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I whipped that puppy up three years ago.
Not that such a act says anything in particular about me being prescient — it probably could hold water to one degree or another at any time over the past 50 years — but the degree to which our “free markets” and posture on “freedom” have devolved (you can call it unintelligent design if you wish) from my idealistic notion of American life, I was practically forced to move away from The Big City.
The stench got too strong for my sinuses.
Arrest The President!!
Who is the man with the master plan
To smash Iran and then snatch they land?
They stashed Sadaam in the back of a van
Bin Laden chillin up in Amsterdam
They shoulda got him back in Afghanistan
They didn’t want him, Haliburton had to handle
Huge oil rigs to feed spoiled kids
Show Bush what unemployment is
Fire him right now. For lying, tie him down!
Put him in handcuffs and send him to Rykers Isle
For giving away his frequent flyer miles
To terrorist relatives on 9/12, flying them out
The truth is out. No denying it now
Because of the president, next to die is your child
Because the man who attacked us has never been captured
And matter of fact, uh, he used to back the
President, Bush, both old and new
With so much money that they didn’t know what to do
Except greed for more, make em bleed for oil
Give money to the rich and never feed the poor
USA’s “under seige” like Steven Segal
By a man who can’t even count from three to four
And if I get shot just for speakin to ya’ll
Arrest George Bush - That’ll even the scoreARREST THE PRESIDENT!
Politics, polished tricks
Secret societies in colleges
Home security, more impurities
Little kids cry, “Mommy George is scarin me!”
Home invasions in all these nations
What goes around comes around - Immigration
Each press statement’s a fabrication
A political porno with penetration
This generation needs integration
Education, But yet we’re facing
Inflation, high priced medication
Revelations - Jesus save him
Get him outta bed, he don’t need vacation
Hit him on the head, make him leave Camp David
Paybacks for ignoring threats from terrorists?
Yo… ARREST THE PRESIDENT!
Two years ago this month, I had the pleasure of catching the world premiere of The War Tapes at the Tribeca Film Festival as a guest of the director, Deborah Scranton.
If you’ve never seen TWT, the style and genre can only be described as Documentary 2.0 — soldiers on the front lines with cameras affixed to their shoulders, guns, the hoods of their vehicles, telling their stories while you watch what goes down, with Deborah IM’ing them each night from across the world to coordinate the progress of the film.
Tomorrow evening, Deborah’s latest film, BAD VOODOO’S WAR, will be broadcast by FRONTLINE at 9 P.M. ET on PBS.
If you miss the broadcast tomorrow night, be sure to catch the film, streaming, on the Frontline website.
Congratulations, Deb!
One of the many reasons I love visiting NYC is that I know I’ll most likely discover an inspiring indie film that has zero chance of reaching theaters back in Greensboro. Aside from the art house section within Carousel Cinemas, there just aren’t many theaters in the area that cater to such a niche.
Persepolis is a beautifully told and engaging, animated story of a young Iranian girl growing up during the Islamic Revolution and experiencing the changes that Islamic Law brought to her sense of freedom. Music is a huge element of the story, as she finds punk and metal to be the antithesis of acceptable forms of expression and a vehicle for rebellion — a similar post-puberty approach to rebellion by millions of kids back in the states, except this form of rebellion could get you hung… or worse.
The film is a tad bit long, but the story cries for details as it’s far more expansive than a coming of age story. Persepolis paints a vivid picture of life in Iran — how the Shah both entered and exited the scene, presenting a position on the United State’s role in the Iran/Iraq war and expressing day-to-day life in a country where freedom is more cherished by its people than oxygen — a complex situation often painted in broad strokes by Western media and history books.
The animation’s art direction is spot on and highly original. There were a few short war and protest scenes where the imagery seemed to be loosely referencing elements of The Wall, but much more as an ode to than a straight bite.
Persepolis is one of those films that really should be seen.
Along the lines of historical knowledge being dropped through art; if you’re looking for a song to provide factual, historical context to the situation in the middle east, I highly recommend Head (Of State) by The Coup.
As an anti-war song with a funky baseline and classic delivery of poignant lyrics, Everlast’s latest drop stands on its own. But there’s so much more going on in the subtext of this video:
Pray for me, pray for my soul, ma
…the video transitions to classic Christian imagery with similar poses in the graveyard before cutting back to Everlast singing…
Pray for me and all my sins
…he’s now in a classic Muslim prayer pose, with palms exposed to the sky.
Everlast first took Shahada back in the mid-90’s and has been an evolving, practicing Muslim ever since. I dug up this interview from the late-nineties where he describes the second time he took Shahada, but for the first time in earnest:
[...] So finally I’m sittin’ there taking Shahada again. From that point on I’ve made a commitment where I’m going to try my best. I’m gonna do my best to make my prayers, let’s start there. Let’s not beat ourselves up because we went out last night and had a drink. Let’s make our prayers and pray for the strength to stop doing one thing at a time. That’s what I’m still dealing with.
You know, once you get over the big things, it becomes very subtle. It can be as subtle as looking [at] a man, and not even speaking bad about him, but back-biting him in your mind. The easy ones to beat — well I shouldn’t say easy — the big ones are easy to notice. It’s the subtle psychological stuff that helps you get into who really you are. You gotta be able to face the truth of who you are. If you are not able to face that truth of who you are, you’re gonna crumble, man. [...]
Too often we think of the “sides” of both war and life in such simplistic, digestible, juxtapositions — Muslims vs. Christians or Good vs. Evil — that we miss out on understanding what leads up to humans behaving as we do. I mean, can you even begin to imagine what it must feel like for a once Christian, Irish-American white male who has professed Shahada to stare long and hard at the drivers of us going to war in the middle-east?
(via Navaho Gunleg)
Those who have passed through the U.A.E. on their way to Iraq or Afghanistan are already familiar with what has been dubbed by travelers as the "Axis of Evil" Terminal. I'm sure most, if not all Westerners who pass through Terminal 2 for the first time are immediately struck by two facts:
The first time I looked up at the arrival/departure display in Terminal 2 I couldn't help but chuckle to myself and pull out my camera for a shot.
I had an unexpected treat recently while transiting through the "Axis of Evil" terminal which made my transfer a true delight. I happened to be near the Kandahar departure line and saw a tall, heavy set Anglo appearing man with dreadlocks walk up and stand on line. A moment later he turned in my direction and I caught a glimpse of his shirt. On the front read "Fat People Are Hard To Kidnap".
I had trouble containing myself. Seeing the gentleman, reading the shirt, all while being in the environment we were in, ranked one of the funniest things I have seen in my years of travel. I soon approached the man and asked if I could take a shot of him without showing his face and he was happy to allow me the opportunity.
