Saturday 10th December 2005 was from one such passing ship, a certain Photoscribe, who contributed these persuasive words as Comment #11 to David Mazzotta's two year old piece in BlogCritics' Film/TV section on The Most Influential Movies Ever.Why don't any of these "most influential" lists have "Goldfinger" on them? "Goldfinger" was, hands down, THE most influential piece of pop culture, movie, film or print...EVER!!No other franchise element, not "Star Trek", "Star Wars", "Friday The 13th" or anything ELSE, came close to exerting such an overwhelming international rash of imitation and satire! All three networks, every major movie studio, (and a few minor ones!) and every publishing house sought to bring their Bond clones to market after "Goldfinger" proved to be such a hit.However, it couldn't have been just the monetary aspect that caused the plethora of imitators. I think there was a sincere affection for the character, his suaveness, the cleverness of the movie itself...its production values, music, etc. that also inspired the slew of clones. I respectfully put forth "Goldfinger" as, hands down, the indisputable KING of "most influential movies of all time"!___________________________________________________________________________It's Sunday again, a rare pause for breath before waking to the working week, the perfect opportunity for a little personal cleansing. The same thought may have prompted today's Comment of the Day, from another comparative newcomer to BC and our first known non-USA resident, alpha, who added this helpful hygiene advice as Comment #2 to our own Mary K. Williams' News story on Avian Flu, Wash Your Hands!Good thought not just for avian flu and a pandemic but for day to day flu and cold and general safety.We Americans are too sure of our safety and food supplies and, like that wealther system that ate New Orleans; we may one day regret the time we didn't wash.How many times have you seen people use public toilets and leave without? Too many. Once on a cruise ship the guy had his white jacket and chef's hat on. Scary.Then there is disinfecting fruits and vegetables -- especially those pretty ones from the third world.There are dangers in the world and many are as small as a virus; some as big as a fat chef.alpha lives in Southern Mexico, which is nice, but claims to have "retired after a heart attack from photography", which would, I think, be unique.___________________________________________________________________________

Comment Of The Day

Christopher Rose — Mon, 28 Nov 2005 21:38:45 EST

ONE of the distinguishing things about BC, something that makes it very different to old school mainstream media, is that we're all available, contactable and interactive.We have some great writers and personalities here, both on the editorial side and the vital wider writer community; it's great, thrilling actually, to see them actually interact, through the Comments, with our readers. The articles posted on BlogCritics, although complete in themselves, are like the opening remarks in a conversation; sometimes formal, often irreverent, rarely dull. If you want to shoot the schnizzle about your favourite new band, game, TV show, sport and movie or get seriously political over the hot button issues of the day, THIS is the place to come."The comments are what make BlogCritics a community." Eric Berlin"Have I said recently how I see comments as kind of the heart or psyche of BC? No? Well, I see the comments as..." Christopher Rose" I take comments moderately seriously" Dave Nalle___________________________________________________________________________ The first ever Comment of the Day award goes to Massachusets' own SILAS KAIN for:- Ever the romantic, Bliffle. If I were stuck on an island I would want a pen and a blank journal. I would create my own impressions and commune with nature and the Maker in a special way. At night I would scan the skies, taking in the Heavens wondering what lay beyond our galaxy. Of course, playing Robinson Crusoe involves having a companion. I'll take a sheep.Banter, poetry and sexual deviation are not found on every page of BlogCritics but are typical of the twists and turns that any thread can take. This particular classic is Comment # 33 to an original article "Shrub vs. Slick: Who Reads What?" by BlogCritics' Political Editor Natalie Davis. ___________________________________________________________________________ The second ever Comment of the Day award this Tuesday the 29th of November goes to the busy wit of GoHah from San Diego for this double blast:- I committed the ultimate rock 'n' roll faux pas at the first Live-Aid in Philadelphia in the 80's when, due primarily to heat stroke, I was forced to remain seated during "Stairway To Heaven." Blasphemy! Let's just say lunch was on me: I got pelted with so much food and verbal abuse I was lucky to get out alive.This gem appears as Comment #75 to Barry Stoller's Led Zep - Top over-rated "hate to love them" piece.Conversations can sometimes wander off topic and GoHah delivered this classic oneliner as Comment #4 slap in the middle of Kathy Gill's political news report California Republican Admits to Taking Bribes, Resigns took me a bride once--big-boned gal with child-bearing hips...___________________________________________________________________________I love the way that everybody at BlogCritics is held instantly accountable for their words. Writers, Commenters and Editors alike are paraded, praised, pilloried or pelted with tomatoes as the issues of the day are picked over in thoughtful detail. Great articles can attract derision or praise or worst fate of all, be ignored - and I've a few of them myself, lurking in dusty corners of BC. I like to think that the best articles will get the best comments and there's a great example of that in today's Comment of the Day, this Wednesday 30 November, where young Kansan Sam Jack, aka Leoniceno, reports today on the kidnapping of US peace activist Tom Fox and drew the following remarks by the articulate if low profile pogblog in Comment #2:- Thanks for this touching and inspiring piece, Mr. Jack. To stand without weapons in a whirlwind of firepower is a courage few of us have to summon to "do no harm." I hope Mr. Fox is spared. I hope all in that torn land are spared.I am a militant pacifist by which I mean that I don't give a fig about violent words or violent video games or violent movies, though none of those might be my taste. I militantly care about not mangling these poor fragile people, civilians and soldiers, on either side. That we could still be 'mutilating for peace' in 2005 was not in my imagination a lifetime ago in my idealistic twenties. (I remain obdurately optimistic in the long run. It seems rocky in the short run.)Though I don't happen to be Christian or any other indoor Religion, I was interested in your phrase, "parasitic power of Satan." I'm studying the idea that the separation of Being into God & Satan is probably a false idea. In so far as I can examine myself, I find both impulses woven in my consciousness and conscience and am working on the alchemy to be more harmless which seems the course of the universe, perhaps? I don't see a Pure God and a Pure Satan. That puts us outside the struggle. I think we are intimate facets of the very struggle of AllBeing to sort out Impulses and Desires into something sustainable and sane. (Which is why, by the way, that I think we need to include some pretty not-pretty stuff for catharsis. My kindest, most harmless 30-something friend loves GTA[Grand Theft Auto]. He will never hurt any animate thing.)Thanks again for this piece into which you poured so much heart and thought. ___________________________________________________________________________There were several contenders for Comment of the Day this Thursday the first day of December. In the end, for purely selfish, nostalgic reasons I plumped for this lovely shout out for the wonder that has been BLONDIE. I know a lot of people might be thinking Blondie is unworthy. I think they're worthy; I also think a lot of people never really "got" Blondie.Unfortunately, most people remember them only for their biggest hits, which basically means "Heart of Glass" "Call Me" "Rapture" and "The Tide Is High"Which makes for the most unrepresentational, lousiest 4-song sampler you could compile.The discofied "Heart of Glass" was their only pure disco tune; their other stuff is a lot more guitar-based, most of it not very disco at all. "Call Me" was produced by Gorgio Moroder, and the single is his sound, not theirs. "Rapture" was an homage to Kurtis Blow, and while in some ways it is a fine homage, it is also a clumsy one. They never attempted anything really like it again. "The Tide Is High" is a reggae cover; Blondie wasn't reggae.I've always loved Plastic Letters from 1977, which is when they were still kinda punk, and fairly arty, and before they became dilettantish about musical styles, as they did starting with Autoamerican, their next to last album until the reunion.The one that hooked me as a 14-year-old was Eat to the Beat, which is dilettantish enough to stay interesting, but true to their powerpop meets art-rock meets girl-group meets British Invasion meets punk meets disco meets urban core. And Blondie and Parallel Lines are still good listens.They may seem unremarkable now; perhaps they're limited by the context of their times. But I still have fun listening to them, even if I don't do it very often these days.A good 10-song oddball sampler might include:X Offender I Didn't Have The Nerve To Say No Fan Mail 11:59 Denis Slow Motion Die Young Stay Pretty The Hardest Part Atomic War ChildToss in "Rush Rush" from Harry's solo career.Incidentally, I always considered Harry one of the most decent rock stars; she essentially gave up her career in the early 80's to nurse Chris Stein back to health (literally, by his side) during and after he suffered a debilitating, near fatal, years long bout of some fluke disease (I forget exactly what it was; blood or bone disease, something like that) She's still with him today.How many people who lived through the punk/disco New York 70's can claim that?You go, girl! (and band, too)These wonderful words of appreciation flowed from the keyboard of young (?) American uao, whose own Freeway Jam makes a fine read, as Comment #15 to the master post Blogcritics on Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of '06 by Cleveland's Eric Olsen. ___________________________________________________________________________ The two sections of BlogCritics that attract the most heated and passionate debate are undoubtedly those normally unlikely bedfellows Music and Politics; in these sections particularly, every exotic strand of human thought is to be found pulsing through the comment stream, from the deranged to the noble. We'll get to the deranged in due course but Friday the 2nd of December 2005 seems like a good day for nobility, tolerance and wisdom. All this and more is to be found in today's Comment of the Day by Margaret Romao ToigoBelieve this or not, milk cartons with missing children on them is a sign of progress. Look at it from the perspective of history, people of all ages and walks of life have been going missing ever since there have been people.Nowadays, we are more aware of it and we have the means to actually do something about it with modern communications technology, ads on milk cartons, "Amber" alerts, etc.We have become a more caring society with regard to missing persons and, as a result, we find more of them (alive, in many cases) than we ever did in the past.Infanticide and child abuse/neglect are not new, either. Again, this is an issue of which we have become more aware, resulting in fewer such incidents.Second graders still don't sell drugs in school. Perhaps there was one sensational case of a child that young acting as a front for a dealer (likely a relative), but this is atypical as the vast majority of drug dealers are beyond school age.Now, don't get me wrong here. I am not an idealistic optimist ignoring the problems of modern American society. For example, we have not yet transcended the mindset that continues to feed the war on drugs.Homelessness isn't new, either. However, today we treat the homeless with far more dignity than we ever did in the past and since we have become aware of the problem, there are far more people and organizations helping homeless people.Seventh graders don't get pregnant in huge numbers. Again, I am sure there were a few incidents, but it is hardly an epidemic.Statistically speaking, Americans are having children later in life than they did in the past. In the 1950s, the average age of first time mothers was 17, today it is 23.Our most important progress with regard to "illegitimacy" is that it is no longer considered to be a stigma upon the child.The divorce statistics are a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it is tragic how roughly half of all marriages end in divorce, but on the other, women (and some men too, just to be fair and balanced) are no longer trapped in unhappy, abusive relationships.Sure, housewives still do not have to work (in jobs outside the home, cooking, cleaning, marketing, tending to children etc is hard work). Women are free to choose what they wish to do with their lives. Back in the day when housewives didn't have to work, they were frequently not allowed to work if they wanted to.The reason why so many see decline is the result of the technological progress that has given us a 24-hour news cycle.Think about filling 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year with the sort of news that is most likely to get the high ratings shares."If it bleeds, it leads" is the credo of that highly competitive market in which the sensational, the bizarre and the tragic receive so much airtime that isolated incidents often appear as epidemics.Margaret wrote these words as Comment #81 to John Bambenek's controversial Why Does the ACLU Hate the Troops? Opinion piece. ___________________________________________________________________________ I suspect some people round here thought I got the short end of the stick when I accepted the role of BlogCritics' Comments Editor but to my way of thinking I got the better end of the deal. I've always been the kind of person with a wide range of interests - if fatally handicapped by a low attention span and boredom threshold. I really couldn't stand to be dealing with the same old topic, no matter how much I loved it, all day every day. It's all horses for courses of course and the BlogCritics Section Editors, volunteers every one, do an absolutely fabulous job in an impressive collective sacrifice of careers, family, friends and sometimes their sanity! I just get to flit around the place and enjoy myself.The Comment of the Day for Saturday December the 3rd is this from the largely unknown "Chantal", who added the following as Comment #2 on the excellent opinion piece Quest For Meaning by John Spivey. With our fast pace, technology based, digital society, its nice just to hear someone openly comtemplate the meaning of life. Sometimes it seems there are only two voices out there....those who dont seem to think about it at all and just trudge through life in any direction with no particular purpose except self-fulfillment.....and then those who already claim to have it all figured out, mainly overzealous religious people---evangelicals, etc (dont get me wrong, I'm a Christian, but I don't have the answers, only more and more questions).I wonder sometimes if the actual contemplation of the meaning of life is what gives us its meaning, the act of it. I mean, as humans, that's what we do, right?----question everything. Where would be without our questions? I think those who don't question, or those who think they already found the answers are really missing the point.A relative newcomer to BlogCritics, John is from Santa Barbara, California. Life must be good there as he's a published author, mountain biking, backpacking, cross-country skiing carpenter as well as a blackbelt in Aikido. And a parent. The swine.___________________________________________________________________________I'm always impressed by the depth of passionate feelings and ideas seething through the silicon circuits of BlogCritics, the rich heady blood in our virtual veins if you like.In addition to the heated broth to be found in Blogcritics.org Music and Blogcritics.org Politics, there are more considered strands, such as the Blogcritics.org Gaming, where everyone from pre-teens to pensioners pitches the latest news and reviews or Blogcritics.org Sports, where everything from English to American Football grapples with the WWE.Against this brainstretching backdrop of the banal and the beautiful, BC Sports Editor Matthew T. Sussman chipped this conversational bomb:- Isn't "Jacked Up" TJ's segment to begin with?But ESPN has seemed to take the "Crossfire" approach to talking about sports, like two guys in a bar arguing over which teams's the best. Only these guys are wearing suits and making much more money.This potted wisdom, Comment of The Day for Sunday 4th December 2005, appears as comment #1 to ESPN Gets Too Loud For Its Own Good by American Mid-Westerner Zach Baker. Mr Sussman's own blog The Futon Report, sub-titled "Takin�it sitting down", is puzzlingly not about Japanese sexual habits but what I'll charitably call the major USA "sports" whilst article author Mr Baker's Vitamin Z stretches itself to be "An experiment in politics, sports and writing".