Category Archives: business

business, economics, Random

Question of the Day

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Should workers be allowed to work as much as they want OR should vacations and holidays be mandatory? Let’s think about it. At companies like Lincoln Electric and General Electric, systems are in place where workers are paid according to performance. Essentially, if you work your ass off and produce X units of a good, you will be highly rewarded in pay. It could even get to the point where you don’t have to do any performance and still get paid for doing nothing, which is something that’s been discussed among KLYAMers in the past. With a performance based system (Piece work, as it is called), it becomes almost unreasonable for workers to complain about their pay. Yes, I could see them complaining about getting no vacations, holidays, working conditions, etc but in terms of actual pay it’s YOU making it or breaking it. At any rate, giving the worker complete freedom over how he or she wants to work is an individualist concept. It’s an egalitarian concept if workers and upper management are treated the same way. In fact, if production workers really sweat their ass off, they could make more $$$ than upper level management. Sacrifices would have to be made in social and family life and some people just wouldn’t want to make those BUT maybe that option is attractive for some people. Who’s to decide? If you think the government should set limits on work, isn’t that a case of intruding on somebody’s liberty?

business, CD Review, Entertainment, humor, Music

Bitchfuck Hacked Or Not?

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I’m probably blogger number 532 to point this out, but whatever: Go read Pitchfork’s review of Eminem’s The Eminem Show. The “ryan” character refers to the founder of that site:

ryan loves it and he likes mmlp too so he’s all sonning me now with this ‘well ethan yes perhaps i’d allow you to give the marshall mathers lp a 10.0, i mean that particular record was perfect, but not this one’ yeah well you were busy talking about at the motherfucking drive in back then so let me redeem your godawful site now. jeez unless he went back on his dumb-ass ‘policy’ theres a nine dot one up there but i promise you ‘the eminem show’ is really a ten, know that

oh my darling eminem! how i love you marshall, spittin shiny massive magnetic acrostics to fit the thrillest rhyme style ever invented (ugh yeah i’m trying not to explain his quote unquote flow in those meaningless autechre words like architectural and labyrinthine but SHIT) but yeah although em’s lyrics arent usually quotably evocative for rock reviews like wu or jay here i’m not even going to try, you have to hear him spit at it live or on record

business, Entertainment, Music, Quotes

TOUR CONSTANTLY

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Jared Hondo Isaac Swilley says it all the time, but Beach House’s Alex Scally knows what’s up as well:

NYMAG
Since we started in 2006, the only way we’d have enough time to spend on music is to tour constantly. I kind of like it … it’s not like we’re Black Flag or anything, but it’s like a manta for us that the only way to survive is to tour constantly because that’s income and that spreads your name. I’m into what’s happening: There aren’t supermassive bands, the way it was in the sixties when the major labels rolled out twenty things and you chose the four that suited you. People that make music aren’t these weird gods that have a ton of money. I really like that we have all these sites where we can post pictures and have discussions and weird personal connections to all these people. Ultimately, we’re very lucky to have stumbled upon this thing, to get this music out there, to have it to mean something to people. People are always going to find way to support artists so that they’ll live.

business, Culture Jamming, economics

A QUESTION…

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I was sitting back pondering about culture and globalization and business. You know how some anti-globalization advocates argue that individual nation states should not go with the flow of current modernist, commercial, and economic trends? That these nation states have sovereignty over “global” trends? At what point should we stop respecting culture? In a sense Western business is culture-jamming others countries with our consumerist nonsense. How do we (or should we) balance international business and economic affairs while respecting culture or disrespecting culture? For example, should McDonald’s have gone into France even if the French don’t want our shit? Should we be open economically and culturally to our global brothers and sisters or should we cut ourselves off and just deal locally? There’s no denying that businesses are playing on a “global” field as the textbooks and pundits call it. Is that always a bad thing? Somebody (you know who you are) once told me that we should trade guitars for apples and live in a moneyless society. True story. Ask yourself these questions. It’s interesting.

business, Entertainment, humor, Music, News

GRIZZLY BEAR CAR COMMERCIAL!

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QUESTIONS!!!

Did u ever play ‘punch buggy’ with ur sibling?
Will outsell Vampire Weekend in 2k11?
Is this the ‘best use of indie music in a mainstream commercial’ in the history of commercials?
Does commercial licensing make a band ‘more bank’ than ‘releasing full albums’?
R u enjoying the corporate indie arms race of the 2k10 decade?

RESPONSE!!!

Felt three emotions.

(1), annoyed b/c ternative music was ‘tainted’ by some corporation. GrizzBr’s rep is stained. Mnstrmrms would make it less authentic.

(2), mnstrmrs would finally discover some good music.

(3), no one would notice b/c car commercial music isn’t that ‘relevant’.

Books, business, Entertainment, Femmes, humor, pictures, Random

Funny Moment of the Day

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So, I was taking a stroll through my favorite section of Barnes and Noble, Biography, and I could not help, but notice the attention grabbing, gorgeous Tera Patrick on the cover of her new autobiography, SINNER TAKES ALL: A MEMOIR OF LOVE, MARRIAGE, & PORN. So, I flipped through the pages and skimmed some sections and some… cough photos cough… whilst holding the book close to me to make sure other patrons and the workers did not notice what I was reading. Then allasuddden I dropped the motherfucker and the jacket came off! As I struggled to wrap the jacket around the book as it was originally (this can be pretty damn difficult if you’re under some serious pressure!), the young female worker asked if I was alright and if I found what I was looking for. I replied instantly, ” uhh yeah thanks uhh.” She realized what I was looking at and we shared in our awkwardness. Of course she said nothing, but it was maladroit as fuck. Perhaps, I should have stood on a table and pumped my fist in the air and shouted, “HELL YES THIS IS AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PORN STAR AND NO I’M NOT ASHAMED THAT I’M LOOKING AT IT! AND WHILE WERE ON THE TOPIC, WHY DON’T YOU ORDER SOME HUSTLERS AND PENTHOUSES. NOT THAT I’D PURCHASE THEM, BECAUSE I CAN EASILY ACCESS PRETTY MUCH ANYTHING ELSE FOR FREE ONLINE, BUT AT LEAST I COULD LOOK AT SOME MAGS JUST FOR KICKS, WHAT DO YOU SAY?! Some day… I will agitate the fine people of Barnes and Noble, but for now I’m satisfied venting in this forum. Peace.

Chris

Art, business, Entertainment, Film, Film Review, Films, humor, pictures, reviews

Film Review: Avatar

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Full Title: Avatar
Director: James Cameron
Year: 2009
Grade: B+

If you are thinking of seeing this in any other venue then IMAX, then you need your head examined and then chopped off and kicked down the street like a soccer ball a la George Bush Sr. for you Bill Hicks fans :) But, seriously, it’s worth shelling out the extra smackers to experience this 3D Sci Fi mega blockbuster in an IMAX theater. The sound is simply exquiste. Of course your 3D glasses make the film all the more epic and exciting i.e. people running past you, objects thrown in your direction, and my personal favorite, being chased by an enormous, ferocious animal about to tear you to shreds as you pathetically attempt to foil his monstruous ability to jostle you to and fro. Now, I must admit, I am biased here, in the sense that I am not the biggest fan of Sci Fi, War, Action, or any sort of “epic” film, for the most part. Perhaps if this was an off colour comedy with some young, chic, unconventionally beautiful actress and her hipster, male co star with a soundtrack dominated by my low fi favorites I would probably rate it higher than this even if it was of lesser quality. So, keep that in mind while I disect the film for the remainder of the review. To begin, of course it was visually goregous and the action was entertaining. The story was sound and actually unexpected, at least for me. Briefly, the plot concerns a young jarhead marine named Jake Sully, who is sent on a mission in which he becomes part of an entirely foreign world called Pandora, literally becoming like this new species: blue, tail, etc. As his tenure on the planet continues he questions the military’s motives for his mission and their future plans with the planet. Soon, he finds himself at home and decides to follow a new path. SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!

I must say that I really dig the way Jake joins his new blue comrades and does the right thing by helping them fight off their oppressors/occupiers: the American Military. Kinda subversive for such a mainstream film! It would be like an American soldier in Vitenam, who is sent on a mission to be a Viet Cong informant and then he “betrays” the yankies for his new KONG brothers. That would be cool sorta ahah.

Overall: Once again, I don’t typically get boners over these kinds of films, but it was a decent flick, certainly worth seeing at least once. All in all, overrated, with that being said, the story was solid, the acting was nothing special, but worked just fine, and well you know in terms of visual/special effects and what have you, it was top notch.

P.S. Jay Reatard- Turning Blue should have appeared on the soundtrack. What did they expcect Disco? Boring fucks…

Chris

Art, Books, business, Crime, Culture Jamming, Drugs, economics, Entertainment, Femmes, Health/Science, humor, Lists, Music, pictures, Politics, Random

My MAIN Influences

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Of course I have encountered several diverse voices over the years that have influenced me in various ways, but there are a select few that have strongly shaped my specific perspective/philosophy. With that being said, technically my environment has been my biggest influence, but just for fun here’s some real people in no particular order.

Bill Hicks: Biting, caustic social/political satire. Love KO Fear!



Noam Chomsky: Dissent of mainstream American media and American foreign (as well as domestic) policy. Basic anarchist ideas such as the necessity of the state to justify its actions or it should be dismantled.

Rage Against the Machine: Perhaps my oldest influence; their music drew me to such topics and increased my cynicism/hatred for the American government. They also led me to discover Chomsky.



John Lennon: “Give Peace a Chance” :)



Howard Zinn: Brought new meaning to the words “history,” “patriotism,” and “resistance,” for me. Helped me understand that the people on the bottom rung of society make the fundamental changes and not those on top.

Ralph Nader: It is possible to create change within the system and run honest campaigns, even if you don’t win them! Often refer to him for current politics.

Timothy Leary: Fantastic propagandist and overall champion of social change through new ways of experimentation.

The Yippies!: Chiefly Abbie Hoffman (right) and Jerry Rubin (left). Their wacky/bizarre media tactics and dissection of Amerika has been one of my biggest influences on both my writing and philosophy. I adore the equal importance of fun and revolution. After all, how can you have liberation without some kind of joy?

Hunter S. Thompson: Sarcastic social commentary; major influence on my own writing/sense of humor and early social/political influence.

Malcolm X: Provided with the great insight into the hardships of blacks in America and how we raped them of their culture. This doesn’t mean I can relate to this personally, but it does offer me a perspective and has shaped my opinions on these matters. His speeches, writings, etc. have also stood as great examples of how to make an argument with integrity and also how what the institution teaches you is usually false with the complete opposite intent. So, for Malcolm it was White is NOT right and Black is beautiful. For me it’s the media’s purpose is to (Mis)inform the public.

Emma Goldman: The beauty and basic principles of Anarchism.

Dave Dellinger: One of the greatest models of a nonviolent revolutionary; he was the American Gandhi. Stressed the importance of love and social justice in all movements. I’m proud to say one of the most inspiring Americans shares the same hometown as me!

Jello Biafra: Culture Jam! Pranksterism. Perhaps some of my first glimpses at anarchism. Similar to Yippies! but with more serious objectives: Anti-War, end War On Drugs, and so much more. Like Chomsky, Nader, and others, Jello is one of my key political references. For many that probably sounds frightening haha!

Judge James P. Gray: I owe much of the factual basis for my arguments for bringing down this filthy machine known as the War on Human Rights, excuse me, excuse me, I mean the War on (certain!) Drugs to my boy Jim. My views on this topic were basically already there, but I can sharply back them up with the help of the judge’s wise and so obviously reasonable suggestions. Since, he falls from the center-right on the political spectrum, he and I would more than likely disagree on a host of issues. With that being said, he is spot on with his indictment of our current prohibition and I highly recommend his book, Why Our Drug Laws Have Failed and What We Can Do About It.



Mumia Abu-Jamal: His strikingly accurate views on a plethora of issues, particularly race relations and constant investigation of this corrupt and sick government. His story serves as one of the best arguments for how fucked up our criminal/prison system really is. FREE MUMIA NOW!



Steve Albini: Tearing down major labels and any other faggedy artist in sight in the most offensive way. Merciless satire at its finest!

Ian Mackaye: DIY Punk Ethic/Aesthetic. You can’t put a dollar sign on your art and if you do then you should be in a different business!

Chris