and another thing

so i am tired of people, especially pundits, saying that politicians and groups of people hate freedom, want to ruin the country, turn socialist, blah blah blah. it is stupid. seriously, why do you think so many people are engaged in debates right now? they care about the country. if you wanted to ruin the country, just start lighting everything in town on fire. these ppl are up there with the "god hates fags" and "thank god for dead soldiers" ppl. fuck 'em. name calling solves nothing.

tea party is exempt from the previous statement. if you believe in the tea party's core ideals you best do what you can to help out their image because all i see are a bunch of ignorant, violent, gun-loving, racists spouting talking points, lies and holding effigies. take our country back from who? the name alone tells me they dont quite understand what kind of waters theyre getting into. i see a bunch of pissed off racists that think having more pissed off ppl with a gun on their hip is a good idea, lets get the negro outta office, and fuck the people we need smaller government.

i noticed i never see anybody dressed up at those rallies. you dont see too many suits out their. why? these are middle and lower class folks. you know, the ones who benefit from tax cuts and are unaffected by ppl outside their bracket paying more. yea... way to complain about.. nothing.

bush ran his presidency like a dictator and these fuckfaces have the balls to compare obama to hitler. fuck these people. it took most people 4 years to hate bush, how about a little patience? i dont hate conservatives or republicans but i will not associate with anybody that considers them-self a tea party patriot. what a load of self important sounding shit. the things they are saying and doing actually compare to racist marches. between the volatile racism and the crazy nationalism, theyre turning themselves into the nazis. fucking idiots. "When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross." lewis sinclair

Dear Anonymous

Don't try to post comments on my page linking to other blogs, especially blogs I obviously don't give a shit about and are contradictory to my beliefs. You just wasted my time. From now on Anonymous cannot leave comments. Sign in and leave a comment if you want me to care.

Thanks!

PS: If you're going to sign in and still be a dick about it, it's really no big deal to /b/an you.

15 (or so) albums

copied from a recent Facebook note i posted

Think of 15 albums, CDs, LPs that had such a profound effect on you they changed your life. Dug into your soul. Music that brought you to life when you heard it. Royally affected you, kicked you in the wazoo, literally socked you in the gut, is what I mean. Then when you finish, tag 15 others, including me. Make sure you copy and paste this part so they know the drill. Get the idea now? Good. Tag, you're it!

i dont think i can go in perfect chronological order but i'll do what i can...oh and i will probably go over 15.. so whatever..

Traveling Wilburys - Vols. 1 & 3 - These are the first full albums i can recall listening to in their entirety. and i probably did more than my fair share of bouncing around the room to them even for being 3 -5 when they came out. these records are the oldest i've liked as far as how long i have liked them, and they still hold up. some on this list come and go and some have just gone. these albums and the faster ones at that surely set the pace for the music i like today. i'm pretty sure if i was given a ramones album at age 4 i would have been set, but the wilbury's did mighty fine.

unknown albums from Bob Marley and UB40 - when iw as 10 or 11 my brother Ethan, who was big into reggae, gave me a mix tape. one side was UB40 and the other Bob Marley. i used to listen to that thing every chance i got. i played it on my little walkman when i couldnt sleep and was bored staring at the ceiling. cant help but smile and think back to the good ol days when i hear ub40. goofy now but still awesome. it probably wasnt til i was over 20 years old that i realized it was a white guy singing. hella cracked up.

Bob Marley - Uprising - this was the first cd i ever bought on my own. i bought it at costco for like $13 or something and was ecstatic. looking back it was really awesome discovering songs on that album like redemption song in my room alone and then years later trying to learn it by ear when i know a lot of people heard it or covers in movies or tv. i feel some way like it was given to me rather than broadcast at me. this and the previous listing really paved the way for me to go gaga for ska later on. all be it 4 years after the craze was over.

Offspring - Ixnay on the Hombre - i still dont get the title and many of the songs but this was my first introduction to punk. i was in jr high when i got a copy of this on tape and it followed me anywhere my walkman did. i would put my headphones on under my helmet and bike around the neighborhoods as fast as i could jumping off any driveway and curb i could. i finally had an outlet for all the energy i had in my brain.

Green Day - 1,039 / smoothed out slappy hours - this wasnt green day's first cd but it basically was. it was a collab of a few EPs and songs from comps. kerplunk was technically the first but who cares. anyway, i bought this in 7th or 8th grade from Danny's Music from long time family friend Danny Markmann. i forgot what i was looking at in the store when he walked up and put that in my hand and said, "you'll love this". and he was right. well worth more than the $7 Used price but holy shit that album still holds up. i remember being angsty and pissy playing basketball in my driveway with my dad's (mine now) truck's tailgate down and the boom box blaring this cd for the world to hear. at the library, 16, paper lanterns... im glad i missed the whole emo trend as far as fashion goes but i was well on my way to being a sappy, hopeless romantic lost between the cracks and these songs should have been written by me. barf right? those songs still kick ass.

i was exposed to a lot of music growing up but i lagged behind on being open to it and really being immersed in it. so most of these albums are old but they were new to me.

metallica - black album (straight into kill em all and justice) - i was sitting at my kitchen table eating a sandwich, minding my own business since i had nothing better to do as an 8th grader on spring break... when all of a sudden i heard something that struck a chord in me like my spine was a guitar string. mtv's spring break was doing say what?/karaoke (yea remember when it was two shows?) and this guy was wailing on Enter Sandman. all i could think was HOLY FUCK. i went out and bought that album and listened to it so many times i'm surprised the laser didnt burn a hole through it. early that next year (freshman year) i met some guys who were in a deathmetal band and they quickly got me up to speed on metal giving me all of metallica's tapes and some testament cd's to copy. i was so in. thsoe albums were my soundtrack to much of early high school. couldnt stand the kids and although korn was loud and aggressive, they had nothing to say. metallica rang into my headphones on the walks to and from school. it was awesome. it was like i was in my own action movie. hahaha

most of the life changing/big impact music wasnt til the end of high school for me..

junior/senior year i had these 5 cd's on constant repeat:

weezer - blue/pinkerton - my friends were really into weezer (not the green album as i had liked. it was the firsr =w= cd i heard). they kept telling me about blue and pinkerton so i finally gave blue a whirl one week when i was home sick. it took a little while but i grew to love weezer and felt like it should be a life goal to hug rivers. (quickly left. the guy is a douche) later i got a hold of pinkerton and it took a lil bit also but i ended up liking that one way more. "across the sea" would almost bring me to tears. "why bother" was a great "fuck dating" song. "el scorcho" was fun and the video even more fun. i was obsessed with weezer for a brief time. pinkerton didnt hold up for me as well as blue did and that made me sad when i heard it the other day. i guess im just not as sad as i used to be. it stays on the list though. ill never sell those cds.

blink 182 - buddha/cheshire cat/enema of the state - i was introduced to "dude ranch" in jr high when it came out. i didnt get it. the horse and lady skit was stupid. it just went over my head. later i heard "whats my age again" it was funny but the dudes running around naked in the video? gay! totally went over my head again. then started learning guitar and enema of the state finally clicked and the subject matter (girls = the suck) was pretty rad as i was always in love with somebody and pissed about it. if it werent for enema of the state i would have put the guitar down and walked away. i owe my current interest in making music to that album. i quit lessons and was about to give up entirely until my friend showed me how to play "all the small things". thats it? really? ok i got this. buddha came later, senior year i think. again with the sappy and poppy punk songs about girls and parents rah rah rah. and then cheshire cat. a lot of the same but it was awesome hearing the older style of pop punk in blink and in general with those two cds. they primed my brain for the next big wave to knock my brain in.

oh yea, a few years after enema and before senior year there was: Fenix TX (self titled) this album will never get old to me. this to me was the epitome of what i wanted any of my bands to sound like. the songs are timeless and the melodies rad. i just love this album

Screeching Weasel - Television City Dreams - the best of both worlds to me. face melting aggressive punk mixed with poppy sped up ramones-esque tunes. this album was played many many times over. i had a band for 1 day called "two-minute masterpiece" and one of our songs was a cover of "dummy up". i'll never forget that jam. my idea band would be a mix of this album and anything by teenage bottlerocket. if i could i would buy their cd's just so i could cut them up with a razor and snort pure pop punk into my brain.

postal service - give up. this was on constant play around the time that blink stuff was. end of high school/beginning of college pt1. it was positive and dark. upbeat and crazy. kinda like me at the time.

last but not least:

Neutral Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea

i was told to listen to "holland, 1945" right from the get go and i did. and i was in immediately. it took probably 5 years for me to fully appreciate the album and really fall for it. a lot of the songs were weird and didnt make sense. one of the songs starts with him yelling I LOVE YOU JESUS CHRIST! which is something i am not used to hearing a lot or blaring in my car as i drive. i soon got over it because that was part of a 3 song intro medley for the album that really if the best way to start any cd in my eyes. the energy and mix of instruments and sounds and the engineering on the album... just makes you feel like you ARE the music. the titled track is beautiful and sentimental. it really wasnt until last year that i was able to listen to the entire disc and enjoy every song. i read a book chronicling the singer songwriter jeff mangum and how the band formed up through the recording of this album and the end of the band and was smacked in the face with the theme of the album. it never clicked til i read that the album is loosely based on the life and death of anne frank. if youre already a fan, take that into mind and go back and listen to the whole album. she died in a concentration camp weeks before it was liberated "but then they buried her alive one evening in 1945, with just her sister at her side, and only weeks before the guns all came and rained on everyone" and there are tons more. some songs i will shout at the top of my lungs til my throat is raw while i drive around. others i cant listen to because so many memories and emotions are tied to this album from the time i first got my hands on it til now. all in all its a masterpiece. i have 2 cardinal rules with the theory of getting tattoos. 1-never ever get a name. 2-never ever get a band name. i will most deff make an exception for MNH and someday, somewhere get a tatt of their logo, the victrola with plane wings. i really havent met a neutral milk hotel fan that wasnt a great person. this band and album really has a cult following and so far i've only encountered genuine ppl in said cult. i really hope i get to meet jeff someday. i dont have the slightest clue as to what i would say to him that he hasnt heard by adoring fans already, but i would love to have a drink with the guy, hear some stories, tell some stories and give the guy a hug and say thank you.

Coco'a a go-go

Nobody has said it yet. Of all the reports I have seen, heard, and read, nobody has said what I am about to. If they have and I missed it, then kudos to them as well for thinking this up.

I am obviously not the only person pissed the fuck off about NBC screwing around with the late night schedule. I'm not going to retell the story so if you don't know, crawl out from under a rock, read some shit and come back here. Got it? Ok good.

So NBC said first they pulled Jay @ 10pm because the local affiliates were losing ratings hand over fist in their 11pm news broadcasts where they make the most money. Jay was sucking it up so people changed the channel. Without a strong 10pm audience they had no lead-in to their news broadcast. Ok that's true. So they pulled the plug on Jay @ 10pm. The problem could have ended there by moving a better 10pm weeknight lineup.

The second problem, now being blown up today, is that Conan was lagging in ratings. So that on top of his jabs at Leno and NBC are the reason he is being let go. He was offered to stay on but at a later time slot, the latest The Tonight Show would have EVER begun because he knew that would be the death of a franchise.

NBC was too busy sucking Jay Leno's dick to realize that if they had replaced Jay and given the local news affiliates a better ratings lead in, that Conan would have a bigger audience to lead into his show. Ahhhhhhhhh. That right there. I haven't heard ANYBODY say that yet. It was in Jay's contract a long time ago that he would stop doing The Tonight Show at a certain date to prevent another rivalry like the one with him and Letterman. See, Johnny Carson told Letterman he would inherit The Tonight Show, but NBC had other ideas. That cluster fuck on NBC's part pretty much created The Tonight Show's biggest competition. Letterman is a huge hit with a huge following. I just don't understand why NBC would have such a contract in place because of one fuck up just to turn around and fuck it up even harder.

I like Leno. I think he was good at The Tonight Show but I always loved Conan better. Now with Conan at the helm with The Tonight Show, he's pretty much the funniest he has EVER been. Jay's new show was not funny at all. Jay just ran out of steam. He has been on TV for 17 years. He should have gone free agent to another network but NBC was too freaked out. God forbid they lose such a talent as Jay Leno. Oops he tanked! Quick, let's try to fix it...

Too late. After Conan leaves, I am going to boycott NBC late night television. That is, I will not watch an NBC show past 10pm. If I do, I will not go to Hulu or NBC.com and watch a clip that pays NBC. I will go to a YouTube clip or pirate it just to keep any extra dollars out of their pockets. I call on everybody on Team Conan to do the same. Or the less illegal regular boycott.

If you want to try to sway the network exec.'s then I suggest you pour your little hearts out. This guy saved a lot of time for us all and got all the info down for us:

http://consumerist.com/2010/01/eecb-nbc-to-save-the-conan-o-brien-show.html

I have a feeling it will not help, but it couldn't hurt to try.

The only good thing to come from this? Carson Daly is finally off the fucking air.

Conan, I doubt you will ever read this. But if you do, you;ve inspired me. Thank you for everything. From The Simpson's to the Masturbating Bear. Thank you.

-Ben Mooneyham

Shut the Beck Up!

i wrote this 10/22 and posted on my facebook notes. i feel it belongs here

so this week i have decided rather than rot my brain with tv shows and other fun things while working overnight, i should read more. i stumbled upon the huffington post, though i've heard of it i never read anything from the site, and i have to say, some of the things i discovered scare me.

i got my first taste of glenn beck finally. my first bite i should say, since i have heard a few stupid things he's said and seen him cry on tv about how much he loves america (puh-lease). but some of this stuff shocks me. its a different kind of shock than when you get trolled by some idiot who sends you two girls one cup or shit like that. this is seriously dangerous banter that appeals to ignorant, racist and paranoid people. it amazes me that people on fox news call obama hitler when he tries to empower people to take responsibility for themselves and their community when all fox news does is falsely report and instigate fear on their channels. if you scare people enough they will violently react. kinda like... you know... hitler did with his propaganda. hmmm. i'm just saying.

now i'm a huge fan of the first amendment and anti-censorship so i'm not saying he shouldnt have the right to be on tv and speak his mind. or any one of the "beg the question" far right wing pundits (limbaugh oriely and hannity..etc) but where do we draw the line on what is acceptable and responsible broadcasting? people take shots but i haven't seen anything substantial that would force rupert murdock to second guess his tactics. now, i dont give a shit about janet jackson's old stupid tit. i am more concerned about fear mongers who do nothing but lie and rile people up without actually delivering any news on tv and radio.. etc.

it took half a semester of a logic class for me to formally learn the types of argumentative fallacies that are possible. i could tell when people made bullshit claims, but i finally had names for them now. i think the most dangerous one fox news commits on a daily basis has to do with their name. appeal to authority. fox news. NEWS. how much news casting is really on the channel? most of it is talk show banter. "but it has news right in the name! how could they say all that and get away with it?" i know right? thats what i'm wondering too...

CNN = cable news network. i'm no fan of CNN either since they make every single news story into a major motion picture and sensationalize the shit out of it. i think they are kind of guilty of the same thing fox news is but its not nearly as slanted and propagandist. MSNBC, a favorite for fox news to pick on. Microsoft/National Broadcasting Company. They broadcast things. no news in that name. NPR - national public radio. do you see where i'm going with this? i'm not trying to say the other listed networks dont pander. of course they do. how and what news gets out is an insane web of bullshit and money and political power. but i cant even touch on that one. i havent even gotten through the intro to manufacturing consent yet.

i dont feel like writing a huge essay right now even though i have already laid the groundwork rather sloppily, but i'll leave you with this to check out: http://www.nizkor.org/features/fallacies/

i really suggest you at least skim the examples and definitions. you wont look at any claim of any topic the same.

ok so back on to the topic i started on. although i cant stand orielly or hannity either, they seem a little more harmless to me right now. maybe im ignorant. i probably am. but beck's balls scare me.

he has the balls to joke about poisoning speaker of the house nancy pelosi. third in line to the presidency. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UudQuVOwSds&feature=player_embedded how has he not been arrested for this or at least suspended and investigated? thats not something to joke about. regardless if its a political figure or the average joe. he is LOVING the idea of murdering somebody on live television. a guy in new jersey was arrested because he was overheard making threatening small talk about obama at a coffee cart. granted he is an airport security guard at an airport where obama was scheduled to fly into the next day, but he wasnt even on tv. he was over heard. they are talking about all the prison time he will probably face and he hasnt been arraigned yet. why hasnt anybody talked to beck in a quiet little room about this? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/21/john-breck-arrested-newar_n_328927.html

he has the audacity to belittle, mock and call efforts for people to help one-another maoism. wow. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/19/glenn-beck-slams-obama-en_n_326632.html
he mentions green week (first started in 07 when bush was president), special episodes and weeks are announced to the viewers. he insinuates its subliminal. he doesn't say it but the way i heard it, it sounds like thats what he's getting at. he says he would rather see people volunteer without the incentive of a free trip to disneyland. well, i bet a lot of people that currently volunteer will take advantage of the reward, and i have to ask - if the incentive doesnt cost you a dime, what do you care that they are trying to get americans to do good things? seriously! if disney wants to con you into doing something nice, at their own expense, why is it an issue? or he mentions no need for volunteering for a disaster that hasnt happened yet. ok-hunger is the first thought that comes to mind. thats a disaster many americans face every single day. volunteer and or donate to a food bank/soup kitchen/homeless shelter... etc.


i am doing my best not to use argumentative fallacies in my own political rants because i dont want to be that guy. i try to have data to backup my claims and not just preech and rant and rave. im sure i slipped and threw in a few insults. dont take an insult as evidence for an argument. i am obviously annoyed with these people so thats my personal opinion. i dont feel like going back and editing this entire thing. its 4am for pete's sake! (by the way, who is pete? peter the apostle? hmmm wait, peter was an apostle, right? great now all the comments will be about this)

anyway... comment away. i want to know if seeing or hearing people incite fear, spread false information and slander others is scary to you.

EDIT: so i just saw one more video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szlLM5lCNJg&feature=player_embedded

art and/or history majors, please weigh in. i need to go find out what formal education glenn beck has to decide what each image is supposed to represent. and you know... as if what he says in general isnt offensive enough, he has to do it in that sarcastic, mocking tone. i would drop any class i was in if a professor lectured like that.

and fascism? relating progressives to fascist? read up on fascism and go read up on what a dictator is. then check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_aujjUA4lI

fascist and dictators scare you out of your rights and empower you to be with the government or against it. that doesnt sound very progressive to me.

maybe im just an angry, ignorant punk poseur who knows just enough.

whatever.

Daily dose of truth

I was thinking of ideas for this blog today because I want to update it more often. A lot of times stuff just comes to me and sometimes it just doesn't. That's why I never pursued writing for a newspaper. I don't know if I could pull ideas and pieces out of my ass on a regular basis with deadlines and whatnot. But then I had an idea a few minutes ago for a nightly piece I could post: Daily does of truth. It will be anything from one sentence to a whole huge post about things that just need to be said that seem glaringly obvious but nobody else seems to see.

Without further ado, here's the first one:

Sans a few songs from the last two albums, Green Day hasn't put out anything decent since Warning. That's right, I said Warning, not Dookie or Insomniac or something else. Warning was Green Day's Pinkerton in my eyes. Except it probably did way better in sales and reviews than Pinkerton (Weezer) did (but we all know Pinkerton is the shit).

Warning was a different album for Green Day compared to their previous albums and I remember everybody giving me shit when I would say I liked it. Well, all you people from 7 years ago, way to pan that album. Now we are stuck with Green Day in eyeliner, shitty straightened hair and uniforms. Way to go. You pan an album and the band freaks and gives up/sells out. I hate saying bands sell out. People called Green Day a sellout when they did Warning because it wasn't pop-punk. I thought it was great to see them try new things and they pulled it off well. Strapping on a uniform and thinking your a punk rock Bono (Tom, I'll get to you soon) and writing mega-anthems and rock opera shit is selling out to me. Was NOFX's The Decline given as much coverage? An 18 minute song about the real, gritty sides of America and politics. No. It wasn't broken up into 3 minute songs to appease the gnat sized attention spans of the lowest common denominator record buyer.

But...I am a sucker for an upbeat, catchy pop-punk song and Green Day did deliver a few of those on each of their last albums. And its not to say they didn't try on the last two either. I feel like 21st Century Breakdown was an extended side B of American Idiot. I give them a B+ for effort but I just don't like it. I feel like its cool to change your style up a bit and try new things as an artist, but when it comes to bands, the fan base and loyalty can be volatile and you shouldn't upset the way things are. I'm sure they don't want to be 50 and still playing When I Come Around. I don't blame them at all. Sellout or just adventurous primadonnas-either way. I still think when a band decides to go a direction completely different than the original course, they should just create an alter ego. Green Day did this with The Network and Foxborough Hot Tubs but I think they should have done it again with the last 2 records. Why the hell not? Like their label will say no to them if they want to have 5 bands with the same members.

Billie Joe, please take off the eye liner and stop dying and straightening your hair. You should all dress like you did on the cover of Warning, not stylish high school pop punk bands from 2002. The black and red thing is cool looking, I'll give you that. But come on. Also, either call your second guitarist who plays most of your parts a real part of the band and give him as much time in the lime light as you, Mike and Tre get or kick him out and be a trio again. I'm sure your monetary arrangement works fine. Money money money to play guitar and be in the band but not really. If you want to be a rock star and run and skip around the stage at your shows, make him a full fledged member. Otherwise go back to stripped down three piece music. Its more genuine. You all seem so high and mighty in your interviews. Especially since I never see that guy sitting there talking. I'm even calling him "that guy". I'm sure I could find his name within seconds on Google, but I've been a fan since 1998 and I still haven't heard it.

Meh.

Seeing Red

Dear City of Fresno and City of Clovis,

You have some shit to answer for. First, thank you for the greatly unnecessary repaving of Shaw Ave. It's not like other streets were in worse disrepair. On to the bullshit: Why in the hell did it take me 15 min to drive 5 miles down Shaw AT FOUR AM?! You assholes forgot to put the sensors in the intersections. I had to wait for every combination of signals to go before me (and some switched back and skipped me all together). I was the only car on the road-literally. Why aren't all lights on Shaw either green or all reds with WORKING SENSORS to auto turn green as I approach? I ran the last red light to turn left onto Cedar and it almost gave me an erection.

Executive decision: I will intentionally run all unnecessary but safe red lights late at night. And I will fight and win any tickets. Thank you.

Love,

Ben Mooneyham

The above is what i just posted in a note on Facebook. Then I remembered I had a blog specifically for complaining about such an occasion. Does anybody else have this problem where they live? It doesn't have to be because the roads are new. Maybe your streets don't have any at all.

This subject has always enraged me and my dad. He brought up a good point once, one I also had! His point was, waiting at stop lights when you shouldn't be pollutes the air more. Cars pollute the most when idling and when first starting up.

I want to see a study. I'm sure NTSB or some damn agency can find numbers on this. I want to see the average (and low and high) times spent at stop lights in any given instance. As in, a number in seconds or minutes that says about how long I will spend at any given stoplight. Next I want to know how many intersections use outdated or malfunctioning light systems (how many don't have sensors). Now I want the numbers on pounds of carbon/sec (or min.) idling cars produce, on average. Let's use averages to be conservative-I'm sure the numbers will still be startling. Finally, lets get the number of cars that are on the road every day. NOW! Let's throw all those numbers and rates into the button thingy with numbers and see how much we as a country pollute every year due to nothing more than in accurate and aging stoplights.

I bet the number would be ridiculously insane. Ridiculous, even.

If you really want to make it a 1 2 punch to the government(?) lets use some of those numbers and calculate how much unnecessary stress is put onto drivers stuck in traffic that is caused only by these lights and how many years we stress away. I've heard hours spent in traffic per lifetime. I'm sure you can multiply the two or something to find yet another number.

On my drive at 4am, when the light cycle went all the way around and skipped me I screamed in my car at the top of my lungs and made my ears ring for a minute. This happened another time shortly before I ran the last light. I cannot stand being in traffic but I generally accept it and try to save my outbursts for the really bad drivers... but I have zero patience for artificial traffic. The entire trip back to work on my lunch break had me seeing red.