Mark Penn remind you of anyone? Plus, a break...

Mark Penn is Clinton's adviser who's had to step down. He runs a consultancy firm for both politicans and companies. I haven't read Microtrends (Penn's book), but do these terms (ones he uses) sound familiar to any Irish people?

"Shy Millionaires, Mildly Disordered, and Uptown Tattooed"

And, in other news, as I'm sure you've seen over the last while, this hasn't been updated. This is because my organisational skills are being tested to the max at the moment. I will be back in full flow around mid June. There might be an occasional update, you never know...

Adios for now!

Rather bizarrely...

There's a piece in the NY Post, written by a Fox correspondent, complaining about CNN's anti-Obama coverage...

And speaking of RTE...

I think we may have a contender to rival The Roaring Twenties for sheer awfulness. I can't even bring myself to watch one episode...

Headline of the day

It surely has to go to RTE.IE...

...or maybe that's just my inner ten year old coming out to play?!

The Ticket and Radiohead

The Ticket today managed to get a whole two page spread out of a fabricated quote concerning Radiohead. Here's the offending aricle*, and here's the background.

Could we see an Oxford boycotting of The Sun to run alongside the Scouse one?!

*Note - the reference to the quote appears to have been taken out for the online edition, which shows that those over at The Ticket Towers online section are earning their money!

Laughing Len

Do YOU have your ticket? I do...

Rico's Corner

One of the major disappointments of not having Damien Richardson as Shamrock Rovers manager any more is not getting to read his programme notes (a particular favourite of mine was the "Long Day's Journey Into Night" piece about coming back down from Monaghan after a defeat). However, there is cause for rejoicing as RTE have given him is own online column. I'll be throwing it up here every week. It's worth a read, the man's a legend.

Rovers to win tonight against Cork!

From today until the 16th - Winter Soldier

There's something remarkable happening in Washington for the next couple of days. It is Iraqi veterans speaking about their experiences in a war situation, openly, including speaking about atrocities commited against the Iraqi public. It is being run by IVAW (Iraq Veterans Against War).It can be viewed on the web, and seeing as it doesn't seem to be getting much coverage over here, I thought i'd highlight it. Please watch it, it shows what ordinary people are reduced to in horrendous circumstances.

The first Winter Soldier event took place after the Vietnam War, and was moderated by John Kerry. They got the name from the Thomas Paine article written in the winter of 1776, during the American War of Independence. The first line reads:

"These are times that try mens souls."

Mad Men

I wanted to reserve judgement on it, and give a more measured opinion, than one just based on a single (the first) episode. I was going to wait till at least five episodes, but after the second on Tuesday (it's on on a Sunday on BBC 4, and Tuesday's on BBC 2), I can't hold my silence any more. Go, clear your telly viewing schedule on one of the days, and watch it. The writer/creator brought it David Chase (The Soprano's) a number of years ago, he liked it so much he told him that he wanted him to work on his own programme. It's only getting broadcast now. It's dark, funny, and works on a number of different levels; race, feminism, masculinity and other issues in the place of work and 1960s America. What more than that do you need? Oh, how about every single male in it constantly smoking? The programme is single handedly making smoking cool again (think about how so few programmes/films made over the last number of years feature people smoking). Here's a taster:

Fergus Finlay and social inequality

The former Labour advisor (for advisor read 'spinmeister') Fergus Finlay is now the head of Barnardos, he also has a weekly column in the Irish Examiner, in which he pontificates on various topics, while generally managing to avoid the usual cliches that Irish columnists fall into. Here's the one he had last Tuesday. Election promises, who needs em, eh?!

(As an aside, there's truly nothing better than spendin your day off listening to the radio and drinking tea while it's raining outside...)

For The Laugh (And The Bile)

The article says it all...

The least surprising news of the month (any month)...

Yes, somebody actually involved in the Norn Iron peace process has come out and told us that the Pope is a Cath...sorry, that Hillary didn't actually participate in the process. That is, as you or I would understand participation. The Telegraph has the details. The campaign to get Buddy elected starts here!

State Magazine

Before we start (and seeing as lack of coming clean in journalism/blogging bugs the hell out of me), full disclosure...I know people working on the magazine. So, this is just a general post to mark the launch of State Magazine. I haven't seen it yet, but I intend buying it later. It is, apparently, a glossy in the vein of Uncut, Q, etc (funny how Hotpress redesigned into a similar format a few weeks back, no?!Oh, and how their front cover this week is Michael Stipe, the same as [the monthly] State Magazine)which makes a change from the usual products released in the country (with the honourable exception of Foggy Notions). So, in short, competition is good and congratulations to the guys in State for aiming high.

Democratic race again...short one, promise!

One thing I've noticed about the race between the two presumptive nominees, is that everytime, win or lose, be it a caucus or a Primary, Obama acknoledges Clinton, and mentions how it was a "good fight" (or words to that effect), and asks the crowd to give her a round of applause. Not once has Clinton done the same. To the Clinton team it may look like she's being strong by not even acknowldging her fellow Democrat, and looking forward to the race against McCain. From this standpoint, it simply lacks class , and plain manners...

The Glass Menagerie

"The play is memory, and being a memory play, it is sentimental, it is dimly lit, it is not realistic."

The problem about writing about the theatre is the danger of sounding...well, like a "luvvie" i guess. So, starting off, we're going to counter that possibly by being swift and brutal. Francesca Annis chews the scenery like there's no tomorrow in The Gate's version of Tennesse Williams' play. It's not pleasant to watch, by any stretch of the imagination. If you like to keep your ham for your Sunday lunch, then stay away from D.1. The flip side of this is that the quiet understatement of two characters; Laura and Tom, shines through as a result these histrionics.

The most interesting aspect of this production are the allegories that can be drawn with modern America. The fork roads that was 1940s USA that is represented in The Glass Menagerie has its parallels in the reign of George Bush Jr. over the last eight years. Jim (The Gentleman caller) can be seen to represent big business, and the expansion of the economy: despite working in a position not much higher than Tom, he still harbours hopes of striking out on his own, and setting up a successful company. It is this spirit of entrepreneurship that has underpinned the "American Dream", and which America is going to have to rely on in the future, as large multinationals leave the country for China, or other places of cheap labour.

Tom, on the other hand, is also searching for the adrenaline rush associated with the American dream, but his search is taking him away from commerce, and into a dilemma. Tom's nickname in the factory where both he and Jim work is "Shakespeare". He admits himself that not only is he is consistently writing, but that there is a "fire inside him". Towards the end of the play, he feels that literature is not the way to quench the fire, but joining the army.

Therefore, Williams leaves us with three questions, that in an election year, seem all the more pertinent:

Art,commerce, or military?

To return to the start, and a reminder. The Glass Menagerie is a memory play, it is sentimental. Tom can't decide which of the three choices he wants to go with, and instead becomes a drifter. As a result we see him at the end of the play pining for the sister he had left behind in an idealised home (country?) that now only exists in his memory.

Gig of the Week

Late notice I know, but Chequerboard is playing 'The Living Room' (upstairs in Whelans) tonight to launch his album. Beautiful Sunday music, well worth dropping into if you happen to be about town...there's an example of his music on his myspace...

Hot 8 Brass Band, Whelans last night

So, last summer (or thereabouts) i was driving over to/home from Niamhs. As it was past midnight, I had Donal Dineen on the radio. Now, sometimes you hear something on the show that knocks you out and makes you want to pull over. And sometimes stuff goes over your head. And then sometimes you hear something that makes you turn the radio up as far it can go, roll down the windows and dance as much as drive, hoping that the people you are passing can hear it, and hear how great it is. This is what happened when Dineen played Hot 8 Brass Band's version of Sexual Healing. Since that night it has picked me up on several occasions, kept me entertained on long walks and ensured crowded dancefloors at various house parties. Last night (thanks to the lads at Choice Cuts they finally came to Dublin. And by god were they great. They came out at half nine, and barely stopped till they finished at approximately 11. They played their own (sterling)compositions, but the two highlights of the night were undoubtedly Sexual Healing (which was played as an encore), and a gospel song whose name evades me at the minute. If they come back, you've really got to go see them....

The Lookout

There's a couple of clichés and a couple of plot holes, but enjoyable overall. One of the more mainstream movies I've seen at DIFF, but that doesn't mean that it's any less worthy of praise. So the praise is going to get lavished on Matthew Goode as Gary Sprago, the "baddie" who rips up the screen in a completely unhammy way.

Bands of Horses, Tripod, Wednesday

They were slighyly underwhelming to be honest. We got in just as they started the gig ,and they walloped through the majority of their two albums and a couple of covers to boot. However there was never a point where it took off and left you going "wow". As a band they were obviously competent, and seemed to enjoy themselves. It's just a pity that the gig never got lifted onto the next level...

Oh Bertie..."A political donation for my personal use..."

You couldn't make it up.
That's it, I quit. I give up in the face of Bertie's unique Teflon-ness.