“One clear policy implication is, the idea of nobless oblige or trickle-down economics, certain versions of it, is bull,' Keltner added. 'Our data say you cannot rely on the wealthy to give back. The ‘thousand points of light’—this rise of compassion in the wealthy to fix all the problems of society—is improbable, psychologically.'"
I suffer from Tea Party envy. There is little about the actual party I like and there are some members I abhor, but I am jealous of its sense of purpose, its determination and its bracing conviction that it is absolutely right. In its own way, it waves a crimson battle flag while President Obama’s is a sickly taupe — the limp banner of an ideological muddle.
Obama would be a good White House chief of staff, but as a president he lacks political savvy. He never knew how to get ahead of the Tea Party wave. He never knew how to marshal — or create — his own constituency. Republican invective notwithstanding, he lacks demagogic tools. He tries to solve problems instead of, for the Republicans, creating them. Barack Obama does not do pain."
"Reagan promised to end all that. So when the air traffic controllers went on strike, he seized the moment. In getting rid of every single last one of them and outlawing their union, he sent a clear and strong message: The days of everyone having a comfortable middle class life were over. America, from now on, would be run this way:"
"The Americans are moving on to the semifinals after one of the most riveting games in the history of the Women's World Cup — beating Brazil 5-3 on penalty kicks after a 2-2 tie.
"The best part of the next hour and three quarters then proceeds to prove that not only can music make grown men cry, smile and pretend they are can play an invisible Les Paul, but that chart success and number one singles are in no way a seal of quality or authenticity (and in no way is that an accusation that 50 Cent isn't an expert on contraceptives) and more importantly, if the Drive-By Truckers continue to move their audiences like they have this gig, and sound as genuine and heartfelt as they always have, then the rest will hopefully fall into place... If a representative of Durex is reading this however, maybe the world is as long overdue on a Double Thick Dirty South or an 18 Wheels Of Love Variety Pack as the Truckers are on a top ten album... Just a thought."
"'It's all in the details,' said an audience member at the bar after the song's final, haunting chorus. 'Some people think these guys are just drunks. But Hemingway was a drunk, too.'"
LERA LYNN // BOBBY, BABY from SLOW RECORDS STUDIOS on Vimeo.
"During a semester in 2007, Long combed legal databases to identify lyrics in court filings and scholarly publications, finding Dylan cited 186 times, far outpacing the rest of the top 10: the Beatles, 74; Bruce Springsteen, 69; Paul Simon, 59; Woody Guthrie, 43; the Rolling Stones, 39; the Grateful Dead, 32; Simon & Garfunkel, 30; Joni Mitchell, 28; and R.E.M., 27."
Rather than take the bait, my friend said, “Well, she communicated with someone, didn’t she? Art is about communication, and what she had to say resonated with a buyer.” He wasn’t offended or competitive about it, but simply resolved to the truth that art was communication.
"So let’s not be civil. Instead, let’s have a frank discussion of our differences. In particular, if Democrats believe that Republicans are talking cruel nonsense, they should say so — and take their case to the voters."
"Alexis de Tocqueville once described what he saw as a chief part of the peculiar genius of American society—something he called “self-interest properly understood.” The last two words were the key. Everyone possesses self-interest in a narrow sense: I want what’s good for me right now! Self-interest “properly understood” is different. It means appreciating that paying attention to everyone else’s self-interest—in other words, the common welfare—is in fact a precondition for one’s own ultimate well-being. Tocqueville was not suggesting that there was anything noble or idealistic about this outlook—in fact, he was suggesting the opposite. It was a mark of American pragmatism. Those canny Americans understood a basic fact: looking out for the other guy isn’t just good for the soul—it’s good for business.
The top 1 percent have the best houses, the best educations, the best doctors, and the best lifestyles, but there is one thing that money doesn’t seem to have bought: an understanding that their fate is bound up with how the other 99 percent live. Throughout history, this is something that the top 1 percent eventually do learn. Too late."
"For those who are inclined to find such ideas ludicrous, the book will fail, and utterly; its premises betray a bottomless ignorance of the deep interconnectedness of humankind, and the needs—economic, social, emotional, intellectual—of one human being for another. In the real world, someone is growing lettuce, someone else is writing a book or feeding a baby, yet another is designing the rails of a high-speed train. Someone else is teaching six-year-olds to read. All of us benefit from all of these activities—sometimes directly, sometimes indirectly. Each life can and does touch many thousands of others. The idea of the Nietszchean Superman who acts against his fellows (whom Rand called 'the mob' and 'looters' and whatnot) is consequently fatally flawed. Not even the Superest Superman can grow all his own food, make all his own paper, design and build his own cars and airplanes, etc. (Hadn't Rand ever read Robinson Crusoe?) Humanity is a collaborative project, as well as a project of individuals."
.....
"The real parasites, it turns out, are not the looting masses but the Objectivist elites (what is it that these hedge fund managers 'create' again?), rabidly pursuing their own 'happiness' at the cost of our social safety net, our environment and the prosperity and well-being of the world's people. So much for the triumph of individualism."
"If food stamps and unemployment insurance, and Medicaid'--an Axis of Not-Evil!--'mitigated those disasters, then two cheers for food stamps, unemployment insurance, and Medicaid.'"
"Oh, and to add even more to the evening's pleasant musical surprises, before Slobberbone's set, Best told us that his solo album will be done this spring and that Slobberbone will finally hit the studio this summer to record their first new record in almost a decade."
"Dirt Ball in the Swamp with Page Wilson"
Brian Wright - Striking Matches from Sugar Hill Records on Vimeo.
"Third Man Records is happy to announce the latest in our live show and live LP series, Drive-By Truckers.
In anticipation for their upcoming album, “Go-Go Boots” (out Feb 15th on ATO) and following up from their sold out show at The Cannery Ballroom, the Truckers will be performing a special matinee all ages show here at Third Man Records on this Sunday Jan. 30th that will be recorded direct to analog tape for release as a live LP (and a limited Black & Blue split colored LP for those in attendance)."
"“It’s already out as far as we are concerned,” said guitarist and longtime band member Mike Cooley. “They (fans) already know the words and they’re liking it.”"
"aledraplease: LOVE how my mom said she wished I could go in her place to Drive By Truckers tonight. Can I be 18 now? Please? #frustration"
"Colonoscopy prep on Sunday will prevent me from seeing @drivebytruckers at Third Man Records in Nashville. Please play #Assholes for me."
The Go-Go Boots Episodes - Episode 4 - Songs of Eddie Hinton from Drive-By Truckers on Vimeo.
Where's Eddie - Acoustic - Go-Go Boots - Drive-By Truckers from Drive-By Truckers on Vimeo.
"“Last night, I fell in love with my job and Hotel Indigo-Athens all over again. Guests at the hotel made an impromptu decision to get married here at the hotel before heading to 40 Watt for the Drive By Truckers show."
"Although the songs on the album are steeped in Southern rock tradition, the different flavorings likely aren't surprising when one considers Isbell's rich taste in music.
'I really like the Ting Tings,' he said. 'They are fun. I'm not crazy about [a lot of] hip-hop these days. I lot of hip-hop artists are not as creative as they were in the past. They are piling on guest appearances. MIA is doing some cool stuff, though, and Kid Cudi is a talented guy.'"
SpokesBuzz 2011 Splash Video from Shirley Thompson Editorial on Vimeo.
"Given the desolate location, terrible sight lines, and cavernous Thunder Dome-esque space of Terminal 5, it would have been worth it to buy tickets to the New Year’s Eve show just to get tickets to the Brooklyn Bowl show, and skip the Terminal 5 show entirely. Unless you really love the Drive-By Truckers. And given the crowd reaction at Brooklyn Bowl, it didn’t seem like many of the fans planned on skipping a Drive-By Truckers show. Ever."
"I could make the case (once again, to myself, because, once again, no one else would care to hear the argument) that the Drive-By Truckers managed to write my favorite AND second-favorite songs of the year, with “Birthday Boy” and “This F*cking Job”.
But I could be talked down from that position; those two songs might only be my third-favorite and fifth-favorite of the year. However, there is one thing of which I am positive: the Truckers wrote my favorite stanza of the year. From “Birthday Boy”, which is written from the perspective of a world-weary stripper:
“Got a girlfriend, don’t you, boy,
Nervous hands can’t lie,
Married men don’t ask how much,
Single ones ain’t buying.”
Even now, after something like 1,795 listens this year, the song gives me the chills; the Drive-By Truckers’ ability to cut to the heart of the human condition is one of the great musical revelations of the 21st century.
Drive By Truckers: Incisive."
"EM: The best talent in Tuscaloosa is by far URI Horton. URI is unique and completely out of the box. He is sort of the godfather of the Tuscaloosa rap scene, but instead of being content with that, he has broadened his horizons and taken his craft to the stage with a band."
"Alternative nation luminaries R.E.M. will release Collapse Into Now, their new album, on March 8 (March 7 in the UK) via Warner Bros. On their website, they've already debuted the opening track, 'Discoverer'. More recently, the band shared a lyric video for their Eddie Vedder collaboration 'It Happened Today'; you can watch that below. And on the NPR website, you can now stream another song from the album, the scaled-back ballad 'Oh My Heart'."
"WASHINGTON - The tax cut deal that President Obama struck with congressional Republicans contains a provision that could ultimately be the undoing of Social Security, say Senate Democrats and backers of the old-age and disability program."
"However, after further thought and conversations with people around Washington (first and foremost, Nancy Altman, the co-director of Social Security Works), I have become convinced that this deal would be a disaster. Paul Krugman does a nice job laying out the limited benefits of the stimulus, but my greater concern is what happens to Social Security in this story. Effectively, this deal would give us a permanent two-percentage point reduction in the payroll tax in a Washington climate very hostile to Social Security."
"But as I wrote yesterday, there's a problem: the payroll tax holiday won't be temporary. Sure, it's supposed to be for just one year, but if you think Republicans are going to miss an opportunity to demand permanent extension of a tax cut -- especially one that covers the cost of Social Security -- then you haven't been living in the same country as the rest of us. In fact, I can already hear Republicans saying that it must be extended, because now is not the time to raise taxes on the American public. And I can hear them now, laughing privately about the fiscal crisis that such an extension will cause for Social Security."
"SAN FRANCISCO – Billionaire financier George Soros has thrown his weight behind California's marijuana legalization measure with a $1 million donation a week before the vote. The contribution reported Tuesday by The Sacramento Bee is the single biggest donation from an individual other than Proposition 19's main sponsor, Oakland medical marijuana entrepreneur Richard Lee."
"It’s not hard to comprehend the far-reaching ramifications of this tool. Anytime you’re using an open Wi-Fi connection, anyone can swiftly access some of your most private, personal information and correspondence (i.e. direct messages, Facebook mail/chat)— at the click of a button. And you will have no idea."
"Is relief too strong a word to use? That seems to be the emotion that some fans are expressing after hearing that Martin Freeman – best known for his portrayal of Tim in the original version of 'The Office' will fill the role of Bilbo Baggins in the upcoming New Line film version of J.R.R. Tolkien's 'The Hobbit.'"
"And he has lots of wisdom for other up-and-comers in the industry.
'Years ago, I would have said, 'Do it yourself,'' he said. 'Now, I think that's conventional wisdom. I think everybody kind of knows that ... I'd say keep it under your own roof for as long as you can.'"
Kelly Kneiser "Happiness Looks Good On You" from Joey Kneiser on Vimeo.
Lera Lynn- Bobby, Baby from S L O W R e c o r d s on Vimeo.
"Watch him cover Warren Zevon's 'Lawyers, Guns And Money.' [The Feast]"
"And as their Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN near Geneva moves into high gear, they are talking increasingly of the 'New Physics' on the horizon that could totally change current views of the universe and how it works.
'Parallel universes, unknown forms of matter, extra dimensions... These are not the stuff of cheap science fiction but very concrete physics theories that scientists are trying to confirm with the LHC and other experiments.'"
"Daniel Webster, the Republican challenger to Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL), introduced legislation in 1991 that would have banned bars across Florida from holding happy hours."
"During the 1980s, people became familiar with fractals through those weird, colourful patterns made by computers.
But few realise how the idea of fractals has revolutionised our understanding of the world, and how many fractal-based systems we depend upon."
"But I'd say we probably at any given time have 125, 140 songs to choose from, to pull out at any moment. So, anything can go."
"If the phrase “salt of the earth” could describe any band, it would be the Drive-By Truckers—one of those rare groups that manage to exude authenticity and humility at the same time. So it was appropriate that the Athens, Ga.-based band was tapped to officially kick off Farm Aid, which celebrated its 25th anniversary this weekend at Miller Park. Like those Farm Aid champions, the Truckers keep their heads down, work hard and turn out amazing products on an almost yearly basis."
"Very few bands have captured my imagination in recent times like Drive-By Truckers. I initially heard the band in my preparation for covering Lollapalooza 2010, and I haven’t looked back. The band’s got an impressively deep discography, and the surface was barely scratched at the festival. Needless to say, I pounced on tickets the second I saw they were giving me a hometown show. I gathered some friends, gathered some whiskey, and made my way to the show."
"There are very few certainties in life, but there's one thing you can always count on: If Athens, Georgia's Drive-By Truckers are in town, you have the opportunity to see one of the best rock n'roll shows money can buy. That situation presented itself Saturday night, and roughly 2,000 folks took advantage of said opportunity -- each of which were rewarded in the form of rock n'roll salvation."
"'Centro-matic is my favorite band,' proclaims Patterson Hood of the Drive-by Truckers, who drafted Johnson and Danbom for his 2009 solo album, Murdering Oscar (And Other Love Songs), and accompanying tour. 'I was a huge fan long before I met them. I don't know if I can even put it into words. Every once in a while, something comes along that's just like nectar music. It's got everything I like in one place, as if I've been hearing it all my life.
'Centro-matic ought to be one of the biggest bands of the world. They're a fourpiece without an ounce of flab, and Will Johnson is just an ungodly great singer and player. I hope I've been influenced by him.'"
