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This is just the sweetest Thanksgiving re-enactment I’ve ever seen. The Pequot War dramatization is darling. If this pisses you off, suck it up. This is the way it happened. These little cuties do a great job so don’t ruin there fun by claiming the Native-Americans just took a bunch of your Christmas cash at Foxwoods. Now let’s pop open a 2 liter bottle of whiskey and watch it again.
Homes for Our Troops, a national non-profit, non-partisan 501(c)(3) organization founded in 2004. We are strongly committed to helping those who have selflessly given to our country and have returned home with serious disabilities and injuries since September 11, 2001. It is our duty and our honor to assist severely injured Servicemen and Servicewomen and their immediate families by raising donations of money, building materials and professional labor and to coordinate the process of building a home that provides maximum freedom of movement and the ability to live more independently.
Homes For Our Troops is building a house in Massachusetts,
for SSG Michael Downing. This is an AMAZING story!
The are holding a ‘Build Brigade’ to build the weather tight shell of the house on
They need skilled labor, volunteers, materials etc.
Click Here for all of the information and to sign up or donate!
Let’s get this house built in time for the holidays!
A Bottle of Beer found at the site of the Hindenburg Airship disaster will go to Auction this week. According to the article, the bottle of Lowenbrau will get close to $8500. Which is almost as much as you pay for a beer at The Comcast Center. The auction house warned the beer was not drinkable and was probably, “quite putrid”. I’d still put it up against Golden Anniversary anytime. But what about back in 1937 when it was found? What would be the effect of a giant Hydrogen fireball have on a Munich-Style German brew? I know this is rather insensitive and morbid, but it’s the first thing I thought about when I read the article. In the bottle, exposed to high heat and then buried for a few days. I’m sure someone like those freaks at Dogfish Head would go to great lengths to recreate this process like they do with ancient recipes. They would probably build a Hydrogen Airship, stock it with some cases, and then light it up….unmanned of course.
What would beer from the Titanic be like. Say, a fine Samuel Smith Ale sunk in icy Atlantic waters for months then retrieved. How would that alter the chemistry of the brew. This is starting to get creepy…never mind.
By the way, I had a bottle of Stone Brewery’s Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale. It is a beautiful brew. More of a Stout than an Ale in my opinion. There is a hint of hops in it, but the roasted malty, chocolaty, smokiness dominates. It was a great with my warm double chocolate brownies.
Another great pairing is The Lagunitas Hop-Stoopid with a roasted duck from The Hong Kong Eatery in Chinatown. The pine and citrus flavors along with the aroma of hops cuts through the greasy Duck skin and creates a delicious contrast. After polishing off a bottle and half a duck, I passed out for three days.
After discussing it ALL MORNING, I came across some information that makes me think I owe “The General” an apology. We all know that applying statistics to real life can give us great insight on making decisions and that’s what the nerds over at AdvancedNFLstats.com have done. Turns out that statistically Belichick made the right call!
You can read it for yourself, but summing up: going for it on 4th down is successful 60% of the time. Odds that Brady and Co. would have converted are much better than the odds that you punt to the Colts and they don’t score (47%). I know it’s tough to take because there has to be someone to blame for last night, but the stats don’t lie. Here’s a few others I came across while booking my plane tickets to Indianapolis for the AFC Championship game:
% odds that a cameraman getting too close to Bill Belichick after a devastating loss to the most annoying QB in the NFL will get knocked over by his security: 100%. Check the video:
% odds that the answer to today’s press conference question about whether he now wishes he had punted will be “no”: 100%
% odds that Eric Mangini was jumping for joy when the Colts scored that touchdown last night: 100%
% odds that Lawrence Maroney could gain a third hand in a cloning experiment gone awry and still not be able to hold on to the ball: 100%
% odds that Jet Coach Rex Ryan missed the call by Belichick to go for it last night because he was in the kitchen grabbing a snack: 100%
% odds that our beloved Patriots will bounce back and beat the Colts in the AFC championship: Call me a homer, but I’m still going with 100%!
On this Veteran’s Day(2009) it’s important to remember the service and sacrifice of our men and women in the Armed Forces(that includes the Coast Guard, those guys don’t get the respect they deserve). Let me throw out a few facts for you about our Veterans:
1/3 of the soldiers fighting in Iraq and Afgahnistan will suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Over 300,000 veterans are homeless.
Nearly 2 million Veterans lack Health Insurance.
The Unemployment Rate among Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans is 11.2% higher than non-Veterans.
We can argue forever about who’s fault this is, but it still won’t help the people who help defend our right to argue and point fingers. There are Organizations who are taking action now to help these men and women deal with these issues.
The first one is Massachusetts Veterans Inc. They provide counseling, treatment, training, and shelter for thousands of homeless veterans. Their shelter is in the National Guard Armory Annex in Worcester. It’s run by professionals who believe in their mission, to help our Vets and their families get back on their feet. Please hit the link above to learn more and possibly donate time or money to help their cause.
The other is an organization that was brought to my attention by the band Drowning Pool. These proud Texans have been heavily involved in providing entertainment and relief to our soldiers overseas through the USO and have helped spread the word about the Lane Evans Bill, which would provide support and counseling to soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. They also work closely with the Iraq And Afghanistan Veterans Of America(IAVA) campaign called “This Is For The Soldiers”. They are trying to get a bill passed in congress that will expand Mental Health Care for Veteran’s returning from those wars. Please hit the links above to learn more and possibly help with the campaign.
It’s another way to say Thanks on Veteran’s Day.
I’m taking today off, not because I am a Veteran, but because I am married to one. In this time in our nation’s history, it’s more important than ever to show our Veteran’s that we support them and that we are thankful for their service.
We all know someone from the Vietnam era who was yelled at, spit on and disrespected because they served their country…
Our generation has the chance to do, what our parents generation didn’t do… Welcome home those who have volunteered to protect this great country of ours!
Today is a day to thank your family members, friends and total strangers for being brave and selfless. Today is a day to celebrate those who made it home and a day to remember those who didn’t!
If you have worn a uniform in service to our country, I can say with my whole heart…
If you’re looking for a way to thank a Veteran, check out these groups and causes.
Watch this documentary about some local volunteers who thank our troops as they return home.
The Way We Get By – Trailer from The Way We Get By on Vimeo.
It’s on tonight!
Click here to get more info on where you can see it and when!
And, if I met you overseas as part of my Boston To Baghdad trip, just know that I think about you every day!
One of the benefits of being the Music Director of WAAF, is hearing new music WAY before anyone else! 
Today I got a chance to hear some of the new Slash album that will be released in March of 2010. We should have the new single (which is going to feature Ozzy on lead vocals) in January!
This song was AWESOME!
And, the lyrics are going to piss off Axl & Black Sabbath!
I heard Chris Cornell, Kid Rock, M. Shadows, and even Fergie lending their voices to Slash. They were all great! Also featured on the lineup… Lemme, Iggy, Alice Cooper, Flea, Duff, Myles Kennedy and you guessed Dave Grohl!
According to my ’source’, Slash wrote the ‘blueprint’ for the songs with someone specific in mind. Then, he asked that person to get involved and help write and record the track! Every song has a bit of Slash and the other musicians in it… Very COOL!
This album is going to be HUGE!
There is a song online already, that was released by the Japanese band the B’z as their b-side.
It’s Slash with Cypress Hill and Fergie doing Paradise City…
Wanna hear?
In response to Klenginem’s Video, the Star Wars Nerds return fire with this Jam that could put a choke hold on the Sarlacc of The Great Pit Of Carkoon…yo.
Do you think we will spend as much time investigating what the FBI, the Army, and the Federal Government knew about Major Nidal Hassan as we have spent focusing on what George Bush and the Government knew about September 11th? I doubt it.
Senator Joe Lieberman has called for a congressional investigation into the details surrounding the Ft. Hood shootings and it should begin today. And perhaps the outcome should be new practices instituted to deal with American soldiers of the Muslim faith. There, I said it.
Major Hassan himself suggested in 2007 that muslim soldiers should be released as conscientious objectors so they were not forced to fight against their muslim brothers. In a power point presentation he made at Walter Reed Hospital to his fellow mental health workers, he wrote “we love death more then (sic) you love life”.
Yesterday, on his personal website, radical American Imam Anwar al-Awlaki (who Hassan was communicating with prior to the attacks) called the major ” a hero”, and said the only way a muslim can serve in the US Military “is to follow Nidal” and commit an act of terror.
Is the “War on Terror” a war against Islamic fundamentalists? And if it is, would it not be best to give muslim’s serving the our military their walking papers? Awlaki wrote yesterday that “American muslims who condemned the attack have commited treason against their religion”. If that is so, can we trust that there are no muslims currently serving in the military who take that philosophy to heart and are challenged by the postition their religious beliefs place them in?
If the US were fighting a war on Catholic fundamentalists, would it be wise to investigate catholics serving in our military to determine if they had the resolve to fight against their religion?
Congress must give the military, the FBI and all other law enforcement agencies the go ahead to do away with concerns about Political Correctness, and investigate anyone, of any religion, who appears to be dangerous and might harbor anger against our country. I would rather someone’s feelings get hurt than 13 brave members of our military are gunned down again.
This article from NME set me off to thinking about admiration by projectile and how some handle being a target. I’m sure it’s hard enough playing and performing in front of thousands of inebriated fans without having to dodge the occasional trucker bomb. It does have the potential of causing serious injury. Take a look at these pictures of David Bowie getting a lollipop in the eye. I still shudder when looking at it. But Bowie being the consummate pro, continued the show. I’m sure he’s been hit with a few bits of detritus in his time on stage and this was just another asshole ticket holder trying to be part of the show. Some bands are a little more sensitive.
My first experience seeing show stopping debris was at a 1982Van Halen concert at The Centrum(DCU Center). David Lee Roth stopped the show to announce someone had hit him with a penny. But it was ok because he had seen who did it and after the show he was going to, “fuck his girlfriend”. I later learned this was a planned part of the show, but it was hilarious! Many years later i was at a DLR show at the Palladium in Worcester and right at the start, my drunk wife hurled a full whiskey and ginger on the rocks at the stage. The cup fell way short of the mark but created a trail of pissed concert goers turning and looking at me and not my wife who immediately went back to the bar. Am glad it didn’t make the stage or I would have had a date with Diamond Dave after the show.
I remember seeing the Smashing Pumpkins at William And Mary in Virginia in 1993. Darcy Wretzky was hit in the face with a roll of toilet paper and immeditely walked off stage. Luckily for us it was near the end of the show.
At the 94 Reading Festival, Jesus Lizard singer David Yau caught a Carlesberg tall-boy right side up and polished off the contents of the can before hurling it back into the unwashed masses. He and the band played through.
At a Rollins Band show in Richmond, VA a boot hit the bass player in the face and knocked him on his ass. An irate Henry Rollins invited the fucker on stage to take a beating. Then instructed the crowd to find the guy with one boot on and pound his face in. In the words of Austin Powers, “Who throws a shoe, I mean really?”
It was a sneaker that stopped a Blues Traveler show in Chapel Hill, NC. It struck a hefty John Popper in the chest. The band stopped on a dime and Mr. Popper politely explained how dangerous that was and asked nicely not to throw anything at the stage. The band then started from the precise point they stopped.
There have been numerous hardcore shows where projectiles of all sorts including human beings have failed to stop the band from plowing forward. During a Red Hot Chili Peppers show at the late great Channel in Boston, there was so much phlegm being spit on stage that the band was slipping and falling and Anthony Keidis had it dripping off of his nose as he sang. They never stopped. Later on at Lollapalooza 92, while I was watching the Chilis, I was struck by an Evian bottle filled with what looked and smelled like urine. I was already covered with Mud so I shrugged it off.
As someone who has been in a band and been hit with an array of projectiles(best ever was a full purse, which we rifled through on stage, good times), if the band can still play without injury, they should. Aside from the few who need to contribute their unwanted gestures, the majority of people paid to get in and just want to have a good time. The perpetrators should be apprehended and made part of the show. A flailing on stage by the band would be a memorable experience. But the show must go on. I’ve also seen a few shows where the band couldn’t continue due to their own pre-show indulgences.(Hello Steven Tyler, Sean Morgan, Axl Rose, Black Crowes) To me that’s worse. That’s just these guys telling the fans they don’t give a shit about how much you payed to get in or how many albums you bought. The footage of My Chemical Romance in the NME article is a great example. They may not be your favorite band, but they toughed it out during a hailstorm of rocks and shit and didn’t give the crowd the satisfaction.
Please share any experiences you have had witnessing Rock Show target practice. And in the future, please just try to sing along instead of launching a overpriced beverage at the stage.
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