Friday, July 22, 2011

MY CASE AGAINST C.A.

Why are we still watching replays, discussing the verdict?

Back in the days of O.J. we were watching a wealthy, famous actor, former sports hero, curious about the grisly double murder..

His prosecutor, now an older-wiser Marcia Clarke, was one of our commentators on Casey Anthony. . It reminds me of how Marcia got off track with her chic outfits and overly meticulous, inept handling of the evidence. I'm figuring the bit actor, house guest Kato Kaelin, will soon be expressing his ideas about Casey.

O.J.'s nine month trial had a fascinating cast-- Nicole's sister, the Goldman family, flamboyant Johnnie Cochran, the "Nigger" word on Furman's lips, the dream team -- F. Lee Bailey, Dershowitz, Kardashian, Uelman, Scheck -- the names still ring a bell.

Nicole and Ron Goldman's bloody, violent end is still a vision in my mind, and from it, I think, grew my interest in various murder-death shows. Aren't there more of them than ever? I suspect that producers and ad agencies love them -- ratings experts prove murder-death is what audiences want to see.

Yes, I have written about this before. It's on my mind. I need to say it louder.

Murder-death is easier to watch than news about what's NOT being taken care of -- what major elements of my life are being jeopardized by a Congress that is hell-bent on stopping our president, killing all his problem-solving plans. I think it's a lynching.

Yes -- I mean LYNCHING -- as in the days when Southerners lynched "niggers." Obama is a black. Republicans don't want him running their country.

His White House, is stuck, stalled, not working. Democracy is stuck, stalled, not working. The Republican's tactic works. It stops progress on every major issue. They don't care what it costs Americans.

I don't need to list what's not happening. You know what's on the list. I think it's endangering everything in my life and yours.

Oh yes, yes sir, yes ma'am -- it's much better, easier-- it's entertaining and diverting to focus on what Casey did or didn't do and why. It gets our emotions percolating, fires up anger and passionate curiosity. Was Casey's need to get rid of the child because her mom loved the child, because "Mom loves Caylee more than she loves me?"

In O.J.'s day, we had photos of Nicole's battered face after O.J. beat her up, and the sound of an Akita dog howling, descriptions of corpses too bloody to be shown. Now we have an adorable Caylee -- visions of duct tape with a heart-sticker on it -- a darling little girl decomposing in a garbage bag

We've got great tragedy, horror -- how, did the child die? We've got the "Not Guilty" Casey -- her wardrobe, hairdo, boyfriends, the book deal, the movie -- all her celebrity doings, what will happen next in her life -- for entertainment.

I think it's out of whack, and wrong that I'm absorbed and interested and writing about this again. But I am convinced that it is significant, a statement about the state of things throughout our country.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

PICASSO, MATISSE OR BURTON?

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PICASSO






MATISSE





AND

TIM BURTON
(American film director, film producer, writer and artist

This 'BLUE GIRL WITH WINE" painting by Tim Burton, and 700 pieces of Burton's art, are currently on display at the L.A. County Museum. Last month, his 700 pieces were on display at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC, where they say it was one of the most popular shows ever presented.

Is it because Burton's art is great? Or is it because Burton's a name as director and producer of big budget movies, (such as "Alice in Wonderland," "Beetlejuice," "Edward Scissorhands." "Batman," etc.)

I am not bowing to, or huzzahing Picasso and Matisse, though they are certainly among the world's "great artists." 'I like Matisse's lady in a flowery hat, and the Picasso face is quite interesting, but ...

I guess it depends on how you define "art." Art to me, is something you want to look at again, and again. and I like paintings that tell a story.

Actually, each time I've looked at "Blue Girl With Wine," I enjoy it more. Most of Tim Burton's pieces suggest some kind of story -- a vision, a drama I can identify with somehow.

Huh? Am I saying I prefer Burton to Picasso?

Yep! But my opinion can easily be ignored. I paint -- I've painted about 30 pictures, but I'm not an expert.

Do I like my own paintings better than Tim Burtons? Actually, after I paint 670 more, I just might pick my own stuff. I guess it depends on your definition ART. Click and have a look,
http://emtalkery.blogspot.com/2009/06/peek-at-ems-gallery.html


Monday, July 18, 2011

CANCER FROM CELL PHONES?

Yay! Current research has said cell phones are safe.

Boo! Out of the blue, IARC (International Agency For Research On Cancer) said that cell-phone-radiation exposure was "possibly carcinogenic to humans."

Uh oh! What should we do?

IARC put cell phones in category 2B on the agency's scale -- below cigarette smoke, but our phones are now in the same category as the pesticide DDT, and gasoline-engine exhaust. Dr. Jonathan Samet, Chairman of the investigating group, told reporters: "A review of the human evidence of epidemiological studies shows an increased risk of glioma and malignant types of brain cancer in association with wireless-phone use."

The "emperor of maladies," (that's what Siddhartha, [Mukherjee]. author, oncologist, deemed cancer), is now on the blackboard on which you list your worries.

Even so, other guys continue to say, "Not to worry, folks."

Radiation is considered potentially carcinogenic when it is powerful enough to ionize atoms or molecules. Nuclear decay and X-ray can cause genetic damage that leads to cancer. Cell-phone radiation is considered too weak to cause such damage.

The FCC, the National Cancer Institute, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and many other investigators have agreed that cell phones are safe to use. On the website for the World Health Organization's it says "To date, no adverse health effects have been established for mobile phone use."

Is information being covered up? Cell phones are a global mutli-trillion-dollar industry. By controlling funding the way the tobacco industry did, perhaps we aren't being given the real facts.

Oh boy, scientists and engineers create brilliant life-changing gizmos. We change our lives and fall in love with some magical doo-wicket, and then, we have to reinvent ourselves to keep using the thing.

So, start reinventing, folks. Use a wired headset. Get used to texting and using your apps. Don't use your cell phone as an alarm clock. Avoid phoning from weak areas, (such as an elevator), since the phone emits more radiation when you're calling from a weak area). Use a radiation-blocking case.

What keeps blaring in my mind is TOBACCO -- how the cigarette industry has managed to continue selling and promoting smoking.

I am remembering the warnings on coffee -- it hurts you, you can't sleep. (I drink three cups a day, and it doesn't affect my sleep patterns.) Remember when we were told artificial sweeteners cause cancer in lab rats? (I use still use them my coffee).

Is cell phone cancer kind of like "don't fly in airplanes?" There are lots of things we do that are life-threatening. Even crossing the street can be dangerous. Hey, watching TV, or using a computer are dangerous, if over-used or you sit too close.

No, you don't need to erase "phone" from the blackboard, but remember, worrying can kill you too.