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Friday, August 29, 2003
I'm in a rut.
I'm in a really shitty place right now, and I frankly lack the will and concentration to write. The world continues to spiral down the toilet around me, and I don't think I can offer any greater insight than that, and that isn't any insight at all. So, fuck it. I'm taking a second week in a row off. Please don't hate me or stop coming by. I promise I'll have my shit together again soon
Marc@MarcMason.com
9:07 PM
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Saturday, August 23, 2003
I'm apparently so lazy that I'm even a day late announcing that I'm taking the week off. Brilliant, huh?
Marc@MarcMason.com
11:20 AM
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Friday, August 15, 2003
Fair And Balanced
Today, bloggers nationwide are observing "Fair And Balanced Day" as a show of support and solidarity against FOX NewsCorp's stupid and vicious lawsuit against satirist Al Franken. Now, even though I post "Happy Nonsense" through a blog, I don't consider it one as such. However, for today, you can bet your ass that it's a blog.
FOX's stunningly snotty lawsuit, charging Franken with trademark infringement for making fun of them, comes as another dumb decision in a long line of them, the first being that they actually decided to refer to their broadcasts as "fair and balanced" with a straight face. With modern day William Randolph Hearst, Rupert Murdoch, owning and running the show, neither of those words even remotely describes the hawkishly conservative drivel that escapes the lips of a FOXnews anchor. For FOX to even imply that they have the remotest credibility as a serious news organiztion is quite the joke.
Murdoch's darlings have actually pointed out this week that they've never had a scandal hit their newsroom like CNN's "Tailhook" problem, or the New York Times' fiasco with Jayson Blair. You know what? They're right. Of course, you run plenty of risks when you're actually trying to report news that matters and that isn't dictated by one of the wealthiest Republicans on the planet, and eventually, you're gonna get burned. It's a fact of life. But at least those other outlets are trying. There's a recognition at CNN, the Times, and other places that maybe a keener eye must be applied to the world around us, and an eye that isn't filtered by money, political action committees, and greed. FOX, on the other hand, seems committed to promoting the continual deaths of American soldiers in Iraq as a good thing because the war mongers at the top of the American food chain count among them their own version of Citizen Kane.
I happen to think Al Franken is a damned funny guy. I've read most of his work, watched a large amount of his political commentary on TV, and I always seem to feel like he's someone that'd be a fantastic lunch companion. Interesting, lucid, and witty. He even has a good sense of humor about being a liberal and can make fun of himself and the rest of us who fall into that same category. He's someone you can respect for being who he is.
I dare you to ever find that to be the case for his humorless pursuers.
Marc@MarcMason.com
11:49 AM
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Friday, August 08, 2003
Today marks fifteen years that I’ve been in Arizona. That’s a helluva thing.
I suppose to a huge extent that I’m really a very lucky man. Many people go through life wondering and questioning where they should be, but I’ve been able to solve that. The first time I came to Arizona to visit, I knew that this was where I should be, no doubts at all. This place felt like home.
It isn’t just that my friends and the life I’ve created for myself are here, either. There’s a sense of comfort for me in that I’ve had the opportunity to watch the city grow around me and become something greater than it was when I got here. I feel very protective of it in that way. Many cities back east are constrained by their borders, never again having the opportunity to aspire outwards, merely upwards. Yes, at certain times moving outwards has inspired some bad urban sprawl here, but for the most part, this big, beautiful valley finds ways to include instead of exclude.
Then you move beyond our city and you see the rest of the state, and you know why I’ve never left. Stunning mountains and mesas. Rich, thick forests. Beautiful lakes and rivers. Arizona isn’t just a stark desert hotland; it is an enormous full ecosystem stacked at multiple elevations. You need not drive far to find snow in the winter (if you like that sort of thing), or if you live in the north, you can find warm sun in the winter when you’re tired of freezing. Plus you get the added bonus of a marvelous multi-culture thanks to our proximity to Mexico, and suddenly you realize how boring the Midwest really is. You can’t get a decent flauta in Indiana.
So here I remain. In the end, I may be here alone, but you’ll find me. I’ll be sitting on top of Camelback Mountain, basking in the glory of what God has created, looking at his works and despairing that nothing I create shall ever be as lovely as this place where the lone and level sands stretch far away.
Marc@MarcMason.com
10:26 AM
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Friday, August 01, 2003
I'm suddenly in an unusually decent mood. I'm sure that won't last.
The week has come and gone mostly without incident. More U.S. soldiers are dying in Iraq every day, and hope grows dim that we will find an exit solution anytime soon because this adminstration doesn't seem to give two fucks about the soldiers they've sent over there. Every life that is snuffed out is a tragedy for someone left behind, and the growing legions of young widows left to raise small children and parents who have instantly outlived their children thanks to the naked greed of a bunch of idiot oilmen makes me physically ill. The lack of any worthy reason to be there has passed the level of mystifying and is rapidly approaching evil.
See? I'm pissed again already. You can depend on me!
My message from last week got to a couple of people at the minimum, which was nice. I was hoping to hear from more, but you take what you can get.
My mother, now to be known as "Robocop" (thanks to her kinky-special pacemaker), is on the road to Virginia and bored to death. I still think that's better than sitting at home in Indiana, though. She's training people for her company, which means she gets to show how smart and competent she is, even if she's doing it in the backwoods.
And speaking of "on the road to", Bob Hope died earlier this week. I watched all those NBC specials as a kid and never really laughed, but I adored him anyway. He was safe, and he meant something to our society. He also entertained both of my grandfathers overseas in the mid-20th century. But I think his biggest accomplishment was living a remarkably full life that we all can envy. May he rest in peace.
Marc@MarcMason.com
9:44 PM
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