Yearly Archives: 2006

Drums

This entry was posted in sale on by

drumsOnce upon a time, Max wanted to be the next John Bonham. We got him some drums and he took some lessons for a couple of months. Once he realized that in spite of his natural sense of rhythm, he would still actually have to practice, he decided to be a singer instead. Hence I have a set of drums sitting in the basement that are looking for a new owner.

Remo Lagero Travelling Drum Kit
22” Bass, 14”Snare
10”,12”,15” Toms
18” Crash, 14”Hi-hat cymbals
All hardware and Cases included
The drums nest inside each other and fit into the case.

They’re in good shape having been used only sparingly since being purchased 1 1/2 years ago. I’m looking for about $300 or the best offer. If you’re interested drop me an e-mail with the contact form at the top of the page.

Is this what America stands for now?

This entry was posted in impeachment politics on by (updated 6574 days ago)

Jose PadillaJose Padilla was held in a naval brig for 3 1/2 years in total isolation, except for his interrogations and now appears to be a broken man. Over on Dvorak.org/blog today I found this:

“Today is May 21,” a naval official declared to a camera videotaping the event. “Right now we’re ready to do a root canal treatment on Jose Padilla, our enemy combatant.”

Several guards in camouflage and riot gear approached cell No. 103. They unlocked a rectangular panel at the bottom of the door and Mr. Padilla’s bare feet slid through, eerily disembodied. As one guard held down a foot with his black boot, the others shackled Mr. Padilla’s legs. Next, his hands emerged through another hole to be manacled

Go over there and read the rest. This case alone should be all the reason that we need to impeach Bush and Cheney and put both them and Rumsfeld on trial for crimes against humanity.

World Aids Day

This entry was posted in this and that on by

I just got this in an e-mail from my friend Mary Delcamp:

Dec 1st, was World AIDS Day.
Bristol Myers Squibb will donate $1 for every person who goes to their web site and lights a candle (simply click the link below) to fight AIDS, up to a max of
$100,000.
Please go here: https://www.lighttounite.org/. It only takes a minute.

Head over light a candle.

Shadow art fair a success again! 8

This entry was posted in food Ypsilanti on by

water towerCongratulations to Mark and all the other organizers of the Shadow Art Fair! This weekends second edition of the fair was another huge success. Apparently the Corner Brewery was packed all night on Friday, so Jules and I went over there early today, and got some Christmas shopping done. We had some great coffee roasted by John Roos, and picked up a print of the Water Tower from Matt Callow (of pinhole fame). The new mayor, Paul Schrieber, Linda French, and other local luminaries (including a rather odd looking Santa) were all in attendance. It was great to see so many dedicated and talented people being rewarded for their efforts. Afterwards my lovely wife and I had some lunch at the Sidetrack, where I had the best fish and chips around. All in all a great day. Don’t forget to go down to the Sidetrack on Tuesday for Dinner and Drinks to support Growing Hope.

U.S. Constitution – Article 6

This entry was posted in constitution politics on by (updated 6577 days ago)

Article 6 – Debts, Supremacy, Oaths

All Debts contracted and Engagements entered into, before the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be as valid against the United States under this Constitution, as under the Confederation.

This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.

The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.

Enough said!

Shadow Art Fair 2 2

This entry was posted in Ypsilanti on by (updated 6578 days ago)

shadow art fair 2My friend Mark and his co-conspirators have done it again and the second Shadow Art Fair is coming up next weekend. The first fair last July was a huge success and this one is going to be even better. It’s going to be at the Corner Brewery again, and this time it will run Friday night from 8pm to midnight and then on Saturday Dec. 2nd from 11am-8pm. Make sure you go down their and check it out and buy some local made stuff to give as holiday gifts.

A carbon question 2

This entry was posted in global heating on by (updated 6580 days ago)

I’ve been writing over on AutoBlogGreen for a couple of months now, so carbon emissions are on my mind a lot these days. As I was walking out of Target today I noticed a tank truck from NuCO2 filling up the carbon dioxide tank that they use in the snack bar and it triggered a question in my mind. Americans (and many others) drink huge amounts of carbonated soft drinks every day. Every single one of those bubbles from your drinks is comprised of carbon dioxide, considered to be the primary greenhouse gas causing global warming. Here’s my question. How much CO2 is emitted from every one of those soft drinks? It seems to me that all those drinks we open up every day, are emitting a hell of a lot of CO2 into the atmosphere, possibly more than cars. If you know the answer, please chime in!

No zunes here

This entry was posted in drm technology on by

If you’re in the market for a digital music player this season, I would strongly recommend avoiding the new Zune from Microsoft at all costs. Even if you’re one of those people who doesn’t like the ipod (and there are some of you out there, although I’m still not sure why) don’t buy a Zune, there are other choices. Aside from all the technical reasons which I’ll get to in a minute, the absolute most important reason not to buy a Zune is Doug Morris. Doug is the CEO of Universal Music Group, the largest record label on the planet. He has managed to extort Microsoft into paying UMG at least $1 and maybe more for every Zune they sell. This is not for the actual music, since you don’t get any for that money. This is essentially a protection racket. At the launch of the Zune Morris said “These devices are just repositories for stolen music, and they all know it,” when talking about digital music players. How much do you want to bet that no musician ever sees a dime of that money?

In addition, between Microsoft and the record companies they’ve managed to strangle the only potentially noteworthy feature of the Zune, it’s wireless capabilities. The device has built in Wifi so you can share music with other Zune owners. However, when you send a song to someone they can only listen to it three times or for three days whichever comes first. After that the song is gone. You can’t however use the wireless to get online and buy the song directly from the player, you can’t use it to sync the player to your computer, you can’t do anything else with it. It’s a complete waste of space and battery life. The Zune is also a victim of drm in another way. If you have bought any music online from iTunes or any other store that sells copy protected song files (such as Napster or MSN or Real) you won’t be listening to those songs on the Zune. After pushing a scheme called “Plays for Sure” (it should have been labeled PlaysMaybe) for the past couple of years, the Zune uses a new completely incompatible scheme. So you can either violate the DMCA and crack your old music, or start all over again.

Overall the whole device is so indebted to the big record labels that combined with all the technical problems described all over the net in the last couple of weeks, the insane drm just makes it more trouble than it’s worth. I would recommend that you vote with your money and buy any other player and also refuse to buy any CDs or music downloads that are copy protected. Demonstrate to the big labels and the bands that are associated with them that you want to buy music at a reasonable price, and only buy from places like EMusic, Mp3Tunes, AudioLunchbox and MaganTune. They sell straight up MP3s with no DRM. If the bands want your money they should sell the same way. Doug Morris has enough money and he should not be in charge of what we listen to, where we listen and how.

Movie remakes

This entry was posted in movies on by

We got the new 2006 version of The Omen in the mail from Netflix today and it raises a question. What is the point of remaking a film shot for shot from a one that was good to start with? If you have nothing new to offer, why bother to spend tens of millions of dollars to re-shoot it? With the new version Battlestar Galactica, the producers took the basic premise of the original, and then expanded and took it in new directions. This new version of The Omen, like the remake of Psycho, a few years back, is a complete replica of the original, with new actors and sets but nothing else new. Between shit like this and all the sequels it’s no wonder Hollywood is going down the tubes and it’s well deserved.

Best Ford and Sony commercial ever

This entry was posted in movies on by (updated 6584 days ago)

aston martin dbsJules, Max and I went to see Casino Royale this afternoon and it’s definitely the best Ford and Sony commercial yet. Oh yeah and it’s also a really good James Bond movie. The first chase sequence after the opening credits was absolutely amazing, and must be seen to be believed. The whole movie was really good, and Daniel Craig was a great choice to be the new Bond and is probably the best since Connery. Judi Dench looks great for 72 and as usual she put in a great performance as Bond’s boss M.
There was actually a decent story line and character development, with part of the plot here being the beginning of Bond’s career as a “00” agent. It’s not a great artistic triumph, but it is well crafted and entertaining.

However, it was hard to ignore all the product placement. As always, cars played a prominent part, with recent Bond films featuring a return to their Aston Martin roots after using Lotus and BMWs for several films from the late 70s to early 90s. These days Aston Martin is owned by Ford and the company definitely got their money’s worth in terms of screen time. In addition to the old ’64 Aston DB5 from the first Bond movies, there was a new custom made DBS, as well as lots of Jaguars, Land Rovers, Ranger Rovers and assorted other Ford brand vehicles. There was also a nicely shot sequence that would make a great commercial for the new European Ford Mondeo. Cell phones and laptops also played an important part in the plot, and the Sony-Erricson and Sony Vaio logos were clearly visible and legible at every opportunity.

In spite of all the logos, if you’re in the mood for a good, entertaining action flick that also has a plot and acting Casino Royale is definitely worth seeing.