I have an eclectic collection of music, ranging from opera and old jazz, to punk and neo-folk. There are very little music genres that I do not love, and none that I cannot appreciate even if it is not my style. I am not a critic, I simply know what I like and why I like it. Music has played an integral roll in almost every aspect of my life. Every day has its own soundtrack, and much of my spare time is dedicated to finding new music thus much of my disposable income goes toward expanding my collection. I have gone almost strictly digital these days, given space concerns among many other reasons, so I will often link to download sites when referencing new releases.
I will try to keep you updated with my recent downloads and shows that are coming to or near town that I find exciting, if only to spotlight some of my favorite musicians and give them a little exposure from this meager readership.
So, it seems fitting that the first of many music installments go to my favorite band of 2008, Frightened Rabbit who will be at the Record Bar on June 2nd.
With their new release, The Midnight Organ Fight, the Scottish Band has done something very few artists are able to do, provide me with an full album of songs that I love. There is not a single song on the entire disc that I skip over. For those of you who have emusic, I strongly suggest using fourteen of your downloads this month and get the entire album of indie pop, post-punk reminiscent, songs that even venture into an old celtic jam session feeling with the song "Old Old Fashioned." For those of you who haven't discovered this music junkie's dream site, I highly recommend a subscription. For those who prefer itunes, their entire collection, including an "emusic live" session is available for download.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Exercise Futility! It is all the rage...
Let's face it folks, we are not living in the seventies, when the guy making your meatloaf in the kitchen had a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. The non-smoking craze has permeated nearly every part of our society, and one is never at a loss for a smoke-free place to go. I get it, smoking is smelly and annoying. If you find the right dive bar, like the one that currently employs me, the smoke could get so thick that it burns the eyes (though not since the end of March when we were compelled to ban smoking from the original law passed by the council.)
I have heard all of the arguments for smoking bans and against them. Both sides have a point and both sides have the tendency toward bullshit broad brush strokes. So, I thought I would take a jab at some running misconceptions in this argument.
Ban Smoking, Spare Our Health!
1) So-called "scientific" studies on second-hand smoke are scientifically challenged. Over a year ago, there was a great article that highlighted many of the problems with these studies, the two most glaring...
While I am not arguing that second hand smoke is not dangerous, I am arguing the voracity of the scientific evidence to back up the statement. Using faulty science to back up a broad claim is ridiculous, which brings me to my second issue with the "smoke-free for health" loonies.
2) Focusing on second hand smoke as a center point for lung and heart issues seems to take the spotlight off from something far more dangerous...the air quality in general. If lawmakers were really worried about what we are breathing, they would limit the amount of gasoline we could purchase per month, since I am willing to bet, because science has proven (without the use of faulty studies of varying data) that between the exhaust, tire particles, and leaky engines, we are far more likely to suffer lung and heart problems from living in an urban center with greater traffic quantities. (and yes, dozens of other air pollutants that are a direct result of many people living in a small area)
Again, I am not pushing for this type of legislation, but for those who embrace nanny legislation, this would be far better for your health, since you can hardly refrain from entering the outside for the rest of your life. Hell, I managed to go 987 miles in my car last year, less than the average person drives in a month, so don't tell me it isn't possible even in this "begging for public transportation" city. Walking on a sidewalk on a hot day in this city, you can visibly see and physically feel the fumes...I know because I do it every day and I loathe the approach of summer for that very reason.
To be fair, let us see what smoke the other side is blowing up my ass...
You Are Taking Away Our Rights! (wah wah)
1) The major argument coming from the other side of this issue is that business owners should be free to do what they want with their establishments. However, according to the health department, liquor control, the fire marshall, and a number of other codes enforcement bodies, that is hardly the case. Following guidelines regarding safety and health have always been a part of owning a public establishment. You haven't been allowed to smoke in a movie theater since I was a child. Why? Fire hazard. It is something we never question, but when these bans were initially enforced, there was similar outcries of "foul."
2) Another issue that is thrown about is the loss of profit. True, if it were really profitable to have a non-smoking bar, establishments would have adopted this years ago. As a bartender, I noticed a significant decrease in overall sales, and of course, tips when the first ban went into effect, since the bar I tend is part of a restaurant. We have been non-smoking since the end of March, and I have yet to see a reasonable return of the business we once enjoyed. Part of that is due to the fact that there are two bars within walking distance that can allow smoking because of the specifics exemptions of the first law. However, slowly, people are trickling back in to us, because we offer something the other two establishments don't...an environment conducive to a relaxing cocktail and intelligent conversation.
Just as it was an uphill battle for non-smokers to get a law on the ballot, the smokers are starting their battle by suing the city. While the lawsuit may have some merit because of the exemptions for casinos in the area, given the political prowess of casinos and the track record for these bans being found to be constitutionally sound, it is a last ditch futile effort that will fizzle in a smoker's wheeze, nearly as futile as those concerned with their health who pushed for this ban. Second-hand smoke is merely a bogeyman, an ominous apparition that is clouding real health concerns...and, it is an helluva political tool :)
While I think that much of the doomsday "all the local establishments will be history" is nonsense, I am sure we will see quite a few fall from the initial impact these laws have on sales. Even though studies show that the majority of business returns within three to six months after laws like this take effect, I don't know many small, locally owned drinking establishments that can endure a significant loss in cash-flow for half a year. In the establishment that employs me, we saw a 2/3 decrease in bar sales the first month, and now, we are nearly at half of what we were before the ban went into effect. However, we have the restaurant attached to us, that has been smoke-free for almost two years now, with a breakfast crowd which is just as strong as ever, so, given the diversity of our business, we will most assuredly make it past the rough patch.
"Issues" like this send me into a spin. We have created a crisis from one side who simply ingests what is fed to them, taking little time to delineate the hype from fact. The other ignores decades and decades of precedent set when it comes to regulating health and safety issues in the public arena. Who's right? Who cares? As with most things that get us arguing amongst each other, it is a fabricated issue that has managed to garner vehement support for and against, with rabid dogs spewing inaccurate dribble at each other. Better we argue this than something that actually matters.
So I would like to thank you non-smokers from saving me from burning eyes, one of the few scientifically proven harmful effects of smoke. Now, I get to smell bad breath and body odor as opposed to cigarette smoke and butts. I am so glad that it is my health that concerns you, and not that fact that smoking irritates you by clouding the room and making you stink of old cigarettes. And smokers, I would like to thank you, by proving that smokers are less likely to get up and vote for their right to make everyone else stink like an ashtray. No, you will wait until the damage has been done and then bitch about it, much like smoking until you get cancer and then suing the tobacco industry because you are sick. Too bad there aren't voting machines in tobacco shops and bars rather than churches, because that vote would have looked a lot different in April.
As with most of my evenings, I will enjoy my whiskey/cigarette combo in the comfort of my home.
I have heard all of the arguments for smoking bans and against them. Both sides have a point and both sides have the tendency toward bullshit broad brush strokes. So, I thought I would take a jab at some running misconceptions in this argument.
Ban Smoking, Spare Our Health!
1) So-called "scientific" studies on second-hand smoke are scientifically challenged. Over a year ago, there was a great article that highlighted many of the problems with these studies, the two most glaring...
a) results are not consistently reproducible. The majority of studies do not report a statistically significant change in risk from secondhand smoke exposure, some studies show an increase in risk, and "astoundingly" some show a reduction of risk.
b)Typically, the studies asked 60--70 year-old self-declared nonsmokers to recall how many cigarettes, cigars or pipes might have been smoked in their presence during their lifetimes, how thick the smoke might have been in the rooms, whether the windows were open, and similar vagaries. Obtained mostly during brief phone interviews, answers were then recorded as precise measures of lifetime individual exposures.
While I am not arguing that second hand smoke is not dangerous, I am arguing the voracity of the scientific evidence to back up the statement. Using faulty science to back up a broad claim is ridiculous, which brings me to my second issue with the "smoke-free for health" loonies.
2) Focusing on second hand smoke as a center point for lung and heart issues seems to take the spotlight off from something far more dangerous...the air quality in general. If lawmakers were really worried about what we are breathing, they would limit the amount of gasoline we could purchase per month, since I am willing to bet, because science has proven (without the use of faulty studies of varying data) that between the exhaust, tire particles, and leaky engines, we are far more likely to suffer lung and heart problems from living in an urban center with greater traffic quantities. (and yes, dozens of other air pollutants that are a direct result of many people living in a small area)
Again, I am not pushing for this type of legislation, but for those who embrace nanny legislation, this would be far better for your health, since you can hardly refrain from entering the outside for the rest of your life. Hell, I managed to go 987 miles in my car last year, less than the average person drives in a month, so don't tell me it isn't possible even in this "begging for public transportation" city. Walking on a sidewalk on a hot day in this city, you can visibly see and physically feel the fumes...I know because I do it every day and I loathe the approach of summer for that very reason.
To be fair, let us see what smoke the other side is blowing up my ass...
You Are Taking Away Our Rights! (wah wah)
1) The major argument coming from the other side of this issue is that business owners should be free to do what they want with their establishments. However, according to the health department, liquor control, the fire marshall, and a number of other codes enforcement bodies, that is hardly the case. Following guidelines regarding safety and health have always been a part of owning a public establishment. You haven't been allowed to smoke in a movie theater since I was a child. Why? Fire hazard. It is something we never question, but when these bans were initially enforced, there was similar outcries of "foul."
2) Another issue that is thrown about is the loss of profit. True, if it were really profitable to have a non-smoking bar, establishments would have adopted this years ago. As a bartender, I noticed a significant decrease in overall sales, and of course, tips when the first ban went into effect, since the bar I tend is part of a restaurant. We have been non-smoking since the end of March, and I have yet to see a reasonable return of the business we once enjoyed. Part of that is due to the fact that there are two bars within walking distance that can allow smoking because of the specifics exemptions of the first law. However, slowly, people are trickling back in to us, because we offer something the other two establishments don't...an environment conducive to a relaxing cocktail and intelligent conversation.
Just as it was an uphill battle for non-smokers to get a law on the ballot, the smokers are starting their battle by suing the city. While the lawsuit may have some merit because of the exemptions for casinos in the area, given the political prowess of casinos and the track record for these bans being found to be constitutionally sound, it is a last ditch futile effort that will fizzle in a smoker's wheeze, nearly as futile as those concerned with their health who pushed for this ban. Second-hand smoke is merely a bogeyman, an ominous apparition that is clouding real health concerns...and, it is an helluva political tool :)
While I think that much of the doomsday "all the local establishments will be history" is nonsense, I am sure we will see quite a few fall from the initial impact these laws have on sales. Even though studies show that the majority of business returns within three to six months after laws like this take effect, I don't know many small, locally owned drinking establishments that can endure a significant loss in cash-flow for half a year. In the establishment that employs me, we saw a 2/3 decrease in bar sales the first month, and now, we are nearly at half of what we were before the ban went into effect. However, we have the restaurant attached to us, that has been smoke-free for almost two years now, with a breakfast crowd which is just as strong as ever, so, given the diversity of our business, we will most assuredly make it past the rough patch.
"Issues" like this send me into a spin. We have created a crisis from one side who simply ingests what is fed to them, taking little time to delineate the hype from fact. The other ignores decades and decades of precedent set when it comes to regulating health and safety issues in the public arena. Who's right? Who cares? As with most things that get us arguing amongst each other, it is a fabricated issue that has managed to garner vehement support for and against, with rabid dogs spewing inaccurate dribble at each other. Better we argue this than something that actually matters.
So I would like to thank you non-smokers from saving me from burning eyes, one of the few scientifically proven harmful effects of smoke. Now, I get to smell bad breath and body odor as opposed to cigarette smoke and butts. I am so glad that it is my health that concerns you, and not that fact that smoking irritates you by clouding the room and making you stink of old cigarettes. And smokers, I would like to thank you, by proving that smokers are less likely to get up and vote for their right to make everyone else stink like an ashtray. No, you will wait until the damage has been done and then bitch about it, much like smoking until you get cancer and then suing the tobacco industry because you are sick. Too bad there aren't voting machines in tobacco shops and bars rather than churches, because that vote would have looked a lot different in April.
As with most of my evenings, I will enjoy my whiskey/cigarette combo in the comfort of my home.
When Drunk People Rule The World...
They find ways to blow people up in an environmentally friendly way. I have been known to make a few statements regarding the toxicity of bombs and what it does to the surrounding environment. This is usually part of a discussion of what we do to our air quality across the board, and residuals from explosions would fare far down the list of air pollutants, mostly because their initial impact is much worse than the long term effects on our environment. The most devastating part of bombs is what they do to the people around when they detonate.
So, I don't believe it would have ever come to mind to create an environmentally friendlier bomb. Mostly because friendly and bomb just don't seem to coincide no matter the reference. But, to prove that environmentalism is all the rage, even warmongers have jumped on the bandwagon by finding a way to destroy the land and its people without harming the air so much...wow.
So, I don't believe it would have ever come to mind to create an environmentally friendlier bomb. Mostly because friendly and bomb just don't seem to coincide no matter the reference. But, to prove that environmentalism is all the rage, even warmongers have jumped on the bandwagon by finding a way to destroy the land and its people without harming the air so much...wow.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Kansas City Live! - A Beacon for the Braindead
Saturday, I made the mistake of traveling to the Kansas City LIVE! district. It was a friend's birthday and we all wanted to do something different. It is really a morbid curiosity that draws a person like me to the new downtown. I want to see what all the fuss is about, and ultimately, I want to prove myself right. I did.
Since its opening, I have heard the grumbles about dress codes, prices, and discrimination. While I did not pay much attention at that time, it became quite clear once I entered this outdoor cesspool of straight, white, mating rituals. To begin, we could not get into the Irish Pub because we dressed for the occasion...we were in summer clothes, which for me is a t-shirt and jeans. I found it odd as I looked into the crowd in the bar and saw at least a dozen women in t-shirts, albeit women's t-shirts, and still we were denied entry.
As with anything as arbitrary as the perception of a doorman, these dress codes are enforced at the whim of a thick neck dimwit. I still have yet to find anything on McFadden's website regarding their dress code, and found nothing indicating you can't wear a white t-shirt. I then went to the power and light district's website and after enduring the worst elevator music ever, I found their frequently asked questions and a link to their code of conduct. Since none of us were in violation of any of the listed banned clothing, I am still scratching my head as to why we were denied entry.
So, we went onto Fuego, which was at least funny. I have to admit, drunk straight girls are something to behold. The main attraction was a little blonde that I can only assume was hired by the establishment to pole dance and entice others to do the same since she didn't step down even once during the hour or so we were there. Swaying her hips and shaking her bust for an evening without taking her clothes off must have been quite a change for her, but she managed to pull it off. Negotiating the crowd proved to be precarious since there were various girls in skimpy clothing mimicking stripper dances such as the "reach down and touch your toes while shaking your ass routine." One girl in black and white had our attention for at least ten minutes with this move. I suppose she was waiting for a phone number or an offer for a ride home from an equally brain dead thick neck.
Eventually, we began the slow, follow the herd, walk to the car. Vertical Horizon (who in the hell is doing the booking for this ridiculous venue) was playing badly in the background, "dude" was echoing from several directions, and squealing laughter was shivering my spine. Half of our party got stuck in a trail of fill people, leaving us waiting outside the entrance to soak up a bit more mind-numbing escapades of the drunk, straight, homogeneous crowd.
The evening left me with a simple, satisfying feeling. All of these idiots have some place to go now. A central location for those who couldn't justify their existence let alone their use of vital resources such as air, energy, and food. However, with the advent of this new venue, I will not have to be exposed to these people on a nightly basis, when I find myself sipping my favorite whiskey, stepping outside to smoke, because you can't do both inside anymore. But, that is for another post.
Since its opening, I have heard the grumbles about dress codes, prices, and discrimination. While I did not pay much attention at that time, it became quite clear once I entered this outdoor cesspool of straight, white, mating rituals. To begin, we could not get into the Irish Pub because we dressed for the occasion...we were in summer clothes, which for me is a t-shirt and jeans. I found it odd as I looked into the crowd in the bar and saw at least a dozen women in t-shirts, albeit women's t-shirts, and still we were denied entry.
As with anything as arbitrary as the perception of a doorman, these dress codes are enforced at the whim of a thick neck dimwit. I still have yet to find anything on McFadden's website regarding their dress code, and found nothing indicating you can't wear a white t-shirt. I then went to the power and light district's website and after enduring the worst elevator music ever, I found their frequently asked questions and a link to their code of conduct. Since none of us were in violation of any of the listed banned clothing, I am still scratching my head as to why we were denied entry.
So, we went onto Fuego, which was at least funny. I have to admit, drunk straight girls are something to behold. The main attraction was a little blonde that I can only assume was hired by the establishment to pole dance and entice others to do the same since she didn't step down even once during the hour or so we were there. Swaying her hips and shaking her bust for an evening without taking her clothes off must have been quite a change for her, but she managed to pull it off. Negotiating the crowd proved to be precarious since there were various girls in skimpy clothing mimicking stripper dances such as the "reach down and touch your toes while shaking your ass routine." One girl in black and white had our attention for at least ten minutes with this move. I suppose she was waiting for a phone number or an offer for a ride home from an equally brain dead thick neck.
Eventually, we began the slow, follow the herd, walk to the car. Vertical Horizon (who in the hell is doing the booking for this ridiculous venue) was playing badly in the background, "dude" was echoing from several directions, and squealing laughter was shivering my spine. Half of our party got stuck in a trail of fill people, leaving us waiting outside the entrance to soak up a bit more mind-numbing escapades of the drunk, straight, homogeneous crowd.
The evening left me with a simple, satisfying feeling. All of these idiots have some place to go now. A central location for those who couldn't justify their existence let alone their use of vital resources such as air, energy, and food. However, with the advent of this new venue, I will not have to be exposed to these people on a nightly basis, when I find myself sipping my favorite whiskey, stepping outside to smoke, because you can't do both inside anymore. But, that is for another post.
What A Difference A Year Makes
It has been nearly a year since I have tapped out a blog post. Since then, radical changes have been made to my life, and I feel that I can finally get back into the groove of posting my thoughts about and impressions of the world around me. After spending nearly five years blogging about politics, the last year has been strange. I checked out of the scene altogether, barely reading the news at all, and focused my attention more on getting my life back together after the previous year, one that would beg for any semblance of sanity.
In this last year, I have written dozens of songs, worked on my novel, battled a debilitating illness, and enrolled in nursing school. Today, my head is more clear than it has ever been, so it seems prudent to get back into the swing of things, and do something that I love...write. My previous blogging endeavor was strictly politics, but my interests and my life engulf much more than that, so this blog will be more well rounded. However, given the season that we are in nationally and the mess we are in locally, it wouldn't be prudent to ignore my political obsession.
So, look forward to posts about Kansas City, its politics and its nightlife; the nation and its direction; going back to school when you are the oldest person in the classroom; the life of a music junkie; and random writings from poems and songs to short stories and essays.
In this last year, I have written dozens of songs, worked on my novel, battled a debilitating illness, and enrolled in nursing school. Today, my head is more clear than it has ever been, so it seems prudent to get back into the swing of things, and do something that I love...write. My previous blogging endeavor was strictly politics, but my interests and my life engulf much more than that, so this blog will be more well rounded. However, given the season that we are in nationally and the mess we are in locally, it wouldn't be prudent to ignore my political obsession.
So, look forward to posts about Kansas City, its politics and its nightlife; the nation and its direction; going back to school when you are the oldest person in the classroom; the life of a music junkie; and random writings from poems and songs to short stories and essays.
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