Cool New Song: "Alta" by Ty Segall

Cool New Video: Courtney Barnett + Kurt Vile = "Continental Breakfast"

Have Indie Rock Heroes Parquet Courts Gone "Americana"???

The answer is "kinda".

Singer/guitarist Andrew Savage of Parquet Courts is doing a solo album Thawing Dawn (see three samples above) which seems to feature songs that could be described as "Americana", "folk-ish", "indie country", "Singer/songwriter" (dare I say "Crooner"?) and/or "roots" music, a marked departure from the indie rock Parquet Courts is known for.

I love Parquet Courts, but I also love Americana, so I say, bring it on!

P.S. Here's two versions I shot of Parquet Courts stoner classic "Stoned And Starving":

Cool New Video: Patti Smith "People Have The Power" On Jimmy Fallon's "Tonight Show"

People Have the Power

I was dreaming in my dreaming 
of an aspect bright and fair 
and my sleeping it was broken 
but my dream it lingered near 
in the form of shining valleys  
where the pure air recognized 
and my senses newly opened  
I awakened to the cry 
that the people / have the power 
to redeem / the work of fools 
upon the meek / the graces shower 
it's decreed / the people rule 

The people have the power 
The people have the power 
The people have the power 
The people have the power 

Vengeful aspects became suspect 
and bending low as if to hear 
and the armies ceased advancing 
because the people had their ear 
and the shepherds and the soldiers 
lay beneath the stars 
exchanging visions 
and laying arms 
to waste / in the dust 
in the form of / shining valleys 
where the pure air / recognized 
and my senses / newly opened 
I awakened / to the cry 

Refrain 

Where there were deserts 
I saw fountains 
like cream the waters rise 
and we strolled there together 
with none to laugh or criticize 
and the leopard  
and the lamb 
lay together truly bound 
I was hoping in my hoping 
to recall what I had found 
I was dreaming in my dreaming 
god knows / a purer view 
as I surrender to my sleeping 
I commit my dream to you 

Refrain 

The power to dream / to rule 
to wrestle the world from fools 
it's decreed the people rule 
it's decreed the people rule 
LISTEN 
I believe everything we dream 
can come to pass through our union 
we can turn the world around 
we can turn the earth's revolution 
we have the power 
People have the power ... 

George Soros Is A Good Man... But Bibi's Son & David Duke Both Think He's The Devil (Which Proves He Must Be Good)

Who is hated by Trump, Putin, Bibi Netanyahu, the Nazis, AND David Duke? George Soros, that's who. (My God, to have all of those scumbags hate him so much, he MUST be doing something right...)

On Saturday (September 9, 2017), Bibi's son posted the above anti-Semitic, anti-Soros meme on his Facebook page (he had recycled it from an online anti-Semite). American racist David Duke quickly tweeted his approval:

When corrupt, embattled Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyhu's playboy son, Yair Netanyahu (sort of an Israeli version of Don Trump Junior, but with even less class) and David Duke (one of America's top racists, fresh his media rounds in Charlottesville, thanking Trump for his support) agree on an anti-Semitic smear, there is something horribly wrong going on. The Neo-Nazi site "The Daily Stormer" also ran a story approving of Yair's use of the Soros-bashing anti-Semitic imagery. How disturbing is it in 2017 that anyone would use a meme to suggest that Jews control everything, much less another Jew (the son of the Israeli PM no less!) using such hateful propaganda? And to be applauded by Neo-Nazis for doing so? The horror, the horror...

In previous times, we heard talk of "the Rothschilds" or the "Bilderbergs" controlling the world economy and politics through a series of nefarious conspiracies - today it is "Soros". The foreign-sounding names are a dog whistle to racists who believe in anti-Jewish conspiracy theories, the same theories used to try to justify the crimes of the Holocaust.                                                        

If you spend anytime in right-wing chatrooms these days, you will quickly learn there are many people who consider "Soros" to be the biggest villain of all time. They accuse him of "funding" antifa (not at all true) and of being a Nazi collaborator during World War II (a horrible lie - he was a child at the time). In reality he's a New York-based Jewish billionaire who got rich from currency speculation and other savvy investments. I know him best for his efforts to promote civil society in Eastern Europe after the fall of the Soviet Union. He did a lot of good there and in many other places as well.

But Putin despises him and has passed laws to make it difficult for Soros' "foreign" NGOs (non-governmental organizations, including charities, educational endeavors, and efforts to build and support civil society) to operate in Russia.

Bibi Netanyahu hates Soros for supporting Human Rights Watch and other groups critical of Israeli human rights abuses, especially their treatment of civilians in the Occupied Territories. 

And in Hungary, right-wing lunatic/Prime Minister Viktor Orban stated Soros is "a speculator operating an extensive Mafia network who is threatening Europe's peace and future...". Orban's ruling right-wing racist party has posters all over Budapest picturing Soros (who was born in Hungary), with the caption LET'S NOT LET GEORGE SOROS HAVE THE LAST LAUGH

Soros was also targeted in a Trump ad. Soros is pictured at 0:21 as Trump intones: "For those who control the levers of power in Washington and for the global special interests, they partner with these people that don't have your good in mind..."

So who is George Soros and why is he so hated?

According to Haaretz:

"Soros was the 19th richest person in the world last year according to Forbes, reportedly worth more than $25 billion. He was born György Schwartz, to an upper-middle class Jewish family in Budapest in 1930. In 1944, when the Nazis occupied Hungary, the Soroses – who changed their name to avoid detection as Jews – escaped the mass deportation and murder of over half a million of their brethren by obtaining false papers that allowed them to pose as Christians. After the war ended, Soros left Hungary for England and the United States, where he became one of the world’s most successful strategic investors.

He is also a deep-pocketed philanthropist, aiming his donations – and substantial political campaign contributions – in a progressive political direction. His Open Society Foundations has the mandate of advancing “justice, education, public health, business development and independent media,” and he has given away billions to pro-democracy organizations, dissident groups in repressive regimes, supported education through scholarships and support for university, anti-poverty causes and decriminalization of marijuana in the United States.

Soros has been lionized by the left and vilified by the right worldwide; one side of the political map viewing his work as progress toward a more free and just world, the other – particularly on its extreme fringes – viewing him as running a devious, even satanic, effort to create a new world order.
He is a favorite bogeyman of the political right, not only in Europe but also the United States. He featured in the closing ad of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, his face appearing amid accusations that “a global power structure that is responsible for the economic decisions that have robbed our working class, stripped our country of its wealth and put that money into the pockets of a handful of large corporations and political entities.” According to the ad, which was criticized for striking an anti-Semitic tone, Trump was the only thing standing between this greedy cabal and innocent American citizens.

But Trump’s political messaging was a single shot compared to the barrage Orbán has launched against Soros in recent weeks. One can’t walk down a street in the Hungarian capital without encountering his face. Billboard after billboard features a picture of Soros laughing, captioned, “Let’s not let Soros have the last laugh,” underneath a headline reading “99 percent reject illegal immigration.”

Concerned by reports from Hungarian Jews that the posters were sparking an uptick in anti-Semitism, Israel’s ambassador to Hungary, Yossi Amrani, issued an extraordinarily sharp statement last weekend. In it, he called on Orbán and his Fidesz party to remove posters hung throughout the country that criticized Soros, saying it was fueling anti-Semitism.

“The campaign not only evokes sad memories but also sows hatred and fear,” the statement said. “It’s our moral responsibility to raise a voice and call on the relevant authorities to exert their power and put an end to this cycle.”

The statement was too much for Netanyahu. On his orders, the statement was “clarified,” to emphasize that while the condemnation of anti-Semitism remained, 'in no way was the statement meant to delegitimize criticism of George Soros, who continuously undermines Israel’s democratically elected governments by funding organizations that defame the Jewish state and seek to deny it the right to defend itself.' "

Haaretz also did a deep dive into the origins of the anti-Semetic anti-Soros meme posted by Bibi's son. According to Haaretz:

"Yair Netanyahu, the son of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, posted an image on his Facebook page Saturday that seems to suggest a conspiracy is behind his family’s growing legal problems. The meme is laden with anti-Semitic imagery.

The meme, captioned "the food chain," features a photo of George Soros dangling the world in front of a reptilian creature, who dangles an alchemy symbol in front of a caricature of a figure reminiscent of the anti-Semitic “happy merchant” image.

The other figures in the chain are former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, anti-Netanyahu protest leader Eldad Yaniv and Meni Naftali, a former chief caretaker at the Netanyahus’ official residence who implicated Sara Netanyahu in the case she is being indicted in.

Soros, a Hungarian-born Jewish American billionaire, has spent a large part of his fortune funding pro-democracy and human rights groups. Among the organizations he funds is Human Rights Watch, a frequent critic of Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and its policies toward the Palestinians. The images of Soros and the reptile evoke anti-Semitic conspiracy theories claiming that Jews control the world.

The neo-Nazi Daily Stormer also posted an article regarding the meme entitled "Netanyahu's Son Posts Awesome Meme Blaming the Jews for Bringing Down his Jew Father," in which they called Yair Netanyahu "a total bro."

This version of the meme seems to have originated on a right-wing Facebook page. The meme is nearly identical to, and appears to be adapted from, a viciously anti-Semitic image that has been repeatedly posted across the internet in recent years on racist and conspiracy-theory message boards.

Like most memes, it is impossible to determine who originally created it. In one instance, it was posted by a white supremacist named John de Nugent with the title "Illuminatus Jew Dumb American Burger" in its URL.

In the original version of the meme, the first figure in the “food chain” is an obese walrus in an American flag T-shirt tempted by a hamburger dangled in front of him. Behind the man is an Orthodox Jew motivated by money, controlled by the same Illuminati figure featured in the cartoon that Netanyahu posted, with the same giant lizard looming over them all.
The Southern Poverty Law Center describes de Nugent as "a prolific writer who has worked with numerous hate groups including the neo-Nazi National Alliance and the Holocaust-denying Barnes Review. De Nugent has run for elected office, and has even vowed to one day become president. While maintaining racist views about numerous racial and ethnic groups, de Nugent is particularly anti-Semitic, believing that the Jews are, along with nefarious space aliens, intent on exterminating the Aryan race."

After Haaretz published a report about his meme, Yair Netanyahu dismissed the claim that he is anti-Semitic and accused the newspaper of being exactly that.

Barak, who is depicted in the meme chasing money, suggested that Yair Netanyahu should see a psychiatrist. “Is this what the kid hears at home?” he said. “Is it genetics, or a spontaneous mental illness? It doesn’t matter. In any case, we should fund his psychiatrist instead of security guards and a driver.”

Labor leader Avi Gabbay, also on Twitter, said: “It’s a particularly sad day for Israel when a caricature that’s endorsed by the head of the KKK emerges from the home of the prime minister of the Jewish state.”

MK Zehava Galon (Meretz) added that “motifs in the Netanyahu family are anti-Semitic par excellence.” MK Merav Ben Ari (Kulanu) said that “this post deserves all manners of condemnation, from the left and the right. I’m on the right.”

Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit announced Friday that Sara Netanyahu would be indicted for fraud and breach of trust. She is to be charged with spending 359,000 shekels ($102,000) in state funds on catering at the prime minister’s official residence, while falsely claiming that the house did not employ a cook. The indictment is subject to a hearing, whose date has not yet been announced.

Prime Minister Netanyahu has accused Naftali, the last link in Yair Netanyahu’s meme, of inflating spending on food during his tenure as chief caretaker of the official residence."

                                                    Bibi and Yair Netanyahu

I myself have Hungarian roots and as a Hungarian, am proud of Soros and his contributions in Hungary, Eastern Europe, and elsewhere. I happened to meet Soros briefly one time at a Democratic Party event in New York. I greeted him in Hungarian, and shook his hand. What struck me most, besides his approachability (he is the first and, so far, only billionaire whose hand I have shaken) was that he was wearing a regular business suit. Earlier I had been with a friend when he talked to Larry David, who was dressed in a beautiful, expensive suit. It was interesting to me that the wealthiest man in the room wore such a non-ostentatious suit. It was perhaps even, "off the rack" and not tailor-made. It seemed to indicate something about the man.

I was in San Francisco in the mid-1990's when Dennis Peron was trying to get medical marijuana on the ballot as a proposition. He was well short of the signatures needed to get on the ballot and the deadline was approaching. A last-minute generous donation from Soros allowed them to hire a professional team to get the needed signatures. The initiative qualified for the ballot, passed, and became California law.

There are probably thousands of people who could tell similar tales of citizen initiatives and projects that owe their success to assistance from Soros, Open Society, or Central European University which he founded.

He's a good man and he deserves praise, not anti-Semitic vilification.

Santa Cruz Boycott Forces Racist Restaurateur To Close O'Mei's Doors; He Donated To David Duke in 2016

Roger Grigsby, owner of O'Mei, a Chinese restaurant on Mission St. in Santa Cruz, California, shuttered his doors after a community boycott and employee walk-out prompted by the revelation that he donated $500 to Louisiana racist David Duke's 2016 campaign for U.S. Senate. A few days later, the fliers above appeared in the windows decrying slander and rumors - but it was neither slander nor rumors, it was completely true.

On August 23, 2017, the story broke on Indybay.org and word quickly spread online, as seen on the restaurant's Yelp page. Faced with a community boycott and a staff walk-out, O'Mei's closed and remains closed, perhaps permanently.

It's not surprising that Santa Cruz liberals would not want to give money or support to someone who supports David Duke. That's nearly the same as giving money and support yourself.

The story got covered on Breitbart. Predictably, the comments readers had at Breitbart moaned about liberal fascism, etc. 

But the liberal city fathers and mothers of Santa Cruz (who are often less than liberal regarding homeless issues) did not ban the restaurant by decree; the people simply decided to not support it and it closed. That's their right - to support those they agree with and not support those they don't.

So a racist white guy has a Chinese restaurant, staffed by people of color, with a liberal clientele... and he's shocked when people want to boycott him after the public records emerge documenting his racist contribution? (He also gave money to a Trump PAC last year.) 

I don't buy for a minute that he's not racist because his ex-wife is Chinese. I bet she would have some tales to tell about his feelings about people of color. Actually, we don't have to ask her, Roger was kind enough to reveal his true feelings in the note below to KPIX. "War on Whites" indeed...

You see? Sometimes the bad guys DO lose... and people CAN unite and make change happen...

Grigsby sent this to KPIX:

Ryan, this is Roger, owner and founder of Omei in Santa Cruz. 

There is only one legitimate "side" in this "story". My restaurant was subjected to political terrorism. By Indybay media, by bogus "reviews" placed on our Yelp! page, and by gossip on various other networks like Nextdoor and Facebook. The people at Yelp were not helpful in removing this disgusting garbage for over a week. By then it was too late. Due to peer pressure our wait staff walked off the job by not coming to work. At least one waiter was also posting scurrilous lies and innuendo on Yelp. Possibly another waiter was also involved. 

So without waiters, we closed on Friday night, a first for us. We've been in business since 1979. 

I really don't want to do a phone interview and I have very little trust that metropolitan media outlets will treat me fairly anyway, since they (and you) are also subjected to political pressure even if you won't admit that. As far as WHY this mob attack was done, it wasn't about myself or the biz even though we were the target. We are just a token in a much larger process of terrorizing White European Americans into silence in what has come to be known as the "War on Whites". My campaign contribution was to one of the men supporting European American Civil Rights. As a European American, it would be insane for me to not support said rights. 

Any other questions should come to this email address. 

Roger Grigsby 

Sent from my iPhone

from official David Duke campaign contribution disclosure form:

Indybay also reported: "Christina Waters, a local food critic who has reviewed O'mei and a contributing editor for Good Times, responded in defense of Grigsby, and accused the article's author of "fascism." Waters wrote, "Not sure who you are or what you hope to gain by ruining some careers — isn’t there enough fascism erupting in this country already, without your adding more?" 

ThisSmallPlanet has reached out to Waters, who writes for Good Times, a free weekly arts and entertainment newspaper, to see if she stands by her defense of Grigsby. We await her response. 

UPDATE: Christina Waters response (by email):  

I have issued a public statement. Here’s the link:http://goodtimes.sc/restaurants-dining-eating-out-reviews-wine/restaurants-dining-eating-out-review/beth-love-vegan-cooking-workshop/

Here’s the quote:

"After having enjoyed so many fine meals at O’Mei restaurant over the years, I find it sad indeed to see its doors close as a consequence of the unapologetic support of a white supremacist on the part of its owner Roger Grigsby. It is impossible for me, or anyone, to condone Grigsby’s racist actions. That Grigsby is a skilled and highly educated restaurateur makes this situation ironic." 

I, like many others, regret and condemn Grigsby’s actions. Hope this clarifies.

Sincerely,

Christina

ANOTHER UPDATE:

Roger Grigsby on David Duke from an anti-Jewish Neo-Nazi website:

(David) Duke, he said, is unfairly characterized by the news media as a “hate caricature... He is defending the civil rights of European-Americans, whites, defending them from attacks against them,” Grigsby said of Duke. “If you can’t see that in the media, I don’t know what to tell you. The very word, ‘white supremacist’ is an attack. Nobody calls Mexicans and blacks and Chinese ‘Nazis.’ They only call white people ‘Nazis.’ The idea there is to make guilt by association of two words. White people and evil Nazis.

"They basically have killed O’mei. I doubt very seriously if it can come back with this kind of attack,” Grigsby said. “I didn’t know the backlash would happen, because I didn’t know there would be that many stupid people in Santa Cruz who would actually believe this stuff. But I guess my beliefs were proved wrong. When I say ‘stupid,’ I mean ignorant.”

Neo-Nazi Site Supports Grigsby