Artifice
-
Content Count
409 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Posts posted by Artifice
-
-
She's almost too cute:
Oh wow... that voice. :swoon:
-
Most of these are blocked @ work, so apologies if this has already been said:
My highly scientific criteria consists of: which one makes my ass get up and dance.
-
& a DVD I made of youtube clips of the Arcade Fire Rock en Seine show.
I randomly added my favorite live performances of Vampire Forest Fire and Headlights Look Like Diamonds just because.
-
Still waiting for someone to post a list that I completely agree with so I can post "yeah that".
I'm a lazy fan
-
radiohead
kanye
arcade fire
I love this answer. Haha.
-
35 Morning Benders, The - Big Echo
I'm glad to see them get a little bit of love on here. The album's good, not great, but I hate seeing it get dismissed as just a benefactor of its producer.
-
Artifice:
Looking at your selections for today, if you are not familiar with that Goo Goo Dolls record that I have with me today, you really should hear it. Simply a great, punky power pop record. As opposed to the sappy powerless PAP they're doing today.
Oh yeah man. I'm an old fart (37). I remember when they were a real band. I have that one and another one of their old records somewhere - Superstar Car Wash I think it's called? I'll have to dig them up.
-
-
Not nearly as cool as everyone else who posts 4 or 5 at a time, but I was in a mood:
-
I work in immigration; the way NAFTA works with regard to immigration is that companies can sponsor people in certain, underrepresented occupations (teachers, physicians), or occupations in sectors that would improve our own economy (STEM occupations), can come here after jumping through only 193 hoops (for Canadians, 1,931 for Mexican) instead of 18,930.
The NAFTA is the U.S. version of a guestworker program. While guestworker programs are notorious for becomeing people-who-don't-leave programs, NAFTA workers are specifically prohibited from taking steps to become permanent residents, and must jump through the other 18,930 hoops (subsequently switching authorization categories) to do so.
I didn't know that. Generally, I'm in favor of any type of controlled immigration. That's another political red herring. We need immigration, but we also need to control the quality and velocity of it like most of our friendly/peer countries.
-
The small business owners ARE the rich. Are rich people not working professionals?
No. The rich are a silent sect. They own $40 million weekend pads in the Hamptons and do not "work" for a living. They are passive investors and the majority of their incomes are taxed at capital gains rates.
But again - rich isnt defined by what you make, its what you have. Anyone who has an income, even if its fairly modest, can be rich with judicious application of their income, and a little luck.
And if you've read any of the comments in this thread (made by ideologues lacking insight and critical thinking, no doubt), the whole point is that because many of these professionals and business owners make more than $200,000, they get thrown into the "rich" category whenever the topic of what their taxes should be arises. And FWIW, I agree with like 63% of what you said in your post, but damn, even I'm not that arrogant about my views.
I'm disaffected and tired, not arrogant. And the post was written so those with a guilty conscience would take offense.
-
Brilliant post (though in my business, I do see a little utility in NAFTA).
I am asking without a desire to start a NAFTA debate so heated that Ross Perot shows up with what viagra can't even do for him anymore...
There are always pros and cons for most policies, this one included. What pro do you see in your line of work? I'm genuinely curious.
-
I really hate how these discussions are framed by politicians and their lapdog talking heads.
First off, "rich" is defined by what you have not what you make per year. in my profession, I have worked with people who made extremely large salaries or closed deals that netted them 7 figures who didnt have a pot to piss in. I also worked with one guy who made $45k a year as a food broker but had $1 mil in the bank because he saved and spent his money wisely.
neither of the two parties' recent budgetary models is sustainable. They both spend too much. the democrats are not realistic about the shortfall of revenues, and want to continue expanding government spending (universal healthcare - aka getting everyone on the insurance companies rolls without controlling costs which is the real issue). The republicans are even worse, still mired in the basic precepts of reagan voodoo economics and straddled with the enormous costs of two PNAC preemptive wars, and sticking the american public with the inevitable costs of financial sector deregulation (even as the top feeders gorged themselves on it).
Both parties need a massive kick in the ass by reality, and the American public is too stupid and lazy to do it anytime soon, so as long as ideologues continue to push public policy, we're destined for failure.
The only thing that has a chance of working is to raise taxes across the board, decrease spending by controlling costs and eliminating some programs and benefits (this includes defense spending and foreign aid), and reducing foreign debt. These steps are the antithesis to globalist multinationals who dictate most of policy though, so it won't happen.
And for the record, I'm in the crowd that will be taxed heavier to pay for this crap, and I'm pissed about it. Only, I don't blame the current adminsitration because it's politically expedient to do so. I blame the dickheads who got us here with foreign wars, NAFTA, corn subsidies, financial deregulation, energy company subsidies for doing nothing to decrease our reliance on fossil fuels, and all the other crap that has gone on.
I'm a disenchanted working slob who doesn't identify with any political party, even the fringe ones, and who hates ideologues, appreciates informed, expert pragmatists, and realizes that no matter what, I'm fucked. The party is over and it's time to pay the bill for all of the excesses.
And FWIW, spare me the pitty for the rich "paying most of the taxes" and all that rot. It's b.s. I see thousands of tax returns every year. I know what people pay. Working professionals and small business owners pay the taxes. The rich don't - they pay the Bush Capital gains rates and some of the lowest effective tax rates of all filers, except for the true poor. It's the middle class (doctors, professionals, small business owners etc) who carry the load, and they need relief, but they're going to get soaked some more. The true rich, meanwhile, need to pay more because they make more. If you believe the talking points - if the wealthiest 1% pay 80% or whatever made up number of the taxes, then they're not doing their part because they make 95% of the money. The logic of that particular talking point is ridiculous. I hate seeing it regurgitated constantly by people who don't know what they're talking about, in the absence of real insight or critical thinking.
-
As I said in the AF thread - this one's a lot better than I remember. Kinda kicking myself for not appreciating it more when it came out. Then again, I'd just had my first kid. Yeah, I just made him the scapegoat.
Hit-and-miss. It's light-and-sunny pop, with just enough reverb and muscle to propel it along. People who are embedded in the Best Coast craze will probably dig it, although it's not nearly as reverb-y and Jenny's voice is 100x better than Bethany's. And the songwriting is catchier. But from a sonic perspective I could see how it'd have appeal.
I miss my country-Jenny, though. I have more thoughts on it here.
p.s. for you, if you dug Gold Motel you'd probably find stuff to like here.
When's this one out? I'd like to hear it.
-
I've started listening to Neon Bible again after almost wearing out the new one. I largely ignored it when it first came out because it "wasn't Funeral #2".
Feel like an idiot now. This is a fantastic record as well. It's just as lyrically evocative and while it doesn't have quite as many arena rockers in it, it's still just as engaging. I'm really enjoying finally discovering some of the "also ran" tracks. 3 years too late. Wow.
-
Band of the decade.
No offense to Mr Tweedy & co, or any other band I love, but IMHO, it's clearcut.
-
Can't lie, I got a bit choked up when Regine sang "Haiti" last night.
Great, great show. Nothing tops 5k people singing "Wake Up" at the top of their lungs completely off key. What an experience.
Yep, great show.
Ready to Start -
(HD)Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) -
(HD)Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) -
(HD) -
Keep listening. It is a grower. It's more subtle in its quality, and it takes a while to differentiate the songs since several of them are thematically the same.
Also, see them live. Rococo is a good example. Big chunks of this album are a big departure from their old sound and it wasn't obvious to me until I saw them live.
-
The replay >>>>> the live broadcast mainly cause it hasn't cut out so much and isnt so damn pixelated.
Fuck this was great show. Can't wait for next week's show!
-
Okay, Suburbs was kinda flat, but all of the other new songs were great.
Rococo, which I'll admit, I didn't like that much, was awesome.
But tonight confirmed that Empty Room is currently my favorite song on the new album. It's just over 2 minutes of focused awesomeness.
Great idea and a real gift to fans to broadcast that. I might could have done without quite so many cuts from one camera to the next, but altogether satisfying.
Can you imagine that in Royal Albert Hall? Would have been insane.
-
-
it's a meme...
nevermind.
the music divides us into tribes- Suburban War
:chuckle:
-
So, in your mind, a singer's voice has more bearing on maturity and meaning than the actual lyrics that the singer has written? Interesting.
Is this Oz?
My statement was not at all unclear.
-
By the way, being a monotoned sad sack doesn't equate to being more mature, just more miserable.
Now Playing: January, 2011
in Someone Else's Song
Posted
Umm, this is pretty good. Why are these guys not getting more attention?