According to the National Post, "Canadian" has apparently become a code word for blacks among American racists." How did this neologism come to light? From a memo from a Houston, Texas distict attorney sent to his staff after a jury had imposed a heavy sentence on a drunk driver despite the fact that "some Canadians on the jury [were] feeling sorry for the defendant." There were no Canadians on the jury, the Post wryly notes. There were, however, some African-Americans. [NP]
"It’s really well produced and recorded. I like his style. He’s completely himself. Music on the radio is in a very bad state because people are not really musicians, not really writers or singers in a lot of cases. Everything is geared toward selling, and the music is like McDonald’s: tastes good going down but then you’re like, why did I do it? Artists are not celebrated for their abilities, for being different or for having their own voice. It’s all homogenized. It has to fit into a format. Devendra makes music from his heart. He’s like, ‘This is the music I like, this is the music I’m going to make.’ I’m just glad to hear some interesting, colorful music. It’s out there, if you search for it, but it’s not what’s being featured in the marketplace. Would Bob Dylan get a record deal today? Would he be on MTV? It’s a trip."
And now, to underscore Kravitz's well-made point that the people on the radio "are not really musicians, not really writers or singers in a lot of cases" and that "everything is geared toward selling" here is "American Woman," Kravitz's biggest hit and a song written by a band called The Guess Who that Kravitz covered with great success in the Austin Power's film The Spy Who Shagged Me on the left. Above that, we have Kravitz' other big hit, this one at least half-written by him, called "Are You Gonna Go My Way?" I like it because, he has this crazy voice. Also I just think it's really great.
Actor Josh Brolin takes the cake for most selfish award acceptance, insisting an ensemble award for "No Country for Old Men" was "my fricking moment" and telling Woody Harrelson to "back off" when Harrelson suggested that maybe he should thank directors the Coen Brothers.
Daniel Day Lewis' comments were much better received, with the Los Angeles Times describing his full acceptance speech as "awesome intense gibberish." The Ledger part:
But in the end, whatever the specific provenance of these pictures may be, on either side of the Atlantic, they belong to the same species. Universality aside, the sort of highly-developed aesthetic found in Bridge and Tunnelers, Essex Boys and Guidos, so specialized as to make sense only hermeneutically, in many ways reminds me of the highly-stylized and richly-textured aesthetic of the geisha. In that aesthetic tradition and in the above pictures the carrot-faced men with pouty-lips aren't going for any sort of verisimilitude. Whatever they are striving for isn't of this world. If it's of the world above or the world below or simply a world where the color register is slightly off, we may never know. My guess though is it is of a world that shall ever remain across a bridge, through a tunnel and far far away.
The biggest reason to believe it may be fake is that the Church of Scientology has been repeatedly accused of seeding false information about those it considers enemies.
If you have any idea whether this is real, or can translate it so the rest of us know what the hell it means, we'd love to hear from you. In the meantime, enjoy the crazy, and remember the old saying, "if your C/S has CS ed you for the PTS SP course, or some other needed action to get you rolling up the GRADECHART faster, then do it, and do it fast."
Hi!
This is Leah Remini Writing you again. Some of you may know me from
the TV show "King of Queens", but what is more important is that I
am now OT V and at one point I was a very stalled Clear. A lot of
people helped me to get OT, and I decided I was going to turn around
and help every Clear make it to OT.
A couple of months ago, you received a letter from me about an event
I was holding to help people move who were stalled on the Bridge.
Obviously you did not come and for some reason, feel you are not
indeed a "stalled Clear". Let me start with the definition of
"stalled". Not that you are-but who knows? STALL: To slow down or
halt the progress of. (American Heritage Student Dictionary). If you
are not aggressively moving on your next step-your next "Gradechart
Action", you are stalled. Look at the Gradechart, it says: Clear-
Sunshine Rundown-Solo Course Part 1-OT Preparations and so on up the
chart. If you are not on your next step as per this chart, and are
not on a prerequisite for Solo, you are stalled-plain and simple.
If your C/S has CS ed you for the PTS SP course, or some other
needed action to get you rolling up the GRADECHART faster, then do
it, and do it fast. I have experience being a Stalled Clear. I was
the kind of gal who went on course MAYBE a period a day, only on
weekdays, and that was ONLY if I had the time. I felt I deserved a
special award for being there and they couldn't possibly ask for
more. I remember thinking and saying out loud, "I WILL NEVER be like
those idiots who wait 10 years to go OT!" 10 years later, I hadn't
moved. I mean I did everything else but move on to Solo One. I did
other courses, I got myself in to trouble, then needed some FPRD and
then I would finish that and it would be "my finances"... I would
hear people talk to me about other Clears and refer to them as
"stalled Clears" and I would be like "Yeah-they are totally stalled.
You guys should handle them." Never once did I think "I" was a
stalled Clear, because I was always doing something. Once my mother
told me I was stalled and I actually thought she was an idiot.
Really, I thought "Wow, she really should handle that." I also
thought she just didn't know me. My mom is OT VII and a Class VI.
She did know me and she was right. So, it is up to you now to be
honest with yourself and look at your own progress up the Bridge.
Do you ever wonder why you are not moving? No? Then that's an outpoint.
You are Clear, you are special, why have you not moved? Whatever the
reason, there is an answer and a solution. I don't care what it is:
you were not serviced right or fast enough, people don't get you,
you have other things going on that we don't get, you are helping
others, you are upset, you haven't been acked, your life is actually
going well, your life is not going well, there's no money there's no
time, if you were a millionaire you would do it no problem, you are
waiting for your 2D to make it, there's no urgency, you are not sure
if you have what it takes to be OT, you hated your auditor, you
don't like the parking situation...WHATEVER IT IS, IT IS STOPPING
YOU AND THERE IS A REASON FOR THAT!
Why am I telling you this and who the hell am I writing you? Do you
think that I have nothing better to do with my time than write you
letters and put on events? Do you think I make some sort of
commission off you? The answer is that I don't have better things to
do than to support my group and help when I can. Clears ARE my
group. And no- I don't make a dime. Does that make you wonder, "Why
the hell does she care?". Or... "Why does the Org care?" Well, when
you do your levels you too will care. Sept 11th (9/11) kicked me in
the a&#.
I finally realized that all it takes is a few madmen to take us all
down. There I was, just running on my treadmill thinking life is
okay. I'm going on course every so often, (when I had time) and BAM!
Life has changed. I suddenly thought, "Oh my God, what if I'm stuck
in this condition again and I have to--what? Do it all over again?
Where would I go? What would I do? Would some secret Scientology
police come down and save me? Is there a secret back-up plan? I was
sure there was. But there isn't . All it would take is another
tragic event to happen again and we are all done. There will be no
planet for us to be stalled, or "just doing okay" on. There would be
nothing! The only plan is for you to move on up to OT as fast as you
can. That is the secret. Really. I am asking you to get it together.
You are in charge and responsible for what you do this lifetime. Not
being on course and not doing your next step is getting you where?
Play out the scenario-there you are being a Clear, being right about
whatever it is that is keeping you from being on course and doing
your next step. Years go by, you are making money, you have a nice
house and a nice car. You spent time with those friends you wanted
to hang out with, you cleaned out the garage, you traveled. You do
all the things that were keeping you from taking your next step.
Then what? Then you are going to move? I hate to say this but you
are lying to yourself. You need to move now, regardless of your
situation. Are you just going to keep in place what you have had
sitting there for lifetimes to come? Do you think we are just going
to be here forever? So I say knock off any critical thought right
now that you may have about me, the orgs, your FSM, your auditor,
anyone else, and contact us so we can help you. All you need to do
is just reach once and we can help. LRH was very clear on what we
need to do- obviously in some way you are out of agreement with
that. That again, is an outpoint, and we can help you with that.
You're waiting because of money? Or for your wife to do it first or
for you to strike it rich? It will not happen without your decision
to go up the levels. That is the truth. You owe it to yourself, your
family, and to mankind to move and move NOW.
In closing, this is not going to happen often. I am only doing this
again because some of you did not show. I hope to see you on
September 28th at 11:30am at the AOLA atrium for a second chance.
There will be brunch served, free of course! Do this for yourself-
just blow through whatever it is that is sitting there, and just
come. It's not going to kill you- I promise!
Much love,
Leah Remini
Lycra's "all shapes and sizes" group at Miami Fashion Week (via Getty Images); photo-blogger Merlin Bronques' shots for Ben Sherman (via Ben Sherman on MySpace); and some random "new faces" on Ugly NY Talent, which tells Newsweek it has had inquiries for fashion week but no bookings yet (via Ugly NY):
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