1. Open up iTunes, and select the Music tab under Library.
2. Click the shuffle icon in the lower left.
3. Place your cursor in the search box in the upper right.
4. This will filter your entire library of music by genre, album, artist or song.
5. Type in any word; I went with “lily”.
6. Play any song in the results. (Lily Allen’s “Smile”)
7. While that song’s playing, type in a word that’s in the genre, album, artist or song.
8. When your song finishes, a random song in the new list will play.
9. Return to step 7.
My results:
“lily” -> Lily Allen – Smile
“smile” -> Everclear – Chemical Smile
“chemical” -> My Chemical Romance – Blood
“blood” -> The Bloodhound Gang – Most Likely to Suck
“suck” -> Wu-Tang Clan – Sucker MC’s
“mc” -> Cass McCombs – I Went to the Hospital
“hospital” -> The Beastie Boys – Sneakin’ Out the Hospital
3:10 PM – I was walking south on Alumni Rd from my office to the corner gas station to get a midday beverage and snack. I saw what might have been either a mouse or a chipmunk begin to hop across the street from the west side to the east side. A southbound car passed me and braked to avoid hitting the animal. It continued on, shaken, into the northbound lane. A car approached. Its last hop was into the front driver’s side hubcap of the car. Dead. Suddenly. I had a large mocha Starbucks iced coffee drink and a peanut butter Nature Valley granola bar.
OK, Boeing… I get it. You sponsor NBC’s Meet the Press podcast. You have lots of employees and you have a website. I hear the ad before and after every podcast. You win. I’m aware of you. You’re not just some corporation, you have people working for you… honest-to-goodness blue collar Joes. But you’re not going to get me, Boeing. I’M NOT BUYING A FUCKING AIRPLANE!
Here’s where Zeke and I will be going on our May 19th and 20th Weekend Baseball Trip.
On Saturday, May 19th, we’ll be seeing my Orioles visit the Nationals in good ol’ D.C.
Our seats in Section 412 at RFK:
The view from our seats:
Then, on Sunday, May 20th, we’ll be seeing the last Canadian team in baseball, the Toronto Blue Jays, fly into Philadelphia to meet the Phillies.
Our seats in Section 115 at Citizens Bank Ballpark:
The view from our seats:
In Washington, D.C. they have license plates that bear the slogan, “Taxation without representation”. This of course calls back to the days of elementary school when we learn back about the days of the Revolutionary War (where they called back to the days of the Bible). The phrase then was “no taxation without representation”; a snappy ultimatum combining all the charm of “Ho-ho Ho Chi Minh, Vietcong will never win” with the Declaration of the Rights of Man. The idea was that jolly old England ought not be chargin’ citizens of the crown without giving them their fair say in what goes on. This concept is often cited among the sparks for the revolution, and is often cited as overrated by smart-ass Revolutionary War historians.
Some will say that the rallying cry was merely a ploy to instill a sense of investment in rebellion among common folk. It was more likely an excuse for already rich tea barons and barrel makers to complain about taxes. Tea barons were the divas of the 1770′s fiscal scene. Regardless of its origins, the phrase persists in our history books and our mythology for different reasons.
More interesting is what can be inferred by the words “no taxation without representation”. Ostensibly, the gist is that the people refuse to be taxed by a government without receiving a voice in that government via representation. To continue this line of reasoning, wouldn’t it follow that representation is being paid for? To imply that taxation is tantamount to a crime when not followed by a vote, is analogous to a customer demanding goods after being charged admission. Does this mean that representation is for sale by a government and purchased by those who pay taxes?
People are said to have certain inalienable rights as is written in our founding literature. Is a voice in government (via representation) one of them? There have been many barriers to voting in the past that have all been deemed archaic and anti-democratic like property ownership, literacy tests, racial and gender requirements and, currently, felony convictions. If someone were to protest by not paying taxes to a government they believed was corrupt or immoral, would they still be allowed, as a citizen, to vote?
It seems that saying “I will not be taxed unless I am given a vote” leaves tremendous opportunity for a government to respond, “you will be given a vote when you pay your taxes.” Perhaps D.C.’s plates aren’t the snarky sarcasm I initially believed them to be. Maybe they are just proud of their caution in blurring the lines between taxes, representation, democracy and paid admission.
I spit on your spit.
I piss on your spit.
I shit on your piss.
I fart on your shit.
I laugh at your fart.
We are friends again!
Hey!
[Repeat]
