Take the Kids

This comes from the Springfield News and Leader circa 1976. Lewis Carroll would be proud.

Ozarkers Hate Kids

I need to say something about this. Last Sunday, State Representative Sarah Lampe wrote a very good opinion piece for the Springfield News Leader. She upset the Ozarkers. Here is what upset them.

"I recently asked a group of fourth grade students what they would vote for if children could vote. Their answers were so simple and yet so profound. They said they want to be the smartest they can be when they leave school. They want time to play, time to read and food and medicine for those who are hungry or sick. Children want things to be fair. They want to be safe. They want everyone to get what they need. And they want us to protect the Earth. If children could vote, these are the things they would vote for.

I heard in the remarks of these fourth-graders many truths about fairness and safety and responsibility. The old expression, "Out of the mouths of babes" comes to mind. Children tell the truth, and the truth is sometimes hard to hear."

Lampe was trying to say that children know more than adults. That is not Ozarkily Correct. Especially the kids Lampe spoke with. They never said a thing about banning sex on TV, banning same-sex marriages, banning rap music, banning Democrats from holding office or anything else that Ozarkers gripe about.

Well, I hate to tell the Ozarkers but I WAS SMARTER THAN MOST ADULTS IN THE OZARKS (AND THE REST OF THE WORLD) WHEN I WAS FIVE! I STILL AM!

Let's Give Paris Something to Cry About

If you read this blog often you know I haven’t taken the Paris Hilton thing very serious. I think that in the long run this is a non-issue. I think there are some Internet sights making this and the cable news networks making this into a big deal. Brad Belote on the KY3 blog has written a great piece on the media’s obsession with this.

Here is my take. Yes, Paris committed a crime. Yes, she should be punished. With that said let’s look at why this is getting so much play on the cable news and Internet.

• Paris Hilton is female. There is whole anti-female sentiment expressed on one of the two major cable networks. That network has been touting the idea (much like their "war on Christmas") that there is a "war on men." They obviously believe Paris Hilton needs to be punished for being a girl. She (and her pals, Lyndsay Lohan and Britney Spears) need to be punished for being, as they used to say, "fast girls." Then again these same people hated Princess Di and today hate Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, Michelle Wi and Danica Patrick. The only women they like are Anne Coulter and Condelizza Rice. These individuals don’t want women in sports, politics or business. Just keep them at home in the kitchen.



• She is under 30. There is an anti-youth movement afoot with the same cable network and the talk radio boys. Anything young people like (YouTube, MySpace, Ipods etc.) is evil. This isn’t new even in the mainstream "old" media. The message in the "new" media is, "The only good young people are serving in Iraq. If you are not in Iraq, you should be in jail." Drudge and Rush have both made negative remarks about young people.



• She is connected to Hollywood and been on MTV. Notice how much of the coverage has mentioned that Hilton was on the MTV Movie Awards. There seems to be an attitude with the ‘new’ media that everyone in Hollywood and half of the state of California should be punished for something, usually being ‘liberal.’



• She is wasting the Hilton fortune. There are a group ‘new’ media fans who have a big business and money fetish. They admire Conrad Hilton for being a ‘self-made man’ and feel Paris is ruining the family name. These same people also took up for Ken Lay and the Enron boys.



• Midwestern-Good Americans are enjoying this. This is also the mentality that caused us to see way too much info about Anna Nicole Smith’s death. We want to see these famous people punished or hurt or dead. It makes us feel superior. Yeah, if you are a psycho.

Frankly, as Brad Belote said there are more important issues. If we looked at those issues we would probably see that they need to be fixed.

Every Inch of Harry Reems

"Springfield needs you, Harry Reems! Harry will you please come home!" (sung to the tune of "Harry Truman" by Chicago). From the Springfield News Leader 1977.

Updating a few things

I'm behind on a few things because I had to get a new computer.

• Sorry I didn't get in on the discussion with Snarling Marmot on the favorite eats. I wish I had more time to frequent some of the local establishments (I will say Ebbets Field has some of the best French Fries). I eat most of my meals at Chilli's. They have the best staff of any resteraunt in town and they're not afraid to serve a man in a mask and cape. I will throw out that we should have a talk about places that are no long apart of the Queen City. As a sickly child who had to visit the doctor here in town quite often, I miss the buffet at Pizza Planet. It sat on Glenstone at the bottom of the bridge over Trafficway. I also miss that place on Glenstone that had 25 cent coney dogs on Tuesday. Also PoBoy's Cajun food.
• Thanks to Ron Davis of Chatter for the link to Bedazzled, a site about vintage stag films.
• Speaking of which I hope to have more Studio ads from the Springfield Daily News.
• I want to apologize to the folks from KSPR 33 news. They had a story on the demolition of North Town Mall in March (which was around the time I heard it). I'm never at home when their news is on. The only local news I see is KY 3's replay at 1:30 a.m. To try and make up I'm linking to one of the greatest things KSPR ever did: The Late Night Horror Show with Count Norlock. These turned up on You Tube recently. First Count Norlock's Black and White episode. The second one features a gargoyle guest host. A little behind the scenes gossip. Count Norlock wanted the gargoyle to take over the show after he retired. Unfortunately, the network brass gave the job to Flabber from Big Bad Beetleborgs. The Gargoyle got an offer from CBS and took it (If you don't get the joke here, you've been out of the loop for about a decade).

To Know-know-know Phil is to fear-fear-fear Phil

I have the idea that nobody will go along with. I believe rock stars should have diplomatic immunity. On the other hand, I feel that Phil Spector is overrated (I'm more of a Joe Meek fan) and if he is convicted of the death of Lana Clarkson then it will prove the California judicial system in got major problems.

Reuters is reporting (via Yahoo news) that the judge in the Phil Spector case is allowing a former girlfriend to testify about Spector holding a gun to her head on two different instances when she tried to leave his home. There will also be testimony from four other women, who say that Spector threatened them with guns.

As a person with a love of older music, I've read countless interviews with people involved with Spector's Wall of Sound. There are several people who mentioned Spector holding guns to studio musicians heads because they played a note wrong or something.

Also notice a bit of trivia on IMDB about Russ Meyer's movie Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.
"The character of Ronnie "Z-Man" Barzell was based loosely on legendary record producer Phil Spector. While neither Meyer nor Ebert had ever met Spector, they were told by acquaintances of his that they'd caught his essence very well."

At the end of the film, Z-Man has a party at his mansion. He puts a gun in the mouth of a female guest and pulls the trigger. Then, he chases another woman through the house with a gun (he also decapitates a guy with a sword). Coincidence? And what about that song by the Crystals?

"Then he grabbed my arm real tight,
He said I couldn't leave his mansion that night,
I was so scared I almost cried,
And then he Killed me." (Okay, I'm being silly.)

Another Woman Has Chose to Ignore Me

I was delight earlier in the day. I saw another blogger taking me to task for not publishing her "comment." She was upset that I referred to it, jokingly, as "hate mail." She posted a tirade on her sight about me and the contents of her comment.
However, I noticed that she has taken it down and announced that she was just going to "ignore" me. Drat!!! (That is a word that only us Super-Villains are allowed to use) This makes the 469th woman in my life who has chosen to ignore me.
I have an army of robots with laser eyes, 40 different ray guns, a moat filled with alligators, and a torture chamber. WHAT DO WOMEN IN THIS SILLY PART OF THE COUNTRY WANT???