In my last post regarding the contest, I forgot to tell you where to stick it. By which I mean, I didn't provide a contact address for my loyal reader(s) to send their answers to. It wouldn't just post them on comments, because the next schmuck to come along would just take his one answer and stick it with all 25 of your hard-earned lyrics. We can't have that now, can we?
When you want to send in your answers, put a comment on the original contest post stating that you have sent your answers and the number of answers you think you have correct. Then email the actual answers to me at my already spammed-out address.
So go out there, play hard, play fair and play to win! Goooooo Mighty Ducks!
Update!
No-sword is back! It is a long and bureaucratic story of love, adventure and the loss of DSL service. When you're done reading my blog, I give you permission to read Matt's.
Where Have All the Flametrolls Gone?
I got a nice message when I checked up on my blog this morning, informing me that I (as a free account) can no longer remote link pictures. Why this is, I have no idea. Probably because the remote linked pictures were taking up sooo much space on Blogspots's servers. In any case, the logo is gone and won't be back until I figure how to modify the template myself. Which will be a while, seeing as I am both lazy and employed. Maybe never, really.
Food News of the Day
Since you love cow tongues so much, West Salem, WI is giving you the chance to bob for them.
Flagrant Publicity Scam!
In an attempt to increase readership and writer-audience interaction I am unveiling a new contest. The object will change from time to time, but this week's is about music references. Whoever can identify the most song lyrics from headlines of my posts (song title and artist are each worth one point) will win a link from my page to yours, as well as a virtual round of applause and pat on the back. The contest runs from today (Friday the 4th) until next Friday (the 11th) at 11:59 pm. Go!
Where Are You Going With Your Long Face Pulling Down?
What happened to no-sword.sieve.net? Matt was one of my favorite bloggers. In fact, no-sword inspired me to start my own blog. (*eyes getting misty*)
Now, everytime I try to check it won't load. Someone please tell me he moved his address. I can't believe that the inspiration for Lost In Translation would just close up shop and leave us. Does anybody out there know?
Now, everytime I try to check it won't load. Someone please tell me he moved his address. I can't believe that the inspiration for Lost In Translation would just close up shop and leave us. Does anybody out there know?
Message From Pope John Paul II
I thought this message was cool, especially for those of us who are in college or going to be. According to an email from my friend Heather and zenit.org. It's kind of long but well worth at least skimming.
Papal Message to 8th International Youth Forum
"You Are the Witnesses of Christ in the University"
VATICAN CITY, MARCH 31, 2004 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of John Paul II's message to the participants of the 8th International Youth Forum, being held in Rocca di Papa, near Rome, from today until Sunday.
* * *
1. I should like, first of all, to extend my cordial greetings to all the students who have come together at this time in Rocca di Papa for the eighth "International Youth Forum" on the theme "Young People and the University: Witnessing to Christ in the University World." Your presence is a source of great joy to me, because it is a shining example of the ever-young universal face of the Church. For you have come from five continents, representing over 80 countries and 30 international movements, associations and communities.
And I should also like to greet the rectors, professors and lecturers attending the Forum, as well as the bishops, priests and the laity engaged in the pastoral care of universities, who will be accompanying the students as they reflect over the coming days.
I wish like to express my most sincere thanks to the president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, Archbishop Stanislaw Rylko, and all his co-workers, for convening this welcome event. I vividly recall previous years' Forums organized to coincide with the international celebrations of World Youth Day. For this year it was decided to renew the format, to give the Forum a more clearly defined scope, emphasizing its educational dimension by choosing a specific theme around which to debate one concrete aspect of young people's lives.
The theme for this meeting is certainly highly topical and meets a real need. I am delighted that so many young people, coming from such rich and diverse cultures have gathered at Rocca di Papa to reflect together, to share their experiences, and to embolden one another to bear witness to Christ in the world of higher education.
2. It is important in our age to rediscover the bond that unites the Church to the world of higher education. For the Church not only played a decisive role in founding the first universities, but throughout the centuries she has been a workshop of culture, and continues in the same direction today through the Catholic universities and various forms of presence in the vast world of higher education. The Church sees the university as one of those "workplaces in which man's vocation to acquire knowledge, and the constituent bond of humanity with truth as the purpose of knowledge, become a daily reality" for so many professors, young researchers and generations of students (address to UNESCO, 1980).
Dear students, in the university you are not only recipients of services, but you are the true protagonists of the activities performed there. It is no coincidence that the period spent in higher education is a vital stage in your existence, in which you prepare yourselves to take on the responsibility for decisive choices that will direct the whole of your future life. It is for this reason that you must approach higher education with a searching spirit, to seek the right answers to the essential questions about the meaning of life, happiness and complete self-fulfillment, and beauty as the splendor of truth.
Fortunately, the influence of ideologies and utopias fomented by the messianic atheism that had such an impact in the past on many university environments has waned considerably today. But there are also new schools of thought, which reduce reason to the horizon of experimental science alone, and hence to technical and instrumental knowledge, sometimes enclosing it within a skeptical and nihilistic vision. These attempts to evade the issue of the deepest meaning of existence are not only futile; they can also become dangerous.
3. Through the gift of faith we have met the One who introduces himself with these surprising words: "I am the truth" (John 14:6). Jesus is the truth of the universe and of history, the meaning and the destiny of human existence, the foundation of all reality! It is your responsibility, you who have welcomed this Truth as the vocation and certitude of your lives, to demonstrate its reasonableness in the university environment and in your work there.
The question that then arises is: How deeply does the truth of Christ affect your studies, research, knowledge of reality, and the comprehensive education of the human person? It may happen that, even among those who profess to be Christians, some will behave in the university as if God did not exist. Christianity is not a mere subjective religious preference, which is ultimately irrational, and relegated to the private sphere.
As Christians we are duty-bound to bear witness to what the Second Vatican Council affirmed in "Gaudium et Spes": "For faith throws a new light on everything, manifests God's design for man's total vocation, and thus directs the mind to solutions which are fully human" (No.11). We must demonstrate that faith and reason are not irreconcilable, but that, "Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth" (cf. "Fides et ratio," Introduction).
4. My young friends! You are the disciples and the witnesses of Christ in the university. May your university days be for all of you a period of great spiritual and intellectual maturity, which will lead you to deepen your personal relationship with Christ. But if your faith is linked merely to fragments of tradition, fine sentiments or a generic religious ideology, you will certainly not be able to withstand the impact of the environment you are in. You must therefore seek to keep your Christian identity steadfast, and rooted in the communion of the Church. To do this, you must be nurtured by persevering in prayer.
Whenever possible, seek out sound university professors and lecturers. Do not remain isolated in what are often difficult environments, but play an active part in the life of Church associations, movements and communities operating in the university environment. Draw close to the university parishes, and allow the chaplaincies to help you. You must build the Church within your universities, as a visible community which believes, prays, gives account for our hope, and lovingly welcomes every trace of good, truth and beauty in university life. All this has to be done wherever students live and meet, and not only on the campus. I am certain that the pastors will not fail to devote particular care to ministering to the university environments, and will appoint holy and competent priests to perform this mission.
5. Dear participants at the 8th International Youth Forum, I am happy to know you will be present in St. Peter's Square next Thursday, to meet the young people from the Rome Diocese, and later for the Palm Sunday Mass, when we shall be celebrating together the 19th World Youth Day on the theme "We wish to see Jesus" (John 12:21). It will mark the final stage in the spiritual preparation for the great gathering in Cologne in 2005.
It is not enough to "speak" about Jesus to young undergraduates: we must also "show" Jesus to them, through the eloquent witness of our lives (cf. "Novo Millennio Ineunte," 16). My wish for you is that this Rome meeting will help to strengthen your love for the universal Church and your commitment to serving the university world. I am depending on each and every one of you to hand on to your local Churches and your ecclesial groups the richness of gifts that you are receiving in these intense days here.
Invoking the Virgin Mary, Seat of Wisdom, to protect you on your path, I impart a special heartfelt apostolic blessing on you and on all those -- fellow students, rectors, professors, lecturers, chaplains and administrative staff -- who, with you, make up the great "university community."
From the Vatican, 25 March 2004
IOANNES PAULUS II
[Original text in Italian]
Papal Message to 8th International Youth Forum
"You Are the Witnesses of Christ in the University"
VATICAN CITY, MARCH 31, 2004 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of John Paul II's message to the participants of the 8th International Youth Forum, being held in Rocca di Papa, near Rome, from today until Sunday.
* * *
1. I should like, first of all, to extend my cordial greetings to all the students who have come together at this time in Rocca di Papa for the eighth "International Youth Forum" on the theme "Young People and the University: Witnessing to Christ in the University World." Your presence is a source of great joy to me, because it is a shining example of the ever-young universal face of the Church. For you have come from five continents, representing over 80 countries and 30 international movements, associations and communities.
And I should also like to greet the rectors, professors and lecturers attending the Forum, as well as the bishops, priests and the laity engaged in the pastoral care of universities, who will be accompanying the students as they reflect over the coming days.
I wish like to express my most sincere thanks to the president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, Archbishop Stanislaw Rylko, and all his co-workers, for convening this welcome event. I vividly recall previous years' Forums organized to coincide with the international celebrations of World Youth Day. For this year it was decided to renew the format, to give the Forum a more clearly defined scope, emphasizing its educational dimension by choosing a specific theme around which to debate one concrete aspect of young people's lives.
The theme for this meeting is certainly highly topical and meets a real need. I am delighted that so many young people, coming from such rich and diverse cultures have gathered at Rocca di Papa to reflect together, to share their experiences, and to embolden one another to bear witness to Christ in the world of higher education.
2. It is important in our age to rediscover the bond that unites the Church to the world of higher education. For the Church not only played a decisive role in founding the first universities, but throughout the centuries she has been a workshop of culture, and continues in the same direction today through the Catholic universities and various forms of presence in the vast world of higher education. The Church sees the university as one of those "workplaces in which man's vocation to acquire knowledge, and the constituent bond of humanity with truth as the purpose of knowledge, become a daily reality" for so many professors, young researchers and generations of students (address to UNESCO, 1980).
Dear students, in the university you are not only recipients of services, but you are the true protagonists of the activities performed there. It is no coincidence that the period spent in higher education is a vital stage in your existence, in which you prepare yourselves to take on the responsibility for decisive choices that will direct the whole of your future life. It is for this reason that you must approach higher education with a searching spirit, to seek the right answers to the essential questions about the meaning of life, happiness and complete self-fulfillment, and beauty as the splendor of truth.
Fortunately, the influence of ideologies and utopias fomented by the messianic atheism that had such an impact in the past on many university environments has waned considerably today. But there are also new schools of thought, which reduce reason to the horizon of experimental science alone, and hence to technical and instrumental knowledge, sometimes enclosing it within a skeptical and nihilistic vision. These attempts to evade the issue of the deepest meaning of existence are not only futile; they can also become dangerous.
3. Through the gift of faith we have met the One who introduces himself with these surprising words: "I am the truth" (John 14:6). Jesus is the truth of the universe and of history, the meaning and the destiny of human existence, the foundation of all reality! It is your responsibility, you who have welcomed this Truth as the vocation and certitude of your lives, to demonstrate its reasonableness in the university environment and in your work there.
The question that then arises is: How deeply does the truth of Christ affect your studies, research, knowledge of reality, and the comprehensive education of the human person? It may happen that, even among those who profess to be Christians, some will behave in the university as if God did not exist. Christianity is not a mere subjective religious preference, which is ultimately irrational, and relegated to the private sphere.
As Christians we are duty-bound to bear witness to what the Second Vatican Council affirmed in "Gaudium et Spes": "For faith throws a new light on everything, manifests God's design for man's total vocation, and thus directs the mind to solutions which are fully human" (No.11). We must demonstrate that faith and reason are not irreconcilable, but that, "Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth" (cf. "Fides et ratio," Introduction).
4. My young friends! You are the disciples and the witnesses of Christ in the university. May your university days be for all of you a period of great spiritual and intellectual maturity, which will lead you to deepen your personal relationship with Christ. But if your faith is linked merely to fragments of tradition, fine sentiments or a generic religious ideology, you will certainly not be able to withstand the impact of the environment you are in. You must therefore seek to keep your Christian identity steadfast, and rooted in the communion of the Church. To do this, you must be nurtured by persevering in prayer.
Whenever possible, seek out sound university professors and lecturers. Do not remain isolated in what are often difficult environments, but play an active part in the life of Church associations, movements and communities operating in the university environment. Draw close to the university parishes, and allow the chaplaincies to help you. You must build the Church within your universities, as a visible community which believes, prays, gives account for our hope, and lovingly welcomes every trace of good, truth and beauty in university life. All this has to be done wherever students live and meet, and not only on the campus. I am certain that the pastors will not fail to devote particular care to ministering to the university environments, and will appoint holy and competent priests to perform this mission.
5. Dear participants at the 8th International Youth Forum, I am happy to know you will be present in St. Peter's Square next Thursday, to meet the young people from the Rome Diocese, and later for the Palm Sunday Mass, when we shall be celebrating together the 19th World Youth Day on the theme "We wish to see Jesus" (John 12:21). It will mark the final stage in the spiritual preparation for the great gathering in Cologne in 2005.
It is not enough to "speak" about Jesus to young undergraduates: we must also "show" Jesus to them, through the eloquent witness of our lives (cf. "Novo Millennio Ineunte," 16). My wish for you is that this Rome meeting will help to strengthen your love for the universal Church and your commitment to serving the university world. I am depending on each and every one of you to hand on to your local Churches and your ecclesial groups the richness of gifts that you are receiving in these intense days here.
Invoking the Virgin Mary, Seat of Wisdom, to protect you on your path, I impart a special heartfelt apostolic blessing on you and on all those -- fellow students, rectors, professors, lecturers, chaplains and administrative staff -- who, with you, make up the great "university community."
From the Vatican, 25 March 2004
IOANNES PAULUS II
[Original text in Italian]
Alert!: Boring Political Commentary
Al Gore gave a speech today that everybody on the radio is buzzing about. (Audio link comes from MoveOn.org)
The first I heard about it was on Rush Limbaugh. A listener called in and compared Al Gore to that kid who already graduated from high school but still hangs around the parking lot trying to impress people. At that point I had no idea what she was referring to (although I think the metaphor was pretty accurate of Gore in general).
Later, though, I heard actual audio clips of Gore's speech (I haven't waded through the entire 59 minutes of it and probably won't). Say what you want about the war in Iraq, Gore was going overboard. At the top of his lungs, he was calling for the resignation of basically every member of the Bush administration that touched the war in any regard.
Ok, so lots of liberals are calling for the resignation of administration officials. That's nothing really new. What struck me wasn't the speech itself. It was the reactions of the conservatives in the media (by which I mean the three I've heard so far: Rush, Sean Hannity and George Will). They were saying things like "Can you believe he could have been president?", "This is why he wasn't elected.", etc. Don't they remember what they said just three and a half years ago? The way I see it, one speech like this would have made him president. For months during the 2000 campaign, people complained that Gore was as dry as sandpaper in a Mormon township. Pundits said that he had to show that he was passionate about something. Well, this MoveOn.org speech showed passion I've never heard in his voice. Where was that in 2000?
I'm going to make up some math right now on the spot to prove my point. According to the 2000 cencus, the population of Florida was 16 million people. Lets say 2/3 of those people are actually eligible to vote. That makes about 10.6 million people. According to stats I'm sure I read somewhere, only about 50% of people voted in the 2000 presidential election. That leaves 5.3 million voters. Bush won Florida by about 450 votes. So a change of 250 votes from Bush to Gore would have changed the election from Bush to Gore with some to spare. 250 votes is roughly .005% of all votes cast.
Could a little bit of personality have changed .005% of peoples' opinions? Well, look at it this way. That percentage equals roughly 5 in 100,000 people. Now think of all the people you know. Surely you don't have 100,000 friends (except my friend Marianne, but she doesn't count). But of all the people you know, surely at least 2-3 of them are the kind of people (coughmoroncough) who voted for the guy whose campaign commercial they heard last.
So, basically what I'm trying to say with all these fuzzy numbers is that anything Gore did in the last election to make himself look like a human being would probably have won it for him.
Don't you love the American political system?
The first I heard about it was on Rush Limbaugh. A listener called in and compared Al Gore to that kid who already graduated from high school but still hangs around the parking lot trying to impress people. At that point I had no idea what she was referring to (although I think the metaphor was pretty accurate of Gore in general).
Later, though, I heard actual audio clips of Gore's speech (I haven't waded through the entire 59 minutes of it and probably won't). Say what you want about the war in Iraq, Gore was going overboard. At the top of his lungs, he was calling for the resignation of basically every member of the Bush administration that touched the war in any regard.
Ok, so lots of liberals are calling for the resignation of administration officials. That's nothing really new. What struck me wasn't the speech itself. It was the reactions of the conservatives in the media (by which I mean the three I've heard so far: Rush, Sean Hannity and George Will). They were saying things like "Can you believe he could have been president?", "This is why he wasn't elected.", etc. Don't they remember what they said just three and a half years ago? The way I see it, one speech like this would have made him president. For months during the 2000 campaign, people complained that Gore was as dry as sandpaper in a Mormon township. Pundits said that he had to show that he was passionate about something. Well, this MoveOn.org speech showed passion I've never heard in his voice. Where was that in 2000?
I'm going to make up some math right now on the spot to prove my point. According to the 2000 cencus, the population of Florida was 16 million people. Lets say 2/3 of those people are actually eligible to vote. That makes about 10.6 million people. According to stats I'm sure I read somewhere, only about 50% of people voted in the 2000 presidential election. That leaves 5.3 million voters. Bush won Florida by about 450 votes. So a change of 250 votes from Bush to Gore would have changed the election from Bush to Gore with some to spare. 250 votes is roughly .005% of all votes cast.
Could a little bit of personality have changed .005% of peoples' opinions? Well, look at it this way. That percentage equals roughly 5 in 100,000 people. Now think of all the people you know. Surely you don't have 100,000 friends (except my friend Marianne, but she doesn't count). But of all the people you know, surely at least 2-3 of them are the kind of people (coughmoroncough) who voted for the guy whose campaign commercial they heard last.
So, basically what I'm trying to say with all these fuzzy numbers is that anything Gore did in the last election to make himself look like a human being would probably have won it for him.
Don't you love the American political system?
Reunited and It Feels So Good…
Last Friday, a group of my friends who just got back from college reunited their high school band Cadence. The concert was great. They opened with "Rain" and the sky just about did the same (the concert was outdoors).
The big surprise came during "Fading Away." Normally, Ben the drummer abandons his drums to Paul and freestyles as the rest of the band jams. This time Ben opened the rapping, then handed it off to Jason. I've never heard Jason rap before, but he was amazing. From now on, he shall be Jase Face Killa (the bleached blond white guy).
As the show wrapped up, the sky got dark in the west. It started gusting and pouring like The Day After Tomorrow. We all wanted to scramble for cover, but we had to help the bands pick up their stuff (Barlow Girl played afterwards). A roadie for Barlow Girl had me literally holding down the merchandise tent for about 15 minutes. Since I didn't have any free hands to defend myself, two of my friends decided it would be a good idea to poke my face as I stood there. (Thank you Sarah and Kate. I will release your email addresses if I don't get an apology soon.) I was waiting for a gust to pick me up and carry me off like some kind of merch-pilfering Mary Poppins. (Side note: Alliteration is the key to sounding witty when you have nothing to say.)
Anyway, if this entry bored you out of your mind, go to myepiphany.com and listen to some good music from Jason's new band Epiphany.
EDIT: This link doesn't seem to work. I'll find the site and fix it as soon as I can.
EDIT AGAIN: It works now. Ourepiphany.com, not myepiphany.
The big surprise came during "Fading Away." Normally, Ben the drummer abandons his drums to Paul and freestyles as the rest of the band jams. This time Ben opened the rapping, then handed it off to Jason. I've never heard Jason rap before, but he was amazing. From now on, he shall be Jase Face Killa (the bleached blond white guy).
As the show wrapped up, the sky got dark in the west. It started gusting and pouring like The Day After Tomorrow. We all wanted to scramble for cover, but we had to help the bands pick up their stuff (Barlow Girl played afterwards). A roadie for Barlow Girl had me literally holding down the merchandise tent for about 15 minutes. Since I didn't have any free hands to defend myself, two of my friends decided it would be a good idea to poke my face as I stood there. (Thank you Sarah and Kate. I will release your email addresses if I don't get an apology soon.) I was waiting for a gust to pick me up and carry me off like some kind of merch-pilfering Mary Poppins. (Side note: Alliteration is the key to sounding witty when you have nothing to say.)
Anyway, if this entry bored you out of your mind, go to myepiphany.com and listen to some good music from Jason's new band Epiphany.
EDIT: This link doesn't seem to work. I'll find the site and fix it as soon as I can.
EDIT AGAIN: It works now. Ourepiphany.com, not myepiphany.
Typo of the Day!
I found this as I was wandering through some of the other great blogs on blogspot.com. (You really should go see some of them as soon as you're done with mine.) This gem was at Nosebleed Section 2000.
"See I can't leave the food out on my porch because my landlady, Wendy, who lives in the apartment behind me is allegoric to cats."
"See I can't leave the food out on my porch because my landlady, Wendy, who lives in the apartment behind me is allegoric to cats."
Newsflash: I am a Jerk
A guy came to my door today at about 5 o'clock. He was carrying a bag with several well-worn Bibles. His shirt and hat both said "Word of God" on them. He started by asking if I was a man of peace. When I said that I was, he asked if I would shake his hand. I did. From here out, dialogue will be easier than commentary.
Him: Are you a person with patience?
Me: It could use some help, I'm sure.
H: [hands me a two page handwritten pamphlet with a list of a good 40-50 Bible passages on the front] When you finished reading those would you have more patience?
M: Probably.
H: I can tell you're a man of patience, just because you're listening to me. Now, If someone needs something and you give it to them, isn't that a good work?
M: Yes
H: You know the Bible says that whatever you do for another of God's people you do for Him?
M: Yes.
H: [Holds up his bag. It has that picture on it] What's he doing?
M: Knocking.
H: In Revelation 13: 20, Jesus says he is knocking at the door, just like I'm doing right now. [Sees that I'm wearing my Kyrios cross] What does that thing on your neck mean?
M: Christianity… I'm Catholic. (To his credit, he didn't care.)
H: Now what's on the outside reflects what's in the heart, right?
M: Yes.
H: So if what's on the outside isn't in the heart, it's fake, right?[Guilt trip, I hate that.]
M: Yeah.
He went on to explain that he lived in a tent (the address was on the pamphlet) and ran a Bible study. When I didn't give him money, he asked if I would go to his Bible study. Not wanting to be rude, I told him "I don't know, maybe." He pulled out his Bible and showed me James 5:12 "Let your 'Yes' be yes, and your 'No,' no." I didn't think that that passage was speaking out against the word "maybe", but I didn't want to argue exegesis on my front steps. I gave in and told him no, I probably wouldn't go to his Bible study. He was ok with that and left. I told him I'd pray for him, and I will.
The problem now is that I fee like a piece of crap. I have no doubt that he was legit. He knew the Bible too well and was too good of a speaker to be a junkie. I kind of wish I had given him something.
Man, in hindsight, I never do anything right.
Watcha Got? (Lay it down on me?)
"There are tons of Metallica tributes, Creed tributes, '80's hair metal cover bands, and what have you."
This is a quote from my last post. As I was reading over it, I just had to wonder "What the heck does 'what have you' mean, anyway?" Lots of people use that term (it seems especially popular among older people, along with "Take it easy now," "When I was your age…," and "Dadgummit") but I don't know if anyone has any idea what it means.
This is a quote from my last post. As I was reading over it, I just had to wonder "What the heck does 'what have you' mean, anyway?" Lots of people use that term (it seems especially popular among older people, along with "Take it easy now," "When I was your age…," and "Dadgummit") but I don't know if anyone has any idea what it means.
What if They Came in Crashing?
I was driving home last night, when I passed a local bar and grill. (That in itself isn't unusual; it's always been there.) But their sign noted that Crash, a Dave Matthews tribute band, was going to be playing there this week. It struck me that I've never heard of a Dave Matthews tribute band. There are tons of Metallica tributes, Creed tributes, '80's hair metal cover bands, and what have you. With scientific precision and a good 5 minutes of mulling, I formulated a theory.
Ergo, that logic leads me to the conclusion that they must be lousy songwriters. (Meanwhile, somewhere in Greece, Socrates rolls over in a long-forgotten grave.)
I probably won't go see Crash, even though it intrigues me. It's at a bar, and I can't stand smoke or drunks. And, being 18, I'm not even sure they'll let me in.
And now that I've made myself look like a hopeless DMB fanboy, I think it's time to change the subject.
- How many people are good enough guitarists to play Dave's music? A lot of tribute bands cover music that's heavy on the power chords and screaming, rather than intricate strumming and picking. OK, it wouldn't be too tough to learn, but…
- …Of those, how many can sing even vaguely like Dave's 2-pack-a-day growl and still hit the high notes?
- And how many of those people know a really good electric violin and saxophone player? Also, I doubt if there are many people anywhere who can drum like Carter.
- And, come on, if you're really that good what are you doing covering someone else music? You should be out there making your own.
Ergo, that logic leads me to the conclusion that they must be lousy songwriters. (Meanwhile, somewhere in Greece, Socrates rolls over in a long-forgotten grave.)
I probably won't go see Crash, even though it intrigues me. It's at a bar, and I can't stand smoke or drunks. And, being 18, I'm not even sure they'll let me in.
And now that I've made myself look like a hopeless DMB fanboy, I think it's time to change the subject.
