Karmacode - Lacuna Coil Review
Before last February, I had never heard of Lacuna Coil. That in itself is not unusual. There are many bands, and some of them very good, seasoned performers that go unheralded in the mainstream passing under my radar altogether. With my eclectic tastes in music, that should not be much of a surprise.
Lacuna Coil, a band that hales from Milan, Italy may defy simple categorization. They appear to be comfortable with the labels 'metal' and 'gothic' but they transcend both sub-genres of rock. Although I have not yet seen them perform I look forward to doing sovery soon and will offer a follow-up review of their stage performance. I have heard that they have a very good stage presence and that has helped them develop a following of loyal fans since their arrival to tour in the US.
Lately around the greater Orlando area Lacuna Coil's hit single Our Truth has become almost as ubiquitous as the cell phone in the elecromagnetic specrtum. Of course they are receiving a good deal of local airplay and trade press coverage in eager anticipation of their performance as one of the main stage acts later this month at Orlando's Tinker Field as part of the Earthday Birthday concert event. (They are also currently on tour with Rob Zombie, et. al.).
Yesterday, 4/4/06 was the national release of Karmacode, the most recent studio work for the band. The new CD's first hit single, Our Truth is a song with haunting, ethereal vocals that become a captivating hook for the song, showcasing the power and potential of this band. I liked it from the first time that I heard it.
Lacuna Coil's sound is refreshing and many times unique as it refuses to be cornered into a convenient category. There is enough driving metal to satisfy even the most jade rockers while the exotic sounds of the vocals lend a strange, almost magical quality to the to the lyrical content of each track. The overall effect is a sonically pleasing experience that from start to finish is powerful, highly energized, attention getting and memorable. It is obvious that the band can rock with the best of them but they do it with the style of a seasoned touring band that knows how to work an audience whether they are on stage or on CD. Lacuna Coil is a class ac - a highly skilled ensemble of musicians supporting and at times transcending the haunting lyrics, vocal harmonies with tight and precise instrumentation that enhances the aural experience.
I am particularly fond of the vocal performance of Cristina Scabbia on In Visible Light and enjoy the backbeat and double bass drumming of Cristiano Mozzati under the chorus along with the guitar work of Cristiano Migliore and Marco Biazzi and the highly competent bass lines of Marco Coti Zelatit. it is one of the outstanding performances of the collection.
Andrea Ferro demonstrates his prowess as a vocalist throughout the tracks but in his duet with Cristina on Within Me their blending of voices carry the musical accompanyment along for the ride, at times seeming to be one powerful voice; another track that is worth listening to several times over.
Historically, many of the bands that have played in the previous 12 Earthday Birthday festivals in Orlando have almost immediately springboarded into the national limelight. Playing before an anticipated sell-out crowd of 25,000 I would expect more than just the simple boost of winning over a some new fans. Along with the launch of this new CD Lacuna Coil will pave some new ground in the music industry for some time to come. I am looking forward to witnessing their set in person.
For those who live within driving distance of Central Florida, Earhday Birthday is April 30, at Tinker Field (close to the Citrus Bowl) in Downtown Orlando. The show is nearly a sellout. If you want to attend, you need to buy your tickets very, very soon.
Sharing the main stage with Lacuna Coil at the all-day event will be Rob Zombie, Mudvayne, Staind, Shinedown, Trapt, Nonpoint, Theory of a Deadman, Hinder, Evans Blue and Faktion. As always there will be a stage for local bands to perform, an opportunity for the quality of the local muci scene to be showcased as well.
Lacuna Coil current band members include: Cristina Scabbia, female vocals; Andrea Ferro, male vocals; Marco Coti Zelati, bass; Cristiano Migliore, guitars; Marco 'Maus' Biazzi, guitars; Cristiano 'CriZ' Mozzati, drums.
Label: Century Media
Enjoy!
E
Amnesty, Immigration and Border Security
Pardon me for being political here but I have to say something.
Emotions charge legal issues at times and it is natural that a lot of red herrings and tangential issues are brought up to veil the substantive issues, diverting attention from what might have seemed at first a relatively simple yes or no answer.
Do we need to improve our Border Security? Absolutely!
Instead of dealing with something that we have virtually ignored in the interest of being a good neighbor to both Canada and Mexico, the issue of illegal aliens almost always is brought to the forefront of the discussion. Although it might seem irrelevant to Border Security it is not. The reason is that even though we have had a policy of offering amnesty to illegals since 1986, the law was never adequately enforced. In fact the Mexican government has tacticly and sometimes even openly encourgaed illegal migration into the United States, apparently as a means of dealing with their own issues of unemployment. It is also a source of a good deal of reveue in Mexico. The inneffectiveness of our border control and immigration policy has created, and even institutionalized a system for allowing illegal aliens to come into the United States.
In terms of Border Security, it is perhaps frightening to the average American citizen how realtively easy it is to eneter the United States from Meixco. In the post 9/11 world in which we have come to live, it is imperitive that we address the porous border between not only Mexico but also Canada. I think most Americans agree that something needs to be done and the debate on the Border Security issue comes down to what and how much to do, it's costs and relative effectiveness.
What has muddied the otherwise straight forward and clear-cut issue of security what to do with all the millions of illegal immigrants who are already here. Although this is related to Border Security, it is tangential to whether we need to better secure our borders. It is stated as a fact to illustrate just our open our borders are and have always been, posing a very real threat to security as an opportunity for terrorists to enter the US without detection. Where the discussion gets off track is when the issue of dealing with the immigration problem we already have gets merged with preventing the influx of even more illegals because we have not fixed the previous problem, that is it too easy to enter the US illegally.
There is a security issue with the Canadian Border that probably needs to be shored-up here and there but it is an irrelevant issues to the immigration problem that we have. We don't have 14 million illegal Canadians in the US and in Canada the government actually tries to create jobs for its own people. They do not actively encourage their people to illegally enter the US to seek sub stanard pay in menial jobs in a neighboring country. There are many legal Candians who work in the US but it is a matter of choice not necessity. They are productive to both the encomies of the US and Canada.
We have a huge problem, upwards of 14 million people that we are failing to see will not voluntarily come forward without some incentive like the proposed guest worker program. The hard line approach of rounding them up and deporting them or making them follow a law written in a very different era (1986) simply is inadequate to address the scope of this problem. Suggesting that any who help them (presumably family members and friends who have a legal status) would be felons would put an immense burden on the courts and the prisons that are already overwhelmed with our domestially produced criminals.
Raising the race card is often the first red flag that I look for whenever an issue is being pushed for other agendas. It ignores the human element of the situation while purporting to accomplish the exact opposite - giving a voice to the oppressed. I am beside myself to understand where is the alledged racisim in the discussion. The 'side' of the illegals is actually using their status as workers willing to do the low wage, menial jobs that American citizens do not want to do, saying that this is a good thing. Have I missed something here? To me that sounds like a very racist commentary on the situation as it supports all sorts of stereotypes regarding the Latin community being farm workers, landscapers, janitors, household servants and the like. Yes in reality those are the jobs that illegals are filling. But to use it as an argument in favor of allowing the staus quo is beyond logic and completely ignores the real discrimination - that people are coming illegally into the US to work jobs that pay under the table below minimum wage. The argument that these things somehow help our economy and even the economy of Mexico is in a word ludicrous. Only in that there is a transaction of money between the workers and the employers can this be seen as anything but a sort of institutionally encouraged involuntary servitude, preying on the bad situation of a lot of poor people with very few alternatives. Perhaps the skill set of the illegals would need to improve in order for them to be competitive for higher paying jobs.
That is a wholy different issue altogether as whose responsibility is it to educate the poor?
it is not a question indemic to only the Latin community or even the United State or Mexico.
When there is sharp division on a heated issue there has to be a poinbt of compromise that achieves as many of the goals of each side. Maybe we have forgotten. Instead of dealing with something that we have virtually ignored in the age of political bickering and partisanship that the way things have always been accomplished in America is by addressing the key, important issues and seeking the common ground of mutual interest and tolerant acceptance in the balance of more extreme solutions
There are three issues and three alone. If we can focus on answering thes, maybe not even at the same time but they are related if for no other reason then the current political discourse has made them related:.
We need to secure our borders.
We need to deal with the 10 to 14 million illegals who are already here while doing it in a humane and respectful way that does not arbitraily or needlessly destroy lives and families.
We need to integrate the illegals into the mainstream economy where they can become taxpaying, productive citizens who are earning what they are worthand are able to become part of our diversity not a source of our division.
E
Been Workin' On Other Things
It is a strange thing to say when I have been on vacation all week but ever since getting back from New Orleans, I have been workin'. I guess it is not so strange when you realize my second job is one from which I cannot readily take a vacation. I am a writer, after all.
I have been editing some of my older stuff, things I haven't worked on since I started the 'Wolf Stuff' (as I call it) back in 2000. Oh, I have worked on the first two books that were published and even a third one that got held up because of the 'Wolf Stuff' and some rethinking of strategy with the publisher. But mostly I have not touched One Over X for years.
Frankly, I felt the older stuff was garbage when compared to my newer stuff. I am a realist and so, I figure that I get better at writing all the time, right? I have made it through to what used to be book 5 in the original scheme of things. I am actually very impressed with the story. The writing is also on a par with some of my newer stuff. It was a pleasant revelation as I had been concerned that everything might require major and extensive revisions.
Some of you who know me personally have heard bits and pieces of the background stories. You also know that all the books have connections one to another. A few of you have even asked me about 'the rosetta stone' - how everything fits together.
I write series of books. I tell people the reason for that is that I am not good writing endings. Of everything that I have written I personally feel that Spectre of Dammerwald is the best story overall. Ironically it is almost a childrens story but my children have never read any of it - my kids have read much of One Over X and based on that have decided that they need to keep a close eye on me, just in case I lapse into another aspect of reality.
Spectre of Dammerwald is a book that I have always needed to write but never had found the time to devote to it, until about two years ago (spring 2003). In the summer of 2000, I wrote the foundation material that has since become One Pack. That story has grown in the revisions and such but the core of the storyline was composed over a 13 week period between May and August of 2000, while I was waiting for the editors to finish their work on the first book in the One Over X series and send it back to me so that we could debate the necessity of their suggested revisions. The notes and such that I had used in writing One Pack had come from my personal scribblings regarding online chats with a group of old D&D people. In the spring and summer of 2000, we had created a fantasy world on the fly where we played out the roles of members of a wolfpack. Ela'na, the Wolfcat was our leader and from her I obtained the character profiles that a good number of people who were designated 'wolves' had submitted to her. Although the server that we had used for our chats and role playing went down in August of 2000, some of the wolfpack pledged to be ever faithful and keep the pack alive. I do not give my word or make pledges lightly. And for the record some of the original wolfpack still remained connected through Ela'na.
I had already begun writing One Pack, although at the time I considered it more of a nice, exciting story to present to the Wolfcat Ela'na. At some point in the many conversations with her and the other members of the wolfpack I had promised her such a story. It seemed appropriate as I was the only one of the pack who was a writer and Ela'na had even designated me as the Scribe.
Later on the pack tired to re-form on other servers without Ela'na. It was never quite the same. The magic was gone. Regardless how much we wanted to make it happen again, it never did click without Ela'na. Still I had the notes. As we had become fast friends, Ela'na had shared with me everything that she had regarding the pack. I used the information that I gleaned to enhance the depth of the story that I had already written. A single book expanded and became what is now five novels in a series.
All along I wanted to write a story at least regarding the earlier times, before the somber events portrayed in One Pack. We had a lot of fun in chat being wolevs and doing all sort of amazing and sometimes funny things. One Pack was a very serious story. And then at the end of One Pack it was clearly not a conclusion to the whole story - I suck at writing endings as I have said before.
I continued to write about the two characters Rotor and Mang, they were left hanging at the end of One Pack. It had to be written. It was a natural thing that needed to be. So falling back on the original notes and the One Pack story I generated another story, in the course of thirteen weeks that has since expanded and been embellished beyond the original text to encompass three additional books called The Last Wolfcat.
It seems ludicrous how this story was assembled until you really think about it and in the context of One Over X that I was working on in revision during part of the time. In One Over X Andy Hunter spends some time in a fantasy world called Anter'x. I decided that Anter'x was the base world for the wolfpack as well. As a result everything that I had written upto that point was suddenly connected. The thread of continuity was the fantasy world and the strange constructs of the universe that the world of the wolfpack and Andy Hunter shared.
Writing the prequel to One Pack was a necessary element to the entire puzzle. Using the same notes and elements that were the foundation for the other two stories I was able to assemble a cast of characters that were members of the wolfpack and create a foundation story that established a historical context for the origins of the wolfpack of Anter'x, in Dammerwald.
I have farmed the story out to a number of people. The feedback has been universally positive. Since no one has ever read the One Pack or The Last Wolfcat books, that amazes me. I had to write Spectre of Dammerwald just for those books to feel more real to me.
E
V For Vendetta Review
Okay, at my son's behest I went to see the movie. Based on what he had already told me - that did not spoil the experience at all - I knew I would appreciate the movie. Since my son told me that we would be going to see it this week, I had actually been looking forward to it.
You have to go into the movie with a very open mind. It will challenge your beliefs on many levels. It is not a bad thing. It is art. Since when have movies been lambasted for being art?
Yeah, yeah I heard all the first day criticism about the movie glorifying terrorism. If any of those critics payed attention or even stayed for the ending of the movie it was pretty clear to me that short of glorifying terrorism it was more about the people having a voice that needed to come forth to express their desires. That is not a liberal idea or an conservative idea. It is not even an American idea. It is a human idea!
I fully understand the confusion and even the dissing of this movie. However as a cinematic experience it is a damned entertaining film. I found some elements of the Matrix but it was also a very different vision of the world. It is like 1984 but turned on its head.
Natalie Portman shows some acting skills. She displayed them at times during Star Wars but they were well hidden. This is more of the Natalie Portman that was in Closer, a film that proves despite the quality of the actors a bad script can destroy a movie to the point that neither a director or the actors can resurrect it.
If you want to skip this one at the theater, that is fine. The sound is 'dts' and it is very good in the big screen environment but if you have a great DVD system and a 7.1 surround sound experience available, then waiting for the DVD is a viable option.
In sum, this is a thought provoking adventure cast in the often explored post modern landscape. It is not for the weak of mind, as this will challenge many strongly held beliefs. It also presents a few great and memorable quips regarding the power of writers and the power of the word.
I like it. I do not like scales and such but if I had to rate this on 1 to 10, it is a solid 7.
E
Home Again - About New Orleans Road Trip
I just returned home last night from a two day road trip to New Orleans (pronounced Nawlins according to a sign my daughter and I saw in the Louis Armstrong International Airport. The purpose of the trip was for my daughter Amanda to visit Tulane University - she is considering attending in the fall
I have to admit that I did not know what to expect. A guy who works for me took leave of absense to resume his part time job with FEMA. He had told me some of what I could expect. My daughter was to stay on campus and experience real campus life in as much as such a thing is possible in a couple of days; I was going to see a good friend who lives sort of between Tulane and the French Quarter.
Like everyone else who was not personally affected by Katrina, I have heard reports and seen images on TV that frightened me and gave me considerable reservations at the prospect of my daughter attending school in the middle of what I perceived a 'war zone'. My friend Grem had told me some good things and bad things about the situation in town but he also assured me that Tulane had fared very well all things considered and that much of the older city weathered Katrina very well indeed. The real devastation as one might imagine was closer to the levee that colapsed and in the lowest lying areas.
We departed Orlando at 6:30AM Eastern. The flighhtime from Orlando to New Orleans (gate to gate) was about 1:40 and there is also a hour time difference, soiIt was about 7:10AM Central time. Nothing is open and very few are awake in the Big Easy on Sunday morning. It was after 9:00AM before we could arrange for transportation to the University.
The drive to campus was hardly shocking but it was enlightening. The Airport is on the northwestern side of the city, so we came in through some of the areas that had been flooded. These were not the worst areas, but these were the parts of town where people had waded in water and used rafts. Some of the signs of the damage are still there, some have been corrected or are still in the process. In the case of the University, the northern end of campuse took on some water damage (around the sportsand recreational complex. Otherwise there was some wind and roof damage.
Tulane is in a fairly nice section of the city. Seven months after Katrina things are largely back together and working albeit not everything is exactly as it needs to be. For some parts of the city it will be ten to fifteen years before the city is fully recovered. In the spare time between events and such we had a lot of time to kill and we also had time to talk to people who have called New Orleans home for much of their lifetime. There is no doubt in any that the city is coming back. They are frustrated with the lack of speed at times but other parts of the recovery are taking on this monumental task with a good deal of careful study and planning which has delayed some parts of the process.
Sitting and waiting was a recurring theme which oddly made the time feel stretched-out. It is very odd int hat there was some interesting events and good times, plenty of food and talking with others that had been wedged between the long intervals of sitting around and waiting. The other all effect was that the two days felt like nearly a week but it was not an unpleasant experience as it offered ample time to rest. That was perhaps more important to me than to Amanda.
There were the requisite speeches from administrators including the University President and a very well done walking tour of campus. One of the highlight of the tour was the Mardi Gras beads still hanging from the trees from a month ago.
A couple of the University's star faculty members gave presentations of classroom like lectures. Amanda and I attended a presentation by Dr. Rosanne Adderley titled "Voodoo and History: The Spirit of African American & Caribbean Studied in New Orleans" and Dr. Bruce Fluery titled "Intelligent Design: Old Wine in New Bottles". Both were intellectually stimulating and thought provoking.
Afterwards there was a nice buffet featuring some New Orleans style cuisine. So it was night time and Amanda went her way and I went mine.
I had intended to ride a bus down St. Charles Ave to Napolean and from there walk to my friend's place. The trouble is that in a city hthat is not quite functioning on all cylinders, the bus service at night is not predictable. Although the fare is free it is not as regular as I discovered later on that it was during the daytime. I hoofed it across campus to St Charles and on down St. Charles toward Napoleon, perhaps 20 blocks.
I am not used to walking,especially when carrying a bag with a change or two of clothing. It was a cool evening but even so I was sweating profusely by the time I made it to my friend's place. On the way I passed some very impressive old houses, even mansions that are well maintained and obviously places where the remaining power brokers of the city reside. As might be expected, not all the street signs are up and so I walked past Napoleon and went way past the Garden District even to the edge of I-10, nearly entering the French Quarter. I had been in New Orleans before and so I knew I was well past where I should be.
I took a cross street north a couple of blocks only to discover that I had entered the twightlight zone. Where St. Charles was nice houses, hotels and restaurants, only a couple of blocks north was a vandalized car, left to remain as a warning. This was no where for someone to be walking at night. I circled back and made it to Josephine. Figuring the Napoleon could not be far away, a headed on. Finally I saw a cab for hire. There were a few in that area. The cab took me the remainder of the few blcosk that I needed to go.
I was very tired but after a shower I spent a couple of hours chatting with my friend who is the inspiration for the Grem character in Spectre of Dammerwald. He has been working on a story about New Orleans for a couple of years. I have helped him with it a time or two and although it is far from complete it is one of the projects I'd like to see complete. It is funny and sarcastic, irreverent and caustic.
The next morning I walked from Grem's place back to St. Charles where two hispanic ladies were waiting for a bus. It came within a couple of minutes and wisked me back to Tulane where a very filling breakfast awaited.
The second day was more for Amanda, so that she could sit in on a couple of actual classes, go shopping int he bookstore and see anything lese that she wanted to see. Then, around noon there was a huge outdoor barbeque to conclude the day's schedule.
We then returned to the north end of campus, called for a cab (something I should have done the night before perhaps) and back to the airport to await (and I mean await) departure.
Somewhere in all that I promoted my books to a few people.
I have some personal opinions regarding the recovery of New Orleans and I may actually expand upon them later on. The simple truth is that the government has thrown money at the local administrators who are doing only a little of what they should be doing. The presense of FEMA funds in the present economy has inflated the price for building supplies. It has also made it difficult for businesses to find and retain employees that they can afford. Burger King is hiring at $12.50/hr but no one wants to work past 5pm. So the Burger Kings close early.
It is hard to know what to do in a situation but it is easy to see what is wrong. I guess the largest frustration that I sensed was not with government but with the opportunists that are taking advantage of the situation. New Orleans will be back but this I a critical time when very lasting decisions have to be made with a sober understanding of the effects on the future of the city. American's most diverse city could become a model of how to integrate a city so completely that the diversity is not even noticed. But at the present each ethnic group seems intent on maintaining a cultural pluralism in distinct isolation that will at best remake the city into what it was before, with all its long standing problems. Let's hope that the people are wiser than the present leadership that is guiding the reconstruction - the very same leadership that failed the people on the city and state level during the disaster.
E
Road Trip
Just wanted to check it. It has been a while.
I am revising some of my oldest as yet unplublished material, making it all better and more in harmony with everything that I have written since.
On Sunday I am flying up to New Orleans with my daughter Amanda. She is interested in attending Tulane. She wants to study technical theater and the classics. Yeah I think it is an odd combination too but those are her two passions. Far be it from me to dash another artistic person's dreams. I have givenn hher freedom to explore. Who can say what will become of that?
Anyway, while I am in New Orleans I have planned an overnight visit with the infamous Gremster, a.k.a. Grem. Fior those of you who were ont eh advanced reader's list for Spectre of Dammerwald, yes, this is the real life Grem after whom the character was patterned. For the record Grem was the first to read the parts of the book that pertained to his character. I had feared that I was portraying it in an unfavorable light. Much to my amazement not only does Grem think that I have captured his essence, he has proven to be one of the favorite characters for many of the recipients of the advance readers copies.
When I return from New Orleans later on next week, my son wants to take me to see V for Vindictive. I have heard a bit about the movie from not only my son but others who have seen it. There is a strange dynamic between me and the directors Andy and Larry Wachowski. I have never had the priviledge of meeting them but I feel we are kindred spirits on some creative plane. A couple opf people who have read both of the One Over X series books that are currently in print have suggested that I send copies of the books to them. I know next to nothing about making a movie or even writing a movie script. I know what I envision when I am writing and when I re-read what I have written. I think One Over X would be a challenge for any director.
I know that the purist in me would like to see One Over X be the success that it deserves to become. I am realistic. The books have found a niche. Without the financial backing of a huge publisher that can spend the $60,000 for a full-page ad in one of the national Sunday papers, what chance does a book by a relative unknown have? It has been a frustration to my publisher, Ash Creek that I have to work so much at my 'day job' that I cannot more effectively self-promote. Frankly I am impressed at how well the books have sold without much promotional effort. I am also impressed that mosty who have read them like them and that they are sending me emails periodically asking me what is the story with the release date for An Extreme Departure, Book 3 of the series.
I will summarize. Jack at Ash Creek wanted to go ovber the text a time or tow again. This was over a year ago. He went over it and made suggestion. I went over it looking at his suggestions and I found a lot to be ahamed of so I wessentially revised it a page at a time. Blame me as much as the publisher for the delays. I have also changed something that is fundamental to the series. I have removed the elements tthat pertain to the wolves as they now a separate body of work collectively called The Wolfcat Chronicle. So word to the wise, if you happen to have access to a first edition of A Game of Hangman, it will become a collectors item. Also int he new editions for One Over X, book one has been split into two books. In due faithfulness to the original vision I have called Book 1 From The Inside and Book 2 To the Closer. Except for rewriting the first fifty to sixty pages, and correcting typos as best I could, the new versions were sent to the publisher largely as they were before, just improved where there was genheral consensus of need. The edn result is a more readable Book 1 and a much more concise Book 2 which is, of course now oficially Book 3.
Tentatively there will now be eight books to the original One Over X series, instread of six. AAs this detail is new and still largely open to discussion it could change. I am straving to make each book's length between 300 and 350 pages in 6X9 12 pt.
When I get back from New Orleans I will give you a full accountof my experiences, impressions and perhaps even an interview with the real Grem.
E
Trailers, Trailers, Everywhere
I am disturbed, though not in the usual and expected way. I saw something in the news that I am beside myself to understand. Apparently there is a Senator that shares my outrage. Although Senator Reid wields far more power than me, even he can't dislodge the bureaucratic logjam over which FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security preside.
There are trailers stored in a field in Arkansas, staged for disaster relief. They were apparently moved there for assisting Katrina victims, many of whom still live in tents these many month's after the storm has passed. The trailers cannot be used because there is a federal regulation against allowing the trailers to be moved to a flood zone. So they sit there empty and useless for the purpose that the government spent good money to have them fulfill.
I know that the government has a habit of doing silly things. It is not a thing that is peculiar to this generation or even Democratic or Republican administrations. It is indemic of governments in general and often the source of a good deal of humorous, annecdotal commentary. The real issue here is that people are suffering and still suffering needlessly while their elected official strangle themselves with their own red tape and regulations.
You may call me a Liberatarian for pointing this out but be that as it may, I have to say something that to each and every one of us that is not in the government and not sworn to uphold the sometimes stupid and narrowly focussed regulations of the various departments that manage things with some modicum of efficiency under normal circumstances, that Katrina was a catastrophic event. Catatrophies usually allow for some otherwise well intended rules to be bent while others are ignored and even sometimes broken.
WHY ARE PEOPLE IN TENTS AND TRAILERS INTENDED FOR THEM GIFT WRAPPED IN RED TAPE SOMEWHERE IN ARKANSAS?
Can SOMEONE in WASHINGTON DC grow some pubes and make an adult-like decision, a decision that I think anyone else in this country would fully understand and even condone?
Either move the people from Katrina to non-flood zones so that they can reside int he trailers in full compliance of the regulations governin g their use or waive the regulatory restrictions under some emergency override to a regulation and move the trailers into the areas where they are most needed.
Just a suggestion. I for one want my already spent tax dollars hard at work instead of hardly at work.
Brittany Spears, True to Her Redneck Nature
I am sooo over Brittany Spears, the diva of the last decade. Yeah I am glad she is married and having children, I may not be all that comfortable with the concept of her chosen mate being Kevin Fedderline but maybe, just maybe it could have been worse.
It is funny though. The media are on her like stink on a monkey's ass. They expect her to be a perfect mother and a perfect wife, and for Kevin, poor clueless Kevin to be a perfect husband. Perhaps they were supposed to disappear to the Hills of Beverly or the Streets of Belle Aire and then be the poster children and perfect models for the media that follow them everywhere they go.
I have known a couple of famous peeps in my life. Occasionally it happens to someone you knew back when or even knew when it was happening. Fame may be fickle and it may be fleeting but when it happens it is anything but forgiving. Brittany has been in the limelight for quite a while and frankly my only comment is that I have issue with her just because she seems oblivious to the incessant scrutiny. Sheeesh. Wake up!
It is not just that she is a redneck woman. Hell's bells she is from where? Mississipi? Hello! Others wonder why she puts up with her husband's apparent infidelity. Duh! She is a redneck. Her father probably was even worse. It is expected, perhaps. She knows her place and is apparently embracing it. She was supposed to be barefoot and pregnant throughout her 'baby makin' years. Granted it is like she is the Twenty First Century version of a Beverly Hillbilly, but you know what - we made her whatever she is. If we created a monster mother that drives her SUV with an infant in her lap, then so be it. We allowed her to get this much power. Did anyone arrest her for child endangerment? Despite the clear evidence, the public outrage and all that, what happened? She got pregnant again?
I think we all need to step back and take a deep breath. Brittany was incredibly hawt and disireable in teens and she stimulated many an adolescent to middle agedmale's fantasy. So was like Bo Derrick in the movie "10". Neither truth lingered past the moment to be true into the present. Everyone has flaws, okay. I am even okay with allowing 'stars' their flaws as well. It is just that I have trouble seeing all the coverage about Brittany et al in the press and knowing full well that beneath all the hype and glitter they will always be what they were born to be. Even if they have acquired great wealth due to their fame, in the end the roots will out.
Do not expect anything more than what you started out with. In life bonuses are pretty damned rare.
E
