MattZ

It also sounds like in your world, people who settle lawsuits must be guilty. I would bet he is, but settling a lawsuit is evidence of absolutely nothing.

If only the admins could solve the problem over there as easily as they can here.

This place cracks me up sometimes.

And I suppose that I tend to be harder on the Arabs in this situation because when you get down to it, the ultimate goals of both are so disparate. Hezbollah, Hamas, and the man on the arab street want Israel off the map. There is no middle ground for them. Notwithstanding Israel's actions (disproportionate or otherwise), I really do think Israel wants peace. And Israel would be thrilled to live with a Palestinian state, etc. if it thought they could co-exist peacefully. Exactly. But forget about easy answers -- the scariest thing for me in all of this is that there might not be any

The problem with this situation, in a nutshell, is as follows: I forwarded that speech to a friend who thought it was beautiful. And you thought it was disgusting. Both of you have completely logical, well thought-out and considerate reasons for your beliefs. So, neither of you are right, and neither of you are wrong. When you have a situation like that -- it seems to me that you have a disaster waiting to happen. Cryptique -- re: Olmert's reference to the Holocaust -- even as a Jew I roll my eyes at most mentions of the Holocaust... But it is undeniable that there has been a very long

Thats really an amazing speech. Beautifully written too. I just wish it were as simple as Olmert makes it sound. Israel cannot destroy all of its enemies. There are too many. And I fear that Israel only creates more enemies by proceding down a path like this. I recognize that Israel may have no choice and it has to defend itself, but at the end of the day, Olmert needs to do what he believes is in the best interests of Israel for the long term. I suppose only time will tell if invading Lebanon eliminates enemies or creates more of them. Such an unspeakably sad situation.

I am not a parent but I dont know how parents with high school or college-age kids sleep at night. I would be a nervous wreck.

Ignoring that idiot O'Reilly for a minute -- I dont think anyone here ever suggested that this girl deserved what she got. No one ever deserves something like this. But she did have a part to play in this -- the condition she was in, the clothes she wore, the choices she made, all were very relevant to what happened to her that night. Again, that is not to say that she deserved this -- merely that if she had to chosen to do things differently (and yes, that includes wearing different clothes and being aware of her surroundings), that maybe this horrible thing wouldn't have happened to her.

Happy bday remphish.

Walking around in NYC for the last three days, where the temp is over 100 degrees, fearing another blackout like the one from a few years back, listening to the mayor beg businesses and individuals to conserve energy.... ... and then walking past store after store after store with the air conditioning turned up to beyond frigid levels and the damn doors wide open letting all the cold air out. If we have another blackout in this heat, thousands of people will die. And I will blame it on all of these stores. I suppose the flipside to this is that if there's a blackout, those stores will pr

Of course, but that in a nutshell is the problem with these types of re-issues -- the biggest fans are suckers and the record companies know this. Just because I am sucker doesn't mean I am forced to do anything -- and I am not buying this stuff. But its lame to be a fan of an artist and to know that there are (maybe) gems on these re-releases that I wont be able to have in my collection because I dont want to stoop to my 5th version of Imperial bedroom. Its the perfect way to alienate a fanbase. Yet another lesson from the record companies on Customer Relations.

I think the problem with the estate/death tax issue (and frankly, the arguments that everyone (including me) are making in this thread) is that it is too broad of a brush. There is not one universal stereotypical rich person in the world. The top 1% of this country is made up of money hungry jerks that get to the top on the backs of underpaid workers, and there are folks that stick their neck out, provide a valuable service to their community, start a company and provide jobs to folks. Now obviously, I want the folks in the latter category to be as incentivized as possible to go out and t

Can anyone shed any light on this? I have to think that while artists have less control over their catalogue than we would like them to have, that Elvis is a big enough name that he could have stood up to the label and said no to this. There are other ways to issue nonreleased stuff without forcing fans to buy albums they have already bought 3-4 times. I think I have bought 4 different versions of IbMePdErRoIoAoLm.

This is the lamest thing I have ever seen. When they were reissued the second time, I was upset. I dont know how Elvis allows this to happen. Dear Elvis/Universal, I wish you luck with a capital F. (and I say this as one of the biggest Elvis fans out there...)

No argument here. Thats why I tried to pepper my post with as many caveats as possible. I know that its impossible to make a general argument about an issue as complex as this. I suppose I am swayed by my own position in this -- which is that I would not have a job if my President/CEO hadnt started his company. And I make a good living, and I am grateful for it... Of course, the jerks that get to the top on the backs of their workers without giving anything back are the other side of the coin. As with everything, there are 3 sides to every issue.

Another thing to think about vis-a-vis the estate/death tax (from earlier in the thread), is that while it may be true that 10% of the population has 90% of the wealth it is also true (I would think) that a large percentage of that 10% also started and run the very companies that many of us work at. For example, I am sure that the President and CEO of my company is in the top 10% of the wealthiest Americans. Maybe even top 1%. But he got that way by starting a business, sticking his neck out, and building something that not only was successful for himself, but gives 30 other people well-pa

My point was that Dylan obviously chose the direction that the tunes and the album took. I know JWH was a reaction to SgtPepper et al. But people (including folks in this thread) brush off these songs as "light" when I think they are anything but. Dylan could have wrapped these songs in electric bluesy feedback to let the music mimic the feel of the tunes (Hendrix/All Along the Watchtower, anyone??). But he decided not to. JWH was obviously a backlash against Sgt Pepper. JWH was obviously an album about getting back to roots. My only point was that Dylan wrapped pretty heavy songs in

My take on Frankie Lee, and basically the album as a whole, is that it is a deep and dark exploration of biblical themes and struggles played against the struggles of average Americans. Church vs. whorehouse/gambling/prostitution in Frankie Lee; the Poor Immigrant who simultaneously hates his life and fears his death; Dear Landlord -- please dont put a price on my soul; St Augustine ends with him alone, terrified and bowing his head and crying; John Wesley Harding -- a friend to the poor. I am not religious at all, but the themes are just too powerful to ignore. The twang of the songs (may

Top 5 for me too. When I first started listening to it, I was never that impressed with it. But the more I listened, the more I picked up on its understated beauty. I also think that people tend to write it off as Americana (cut from the Big Pink mold), but I don't think of it that way. Underneath the twang, there is a driving bluesy force. There is a LOT of foot tapping going on when I listen to that album. Reminds me a lot of Love and Theft actually, but with more of a twang to it. Frankie Lee is fantastic, but much love goes to Drifters Escape and Dear Landlord. I think it is a vir

I couldn't agree more. But even if you take what they say as true -- that VU and Nico inspired Siouxsie and the Banshees and Jesus and Mary Chain -- how could anyone use these facts as evidence that it was the most influential album of all time? Not only are the picks bizarre, but the logic is just as twisted. Shouldnt the "most influential album of all time" at least be an album that inspired broader bands or sounds or genres? I am not trying to pick on Siouxsie, but I think Highway 61 Revisited (that opening snare hit, anyone?) had a little more to do with influencing music that lots an

I dont get most of these picks either. VU and Nico as #1? Even in a "most influential" list? The article says that the album inspired "Bowie, Roxy Music, Siouxsie and the Banshees and the Jesus and Mary Chain, among many others." Is this really such an amazing accomplishment that it should be considered the #1 most influential album? Siouxise and the Banshees? Really?

It certainly changed the way I think about these top 50 polls. Complete rubbish.

I thought it was the law in England that the Stone Roses have to be top 3 on any lists of these kinds.

Yeah, I have often wondered about this. What's with all the 15-year-old fans? I am getting old (30), but Decemberists concerts make me feel a little too old.