Mar. 24th, 2010

defrog: (obamarama)
I don’t have a lot to say about the shiny new healthcare reform bill, if only because I didn’t have much to say about it before it was passed.

Generally it’s probably a good thing, though hardly ideal. But for now I don’t have a problem with it as long as they can keep the costs reasonably under control (remembering that Medicare turned out to cost a lot more than Congress originally planned). I certainly don’t think it’ll be any worse than the current plan in which you get to be overcharged, screwed over and denied coverage by private hospitals and insurance companies instead of govt bureaucrats.

We’ll find out sooner or later. Either way, it certainly is what is known in Washington circles as a BFD. So Joe Biden’s entitled to call it that, I think. (And honestly, after Bush and Cheney, aren’t we pretty much over the fuck-bomb from politicians by now? In fact, wouldn’t it be great if they dropped the decorum and turned C-Span into a Scorsese film? “What, you think I’m fucking funny, Senator Reid? You think I’m a fucking clown here to amuse you?”)

But it is worth keeping in mind this reminder from Lawrence Lessig (whose opinion I typically respect, if not always agree with) just what Obama had to do in order to achieve this, and what DIDN’T change as a result: the corporate lobby system under which Washington operates, and which gets as much credit as Obama And The Demos for the bill’s final form.

That’s not to say Obama was necessarily wrong for working within the confines of a brokedown system. The only other option was to change the entire system, and realistically that just wasn’t going to happen. So I understand that. But still, it's worth knowing that yr getting this healthcare bill because The Big Money said you could have it.

On the bright side, yr getting a really awesome t-shirt out of it.

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The only other thing I can add is that if you think this ends the discussion debate conservative/Tea Party OMG freakout, think again.

Forget that it’s a mid-term election year, and that the GOP is going to make this Point One from now until November: “Did you SEE what the Socialists just DID to yr country?”

That’s nothing. If you thought the Tea Party wing of the GOP was drop-dead terrified of universal healthcare (or rather, their own weird demented Satanic version of it, which wasn’t actually the bill being voted on, but try telling THEM that), imagine how they feel now that they think their worst nightmare has come true. It shouldn’t take much for the previous hysterical patriot anger to morph into desperate batshit shenanigans to SAVE THE COUNTRY FROM THE TYRANT BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY.

And some of them probably aren’t going to stop with bricks in windows.

Okay. That’s all I got. As you were.

Don’t need no doctor,

This is dF
defrog: (guitar smash)
Or, “The Decline Of Western Civilization (2010)”.

ITEM: At a March 1st Tibet House Benefit at Carnegie Hall, Iggy Pop stage-dives into the audience ... which promptly gets out of his way rather than catch him.

“When I landed it hurt and I made a mental note that Carnegie Hall would be a good place for my last stage dive. The audience were just like, ‘What are you doing?’ ”

That’s just wrong. Maybe they were all too busy live-tweeting to notice he’d jumped, or maybe Carnegie Hall draws a different class of rock fan. But still ...

Anyway, at least Iggy tried to make up for it by trying to put a dent in the stage with the mike stand. Because showmanship is important. And peanut butter.

Like so.



Now THAT’S how you rock’n’roll, children. So put away those goddamn My Chemical Romance albums and listen to yr decrepit Uncle Iggy. And for God’s sake catch him when he’s trying to crowdsurf.

Catch me now I’m falling,

This is dF
defrog: (air travel)
After a mad week of deadlines and crunchy smog, I am off to South Korea for the next four (4) days. Specifically, I’m be in and around Seoul.

Which, oddly, always makes me think of this song.



The good news is that, for once, it’s not for business purposes. It’s an honest-to-god vacation. Which is cool – it’s been six years since my last trip to Korea and eight since I’ve been to Seoul in particular. It’ll be nice to go kick around and see some stuff and eat some food.

Oh, and this time I’m going to the DMZ.

So if you see any news stories about another American reporter busted in North Korea for “crossing” the border illegally ... well, you know, put in a word for me at the embassy.

I'm hoping there's a bowling alley there. Bowling is pretty popular in Korea. And if I can manage a blog headline like "I went bowling in the DMZ", that could be my ticket to a guest spot on BoingBoing.

Anyway, I won’t be taking my laptop and I’m not likely to be blogging from the hotel business center apart from the occassional FB update, so you won’t be hearing from me again until next week.

Signing off.

Sold my Seoul to rock’n’roll,

This is dF

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