I play rochambeau with ghosts, take photos of space, and ride my bike in the bus lane.
I just heard Yo La Tengo cover this during Todd-O-Phonic Todd’s WFMU marathon show.
Where else are you going to hear the original version of this song (on the radio) let alone hear Yo La Tengo cover it? Please help me in supporting freeform radio in the NYC area and all over the world via internet at wfmu.org! Tune in now and see Yo La Tengo destroy more classics live!
I’m listening to Terry Gross interview Bill Maher and Larry Charles (director of Borat) about the movie Religulous. While I haven’t seen it yet, I think I’ve heard enough to talk about it. Maher picks off low-lying fruit by singling out fundamentalist elements of religion but it needs to be done as it is the shrill element of religiousity that makes religion dangerous. People need their stories for moralism and philosophy but when the stories seriously cloud rational judgments about history, current events, and science, and are accepted as truth, they really do belong in a psych ward.
Later in the show, Terry interviews Steven Waldman, co-founder of Beliefnet — probably the closest thing to an objective platform for faith. The main topic of both interviews turned out to be Sarah Palin. There are Youtube videos and statements that raise all kinds of questions that have not yet been asked of Ms. Palin. Like Matt Taibbi, who has a long rant on Palin published at Rolling Stone and Alternet, I think the Palin phenomenon says really disturbing things about the American psyche in general. Here’s Taibbi’s windup:
The truly disgusting thing about Sarah Palin isn’t that she’s totally unqualified, or a religious zealot, or married to a secessionist, or unable to educate her own daughter about sex, or a fake conservative who raised taxes and horked up earmark millions every chance she got. No, the most disgusting thing about her is what she says about us: that you can ram us in the ass for eight solid years, and we’ll not only thank you for your trouble, we’ll sign you up for eight more years, if only you promise to stroke us in the right spot for a few hours around election time.
The Palin nomination really boggles my mind. I don’t think I’ll be watching her debate Joe Biden on Thursday. It’s getting too painful to watch this trainwreck.
Recommended: TPM gathers highlights of several economist views on the Wall Street bailout.
Dirty bannisters never go out of style
I celebrated Obama’s VP pick by making an avocado sandwich on multigrain bread with Bavarian mustard, Havarti cheese, romaine lettuce and Florida tomato. I have knighted it the Biden Sandwich.
What’s happening to good New York news and talk radio? WNYC moved into its new home on Prince Street and dropped some of my favorite programming for more locally-flavored jabber. The morning BBC was replaced with “The Takeaway” which is basically nonstop interviews with desk flunkies. BBC reporters are the real deal. When they interview political leaders from around the world, you can hear the “you’re really full of shite, aren’t you?” British tone in their questions, especially from Owen Bennett Jones. So great. I also miss “To the Point” with Warren Olney (produced by KCRW) in the afternoons. Olney has the BBC attitude. It was replaced with the lamely titled and lackluster “Tell Me More.” They still have “On Point” and maybe with all those good points being made, WNYC was feeling a little like porcupine radio. Thankfully, the dropped shows are all still available on the internet.
Likewise, I no longer listen to Air America with all my favorite shows gone. Who’s running that syndicate? Milktoast McMilquetoast? The internet really is the salvation of good programming with Sam Seder and Randi Rhodes also still available. It’s Friday ya Bastids! Classic. With regard to Rachel Maddow, good for her! “Live audience. Live punk band. You know, mariachis for important segues…” Open Left asks the necessary, Mommy, Where Do Wankers Come From? Kudos to the Professor for his summer radio/TV crap wrap-up.
One of these days, I’ll post about my internet music.