These Days: Thursday, June 15th, 2017
Terrorism: According to AP: Extremists posing as military forces in the Somali capital of Mogadishu killed 17 people and took dozens of others hostage on Wednesday during a terror attack that began with car bomb outside a popular pizza restaurant. All war all the time.
Terrorists: Oscar Lopez Rivera was the head of the Puerto Rico National front terrorist organization FALN, responsible for a series of bombings in New York City. Now he is released and was honored at the Puerto Rican Day Parade. PR has choices and they all suck. Remain a Commonwealth, and that has lead them to bankruptcy, statehood, or independence. Same fight, different era. I think I’d go with Independence, just because the US has given em squat so maybe self-government lead by bankruptcy will find a way out.
More Terrorist: Speaking of Oscar… the thing about terrorist leads is that from Israel to Ireland, once the war is won they become mainstream political leaders. Painful, maybe, but true. If PR had achieved independence Oscar’s deadly killing of innocent New Yorkers would be a footnote to history.
National Terrorism: House Majority Whip Steve Scalise is in critical condition and the shooter James Hodgkinson is dead. The GOP is claiming Democratic rhetoric has lead to the GOP’s eight years of demonizing EXPOTUS Obama set the template. The strange thing about this year is how everything has been reversed and all the Dems polemicizing over stopping the work of the country is dependent solely and completely on what side of the aisle you’re sitting in. If Cruz had won, the rhetoric from the left would be exactly the same…and Trump is currently playing Dubya to Bannon’s Dick Cheney.
Sports: Yanks lost the series to the Angels as Pineda got swatted. Pineda? Surely I meant to write Tanaka? Meanwhile, the Mets are on an upsurge, 4 games below .500 true, but playing .600 ball now.
More Sports: Golden State has not received an invitation from the White House after their second World Championship in three years. Will they go? Unfortunately, we’ve reach that place where I don’t see how they can.
Death: Anyone who saw the Nick Roeg’s “Performance” will have the biggest crush on Anita Pallenberg, Brian Jones ex who hooked up with Keef after he stopped Jones from beating her up, and slept with Mick during the filming of the terrific movie. Which she denied -but who wants to believe that? She died yesterday at the age of 75.
New Music: Matt Whipkey is having a good year, a perfect piece of agitprop “Fred, You’re Dead” is followed by the classic rock and pop extravaganza Best New Music (Grade: A-) and another album waiting to be released if you’ll pledge some money here. Matt is the Omaha super rocker, the last man standing, genius popster, and this 27 minutes of tuneful rock is a thing of great beauty as he maneuvers from the Everly Brothers to the Byrds. Meanwhile, the Killers new single “The Man” sounds like Arcade Fire… in a good way (Grade: B+) .
Old Music: Neil Diamond setlist, -which, some what bizarrely, includes three songs off Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Tom Petty setlist…
Concerts: Next week should be fun, Diana Krall, Jason Isbell, and The Dead.
