The hits on Amanda Knox's infamous "Foxy Knoxy" photograph are coming in, so that's how I know there is something happening with Amanda... as I've said before, I don't even need Google alerts. And yeah, there sure is. The Italian police are suing her for slander, since she claimed they roughed her up during interrogation. Cops can sue perps and convicts? Oh, wait, this is Italy. You know, where the Vatican is. Their justice system appears to be running on Vatican time.
If American cops could sue us simply for badmouthing them, well, there might not be anybody left to pay taxes and hence, their salaries. Italian police need to get a clue, grow up and stop being babies.
And since they had no case against Amanda (which, take note, does not mean I think she is innocent; it means the state did not prove their case), they need to TURN HER LOOSE. Let her go.
Italian "justice" ... now we see how the Mafia was born. Gotta get justice some kinda way, right?
~*~
Everybody is mad at Carlos Santana for standing up at Turner Field and letting them have it in no uncertain terms.
Balls, Carlos has em. Or should I say cajones? :)
Needless to say, here at DEAD AIR, there is NO personal criticism of Carlos Santana allowed in any form, just like there is no criticism of The Who or the Dead or the Beatles, or musicians of that stature who have played an important part in Daisy's life. Okay? So: Watch your mouths! (seriously) If you want to argue against his position, that's okay, but we will not allow Fox News androids to come here and trash the 6th (possibly 7th; I'll argue the point) greatest guitarist in the history of the world (yes, I do rank them). This is not permitted; show some respect please.
Fox has been trashing him all day... just came from the JIFFY LUBE, where I was subjected to Fox blather about how Carlos has grown rich off the USA, when any fool knows that whoever recorded Love, Devotion, Surrender has earned the right to do whatever the hell he wants and of course DESERVES to benefit.
Now, if you'd like to argue his points, feel free. But no unkind words about Carlos.
Here is what he said:
Saying he represented immigrants, the Grammy winner said at Turner field, “The people of Arizona, and the people of Atlanta, Georgia, you should be ashamed of yourselves.”...
On Friday, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal signed a bill that requires many employers to check the immigration status of new hires and authorizes law enforcement officers to check the status of some suspects. The law, one of the toughest in the nation, is similar in some respects to one enacted last year in Arizona.
“This law is not correct. It's a cruel law, actually,” Santana, who emigrated to San Francisco in the 1960s, said after the ceremony. “This is about fear. Stop shucking and jiving. People are afraid we're going to steal your job. No, we aren't.
“This is the United States. This is the land of the free. If people want the immigration laws to keep passing, then everybody should get out and leave the American Indians here.”If people want to have a respectful and intelligent conversation about immigration, I'm up for that. But we will not repeat the mistakes of THIS AWFUL THREAD. You must be able to account for the fact of the RICH hiring impoverished campesinos on the cheap. If you do not address that fact, it'll be the trap door for you. And no simple-minded bullshit like, "But it's already illegal to hire undocumented workers!" Yes, and monkeys might fly out of my ass... go to the rich golf course right next to my apartment building and try to strike up a conversation with one of the yard-caretakers. Just try it. Oh yeah, I'm sure they're all LEGAL as the dickens.
The rich vote for anti-immigrant Republicans, and without missing a beat, turn around and hypocritically hire illegal nannies and yard-workers. Then they watch Fox News and fuss over Carlos.
The nerve. The sheer nerve.
So, yes I'd like to have a discussion about the golfers and the other rich people like them, who say one thing and do another. Add up enough nannies, and you can see why poor Latinas climb fences to get here. It's not rocket science. If you are unable to address the DEMAND for immigrants as workers, do not attempt discussion.
But if you can, I'm listening.
More at Renee's!
~*~
Eminem, who can be a real misogynist and homophobic dolt, showed himself to be A HERO today, and DEAD AIR approves!!! (((applause))) At least he has himself some excellent CLASS AWARENESS, if nothing else... I assume it's because he comes from a good union town like Detroit. (My late father's license plate was the number of his UAW local, so yes, I am biased.) Eminem took his millions and put his money where his mouth is. He has now earned the right (like the late Frank Zappa) to be politically incorrect and DEAD AIR will allow it, unless, you know, he turns into a serial killer or something:
Eminem Lawsuit May Result in Higher Royalties for Older Artists | Rolling Stone MusicAnd he WON, boys and girls!
The outcome of a lawsuit on behalf of Eminem against his record label Universal Music Group could radically change the way many artists are paid for digital sales. Eminem's suit argued that at least according to the language in his record contract, individual songs sold online count as a license rather than a sale. This may seem like a minor semantic argument, but according to Eminem's contract – and many others drafted before digital sales were realistic – it is the difference between the artist being paid 50 percent of royalties for a license or 12 percent for a sale.
I listened to a panel discussion on WNCW today, concerning the lawsuit and music licensing. This took years and teams of lawyers... only a multi-millionaire could even attempt such a thing. (Aside: It was so much fun to hear bluegrass artists praise Eminem... I imagine he is a star in all music communities today!) Short version: If your contract was drawn up before the dawn of the digital era, you are getting royally screwed. All of the older artists living off one or two hits, particularly. This means every time your song is sold online, they are keeping most/all of it, since it just wasn't covered in the original contract.
Old artists who started their careers before the days of computers? Record companies are stealing from them, basically. The resolution of this lawsuit creates a precedent and opens the doors for all of them to get what is rightfully theirs. Yeah!
Apparently this will also change the royalty-rules for other kinds of licensing, like for TV shows and movies... but I didn't hear all of that discussion. If anyone knows anything else, feel free to link in comments.
~*~
And finally, on a rather ominous note... Watermelons are exploding in China. You think I could make that up?
Watermelons explode like 'land mines' in China thanks to chemical calamitySee, this is why people eat organic.
Chinese farmers discovered how science can go bad after fields of watermelons exploded like "land mines" after being over-pumped with growth chemicals.
The chilling chemistry calamity struck after a group of 20 farmers in Jiangsu Province used a growth accelerator for the first time during a period of heavy rains.
That caused hundreds of groaning melons to pop like balloons, state broadcaster CCTV reported.