Hey, it’s not your mama’s beach read, but if you want to kick up so emotional sand, check out Shana Mahaffey’s darkly comic debut novel, “Sounds Like Crazy.” Read more in my NJP review and interview with the author. She’s a cool new writer who, I suspect, we’ll be hearing a lot from in the future. Oh, and you know the drill: tweets, digs, comments–as you see fit!

‘Sounds Like Crazy’: Mahaffey’s Darkly Comic Novel Kicks Up Emotional Sand | NEWS JUNKIE POST

My summer reading list has been all over the place. Finally read last year’s Pulitzer Fiction winner, “Olive Kitteridge.” Elizabeth Strout is one of those authors that requires time to fall into the stories. But once you do, you’ll find yourself lingering in the luxurious layers of language and character. I almost gave up on her first novel “Amy & Isabel,” but once I got into it, I was so glad to have given the story and its characters the investment.

Also read the Belinda Carlisle memoir, “Lips Unsealed.” The former Go Gos front woman leaves nothing to the imagination as she recounts her raucus rock ‘n’ roll odyssey. Always fascinated by how people can be so dysfunctional and yet soar to the top in their careers. Amazing the chick’s still alive–and fairly cogent–given all the drugs she consumed for soooo many years!

For a truly eye-opening exploration of America’s culture wars check out Thomas Frank’s “What’s The Matter With Kansas.” The Wall Street Journal columnist takes on the heartland and just how and why so many working folks vote against their own economic interests. A fast-moving read with some important observations and questions. By the way, a documentary based on the book was just released. Should be heading to DVD soon.

Almost finished with Jessica Handler’s moving family memoir of loss and grief, “Invisible Sisters.” Will have a more complete review soon.

So what are you reading on the beach and beyond? RG wants to know.

Drive safe. Play nice. Read peace.

aba

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I’m so weary of blogging about the Grand Pooh Bah. Really, but sometimes his insensitivity, his transparency is so glaring, I feel obligated to shine a hideous, crackly fluorescent light on it. On Tuesday’s bloviation fest, Limbag railed against extending unemployment insurance, calling hard-working American job seekers in the the midst of the worst economic plight since the Great Depression, “Welfare recipients, ” and admonishing his ditto heads and subjects in the GOP, “We can’t make hay out of this?”

Wow. Shouldn’t surprise us. After all, Rush is only showing the grubby Republican hand. They’d rather let American families languish, inch closer to foreclosure, bankruptcy and yes, maybe even welfare, than do the moral thing. It’s all about undermining Obama and the Dems. For those who like GOP strategist Karen Hanratty, who shrug it off as “the way it works,” claiming Republicans need not offer any actual solutions, just hold the line at their never ending No, I say shame on you. Politics as usual in a time of crisis is not only cynical it is immoral, and quite frankly un-American.

Wouldn’t vote for any of these clowns if they paid me. Of course in order to do that, they’d have to create some sort of a bogus job. And even those fake, cronyism gigs aren’t good for their bid to takeover Congress. It’ll be funny–in a tragic sort of way–to see the GOP figure out what to do with the tattered ball once it’s back in their court.

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.

aba

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Can a movie change the world? Omar Broadway, a brash prisoner with a hip-hop swagger to match his name, smuggled a camera into Northern State Prison in New Jersey-one of the country’s toughest prisons. A few years later-with the help of his mom, a professional documentary filmmaker, and maybe a few errant guards–the movie based on the raw footage he and his cellie Buddy Randoolph shot in 2004–has been shown at the Tribeca Film Festival and featured on HBO. Read more in my latest NJP review:
Omar Broadway Film: Prison Through An Insider’s Lens | NEWS JUNKIE POST

And, hey, would it kill you to tweet, digg &/or comment? BTW: for those who insist I’m a paid HBO shill ( I’d wish you’d alert the cable outlet, because for some reason my imaginary checks seem to be perpetually lost in th mail), I’m happy to report you can track it down on DVD, too.

“Prison Valley,” the brainchild of a pair of French filmmakers, started as a web slide show, evolved into an interactive ( and sometimes technically frustrating) interactive web documentary, and now may be coming to a big –or small–screen near you. Stay tuned for details. For a sneak peak check out the PV web site. I’ll warn you, it’s very time-consuming, but worth the trip through a Colorado community in which prison has infused both the local economy and culture. A fascinating, frustrating, sad sign of our times. Prison is one America’s surest business bets. An industry like undertaking, that never seems to have a slow season.

There’s got to be a better way America. Let’s think of something.

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.

aba

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That sour racist rant never gets old with Limbag. On Tuesday’s show he questioned “Michele My Belle–” as he likes to call the First Lady and her speech to the NAACP. She called on Blacks to “intensive their efforts” in charitable efforts. Somehow Rush decoded this as a secret call to arms to The New Black Panther Party. Really, ditto heads it would be easier to just hit your heads against the wall. Less painful.

Speaking of racially charged rants, the anti-Obama brigade over at Fox News won’t be happy until they’ve whipped the country up into some sort of race war. Read more in my latest NJP entry, featuring a riveting, cringe-worthy video segment from Tuesday’s midday misinformation fest with Megyn Kelly.

VIDEO: Fox News Flip Out Over Black Panther Voter Case | NEWS JUNKIE POST

Diggs, tweets, comments, kids. Always appreciated.

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.

aba

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Lindsay Lohan had one of those weeks. Not only did the entitled, drug-addled, oldest looking 24 year old starlet in Hollywood history get slammed with a 90 day jail sentence, followed by 90 more in lock-down drug rehab, her beleaguered lawyer finally tossed in the towel. Then Lilo–who had the audacity to show up in court pre-sentencing with a special message for the judge etched on her fingernails–started ranting on Twitter about her unfair “tortuous treatment” and compared herself to an Iranian woman sentenced to death by stoning.

Hey, Lindsay, just like driving under the influence, tweeting while stoned can get you in trouble.

And the hits keep on coming. Thursday, Glenn Beck revealed that the two unhinged stars share the same manicurist. Watch the latest over-the-top performance from Lonesome Rhodes:

The tears, Glenn, you always get me with the tears. Really, no one can pour on the melodramatic waterworks like The Beckster. But it would be fun to watch Limbag or Bill O give it a try.

Okay, he’s right about the ratings–Fox News continues to control a dominate swath of the cable “news” audience. Bill O is #1, followed by Hannity and Beck. It’s a sorry, but verifiable stat. Still, as we all know, most people aren’t watching any cable news shows. “Dog the Bounty Hunter,” wrestling and “Gene Simmons Family Jewels” have more viewers. And that says just as much about the state of our culture as the Fox News ratings. And high ratings don’t always mean high quality. In fact, the inverse is frequently true. So while we can’t argue with the numbers, we can make a case against the mean-spirited, misinformed hysteria that Glenn Beck oozes nightly.

Surely Beck’s televised shenanigans warrant a stint behind bars. If ever a guy was guilty of low crimes and misdemeanors, it’s the Beckster.

Where’s Judge Judy when you need her?

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.

aba

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Yep, I’m still spending what can be vaguely called my summer vacation glued to HBO’s Summer Documentary Series. “Kevorkian” is a raw, unfiltered portrait of the maverick doc post-prison, reinventing himself as a long-shot congressional candidate. After doing a seven year prison stretch –and still on parole–Kevorkian can’t publicly advocate for doctor-assisted suicide. He gets around this restriction by becoming an advocate for the murky 9th Amendment–which provides a catch-all, decreeing that that “no other Amendment can take away rights that all citizens retain.” This–the good doctor asserts–includes the right to commit suicide.

While Al Pacino offered a compelling ( and I predicted Emmy-winning) performance in the HBO docudrama “You Don’t Know Jack, ” earlier this year, the real deal is extraordinary. Jack Kevorkian: brash, bold, outspoken is a one of a kind maverick,who history will surely paint with a controversial but heroic brush.

The mediums in Lily Dale, the oldest, largest spiritual community in the world, don’t believe in death. It’s “an illusion” or a “graduation to a higher realm”. Read more about a fascinating new documentary that explores this odd spiritual haven’s healing powers and hype in my latest NJP review:
‘Lily Dale’ Doc: Spirited Portrait of Spiritual Community | NEWS JUNKIE POST

As always: tweets, diggs & comments are appreciated.

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.

aba

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Happy 7oth Birthday, Ringo Starr! The most lovable Beatle is ageless. He looks great and is still going strong with albums and All Star tours and all those happy, peaceful Ringo vibes. His present to the world: “Every day at noon people should say, write or e-mail the words ‘peace and love.” Let’s try it. The power of the words, the peaceful, loving vibrations may just move the world in a positive direction! Worth a try.

Last year a clever filmmaker put a sardonic twist on Ringo’s peppy 1974 “The No No Song.” Anyone nostalgic for the crazy days of the Bush administration will love this send-up. I have to admit: ‘W’ gave us so much material. Maybe Jeb wouldn’t be such a disaster. Wait, did I really write that? Just thinking out loud. In the middle of the night.

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.
aba

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Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest, is the sort of annual gluttonous spectacle mock doc maestro Christopher Guest and his merry band of mischievous improvisers could really sink their teeth into. The hoopla surrounding the traditional fattening fest replete with a live ESPN broadcast billed as the “Super Bowl of Competitive Eating,” pushes the old “truth is stranger than fiction” axiom to the brink of parody.

Contestants–most have racked up street eat cred in various other contests including fried asparagus, clams, chicken wings and cheesecake-have nicknames like Crazy Legs, The Shredder and Eater X. And this year there was a cloud of controversy hovering over the out-sized epicurean event. A past champ, Takeru Kobayashi, who had pulled out of the event citing a contractual impasse with Major League Eating ( yeah, it’s a real league!), showed up in the crowd and after reigning champion Joey Chestnut won his fourth consecutive Mustard Belt, stormed the podium. Hauled in by the cops, he was later released sporting a “Free Kobi” t-shirt, a sign the incident was a well-planned publicity stunt.

I don’t get competitive eating. Why would anyone want to stuff their face with a week’s worth of calories in ten minutes? And why would other fools want to watch? Why are broadcasters celebrating a guy whose quick caloric intake surpasses Michael Phelps’ daily intake? Why is any of this nonsense sanctioned, especially in an era in which the First Lady has mounted a national mission against our increasingly grave obesity problem? As an aside, I should note my amazed discovery: with rare exceptions, the competitive eaters appeared to be slim and remarkably fit. They apparently train for this business. Still, you’ve got to wonder just what they do backstage after the competition is over.

Nathan’s, Heinz and Pepto-Bismal were the sponsors. And along with the coveted Mustard Belt, they collectively forked over $20K to Mr. Chestnut for his downing 54 hot dogs and 54 buns in ten minutes. Hardly a record breaker, the champ –who sucked down 68 last year–blamed the modest showing on the weather. At 96 degrees with 65% humidity high noon on Coney Island never felt so hot.

And Eating isn’t the only Competitive Stupidity these days. Politics has become an increasing stupid spectator sport. The reigning champ has to be Sarah Palin, who has turned quitting into a profit making enterprise. For every Malaprop or nugget of misinformation, the GOP’s Annie Oakley hits the jackpot. She’s even gotten her progeny in on the act, with her eldest daughter–the chick who had the kid out of wedlock and before high school graduation–making money every time she sings the praises of abstinence. Hey, nice work if you can get it. Sarah’s Sorry Sisters in Retro Republican Thought Michele Bachmann, Jan Brewer, Sue Lowden and Sharon Angle have all placed at various Tea Party Events. Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage lead the glutted group in the Media Misinformation category.

Hey, we’re stupid with Competitive Stupid. Still, I’m looking for a category within which I could shine. If they had, for instance, Competitive Kvetching, I know I could whine and bitch my way into the big bucks. Ah, forget it. They’d never offer a big enough pay-out. How about Competitive Unsolicited Advice-giving. I know that could be my winning event. If only someone would ask. Okay, now I’ve got it. Competitive Procrastination. I’d be a sure winner. That is, of course, if I ever got around to signing up.

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.

aba

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As we celebrate the big, bold dreams that fuel the American psyche, let’s also embrace all the hard work it takes to realize our aspirations. And revel in the serendipitous detours along the way.

Today, I am reminded of the radio hiatus ( not my idea) that landed me in a classroom teaching ESL to adult immigrants. I recommend the experience ( check your local area for literacy volunteer programs) to everyone, especially those skeptical of recent immigrants. Just spending a few hours with these hard-working folks as they struggle to master a new language, apply for jobs, college, citizen tests will dispel so many of the myths of the lazy, scheming interloper looking to siphon off services and live off the fat of the American land. Most of the people I worked with epitomize the immigrant stories many of our grandparents or great grandparents exemplified. Proud and hard working, they’re not looking for handouts, just help as they assimilate into our grand tapestry.

Happy Birthday, America. It’s time to leave our divisions in the the ditch and dance on our fertile common ground. Let us rejoice in all the principles that unite us, while celebrating the glory of our rugged individualism.

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.

aba

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If we have to choose between trains, planes and automobiles, most Americans would hit the road in our cars. The lure of the open road, the freedom of our own vehicle going in our own time at our own speed epitomizes America’s independent spirit. That traveler’s creed has also contributed to our national addiction to oil, leaving us in our current vulnerable state.

We are getting better with mass transit, but I doubt we will ever entirely shed our desire to hit the open road on our own terms. Ironically,Simon & Garfunkel’s classic “America,” finds young lovers exploring the country via a Greyhound bus, which easily ranks lowest among this wanderer’s list of transit choices. I’ll take the romanticism of the train over the bus any day.

Still nothing beats riding in a car–a bright red ‘57 Chevy or a ‘68 bright yellow VW bug– with the top down, a tanned young man in the passenger seat and the radio blaring Springsteen.

Hey, wherever you go this holiday weekend, take it easy and take some time to celebrate everything that makes America so beautiful, bewildering and buoyant.

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.

aba

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It’s that true blue rebel spirit that is our American birthright. Whether born here or immigrants, all who toil on American soil fight to carve out our own version of the American dream. And that includes our right–our duty–to speak up and out on injustice. As we celebrate our nation’s birthday, let’s be grateful for all the gifts and opportunities America has bestowed upon us and fearless in our pursuit to make it a safer, brighter, more welcoming place for all.

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.

aba

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Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Chris Mathews does his pesky best to get Alabama GOP congressional candidate Rick Barber to name names, outline specifics and state his case. Without soundbites and under tough scrutiny, this character shows his true colors: a watered down blend of stupid red, white and blue. I know folks mock me when I talk about mounting the “Smart People Are Making a Comeback” movement, but really, where are they getting these candidates? Why are the only people running crazy, dumb or both?

Barber: “Chris, do you know what a metaphor is? Do you know what hyperbole is?”

Mathews: “Are you a metaphor for a guy running for office or a real candidate?”

Speaking of Repubs grasping for clues, check out Keith Olbermann’ “Special Countdown Comment” on the GOP blocking unemployment extensions in my latest NJP video entry. Video: Olbermann Blasts ‘Screw You’ Economics | NEWS JUNKIE POST

Think I may have to do something drastic. Get those petitions fired up. Design the campaign buttons and cool bumper stickers.

Think a smart girl’s got a chance?

Drive safe. Play nice. Think peace.

aba

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