"Swell Hat!"

"Less fucked that I thought"

Sure the economy, and everything connected to it is circling the drain. Still that's no reason to get upset. Some comrads, and I are making plans to go to D.C. for Obama's swearing in.

Nothing like a big party to jump start a country. Wow it's gonna be great. It'll be like FDR, JFK, and Mr. Spock taking office to save our collective butts.

Gee Michelle Obama even looks like a black Jackie "O". She even has them damned pearls.

Okay this is a fantasy, but I like it.

However by what I'm seeing, and if they don't shoot him. Looks like Obama 'might' make it. Yeah I know this guy ain't 'Batman',..eh far as we know anyway. So shit probably won't change all that much, but it 'will' change a bit.

That's at least a good start.

Anyway like I sez some of us is going down for the party,..I'll take snaps, and post them here. I'll be the guy in the party hat pissing on the FBI building.

Stay Tuned.

"We're Fucked"

I don't have to tell you anything. You know what's going on. ...good luck.

"Chirp..."

(The sound of the Vast! Sydneyland audience.)

"WTC Memorial Lights"

I was out tonight walking around town. Many visitors were either going to or coming from the various memorial services. There was sort of a strange hush over the city.

Like when it snows, and street noises are muffled. People spoke to each other as well. Especially locals that were here on the Day.

Conversations about where they were, what they felt now, or if they'd lost anyone.

Me, on the 'Day'. I was stuck on the Brooklyn side of the Manhattan Bridge. Soldiers had closed it for fear that the city's spans were next.

I didn't get into downtown till the next day. My radio station where I was Operations Director at the time is only four blocks from Ground Zero.

Other than some damaged windows, and smoke we got off okay,..at least then. Now many that were on duty for the emergency are getting sick.

Some have breathing problems, some other symptoms. I ended up with killer headaches for a time. We 'all' have the dreams. Even now they still come.

...but we're still here making trouble so fuck'em.

As I've said there's no rebuilding going on. It's all mired in the traditional New York corruption, and greed.

Maybe nothing will go up for years more. That's okay. I think they should just leave it all alone, and let nature reclaim it.

I don't mean a park. I mean wild nature growing over the wreckage.

Trees, grass, and vines engulfing the abandoned trucks, and rusting pipes from the long stalled re-construction.

A perfect NYC memorial to the Attack.

____________________________________________________

"HOPE"

Oh how well I remember all this. Robert Kennedy's funeral train to Washington. So like Roosevelt's train as my parents told me. Perhaps not unlike Lincoln's in emotional weight.

So many hopes rode with him to his grave. Hope not reignited till 40 years later with the Obama bid for the highest office. Even the Kennedy family have said this. When I found this footage of the funeral train which I haven't seen in four decades it all came back. As if it were only days ago.

Never mind my nasty, deranged,cynical rants below. All that was just the edgy symptoms of worry, and sleep deprivation.

I still hope. I still dream.

All of us that were there. All of us that worked so hard for change. We 'still' have hope that this country can be what it says it is. Free. A Free Nation for All.

"9/11"

What can one say. Billions of words said or written, and still no conclusion. The attack site is 'still' a hole in the ground as the greedy, and powerful fight for their percentages. Two wars rage, and assorted political whores make their careers on this.

As for us. Well we just live our lives. That's all.

..caution, 'Extremely Graphic' Material.

(The last phone call from the 105th floor.)


(Second plane strikes.)

"Coney Island Bits da Dust"

Coney Island was featured in "Beast from 20,000 Fathoms". ...here's everyones favorite scenes! ..yep the Cyclone, and the cop.

"Coney Island, 1898-2008"

(Click on these swell pixs to enlarge)

A grim fucked up world was made just a little stinkier with the heart breaking news this afternoon that our beloved "Coney Island" was shutting it's rusty gates forever. Our dear threadbare, refuge has been devoured by greed, and shortsighted capitalist stupidity.

Well nevermind all the Marxist jazz. The nazi fucks have taken our ancient public common away. In any other country there'd be riots over this by millions of outraged proles. The bastards couldn't even leave us the last three frigg'n blocks of our well worn, comfy, public turf!

Here's da story...

NEW YORK (AP) -- The owner of Coney Island's Astroland said Thursday she is calling it quits and the historic amusement park will close for good on Sunday.
With two dozen rides on three acres, Astroland covers a large part of Coney Island.

Carol Albert, whose family has owned the Brooklyn amusement park for a half century, said she gave up on negotiating a two-year lease with Thor Equities after the developer missed a Thursday deadline to reply.

The park was under threat of closing a year ago, but Thor -- which owns the land under the park -- and Astroland agreed to a one-year lease extension. It was not clear if another last-minute reprieve was possible this year.

Albert said she wanted a two-year lease this time, to cover the summers of 2009 and 2010, because her 300 employees needed more job security.

Albert's father-in-law, Dewey Albert, unveiled the outer-space-themed Astroland park in 1962. For years, its future has been the focus of bickering among the developer, the ride operator and city officials.

_____________________________________________________

Here's a video from last summer when we dodged the bullet. 'But this time they got us in the Heart. Also a longer video about our dear Coney Island in her heyday!

"Mania!"

I always liked General Sherman. Look at 'em. Clearly the guy's nuts, and don't care who knows. Yep if you're gonna burn down a city ya wants a fella like "Mad Billy" to do the job. As he used to say,..."War is Heck" or something like that.

As for myself my latest mania is patriotic indeed. No I'm not burning Atlanta. I'll leave that to the Crips. What I'm about is dressing up as Civil War guy. Specifically a 9th Cav. horse soldier. I've always had a thing for the re-enactors stuff, but was too busy, and generally too poor to take part.

I'm still poor, but no longer as busy so I'm ordering a uniform with all the doodads so I can march in the Halloween Parade in Greenwich Village this year.















The "Billy Yank" on the left here is an officer with the 1863 New York Volunteers. I thought I might go in his direction. However it might be better to start with something more modest so like I sez I'll try the horse soldier route first. I really like their get up. So I'm going whole hog. Gloves, army cowboy hat, boots, saber, army .58 cal colt, and holster the whole shebang.



Granted I might have a problem explaining the big knife, and six shooters to the cops, but what the hell it's Halloween. I'm sure New York's Finest will have a sense of humor about it, and not shoot me 41 times,...right?



As for why in da world I'd do something this nuts,..and expensive. Well I think this all goes back to the politically incorrect male fascination with the extermination of most of the natives folks. Eh,.."cowboys, and indians?" As soon as I was old enough to realize that I was 'really' playing "S.S., and Jews" I stopped.

However that didn't mean I didn't miss the hell out of it . Damn! I wanted to be a cowboy more than I wanted to be a Queer Drag Queen! Yeah that's how serious it was. So at long last I can live both incorrect fantasies. I can wear makeup, 'and' dress like a cowboy!

One annoys the Feminists, the other insults Native folks.

Well gimme a break it's my shabby life I'm gonna be a gawd damned cowboy! ...sort'a. What I'll be is a Union Army Colored Horse Soldier, re-enactor, gunning for Confederate slave holders.

Well okay most southern grunts was just regular guys defending their homes'n familes, and didn't have no slaves. However let's not get distracted with confusing facts.





















Basically I wants to be this guy. Cool huh!

(...yeah, sure I'm still kind'a a pacifist, and all. 'But hey I'm having a fantasy alright.)

"Since I have your attention..."

Yeah I'm kidding I know there's no one there. Just like old times. I'm back to playing to empty seats like the washed up ham I am. It's my blogs, and I'll piss'n whine if I want to.

What the hell,..all good things'n all that.

Still not long ago I drew over half a million viewers, assorted deranged perverts, and cops into my tent of mostly legal wonders. Hey I gave the rubes what they wanted.

...ahem

Now I'm all cynical, nasty, and realistic, and that don't play well anywhere. Humm, maybe I should get better meds. On the other hand a pal said that the ones that still come around are the real fans. Also I'm no longer such an inviting target for the heat, and their 'net helpers.

True. I did dance on the edge of the abyss for a while. There's just so many times you can duck bullets till one of 'em gets wise, and ducks with you.

Blam!

I don't look good in orange. So now I play nice, and the crowds have gone on to the next suicidal clown.

Which is at heart what all of us in the communications mediums are. We just don't wear the nose or floppy shoes,..usually.

This clip proves that there are too many video cameras out there.

"The Ownership Society"

I don't have money for food at the end of the month, and I have a full time union job with benefits.

(...rent, food, medications. Sometimes I can't afford all three.)

Or to put it another way. I was watching a bit of the Republican convention tonight. Not that there was much going on. Ya noticed? The place was empty most of the time. 'Guess they was all at power lunch's or power naps or something.

Anyway when someone 'was' speaking I couldn't help, but notice that the crowd was mono-cultural. To say nothing of mono-chromatic. Ya know, generally white people with alot of money.

'Normally I don't go in for racist mau-mauing of white folks. I despise Black race games as much as the old White ones. Also I ain't mad at them for having so much dough. I wouldn't mind being in a position to 'earn' some of that myself.

It's just that I couldn't help but notice that this convention was like a private club or a gated community. That as opposed to what I saw at the Democratic jamboree last week. What piss's me off about them is that they seemed to have forgotten what hunger feels like.

That's it in a nutshell.

These folks, some of them, seemed to me too far removed from the reality of food stamps, layoffs or foreclosure to be of much help in these times.

Still like I sez,..nice people I'm sure. Still I suppose they're like Crack Heads. Sort'a focused on just 'their' goals to the exclusion of pretty much everything else.

No I'm not going to do some long whiney thing here. It's just that I'm always amazed at their party's ideological indifference to injustice, and suffering is all. Though I'm sure they don't see it that way. No one ever sees 'themselves' as the bad guy.

'But remember the 'Purpose' of a system, any system is 'what it Does'.

What it 'Actually' does in the Real World.

Not what it 'sez' it's doing or 'plans' to do, but what it 'Really' does day to day.

Looking at these nice rich people that are responsible for the system that forcibly screws regular folks up the butt, no grease, everyday of the week,..well.

What can I say. 'They' seem to like it okay so I imagine they'll keep their system going for as long as possible. '

But of course that means 'we're' all fucked.

Don't it.

Stay Tuned.

(The above fridge is a professional stunt double for my actual fridge which is just as empty, but not nearly so clean, and tidy.) Ya needs a chisel to get that fossilized pasta sauce off the bottom, and sides.