Tea Party Mambo - cartoon, political parody (here is YouTube link)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6gTmfRYGRA

As promised, here is the link to my parody. Yes I made it myself - all save for the photographs. A bit rushed, only had a month and had to do it all myself, but still fun and I quite like how the static political cartoons turned out. The Flash animations needed more work but that is life. We had a deadline for our grad presentation and I just had to finish up and go.

Politics, Music, Bono, U2 -- building bridges in Istanbul, Turkey

Just a short note.
With Apple trying to be Facebook and MySpace combined, and Facebook trying to be MySpace, and MySpace, well, just trying to stay alive these days, it reminds me of how much music and politics are intertwined. (And big business, but we already knew that. And we also knew that music choice plays an important role in political image -- can you say Republican Country Western and not Rock and Roll?)

So instead of raging against censorship, or celebrities that push a cause as a public relations ploy, I'll simply applaud the continuing efforts of Bono from U2. Yes, this is a plug for Bono. I like U2, always have, but I respect Bono. He isn't just involved in political action for the glory or headlines. He really cares about issues.

The latest event is U2's recent concert in Istanbul. Turkish fans online and at that concert were quite upset at Bono's meeting with the Prime Minister and State Minister Egemen Bağış, but Bono realizes that bridge building involves more than rages against the machine. In this case, he received boos from the crowd when he thanked the minister for "helping his band fulfill its dream of walking on the Bosphorus Bridge between two continents, Asia and Europe". Despite this, his dedication of a song to Fehmi Tosun, who had disappeared while in state custody, reminded fans, subliminally, that not only was he and the band for human rights, (after all, they mentioned Tosun on their 1997 album "Pop"), but bridges of all kinds need to be created in order to bring about positive change.

"Then came the surprising moment: Turkish protest singer, columnist and one-time Istanbul mayoral candidate Zülfü Livaneli was invited to the stage to sing a similar elegy. Bono joined Livaneli to sing “Yiğidim Aslanım Burada Yatıyor” (“My hero, the lion, lies here”), a song that was also sung during the funerals for murdered journalists and political activists during the 1990s, to a thunderous response from the crowd." --hurriyet daily news

The evening had more in store and all and all, we should be thankful that some rich, famous people, in the even unliklier form of a rock star, are willing to fight the good fight -- and build bridges so that real change can happen.

For the full story please see,
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=politics-on-focus-at-u2s-unforgettable-istanbul-show-as-usual-2010-09-07

Time to get back to work...

Well, it's been awhile. I had to go off and do some real work and frankly, that takes a lot of time. While I prefer working for myself, I have to admit, a steady paycheck is a priceless thing! However, the time it sucks down and the energy it takes (since in my case, it means a long, long commute every day, each way) drains me and makes it hard to think about anything else.

But I'm adjusting...

Little Dogs Media is no more, unfortunately. Like so many other small businesses, it ran for two years (plus or minus) and just didn't make it. However, this blog is still alive and kicking (barely) and so I'll continue to do write ups and reviews, even if I can't spend the amount of time I could before researching new bands, dance groups and artists.

So the name of the site will be changing and it will be undergoing a face lift.

Since I don't have as much time to spend, I'll have to spend it wisely and on things I think are important (to me.) Comments telling me that I should be doing 'this' or 'that' are welcome, because it's no fun writing stuff that no one wants to read.

How will the site change? Well, there will me more creative writing scattered among the band reviews, and more commentary--though it will be short opinion pieces since I don't have a lot of time anymore.

And since I'm learning Japanese, there will be a shift toward all things Japanese as well. Meaning, I'll be trying to track down Japanese bands and artistic groups and other things art/music related that trace back to Japan.

And, depending on how Google blogs work, I may even try to post some (likely poorly written) commentary or creative pieces in JAPANESE! It will be good practice for me, even if for those that read it, it may turn out to be painful...or perhaps ludicrous (My Dog Purple Flavor Returns and other such inanities.) I hope not, but I welcome those that speak/write/read fluent Japanese to add any constructive comments and help me not embarrass myself (as much!)

I also welcome any pointers to Japanese based bands, artists, dancers, art events and so forth...preferably to dual-English/Japanese sites so that when I talk about them, they can reach a wider audience.

And much much later, after I've learned the 2000 daily use Kanji for Japan, I plan on tackling Chinese (Mandarin, I suspect.)

Anyway, as said, things are changing. The Myspace page is gone now, so you can't reach me that way, you need to use my yahoo email address or post a comment here.

Besides, I need to get back to doing this...even if I'm tired all the time...between the work grind and watching the horror that is now American politics and politicians, I need something better in my life. (I'm soooo disenfranchised now, it's not funny. I didn't even bother voting in the primary. I don't trust Obama, he comes off slimy to me, like a stereotypical used car salesman who thinks he knows better than you, but I don't think Hilary has a good chance either and only because I think the country is still prejudiced against the idea of a woman president...just my feeling, you don't have to agree...if McCain wasn't anti-abortion, I think I'd cross party lines and vote for him, but he is and I don't think his desire to 'go green' will last much longer either. I think he will bend to the party will and special interests faster than you can say 'green'.)

So I'm disenfranchised and I didn't used to be. Maybe that's why I have more interest right now in countries like Canada and Japan, who may not be any better in a lot of ways, but at least they are different. (And in Japan, they don't just talk about doing something to be prepared for this or that natural disaster, like in the US, they actually do something about it. Tsunamis come to mind and how they actually build protections against them...while in the US, we have the early warning system, yes, but the towns on the coast really talk a lot but do nothing to prepare.)

Here in Washington (state), we have tsunamis, earthquakes, mudslides, high winds, volcanoes, you name it...but it's politics as usual and nothing seems to get done. sigh... just like the rest of the country, it seems...

Ah, well... perhaps I'm just tired and imagining it all.

Anyway, write you soon!
C.G.

Giant Cockroaches invade Washington, D.C.!

Giant Cockroaches invade Washington, D.C.!

--No one notices....

(more story to come...)