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Sunday, June 28th, 2009
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6:11 am - muthafucka had 2 regulate
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yeah, those in nashville, check out channel 5 news today........shooting literally 2 houses down from my current residence, i heard the shots as i was walking in the house, coming home from work, interviewed by the cops and all that noise, hilarity. joseph avenue ain't nuthin' to fuck with, well, then again, dude survived and is alive and in l'hopital. but still. shit. walking outside to see 5 - 0 blockin' the street and crime scene tape all over the place, goddamn, motherfucka havin' murmpiss flashbacks and shit.
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(2 comments | comment on this)
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| Tuesday, November 4th, 2008
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4:09 pm - YOU KNOW IT, MOTHERFUCKER!
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| Friday, October 10th, 2008
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5:54 am - I'm so glad you people are voting for these wonderful people.
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The Palins' un-American activities
Imagine if the Obamas had hooked up with a violently anti-American group in league with the government of Iran.
By David Talbot
Editor's note: You can find Salon's complete coverage of Sarah Palin here.
Oct. 07, 2008 | "My government is my worst enemy. I'm going to fight them with any means at hand.
"
This was former revolutionary terrorist Bill Ayers back in his old Weather Underground days, right? Imagine what Sarah Palin is going to do with this incendiary quote as she tears into Barack Obama this week.
Only one problem. The quote is from Joe Vogler, the raging anti-American who founded the Alaska Independence Party. Inconveniently for Palin, that's the very same secessionist party that her husband, Todd, belonged to for seven years and that she sent a shout-out to as Alaska governor earlier this year. ("Keep up the good work," Palin told AIP members. "And God bless you.
")
AIP chairwoman Lynette Clark told me recently that Sarah Palin is her kind of gal. "She's Alaskan to the bone ... she sounds just like Joe Vogler.
"
So who are these America-haters that the Palins are pallin' around with?
Before his strange murder in 1993, party founder Vogler preached armed insurrection against the United States of America. Vogler, who always carried a Magnum with him, was fond of saying, "When the [federal] bureaucrats come after me, I suggest they wear red coats. They make better targets. In the federal government are the biggest liars in the United States, and I hate them with a passion. They think they own [Alaska]. There comes a time when people will choose to die with honor rather than live with dishonor. That time may be coming here. Our goal is ultimate independence by peaceful means under a minimal government fully responsive to the people. I hope we don't have to take human life, but if they go on tramping on our property rights, look out, we're ready to die.
"
This quote is from "Coming Into the Country," by John McPhee, who traipsed around Alaska's remote gold mining country with Vogler for his 1991 book. The violent-tempered secessionist vowed to McPhee that if any federal official tried to stop him from polluting Alaska's rivers with his earth-moving equipment, he would "run over him with a Cat and turn mosquitoes loose on him while he dies.
"
Vogler wasn't just a blowhard either. He put his secessionist ideas into action, working to build AIP membership to 20,000 -- an impressive figure by Alaska standards -- and to elect party member Walter Hickel as governor in 1990.
Vogler's greatest moment of glory was to be his 1993 appearance before the United Nations to denounce United States "tyranny" before the entire world and to demand Alaska's freedom. The Alaska secessionist had persuaded the government of Iran to sponsor his anti-American harangue.
That's right ... Iran. The Islamic dictatorship. The taker of American hostages. The rogue nation that McCain and Palin have excoriated Obama for suggesting we diplomatically engage. That Iran.
AIP leaders allege that Vogler, who was murdered that year by a fellow secessionist, was taken out by powerful forces in the U.S. before he could reach his U.N. platform. "The United States government would have been deeply embarrassed," by Vogler's U.N. speech, darkly suggests Clark.
"And we can't have that, can we?"
The Republican ticket is working hard this week to make Barack Obama's tenuous connection to graying, '60s revolutionary Bill Ayers a major campaign issue. But the Palins' connection to anti-American extremism is much more central to their political biographies.
Imagine the uproar if Michelle Obama was revealed to have joined a black nationalist party whose founder preached armed secession from the United States and who enlisted the government of Iran in his cause? The Obama campaign would probably not have survived such an explosive revelation. Particularly if Barack Obama himself was videotaped giving the anti-American secessionists his wholehearted support just months ago.
Where's the outrage, Sarah Palin has been asking this week, in her attacks on Obama's fuzzy ties to Ayers? The question is more appropriate when applied to her own disturbing associations.
-- By David Talbot
http://www. salon. com/opinion/feature/2008/10/07/palins_unamerican
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(2 comments | comment on this)
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| Tuesday, October 7th, 2008
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12:05 am - Somebody said it way better than I could...............
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October 07, 2008
Media Gives Palin a Pass
By Richard Cohen
Reading William Kristol's column in The New York Times, I discover that Sarah Palin and I have something in common. Kristol, who was once Dan Quayle's chief of staff and therefore, shall we say, has a Mister Rogers approach to certain politicians, got Palin on the phone and reported Monday that she does not "have a very high opinion of the mainstream media." This is where we are in agreement. On account of Palin, neither do I.
In the debate, she mischaracterized Barack Obama's tax plan and his offer to meet with foreign adversaries. She found whole new powers for the vice president by misreading the Constitution, if she ever read it at all. She called one moment for the federal government to virtually disappear and a moment later lamented the lack of its oversight of the financial markets. She asserted that she "may not answer the questions the way that either the moderator or you (Biden) want to hear" because, apparently, the rules don't apply to her on account of her being a soccer mom. Fer sure.
Not enough? OK. Palin also said that she "and others in the legislature" called for the state of Alaska to divest itself of investments in companies that do business with Sudan. But, as the indefatigable truth-hunter at The Washington Post found out, the divestiture effort was not led by Palin. In fact, her administration opposed the initiative and Palin herself only came around to it after the bill had died.
In spite of it all, much of the media saw a credible performance. I could quote the hosannas of some of my colleagues, but I spare them the infamy that will surely follow them to their graves. (The debate's moderator, Gwen Ifill, used the occasion to catch up on some sleep.) Many of them judged Palin simply as a performer and inferred that this would go over well in homes with aboveground swimming pools.
A perfect example is The Wall Street Journal, a paper whose (conservative) editorial page has been absolutely fixated on a strict (Scalian) reading of the Constitution. Did it wonder what in the world Palin meant by the authority she found in the Constitution to increase the role of "the vice president if that vice president so chose to exert it in working with the Senate"? What? Oh, never mind. The Journal chivalrously never brought up the matter. Palin is excused from knowing the limits of the office she seeks.
In effect, columnists, bloggers, talk-show hosts and digital lamplighters everywhere have adopted the ethic of the political consultant: what works, works. It did not matter what Palin said. It only mattered how she said it -- all those doggones, references to her working-class status (net worth in excess of $2 million), promiscuous use of the word "maverick," repeated mentions of "greed and corruption on Wall Street" (Who? Be specific. Give examples. Didn't anyone here go to school?) and, of course, that manic good cheer. Palin knows that the standard is not right or wrong, truth or lie, but the graph that ran under both debaters on CNN, measuring approval, disapproval or, maybe, the blood sugar levels of certain people in their focus group. Things have changed. Might used to make right. Now a wink does.
Since I began with the Times' conservative columnist of the moment, I will end with its conservative columnist of years past -- the estimable William Safire. Back in 1996, he called Hillary Clinton "a congenital liar." It was a head-snapping characterization that, alas for Clinton, has defined her for the ages and which she stubbornly vindicates from time to time.
But what about Palin? Can you imagine the reaction of the press corps if Clinton had given the audience a hi-ya-sailor wink? Can you imagine the feverish blogging across the political spectrum if Clinton had claimed credit for stopping a bridge that, in fact, had set her heart aflutter? What if she showed she didn't know squat about the Constitution, if she could not tell Katie Couric what newspapers or magazines she reads or if she claimed intimacy with foreign relations based on sighting Russia through binoculars?
Ah, but the scorn, approbation and ridicule that would have descended on Clinton -- I can just imagine the Journal editorial -- have been spared Palin. Much of the mainstream media, grading on a curve suitable for a parrot -- "greed and corruption, greed and corruption, greed and corruption " -- gave her a passing grade or better. I agree with Palin. It's the mainstream media that flunked.
cohenr@washpost.com
Copyright 2008, Washington Post Writers Group
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(comment on this)
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| Wednesday, September 24th, 2008
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6:25 pm - Reminder, Kids
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"When Bush "reforms" something it means he steals the money and we go broke."
- www.bartcop.com
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(1 comment | comment on this)
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| Friday, September 19th, 2008
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2:10 pm - REMINDER KIDS, 83 WALL STREET LOBBYISTS WORK FOR MCCAIN
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IF YOU WANT A CUT, SUCK A FART FROM MY COCK.
Published on Wednesday, September 17, 2008 by Mother Jones
McCain Attacks Wall Street Greed—While 83 Wall Street Lobbyists Work for His Campaign
by David Corn, Jonathan Stein, and Nick Baumann
In the past few days, as the economic crisis has deepened, Senator John McCain has been decrying the excesses of Wall Street. At a campaign rally in Tampa on Tuesday, he vowed that he and Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, if elected, "are going to put an end to the reckless conduct, corruption, and unbridled greed that have caused a crisis on Wall Street." He noted that the "foundation of our economy...has been put at risk by the greed and mismanagement of Wall Street and Washington."
He blasted CEOs who "seem to escape the consequences." He denounced Wall Streeters who "dreamed up investment schemes that they themselves don't even understand" and who used "derivatives, credit default swaps, and mortgage-backed securities" to try "to make their own rules." He excoriated Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for gaming the system. And he slammed financial industry lobbyists for misguiding members of Congress. "I can promise you the days of dealing and special favors will soon be over in Washington." On Wednesday morning, after the federal government committed $85 billion to prevent the collapse of the American International Group (AIG) insurance conglomerate, McCain again assailed irresponsible corporate executives. "We need to change the way Washington and Wall Street does business," he proclaimed.
McCain has been quick with fiery, populist-tinged speeches. But one thing has been missing: any acknowledgment that McCain's own campaign has been loaded with the type of people he's been denouncing. (The McCain campaign did not respond to a request for comment; we will update the post if they do.) As Mother Jones previously reported [1], former Senator Phil Gramm, McCain's onetime campaign chairman, used a backroom maneuver in late 2000 to slip into law a bill that kept credit default swaps unregulated. These financial instruments greased the way to the subprime meltdown that has led to today's economic crisis. Several of McCain's most senior campaign aides have lobbied [2] for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. And the Democratic National Committee, using publicly available records, has identified 177 lobbyists [3] working for the McCain campaign as either aides, policy advisers, or fundraisers.
Of those 177 lobbyists, according to a Mother Jones review of Senate and House records, at least 83 have in recent years lobbied for the financial industry McCain now attacks. These are high-paid influence-peddlers who have been working the corridors of the nation's capital to win favors and special treatment for investment banks, securities firms, hedge funds, accounting outfits, and insurance companies. Their clients have included AIG, the newest symbol of corporate excess; Lehman Brothers, which filed for bankruptcy on Monday sending the stock market into a tailspin; Merrill Lynch, which was bought out by Bank of America this week; and Washington Mutual, the banking giant that could be the next to fall. Among these 83 lobbyists are McCain's chief political adviser, Charlie Black (JP Morgan, Washington Mutual Bank, Freddie Mac, Mortgage Bankers Association of America); McCain's national finance co-chairman, Wayne Berman (AIG, Blackstone, Credit Suisse, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac); the campaign's congressional liaison, John Green (Carlyle Group, Citigroup, Icahn Associates, Fannie Mae); McCain's veep vetter, Arthur Culvahouse (Fannie Mae); and McCain's transition planning chief, William Timmons Sr. (Citigroup, Freddie Mac, Vanguard Group).
When cable news shows air footage of McCain railing against greedy execs and the lobbyists who rig the rules for the benefit of Wall Street dealmakers, there ought to be a crawl beneath him listing these lobbyists. (Talk about a fair and balanced presentation.) Short of that, here's the list of the McCain aides and bundlers who have worked for the high-finance greed-mongers McCain has pledged to take on. So far, it seems, none of them have been cast out of the campaign. If McCain were serious about his outrage, he might throw these money-changers out of his own temple.
Phil Anderson: American Council of Life Insurers, Aetna, AIG, New York Life, MassMutual, VISA
Rebecca Anderson: Aegon, American Council of Life Insurers, Cigna, Barclays, Credit Suisse First Boston, HSBC
Stanton Anderson: The Debt Exchange
David Beightol: Allstate, Amerigroup, Charles Schwab, HSBC
Rhonda Bentz: VISA
Wayne Berman: American Council of Life Insurers, AIG, Americhoice, Shinsei Bank, Blackstone, Carlyle Group, Broidy Capital Management, Credit Suisse Securities, Highstar Capital, VISA, Ameriquest Mortgage, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Fitch Ratings
Charlie Black: JP Morgan, Washington Mutual Bank, Freddie Mac, Mortgage Bankers Association of America, National Association of Mortgage Brokers
Judy Black: Colorado Credit Union League, Genworth Financial, Bay Harbour Management, Merrill Lynch
Kirk Blalock: Credit Union National Association, Financial Executives International, American Insurance Association, Mutual of Omaha, Zurich Financial Service Group, Fannie Mae, Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco
Carlos Bonilla: Financial Services Roundtable, Freddie Mac
Christine Burgeson: Citigroup
Mark Buse: Freddie Mac, Goldman Sachs, Manufacturers Life Insurance Company
Nicholas Calio: Citigroup, Managed Fund Association, Fannie Mae, Merrill Lynch, The Investment Company Institute, TIAA-CRE, Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association
Ben Nighthorse Campbell: Amscot Financial Corporation, Community Financial Services Association, Fidelity National Financial
Andrew Cantor: American Insurance Association, Merrill Lynch
Alberto Cardenas: Fannie Mae
James Courter: Goldman Sachs, Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette, Investment Company Institute, Merrill Lynch
David Crane: Financial Services Roundtable, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte & Touche, KPMG, Ernst & Young, Bank of America, Association of Corporate Credit Unions, Freddie Mac
Dan Crippen: Merrill Lynch, National Multi-Housing Council
Arthur Culvahouse: Fannie Mae
Bryan Cunningham: Arch Capital Group
Alfonse D'Amato: AIG, Freddie Mac
Doug Davenport: Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, Goldman Sachs, VISA
Ashley Davis: Prudential Financial, American Financial Group, American Premier Underwriters, Great American Insurance Company
Mimi Dawson: MassMutual
Melissa Edwards: Freddie Mac, National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, Access to Capital Coalition
Chris Fidler: American Bankers Association, Milcom Venture Partners, National Association Real Estate Investment Trusts
Samuel Geduldig: American Bankers Association, American Institute of CPAs, America Gains, Berkshire Hathaway, Consumer Bankers Association, Ernst & Young, Financial Services Roundtable, Investment Company Institute, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Prudential Financial, Sovereign Investment Council, Fidelity Investments, FMR Corp.
Benjamin Ginsberg: Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance, AIG Technical Services
David Girard-Dicarlo: American Financial Group, American Premier Underwriters
Juleanna Glover Weiss: RJI Capital, American Institute of CPAs, BNP Paribas, Ernst & Young, PriceWaterhouseCoopers
Slade Gorton: Allstate Insurance, Hannan Armstrong Capital
Phil Gramm: UBS Americas
John Green: Laredo National Bank, Alternative Investment Management Association, AIG, Blackstone Group, Carlyle Group, Citigroup, Credit Suisse Group, Fannie Mae, Icahn Associates, FMR Corp., AFLAC, VISA
Janet Grissom: American Institute of CPAs, NYSE, Merrill Lynch
Kristen Gullott: San Diego Credit Union
Kent Hance: Stanford Financial Group, Municipal Capital Markets Group, Inc.
Vicki Hart: American Financial Services Association, Citigroup, Investment Company Institute, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, New York Stock Exchange, VISA, Carlyle Group, Credit Suisse, Federal Home Loan Bank of Indianapolis, Goldman Sachs, National Association of Government Guaranteed Lenders, Stanford Group, Lloyd's of London, National City Corp.
Richard Hohlt: Capmark Financial Group, Fannie Mae, JP Morgan Chase and Co., Student Loan Marketing Association, Washington Mutual, Guaranty Bank & Trust, Peachtree Settlement Funding, Dime Savings Bank of New York
Gaylord Hughey: Heartland Security Insurance Group
Kate Hull: Credit Union National Association, Fannie Mae, Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, Zurich Financial Services, American Insurance Association, Financial Executives International
James Hyland: American Insurance Association, Seattle Home Loan Bank, Self Help Credit Union, National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees, Merrill Lynch, Mortgage Investors Corp., Federal Home Loan Bank of Indianapolis, Freddie Mac, New York Stock Exchange, Citigroup, VISA
Aleix Jarvis: Credit Union National Association, Fannie Mae, Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, Financial Executives International, Mutual of Omaha, American Insurance Association, Zurich Financial Services
Greg Jenner: American Council of Life Insurers, JG Wentworth, UBS, VISA, PriceWaterhouseCoopers
Frank Keating: American Council of Life Insurers
Steven Kuykendall: California Bankers Association
William Lesher: Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Commerce Ventures, Rabobank International
Thomas Loeffler: Citigroup, Fannie Mae, Investment Company Institute, World Savings and Loan Association, United Services Automobile Association (USAA)
Kelly Lugar: RJI Capital Strategies
Peter Madigan: Arthur Andersen, Bank of New York, Broadridge Securities Processing, Charles Schwab, Deloitte and Touche, Goldman Sachs, International Employee Stock Option Coalition, Mastercard, NYSE, Fannie Mae, Merrill Lynch, PNC Bank
Mary Mann: MassMutual
Paul Martino: Morgan Stanley, Baker Tilly
Jana McKeag: Venture Catalyst
Alison McSlarrow: Fannie Mae, Hartford
Mike Meece: Georgetown Partners
David Metzner: Ernst & Young, Harbinger Capital Investments, Prudential, Public Financial Management, Western Union
Susan Molinari: Freddie Mac, American Land Title Association, Association of Consumer Credit Unions, Beacon Capital Partners, College Loan Corp, Coventry First, E-Trade, Financial Services Roundtable, Rent-A-Center
John Moran: Cerberus Capital Management, American Council of Life Insurers, Accenture
John Napier: Freddie Mac
Susan Nelson: AIG, San Antonio Credit Union
Paul Otellini: Ernst & Young, Financial Services Forum
Steve Perry: Charles Schwab, Hoover Partners, HSBC, National Stock Exchange
Nancy Pfotenhauer: American Land Title Association, Mortgage Bankers Association
Elise Pickering-Finley: Credit Suisse, DE Shaw, Hartford Financial Services, Research In Motion, Retail Industry Lenders Association, URL Mutual
James Pitts: Advanced Association for Life Underwriting, AETNA, American Council of Life Insurers, AIG, Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers, Debt Advisory International, Financial Services Coordinating Council, GE Financial Assurance, Hartford Life, Jefferson Pilot Financial, Kenwood Investments, MassMutual, Mutual of Omaha, New York Life, UNUM Provident, VISA, PMI Group
Tim Powers: AP Capital, Genworth Financial, Retail Industry Lenders Association, E-LOAN, General Electric Mortgage Insurance
Walter Price: Wachovia
Sloan Rappoport: Friedman, Billings, Ramsey Group, Inc. (FBR), Trafelet Delta Funds
Hans Rickhoff: Capital One, Investment Company Institute, United Services Automobile Association (USAA)
Kathleen Shanahan: New York Stock Exchange
Andrew Shore: Accenture, Retail Industry Lenders Association, Barclays, Bond Market Association, Credit Suisse, TPG Capital
Katie Stahl: Alliance for Investment Transparency, Ares Management, Fairfax Financial Holdings, Uhlmann Financial Group
Milly Stanges: TIAA-CREF
Aquiles Suarez: Fannie Mae
Don Sundquist: Freddie Mac, The Hartford
Peter Terpeluk: JP Morgan Chase, Ernst & Young, Prudential
Fred Thompson: Equitas
Jeri Thompson: American Insurance Association
John Timmons: National Association of Federal Credit Unions
William Timmons Sr.: American Council of Life Insurers, Citigroup, Dun & Bradstreet, Freddie Mac, Vanguard Group
Vin Weber: Agstar Financial Services, AKT Investment Corp., American Institute of CPAs, Ernst & Young, Freddie Mac, Louis Dreyfus Corp, PriceWaterhouseCoopers
Jeffery Weiss: JP Morgan
Tony Williams: Russell Investment Group, American Life Inc., Northwestern Mutual
© 2008 The Foundation for National Progress
--David Corn, Jonathan Stein, and Nick Baumann
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(comment on this)
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| Sunday, August 31st, 2008
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3:36 am - My current favorite song of the moment.
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Great Northern - This Is A Problem
You've got to learn
This is the only one
We had some things
To safely burrow
And here's to the stars
Listen for the sound, let it hold on
All over the sound
'Til it touch the ground
Forgets that somehow
You've got to learn
You're not the only one
To tow your tongue
Before you come along
All over the sound
'Til it touch the ground
Fall against it somehow
Never knowing how
Just a sound
All hearts are a little missed
If they don't get enough
False start to the ending
To the ending we've come
All along did you know this?
Did you know this would come?
And if it makes you feel love
And if it makes you feel love (Makes you feel love)
And if it makes you feel love
And if it makes you feel love (Makes you feel love)
And if it makes you feel love (Makes you feel love)
And if it makes you feel love
To hear the sound
Hoping for the best for everyone I know in NOLA and across the whole Gulf Coast, Gustav can go fuck himself. Be safe, everyone.
current mood:  working
current music: The Hold Steady - Lord, I'm Discouraged
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(comment on this)
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| Friday, August 22nd, 2008
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4:26 am - Jose Gonzalez - Down The Line
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I see problems down the line
I know that I’m right.
There was a dirt upon your hands
doing the same mistake twice
making the same mistake twice
Come on over and be so caught up
its not about compromising.
I see problems down the line
I know that I’m right
I see darkness down the line
I know its hard to fight.
There was a dirt upon your hands
doing the same mistake twice
making the same mistake twice.
Come on over
be so caught up its all about compromise.
I see problems down the line
I know that I’m right.
Don’t let the darkness eat you up
current mood:  sad
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(comment on this)
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| Sunday, August 17th, 2008
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2:32 pm - we go underground cuz there's emptiness above
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All alone
On the floor
Next to your twin-bed box-spring and mattress
The door
Is ajar
From afar
You can hear bands practicing
And When they dream they all
Dream of somebody like you
Somebody who takes what they make
Twice as seriously as they could ever hope to do
And when you dream
You dream of a day...
When you find something you could love half as much
As you love all your little round mirrors
See yourself reflected in one, theres a hole in the middle
You can't seem to fill
Bring them home
Watch them go
All you know is you hope they'll hurry back
And you cry
Then you lie your frail body down
Like a penny on a railroad track
And even if they stay in touch
The past stays in the past
But every time
You crash a little bit harder than the last
And every time you crash don't you
Wanna find something you could love
Half as much as you love all your little round mirrors
See yourself reflected in one
There's a hole in the middle you can't seem to fill
A shooting star is
A little piece of
Cosmic debris desperately wanting to fall to earth
It doesn't get too far
It's not a real star
It's hardly even worth footnotes in your memoir
Shoulder to shoulder
Up on our tip-toes
Chewing our fingers
And craning our necks
Just to see
Quite the collection
Divide by section
It's just a surrogate connection leaving you all alone
On the floor next to your twin-bed box-spring and mattress
The door
Still ajar
There you are and now you're coming to stay until
You can find someone who will love you as much
As you love all your little round mirrors
Murdering your time in cold blood
There's a hole in the middle you can't seem to fill
current mood:  distressed
current music: Harvey Danger - Little Round Mirrors
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(comment on this)
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| Saturday, August 16th, 2008
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10:18 pm - A different perspective on the Georgia/Russia conflict.
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Georgia Tries out the Bush War Doctrine, Loses Badly
By Gary Brecher, eXiled Online
Posted on August 12, 2008, Printed on August 16, 2008
http://www.alternet.org/story/94706/
There are two basic facts to keep in mind about the smokin' little war in Ossetia:
1. The Georgians started it.
2. They lost.
If you want to get all serious and actually study up on Ossetia, North and South, and Georgia and the whole eternal gang war that they call the Caucasus, you can check out a column I did on that school-hostage splatter in Beslan, North Ossetia, a few years back.
South Ossetia is a little apple-shaped blob dangling from Russian territory down into Georgia, and most of it has been under control of South Ossetian irregulars backed by Russian "peacekeepers" for the last few years.
The Georgians didn't like that. You don't give up territory in that part of the world, ever. The Georgians have always been fierce people, good fighters, not the forgiving type. In fact, I can't resist a little bit of history here: remember when the Mongols wiped out Baghdad in 1258, the biggest slaughter in any of their conquests? Well, the most enthusiastic choppers and burners in the whole massacre were the Georgian Christian troops in Hulagu Khan's army. They wore out their hacking arms on those Baghdadi civilians. Nobody knows how many people were killed, but it was at least 200,000 -- a pretty big number in the days before antibiotics made life cheap.
So: hard people on every side in that part of the world. No quarter asked or given. No good guys. Especially not the Georgians. They have a rep as good people, one on one, but you don't want to mess with them, and you especially don't want to try to take land from them.
The Georgians bided their time, then went on the offensive, Caucasian style, by pretending to make peace and all the time planning a sneak attack on South Ossetia. They just signed a treaty granting autonomy to South Ossetia this week, and then they attacked. Georgian MLRS units barraged Tskhinvali, the capital city of South Ossetia; Georgian troops swarmed over Ossetian roadblocks; and all in all, it was a great, whiz-bang start, but like Petraeus asked about Iraq way back in 2003, what's the ending to this story? As in: How do you invade territory that the Russians have staked out for protection without thinking about how they'll react?
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili just didn't think it through. One reason he overplayed his hand is that he got lucky the last time he had to deal with a breakaway region: Ajara, a tiny little strip of Black Sea coast in southern Georgia. It declared itself an "autonomous" republic, preserving its sacred basket-weaving traditions or whatever. You just have to accept that people in the Caucasus are insane that way; they'd die to keep from saying hello to the people over the next hill, and they're never going to change. The Ajarans aren't even ethnically different from Georgians; they're Georgian too. But they claim difference by being Muslims. And being different means they have to have their own Lego parliament and Tonka-Toy army and all the rest of that crap, and their leader, a wack job named Abashidze, volunteered them to fight to the death for their independence. Except he was such a nut, and so corrupt, and the Ajarans were so similar to the Georgians, and their little "country" was so tiny and ridiculous, that for once sanity prevailed and the Ajarans refused to fight, let themselves get reabsorbed by that Colossus to the North, mighty Georgia.
Well, like I've said before, there's nothing as dangerous as victory. Makes people crazy. Saakashvili started thinking he could gobble up any secessionist region -- like, say, South Ossetia. But there are big differences he was forgetting -- like the fact that South Ossetia isn't Georgian, has a border with Russia, and is linked up with North Ossetia just across that border. The road from Russia to South Ossetia is pretty fragile as a line of supply; it goes through the Roki Tunnel, a mountain tunnel at an altitude of 10,000 feet. I have to wonder why the Georgian air force -- and it's a good one by all accounts -- didn't have as its first mission in the war the total zapping of the South Ossetian exit of that tunnel. Or if you don't trust the flyboys, send in your special forces with a few backpacks full of explosives. There are a lot of ways to cripple a tunnel. Hell, do it low-tech: Drive a fuel truck in there, with a car following, jackknife the truck halfway through with a remote control or timing fuse -- truck driver gets out and strolls to the car, one fast U-turn and you're out and back in Georgia, just in time to see a ball of flame erupt from the tunnel exit. And rebuilding a tunnel way up in the mountains is not an easy or a fast job. Sure, the Russians could resupply by air, but that's a much, much tougher job and would at least slow down the inevitable. Weird, then, that as far as I know the Georgians didn't even try to blast that tunnel. I don't go in for this kind of long-distance micromanaging of warfare, because there's usually a good reason on the ground for tactical decisions; it's the strategic decisions that are really crazy most of the time. But this one I just don't get.
Most likely the Georgians just thought the Russians wouldn't react. They were doing something they learned from Bush and Cheney: sticking to best-case scenarios, positive thinking. The Georgian plan was classic shock and awe with no hard, grown-up thinking about the long term. Their shiny new army would go in, zap the South Ossetians while they were on a peace hangover (the worst kind), and then, uh, they'd be welcomed as liberators? Sure, just like we were in Iraq. Man, you pay a price for believing in Bush. The Georgians did. They thought he'd help. And I just saw the little creep on TV, sitting in the stands watching the U.S.-China basketball game. I didn't even recognize Bush at first; I just wondered why they kept doing close-ups of this guy who looked like Hank Hill's legless dad up in the stands. Then they said it was the prez. They talk about people "growing in office"; well, he shrunk.
And the more he shrinks, the more you pay for believing in him. The Georgians were naive because they were so happy to get out from the Soviets, the Russians' old enemy, the United States, must be paradise. So they did their apple-polishing best to be the perfect, obedient little ally. Then we'd let them into NATO and carpet-bomb them with SUVs and iPods.
Their part of the deal was simple: They sent troops to Iraq. First a contingent of 850, then, surprisingly, 2,000 men. When you consider the population of Georgia is less than 5 million, that's a lot of troops. In fact, Georgia is the third-biggest contributor to the "Coalition of the Willing," after the United States and Britain.
You might be thinking, Wow, not a good time to have so many of your best troops in Iraq, huh? Well, that's true, and it goes for a lot of countries -- like us, for instance -- but at least we're not facing a Russian invasion. The Georgians are so panicked they just announced they're sending half their Iraqi force home, and could the USAF please give them a lift?
We'll probably give them a ride, but that's about all we can do. We've already done plenty, not because we love Georgians but to counterbalance the Russian influence down where the new oil pipeline is staked out. The biggest American aid project was the GTEP, "Georgia Train and Equip" project ($64 million). It featured 200 Special Forces instructors teaching fine Georgia boys all the lessons the U.S. Army has learned recently. Now here's the joke. We were stressing counterinsurgency skills: small-unit cohesion, marksmanship, intelligence. The idea was to keep Georgia safe from Chechens or other Muslim loonies infiltrating through the Pankisi Gorge in northeast Georgia. And we did a good job. The Georgian Army pacified the Pankisi in classic Green Beret style. The punch line is, the Georgians got so cocky from that success, and from their lovefest with the Bushies in D.C., that they thought they could take on anybody. What they're in the process of finding out is that a light-infantry counterinsurgency force like the one we gave them isn't much use when a gigantic Russian armored force has just rolled across your border.
The American military's response so far has been all talk, and pretty damn stupid talk at that. A Pentagon spokesperson called Russia's response "disproportionate." What the hell are they talking about? They've been watching too many cop shows. Cops have this doctrine of "minimum necessary force," not that they actually operate that way unless there are video cameras around. Armies never, ever had that policy, because it's a good way to get your troops killed needlessly. The whole idea in war is to fight as unfairly and disproportionately as possible. If you've got it, you use it.
If you want a translation, luckily I speak fluent Pentagon. So what "disproportionate" means is -- well, imagine that you're watching some little hanger-on who tags along with you get his ass whipped by a bully, and you say, "That's inappropriate!" I mean, instead of actually helping him. That's what "disproportionate" means from the Pentagon: "We're not going to lift a finger to help you, but hey, we're with you in spirit, little buddy!"
The quickest way to see who's winning in any war is to see who asks first for a ceasefire. And this time it was the Georgians. Once it was clear the Russians were going to back the South Ossetians, the war was over. Even Georgians were saying, "To fight Russia by ourselves is insane." Which means they thought Russia wouldn't back its allies. Not a bad bet; Russia has a long, unpredictable history of screwing its allies -- but not all the time. The Georgians should know better than anybody that once in a while, the Russians actually come through, because it was Russian troops who saved Georgia from a Persian invasion in 1805, at the battle of Zagam. Of course the Russians had let the Persians sack Tbilisi, Georgia's capital, just 10 years earlier without helping. That's the thing: The bastards are unpredictable. You can't even count on them to betray their friends (though it's the safer bet, most of the time, sort of like 6:5 odds).
This time, the Russians came through. For lots of reasons, starting with the fact that Bush is weak and they know it; that the United States is all tied up in that crap Iraq War; and most of all, because Kosovo just declared independence from Serbia, an old Russian ally. It's tit-for-tat time, with Kosovo as the tit and South Ossetia as the tat. The way Putin sees it, if we can mess with his allies and let little ethnic enclaves like Kosovo declare independence, then the Russians can do the same with our allies, especially naive, idiotic allies like Georgia. It's a pawn exchange, if that. If it signals anything bigger, it's the fact that the United States is weaker than it was 10 years ago and Russia is much, much stronger than it was in Yeltsin's time. But anybody with sense knew all that already.
Luckily, South Ossetia doesn't matter that much. I'm just being honest here. In a year, nobody will care much who runs that little glob of territory. What's more serious is that another, bigger and more strategic chunk of Georgia called Abkhazia, on the Black Sea, is taking the opportunity to boot out the last Georgian troops on its territory. Georgia may lose almost all its coastline, but then the Georgians were always an inland people anyway, living along river valleys, not great sailors.
Even so, the great Russian-Ossetian land grab will make great material for another few centuries of gloating, ballads, blood oaths, revenge and counter-grabs. In this part of the world, there's always something to avenge.
This is an adapted version of an essay by Brecher that appeared on eXiled online.
War Nerd by Gary Brecher (Soft Skull, 2008). Read more of his work on eXiled online.
© 2008 eXiled Online All rights reserved.
View this story online at: http://www.alternet.org/story/94706/
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| Friday, August 8th, 2008
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10:23 am - Fire Walk With Greer
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Yeah, it's that time again, throw the Winamp, Windows Media Player or Itunes joints on shuffle and roll with it:
Waking Up/Opening Credits: Sun City Girls - "I've Done It All"
Good Day: Martina Topley-Bird - "I Still Feel"
Bad Day: The Swans - "Sealed In Skin"
Long day: Ministry - "Animositisomina"
Lullaby aka music to fall asleep to: The Smashing Pumpkins - "Hope"
After a fight with your best friend: Melt-Banana - "Thieves"
After a fight with your parents: Napalm Death - "The Kill"
After a fight with your boyfriend/girlfriend: Dalek vs.
Kid606 - "Ruin It Ruin Them Ruin
You"
Falling in love: The Mars Volta - "The Widow"
Breaking up: Jesu - "Medicine"
Making out: Devendra Banhart - "Samba Vexillographica"
Making up: Ulver - "Darling Didn't We Kill You"
Sneaking out: Alvarius B - "Outside Steppes"
Being reckless: Ministry - "Jesus Built My Hotrod (Redline/Whiteline Mix)"
Road trip: Radiohead - "Bangers And Mash"
Remembering: Sneaker Pimps - "After Every Party I Die"
Childhood memories: Screaming Trees - "No One Knows"
Vacation: Eyehategod - "Story Of The Eye"
Seeing an old love: The Arcade Fire - "Windowsill"
Angry mood: Melvins - "Vile"
Depressed mood: Deftones - "Digital Bath"
Happy mood: Faith No More - "Be Aggressive"
Quiet mood: Dirty Three - "Kim's Dirt"
Loving mood: Nine Inch Nails - "March of the Pigs"
Song for growing up: Chemical Brothers - "We Are Night Sky"
Summer love: Snoop Dogg - "Waste Of Time"
Just SUMMER: Mark Lanegan - "She Done Too Much"
Winter romance: The Jesus Lizard - "Perk"
Losing your best friend: Einsturzende Neubauten - "Ende Neu"
Losing your love: Marvin Sease - "Tell Me What To Do"
Losing a family member: Jeff Klein - "Suzanne"
YOUR funeral song: Afghan Whigs - "Delta Kong"
Your song you're remembered by: She Wants Revenge - "What I Want"
Your family's song for you: Crystal Castles - "Untrust Us"
Song when you have kids: Deadboy And The Elephantmen - "Heart Of Green"
The song that reminds you of your kids: Pig Destroyer - "Lesser Animal"
Your wedding: Canned Hamm - "Karaoke Lady"
Your KIDS graduation: British Sea Power - "The Great Skua"
The song that ties your life together: Godflesh - "Wound '91"
Your best friend's song for you: Isis - "Hand Of Doom"
The song that reminds you of your childhood town: Antony And The Johnsons - "Rhythm
Of Your Love"
Your first love: Kanye West - "I Wonder"
Your school days: The Heavy - "That Kind Of Man"
Your victory song: My Bloody Valentine - "Slow"
The song that reminds you of the one thing you wish you could get back: The Suplecs - "Rock Bottom"
Your drinking song: Grinderman - "Love Bomb"
Your party song: Kylie Minogue - "On A Night Like This"
End Credits: Great Northern - "Into The Sun"
current mood:  bouncy
current music: Godflesh - White Flag
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| Monday, August 4th, 2008
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6:03 am - Music Survey
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1.
Of all the bands/artists in your cd/record collection, which one do you own the most albums by?
Sun City Girls, Greg Dulli, Nomeansno, The Swans/Michael Gira, The Melvins, Smashing Pumpkins, Sonic Youth, Fugazi, Foetus.
2.
What was the last song you listened to?
M83 - Kim and Jessie
3.
What's in your record/CD player right now?
Uncle Anesthesia by the Screaming Trees, however I haven't hit play.
4.
What song pretty much sums you up?
Depends on how I'm doing really, this is a list that could go on forever, let's just say anything from the Afghan Whigs/Twilight Singers/Gutter Twins catalog and just leave it there.
5.
What's your favourite local band?
I don't have one at the moment. I don't really go to shows that much anymore, however, the Vacant is alright.
6.
What was the last show you attended?
Trouble + Adios Gringos at the Hi Tone.
7.
What was the greatest show you've ever been to?
It's a tie between Mr. Bungle, Cleveland Ohio, 1999 and Einsturzende Neubauten in NOLA in 2004.
8.
What's the worst band you've ever seen in concert?
still Mastodon, boring boring boring boring boring. I don't care if a band is bad, as long as they're having fun and not staring at their feet and metaphorically masturbating on stage.
9.
What band do you love musically but hate the members of?
Most indie rock auteurs have a seriously Unwarranted Sense Of Self Importance.
10.
What is the most musically involved you have ever been?
It's my fuckin' life.
11.
What shows are you looking forward to?
I'd really like to see either the Gutter Twins, Sigur Ros, Bjork, or The Arcade Fire live by the end of next year. Unfortunately I may have to miss Mindless Self Indulgence when they come here.
12.
What is your favourite band shirt?
Eyehategod - Kill Your Boss
13.
What musicians would you like to hang out with for a day?
Trent Reznor, Mike Patton, Kevin Shields
14.
What musician would you like to be in love with for a day?
I'm already a bit taken with Hope Sandoval and Cristina Scabbia, but that's total, unbridled lust, baby.
15.
Pat Benatar or Cyndi Lauper?
Britney
16.
Sabbath or solo Ozzy?
Black Sabbath, the first 6 records.
17.
Commodores or solo Lionel Ritchie?
depends on the song, both had their strengths. and weaknesses.
18.
Punk rock, hip hop or heavy metal?
all of it.
19.
Doesn't Primus suck?
Antipop was horrible.
20.
Did you know that filling out this survey makes you a music geek?
I've never seen herpes on a nipple, but I'm very curious.
21.
What was the greatest decade for music?
This one. Every one in which I'm alive, in fact.
22.
How many music-related videos/dvds do you own?
Sigur Ros and Twilight Singers live, however the Amazon Wishlist is all fill'd up with other stuff, too.
23.
Do you like Journey?
No, but I've learned to tolerate it thanks to long, drunken nights in karaoke bars.
24.
Don't try to pretend you don't!
Steve Perry molests collies.
25.
What is your favourite movie soundtrack?
Angelo Badalamenti's score for Mulholland Drive is cool, I also dig the score for Inland Empire, most Ennio Morricone scores for Sergio Leone and Dario Argento, and on a more recent tip, the Sun City Girls did some amazing work for the new Harmony Korine film, Mr. Lonely.
26.
What was your last musical phase?
Sludge metal, currently I'm back to indie rock and electronic, due to being totally fucking bored with metal, punk, and the avant garde.
28. What's the crappiest CD/record/etc.? ever?
The new Kid Rock song "All Summer Long" is really pissing me off right now, sampling is cool and all, but good god it's just SO FUCKING CALCULATED you can hear advertising execs putting together the demographic research and writing generic lyrics that guarantee every small town blue collar meth snorting asshole is going to shit themselves about how much it reminds them of growing up.
29.
Do you prefer vinyl or CDs?
All of it.
30.
All totalled, how much do you spend on music a month?
Too much, but I don't give a fuck.
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(comment on this)
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| Thursday, July 31st, 2008
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3:12 pm - BOOK RECOMMENDATION FOR THE WEEK:
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Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior
from amazon:
Why would a seasoned pilot, the head of KLM's safety program, ignore his co-pilot and attempt a takeoff in fog at an unfamiliar airport, causing the worst air disaster in history? Why did the co-pilot, who had done exactly the right thing when he reminded his captain that the flight had not been cleared for takeoff, fail to repeat his warning when the pilot pressed ahead?
The collision at Tenerife airport cost the lives of 584 people. Using that accident as their starting point, the Brafman brothers explore the psychological forces that cause people to take large risks to avoid small losses, to judge people and situations by first impressions despite subsequent inconsistent evidence, and to ignore objections from dissenters.
"Sway" is the latest in an engaging series of books like Malcolm Gladwell's "Tipping Point" and "Blink" and Steven Levitt's "Freakonomics.
" The Brafmans' effort is one of the best written and most approachable of the recent crop, and somehow it kept my focused attention for the duration of a cross-country flight--perhaps the authors are appealing to my irrational impulses in ways they don't let on!
Anyway, one of the most interesting parts of the book is the most reassuring. Research reveals that groups often make better decisions if there's a "blocker" or "dissenter" present--even if that person dissents for the wrong reasons. The authors describe a classic experiment in which the test subjects are led to believe they are being tested for their visual skills--three lines of different lengths are to be matched to a fourth line. The differences in line length are very obvious, so there is plainly only one correct answer. If you put the real subject in a room with several actors who are pretending to be test subjects but who have actually been instructed to give a manifestly wrong answer, most subjects in the experiment will behave in a compltely irrational manner, agreeing with the other "subjects" that lines that are obviously different are exactly the same. But if an actor playing "blocker" is added to the mix and points out that the group is wrong, the subject feels free to disagree and usually makes the right choice. This is true even if the "blocker" makes a different "wrong" choice by picking two other lines of plainly different lengths. What this experiement says for the business and political world is that organizations that "brook no dissent" (like the Bush administration) are likely to perform about as well as that ill-fated flight at Tenarife.
Back to the cockpit: pilots at Southwest and other airlines are now trained to avoid the disaster that happened at Tenerife. Pilots are taught to listed to objections from other crew members, and crew members are trained to communicate those objections in a way that enables the pilot to respond quickly and correctly.
The Brafmans approach this fascinating subject with wit and style, and they tackle other interesting problems besides the one described above: why people often judge a book by its cover (so to speak), why people insist on being treated fairly even if that means foregoing a benefit, and why audiences for the French and Russian versions of "Who Wants to be A Millionaire" behave much differently from each other and from their American counterparts.
current music: NINE INCH NAILS - THE PERFECT DRUG
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(comment on this)
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| Monday, July 21st, 2008
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6:08 am - The Bible Belt Won't Save Your Soul And Life Does Not Go On.
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Goddamn, it's so weird to think I've been on this fuckin' thing now for 7 years, and the more things change, the more they stay the same. I went back and read all the way back to some of my very first entries, and the first thing that seems to come across to me is that over the past 2 years I've lost a lot of confidence in myself. It seems like I'm second guessing a LOT these days, where I used to just not give a fuck and let things roll, or at least, seemed to have a better way of dealing with it, maybe? Maybe I was just repressing, or maybe I actually did a better job of thinking shit through, it's obvious that I have regressed, I think I just keep pining for certain past experiences (NOLA late 2004, Memphis 2005-March 2006, the years 2002-2003), when it seemed like shit was going halfway right and I didn't feel like I was fucking falling apart all the goddamned time, not full of guilt and remorse, and not constantly psychoanalyzing and calculating my every fucking movement. I'm constantly full of uncertainty these days, about my movements, and actions, granted at least the label and the band have given me a focal point beyond just money or status, but still, I don't know, I've obviously spent a lot of time feeling like the best is behind me, and my creativity, ambitions, feeble attempts at relationships, and to put it frankly, my formerly gigantic BALLS have fallen into a state of repair. Has anyone else ever felt this way? Has it ever seemed like you still get your mail in certain times in the past? How the hell do you get through this?
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(2 comments | comment on this)
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| Sunday, July 20th, 2008
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3:54 am - oooooooooook
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What is Your World View?
created with QuizFarm.com |
| You scored as Existentialist Existentialism emphasizes human capability. There is no greater power interfering with life and thus it is up to us to make things happen. Sometimes considered a negative and depressing world view, your optimism towards human accomplishment is immense. Mankind is condemned to be free and must accept the responsibility.
Existentialist |
| 94% | Cultural Creative |
| 88% | Postmodernist |
| 88% | Idealist |
| 69% | Modernist |
| 44% | Materialist |
| 38% | Romanticist |
| 38% | Fundamentalist |
| 31% |
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(comment on this)
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3:24 am - Goals/interests survey that I posted a couple of weeks ago.
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1. What part of the newspaper do you read first?
Editorial, then business, then local news, then national/world
2. What are three books you’ve read in the past year?
Grindhoppers
High Fidelity
The Four Hour Work Week
3. As a child, what did you do in your free time?
Played guitar, made stupid jokes to myself, skateboarding, listening to music, reading, made up fake tracklistings for nonexistent bands, watched a lot of the same movies over and over and over and over.....
4. What’s a goal that has been on your list for a few years?
Moving back out of Memphis, running my own business, getting published for my writing, putting out some damned records (mine and others').
5. What do you actually do with your free time?
Listen to music, write, read and research whatever my current obsession is, watch Californication over and over and over, go out to a karaoke bar or a show, hang out with people, annoy my dogs.
6. What types of activities energize you?
Playing and listening to music, writing things that people respond to, meeting people who inspire me, playing with my dogs, and any activity that results in sustained laughter.
7. What famous people intrigue you?
Trent Reznor
Mike Patton
Trey Spruance
David Lynch
Tim and Eric
and the now deceased George Carlin and Robert Anton Wilson
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(comment on this)
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| Saturday, July 12th, 2008
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2:31 pm
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This tendency to not realize things until it's too late is making me so fucking scared of being 40 years old and killing myself with regret because i've destroyed so many relationships this way.
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(comment on this)
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| Friday, July 11th, 2008
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3:26 am - thank you greg dulli.
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when darkness falls
on Summer's end
so in your absence
i shall begin
when Darkness falls the race iz done
and Love lives not
when Hope is gone
goodbye, sugar
everything's gonna be alright...
the longest night of every year
i spent beside you, baby
do you remember anything about me?
i was the one when Hope was gone
who took too long to sing this song
everything's gonna be alright...
when darkness falls
on Summer's end
so in your absence
i shall begin
when Darkness falls
the race iz through
current mood:  crushed
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(comment on this)
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| Thursday, July 10th, 2008
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9:12 pm - Portrait of an ENFP - Extraverted iNtuitive Thinking Perceiving
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The Inspirer
As an ENFP, your primary mode of living is focused externally, where you take things in primarily via your intuition. Your secondary mode is internal, where you deal with things according to how you feel about them, or how they fit in with your personal value system.
ENFPs are warm, enthusiastic people, typically very bright and full of potential. They live in the world of possibilities, and can become very passionate and excited about things. Their enthusiasm lends them the ability to inspire and motivate others, more so than we see in other types. They can talk their way in or out of anything. They love life, seeing it as a special gift, and strive to make the most out of it.
ENFPs have an unusually broad range of skills and talents. They are good at most things which interest them. Project-oriented, they may go through several different careers during their lifetime. To onlookers, the ENFP may seem directionless and without purpose, but ENFPs are actually quite consistent, in that they have a strong sense of values which they live with throughout their lives. Everything that they do must be in line with their values. An ENFP needs to feel that they are living their lives as their true Self, walking in step with what they believe is right. They see meaning in everything, and are on a continuous quest to adapt their lives and values to achieve inner peace. They're constantly aware and somewhat fearful of losing touch with themselves. Since emotional excitement is usually an important part of the ENFP's life, and because they are focused on keeping "centered", the ENFP is usually an intense individual, with highly evolved values.
An ENFP needs to focus on following through with their projects. This can be a problem area for some of these individuals. Unlike other Extraverted types, ENFPs need time alone to center themselves, and make sure they are moving in a direction which is in sync with their values. ENFPs who remain centered will usually be quite successful at their endeavors. Others may fall into the habit of dropping a project when they become excited about a new possibility, and thus they never achieve the great accomplishments which they are capable of achieving.
Most ENFPs have great people skills. They are genuinely warm and interested in people, and place great importance on their inter-personal relationships. ENFPs almost always have a strong need to be liked. Sometimes, especially at a younger age, an ENFP will tend to be "gushy" and insincere, and generally "overdo" in an effort to win acceptance. However, once an ENFP has learned to balance their need to be true to themselves with their need for acceptance, they excel at bringing out the best in others, and are typically well-liked. They have an exceptional ability to intuitively understand a person after a very short period of time, and use their intuition and flexibility to relate to others on their own level.
Because ENFPs live in the world of exciting possibilities, the details of everyday life are seen as trivial drudgery. They place no importance on detailed, maintenance-type tasks, and will frequently remain oblivous to these types of concerns. When they do have to perform these tasks, they do not enjoy themselves. This is a challenging area of life for most ENFPs, and can be frustrating for ENFP's family members.
An ENFP who has "gone wrong" may be quite manipulative - and very good it. The gift of gab which they are blessed with makes it naturally easy for them to get what they want. Most ENFPs will not abuse their abilities, because that would not jive with their value systems.
ENFPs sometimes make serious errors in judgment. They have an amazing ability to intuitively perceive the truth about a person or situation, but when they apply judgment to their perception, they may jump to the wrong conclusions.
ENFPs who have not learned to follow through may have a difficult time remaining happy in marital relationships. Always seeing the possibilities of what could be, they may become bored with what actually is. The strong sense of values will keep many ENFPs dedicated to their relationships. However, ENFPs like a little excitement in their lives, and are best matched with individuals who are comfortable with change and new experiences.
Having an ENFP parent can be a fun-filled experience, but may be stressful at times for children with strong Sensing or Judging tendancies. Such children may see the ENFP parent as inconsistent and difficult to understand, as the children are pulled along in the whirlwind life of the ENFP. Sometimes the ENFP will want to be their child's best friend, and at other times they will play the parental authoritarian. But ENFPs are always consistent in their value systems, which they will impress on their children above all else, along with a basic joy of living.
ENFPs are basically happy people. They may become unhappy when they are confined to strict schedules or mundane tasks. Consequently, ENFPs work best in situations where they have a lot of flexibility, and where they can work with people and ideas. Many go into business for themselves. They have the ability to be quite productive with little supervision, as long as they are excited about what they're doing.
Because they are so alert and sensitive, constantly scanning their environments, ENFPs often suffer from muscle tension. They have a strong need to be independent, and resist being controlled or labelled. They need to maintain control over themselves, but they do not believe in controlling others. Their dislike of dependence and suppression extends to others as well as to themselves.
ENFPs are charming, ingenuous, risk-taking, sensitive, people-oriented individuals with capabilities ranging across a broad spectrum. They have many gifts which they will use to fulfill themselves and those near them, if they are able to remain centered and master the ability of following through.
Jungian functional preference ordering for ENFP:
Dominant: Extraverted Intuition
Auxiliary: Introverted Feeling
Tertiary: Extraverted Thinking
Inferior: Introverted Sensing
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10:59 am - And here's a great blog
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I found a blog last night that has GREAT tips for goal setting, interacting with others, organization, and stress/depression management.. It's called The Happiness Project, and it's a wonderful read, and has already helped me pinpoint some changes I need to make within myself to help lead a better, more productive, more fulfilling life. I will reprint two excerpts here.....
"Quiz: Do you know yourself? It's surprisingly hard.
My friend Michael Melcher, a career coach who used to practice law, just wrote an excellent (and quite funny) book called The Creative Lawyer; he also has a terrific blog. It’s aimed at helping lawyers find more job satisfaction – whether within law or outside of law – but it’s also a valuable resource for anyone trying to understand himself or herself better.
In doing the Happiness Project, I’ve been repeatedly struck by how hard it is to “Be Gretchen.” It’s oddly difficult even to appreciate my own interests. I have to remind myself of one of my most important Secrets of Adulthood: just because something is fun for someone else, doesn’t mean it’s fun for me – and vice versa. (See left column for all the Secrets of Adulthood.)
I’ve noticed that people often assume that everyone enjoys the same activities that they enjoy, because they believe those activities are inherently enjoyable – e.g., they enjoy arranging flowers because arranging flowers is just a fun thing to do. No! Not so.
Or else people assume that they in fact do enjoy what they think they SHOULD enjoy – e.g., they enjoy going to the theater, because going to the theater is a fun thing to do. Nope! Not true.
Here’s a quiz, lightly adapted from The Creative Lawyer, to help you figure out your interests. Not what you WISH interested you, but what ACTUALLY interests you.
1. What part of the newspaper do you read first?
2. What are three books you’ve read in the past year?
3. As a child, what did you do in your free time?
4. What’s a goal that has been on your list for a few years?
5. What do you actually do with your free time?
6. What types of activities energize you?
7. What famous people intrigue you?
You need to pay close attention to yourself. Skiing, drinking wine, going to concerts, eating pasta, gardening, shopping…all these activities are fun for some people, all these are chores for some people. Like me.
The better you understand your true likes and dislikes, the better able you are to make decisions – in work and leisure – that will make you happy.
The next step, then, is to act on your interests. For example, once I started paying close attention to myself, I realized that I'm fascinated by the subject of obesity. Just what is causing the dramatic rise in obesity? There doesn't seem to be a way to act on this interest, other than to read articles and books on the topic, but I'm on the look-out. After all, I started a children's literature reading group; maybe there's some listserv or something I could join."
"Quiz: Do you make other people unhappy?
One of the most crucial keys to happiness is the ability to make other people happy. (In fact, a device to warn you if you're being boring or irritating is in development.)
Many people, however, don’t realize that they’re not making people happy – quite the reverse. They have their own explanations for the things they say and do, and they don’t acknowledge how they’re affecting other people.
One of my favorite sections in Bob Sutton's excellent book, The No A****** Rule (I'm omitting the title not from prudery but from fear of spam-blockers), was his quiz, also posted on his blog, Are You a Certified A******?. Some people don't recognize the clues that should tip them off to people's reactions.
So, inspired by Bob Sutton, I've put together this quiz, "Do you make other people unhappy?" Be brutally honest as you answer:
--Do you often find that when you do something nice for people, they do a lot of grumbling? Do they seem ungrateful or uncooperative? Do they seem reluctant to accept your generosity?
--When you join a group of people, does the mood often shift? Does a group tend to break apart after you join it?
--When you do something generous for others, do you think it only right that your generosity will allow you to make decisions for them or direct their actions?
--Do you find it hard to get your calls and emails returned by just about everyone?
--Are you often puzzled because the people around you seem dramatically to over-react to little mistakes, oversights, jokes, or casual remarks you make?
--Do you often find yourself saying defensively, “It was just a joke!”
--Do you find that people seem resentful and angry when you offer objective, helpful criticism or advice?
--Do you often find out that something you’ve done or said has caused an argument between two other people? (E.g., your son tells you that he and your daughter-in-law have been arguing about the lovely plans you’ve made for Thanksgiving.)
--Do you find that even when you’re trying to be helpful by explaining something or providing interesting information, people don’t want to seem to listen to you?
--Do you feel annoyed because people tend to refuse to acknowledge your greater experience or knowledge in an area, and instead, ignore your suggestions?
--Do people tend to gang up against you – when you’re arguing one side, everyone takes the other side, or when one person criticizes you, everyone else chimes in?
--Do you find it funny to see other people squirm?
--If someone asks for your opinion, do you think it's right to tell them frankly what you think?
--Do you go out of your way to point out to people their mistakes or areas of incompetence – if possible, in front of others?
--If good fortune befalls others, do you feel that their good fortune makes it somehow less likely that something good can happen to you?
--Do your peers seem to have social lives that are very different from yours? Is everyone talking about going to weddings, to surprise fortieth birthday parties, to baby showers, to Christmas parties, but you’re not often invited to these kinds of occasions?
--Is it fairly common for one person to tell you that he or she will speak to a third person, so that you need not speak to that third person directly? In other words, do people volunteer to act as intermediaries for you, rather than let you do your own talking?
A “yes” may be a red flag that you’re a source of unhappiness for others."
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