If MySpace Took Up Arms

What if you used your cell cam for everyday cutesy snippets of video like this?

I just viewed/read something on a blog that left me shaken and sickened. And no, it wasn't just the latest report about the ATL being the #1 tourist destination for sicko, sexually perverted men who want to harm our children. (That particular item was courtesy of Rusty at Radical Georgia Moderate.)

No, the horribly sickening stuff was within a post by an Iraqi citizen named Zeyad in his blog, Healing Iraq. I'll let his own words tell you what's happening there. (Attention to that blog courtesy of Jeff Jarvis at the always powerful, always righteous BuzzMachine.)

"Today it was all out war in Baghdad.

Please don’t ask me whether I believe Iraq is on the verge of civil war yet or not. I have never experienced a civil war before, only regular ones. All I see is that both sides are engaged in tit-for-tat lynchings and summary executions. I see governmental forces openly taking sides or stepping aside.

I see an occupation force that is clueless about what is going on in the country. I see politicians that distrust each other and continue to flame the situation for their own personal interests. I see Islamic clerics delivering fiery sermons against each other, then smile and hug each other at the end of the day in staged PR stunts.

I see the country breaking into pieces. The frontlines between different districts of Baghdad are already clearly demarked and ready for the battle. I was stopped in my own neighbourhood yesterday by a watch team and questioned where I live and what I was doing in that area.

I see other people curiously staring in each other’s faces on the street. I see hundreds of people disappearing in the middle of the night and their corpses surfacing next day with electric drill holes in them. I see people blown up to smithereens because a brainwashed virgin seeker targeted a crowded market or café. I see all that and more.

Don’t you dare chastise me for writing about what I see in my country."

Full post here. Some good news about the fate of that particular blogger here.


tags: Iraq, child prostitution, Atlanta, BuzzMachine, Media, Zeyad

Glimpse The Future

I know it's buried somewhere here in this chapati (huh?) from Jalan Gasing, Petaling Jaya, via Video Blogging Week. Wait until you smell the fried chicken and True-Gritz emanating from the web we got cookin' for you folks. Smack your lips, swing your partner, call Jethro in, put Granny out and stay tuned for more info real soon -- right here on this blog.

Dang. Now I've got a craving for Sri Pandi's and a cold one. Does Delta fly there? More importantly, if the pilots strike, would I get back in time for the Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper party on May 3? Save the date.

Coupla misc. notes... Dave over at Earthlink, thanks for that kind nod on the blog. Most cool. And everybody up for making Ray Davies an honorary Southerner? Seems he's seriously in the mood.

tags: videoblogging week, Ray Davies, Delta, Videoblogging Week

Rise Of The Emochor

"Emochor" = Opinionated (Emoting) Anchor. Like my new word? Those puppies are hot hot hot in cable news according to Michael Kinsley, one of the smartest yet slowest (in a good way) opinionists ever.

Kinsley writes/states-the-obvious in a Slate op-ed recently about the (premature) loss of objectivity in journalism:

"Journalists who claim to have developed no opinions about what they cover are either lying or deeply incurious and unreflective about the world around them. In either case, they might be happier in another line of work."

May I suggest blogging? Lord knows what you'll birth in the blogosphere, other than the usual case of snarky ennui. Let's call that one "snarkui." Damn. A whole new language emerges in one blog entry, but I diverge...

Obvious or not, this Kinsley quote is pretty darn good: "Nothing human is alien to Anderson Cooper; nothing alien is human to Lou Dobbs."

Watching Lou Dobbs do Emochor Man is like watching a Cynthia McKinney press conference: you can puff it up with enough hot air to go around the world, it's still a butt-ugly sight. Anderson on the other hand, well he can blow/emote until he's blue in the face, he'll still be a pretty boy.

Full story here.

tags: Anderson Cooper, Michael Kinsley, journalism, media, CNN, Cynthia McKinney

Review The Review

...because that's what bloggers do best. This review of the new Neko Case CD is moreorless on the money, in a rather bumbling guy-like way, yet it misses the decayed poetic that simmers over and under this astonishing record. Regardless, I too have played it at least 27X.

It's just that Steve Dollar writing about Neko Case is like using an automatic weapon to go duck hunting. Don't we wish Jeff Clark had handled this one himself?

Neko Case plays The Variety April 14th. Better get tix soon as it's sure to be a sellout.

tag: Neko Case

One Decaf Latte And A Political Life Please

What if you walked into your favorite cafe (I'm loving the new Caffe Bar Centrale on Howell Mill right now. Tres Italiano), ordered your double shot of espresso, sat down to power up the laptop with the free Wi-Fi you always take for granted, but alas, your precious free Wi-Fi was... poof... gone forever.

Alas again, that day is moreorless here, in the South at least. In case you've been living under a mighty big rock, the big telcos are fighting free broadband access tooth and nail. Winning too, thanks to their inherent corporate mission (they'd call it "ethics") of greed, ludicrously deep pockets and enough lobbying manpower to give Jack Abramoff an eternal hard-on.

Yep, it's a pay-to-play culture and nobody is throwing down harder than the major telcos. A pay-to-regulate culture is thriving (again) in the world of politics, kiddies, because that's where it all goes down. Not in the street, not in the cafe, not in the nightclub, the neighborhood bar, the workplace or the blogosphere. Nope, it all goes down in state capitol buildings every legislative session.

Consider this one chilling statement: (And if you're reading this over the Internet, which you are, it should register something in even the most apathetic pulse.)

"State laws ban municipalities from giving away broadband services."

Now who do you think got "The State" (that's us, folks) to ban "municipalities" (us again) from giving away broadband if they need to, or even just feel like doing so that day? Answer is: lobbyists and legislators working for BellSouth. And what do we the people, by allowing such legislation to originally be passed, get for our efforts in the hardest of times? A big fat NOTHING from BellSouth.

You think it doesn't matter? BellSouth laid the original lines, right? So why should they allow anyone to just give the Internet away? But what if a municipality (remember, "the people" again) wanted to lay some of their own lines? Ha! Dream on people, dream on. You are not in control. They are.

One place you can go for temporary shelter from this storm is to Earthlink instead of BellSouth. Earthlink, bless their little ATL-based hearts, has risen to the occasion and stepped in to help the City of New Orleans in their time of need. Go Earthlink go!

One other cool note about Earthlink, it was the second company to advertise on Rocketboom, demonstrating that those Earthlink hep cats are hip to the scene. But Lordy Mercy, that gal cain't dance worth a toot!


Enjoying Amanda Congdon's boobs is one thing. No doubt all you techno-minded types are just as capable of staying, uh, abreast of the broadband issues going down in your state -- and doing something about it with your head, your plastic, your blogs and... your votes.


tags: Amanda Congdon, Earthlink, net neutrality, New Orleans, broadband, wifi, boobs

Beautiful Sight

What a wonderful ending to a twisted, terrifying situation. One I admit I didn't hold out a whole lotta hope of ending well. Let's raise a glass to the courage and bravery of this astonishing American journalist. May God grant us all such bravery, endurance, strength, grace and courage under fire if we ever need it like that.

I promise not to whine once, for a whole day even, that I don't have an iPod or a date for the Neko Case show on the 14th - just to practice my own inner fortitude skills.

But don't burn that burka right away, hon. You may need it before long here in the States. God grant us strength and courage and tons of organizational skills when we hit the streets, which is where the battle to fight back for abortion rights will play out -- if things keep backsliding the way they are now.

Teed Off With BellSouth BS

Golf is a gentlemanly, quiet sport enjoyed by thousands of fine Georgia Republican men, right? Men who love their wives, children, SUVs and the Bill of Rights, yeah?

Wouldn't it be a fine, noble thing to turn on coverage this weekend of the BellSouth Classic here in town at Sugarloaf Country Club and see a sea of polite tee shirts on the greens, in the stands, directly behind the cameras that read: The Internet Belongs To Me? They could still wear those beloved plaid pants at the same time.

A gal's gotta dream big. Next year perhaps. In the meantime, I'll be switching over to something without a freakin' BellSouth line snaking into my home. So that means no Earthlink, either. Sorry guys. Comcast perhaps? Recommendations?

UPDATE: Real options are starting to come in. Gawd, I heart the Internet. And all before lunch too! Bye Bye BellSouth.

tags: golf, BellSouth, BellSouth Classic, Internet censorship, net neutrality, network neutrality, Earthlink

Saggy Celebs

Although I adore celeb butt-smacker mags such as the National Enquirer, Vanity Fair and the ATL's own Stomp and Stammer, I typically don't waste precious time blogging about celeb culture. I think the masses are fully supported on that front without my 2-cents.

However, I do enjoy the occasional click to Go Fug Yourself, particularly for their in-house obsession with Kirsten Dunst's boobs. No doubt you blogorati are already way ahead of me on this, but a quick glance at those seriously droopy ones can make any middle-aged mom quite proud of the way her own are holding up so well.

Movin' On Up

How do I love my 'hood? Let me show you four of the reasons, within a mile radius of my house, I pass every day...


1.) Puppet-esque folk by the side of the road:

2.) A rather large sink hole:

3.) Just another basic, red roadside rocket:

4.) A pretty cool piece of available real estate I'd love to purchase just because I could:

Sigh... look now because none of these loopy "artifacts" will be around about a year from now I bet. Sometimes progress for progress' sake and gentrification for gentrification's sake is just so goddamn boring.

Call To Redneck Jihad

I never thought I'd be the one to send you to a fake blog, but this blog thread about taking kids to the liquor store will have you ROLFing in a way you haven't since you first discovered the Internet, back when there were under 100K people on AOL. (I was one of 'em!)


Just kicking myself that I actually had to commit real work today and didn't get to contribute before the thing "closed." Again, it's a fake, corporate-sponsored blog, but hilarious today nonetheless. Give funny where funny is due.

Off to the stoning!

It Takes A Village...

.... of anti-immigration reform supporters to smear a man's reputation. Yesterday's AJC article featuring the passionate and controversial (funny how those two are never seen without each other) D.A. King made sure to hint loudly that he was a white supremist.

D.A. King is not a white supremist. I know NPR-regular-pledger types (yeah, all those bed-wetting liberals that talk-show hosts get rich from by inciting the feeble-minded masses to foam at the mouth about) who have heard and support his message challenging action and reform on illegal (key word there, folks) immigration. As I said in Peach Pundit and I'll say it again here:

"Inflaming illegals and their (primarily student) supporters to protest, as many are doing all across the country now, is one thing.

So is resorting to smearing D.A. King’s mission by suggesting he’s a white supremist, as some people interviewed for the AJC article clearly set out to do. King is by no means a white supremist. I know socialist-minded NPR-listeners who have heard his message and support him.

But what about our family, friends and obnoxious neighbors who are making money hand over fist by employing illegals for their construction sites, work crews, etc.? (Hell, illegals built/build this city, not rock and roll, but I diverge…)

Those kind of cul-de-sac Republicans would be the first to NOT do anything at all about immigration reform. They just look the other way and send them back to Buford Highway where the illegals are suddenly able to magically aquire all the right paperwork to get back on the job - fast too.

Wink, nod, phoney papers, cash flows in. Everybody’s happy, right?"

tags: D.A. King, Immigration Reform, Senate Bill 529

Ordered To Party City

Vampire LeTot, meet Harry Potterette. When not downloading for Disney or making pancakes for dinner, I am instructed to function chiefly as a riding intructor at the Hogwarts Riding Ring of Magical Misbehavior where I am told to instruct only Harry Potterette to use her wand to toss an evil yet undoubtedly invisible Draco Malfoy from the ring of perfect little riders.

And yes, there will come a time when Potterette discovers that Draco has his own fan site. Until then, we live a quiet, magical life.

World 'O Grayson

Sometimes I just hate being normal. Or is it that I secretly hate being Southern American? Or could it be that I was raised in such an astonishingly sexist environment whereby women were so "invisible," as the wise Anna Quindlen calls such dark times, that I'm still too scared to consider myself in any artistic context for fear of being even more marginalized than I was as a powerless child?

The psychology of it all is too much for me; thus my silly housekeeping obsession. You know what "they" always told me about wicked, idle hands... they being the women who raised me yet never once had to lift a finger to support themselves. House Ho's all! But enough bitterness for one blog...

Why can't I be more like... Grayson Perry? (See above photo.)

Instead of the usual vaccuming, scrubbing and laundering I am called and compelled to do on Sunday mornings until I'm blue in the face (when I'm not in church of course), I defiantly sat down and googled other people named "Grayson," whereby I came immediately across a British cross-dressing contemporary ceramic artist.

For his creative efforts this Grayson wins grand awards that pay tens of thousands of dollars. For mine, I am derided, further ignored by immediate family members (if that was at all possible) and reduced to blogging for a living. But oh how I do go on. UPDATE: Kevin at NG has an interesting reflection on fame and fortune. Summary: why bother?

I am fascinated by this Grayson Perry of Essex, England. Not only does he live life in a series of delightfully complex costumes, he even looks to be in normal life (see above photo) as I imagine (if I allowed myself such creative license) I might look if I was a man. Also, my paternal grandmother's maiden name was "Perry." If ever there was a more "maidenly" married woman it would have been her, but oh how she loved me and oh how I diverge...

I doubt Grayson Perry's namesake is, as is mine, a hand-me-down from a South Carolina ancestor with a pronounced literary inclination, albeit one terribly reflective of the times in which he lived, worked and flourished.

To find our shared ancestory, we'd no doubt have to work our way back to... The Druids! I must admit to a bit of wonder, pride and sheer delight in being able to google one's ancestor and discover that he served in Congress.

To celebrate, I might go really wild and not vaccum at all today. I might instead take a moment to think on family members currently serving in Iraq and Afganistan, and ditch the anti-American moments of self-loathing that can haunt us all -- while corsetted as a Moulin-Rouge barmaid of course.

tags: Grayson Perry, W.J. Grayson, U.S. Congress, Neko Case. This blog entry put together by Neko Case's Fox Confessor Brings The Flood.

Peach Delight

Wow! In lieu of a blog/tuna roll, there are three metro ATL, fem-stemmed blogs I need to tell you about:

First is poet Tania Rochelle's blog, The Stone's Colossal Dream. Lordy hon, if anyone needed to be blogging, it's this woman. Tania once graced the pages of my old literary-minded site, WaySouth, with her poems, which to this day still blow me away and tend to float and linger through my head at the strangest times. If she has a live reading, you'll be sure to be alerted here on my blog.

Second is Sherry Heyl and her fabulously in-the-know, techno-savvy and way-into-the-future blog, What A Concept! Who needs anything remotely like "traditional" press or MSM if you've got the poop from this PR princess.

Third is the delightfully blunt feminazi, Amber Rhea, and her articulate, witty and seriously sharp blog, Being Amber Rhea.

Dang these women are good. Smack your lips and go on back for more.

One more thing 'fore I let ya go, anyone out there still pooh-poohing the power of the blogosphere, just look where Yours Truly ended-up today. Pretty cool, huh? Dude'd have my vote -- if I lived in Savannah.

tag: Jack Kingston

Ain't Too Proud To Blog

Another Republican "gets it." This time, it's Savannah Congressperson Jack Kingston who is heralding the good New Media news. You may recall Kingston as the first Congressperson to be interviewed on the then-nascent Colbert Report. Kingston was chortling through that whole "interview" which led me to believe that he was pretty clued-in and diggin' the whole New Media vibe.

Fall in line, folks. Local Dems in particular. I hear Cutie Pie Edwards is way ahead of the curve - laying low on the Internet and building a powerful online presence to prep for becoming the anti-Hillary in '08.

I'm downloading as fast as I can!

tags: Georgia, John Edwards, Jack Kingston, New Media

Stock Up

Hispanics in Georgia are scheduled to do as they're told and all walk-off the job tomorrow, Friday. Now how exactly do you start that darn lawnmower?

Desperate Democrats

Hear Ye Hear Ye. Democrats in the Georgia Senate are hoping to pass legislation to further "Bible literacy." This bill of theirs would allow the teaching of the Bible in public schools as elective courses for academic, literary and cultural pursuits, not for religious indoctrination. So they claim today.

Of course this is just gross pandering to the religious-minded voter (is there any other kind in Georgia right now?), but wouldn't it be nice to focus on plain 'ole "literacy" in the Georgia public school system? Lord knows how many business ventures we've lost because we can't offer the world an educated work force.

One Georgia Dem not pandering to the right, and who isn't afraid to highlight the hypocrisy of pols such as Ralph Reed, is Lt. Governor candidate Greg Hecht. I attended a fundraiser at yet another overwraught Buckhead mansion last night for Hecht. The hosts' bodacious home (not the Hechts) looked to be decorated by Biggus Dickus himself!

Gawd, you gotta love the nouveau riche. Nothing says "Look, I made it big time" better than that predictable High Bordello style they inevitably favor whereby one takes the tackiest item one can find, a fake-jewel encrusted chandelier for instance, and blows it up to monstrously ludicrous proportions.

It was a bit hard to focus on Hecht's message for all the gawdy trappings, but somehow, fortified with 2 glasses of ok wine, I managed. Steve Lundquist, the Olympic gold medalist in swimming, introduced Hecht at the event since he, Lundquist, lives somewhere near Hecht, on a golf course in Jonesboro I'd imagine. Lundquist is a powerful, charming figure and speaker, and should consider a career in Georgia politics himself.

I also overheard some loudmouth do-gooder-and-don't-you-forget-it type shouting to Eldrin Bell, Commissioner of Clayton County, that a very informal poll within the "disadvantaged" school he graces with his volunteer presence showed that 54% of the "disadvantaged" kids have Internet access at home. A most interesting factoid indeed.

tags: Life of Brian, Greg Hecht, Georgia Democrats, Buckhead, Bible literacy

A Digital Dialog and Dialect 24

Southern culture was all over the airwaves - and no, it wasn't coming out of Austin. My current state of SXSW attendance-envy: about off the charts.

Sigh... like He Who Must Not Be Named would even think to bring me a tee shirt; the absurdist things I long for and know I'll never have. And the reality is that I'm so goddamned easy to please. One stupid little tee shirt would rock my world for days. Months even. (Note to AMB core committee from Wednesday night: I think we've seen the emergence of the Cape Society. Here lies the need. And the handshake is... TBD!)

But back to the real South... Morning Edition had a wonderful piece about the translating of the New Testament into Gullah. You can listen to a bit here. How wistful. My mother can lapse into Gullah in a second flat, having grown up in the Lowcountry. I think when white folks use the same dialect they call it Geechee, though.

Then later in the day Thursday, there was a dedication of a reading garden at Wren's Nest, the Atlanta home of the 19th century AJC and Uncle Remus stories (Brer Rabbit) editor, Joel Chandler Harris. H.L. Mencken sure didn't think much of his efforts though.

The reading garden is a gift from the Troy-Bilt tiller company. Mom notes that she once drove all the way to Atlanta in the '70s to have our Troy-Bilt serviced. Those things used to be Hummers of the organic gardening hippie crowd. No self-sufficent, self-sustaining pine scrub complex, compound, commune or cult could've functioned without 'em.

If you like storytelling, and especially Southern ghost stories, there's no better place to get your fix than with fellow Atlantan, Craig Dominey's Moonlit Road. Take a turn down that one if you dare.

tags : SXSW, Brer Rabbit

Take This Grit And Shove It

Oh Lordy, here we go again. Another Charleston, S.C. foody piece by the word-stuffed R.W. Apple. He's the Pat Conroy of the culinary world, all puffed up on ludicrous, flowery verbage of every flavor. Apple writes about the South only to name-drop at a furious pace and announce, again, that he just happens to be married to a bona fide Charleston blue blood from the such-and-such line of so-in-so's. As if he picked a spouse from a horse auction catalog.

I'd no sooner announce I was married to a Charlestonian than I'd, uh, attend a Clap Your Hands Say Yeah (Say Gag) show. It's nothing to go around bragging about.

In my considerable experience, Charlestonians are some of the most dangerous, secretive, alcoholic, paranoid, provincial, repressed, repressive, conservative wackos on the planet. After all, who started one of the bloodiest, costliest wars this world has ever seen because a few Yankees pissed the blow-hards off? Wasn't exactly a bunch of dudes from New Orleans. No, it was a bunch of the stubbornest men the world has ever known -- ones straight outta South Carolina. I'd know a little something about them too, as would John McCain.

But don't take my word. I just grew up there. So did Stephen Colbert; here's what he has to say on the subject. Don't say I didn't warn you.

One true confession, the Hominy Grill Apple writes about in today's NYT is really quite fabulous. The food is mouth-watering and the notable locals-watching superb. Also, an authentic Charleston relative sent, at my request, the Hominy Grill's pickled shrimp recipe. Wouldn't dream of going to a pot-luck, steeplechase, tent revival, Cocks game, fox hunt or visitor day at the State Pen without a big 'ole tub of it. Smack Your Lips Say Yum. Now don't you wish you had that recipe? If you're nice to me and link to my blog a lot, well maybe just maybe I'll post it here.

tags: R.W. Apple, Charleston, SC, Stephen Colbert

Let's Go Snipey

Oh this is fun. Our own Leonard Witt, writer of the excellent blog, Public Journalism Network, or PJNET, and a founding member of Atlanta Media Bloggers, is having a delightful little rowe with some pompous ass over at the CJR Daily. My prediction... any arguing with someone named "Felix Gillette" won't end well.

FYI all, Atlanta Media Bloggers will be meeting tomorrow night, Wednesday the 15th, at 7pm at Loop Pizza in Buckhead. As we have yet to have a coherent website for our interesting yet unorganized little organization, I can't really link you to anything with an "official" announcement, but I sure hope to see 'ya there. Then I fly out to play SXSW.

Yeah right... had you going there for a sec, eh? I just wanted to type-out what it would feel like to say something so utterly pretentious. Hipster dreamin' again I go. Silly girl. And yes, I'd about run over my grandma to be there. Billy Bragg's awaitin' our mutually held shared destiny I just know.

tag: Billy Bragg

Red Emma

Maureen Stapleton, who played Emma Goldman in Reds and won an Oscar for her efforts, has died. This is sad. She was an interesting, enigmatic woman who was perfectly cast to play an interesting, enigmatic woman. And Reds, regardless of one's political inclinations, is simply one of the best movies ever made - in any genre.

Not only did it gorgeously showcase the acting wizardry of Jack Nicholson, Diane Keeton and Warren Beatty in their absolute, charismatic primes, it told a riveting epic tale, albeit a highly dramatized version, of a critical point in American political history. It's a must-see for any history or politico enthusiast, although it's not out on DVD.

HBO was running it recently, however. It's a big-screener kinda show, so make sure you have access to one of those monster TVs if you land a TiVo'd viewing. Also, the March '06 issue of Vanity Fair had a piece about the making of Reds, complete with some fantastic, never-before-seen photos of Beatty and Nicholson on the Reds set.

Reds was such a powerful artistic force that it inspired at least one impressionable, rather spacey young lady to kinda dreamily study American labor history as a college student. Now I wonder who that might have been...

Here's my analytical ode to what could possibly be my favorite movie, if GWTW didn't exist, of course.

tags: Maureen Stapleton, Reds, Emma Goldman

Before They Were Known Ice Freaks

So word on the street is that the AJC could be nominated for three Pulitzers this year. You rock Big Cin D T! And one of the categories is Breaking News - for the courthouse shooting last year, a year ago to the day I believe.

And guess who wrote the, kinda sorta, breaking news guest editorial about Ms. Smith on 3/15/05? Yep, that would be Yours Truly, Spacey G. I wonder if this will make me a Pulitzer nominee by association? Beats me. E-mail the AJC and ask. Here's a re-print for ya, without their permission, as technically it is now intellectual property of the AJC. Think I'm gonna go stir-up a Dirty Girl martini and toast myself nonetheless! Brini will be so proud.


March 15, 2005
COURTHOUSE SHOOTINGS
Hostage's story didn't have price tag
By GRAYSON _________________

Ashley Smith gives new meaning to the phrase "free press." Smith, the woman who miraculously managed to keep her considerable wits about her while being held hostage by fugitive Brian Nichols in her Gwinnett County apartment for hours on Saturday, gave away her astonishing story of courage and bravery for free.

In this day and age of extreme intellectual property concerns, she didn't have to do that. And who would have faulted her, a widow with a small child, for holding out for a paid "exclusive," even if it were with a disreputable tabloid or TV news channel? Instead, Smith told her compelling account of the ordeal to a frenzied, sleep-deprived press pack-at-large on Sunday night in her attorney's office.

Anyone remotely interested could have been there to record this narrative, from a lone blogger to Peter Jennings himself. Credentials are rarely checked at such hurried proceedings. All anyone really need do to be considered "media" nowadays is simply to show up where the action is.

Once there, every adrenaline-crazed member of every media outlet present at the news conference, be it local, national, print, Internet or television, was riveted into complete silence for a record-breaking 45 minutes. They actually listened to her explanation. For that astonishing feat alone, she should be generously compensated.

Her talk did not come cheap. Indeed, words seemed to have saved her life. It seems Smith was able to calm Nichols with the only weapon available to her throughout the ordeal - the words of her heart and mind. And whether they came from God or from mere strong wits, her words resonated powerfully for many this past weekend, and paved a significant path for law enforcement to do its assignment as well.

Smith could have recorded an account of her nightmare, with a lone camera crew perhaps. Then she could have taken possession of the tape, declared it her valuable property and decided for herself what to do with it; the amazing story was hers alone to tell. It did not necessarily belong to us, the demanding public.

That is what we, as free Americans, are constitutionally allowed to do: own property, intellectual or otherwise. A brave, honest woman who stared down terror and lived to tell the tale decided to give the people what they wanted to hear - and chose not to charge or manipulate or corrupt the information process we commonly refer to as "the media."

A free press is a two-way street; when we go back and forth at will, then the media actually work for us - the public. It's up to us to note Smith's astonishing example, and use media wisely if they come our way. Of course, Smith probably will receive reward money for turning Nichols over to authorities. And possibly, she will make future deals, such as the sale of film rights, which may offer further compensation.

Let's hope such future agreements are lucrative ones. She deserves every penny.


tags: Pulitzer Prize, AJC, Cynthia Tucker, Courthouse Shooting

Shut Up And Sing

Faith Hill, and her equally inarticulate husband, Another Fakey Country Singer I could care less about, is babbling on about things that, like, uh, totally, kinda, get 'em all upset and stuff! Like crying and everything. She's so emotional over the response to Hurricane Katrina, she's even blurted the curiously strong word "bullshit," presumably about the Bush Administration.


Hard to tell, as Ms. Hill's natural ability to mangle a message is rivaled only by W himself. And has it not been, like, six months since every level of government managed to, like, totally fail the people of New Orleans? Where's that woman been? On tour or something?

So where's all that lucrative patriotism now? United Arab Emirates I guess. Here's a delighfully dopey selection from Ms. Hill's (hopefully fleeting) foray into the political arena:

"I fear for our country if we can't handle our people [during] a natural disaster. And I can't stand to see it. It doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure out point A to point B. . . . And they can't even skip from point A to point B. It's just screwed up."

tag: Faith Hill

Git Miz Ellen's Poteers Weez Goin' To Da ATL

Atlanta - the city too busy to notice that no one likes us anymore. In a matter of hours we lost a museum, a Fortune 500 company, a few thousand more jobs and a monster truck-load of pride.

Meanwhile, our former Golden Boy of a mayor is doing the I’m Not Really A Perp walk for local media every day. At least no one cares enough about Atlanta to send much in the way of national media to cover this sorry state of affairs. Otherwise, we would be The City Too Pitiful To Hate.

Enough whining. Shirley has a boatload of damage control to do now, and she needs every citizen to help The Beloved Cause. So let’s get started. For once, can we all just forget the “global arena” for a few seconds and concentrate on our own backyard? Every PR person and spin-meister in town needs to roll-up their sleeves and get to work in there.

Forget Hollywood for a moment. Pretend California doesn’t exist. Go native. Go local. Eat at the Varsity. Go to spring training at Georgia Tech. Annoy people at parties by droning on about the time your brother fell out of the Pink Pig when it used to be at the downtown Rich’s. Remind them of the Pink Pig’s resurrection at Lenox every Christmas.

Don’t stop there. Tell friends and family about the stunning fireworks display at Lenox every Fourth of July. Do not leave town for vacation this July 4. Stay here this summer and go see that one urban wonder alone.

Grab a laptop and head to the world’s hottest Wi-Fi spot, Hartsfield-Jackson. Don’t worry if you can’t even power the thing up. Just pretend! Trust me, Hartsfield-Jackson is the best place in town to find a date. Think about it, not much else to do while passing through except strike up a conversation with that hottie on the laptop next to you on Concourse T (the coolest concourse by far). Sure beats Match.com.

Visit the Zoo. Take a Republican to Manuel’s Tavern on some of our new sidewalks. Drive around Nisky Lake. Take a tour of Auburn Avenue and see what’s happening there. Then keep going and be stunned by the trendy urban renewal efforts going on in any direction you head.

People in in-town neighborhoods, get with the program. Bore colleagues to tears by going on forever about all the majestic trees on your street. Pretend you’re a wild and crazy youth again by eating at the real Majestic on Ponce.

Tell a Yankee about the local music scene and our venues where the world's trendiest acts pass through: The Variety, Eardrum, the EARL, the Tabernacle. The Symphony’s got it going on, or what about that hilarious children’s show every Saturday at Dad’s Garage Theater in Inman Park? Talk-up amazing local radio stations like AM1160, WRFG or WRAS.

Fly in Sir Elton and make him drive around the perimeter until things improve. Send Jane Fonda back to Hollywood until we perk-up. Re-enact something! Anything.

Heck, everybody, make a wacky film about traffic conditions and send it all over the Internet. Better yet, make a cool artsy film about, say, Oakland Cemetery and send that all over the Internet.

In addition, be sure to drive down Peachtree Battle when the azaleas are in bloom. Then blog to the world that if that’s not the prettiest boulevard in springtime on the face of the planet then you’re Ashley Wilkes. The world will be hard-pressed to argue back about that.

And please, visit the Aquarium and then walk through Centennial Park at dusk. If you get mugged, blame me. I live just a mile or so away, and likely always will.

But hurry, the azaleas won’t last long. I hear Peggy Mitchell’s ghost is threatening to move to Macon. And Lewis Grizzard’s is headed to Charlotte.

tag: Atlanta

If I Have To Go To One More Monster Truck Rally

In Arts news worth mentioning on a Friday before the E. Rivers talent show...

Cate Blanchette is playing Hedda Gabler on the stage. I'd about run over my mother to see this. Alas, it's only until March 26 and only in Brooklyn, so only people who are hipper than you will ever see it.

Half Man Half Biscuit, the greatest band you've never heard of, until now, deigns to do an interview. I'll leave you with a lyrical sample. Have a great weekend all!

I could have put my head in a bucketful of porridge
And moaned about the hospital parking scheme.
I would've saved 14 pounds that I just splashed out on your second album,
For that's what it's akin to
And furthermore
You've got a shit arm
And that's a bad tattoo.

"Shit Arm, Bad Tattoo" (Achtung Bono)


tags: Cate Blanchette, Half Man Half Biscuit

Eyes Wide Shut

In their latest installment of "Helpful Hints On How To Manage Your Own Private Life! Or Face Jail Time," the Georgia Senate has passed legislation requiring women to "look at" a fetus by ultrasound before having an abortion.

Calm down, folks! This may not necessarily be a bad thing. If the fetus looks like, say, Nancy Schaefer or Ralph Reed you can immediately proceed to abort. On the other hand, if it looks like, oh, George Clooney, Ralph Fiennes or the ultra-yummy Joaquin, then by all means keep it!

tag: abortion

Love Your Power Trip, Grrl Fren!

Who's the scariest woman in the state? (And no, it's not Nancy Schaefer, although she's way up there at the top of the list. Just take a look at her handiwork, the fascist Fundy scripture she crafted in SB 429. But I diverge...)

I think the winner in the Scariest Georgia Gal 2006 pageant is Sally Yates.

I'm beginning to think the whole Campbell trial really calls into question Yates' motivations, and when Ummm Ummm Campbell (and others) cry-to-the-sky that she is bringing down the whole force and wrath of the U.S. government on one 'lil bitty 'ole innocent head for personal revenge, complete with all the truly frightening law enforcement tentacles of our beloved government, he's got an old and valid point.

Sally's husband, Comer, was defeated by the true Mouth of The South, Cynthia McKinney, back in the mid-90s. McKinney's most vocal and visible supporter at the time: then-Mayor C. (More about this cultural phenomena in my blog entry after attending Yates' esteemed father-in-law's funeral here.)

Yates obviously clawed her way to the teetering top of the heap, and is, for her efforts, one of the most powerful women in the country, not just the ATL. But she married into her good name. I wonder what people really think of her.

See why you gotta love this trial, folks! This is old, Old South stuff going on here: the white elite musterin' (still considerable) forces against the (once) new black power structure. Race does play a part, and anyone who says race is irrelevant to ground-shakingly powerful circumstances of the world today is an utter fool.

tag: Sally Yates

How Peachy Is Your Uterus?

Better make sure it's up to par, as male Fundy politicians could come knocking on your door to examine it personally if things keep up the way they are currently in the Georgia Legislature, in this mid-way point of this horrendous session we're all suffering through.

Things are at such absurd levels, given the height of male hysteria over women's health and reproductive issues under the Gold Dome, that even the AJC noticed! Says it, in a staff editorial today:

"This is not the year of the woman at the General Assembly; it's the year of the womb.

A batch of anti-abortion measures is racing through the General Assembly, all of which reduce a pregnant woman to a vessel. One bill accords an embryo the same legal standing as the pregnant woman herself. Another allows pharmacists to refuse to fill prescriptions for emergency contraceptives. Among the most intrusive is SB 429, which forces a pregnant woman to have a sonogram or ultrasound for no medical reason whatsoever."

Seems like a revival of some of that there good old-fashioned radical feminist strategy is gonna have to be hauled out of the closet and dusted-off before too much longer.

"Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi; you're my only hope."
"Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi; you're my only hope."
"Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi; you're my only hope."

tag: Georgia Legislature

Find Andy's Mind

Apparently a bit difficult this year, as it's all over the place. Andrew Young's poised to whoop it up on the stand today for close personal pal, Ummm Ummmm (Good Where It Matters Most) Campbell. And then he's schillin' and trillin' for Wal-Mart. Huh?

As I mention over at Peach Pundit, not Peach Buzz, this could be a totally good thing. We'll now be able to get our Heroes Of The Civil Rights Movement action figures at really amazingly low prices! Like a set of 6 for 5-bucks. Comes with linkable arms and a free "We Shall Overcome" sound chip. Collect 'em all. Bridge sold separately. Not to be made in Atlanta though. Nor Georgia. Heck, not even the U.S. How about China?!

Awesome.

More like things are starting to have a faint whiff of misguidance, akin to that hideous Edward the (once) VIII and that most supreme of hags, Wallis Simpson, and their devotion to all-things-fascist during WWII.

tag: Andrew Young

Gorgeous Goths

As I recently referenced Marilyn Manson in a post to a Georgia political, heavily Republican blog, Peach Pundit, I just remembered that Manson's December wedding to the stunning burlesque performer, Dita Von Teese, is featured in the latest Vogue.

Got mine in the mail yesterday. Run, do not walk, to the newsstand to get your copy now. Dita's (numerous) wedding-related gowns and outfits are just wild with style and passions. Vivienne Westwood creations are front and center, of course. Gives me plenty of ideas for that all-important second wedding, should I ever set my sights on such a thing. (White will be banned from that event. Wore that once; got me nowhere fast.)

Note Ms. Teese's strong Scarlett O'Hara influence and resemblance. Now there's a fashionista icon a Southern girl can smack her lips about!

tags: Vogue, Marilyn Manson wedding, Vivienne Westwood

South Shall Never Rise Again Now

Not in any Big Media kinda way. I am so very sorry, folks. Believe me when I tell you, I really did try to purchase Turner South, chiefly to keep it out of the filthy hands of sports-addicted Yankees and meglomaniacal Australians. But, oh, the programming fun I'd have!

At my friend Suzan's suggestion, and being a little low on the millions last week, I offered John Schuerholz a case of bourbon and a truckload of soybeans for our beloved, quirky channel, as a stand-alone deal that is, minus the Braves.

As the Braves' GM and I patronize the same hair salon, I was laboring under the impression of having exclusive access to the inner sanctum of Big Media wheelin' and dealin' when Mr. Schuerholz told me (of my offer), "That'll get you in the door." Funny, I never was able to locate that particular door. Fat Cat liar.

But a girl can still have her southern culture Big Media dreams, now can't she? Heck, if I hadn't pissed-off every last one of my rich relatives by now, I'd be halfway there.

Back to bloggin' on the front porch fer me, lovies...

tags: Turner South , John Schuerholz

Do You Idolspize?

Idolspize: a perfect new word for what is an age-old cultural phenomenon - secretly loathing/admiring those whom you claim to admire/loath.

The Washinton Post online has a marvelous article about this particularly insidious emotion, featuring the author's personal source of idolspizery, Susan Orlean. (Good source I must admit!) From the Post:

"Let me explain. It recently became clear to me that modern life has spawned a brand new emotion, that psychological sidewalk-crack between envy and idolatry that we often succeed in jumping over, but once in a while fall right through. That's where we meet them, those of superior beauty, character, talent and intelligence and, if friends, who are never less than loyal, supportive, generous and kind. For this we loathe them."

I'll 'fess up with my own idolspized short-list: Julia Reed, Tift Merritt (above photo), Hollis Gillespie, Marina Rust, Cynthia Tucker, Brini, Reese Witherspoon, my old college roommate who's now the first female chief-of-staff at her hospital. (You should see her house.)

Also, Brini's podcast, on alt.NPR (cute, huh) is here. Subscribe and be at peace with the charming vision of The World As You And Brini Know It Should Be.

tags: Brini Maxwell, Tift Merritt, idolspize

Condom Broke? Return It To These Dudes

Georgia politicians are lurking around our beds, again. Three of 'em are shown here. Click on a pic for mailing addresses.

Back off Fundies, least someone dare have sex for recreational purposes only here in the Peach State. The nerve. Is there anything more laughable than another uptight, white male Republican so terrified of women (and men presumably) gettin' off that they bluster about all puffed-up with piety, writing up absurdist, childish, time-wasting attempts to legislate our morality for us?

How can you slam the door in the face of these intrusive, Republican, male privacy-mongers, with their highly deceptive attempts to confuse the public and hinder access to birth control? By writing to your Georgia State Senator, find yours here, and asking them to stop Senate Bill 123, which is in committee chats as we speak.

But first, some extremely critical background... do you know the difference between "emergency contraception" and the "abortion pill?" Don't lie. You likely couldn't tell me the difference; I was totally confused myself.

Here's the difference between the two, according to About.com:

"The Emergency Contraception Pill, or morning after pill, is a pill that is available as a combination of estrogen-progestin, or progestin only (Plan B is one brand name of this). These are the exact same medications that are contained in normal, daily, birth control pills. They work to inhibit ovulation, fertilization, and implantation of the egg in the uterus. Emergency contraception does not work if a fertilized egg has already implanted (i.e. the woman is pregnant). The pill can be used within 72 hours of sex to prevent a pregnancy.

RU-486, or abortion pill, is a pill taken in combination with prostaglandin. Ru-486 is a high dose of mifepristone, which works to block the creation of progesterone, a hormone that is necessary to create and sustain pregnancy. This triggers the uterus to shed its lining and opens the cervix."

Full definition here.

But SB123 reads like this, totally confusing two very different prescriptions:

First Reader Summary:

A BILL to be entitled an Act to amend Code Section 16-12-142 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to requiring medical facilities or physicians to perform abortions and requiring others to assist, so as to provide that a pharmacist who states in writing an objection to any abortion shall not be required to fill a prescription for an emergency contraceptive drug which purpose is to induce and effect an abortion; to provide that such refusal shall not be the basis for any claim for damages; to provide for the duration of the effectiveness of the written objection; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

Is this written to intentionally confuse the public and further a thinly-veiled pro-life, religious agenda? Or is it written just because no senator shown here bothered to do his homework? Or both?

The way this bill is worded, and let's hope this language is changed soon or better yet, just thrown out altogether, a Fundie pharmacist could refuse to fill a prescription that could ultimately PREVENT an unwanted pregnancy by use of emergency contraception, or EC. Emergency contraception won't even work if someone is already pregnant! So it can't induce an abortion at all; that's a job for RU-486, not EC. So opposing abortion on moral grounds is one thing; prescribing EC is another. We're talkin' apples and oranges, folks.

Taking such a righteous, moral superiority-based action thus furthers the possibility of producing yet another abortion if an unwanted pregnancy ultimately takes place and is ultimately aborted. That makes NO sense whatsoever. Seems like anyone honestly opposed to abortion, and not just pushing their religious doctrine on us, would want to work towards preventing ALL unwanted pregnancies.

Don't we all have a common goal of reducing the total number of abortions performed? Put your money where your mouth is, Fundies, and PREVENT the need for abortion in the first place by making more options for birth control readily available to the public.

Or what the hell, just by-pass the political system altogether. It's a free market world now isn't it? Do your own here, but the Spacey Gracey Review does NOT endorse this method. Not while control of one's own reproductive destiny is legal - and safe - at least.

Tags: emergency contraception, Georgia State Senate, abortion

What's In Your Purse, Ladies?

Don't you Atlanta gals, particularly Marion and Martina, wish you had this handy little site back in the day? Could've saved oodles of time on the stand fer sure.

All Men Are Liars

But not so much so as All Men Are Greedy. Bottom line: a satisfied woman does not cheat, and eventually is made a fool of; a satisfied man gets overly-inflated, and eventually makes a fool out of himself.

In more hot news from the Campbell trial, girlfriends are just comin' outta the woodwork down at the Big Dick, the Richard B. Russell Federal Building. (Give a shout-out to former Channel 2 man-about-town, Patrick Crosby. He works there; he should receive a prize for looking good while looking busy.) Get one off the stand, and, ooops, up pops another.

This week, the feds introduce Martina Jimenez... the adorable Ms. Jimenez loves charitable gifting, estate planning and, alledgedly, married men. Just the discreet kinda gal to, uh, manage your hard (earned of course) assets, n'est pas? Here's her website.

The way things are going, Bill Campbell may singlehandedly reverse six years of anti-American sentiment, derision and contempt on the part of the French. You know how they love a good extramarital romp over there. See Monsieurs and Mesdames, we're not all so deadly dull and provincial after all!

Quiz: Name the artist who wrote/sings today's headline and win a prize. (No, it isn't Edith Piaf.) Prize TBD by staff of the Spacey Gracey Review. Prize value not to exceed cost of dinner and a hotel room for just another night out on town for former Atlanta mayors.

tags: Bill Campbell trial, Martina Jimenez

Left Behind Brainless

I am so OVER families of 9/11 victims wailing and gnashing their teeth, again. Bizarre, PR-related hysterics seem to happen every time they are not magically granted special privileges and rights they feel entitled to by an act of terrorism.

Now victims' family members are beating their chests and tearing their hair out because a branch of NYC government failed to "secure" all imagery associated with 9/11; thereby other people, perfect strangers even, are, gasp, using the events of 9/11 for their own artistic purposes. The nerve! What kind of lackadaisical, unresponsive government do we have that won't go in there and seize a copyright from its owner?!

The New York Daily News says,

...photographer Gregg Brown, who was paid about $300,000, refused to sign an agreement that would have given the city ownership of 30,000 photos and countless hours of videos - all captured while he was in an NYPD helicopter.

Instead, Brown registered the material with the U.S. Copyright Office for himself, then used some of the video in a documentary, "Words," The News reported. Some of his photos are being sold through a major photo agency.

Full article here.

How dare someone use a moment in history for an artistic endeavor! The nerve. Take a torch to Guernica. Quick. Before somebody goes all weirdo arty on us. God forbid we try to INDIVIDUALLY and INDEPENDENTLY interpret HISTORY.

Sorry... I'm shouting here, but I'm really deeply incensed by this particular level of gross American stupidity. This is the kind of thing that makes hip Euros laugh their butts off at us. Maybe that doesn't bother you, but I can't sleep at night sometimes for thoughts of snotty, gorgeously attired, reed-thin, brilliant French chain-smokers all laughing at me outside Deux Magots. It was bad enough when I was a teenager.

tags: Guernica, 9/11 victims