"The best of seers is he who guesses well."

Is the state planning on bringing criminal charges against this bitch?!
And how do the nation's other police chemists grade-out??


"Bosses knew shipped meat was tainted, workers say"
Jennifer Dixon / KnightRidder-Tribune / 8.30.01

paragraph 2
"A report obtained by the Detroit Free Press under the federal Freedom of Information Act, cites one employee who said he or she knew with 'virtual certainty' that meats produced and sold by the Bil Mar plant in Borculo, Michigan were contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes and that management had 'a similar level of awareness'.
paragraph 3
"...the nationwide listeria outbreak killed 15, caused six miscarriages and sickened 101 people..."
paragraph 5
"...the company agreed to pay a $20,000 fine and to make a $3 million grant to Michigan State University for food safety research..."

No jail time for guilty execs simply encourages other companies to compromise the food system for financial gain. Outrageous.





U.S. Open

High temperatures caused heat problems for many players; Chandra Rubin (among others) actually threw up on court. What I found amazing about Rubin was the volume of material in her stomach! How could a pro athlete mistime a pre-game meal so badly?! Or did that represent a normal eating routine for her??

BTW, Steffi Graf looked great. Good luck to her and the soon-to-be-born baby.

Mind Candy

I came across two programs last week that I wouldn't normally watch, but was mildly surprised by. The first is "Rendez-View" (UPN), a dating show that's a cross between Monday Night Football, Blind Date and Change of Heart. Two regular hosts (Greg Proops/Ellen Ladowsky) and two guest panelists (male/female) break-down the dynamics of the episode's featured blind date. Routinely funny comments. Guest hosts will be pulling duty all this week (9.24-9.28).

The new People's Court judge, Marilyn Milian is a hoot. Funny authoritarian as opposed to harsh authoritarian. Worth taping for a look-see.


EyeSites

Aspects of Life in Ancient Egypt: [*]

The Turin Erotic Papyrus (!): [*]

Psalm 23:1-6

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.



Sunday, September 2, 2001

Poodles With Mohawks
While surfing some music channels recently (VH-1, MTV2, BET), I noticed a trend with black hip-hop videos featuring white artists/media figures in cameos:
Stephen Baldwin in "50 Playaz Deep" (Drunken Master)
Pauly Shore in "Livin' It Up" (Ja Rule)
Stevie Nicks in "Bootylicious" (Destiny's Child)...etc..
Gwen Stefani ("No Doubt") is pulling overtime in one of Eve's new vids, and Puff Daddy...I mean, P.Diddy has a "cast of thousands" in his latest effort "Bad Boy Forvever", including Ben Stiller.

The image of the vast majority of hip-hop artists is built around conspicuous consumption, violence (implied or otherwise) and gross use of drugs.
They are essentially a new form of yuppie.
Legalize drugs today, and tomorrow these folks are out of a job. Hip-hop music videos are generally assembly line in nature, built around tightly choreographed line dancing, utilizing one or two (usually sampled) riffs, and serving more as vehicles for product placements rather than creative expression.
Gangsta hip-hop, especially, has embraced imprisonment as a way of life, while media liberals and "black" leaders (Farrahkahn/Jackson) have embraced 'hop's message as representing a true (but "gritty") slice of urban life.
It's getting hard to tell who's playing who without a scorecard.
Stepin' Fetchit [ imdb ] must be somewhere getting a good laugh out of this trend.

Whiplash Segue

"...the trend actually started much earlier with the folks of the opposte gender. In the late 1980s and early 90s, urban black males began wearing their pants so low many adults wondered how they stayed on at all.
Call it ex-con chic.
'Guys in prison wore their pants low because (prison officials) took their belts away', says fashion consultant David Wolfe. Having done prison time was considered cool, 'so it became cool to wear your pants halfway down to your butt'..."
[fr. "The lowdown on low-rise jeans"
Chicago Tribune - 8/29/01 (Business section, pg. 1)]

"denim comes from 'serge de Nimes', canvas cloth first produced in Nimes, France...sails for Columbus' ships possibly made of serge...'jeans' derived from Genoese sailors called 'genes' who first wore pants of canvas..."

Suits in summer, regardless of the lightness of cloth weight, are dumb. You tuck in a shirt (sealing the waist area), close off air escaping from the neck with a tie, and then put another layer on top of all that. In 80 and 90 degree weather.
I believe the Cubans and Phillipinos (among others) have the right idea for mens warm weather attire: guayabera shirts [1] [2] over slacks.
The guayabera is light, loose, allows maximum air flow, and can fit both informal and formal occasions. My favorite brand is "Romani", in a 65/35 polyester/cotton blend (I have five).

If some smart manufacturer sends free samples to, say (for starters), Larry King, Dan Rather, Mick Jagger, Busta Rhymes and Lester Holt (of MSNBC), in the summer of 2002, maybe a blow can be struck for common sense as it applies to men's fashion.