The Floating Opportunity in Colombias' Katrina

I would like to thank Mr. Cameron Sinclair and the Huffington Post for providing somehow the coverage this humanitari­an and environment­al catastroph­e is lacking in the U.S. mainstream media. Even if it stopped raining now, the difficulti­es wouldn't stop there, since 2 Million colombians have been already damaged by the heavy rains and the floods.

Anyway, fortunatel­y the government and authoritie­s are aiming big this time and they really want to tackle several problems underlying and predating the current state of affairs. There's already talks of abandoning old settlement­s and starting new, safer and better ones.

The U.S. aid have been a major factor to stop the flooding in several areas, I have to add. Those americans who are helping in the engeneerin­g tasks have already realized this emergency wasn't any different from what the Katrina hurricane already did in New Orleans.

To all these people, I would like to say thanks, too.

Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Jerry Lee Lewis: no seré el más grande, pero sí el mejor

Con esto debería concluir el post de sip de hoy, pero olvídense, esto no es Twitter. El origen de ésta sentencia, lapidaria y humilde a la vez, es una historia que debe contarse. Dr. sipmac se encontró en una de sus idas a Alemania (cortesía de la Corporación Rand) con una tremenda joya: el elepé "Live at the Star Club, Hamburg", una grabación en vivo de Jerry Lee Lewis, uno de los pioneros del Rock'n'Roll, con el respaldo de The Nashville Teenagers, que luego tendrían éxito por sus propios medios. Bueno, respaldo es exagerar, porque The Killer se soltó por completo en aquella actuación de 1964. No podían siquiera llevarle el paso.

The Beatles habían conquistado al Reino Unido y a Estados Unidos, lo que había propiciado lo que se conoció como la "invasión británica", una avalancha de grupos ingleses que habían sabido asimilar el blues y el rock'n'roll, desplazando a sus estrellas originales. En el caso de Jerry Lee Lewis, él mismo había perjudicado seriamente su carrera: "High School Confidential" (un aullido protopunk en piano en el disco), fue su último gran éxito en 1958, ahogado por el escandalazo de marca mayor que fue su matrimonio con su prima Myra el año anterior... y salpicado con un toque de bigamia... por segunda vez también. Una cosa así todavía sería un escándalo gigantesco, ya pueden imaginarse lo sucedido en 1957. La carrera del pianista quedó liquidada por más de una década y no le quedó más remedio que aceptar lo que le dieran en donde fuera.

El Star Club no le era ajeno a The Beatles y otras muchas bandas británicas que se forjaron como profesionales en el ambiente pesado de la Reeperbahn; incluso casi al final de la década, Black Sabbath iría por allí también a hacer lo suyo. Mientras tanto, en 1964, era sólo una escala más para un mequetrefe en la lista negra.

¡Mentiras! Jerry Lee siempre tuvo un ego bastante grande, no muy diferente del de Little Richard, Chuck Berry y el mismísimo Elvis Presley. En su mente, todavía había asuntos pendientes que resolver, y el album de esta reseña da testimonio de la forma en que los encaró. De Allmusic:

"... sonaba como un poseso, golpeando las teclas con tanta fuerza que parecía que iba a romperlas, y rockeando como nadie lo haría antes y después. Comparado con él, el thrash metal suena manso, los Stooges parecen tullidos y limitados, el hardcore punk parece castrado, y los Sex Pistols suenan como pendejos. El rock'n'roll es todo sobre el fuego en el desempeño en vivo, y nada suena tan fiero y ardiente como esto. Nadie suena tan alto y duro como en esto. No es exageración llamar a este el álbum en vivo más grande de la historia, ni tampoco es una exageración llamarlo el más grande álbum de rock & roll jamás grabado. Aun así, las palabras no pueden describir la música aquí - realmente tiene que ser oído para ser creído.

Una noche cualquiera de Abril de 1964, en la que ya nadie daba un centavo por the Killer, (ni tenía por qué hacerlo) éste demostró lo que se podía hacer cuando uno todavía estaba consumido por el fuego de querer superar a todos sus colegas. No era el sueño de ser el más grande (como Elvis), sino el de ser el mejor, y a fé de Dr. sipmac que lo logró.

Bonus track: Ya en los 70's y superados tantos inconvenientes, con una promisoria carrera en la música country, Jerry Lee está tocando en Los Angeles. En una pausa, se pone de pie, y antes de poder hacer algo ve como alguien se inclina para besarle las botas. "Hijo, eso no era necesario", le dijo a John Lennon que estaba en pleno "fin de semana perdido".

Ahora es mucho más fácil conseguir el disco (y comprobarlo todo).

Related articles

• Jerry Lee Lewis Memoir (popcrunch.com)
• Jerry Lee Lewis to Publish Memoir (readersread.com)
• Goodness, gracious: Jerry Lee Lewis writing memoir (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Music Review: Jerry Lee Lewis - Mean Old Man: Deluxe Edition (blogcritics.org)

Is Obama feeling the heat now?

Dr. sipmac doesn't really know by now. But the far left is enraged because Obama, their anointed one, decided to back up the Bush tax cuts for two more years (talk about heresy!). Some people think this is another clever and democrat ruse, but the democratic congressional caucus already said "F&% the president". The shockwave hit so hard, that Saturday Night Live couldn't resist sending Fred Armisen to make the cold opening:

Why Obama suddenly realized that a growing economy is the best job creation policy? Why does he favor now the Bush tax cuts as a way to stimulate the economy? Why does this tax break have a duration of only two years? Why did he leave Clinton talking in *his* podium like he were still president?

Stay tuned next week, same bat-hour, same bat-channel.

Related articles

• The Caucus: Progressives Keeping Heat on Obama (thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com)
• SNL: Obama's Stockholm Syndrome, Embrace of Reaganomics and Turn to Full Birther (crooksandliars.com)
• Lanny Davis: President Obama's Profile in Courage on Tax Cuts (huffingtonpost.com)
• Obama's Tax-Cut Retreat, Through Two Lenses (economix.blogs.nytimes.com)
• "Saturday Night Live" cold opening parodies Wikileaks, TMZ - watch here (blastmagazine.com)

John Lennon, no matter what, I still miss you

Thirty years ago, John Lennon, a living legend, founder and leader of the greatest pop/rock act of all times (eat your heart out, Lady Gaga), was murdered by a nightmarish "fan" named Mark David Chapman (looks spookily like Stephen King), claiming that the Artist (yes, with a capital A) was a phony (by singing "Imagine there's no possesions" and being worth some 150 million dollars) and let's face it David, your Herostratus complex claimed John's life for your craved instant notoriety.

Today there is no approach but the personal approach to comment on John's death anniversary. It's tiresome for everybody to sing one more time all the well-known and well-deserved accolades. I won't start to point a finger and say how terrible he was as a person, either. It's easy to dismiss John's shortcomings when you remember which his achievements were. All the Beatles disappoint me at one moment (Paul did it recently at the White House), but as a raging beatlemaniac, I'm more than willing to forgive them.

BTW, Lennon's character was full of horrible flaws, but that didn't stop him from trying to do the right thing, and once again, we should remeber that only a few people (at least three of his peers) could truly understand how it was to become insanely famous, with fans adoring and worshipping you, telling also you couldn't do no wrong.

The final cheap shot: could be Obama thinking he can relate to the previous sentence?

Related articles

• One for the Road: John Lennon (chicagoist.com)
• John Lennon: Remembering John Lennon's Death Thirty Years Ago (psychedelichippiemusic.blogspot.com)
• Mark David Chapman's Signed John Lennon Album Selling for $850,000 (blippitt.com)
• John Lennon Quotes: Late Beatle Was 'Not Interested' in Being 'Dead Hero' (spinner.com)
• John Lennon (1940 - 1980) (sandwalk.blogspot.com)
• 30 Years Later, The Nation Still Grieves For John Lennon (media.gunaxin.com)
• New York fans recall Lennon 30 years after murder (omg.yahoo.com)
• Rolling Stone releases final interview with John Lennon (thestar.com)
• John Lennon in My Thoughts (whatever.scalzi.com)
• John Lennon's Legacy Growing, 30 Years Later (cbsnews.com)
• 10 John Lennon quotes (holykaw.alltop.com)

A-Holes of the Year 2010

In no particular order of appeareance, Dr. sipmac will post for the second time at the sipmac ensemble blogs a well-deserved scorn-a-thon of a few of the undisputed gaffetastic a-holes of this year. Without further ado:

I didn't fool you, I'm for real!

Helen Thomas: she alone could close the list. She could have made a gaffe months ago, but now, she committed proffessional suicide by proclaiming she's not only anti-Israel but anti-semitic, too. She must be a hundred years now, and she should know by now a lot better; but, let's face it: by gender she must have been a pioneer, but by political views, she must have been from stone age. Yes, indeed.

Annie, are you ok?

Joe Jackson: if there was anything clear in Michael Jackson's mind, it must have been the role of his father, Joe Jackson, which finally lost his last chance in the Michael Jackson's Last Will Jackpot. Now he rants and rants, but nobody believed him from the very start. Michael Jackson could have been anything, but he did finally screw him.

I'm as good in real life!

Charlie Sheen: I wish I could post him as my year's hero, but now I wonder how is possible that his hit sitcom, based loosely in his personal life, finds new life in a eight season, after a lot of turmoil, in spite of his personal behavior, I cannot do something else that nominate him as one best optioned to be one this years' leading a-holes. Way to go, Charles! Two years in a row! Speaking of which...

Don't be afraid!

Barack Obama: no matter what he says, he's more deluded than Carter and Bush combined. The one and only to understand that his own party shellacking has more to do with his lack of communication (ilack of communication in a rethorical giant?) than bad policies executed along the last two years. Anyway, you just say "I blame Bush!"

The Formoltv plaintiff: he or she should have known better. If s/he have read the entire blog, s/he should have find out what the blog was all about, and not only about them. S/he should have learn the webowners were lawfully experienced. Quite a winner!

I'm such a badass!

Julian Assange: Pul-eeze! He should have known better! Time's Person of the Year? He was fighting not only against the United States of America, but the reat of the civilized (and diplomatized) World. Now that he's experiencing some difficulties, now he's menacing about some sort of "doomsday device", like a vulgar terrorist. Puh-leeze, man up an publish anything you have, you moron, you a-hole!

Unity in the midst of diversity! Hah!

The European Union: the welfare state is collapsing, thanks to them, and the European Union is collapsing thanks to the irresponsible politics carried on for almost four generations.

This years' finalists: Hugo Chávez - years and years of stupidity and a-holeness, Álvaro Uribe - a newcomer via twitter, now he does not find out that his schtick is not interesting anymore now he's not a president.

Related articles

• Joe Jackson Compromises Wrongful Death Claim (tmz.com)
• Helen Thomas in Her Anti-Semitic Rant: By the Way, We had No Reason to Attack Afghanistan, Either (patterico.com)
• Anti-Semitic Rant Costs Helen Thomas an Award (foxnews.com)
• Helen Thomas Loses Some Awards, Wins Others (commentarymagazine.com)