u2roolz
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Facebook Blamed for Benefits Loss
BROMONT, Quebec (Nov. 22) -- A Canadian woman on long-term sick leave for depression says she lost her benefits because her insurance agent found photos of her on Facebook in which she appeared to be having fun.
Nathalie Blanchard has been on leave from her job at IBM in Bromont, Quebec, for the last year.
The Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported Saturday she was diagnosed with major depression and was receiving monthly sick-leave benefits from insurance giant Manulife.
But the payments dried up this fall and when Blanchard called Manulife, she says she was told she was available to work because of Facebook.
She said her insurance agent described several pictures Blanchard posted on Facebook, including ones showing her having a good time at a Chippendales bar show, at her birthday party and on a sunny holiday.
Blanchard said Manulife told her it's evidence she is no longer depressed. She's fighting to get her benefits reinstated and says her lawyer is exploring what the next step should be.
Blanchard told the CBC that on her doctor's advice, she tried to have fun, including nights out at her local bar with friends and short getaways to sun destinations, as a way to forget her problems.
Manulife wouldn't comment on Blanchard's case, but did say they would not deny or terminate a claim solely based on information published on Web sites such as Facebook.
Edit: (My own .02 cents. I love these types of stories. With my background in communication media (concentration in film), we studied lots of similar cases in Comm Law & Ethics.)(My comments below)
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It does raise some interesting questions like: Is her facebook page private or public? If it was private did she accept a friend request from her insurance agent? Was she posting these photos with the intent to show loved ones that she was trying to "have fun"? Do these photos REALLY mean that's she no longer depressed? LOL. Before facebook would you have to have this person followed around for clues as to her depression? Would you hire a mustachioed private eye to break into her house to look for such lascivious photos?
I love those stories about college football recruiters making fake myspace/facebook pages, usually as a beautiful woman, to do background checks on potential students/players. According to an ESPN Sports Center that I watched, it is pretty common place nowadays.
Using Search Engines for Businesses
Fake Pages & Sports Recruiting
It almost always elicits the same response from those potential students/players: my PRIVACY is being broken.
Recently, I think, something that someone posted on Twitter or Facebook got them into hot water with a company. The company was going to sue because of what they said online.
All of this is fascinating because where do you draw the line? Is one person's opinion going to really take down/taint your company? How many people are friends/followers of that person? How many of them will agree with their position? Are we to take facebook and twitter at the same level as the mainstream press?
Ultimately, has technology forever blurred the line between privacy and publicity? Are we being punished for our own narcissism? Is one person's narcissism another's yearn for human connection?
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I wanted to dip my toe into this discussion:
I think, at least in my eyes and mind, a lot of the amazement is not really about the followers or people.
It's really a question on the how or why or what caused them to think that way. That's more fascinating.
The idea that certain or some people can buy into an ideology through a giant media machine.
I've studied communication media in college (which explains my current lack of employment
) and it's always amazed me by what people consider to be real or factual.Or how it is really a form of certain attempts at mind control or rather mind/idea forming.
There may be some who say "well, are you blaming the people who buy into it?" That's tough because I'm not sure there's enough of a grass roots movement to find and seek out un-biased news.
It requires a lot of leg work.
Of course, one can find great irony that we are talking about a woman and a black man. Isn't it interesting that through the media most of our opinions have changed on these specific groups?
A woman and a person of color were told that they couldn't have the same rights as others (pretty much white men
) Some people agreed with that. Certain shows on television backed that up with certain stereotypes, maybe there were a few subversive examples. I can't think of any. And then a cultural revolution took place. Since I was not around at that time, I can only look back at the images and newspaper clippings to see what happened. My question is: Was that a result of the way the media presented equal rights? Or was there a grass roots movement first and then the media had to present this and change the public opinion? So which came first? I guess the point that I'm trying to make here is this. Were the people aware of their own mistreatment despite the way the media would have them think otherwise? I'd like to think so.
So what's really changed since then? Where do we point our collective judgmental finger at? Jon & Kate & The Octo Mom or Balloon Boy? Hey, they provide great distractions. They also show horrible abuses of a little nice invention called television. Are some of us satisfied by getting a grab bag of political ideas from certain major news networks? Are the political blueprints of each party catered to a specific group of people? What I mean is: would certain people feel a certain way on certain issues without stuff being shoved down their throats. Is one party a result of their certain demographic? Or is one demographic a result of their certain party that they follow?
Television Is The Drug Of The Nation
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I was just at Bull Moose Records and saw A.M. for $18.88. I didn't pick it up because I don't collect vinyl yet.
My dad owns a Crossley that came in handy when I bought the You Never Know/Unlikely Japan single.
Check out the link if you wish.
They also have a huge used vinyl section. Lots of cool stuff.
Stores are in Portsmouth, NH and Salem, NH. Plus, more in Maine.
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Have they ever played 'No Way'? I've always loved that song and would think that it would translate well live. I believe they had done Brain of J at one time or another over the years, which is another rocking tune!
Have they ever played 'No Way'? I've always loved that song and would think that it would translate well live. I believe they had done Brain of J at one time or another over the years, which is another rocking tune!
WOW!? Do you have ESP or what?!
I went looking for info and here's what I found. I knew that they may have tried it around the 98 Yield Tour at least once or twice.
Times Played 7
DATE LOCATION VENUE
Tue Nov 17, 2009 Adelaide, Australia Adelaide Oval
Wed Oct 28, 2009 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Wachovia Spectrum Arena
Fri Sep 25, 2009 Vancouver, BC GM Place
Tue Sep 22, 2009 Seattle, Washington Key Arena
Mon Sep 07, 1998 Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach Amphitheatre
Tue Sep 01, 1998 Atlanta, Georgia Lakewood Amphitheatre
Tue Aug 25, 1998 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Star Lake Amphitheater
LOL. They just started playing it recently. I had no idea. NO WAY indeed.
Brain Of J used to get played a lot in the past.
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I wanted to throw out there that I saw My Morning Jacket open for Doves in 2002 when no one knew who they were.
My friend and I got up close. It was as the Avalon in Boston, MA. It was weird to see a singer with his hair completely covering his face.
We wondered if Cousin It had shown up and stolen the lead singer.
Great show! I've also seen them open up for Wilco (obviously) in 2005 at Agganis Arena in Boston. Another great show. Then a 3rd time in between. Something tells me that they opened for Foo Fighters. And Pete Yorn was also on the bill? It seems a bit odd for those 3 to be on the same bill.
I'd like to throw 2 names into the ring. I'm sure they won't be met with such enthusiasm. While I have admired every name on the list, I noticed a lot of the stuff seemed a bit depressing. Which can be good.
Muse - One of the best live shows I have seen. They really bring something new and different to arena rock, yet something very familiar.
They have 4 great albums out this decade.
Origin Of Symmetry
Absolution
Black Holes & Revelations
The Resistance
The Killers - It fascinates me that a band can jump between Top 40, Modern Rock, Adult Contemporary, etc. and still bring in people that are Goths, scenesters, hipsters, etc. I still can't classify what they are. They don't really sound like anything else. I can see the comparisons to The Cure or Duran Duran and Depeche Mode. But they still have their own sound. Plus, Brandon Flowers is one hell of a showman. People always talk about Chris Martin. Well, when I see him it looks like he's always seeking approval and unsure of himself. Flowers has this confidence and assurance and niceness to him that echoes Bono in the early 80s. Check out the recently released Live At The Royal Albert Hall for evidence. I've seen them live (another one of the best) and the crowd really gets into it and so did I. Oh, and it was refreshing to hear saxophone solos again. It's one thing that's been missing since the 80s.
Once again these 2 bands are sort of options for the other stuff listed. To mix things up.
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Just giving folks a friendly reminder to do an Easter Egg Hunt for PBS's Austin City Limits featuring Pearl Jam beginning tomorrow at 7p.m.
Check your local listings indeed. I looked at the Boston and NH affiliates and it is not on at all this week. If anyone can find it in these areas let me know.
Otherwise, enjoy the show.
Thanks
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Hello,
I was watching the Colbert Report rerun this afternoon and Elvis Costello was on.
Some good news:
1. A 4 disc set for Season 1 (12 episodes) has already been released. It actually came out last Tuesday the 10th. I'm not sure if there's any extras. The following link has little info besides price. I had 0 idea that it came out.
2. Season 2 begins on Wednesday December 9. I assumed it would be mid-to-late January.
Expect to see these guests this season. (there's not one particular guest confirmed for episode 1.)
Bono & The Edge
Bruce Springsteen
Sheryl Crow
Lyle Lovett
John Prine
Ron Sexsmith
Neko Case
Jesse Winchester
Ray LaMontagne
Nick Lowe
Levon Helm
Richard Thompson
Allen Toussaint
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Another great place to get tickets for cheap is the U2 Interference Message Boards. There was a lot of supply this past fall and not enough demand. Lots of good tickets went cheap.
I can't give you the link just yet, since it's down due to hackers.
Just search for U2 Interference > Message Board > What Do You Want? What Do You Have?
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Ok. First, I want to say something that happened to me at the Foxboro show in MA that I saw in Sept. People were standing in the back of every row. Pretty much about 20 people at each entrance to go down to the floor. So if you paid $30 for a ticket, take your time getting to your seat. You may be able to hang out by the concession area on the concourse. I don't know why there were no ushers or security? Anyways, the view was excellent. I ended up standing with these people and I had a seat kiddie-corner facing the soundboard. I completely understand the idiocy of people having to stand if their view from heaven wasn't great. But I say take advantage of your "cheap" ticket and stand.
Auctioneer, I hope you read this. I'm not sure if it was like this at every stadium. But if it is like this in Seattle then go for it. It puts you at eye level with the band and the screen.
Edit: Oh yeah, after typing all of this about U2 I did something that has never happened to me before. I freakin' bit my tongue while eating. It freaked me out. For a second I really thought that Bono had special powers.
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I almost forgot to add the most important thing on here. Take a look.
"It’s confirmed: U2 will play Montreal on July 16.
The band will perform on the polo field at the Montreal Hippodrome, kicking in $3 million for the construction of a temporary open-air stadium to fit 60,000 to 80,000 people.
It is the only date for which U2 is not performing in a pre-existing stadium, not to mention fronting the cost of building one."
Read the rest here - U2 Montreal 2010
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Some more points before my mind goes blank:
I sometimes state that I have my U2roolz screen name as a sign of who I once was. I mean I spend most of my time on here. I think that speaks volumes. Ever since I saw Wilco in 2003 at Boston's Fleet Pavillion, it all clicked for me. Under a different lense, I thought this is the band that I've been looking for. MUSICIANS making amazing music and still creating an AMAZING live show. Not from zillions of screens and a McDonald's Arch and Bono talking for 10 minutes about poverty in Africa. Wilco was and is the real deal for me. I still love U2 but in a weird way now. Maybe like that ex-girlfriend that got into your head good and comes back every 4 years and blows you away, but still lets you down and leaves a void. That sense of being left behind. I respect the decision to go away for 4 years, but it seems like that's all part of the plan/scheme to make them the big deal every time they come back.
Oh. U2 released 3 albums this decade. Depending on if you want to believe that 2000 was the 1st year in this decade. All That You Can't Leave Behind in 2000. I think all of the hits on this record sound better live. Especially, the Bono and Edge acoustic version of Stuck In A Moment. Elevation works live and isn't that great on there. There's a handful of tunes that work - In A Little Whlle, Wild Honey, When I Look At The World, and Kite all sound great though on the album.
Atomic Bomb I enjoyed at the time. Over the years the same thing started happening. The live versions trumped what was recorded. I can agree with people if they say that this was forced.
No Line, in my opinion, was their best record of this decade. It's too bad that they matched it with a stadium tour.
For the record and the judge and jury: I haven't bought any of the new U2 rereleases. I passed on The Unforgettable Fire to pick up R.E.M.'s 39 songs live instead. And that paid off in dividends. I also haven't picked up their 1st 3 remastered. Money is tight and like I said a lot of that stuff was and/or should have been on the Complete "Box Set" from iTunes. So I feel a bit cheated, but it seems almost scripted now. I don't let it sting. I'll buy them at some point.
Ending here: I don't know if meeting Jeff has swayed my overall opinion on the band. I was very gracious to have met this man a few times in such short a time period. I feel more connection to this band. Fuck. Even the HQ emails seem more sincere than the U2.com ones looking for $50 to sign up for a membership to get a day early crack at tickets.
That is all.
(Edit: LOL. This all sounds very Oprah or Dr. Phil)
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Ok. First, I want to say something that happened to me at the Foxboro show in MA that I saw in Sept. People were standing in the back of every row. Pretty much about 20 people at each entrance to go down to the floor. So if you paid $30 for a ticket, take your time getting to your seat. You may be able to hang out by the concession area on the concourse. I don't know why there were no ushers or security? Anyways, the view was excellent. I ended up standing with these people and I had a seat kiddie-corner facing the soundboard. I completely understand the idiocy of people having to stand if their view from heaven wasn't great. But I say take advantage of your "cheap" ticket and stand.
I wouldn't say that U2 does this annually (tour). They tour every time a new U.S. president gets in office. The thing they do annually now is rerelease the old records with bonus content that was on the over priced iTunes "complete" box set. Ok. Maybe one or two songs are new. But the last 2 tours after the PopMart debacle were indoor arenas except in Europe etc. They played 7 shows in Boston over a year in 2005. Every show I assume sold out. This wasn't the case at the 2nd night in Foxboro this year. It's a lot easier to sell out 20,000 arenas than 70,000 over priced.
Why did they do it? Well, they wanted to top themselves and break out of their confines of playing (it safe) indoors in the U.S. I think every thing that's being said can be taken into account. Ego, money, breaking down the doors on stadium tours' technology, claiming to have low ticket prices than they turn out to be the worst seats in the house. (there's no way I'm sitting in the last row for $50.00 in an open air stadium. Does Bono want me to fall to me death like that overweight woman in The Naked Gun?)
That being said the show was pretty amazing BUT the parking situation prevented me from catching the whole show. My friends went to night 1 and they were stuck in the lot for 3 hours before they moved an inch. I skipped out on night 1 because their setlists have been pretty static on this tour and that's typical of them. $40.00 to park too. How nice.
I kind of like the idea that U2 tours every 4 years. It makes their real die hards (read: the ones that would eat Bono's shit and think that there's nothing else going on musically in the world. I've been there in 1997. You wait and wait for a new album and then await a tour announcement. There's a lot of people at the U2 message boards that come off as naive and insane. They're drinking the Bono kool-aid. I really wonder if they go live and hide in caves in between U2 tours and albums.) -
Blues Traveler
Jethro Tull
Vic Chesnutt
All have performed with lead singers in a wheelchair. Probably wasn't any of them, though.
No
Nope
No
I have no idea...(looks online for the info)...(that was quick and painless. I should have done that before)
The Bennies.
Edit:
"The warm-up act, the Bennies, elicited some surprised laughter when they wheeled out on stage. Yes, wheeled; the Bennies’ lead singer, Jeremy Dubs, is a little person who’s confined to a wheelchair. But he rocked hard when they came out of the gate, at one point headbanging so hard that his glasses flew off. The group played a tight set of mostly short songs, many of which betrayed the Pixies’ influence through frequent meter and tempo changes (though lyrically the group was a lot less surreal than their ticketmates). I’ll look forward to finding their album when it’s released."
http://blogcritics.org/music/article/concert-review-pixies-and-mission-of/
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To answer the question initially in the thread: I think it's just on rest. For some reason I guess they feel they played it too often. It will come back. Look it At Least That's What You Said. It missed a lot of shows from 06-08. (from memory Hell Is Chrome seemed to get played more).
And I was at that Portland, ME show. It was amazing! Nice venue.
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I honestly did not know this was coming
Ha. Well, it occurred to me to make myself a playlist. And then I tried to make one for someone not familiar with their material. It's tough. I feel like Summerteeth got gipped.
Anyways, have fun with the format I guess. It's interesting to see what people put down. And yes I'm aware there's always threads like these, but this seems a bit different with the 15th anniversary.
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When I saw the Pixies in Lowell,MA in Dec of 04 the opener was Mission Of Burma. And some band with the lead singer in a wheel chair.
Then I saw them at Agganis Arena in June of 05. It was about one week before Wilco went there. Both shows were great and consisted of about 30 songs. They played almost all of Doolittle.
I would like to see them in Boston next week, but Thanksgiving weekend is tough.
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1. Remember The Mountain Bed
2. One Wing
3. Bull Black Nova
4. You Are My Face
5. I Am Trying To Break Your Heart
6. A Shot In The Arm
7. Shouldn't Be Ashamed
8. Muzzle Of Bees
9. Hotel Arizona
10. Via Chicago
11. Monday
12. Walken
13. ELT
14. Poor Places
15. Misunderstood
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There's a tiny door in the oval office. It's a portal and it takes you inside Joe Biden's head. You see the world through Joe Biden's eyes... and then after about 15 minutes, you're spit out... into a ditch on the side of the Delaware Amtrak Station. This is a very odd thing. Is Biden Biden? I had a fake foot in my hand. I don't have it any more. Where is it? Did it disappear? How could that be? Is it still in Biden's head? I don't know! Do you see what a metaphysical can of worms this portal is? I don't see how I could go on living my life the way I've lived it before.
"Who the f$&* is Joe Biden?!"
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Good taste dude. Haha
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Seinfeld!
Party of four!
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Bart, all of what you think you saw and/or heard about actually happened.
This is not a dream. (cue Twilight Zone music).
Yes, to answer your question simply and quickly Bono threw in (snippeted) a few lines of Far, Far Away as the intro to Beautiful Day.
He did this at both Chicago shows and changed the lyrics around in Foxboro to reflect the T instead of the CTA.
I emailed Greg Kot to see if he noticed it since I saw his review online and he didn't mention it. I figured it was a long shot.
But he responded. (Edit: For those that may not know or remember Bono got pissed at what Kot wrote after their Vertigo tour in Chicago in 2005. So he demanded to sit down with him and talk it out. Obviously, Kot has a history with WIlco.
)"yes, heard that at Saturday's show and thought it was cool --- and unusually subtle by U2 standards!
and thanks for that link. much appreciated.
gk"
Since this may be your lucky day, I happen to have a recording of this that I will post for you.
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I had no idea Sir Stewart was in the Boston area. My best friend lives in the North End. Have fun!
U2 - 360 Degrees Tour "Cheap Seats"
in Someone Else's Song
Posted
Having had GA tickets in the past, I can safely say that that can be a great pain in the neck.
You can encounter waiting in the rain until the show begins or burn in the sweltering heat.
Plus, not to mention dealing with all U2 yahoos eyeing everyone making sure no one steals their spot if they go to the rest room (read: porta potty).
Granted, some people are cool in the line. But keep in mind it can be quite a taxing effort on your part to wait in a GA line all day and then have energy to stand up during a show.
If you pack a cooler, you need to go run and bring it out to the car before show time. Although, I heard in some European cities it was ok to bring in a small cooler.
If you pack light, you're kind of screwed when that 3rd bottle of water is done by 3p.m.
Sure, it is all worth it to see them once in this GA scenario. But there's a lot of folks who can do this on the whole freaking tour. Not me. I'm hypoglycemic.
Good Luck.