Category Archives: arts

Anti-unions bill OK’d. (Don’t sit still for it, Tom.)


Because these wings are no longer wings to fly But merely vans to beat the air The air which is now thoroughly small and dry Smaller and dryer than the will Teach us to care and not to care Teach … Continue reading

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How wingnut radio really works


The company responsible for syndicating big conservative radio names like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity has been using paid actors to call in to their radio shows. According to a recent report in Tablet Magazine, Premiere Radio Networks, … Continue reading

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Media likes Sheen, but angry workers? Not so much


Three blivets wreathed in American flags and automatic weapons could stand on a streetcorner with signs reading “Keep Your Damn Government Hands Off My Medicare,” and they would find themselves surrounded by camera crews from CNN, MSNBC and, of course, … Continue reading

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Money for (next to) nothing on WXPN


But there’s nothing, really nothing, to turn off. — Bob Dylan, “Visions of Johanna,” 1966 I turned on the car radio this morning and noticed the DJ on WXPN was yakking for a long time between songs. “Oh no, a … Continue reading

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Do-gooder reforms Huck Finn


Next month, you will be able to buy the single- volume NewSouth Edition of Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” and “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” edited by Professor Alan Gribben of Auburn University at Montgomery. It differs from other … Continue reading

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Woe-is-uh-me-bop, Beefheart is dead


My musician son Barney sent me a text message on Dec. 17: “Beefheart died today.” This was sad but also a good sign that the music of Captain Beefheart, aka Don Van Vliet, will long outlast the man, although you … Continue reading

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