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John Smith

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Posts posted by John Smith

    Politics 2016 (election edition)

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    I know those are the guys in power who have done a 180.

     

    Aguy I know, who is legitimately close to being a billionaire, started out with Jeb. Thought he was best for the country. Could not stand Trump, who he knows personally. When Jeb dropped he hopped on the Rubio bandwagon and still could not stand Trump as a candidate. When Rubio dropped he could not bring himself to back Cruz and still could not stand Trump. Now that Trump stands alone he still can't stand him but is voting for him in spite of the fact that he knows trump will be awful for the country. Why? Because his reptilian response kicked in and he has to vote republican. There are tons of people like him who can't help themselves.

     

    I get what you are saying about people like him voting for Trump in spite of knowing the shit storm he is going to bring with him. This guy thinks the establishment can control Trump as do so many like him. It's sad. The people who scare me the most are the ones who listen to Trump and understand him and are in agreement with him.

     

    I also think these people , Ryan etc... Show their true colors and put party and ideology over country.

    Politics 2016 (election edition)

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    Normally I don't, but in this case I have more respect for people who will vote for the candidate simply because of the letter next to his name over those who vote because they agree with him and find him to be in line with their personal views. I didn't think it was possible, but I think he's s worse candidate than Bush.

    Now Reading in 2016

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    Just finished Hot Burritios.  After reading it i'm not a huge fan of Mr Hillman.  he seems overly bitter about Parsons.  I almost put the book down before I even finished the introduction. {arsons had his faults, drinking and drugging being big ones, but Hillman could not seem to bring up Parsons without spewing venom.   I know hes not a huge fan of how parsons legend has grown and been embellished but he goes just as far in the other direction.  Also every time something goes wrong he pins blame on whoever is at hand.  Other than Hillman though, the book was not bad.

    Politics 2016 (election edition)

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    The issue of calling him Cassius Clay right now is pretty common in comments attached to news stories as are the draft dodging comments.  I wonder though if those same people called Marion Morrison his real name when he died or noted that he did not serve during WWII? the List of people who changed their names is a long one:  Benjamin Kubelsky, Reginald Dwight, Norma Jean Mortenson, BErnard Schwartz, Betty Jo Perskey, Dino Paul Crocetti, RIchard Jenkins etc... BUt I seriously doubt that the vultures and low lifes making the comments have referred to any of these people by their birth names.

     

    Edit...

     

    Daniel followed that tweet up with a tweet about " Liberals can dance with joy the day #justicescalia dies, but we cant say one thing about Cassius Clay and his love of the nation of Islam"  

     

    Yea,umm who in a position of power on the left was dancing with Joy? Or is this something Daniel assumed? ANd if he feels this percieved lsight was wrong, how does doing something he equates with a wrong act make it right? Also Ali had not been associated with the Nation of Islam for over 40 years. and of course Daniel did not reference the nation of Islam in his original tweet.

    Politics 2016 (election edition)

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    OK, someone sell me on Trump, sell his policies, how will he make America Great again and what that greatness will look like?  Accentuate the positive, tell me how he will be a good president.  Im serious too.  What do you see in him? I have a hard time seeing anything appealing when he speaks, so whatam I missing?

    Politics 2016 (election edition)

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    Obama is going to be living 1,096feet away from a mosque, further proof that Obama is a secret Muslim bent on destroying the US. Yep stuff like that is pretty comparable to people criticizing trumps actual words. By the way, when did Obama switch from black liberation Christianity to Islam?

    Politics 2016 (election edition)

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    At least you have real reasons. Based on your answer she should appeal to more voters because our country loves war. Re the email, I say if things are found to be improper then throw the book at her. Her punishment should be what the previous administration got since after all we do have a past precedence to draw from. That's tongue in cheek as politicians are only interested in ruining other pols careers over issues like this. Actual punishment and corrective behavior is secondary.

     

    I know someone who said they could never vote for Clinton because they know too many things about her that the press is not talking about. Umm ok, so no real concrete reasons just internet bullshit.

    Politics 2016 (election edition)

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    This election is like trying to decide which cancer is more healthy for you.

    . In my opinion, using your analogy, it's like comparing stage IV liver cancer that has metasticized throughout the body (Trump) to a mole that has changed color (Clinton).

     

    How horrible is Clinton really? Is she ambitious? Is she just not likeable? Hello Trump? Cruz? Aren't they all ambitious and not likeable? What is it? I just see a politician who along with her husband has been vilified since day one. I don't believe one bit that she has had people killed, or that Benghazi!!!!! Is the worst national tragedy ever. I don't believe that it is anything more than politics dying those investigations. The Email thing? So far nothing real has come out of that yet, but is it worse than when the previous administration conducted business on private servers. So what exactly is it about her specifically?

    Politics 2016 (election edition)

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    I think he does not want to release them because they don't match up with what he has been saying. Income is lower, income is sheltered in foreign investments/structures, contributions are not as great Ashe has said and to organizations that are not approved of by republicans. In other words they may expose him as a fraud. This won't dissuade the true believers but it might have an effect on the undecided.

    Radiohead LP9

    in Someone Else's Song

    Posted

    i tend to lean towards this order if I pull them off the shelf to listen...

     

    The Bends

    OK Computer

    Hail to the Thief

    (Does the live one count? If so insert here)

    KId A

    Pablo Honey

     

     

     

     

    Amnesiac

    IN Rainbows

     

    Never heard King of LImbs or the new one.

    Zappa

    in Someone Else's Song

    Posted


    An Open Letter to My Brother





    Dweezil,

    Strange to be writing this in public, but I don't know how else to respond. After reading the article in The New York Times, I'm not sure how else to reach you. If we talk through our lawyers, it's not because I want that. It's because you've refused to talk any other way. I've been reaching out to you for months. I even tried to set up a family meeting so we could discuss all of our family issues, but you repeatedly said you couldn't fit it into your schedule, and that you weren't available to attend without your lawyers present. Instead, you've given this incomplete, misleading story to the NYT and the media, and invited the whole world to take sides about our family business. Now, we're becoming "that family" – the spoiled brats arguing in public about who deserves what. I understand you're hurting and angry. We all are. But the more we fight about this in the press, the worse it gets for all of us. We're not gaining anything by doing this in public. If you're not willing to talk to me, though, I don't know what else to do. The New York Times has a story about a version of me that isn't based on facts or reality, and I don't know how else to set the record straight – or get you to talk to me – except to write this here, where people can form opinions by reading what I said for themselves. If you want to share private facts and legal documents, we can do that too, because honestly, we both know what'll happen: it will give everyone a complete picture of what's happening. Not the distorted one that's out there now, which makes it look like this is about business crushing art, or me being a greedy asshole who wants to take away your rights. I don't know how else to start, so I'll just respond to a few things I've read:


    1. The article claims that you're no longer allowed to perform under the name Zappa Plays Zappa.
    Not true, and we both know it. I have never asked you to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to use the ZPZ name. You've only been told that you can't keep using the name without agreeing to a fee of $1 per year, which you're fully aware of, but never mentioned in your interviews. I'll come back to that in a second. But just so everyone is clear:


    Fact: You can absolutely keep touring under the name Zappa Plays Zappa.
    You could do it tomorrow, and honestly, I hope you will. You’re a fucking guitar god and in my opinion one of the best guitar players in the world. You do an amazing job playing our father's music with total integrity. Your tours help keep Frank's name alive, just like the work Gail and I have done through the ZFT. This isn't about your tours, or art, or even about you. This is about the way the Trust was set up ages ago: if any of us use the "Zappa Plays Zappa" name for commercial purposes, a share of the profit goes back to the ZFT, to cover the high costs involved in maintaining the business and releasing more of Frank's content for the fans. Period. The point is: No one is stopping you from using the name, as long as you follow the exact same rules as the rest of us. And before anyone starts thinking that we're trying to screw you, let's talk about fees again.


    2. The article claims that if you perform without paying the ZFT an "exorbitant fee," you'll be charged up to $150,000 for each song you play.
    Again, not even close to true. Honestly, this was the part that really hurt, because now a lot of Frank's fans think I'm some greedy dude who's just in this for the money. Can't blame them. It sounds like blackmail. Like I don't want you to be able to play Frank's music. If I read that article without knowing the rest of the facts, I'd think I was a greedy asshole too. It's just not true. Personally, I don't think the fee Gail asked for was exorbitant. If you want, we can share the exact terms with the public, instead of just asking them to take our word for it. But even if the price was too high, it doesn't matter anymore, because I didn't want it to be an issue for you. That's why I suggested a workaround. So, if you're going to share family business with the whole world, I wish you'd tell them the whole story:


    Fact: The "exorbitant fee" you're now being asked to pay the ZFT, to keep using Frank's name and performing his songs, is $1 per year.
    That's not because the ZFT needs that money. I think we can live without an extra buck every year. It's because that token payment handles the legal requirement. Even though I thought the original fee was reasonable, I wanted to find a way to get us past this. And again, it's not just you: it's all four of us. If I want to perform Frank's music, I'll pay $1. So will Diva and Moon. That's just the deal, and I think it's a pretty reasonable solution. One dollar, man. It doesn't seem like The New York Times knew that part. And that's what hurts. If I was the greedy, deceitful asshole I'm reading about, I wouldn't be working this hard to find a way to make everyone happy.


    3. The article suggests that this is all happening suddenly, that I'm changing the terms of your deal with the ZFT, and that you're being singled out.
    Again, none of this is true. First, this isn't sudden or new. That was always the deal Gail put in place – not just for you, but all of us. Gail's decision was always that any of us who want to use the name – you, me, Moon, Diva – can perform under that name. But be honest: Frank Zappa's legacy isn't something we built, and "Zappa Plays Zappa" isn't a name that any one of us "owns" or has special claim to. We all got the same name at birth, and as the four beneficiaries of the ZFT, we all have an equal right to benefit from that name. That's why Gail decided that any Zappa using the name "Zappa Plays Zappa" would pay a percentage of profits to the ZFT, where it could keep the family business going. That rule doesn't just apply to you. It's for all four of us. A lot of people don't seem to realize this, but when you pay that fee – not even up front, but with a share of the profits you made performing our dad's music, and selling merchandise with his picture and name – it's not like it goes into my pocket. Most of it goes to the ZFT, so we can afford to keep remastering and releasing more of Frank's music to the fans, and building the business. I know the business side of Frank's legacy is less romantic than going out and touring with the music, but it's pretty damn important to me, and to the fans. It's also pretty damn expensive – and takes a ton of work. That's why Gail told us we have to sell the house: because she knew how much it would cost to maintain the catalog, work out deals with distributors, and get more content out to fans. Gail spent most of what we had just fighting to make sure we'd keep the rights to Frank's catalog. And when the ZFT does have profits, we split them between the four of us. I'm getting enough heat on social media that I'm betting a lot of people don't realize that you also receive funds from the ZFT. Even when you do pay fees to use the Zappa name, and sell Zappa merchandise, you receive a portion of the profits from it. ___________ I could say more, but it still feels weird to be saying all of this in public, especially when it feels like everyone is hoping for more drama. But, if I keep seeing inaccurate and misleading articles about what's happening, I don't know what you want me to do. Pretend it's true? Can't do that.

    Again, if you won't talk to me about this, and want to work things out in public, we can. Privacy has always been important in our family, but that doesn't mean I have anything to hide. I just don't see how it helps anything to get the media and the public to take sides, especially when they don't have all the facts.

    If you're willing to talk – and not just through a lawyer – I hope you'll call me. Your Brother, Ahmet


    Politics 2016 (election edition)

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    Why is it unthinkable that Trump is the nominee? I see his nomination as the predictable result of the vitriol and hate that has been the discourse for the past 25 years. The base has been screaming for an outsider for years, they got him. The base has been increasingly xenophobic for years, they got a guy to fit their desires. The base wants a tough talker who isn't going to ruin things with nuance or thought, they have a guy who is campaigning on a "we'll do it my way or else" platform. Trump is exactly what the base wanted. Between him and Cruz the base was not going to lose.

    Politics 2016 (election edition)

    in Tongue-Tied Lightning

    Posted

    I wish I knew what that means too. What I meant was that she was very good at what she was known for. My Frederick Douglas Comment is there if the guiding thinking on her selection was an African American from that era. If they were looking for a woman I think SB Anthony might have more significance.

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